Your Digital Marketing Coach with Neal Schaffer

Neal Schaffer
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  • MARKETING
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

As Your Digital Marketing Coach, I am on a mission to provide you marketing professionals, agencies, entrepreneurs, and business owners expert advice, both from myself as well as my expert guests, on how to leverage Digital First Marketing to grow your business, one episode at a time, This podcast will include advice on a broad range of topics all with the commonality of being related to digital marketing and having actionable takeaways for your business. Topics discussed will include digital marketing, social media marketing, content marketing, influencer marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), blogging, podcasting, YouTube, video marketing, email marketing, marketing automation, artificial intelligence and Generative AI, as well as how to maximize digital marketing ROI from social media on sites like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, and TikTok.

  1. APR 20

    Stop Treating LinkedIn Like Social Media: Introducing the 4-Cylinder LinkedIn Business Engine

    LinkedIn in 2026 isn't social media — and if you're still treating it like Instagram's boring cousin, you're leaving the biggest opportunity in B2B marketing on the table. Four out of five LinkedIn members drive business decisions, but only about 5% of them post strategically. That's not a crowded room. That's a wide-open one. In this episode, I share the most engaging parts of the keynote I am delivering this week at the Digital Marketing Summit at Nova Southeastern University — including the Business Engine Framework for LinkedIn that I built the talk around, and why LinkedIn is now the one platform where search, email, and social actually converge. Tune in to discover: Why your LinkedIn profile needs to function like an inbound landing page, not a resume — and the 220-character headline test that tells you if yours is workingThe four cylinders of the LinkedIn Business Engine (profile, network, content, relationships) and why most marketers are running on just one or twoThe 95/5 rule that should change how you think about every connection request you sendWhy LinkedIn is now the #1 most cited domain for professional queries across ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, Perplexity, and Google's AI Overviews — and what that means for your long-form content strategyThe 50/50 content mix and the 90/10 rule for why your personal profile should carry 90% of your LinkedIn activityThe Butterfly Effect case study: how one CEO built $2.6M in revenue with no sales team, no cold outreach, no ads — just LinkedInA 30-day, one-cylinder-at-a-time plan you can start this weekDownload your free copy of the 1st edition of Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth here. If this episode helped you see LinkedIn differently, please leave a review on your favorite podcast app, share it with a colleague who needs to hear it, and subscribe so you don't miss what's coming next. Learn More: Buy Digital Threads: https://nealschaffer.com/digitalthreadsamazonBuy Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth: https://nealschaffer.com/maximizinglinkedinamazonJoin My Digital First Mastermind: https://nealschaffer.com/membership/ Learn about My Fractional CMO Consulting Services: https://nealschaffer.com/cmoDownload My Free Ebooks Here: https://nealschaffer.com/books/Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/nealschafferAll My Podcast Show Notes: https://podcast.nealschaffer.com

    16 min

  2. APR 16

    10 Social Media Principles That Work for MrBeast's Beast Games, Lord of the Rings, and Your Business

    Most businesses treat social media like a task to check off. Post something, hope it performs, repeat. But according to today's guest, that's exactly why most businesses are getting mediocre results — because social media isn't a task. It's a craft. I sit down with Jon-Stephen Stansel — social media manager turned entertainment industry freelancer and author of The 10 Principles of Effective Social Media Marketing — for a conversation about what actually works on social media in 2026. Jon-Stephen has managed social for Texas State University, worked on Prime Video's Invincible, Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, the Avatar franchise, and is currently working on Beast Games for MrBeast. Through all of it, he's distilled social media into 10 principles inspired by designer Dieter Rams — evergreen enough to be true a decade ago and still true today. We cover why goals — not followers or viral moments — are the only real starting point, why audience alignment needs to happen before any content gets created, how to find and hire the right social media help without getting burned, how to measure social media success in a way that actually means something to your business, and why the most important principle of all is that social media is fundamentally human — even in the age of AI. If you've ever wondered why your social media efforts aren't translating into real business results, this episode will show you where to look. KEY TOPICS Jon-Stephen's career path: from ESL teacher to university social media manager to entertainment industry freelancerHow a personal brand on Twitter led to a freelance career working on Invincible, Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, Avatar, and Beast Games for MrBeastThe inspiration behind The 10 Principles of Effective Social Media Marketing — Dieter Rams' 10 Principles of Good DesignWhy goals are the foundation of any social media strategy — and how to make them realisticThe Texas Department of Transportation example: when C-suite goals and audience needs don't alignWhy audience alignment must come before content creation — not afterHow Jon-Stephen researches audiences: Reddit, burner Facebook accounts, fan communities, and tools like BrandwatchHow to find a passionate audience even for a brand nobody is talking about yet (the "fandels" scented candle community example)Why social media is a craft, not a chore — and what that means for who you hireThe social media mechanic analogy: you can pump the gas, but sometimes you need an expertWhere to find good social media help: LinkedIn, community referrals, and spotting brands doing it wellRed flags when hiring: promises that sound too good to be true and bought followersWhat to prepare before handing social over to anyone: brand voice documents and tone guidelinesHow to align social media metrics with business goals — and why follower count Learn More: Buy Digital Threads: https://nealschaffer.com/digitalthreadsamazonBuy Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth: https://nealschaffer.com/maximizinglinkedinamazonJoin My Digital First Mastermind: https://nealschaffer.com/membership/ Learn about My Fractional CMO Consulting Services: https://nealschaffer.com/cmoDownload My Free Ebooks Here: https://nealschaffer.com/books/Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/nealschafferAll My Podcast Show Notes: https://podcast.nealschaffer.com

    44 min

  3. APR 11

    People Not Prompts: The Marketing System AI Can’t Replicate

    Two years ago, 60% of consumers said they were fine with AI-generated content. Today that number has dropped to 26%. Consumers are rejecting AI content faster than marketers can create it — and the brands that ignore this are paying a steep price. In this episode, I'm sharing the full breakdown of the keynote I delivered at DigiMarCon West in Hollywood — a presentation called People, Not Prompts. It's built around the SES framework from my book Digital Threads: Search, Email, and Social working together as one connected system. But more importantly, it's about the layer on top of that system that AI simply cannot replicate: people. I walk through why the bottleneck in marketing has shifted from execution to strategy, what the SES framework looks like with an updated AI-era lens, how brands like Lego, Levi's, and Intuit got burned by going all in on AI without a strategy, and how LinkedIn has become the single platform where search, email, social, and people all converge. Plus — I'm giving away a free copy of Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth to podcast listeners and YouTube viewers. Details inside. KEY TOPICS Why consumer trust in AI-generated content has dropped from 60% to 26% in two yearsHow 78% of consumers now say they trust content featuring real people over AI-generated contentThree brand cautionary tales: Lego's AI Ninjago images, Levi's AI diversity models, and Intuit's TurboTax AI advisorWhy the bottleneck in marketing has shifted from execution to strategyIntroduction to the SES framework: Search, Email, and Social as three connected pillarsPillar 1 — Search: building a library of content for the entire discovery layer (Google, ChatGPT, TikTok)ChatGPT's 900 million weekly active users and AI search visitors converting at 4.4x the rate of organic searchGenerative Engine Optimization (GEO) and Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) — the new content gameOnly 12% of URLs cited by AI rank in Google's top 10 — why this is a different game from traditional SEOPillar 2 — Email: why 98 out of 100 website visitors leave without converting and how to fix itEmail ROI: $36–$44 per $1 spent, 4.24% conversion rate vs. social media's 0.59%Pillar 3 — Social: platform-authentic content, the zero-click approach, and the Duolingo exampleThe Duolingo 'Death of Duo' campaign and its 25,000% increase in brand mentionsThe people ecosystem: employees, customers, partners, and creators as your content layerUGC stats: 88% peer trust, 137% higher purchase likelihood, 161% higher conversion ratesDeloitte's 250-person internal creator program: 400M impressions, 10,000 leads, $13M earned mediaWhy LinkedIn is the proof of concept for the entire SCS frameworkLinkedIn as the #1 most-cited domain across ChatGPT, Gemini, Copilot, and PerplexityLearn More: Buy Digital Threads: https://nealschaffer.com/digitalthreadsamazonBuy Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth: https://nealschaffer.com/maximizinglinkedinamazonJoin My Digital First Mastermind: https://nealschaffer.com/membership/ Learn about My Fractional CMO Consulting Services: https://nealschaffer.com/cmoDownload My Free Ebooks Here: https://nealschaffer.com/books/Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/nealschafferAll My Podcast Show Notes: https://podcast.nealschaffer.com

    22 min

  4. APR 6

    The Biggest Mistake Marketers Make with Visual Content (And the Simple Fix)

    I've been saying for years that marketing is increasingly visual — whether it's social media, YouTube, websites, or even AI-generated content. But most of us aren't designers, and we're winging it when it comes to visual branding. My guest today is Jim MacLeod, author of The Visual Marketer, and he's someone I've known for about a decade — back when I co-founded the Social Tools Summit and invited him to speak about visual social media from a B2B perspective. Jim has a rare combination of graphic design expertise and deep marketing strategy knowledge, and in this conversation he breaks down how to think about visual identity from a customer-first perspective, why consistency matters more than creativity when building your brand, and how to align your visual content strategy with actual customer research. Whether you're a solopreneur designing your own graphics in Canva or a marketing leader managing a creative team, this episode will change how you think about the visuals that represent your business. KEY TOPICS: Jim's career path from graphic designer to B2B marketing strategist at Extreme NetworksWhy designers who understand the end customer produce dramatically better marketing assetsHow to develop a visual brand identity that resonates with your audience, not just looks goodThe importance of customer research and focus groups in shaping your brand identityWhy consistency matters more than creativity — and when to resist the urge to rebrandRepurposing visual content: building a content calendar around a pillar piece with pre- and post-promotionWhen to brand heavily vs. when to keep it subtle (thought leadership vs. solution content)Applying lean startup thinking to visual content strategy and product developmentHow people visually move through an image and why that matters for engagementTools and approaches for non-designers to create effective visual marketingRESOURCES & LINKS: The Visual Marketer by Jim MacLeod —https://amzn.to/4vc1BWn Visual Marketer website: https://visualmarketer.coJim MacLeod's website: https://jimmacleod.comJim on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jimmacleodLearn More: Buy Digital Threads: https://nealschaffer.com/digitalthreadsamazonBuy Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth: https://nealschaffer.com/maximizinglinkedinamazonJoin My Digital First Mastermind: https://nealschaffer.com/membership/ Learn about My Fractional CMO Consulting Services: https://nealschaffer.com/cmoDownload My Free Ebooks Here: https://nealschaffer.com/books/Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/nealschafferAll My Podcast Show Notes: https://podcast.nealschaffer.com

    39 min

  5. MAR 25

    Stop Using AI Like a Search Engine — Build a Flywheel Instead

    You're using AI every day — but is it actually getting smarter about your business? For most marketers, the answer is no, because they're treating AI like a search engine instead of a workspace. In this episode, I break down the AI Workflow Flywheel that I have developed for my own business — a compound-momentum system that makes every AI conversation build on the last, so your output gets better and faster over time. If you've ever wondered why some marketers seem to get 10x more value from the same AI tools you're using, this is the episode that closes that gap. Tune in to discover: Shift your operating system: Move your daily workflows from your inbox (reactive) into AI conversations (proactive) to change how you approach every projectBuild the four-stage flywheel: Front-load context → AI learns your business → output quality improves → reinvest time savings into higher-value workClose the adoption-integration gap: 91% of marketers use AI, but it touches only 15% of actual marketing activities — learn to go from occasional user to fully integrated operatorAvoid the two biggest AI mistakes: Stop treating AI as a one-off tool (build projects, not prompts) and stop bouncing between platforms without committing to oneMove from prompt engineering to context engineering: Develop project instructions, upload files, evolve conversations over time — and let the AI's accumulated context do the heavy liftingFollow the 5-step action plan: Pick one workflow, open a dedicated project, front-load context, collaborate (don't just request), and come back to the same conversation next timeLinks Mentioned in This Episode: Good to Great by Jim Collins — https://amzn.to/4t5GvXHTurning the Flywheel by Jim Collins - https://amzn.to/4sBy3QjJasper State of AI in Marketing Report 2026 — https://www.jasper.ai/state-of-ai-marketing-2026CMO Survey (Duke Fuqua / Deloitte / AMA) — https://cmosurvey.org/Nvidia State of AI Report 2026 — https://blogs.nvidia.com/blog/state-of-ai-report-2026/Typing Mind (multi-model comparison tool) — https://www.typingmind.com/Claude by Anthropic — https://claude.ai/If this episode helped you rethink how you use AI, share it with a colleague who's still treating ChatGPT like a search engine. Subscribe to the podcast so you never miss an episode, and leave a review — it helps other marketers find the show. For more frameworks, strategies, and weekly insights, visit nealschaffer.com. Learn More: Buy Digital Threads: https://nealschaffer.com/digitalthreadsamazonBuy Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth: https://nealschaffer.com/maximizinglinkedinamazonJoin My Digital First Mastermind: https://nealschaffer.com/membership/ Learn about My Fractional CMO Consulting Services: https://nealschaffer.com/cmoDownload My Free Ebooks Here: https://nealschaffer.com/books/Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/nealschafferAll My Podcast Show Notes: https://podcast.nealschaffer.com

    24 min

  6. MAR 19

    From Funnels to Pinballs: A Human-First Framework for Building Brand Trust in the Age of AI

    In a marketing world increasingly driven by AI-generated content and data dashboards, it's easy to start treating customers like data points instead of people. Phil Treagus-Evans — founder of UK social media agency Giraffe Social and author of Human First Marketing: The Art of Being Seen, Trusted and Remembered — makes a compelling case for why human-first marketing isn't just a philosophy. It's a competitive advantage. In this episode, Phil and I dig into what it really means to understand your audience (hint: it goes well beyond the customer avatar), why Phil believes the traditional marketing funnel is built on a fiction, and what a pinball machine (for those that remember what one is!) has to do with the modern buyer journey. You'll also hear Phil's take on where AI helps marketers — and where it quietly undermines everything they're trying to build. Whether you're a solopreneur, a corporate marketer, or an agency owner, this episode will give you a new mental model for how customers actually move toward a purchase — and what you can do about it. KEY TOPICS DISCUSSED Why Phil started a social media agency "by accident" and what Giraffe Social does todayDefining human-first marketing and why it's gaining urgency in the AI eraThe EMPATH framework: a customer understanding model that goes beyond the personaA quick, free exercise for mapping customer emotions using reviews and AI analysisThe problem with the traditional marketing funnel — and the Pinball Method that replaces itPersonal branding as a company growth engine, not just a vanity playEmployee advocacy: why "employee hostage" doesn't work, and what doesWhere AI is genuinely useful in a human-first marketing strategy — and where to draw the lineWhy Phil wrote a 92,000-word book as an agency founder, and who Giraffe works withRESOURCES & LINKS Buy Human First Marketing: The Art of Being Seen, Trusted and RememberedConnect with Phil on LinkedInCheck Out Phil's Agency Giraffe SocialLearn More: Buy Digital Threads: https://nealschaffer.com/digitalthreadsamazonBuy Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth: https://nealschaffer.com/maximizinglinkedinamazonJoin My Digital First Mastermind: https://nealschaffer.com/membership/ Learn about My Fractional CMO Consulting Services: https://nealschaffer.com/cmoDownload My Free Ebooks Here: https://nealschaffer.com/books/Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/nealschafferAll My Podcast Show Notes: https://podcast.nealschaffer.com

    40 min

  7. JAN 6

    How AI Forced Me to Rewrite My Entire LinkedIn Strategy

    Note: This is Episode 442, published January 6, 2026. You published a book, it hit #1, and the reviews were phenomenal. In the digital marketing world, that’s usually where you take a victory lap. But then the AI revolution happened. Over the last year, the fundamental ways we build relationships and create content on LinkedIn have shifted so dramatically that I knew a simple "tweak" wouldn't cut it. I’ve spent the last several months obsessively updating Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth to reflect the 2026 landscape. This isn't just a minor update—it's a 70% expansion featuring five entirely new chapters. In this episode, I’m pulling back the curtain on the exact strategies I added to help you stay visible, professional, and profitable. Tune in to discover: The AI "Ask Neal" Framework: My exact process for creating AI content that actually resonates with humans.The CRM Solution: Why your LinkedIn inbox is a "black hole" and how to fix it with a personal CRM system.Paid vs. Free: A definitive breakdown of when you should pay for Premium and when you should save your money.Evergreen ROI: Real-world case studies of professionals who turned simple profile optimizations into five-figure income shifts.Key Highlights: [03:25] The Decision Tree: How to choose between LinkedIn Free, Premium, and Sales Navigator.[04:40] Content Formats: Why some "tried and true" posts are now being deprioritized by the algorithm.[05:55] Beyond Robotic AI: Using headshot generators and LLMs to enhance—not replace—your personal brand.[07:20] The DM Epiphany: Why your next big opportunity is likely already buried in your inbox.[13:10] Expert Endorsements: Why industry leaders like Joe Pulizzi and Jon Ferrara consider this a "Masterclass."Links: Order the New Expanded Edition: [https://nealschaffer.com/maximizinglinkedinamazon]Learn More: Buy Digital Threads: https://nealschaffer.com/digitalthreadsamazonBuy Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth: https://nealschaffer.com/maximizinglinkedinamazonJoin My Digital First Mastermind: https://nealschaffer.com/membership/ Learn about My Fractional CMO Consulting Services: https://nealschaffer.com/cmoDownload My Free Ebooks Here: https://nealschaffer.com/books/Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/nealschafferAll My Podcast Show Notes: https://podcast.nealschaffer.com

    19 min

  8. JAN 2

    Agentic AI: Build Your "Micro-Agency" of One

    Most people are still "chatting" with AI. They put in a prompt, they get an answer, and they move on. But while the rest of the world is dabbling, the top 1% of marketers are building Agentic Workflows. They aren't just using AI to write; they are using it to act. Today, I’m joined by Matt Collette, founder of Sequencr.ai. Matt has a background at Ogilvy and Edelman, and he’s here to show us how to move from being an AI novice to an AI architect. We’re talking about the "Micro-Agency of One"—a way to use autonomous agents to scale your output and strategy without ever hiring a team. Tune in to discover: The Expert Gap: Why 80% of marketers are "dabblers" and how to join the expert tier.Instruction Layering: The secret to using separate files to hardcode logic into your AI agents.Autonomous Research: Why tools like Manus.im are the new gold standard for deep business analysis.The Synthetic Audience Hack: How to use the Code Interpreter to "game out" your marketing strategy across dozens of segments in seconds.Key Highlights: [08:15] Why most users are severely under-utilizing Gen AI.[16:40] Chat Hygiene: How to prevent your AI from getting "confused" over time.[22:10] Creating "If-Then" logic for reliable marketing execution.[36:20] Using Code Interpreter to scale your message testing 50x.[42:15] The 2026 Edge: How to maintain strategic differentiation in an AI world.Guest Links: Sequencr.aiConnect with Matt on LinkedInLearn More: Buy Digital Threads: https://nealschaffer.com/digitalthreadsamazonBuy Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth: https://nealschaffer.com/maximizinglinkedinamazonJoin My Digital First Mastermind: https://nealschaffer.com/membership/ Learn about My Fractional CMO Consulting Services: https://nealschaffer.com/cmoDownload My Free Ebooks Here: https://nealschaffer.com/books/Subscribe to my YouTube Channel: https://youtube.com/nealschafferAll My Podcast Show Notes: https://podcast.nealschaffer.com

    54 min
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As Your Digital Marketing Coach, I am on a mission to provide you marketing professionals, agencies, entrepreneurs, and business owners expert advice, both from myself as well as my expert guests, on how to leverage Digital First Marketing to grow your business, one episode at a time, This podcast will include advice on a broad range of topics all with the commonality of being related to digital marketing and having actionable takeaways for your business. Topics discussed will include digital marketing, social media marketing, content marketing, influencer marketing, search engine optimization (SEO), search engine marketing (SEM), blogging, podcasting, YouTube, video marketing, email marketing, marketing automation, artificial intelligence and Generative AI, as well as how to maximize digital marketing ROI from social media on sites like Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, and TikTok.

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