Market Movers: Building Brands & Links with Linkifi

Welcome to Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi! Your go-to podcast for transforming your business into an unforgettable brand where branding meets SEO and link-building. I’m Chris Panteli, Co-Founder and CEO of Linkifi, and I’m joined by my co-host and Co-Founder, Nick Biggs.
In this episode, we welcome Lea Turner, LinkedIn powerhouse and founder of The Holt—a thriving paid community with 540+ members designed to support small business owners, freelancers, and solopreneurs with affordable, inclusive, and high-impact learning and networking. Lea shares her no-fluff insights on what it really takes to build and maintain an engaged, respectful, and buzzing community from scratch—and why LinkedIn is still a goldmine for audience building if you avoid the hype.
We explore the relationship between community building and personal brand, the strategic use of LinkedIn for lead generation, and how to protect your space from salesy “knobheads” while still fostering real collaboration, connection, and business opportunities.
 
Key Talking Points: ✅ Growing The Holt to 540+ members in under 3 years—without ad spend ✅ How to build a values-led community that enforces psychological safety ✅ Why “no knobheads” is more than a motto—it’s a business filter ✅ Creating low-cost, high-value offers for bootstrapped solopreneurs ✅ Building trust on LinkedIn before you sell anything ✅ Where the real relationships on LinkedIn actually happen (hint: it’s not in the DMs) ✅ Launching with a waitlist—why audience-first always wins ✅ How Lea transitioned from LinkedIn training to full-time community building ✅ The surprising power of comments, carousels, and karaoke for business growth ✅ What happens when you give more than you ask on social media
 
Quotes from Lea Turner: 📢 “The Holt is inclusive, affordable, and built on one core value: no knobheads.” 📢 “You don’t have to be the expert—you just need to know who to bring in and what your audience needs.” 📢 “I didn’t need The Holt to work. That gave me freedom to experiment—and it exploded.” 📢 “Most big influencers on LinkedIn are shouting into a void. I built real relationships.” 📢 “Don’t start a DM with a question. Just say something kind. That’s how you start a relationship.”
 
Actionable Insights for Listeners: 🚀 Want to start a paid community? Begin with a strong audience and a clear ‘why’. 🔍 Build your email list through newsletters, lead magnets, and content that drives trust. 💬 Start in the comments—not the DMs. That’s where relationships on LinkedIn really begin. ⚡ Create automated community prompts to drive daily engagement. 🛑 Enforce your values loudly and publicly—people self-select in or out. 🤝 Leverage your network to deliver expert value—without needing to be the expert yourself.
 
About Lea Turner: Lea Turner is a LinkedIn expert and the founder of The Holt, a vibrant online community built for business owners, freelancers, and solopreneurs. Known for her bold branding, no-nonsense tone, and radical inclusivity, Lea helps people grow with integrity—both on and off LinkedIn.
 
📬 Learn more about The Holt: https://www.the-holt.com/ 🌐 Connect with Lea Turner on LinkedIn
 
🚀 Build Your Brand with Real Links
At Linkifi, we help ambitious brands scale organic visibility through digital PR, brand storytelling, and SEO strategy. Book your FREE strategy session today:
 🔗 https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
 
👋 Connect with your hosts: 👉 Chris Panteli on LinkedIn 👉 Nick Biggs on LinkedIn
 
🎧 Listen to more Market Movers episodes: 🌍 https://marketmoverspod.com

Welcome to Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi! Your go-to podcast for transforming your business into an unforgettable brand—where branding meets SEO and link-building. I’m Chris Panteli, Co-Founder and CEO of Linkifi, and I’m joined by my co-host and Co-Founder, Nick Biggs.
In this episode, we’re joined by Mike Montague, founder of Avenue Nine, host of the Human First AI Marketing podcast, and author of Playful Humans. Mike’s story spans from coding on a 1986 Apple to running a cutting-edge AI marketing agency. He’s helped companies like HubSpot, Sandler Training, and Cornerstone OnDemand create thousands of pieces of content—and now uses AI to do it in a fraction of the time.
We dive deep into AI-powered content workflows, custom GPTs, knowledge bases, and the balance between human creativity and automation. This is a practical, honest conversation on how small and mid-sized businesses can actually use AI to scale without falling for the “one-click automation” hype.
🔑 Key Talking Points:
✅ From 10,000 Words a Week to Fractional Workloads – How Mike went from full-time ghostwriter to AI-enhanced agency founder. ✅ The 3-Step AI Framework – Context, Marketing Expertise, and Review: the pillars of high-quality AI output. ✅ Building AI Knowledge Bases – Why uploading brand voice, tone, and transcripts makes your GPT smarter with every interaction. ✅ How to Use AI to Create a Funnel – From podcast to social clip to lead magnet and email follow-up—automated, but still human. ✅ Custom GPTs vs RAG Models – Which one wins for content ops and what tradeoffs to expect. ✅ Tool Stack Breakdown – Gamma, Descript, Notebook LM, Grok, ChatGPT, and Formless—what’s worth using and why. ✅ How to Package Micro-SaaS for Niche Audiences – Why now is the time to build tiny AI tools just for your tribe. ✅ Using AI to Learn Faster – How Mike uses LLMs to review his own book, and brainstorm content ideas.
💬 Quotes from Mike Montague:
📢 “I used to spend all day writing blogs. Now I can do 10 times the work in a tenth of the time.” 📢 “If AI content feels soulless, it’s because the human didn’t put their voice or values into it first.” 📢 “You don’t need AI to run your whole company—you need it to save you an hour a day so you can run your company better.” 📢 “People can't steal your audience. They can steal your features, your content, even your ideas—but not the trust you’ve built.” 📢 “More context, more feedback, more iteration—that’s how you train a custom GPT to become your best assistant.”
🎯 Actionable Insights for Listeners:
🧠 Train a Custom GPT – Upload tone-of-voice docs, best emails, transcripts, and feedback to improve your content outputs over time. 🎯 Use the 3-Part Framework – Start with high-quality input, apply marketing strategy, and always human-edit the final product. 🚀 Repurpose Everything – Use one interview to create shorts, blogs, carousels, and lead magnets. Scale with structure. 🔗 Build Niche Microtools – Don’t chase mass-market AI tools. Build something tiny and valuable for your specific audience. 📊 Adopt Tools That Save Hours, Not Seconds – Focus on platforms like Gamma, Descript, and Notebook LM that supercharge your workflow.
👤 About Mike Montague:
Mike is the founder of Avenue Nine, a human-first AI marketing agency that helps small and mid-sized businesses amplify their content through smart automation. He is also the host of the Human First AI Marketing podcast and author of Playful Humans. A pioneer in the sales + tech + content world, Mike’s focus is on making AI work for humans, not the other way around.
 
📬 Learn more at: https://avenue9.com 🎧 Listen to the Human First AI Marketing Podcast 📕 Read Playful Humans 🔗 Connect with Mike on LinkedIn
🚀 Build Your Brand with Real Links
At Linkifi, we help ambitious brands scale organic visibility through digital PR, brand storytelling, and SEO strategy. Book your FREE strategy session today:
 🔗 https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
 
👋 Connect with your hosts: 👉 Chris Panteli on LinkedIn 👉 Nick Biggs on LinkedIn
 
🎧 Listen to more Market Movers episodes:
 🌍 https://marketmoverspod.com

Welcome to Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi!Your go-to podcast for transforming your business into an unforgettable brand—where branding meets SEO and link-building. I’m Chris Panteli, Co-Founder and CEO of Linkifi, and I’m joined by my co-host and Co-Founder, Nick Biggs.
In this episode, we sit down with Mike Allton, Chief Storyteller at Agorapulse and host of the AI Hat Podcast. Mike has interviewed over 100 AI experts and built a thriving side business around podcasting and strategic content—powered by Gemini and other LLMs. We explore how he uses Google’s Gemini to run 4 podcasts, streamline strategic decisions, and create a “Work Buddy” AI that knows his brand, goals, and challenges better than most team members would.
Mike brings clarity to the AI conversation, sharing practical tips on deep research, agentic workflows, and how to extract real ROI from tools you’re probably already paying for.
🔑 Key Talking Points:
✅ Building an AI Work Buddy – How Mike trained Gemini to act as a Chief of Staff for business planning and content strategy✅ The Power of Deep Research – Why Gemini’s Deep Research beats typical Google searches for content planning, sales strategy, and market insights✅ Gemini vs ChatGPT vs Claude – When Mike uses each model and how to compare them with tools like Magi✅ Multi-Podcast Management – How he uses AI to generate show notes, interview prep, and even ghostwrite podcast recaps✅ Strategic Prompting – Why telling AI to challenge your assumptions unlocks deeper, more valuable responses✅ Centralizing Business Knowledge – How NotebookLM helps manage transcripts and reference materials across 100+ interviews✅ Using Gemini Inside Workspace – Email, Docs, Sheets: real examples of where Gemini saves time and boosts output✅ Why Businesses Are Overpaying – Most companies using ChatGPT ignore that they already have access to powerful tools in Google Workspace
💬 Quotes from Mike Allton:
📢 “If you don’t know what to do with AI—just ask it. That’s the unlock most people miss.”📢 “Your business probably already has access to Gemini. You’re just not using it right.”📢 “I talk to my AI Work Buddy daily. It challenges me, plans strategy, and keeps me moving.”📢 “Deep Research with Gemini saves me 5 hours a week, minimum.”
🎯 Actionable Insights for Listeners:
🚀 Create Your AI Work Buddy – Feed Gemini your business info and let it become a strategic co-pilot📈 Use Deep Research Weekly – Replace manual research with fast, AI-powered strategic insights🔁 Compare LLMs with Magi – See how different models handle the same prompt to improve reliability📄 Centralize Your IP – Use NotebookLM to reference transcripts, documents, and ideas in one searchable place💬 Challenge Your Thinking – Tell your AI to poke holes in your ideas for sharper, more robust strategies
👤 About Mike Allton:Mike is the Chief Storyteller at Agorapulse, host of the AI Hat Podcast, and a respected voice in the human-first AI movement. With decades of experience in social media, content strategy, and SaaS growth, Mike now focuses on helping businesses integrate AI into their day-to-day decision-making without the hype.
📣 Explore Mike’s AI Work Buddy Framework: theaihat.com/aiworkbuddy📬 Subscribe to The AI Hat Podcast & Newsletter: theaihat.com🔗 Connect with Mike on LinkedIn
🚀 Build Your Brand with Real LinksAt Linkifi, we help ambitious brands scale organic visibility through digital PR, brand storytelling, and SEO strategy. Book your FREE strategy session today:
🔗 https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
👋 Connect with your hosts:👉 Chris Panteli on LinkedIn👉 Nick Biggs on LinkedIn
🎧 Listen to more Market Movers episodes:🌍 https://marketmoverspod.com

Welcome to Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi! Your go-to podcast for transforming your business into an unforgettable brand—where branding meets SEO and link-building. I’m Chris Panteli, Co-Founder and CEO of Linkifi, and I’m joined by my co-host and Co-Founder, Nick Biggs.
In this episode, we sit down with Eric Bramlett, Broker and Owner of Bramlett Residential—one of the fastest-growing and most respected real estate firms in Central Texas. From starting with just one other agent to scaling to 115 agents by 2025, Eric breaks down the systems, content strategy, SEO, and AI tools that fueled his hypergrowth.
We explore how Eric transitioned from bartending to real estate, why he leaned hard into SEO and performance marketing early on, and how a focus on authority building through newsletters, podcasts, and video content accelerated his firm's credibility and growth.
🔑 Key Talking Points:
✅ From 2 to 115 Agents – How Eric scaled deliberately and sustainably using systems and content.✅ Authority Building Strategy – Why humility and data-driven thought leadership drove massive industry and consumer trust.✅ Newsletters & Hyperlocal Marketing – How segmenting content for different buyer personas led to a 50% open rate and 300K+ subscribers.✅ Real Estate SEO Strategy – Why long-tail keywords like “homes with ADUs” are a goldmine and how he uses custom CMS tools like Statamic.✅ The Real Role of AI in Real Estate – Forget the hype. Eric shares the tools that actually improve efficiency today (and which are pure noise).✅ Why Most Realtors Ignore SEO – The long-term mindset that separates top performers from agents chasing quick leads.✅ Email List Hygiene & CRM Strategy – How purging, segmentation, and smart automations protect inbox deliverability and drive results.✅ Experimentation vs. Stability – Why 20% of time should go to testing new growth ideas, and how to handle expensive failures.
💬 Quotes from Eric Bramlett:
📢 “Authority building felt cringey at first, but it’s been the single most impactful thing for our brand.” 📢 “AI isn’t replacing agents—but the agents who use it well are replacing the ones who don’t.” 📢 “Consumers want the truth. Don’t sugarcoat, don’t sensationalize—just give them honest insights.” 📢 “I used to speak at SEO conferences—then my site got penalized by Google and I had to start over.”
🎯 Actionable Insights for Listeners:
🚀 Start Authority Building with Humility – Share data and balanced takes instead of brag posts. 📈 Segment Your Audience Thoughtfully – Use tags to deliver hyperlocal newsletters and industry-specific content. 🔍 Target Long-Tail Keywords – Use SEO landing pages for niche searches like “homes with horse properties.” 🛠️ Use AI for Efficiency, Not Magic – Let tools like ChatGPT or Grok handle outlines, property descriptions, and CMAs—but keep the human touch. ✉️ Maintain Email Hygiene – Regularly remove inactive subscribers and focus on relevance to stay out of spam folders.
👤 About Eric Bramlett:
Eric is the Broker/Owner of Bramlett Residential, a top-performing real estate firm in Central Texas. A former bartender-turned-real-estate-authority, Eric blends data-driven insights with human-first communication to build lasting relationships with both consumers and agents. He’s also the founder of the “Raise the Bar in Real Estate” Facebook group, focused on elevating the industry through transparency and collaboration.
📣 Join the Facebook Group: Raise the Bar in Real Estate
Eric Bramlett's LinkedIn
🚀 Build Your Brand with Real Links At Linkifi, we help ambitious brands scale organic visibility through digital PR, brand storytelling, and SEO strategy. Book your FREE strategy session today:
 🔗 https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
 
👋 Connect with your hosts: 👉 Chris Panteli on LinkedIn 👉 Nick Biggs on LinkedIn
 
🎧 Listen to more Market Movers episodes: 🌍 https://marketmoverspod.com

Welcome to Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi! Your go-to podcast for transforming your business into an unforgettable brand where branding meets SEO and link-building. I’m Chris Panteli, Co-Founder and CEO of Linkifi, and I’m joined by my co-host and Co-Founder, Nick Biggs.
 
In this episode, we’re joined by Ryan Fitzgerald, founder of Raleigh Realty and the SEO mastermind behind Agent Loft. Ryan has built one of the most successful real estate brokerages in North Carolina using SEO—not cold calls—to generate over 20+ organic leads per day. He’s grown his team to 30 agents, closed 500 homes last year, and is actively outranking Zillow and Realtor.com in competitive search markets.
 
We dive deep into his full-funnel SEO strategy, neighborhood landing pages, AI use cases in real estate, and the power of brand trust in search. If you’re in real estate or building a service-based business, this episode is a masterclass in long-term SEO growth.
Key Talking Points: ✅ From Cold Calls to SEO Domination – How Ryan used content and Google rankings to go from zero contacts to $200M in real estate sales. ✅ Why 100% of Early Leads Were Organic – And how that figure still drives 50% of the business today. ✅ Neighborhood SEO Strategy – How ranking for hyper-specific terms like "Oak Park Garner NC Homes for Sale" converts better than high-volume keywords. ✅ Creating Content that Converts – Differentiating between branding blog posts (e.g., best restaurants in Raleigh) vs. direct lead magnets (e.g., moving to Raleigh). ✅ Agent Loft and the Zillow Alternative – Why Ryan built a fully SEO-optimized real estate platform after finding no solutions that met his standards. ✅ The Power of Branded Search – How name recognition and Google trust helped them recover fast after a risky domain migration. ✅ Using AI in Real Estate – From Claude-generated emails to neighborhood content automation and virtual staging concepts.
Quotes from Ryan Fitzgerald: 📢 “I didn’t want to cold call—I wanted people calling me. That’s what SEO did.” 📢 “We just closed a home from an SEO lead who found us on Saturday and was under contract by Tuesday.” 📢 “People trust Google more than their friends. When Google sends them to us, the trust is already built.” 📢 “We switched domains, changed URLs, made mistakes—and still bounced back. That’s the power of brand authority.” 📢 “Claude writes my Slack messages better than I do, emojis and all.”
Actionable Insights for Listeners: 🚀 Build Neighborhood Pages – Use specific location + intent-based keywords to rank and convert better than generic listings. 🔗 Automate the Long Tail – With tools like Agent Loft, build pages for basements, swimming pools, and first-floor master bedrooms. 📥 Retarget SEO Visitors – Don’t let your organic traffic disappear. Use newsletters, remarketing, and saved searches to keep them in the funnel. 🤖 Use AI for Smart Touchpoints – Personalize lead engagement with AI-generated emails that feel thoughtful and human. 💡 SEO > Paid Leads – If Zillow’s leads are micromanaged and low quality, building your own pipeline creates freedom and trust.
About Ryan Fitzgerald: Ryan Fitzgerald is the founder of Raleigh Realty, a real estate agency built entirely on SEO-driven inbound marketing. He also created Agent Loft, a new platform helping realtors build SEO-optimized websites with turnkey MLS pages and neighborhood-level automation. Ryan’s approach to real estate SEO is one of the most successful in the industry, consistently beating out national platforms with focused, local content.
 
📍 Visit: raleighrealty.com 🏗 Explore: agentloft.com
🚀 Build Your Brand with Real Links At Linkifi, we help ambitious brands scale organic visibility through digital PR, brand storytelling, and SEO strategy. Book your FREE strategy session today: 🔗 https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
 
👋 Connect with your hosts: 👉 Chris Panteli on LinkedIn 👉 Nick Biggs on LinkedIn
 
🎧 Listen to more Market Movers episodes: 🌍 https://marketmoverspod.com
 

Welcome to Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi!Your go-to podcast for transforming your business into an unforgettable brand where branding meets SEO and link-building. I’m Chris Panteli, Co-Founder and CEO of Linkifi, and I’m joined by my co-host and Co-Founder, Nick Biggs.
 
In this episode, we’re joined by Doug Cunnington, the creator of Niche Site Project, host of The Doug Show, and longtime leader in the affiliate SEO space. Doug shares how he slowly built a business, avoided burnout, semi-retired by his 40s, and never had a big exit or viral hit. From financial independence to flipping guitars and launching (and killing) side projects, Doug opens up about the real journey behind long-term entrepreneurial freedom.
 
Key Talking Points: ✅ 10 Years to FI: How Doug replaced his income through niche sites—without huge exits. ✅ FIRE & Lifestyle Design: How the 4% rule shaped his path to semi-retirement. ✅ Failures That Freed Him: What happened when his course flopped and podcast stalled—and why he walked away. ✅ Real Talk on AI & Tools: Why Doug avoids the hype and prefers simple tools with real-world utility. ✅ Using Marketing to Sell Trucks: How copywriting doubled his sale price on Craigslist. ✅ Passive Income & Index Funds: Doug’s take on investing and wealth without stress. ✅ Flipping Guitars & Freedom: Why a Kalamazoo KG-11 is more fulfilling than chasing 8-figure exits.
 
Quotes from Doug Cunnington: 📢 “I never had a big win—just a decade of consistency and a few base hits.” 📢 “You don’t need the yacht—you need a lifestyle that fits your values.” 📢 “Marketing skills don’t disappear—they apply to Craigslist just as well as SEO.” 📢 “I launched a podcast to sell it—recorded 48 episodes. Nobody listened.” 📢 “Financial freedom lets you say no and walk away from things that don’t serve you.”
 
Actionable Insights for Listeners: 🚀 Focus on Long-Term Consistency – Forget viral exits; steady base hits build wealth. 💸 Embrace Index Fund Simplicity – Investing doesn’t need to be complicated to compound. 🎙 Test Then Kill – Launch quickly, see what works, and walk away if it doesn’t. 🔍 Apply Marketing Offline – Use your skills in the physical world (even when selling a truck). 🎯 Validate the Audience-Offer Fit – Don’t sell SEO lists a podcasting course.
 
About Doug Cunnington: Doug Cunnington is the founder of Niche Site Project and host of The Doug Show and Mile Hi-Fi. A longtime voice in the affiliate SEO space, Doug is a champion of the FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) movement. He’s best known for teaching practical SEO, launching no-fluff online businesses, and telling the truth about entrepreneurship—failures and all.
 
📺 Check out Doug on YouTube: Doug Cunnington Channel🎧 Listen to Mile Hi-Fi: Mile Hi-Fi Podcast
🚀 Build Your Brand with Real Links At Linkifi, we help ambitious brands scale organic visibility through digital PR, brand storytelling, and SEO strategy. Book your FREE strategy session today:
 🔗 https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
 
👋 Connect with your hosts: 👉 Chris Panteli on LinkedIn 👉 Nick Biggs on LinkedIn
 
🎧 Listen to more Market Movers episodes: 🌍 https://marketmoverspod.com
 

In this eye-opening episode of Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi, Nick Biggs and Chris Panteli sit down with Aco Momcilovic, global speaker and co-founder of the Global AI Ethics Institute. With a background in psychology and strategic education, Aco is on a mission to help decision-makers navigate the complex and fast-changing world of artificial intelligence.
We explore what AI governance really means on a global scale, how nations are falling behind, and what businesses must do today to stay relevant tomorrow. From the rise of AGI and geopolitical divides to the philosophical challenges of post-work societies, this conversation covers the critical intersection of AI, ethics, psychology, and strategy.
👤 Guest: Aco Momcilovic
Role: Co-founder, Global AI Ethics Institute | Head of AI SIG at IPMA
Background: Psychologist, MBA, PhD researcher in digital economics and AI
Focus: AI ethics, strategic education, international policy, workforce transformation
🔑 What We Covered
Why AI ethics must include global moral systems, not just Western values
How the AI arms race could create geopolitical instability
The gap between government awareness and AI advancement
Why implementation, not just development, is a winning strategy for smaller nations
How AI could shape religion, meaning, and human identity in the next decade
The future of work, from designers to therapists and lawyers
What companies and individuals should do to future-proof themselves in an AI-dominated world
Will AI create love, new religions—or the next great divide?
🧠 About Aco
Aco Momcilovic is a global thought leader in AI strategy and ethics. He co-founded the Global AI Ethics Institute in Paris and leads AI initiatives within the International Project Management Association. His mission is to help business leaders and governments not only understand AI, but deploy it wisely. With his rare mix of psychology, economics, and strategy, he brings a human-first lens to a tech-first world.
 
🔗 Connect with him on LinkedIn
🚀 Build Your Brand with Real Links
At Linkifi, we help ambitious brands scale organic visibility through digital PR, brand storytelling, and SEO strategy. Book your FREE strategy session today:
 
🔗 https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
 
👋 Connect with your hosts: 👉 Chris Panteli on LinkedIn 👉 Nick Biggs on LinkedIn
 
🎧 Listen to more Market Movers episodes: 🌍 https://marketmoverspod.com

Welcome to Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi!Your go-to podcast for transforming your business into an unforgettable brand where branding meets SEO and link-building. I’m Chris Panteli, Co-Founder and CEO of Linkifi, and I’m joined by my co-host and Co-Founder, Nick Biggs.
Today’s guest is Jared Bauman, CEO of 201 Creative and host of the massively popular Niche Pursuits Podcast. Jared shares how the "old world" of affiliate SEO is crumbling—and what’s replacing it. From Pinterest strategies to AI-driven ops, this episode is a blueprint for the next wave of digital growth.
Key Talking Points:
🔄 Affiliate Sites After Google’s Helpful Content Update Jared explains how sites earning thousands per month fell to under $200—and how he rebuilt them using Pinterest and email instead of Google.
🧠 From Traffic-First to Audience-First Why the old approach of “write keyword-focused content and wait” is dead—and how modern content businesses need to think like brand builders with multi-channel funnels.
📉 The Single Traffic Source Trap Jared breaks down the dangers of relying on one channel (like Google) and how to diversify traffic through social media, email, paid ads, and brand strategy.
📈 Why ‘Boring’ Businesses Win The future of SEO belongs to operators who understand customer value, conversion journeys, and how to tie content back to a product—not just traffic.
💡 AI for Agencies: Less Hype, More Ops Jared shares how his agency hired an AI engineer—not to build flashy tools, but to optimize workflows, reduce errors, and expand client capacity behind the scenes.
🚀 The Real Opportunity in AI Not all buzzwords are bogus—but Jared urges founders to focus on internal use cases that make business more effective before chasing public hype.
Quotes from Jared Bauman:
“The old model of write content, get traffic, slap on ads—that’s gone. Now it’s about knowing the value of a lead and building multiple traffic sources around that.”
“If you stand for everything, you stand for nothing. You’ve got to build something specific for someone specific.”
“AI hasn’t replaced humans yet—but it has replaced our slow, error-prone processes.”
“It’s okay if what you’re doing with AI isn’t sexy. If it makes your business faster, better, and more accurate—that’s a win.”
Strategy Highlights:
✅ Go Multi-Funnel Don’t chase keywords—chase your avatar. Figure out who your ideal audience is, where they hang out (Pinterest, Reddit, Facebook, etc.), and create entry points across platforms.
✅ Content Isn’t the Product—It’s the Funnel Your end product (course, service, software, etc.) should determine your marketing. Content is just one step in the value ladder.
✅ Pinterest & Facebook Can Replace Google (Sometimes) For certain niches, especially visual and lifestyle, these platforms are sending more outbound traffic than Google. Jared shares real-world examples.
✅ Invest in AI Ops Before AI Products Before chasing viral AI workflows, use AI to clean up your backend—summarize meetings, automate outreach, track content pipelines, QA outputs, and more.
✅ Be Boring, Be Profitable Jared says: the stuff that’s exciting on Twitter doesn’t always move the needle. Focus on consistent operations, optimized processes, and understanding your numbers.
About Jared Bauman:
Jared is a serial entrepreneur and digital marketing expert with two exits under his belt. He is the co-founder and CEO of 201 Creative, a content and strategy agency helping online businesses scale through organic and paid channels. He also hosts the Niche Pursuits Podcast, where he interviews the smartest minds in SEO, content marketing, and online entrepreneurship.
 
🎙 Listen to the Niche Pursuits Podcast 🏢 Visit: 201Creative.com 📱 Connect on LinkedIn: Jared Bauman
📈 Want High-Authority Backlinks & Media Coverage?
Linkifi secures Tier-1 publication links through digital PR, helping businesses boost their domain authority and search rankings.
 
📅 Set up a call with us now: ☎️ https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
 
👉️ Connect with Chris on LinkedIn 👉️ Connect with Nick on LinkedIn
 
🎧 Listen to more episodes of Market Movers: 🔗 https://marketmoverspod.com/
 
#NichePursuits #AffiliateSEO #PinterestMarketing #AIinMarketing #BrandBuilding #SEOUpdate #LinkBuilding #ContentStrategy #Linkifi #MarketMoversPodcast
 

Welcome back to Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi —the go-to show for turning organic visibility into real business growth. Hosted by Nick Biggs and Chris Panteli.
 
Today’s guest is Edd Dawson, veteran SEO, affiliate marketer, and creator of KeywordsPeopleUse.com. Edd built and sold the massively successful broadband.co.uk website—a site that went from dial-up days to dominating UK broadband search—using tools, data, and organic-only SEO. He’s also the voice behind the SEO is Not That Hard podcast.
 
We dive deep into affiliate strategy, algorithm hits (and recoveries), and where SEO still thrives in an AI-shaped internet.
Key Talking Points:
🛠️ The Broadband.co.uk Origin Story How an accidental domain acquisition turned into a multi-million pound exit—and why his wife deserves credit for the price comparison idea.
📉 Penguin, Panda & the Great Drop-Off Edd shares how they lost 80% of traffic overnight, the backlink sins that caused it, and the exact process he followed to recover and come back stronger.
💼 Building vs Finishing: Why Edd Launches Many Sites He breaks down his 20–30% success rate, the value of programmatic SEO, and why the affiliate model still works if your tool or content is hard to replicate.
🧠 Data-Driven Differentiation The real reason broadband.co.uk thrived: postcode-specific tools, proprietary data, and value-first aggregation. Not just "top 10 lists."
📊 KeywordsPeopleUse.com & Strategic Content Planning How customer search queries don’t just inform content—they help shape actual product and business strategy.
🧠 AI, Agents & What’s Next Why Ed’s team is building tools you can’t replicate without AI—and why he’s staying away from bolt-on solutions. Think: plumbers and florists using AI without even realizing it.
🔍 The Future of Google & Search Spoiler: Edd doesn’t think Google is going anywhere soon. Expect slower change than hype suggests, especially with local data and user inertia.
Quotes from Edd Dawson:
“We got hit by Penguin and went from ranking #1 to #939 for ‘broadband’… It was devastating.”
“After recovery, we didn’t just come back—we had 5x the traffic we had before.”
“If you build tools or content that can’t be replicated by a language model, you’ll always have an edge.”
“AI overviews will kill basic blog content, but not useful aggregators. You’ve got to give people something that’s hard to replicate.”
“SEO still works. You just have to be the end destination—not something an LLM can summarize.”
Takeaways & Strategy Highlights:
✅ Affiliate is not dead—bad affiliate is. High-value tools and original data still drive revenue. Build for intent and usefulness.
✅ Tools beat templates. From postcode broadband availability to speed tests, Ed’s model proves that functional tools convert better than static content.
✅ Recovery is possible (but painful). Backlink clean-up, content revamps, and expert help from people like Carl Hendy are what got broadband.co.uk back in business.
✅ Use AI—but don’t bolt it on blindly. Ed’s team is exploring AI-native products that can scale, not just gimmicks to ride the wave.
✅ Search isn’t dead, it’s evolving. Expect a hybrid future. Google, LLMs, and user trust all still matter. Local data and service-based businesses won’t vanish anytime soon.
About Edd Dawson:
Edd Dawson is a 20+ year SEO veteran and successful affiliate entrepreneur. He built and exited broadband.co.uk and now runs KeywordsPeopleUse.com, a content strategy and market research tool based on real search queries. He also hosts the podcast SEO is Not That Hard, where he breaks down actionable SEO tips in 10-minute episodes.
 
🎧 Listen to the Podcast: SEO is Not That Hard 🔗 Visit: KeywordsPeopleUse.com💬 Connect: Edd Dawson on LinkedIn
🚀 Build Your Brand with Real Links
At Linkifi, we help ambitious brands scale organic visibility through digital PR, brand storytelling, and SEO strategy. Book your FREE strategy session today:
 
🔗 https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
 
👋 Connect with your hosts: 👉 Chris Panteli on LinkedIn 👉 Nick Biggs on LinkedIn
 
🎧 Listen to more Market Movers episodes: 🌍 https://marketmoverspod.com
#AffiliateSEO #LinkBuilding #DigitalPR #KeywordsPeopleUse #SEOPodcast #MarketMovers #BroadbandUK #ProgrammaticSEO #AItools #Linkifi

Welcome back to Market Movers: Building Brands and Links with Linkifi! Your backstage pass to building brands through SEO, digital PR, and entrepreneurial creativity. Hosted by Nick Biggs and Chris Panteli of Linkifi.
This episode features Brett Farmiloe, CEO of Featured.com and now the new steward of Help a Reporter Out (HARO). Brett shares the behind-the-scenes story of reviving one of the most iconic tools in digital PR—bringing HARO back to life after its shutdown, and what it means for journalists, SEOs, link builders, and brands today.
Key Talking Points:
📢 The Story Behind Reviving HARO After HARO was shut down and rebranded unsuccessfully, Brett saw the opportunity—and the demand—to bring it back in its purest, original form.
📩 The Power of a Simple Email Newsletter Why the classic HARO email format still works—and how Featured.com is keeping it clean, curated, and free from spam and exploitation.
🛡️ Fighting Spam, Bots, and Link Schemes Brett explains the strict manual vetting processes, community reporting tools, and anti-AI-bot measures they’ve put in place to protect journalists and restore trust.
📰 Why Big Publications Are Already Back Within days of relaunch, major outlets like USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and others are sourcing queries through HARO again.
⚙️ How Featured.com and HARO Work Together Featured.com offers filtered, targeted pitches; HARO remains about connection—direct journalist-to-source opportunities through email.
🚀 What’s Next for HARO Plans to introduce filters, alerts, categories, and smarter personalization—while keeping HARO’s “lightweight, no-login-required” email simplicity.
Quotes from Brett Farmiloe:
“HARO isn’t just a brand—it’s an action. It’s helping a reporter out. And the demand to bring it back was overwhelming.”
“If your pitch doesn’t help a reporter out, it probably shouldn’t be sent.”
“AI might change content creation, but people still trust people. That's why expertise and real credentials matter more than ever.”
“This isn’t just nostalgia—it’s a much-needed tool for connection in a noisy, distracted world.”
“Day by day, email by email, we’re getting better at curating HARO. Quality is everything.”
 
Takeaways & Strategy Highlights:
✅ Craft Real, Verifiable Pitches HARO favors pitches that are authentic, expertise-driven, and easily verifiable via LinkedIn and a strong online presence.
✅ Don't Fear AI Tools—Use Them Wisely Using AI to polish your pitch is fine. Using AI to mass-spam journalists? Instant ban.
✅ The Simple Stuff Still Works An email in your inbox three times a day—with real media opportunities—is still one of the highest ROI activities for building brand visibility.
✅ Brand Mentions Matter, Even Without Links Even unlinked citations now boost authority in the AI-driven search world. Visibility > Obsession over dofollow.
✅ New Opportunities for Small Businesses With HARO back, independent experts, consultants, and small publishers have a real shot again at tier-one media coverage.
About Brett Farmiloe:
Brett Farmiloe is the CEO of Featured.com and the new CEO of Help a Reporter Out (HARO). He’s a former marketing agency owner who ranked top of Google for “digital marketing company,” a data nerd, and an advocate for helping small businesses share their expertise through meaningful media connections. Brett’s mission is simple: make it easier for real experts to help real reporters, rebuilding trust in the media ecosystem.
🔗 HelpAReporter.com 🔗 Featured.com 📧 Email Brett directly: [email protected]
Or connect with him via LinkedIn
🚀 Build Your Brand with Real Links
At Linkifi, we help ambitious brands scale organic visibility through digital PR, brand storytelling, and SEO strategy. Book your FREE strategy session today:
 
🔗 https://calendly.com/linkifi/pr
 
👋 Connect with your hosts: 👉 Chris Panteli on LinkedIn 👉 Nick Biggs on LinkedIn
 
🎧 Listen to more Market Movers episodes: 🌍 https://marketmoverspod.com
 
#DigitalPR #HARO #SEO #LinkBuilding #MediaOutreach #BrandVisibility #MarketMoversPodcast #Linkifi #BrettFarmiloe