Hank's Business and Marketing Tips

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Jun 2026

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June 8, 2026Episode 30835 min

HMBT #308: Junk Mail King

Marketing is moving faster than ever, and if you are a solopreneur or a corporate professional, it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer volume of new tech tools popping up daily. I wanted to sit down with someone who has seen the industry evolve from the ground up. In this episode of the HMBT podcast, I am joined by Bob Cargill, an adjunct professor, author, and seasoned social media consultant who has worked with over 500 clients. Together, we take a look at the modern marketing landscape, discussing everything from AI avatars to the enduring power of classic direct response channels. The Balancing Act: AI and the Human Touch Bob emphasizes that while embracing AI is absolutely non-negotiable if you want to keep from falling behind, it should never come at the expense of genuine human connection. Basic communication skills, empathy, and good people skills are more critical now than they have ever been. We chat about how entry-level and highly repetitive tasks are easily handled by automation, meaning professionals must lean heavily into their personal brands to stand out. Overcoming Camera Shyness and Creating Content A common hurdle for many professionals, especially those transitioning out of corporate roles to start their own businesses, is getting comfortable on camera. Bob and I share practical strategies for getting started without a Hollywood production budget. Whether you start by recording behind-the-scenes B-roll and adding a voiceover later, or by experimenting with realistic AI avatars through platforms like HeyGen, the key is simply to begin. We agree that imperfection is often what endears you to an audience because it makes you relatable. Choosing Channels and the Return of Tangibility When it comes to distribution, Bob shares why LinkedIn remains his top recommendation for business, even if X and Instagram hold a special place in his creative routine. Interestingly, we also dive into a fascinating counter-trend: a growing digital backlash among younger generations. As audiences experience screen fatigue, old-school, physical mediums like direct mail and vinyl records are making a major comeback. The lesson here is clear: be channel agnostic, stay consistent, and focus on delivering real value rather than obsessively chasing algorithm trends. Key Takeaways 🤝 Partner with AI, but Keep it Human: Use automation to handle repetitive tasks, but double down on empathy, storytelling, and the communication skills that machines cannot replicate. 🎥 Embrace Imperfection on Camera: You do not need an expensive production crew or a flawless script. Showing up authentically and taking people behind the scenes builds trust faster than a overly choreographed video. 🤖 Leverage Smart Content Creation Tools: If you are hesitant to be on camera, start with voiceclones, audio narrations, or custom avatars to scale your output without the stage fright. 🔄 Slice, Dice, and Repurpose: Create long-form content like podcasts or blogs, then chunk them up into snackable snippets for social media to get the maximum return on your time investment. 📦 Don’t Overlook the Physical: As digital spaces become overcrowded, tangible marketing channels like direct mail are experiencing a resurgence because people crave something real they can hold. Conclusion Building a visible, authentic brand requires consistency and a willingness to adapt to the tools of 2026 and beyond. If you enjoyed this conversation with Bob, make sure to pick up a copy of his book, 20 Jobs, 20 Lessons, on Amazon. Don’t forget to subscribe to the HMBT podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, and leave us a review to let us know your favorite takeaway from today’s episode! And remember, if you need to verify your email lists to keep your data integrity high, check out Kickbox. Use the code HMBT to get 5,000 free credits and start cleaning up your list today! https://youtu.be/FiMShBg5FVg Audio:

May 25, 2026Episode 30733 min

HMBT #307: Marperations

I had the pleasure of sitting down with Dana Newell from Benton Newell Communications. Dana is a rare executive “unicorn,” operating as both a fractional CMO and COO to help organizations scale smoothly. While we usually talk about how to get more marketing content and campaigns out the door, Dana brought a perspective we’ve never really tackled on the show: the operational consequences of moving too fast. In a world where we are constantly told to ramp up lead generation, launch massive campaigns, and flood every channel, Dana’s guiding principle is simple yet profound: Fix the slow leak before you build the big fire. If you are rushing a robust marketing strategy out the door without checking your back-end infrastructure, you aren’t scaling your business, you are simply marketing a broken promise. We dove into the hidden bottlenecks of the customer journey, the vital need for clean data, and why your own employees are the best resource for finding what’s actually broken in your office. This conversation was a wake-up call for anyone who thinks a great ad campaign is enough to sustain long-term business growth. The Financial Sting of a Broken Customer Journey Many of us focus heavily on customer acquisition, but we rarely look at what happens in the “messy middle”—the space between a customer’s first touchpoint and their final delivery. Dana pointed out that in the rush to scale, businesses often skip the steps to test their own systems. Imagine spending thousands on a high-performing ad campaign, only to find out your automated onboarding sequence is broken, or your call center is dropping leads. Because the back-end operations can’t handle the front-end marketing volume, your customer sentiment plummets. Suddenly, you aren’t just losing new leads, you are hemorrhaging existing clients and tanking your online reputation. Dana suggests conducting an Operations Readiness Test before launching any major strategy, ensuring your systems can actually fulfill what your marketing promises. What Are Your Reviews Really Telling You? With customer sentiment being tracked publicly on Google, Reddit, and social media platforms, negative feedback can break a business overnight. I asked Dana about the relationship between public reviews and internal operations. The reality is that a bad review is rarely a marketing problem; it’s almost always an operational failure. Dana shared a striking story of a client whose Google rating was sitting at a dismal 2.7 stars. By pausing the aggressive marketing, going under the hood to fix the back-end fulfillment issues, and restructuring the team, they brought that score up to a 4.5 in just six months. Pro Tip: Don’t guess what your customers are experiencing. Run a “secret shopper” test. Have someone outside your business walk through the entire journey from signup to delivery to take screenshots, record videos, and catch the outdated logos or broken links you’ve become blind to. The “Invisible” Dangers of Departmental Silos Your sales, marketing, and operations teams might all want the business to succeed, but if they are operating out of different playbooks, they are actively working against each other. Dana highlighted two major areas where these silos create friction: Playing in the Sandbox: Operations often gets defensive when marketing reports fulfillment issues, while marketing gets frustrated when operations asks for more promotion on a product they aren’t ready to scale. They must stop talking at each other and start talking with each other in unified feedback loops. Ignoring the Frontline: Your executive team looks at the business from 30,000 feet, but your frontline staff lives right where the customer experiences the brand. If you want to know what is genuinely broken in your processes, skip the board meeting and run a focus group with your daily operations employees. Key Takeaways Fix Before You Flood: Marketing gets people through the door, but operations dictates whether they stay. Never launch a robust marketing campaign until you’ve tested your infrastructure to handle the volume. 🛠️ Reviews Follow Operations: If your online reviews are hurting, look at your fulfillment, not your ad copy. Fix the operational bottleneck, and the positive ratings will naturally follow. 📈 Run a Voice of the Customer Review: Take a cue from my days at EyeContact and hold regular cross-departmental meetings to review support tickets, transcripts, and customer criticism together. Iron out the challenges as a unified team. 🗣️ Build Systems Before You Need Them: Most small businesses operate in a reactive firefighting mode. True sustainability comes from mapping out your growth and building scalable infrastructure ahead of time. 🧱 Leverage AI for Brainstorming: If you don’t have the budget for a full-time “unicorn” executive yet, use tools like Gemini or ChatGPT. Feed them your industry and current workflows to brainstorm potential operational bottlenecks you should prepare for. 🤖 Final Thoughts Scaling a company should be done sustainably, not hastily. Lead generation and go-to-market strategies are incredibly important, but they mean nothing without retention. Take a moment today to look under the hood of your own business. Talk to your staff, audit your automated touchpoints, and make sure the customer journey you are building is one that actually makes people want to stay. If you want to hear more from Dana Newell, you can find her on LinkedIn or visit BenNewcom.com. And remember, if you want to keep your data integrity high and ensure your marketing is hitting real inboxes, check out Kickbox. Use the code HMBT to get 5,000 free verification credits and start cleaning up your list today! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0QVmLrfP5k&feature=youtu.be Audio:

May 11, 2026Episode 30633 min

HMBT #306: Respect the Pause

I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Dr. Natasha Davis from Impact Branding Consulting for episode 306 of the HMBT podcast. Natasha is a heavy hitter in the world of business and legal strategy, helping organizations scale with confidence by focusing on risk reduction and governance. While we usually talk about how to get more content out there, Natasha brought a perspective we’ve never really tackled on the show: the legal consequences of moving too fast. In a world where we are constantly told to create 100 videos a month and flood every channel with blog posts, Natasha’s guiding principle is simple yet profound: Respect the pause. If you are rushing content out the door without a strategy for protection, you might be building a house on someone else’s land, or leaving your own doors wide open for intruders. We dived into the dangers of intellectual property theft, the realities of AI ownership, and why your employees might be accidentally giving away your “secret sauce.” This conversation was a wake-up call for anyone who thinks a signed contract or a Secretary of State registration is enough to keep them safe. The Financial Sting of Hijacked Content Many of us focus on making sure we don’t infringe on others, but we rarely think about protecting what we create. Natasha pointed out that in the “go, go, go” era, we often skip the steps to secure our own assets. Imagine spending years building a framework, a course, or a brand, only to find someone two states over has trademarked your logo and tagline. Because they took the legal steps you skipped, they can send you a cease and desist order. Suddenly, you are legally barred from using your own work. This isn’t just a headache, it’s financially crippling. Natasha suggests that for every minute spent in strategy, you save ten minutes in execution and potentially two hours in legal liability. Does AI Content Belong to You? With the rise of AI tools like Gemini and ChatGPT, everyone is looking for shortcuts. I asked Natasha the million-dollar question: If I use AI to generate a blog image or copy, do I own it? The short answer is no. Current laws are rapidly catching up, but generally, you don’t own AI-generated content because it’s sourced from existing data available to the public. To copyright something created with AI, you have to prove significant “original authorship.” Pro Tip: If you are a freelancer or agency using AI for client work, disclose it. Natasha shared a story of a client who felt cheated because an agency used AI for “inspiration” without mentioning it. Authenticity and ethics are your best currency. The “Invisible” Dangers in Your Office Your team might be your greatest asset, but without clear policies, they can also be a legal liability. Natasha highlighted two major areas of concern: Platform Ownership: If an employee creates work for you using their personal AI account ($20/month plan), you might not own that data. If they leave on bad terms, your content leaves with them. Ensure you have “work for hire” agreements that clearly state everything created on company time belongs to the company. Data Leaks: Be extremely careful about what is uploaded to public LLMs. If your staff is feeding “secret sauce” recipes or private client data into an AI to summarize it, that data could potentially be used to train the model. Key Takeaways Strategy Saves Seconds and Dollars: Every minute of planning prevents hours of legal battles. Don’t let speed to market compromise your security. 🛡️ Registration Isn’t Protection: Registering your business name with the Secretary of State does not protect your intellectual property. You need trademarks and copyrights to truly own your brand assets. 📝 The “Trade Secret” Rule: If it’s proprietary, label it “Confidential—Internal Only” and explicitly forbid uploading it to any AI platform. “Do not share” and “do not upload” are two very different instructions. 🤐 Read the Fine Print on Agencies: Some creative agencies embed clauses stating they own the work they create for you, even though you’re paying for it. Always read the contract before signing. 🧐 Use AI for Verification: Just as you use AI to create, use it to protect. Upload contracts to tools like Gemini to have them explained in plain English and to flag potential red flags. 🤖 Final Thoughts Scaling a company should be done strategically, not hastily. Speed is important, but not at the cost of your foundation. Take a moment today to “respect the pause.” Review your contracts, check your team’s AI usage, and make sure the assets you’re working so hard to create actually belong to you. If you want to hear more from Dr. Natasha Davis, you can find her at NatashaDavisVisionary.com. And remember, if you need to verify your email lists to keep your data integrity high, check out Kickbox. Use the code HMBT to get 5,000 free credits and start cleaning up your list today! What is one area of your business where you need to “respect the pause” this week? Let’s talk about it in the comments. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zj81lCtza3o Audio:

April 27, 2026Episode 30530 min

HMBT #305: SEO is Dead, Long Live GEO!

Is the “0-click world” making websites obsolete? 🌐 In this episode, I sit down with Roger Williams from Kinsta to debunk the myths about Wesbites, AI and WordPress. We dive deep into why your website is actually the “fuel” for AI answers, the importance of web accessibility, and how managed hosting can save your business from technical nightmares. 🔥 SPECIAL OFFER: Use code HMBT at Kickbox.com to get 5,000 FREE credits to verify your email list! In this episode, we cover:  ✅ Why AI chatbots actually make your website MORE important. ✅ The “Triple Threat” of website accessibility. ✅ How Kinsta manages security and performance for WordPress users. ✅ Pro tips for using staging environments and automated backups. Connect with Roger: 🌐 Website: https://kinsta.com 🔗 LinkedIn: Roger Williams https://youtu.be/ayWy0KCNfGY Audio:

April 13, 2026Episode 30431 min

HMBT #304: Bouncer at the Door

Peter Cholnoky, CEO of E-Hawk, joins me for a conversation about a topic that might not sound flashy but is absolutely critical for any online business: lead risk and data integrity. While most marketers focus on the quantity of leads, Peter explains why the quality of those leads, and the metadata behind them, determines your actual success. The episode explores the sophisticated world of “smelling engines” (Peter’s term for his firm’s analysis tools) that sniff out high-risk signups in real time. We discuss the transition from reactive spam traps to proactive risk scoring, the hidden dangers of free email accounts, and how businesses can use metadata to customize their risk tolerance, much like a car dealership at a credit bureau. From identifying bot patterns with AI to the “toilet paper vs. iPad” rule of e-commerce friction, this conversation is a deep look into the infrastructure of trust. The core message? Stop manually sifting through garbage. Use data to automate your defense so you can spend your energy on actual growth. Key Takeaways 1️⃣ 🕵️ Risk Is More Than Just an Email Address While checking if an email is deliverable is a great start, true risk assessment involves looking at the whole profile. E-Hawk analyzes over 500 metadata points, including IP addresses, phone numbers, fingerprints, and domain age, to build a complete lead profile. 2️⃣ ⚖️ Customize Your Risk “Thermostat” Every business has a different risk appetite. An adult entertainment site might welcome disposable emails, while a B2B SaaS company would see them as a red flag. The goal isn’t necessarily to block every lead, but to score them so your CRM or e-commerce system can decide how much “friction” to apply (e.g., allowing a high-risk user to buy toilet paper but not an expensive iPad). 3️⃣ 🤖 Using AI to Fight AI The bad actors are already using AI to create sophisticated bot attacks and move periods around in Gmail addresses to create thousands of “disposables.” To stay ahead, Peter’s team uses AI to attack their own systems, training their models to recognize the latest patterns before they hit your forms. 4️⃣ 🛑 Don’t Spend $5,000 to Fix a $1,000 Problem Peter offers a grounded perspective on fraud prevention: assess what the fraud is actually costing you. If you’re a small shop getting a handful of leads, manual review is fine. But once you scale and bots start leveraging your infrastructure to send spam or steal products, that is when you need to automate your “bouncer at the door.” 5️⃣ 📧 The “Business Email Only” Debate Should you block Gmail leads? It depends. While enterprise whales rarely use free accounts for serious inquiries, smaller businesses might miss out on a “whale” by being too restrictive. A better move is to allow them but watch for other red flags, like a disconnected phone number or a suspicious IP address. 6️⃣ 🛠️ Ditch the “Chief PowerPoint Officer” Mindset We touched on productivity tools that actually move the needle. Peter’s team lives in Slack and Claude rather than long email chains or decks. He even shared a tip for a “Slack CRM” that keeps everything in one communication hub, proving that efficiency is about staying where the work actually happens. 7️⃣ 👃 Everyone Needs a “smengine” Peter’s internal “smelling engine” checks data every six minutes to see if a domain that looked okay at signup has suddenly turned malicious. In the modern landscape, data isn’t static. A lead that is “green” today might be “red” tomorrow, and your systems should be agile enough to react. 🎯 Final Thoughts This episode is a reminder that marketing and sales are only as good as the data they are built on. If you’re filling your CRM with “garbage” leads, you’re wasting your team’s time and your company’s money. Take a look at your data patterns, identify the friction points, and don’t be afraid to lean on partners who specialize in keeping the internet a safer, cleaner place. Make sure to check out E-Hawk! Get 5,000 free Kickbox credits with the code HMBT https://youtu.be/Eeb9_ZlBxIM?si=JqArOZmnvGG1pNBc Audio:

February 24, 2026Episode 30335 min

HMBT #303: From CMO to CRO

Joshua Harrell, Chief Revenue Officer at WorldVia Travel Network, joins me for a conversation that starts with travel—but quickly becomes a masterclass in modern marketing strategy. The episode explores how travel has shifted from a luxury to a priority for many families, why experiences now matter more than possessions, and how travel advisors are making a comeback in a DIY world. Joshua shares his journey from retail cosmetics to leading revenue growth in the travel industry, highlighting what marketing really means today: driving revenue, not just producing content. From Disney overwhelm to European river cruises, from email marketing ROI to TikTok Live authenticity, the conversation connects travel lessons to real-world marketing principles. The core message? Stop chasing shiny tactics. Focus on strategy, storytelling, and measurable revenue impact. Key Takeaways 1️⃣ ✈️ Experiences Are the New Currency Families are prioritizing travel over material gifts. Exposure to different cultures and perspectives creates long-term value—personally and professionally. For marketers, this reinforces a bigger truth: people buy transformation and experience, not just products. 2️⃣ 🧭 Travel Advisors = Strategic Guides (Not Order Takers) The pandemic revealed how complex travel can be. Consumers increasingly value expert guidance—especially for premium or complicated trips. The business lesson?Your customers don’t just want access. They want insight, strategy, and protection from mistakes. 3️⃣ 🎯 Strategy Beats Shiny Objects Joshua emphasizes that marketers often get distracted by the newest tools, acronyms, or platforms. Whether it’s AI discoverability or the latest algorithm change, the fundamentals haven’t changed: Know your audience Tell a compelling story Build a system that drives revenue Measure what matters Marketing tasks without strategy lead nowhere. 4️⃣ 💰 Marketers Are Revenue Drivers The shift from CMO to CRO isn’t just a title change—it’s a mindset shift. Marketing is not about colors, fonts, or tweets. It’s about: Generating leads Supporting sales Increasing revenue Finding overlooked opportunities Every marketer today carries revenue responsibility. 5️⃣ 📧 Email Marketing Still Wins on ROI Despite new platforms and AI tools, email marketing remains the strongest ROI channel. Why? You own the audience. It’s measurable. It drives conversions. It builds long-term relationships. Consistency matters more than complexity. 6️⃣ 🎥 Authentic Video Is a Massive Opportunity TikTok Live and short-form video are changing how audiences connect with brands. The barrier to entry is low, and authenticity outperforms polished perfection. People buy from people.If you can explain your product in a room, you can go live. 7️⃣ 🌍 Travel Expands Perspective — So Does Marketing Exposure to new cultures builds empathy and awareness. That perspective makes better marketers because marketing is about understanding human behavior. Travel teaches: Cultural nuance Storytelling depth Emotional drivers Comparative thinking The broader your worldview, the better your marketing. 🎯 Final Thoughts This episode blends business strategy with life perspective. Travel broadens your thinking. Strategy strengthens your marketing. And revenue is the ultimate scoreboard. If you’re stuck in tactical mode, this conversation is your reminder to zoom out, clarify your strategy, and focus on what actually drives growth. And maybe… book that trip while you’re at it. Check out Joshua’s Book: Travel Marketeering on Amazon. Find Joshua on Linkedin Get 5,000 free Kickbox credits with the code HMBT https://youtu.be/r5INfN4lCpw Audio:

February 5, 2026Episode 30239 min

HMBT #302: One Kiss Only

In this lively and insightful episode, I sat down with Victor Julio Coupe, Head of Business Development at Kensho Media and host of The Squared Table podcast. We talked about how email outreach and sales strategies are evolving in 2026—especially in the world of iGaming—and how personal branding and authenticity are now more critical than ever. From cringe-worthy cold calls to genius video messages, Victor brought stories, strategies, and a whole lot of heart. We also unpacked how AI, oversaturation, and poor targeting are damaging trust in sales outreach—and what to do instead. Spoiler: it involves showing up, being human, and yes, sometimes asking for “one kiss only.” 💋 💡 Key Takeaways ✉️ Email is Still King—But Only If You Respect It Email remains the most controllable and reliable outreach channel—but it’s often undervalued or misused. Victor stressed the importance of list quality over quantity, personalization, and relevance. 🧠 Stop Spray-and-Pray Outreach Don’t mass-email conference lists if people don’t know your name or brand. It’s lazy, and it hurts your sender reputation. “Just because you can doesn’t mean you should.” Targeting starts with thoughtful list building. 📹 Use Video to Humanize Your Brand One of Victor’s best-performing tactics: short, energetic video messages on LinkedIn before conferences. Video builds connection, familiarity, and breaks through inbox noise. Tools like Bonjoro and BHuman make this easy. 🧍‍♂️ Build Your Personal Brand, Not Just Your Business People trust people more than faceless brands. In 2026, personal branding is a non-negotiable for sales pros. Even if you’re not camera-ready, start small: write, comment, share thoughts. Consistency beats perfection. 🔥 Conferences Need to Catch Up Conference organizers should allow speakers/sponsors to submit short intro videos pre-event. This helps with brand recognition and warms up leads in a human, value-driven way. 🧠 Know Your Audience (and Yourself) Cold calling may work in the U.S., but not everywhere. Know what fits your region and your style. Victor’s superpower? Being authentic, upbeat, and approachable. Figure out what your brand voice is and lean into it. 🤖 AI Isn’t the Enemy, Sloppy Outreach Is With AI-generated spam on the rise, real, human-crafted messages stand out more than ever. Personalized, relevant outreach = higher response rates. The “Dear Sir/Madam” era is dead. 🎯 Final Thoughts The episode wrapped with a challenge: Start building your personal brand today. Whether it’s posting on LinkedIn, recording a short video, or simply replying with heart, taking small, consistent actions builds trust—and trust leads to conversations (and conversions 💰). Victor said it best:“If you don’t ask for the kiss, you can’t get the conversion.” 💋 👀 Don’t Miss It: Listen to his podcast: The Squared Table Find Victor on LinkedIn Get 5,000 free Kickbox credits with the code HMBT https://youtu.be/Iz7byCBwZcQ Audio:

January 20, 2026Episode 30137 min

HMBT #301: Your List Needs Therapy

📬 In this episode, I speak with email deliverability expert Matthew Vernhout of Email Industries to break down what really determines whether your emails reach the inbox—or land in the spam folder. The conversation kicks off with the most critical factor: your data quality. 🧹 If you’re using clean, first-party, permission-based email lists, you’re already ahead. But if you’re purchasing lists or using scraped data, expect problems. They discuss express vs. implied consent, global email regulations like CASL, GDPR, and the consequences of bad data—including poor reputation, spam traps, and honey pots. 📉 The golden rule? “Do good things, good things happen. Do bad things, bad things happen.” 💡 🔐 The second half digs into technical must-haves like SPF, DKIM, and DMARC—which are now mandatory for bulk email senders thanks to new standards from Google and Yahoo. They also unpack BIMI, which lets brands display their logo in the inbox (✅ a trust booster) and why subject lines still matter for engagement (❌ avoid “Your Weekly Update” or overusing emojis). The episode wraps with practical advice: don’t rely on AI or guesswork to fix deliverability problems. Instead, work with professionals who can perform audits, diagnose issues, and rebuild your sender reputation 💪. As Matthew says, think of it like digital physiotherapy for your email program—sometimes you just need a wellness checkup to keep everything healthy. 🧠📈 Key Takeaways: ✉️ Start with clean, first-party, opt-in data. 🔍 Always authenticate your email with SPF, DKIM, and DMARC. 📛 BIMI can boost brand trust—but only if your reputation is solid. 🤖 Be cautious of AI-generated email summaries—they can mislead recipients. 🧪 Test, monitor, and don’t DIY your deliverability when things go sideways. Final Thoughts:Email is hard. But it doesn’t have to be impossible. With the right practices and guidance, your emails can reach the inbox and convert. Avoid shortcuts, respect the rules, and if you’re in doubt—get expert help before your emails vanish into the void. ✅ Connect with Matthew on Linkedin Check out Email Industries here Get 5,000 free Kickbox credits with the code HMBT https://youtu.be/awbu0mMQ4x4 Audio:

January 5, 2026Episode 30038 min

HMBT #300: The Netflix Effect

For episode 300, I am joined by email marketing legend Dela Quist for a no-holds-barred conversation about the misconceptions surrounding email frequency, deliverability, and value. Dela, known for challenging conventional wisdom, makes a compelling case for why email is a branding tool, not just a sales mechanism, and how marketers often misunderstand frequency and engagement. From comparing the inbox to Netflix 🎬 to debunking deliverability myths tied to inactive subscribers, Dela shares decades’ worth of strategic insights with real-world examples and humor. His key message? Sending more email isn’t bad, sending irrelevant or inconsistent email is. This episode is a masterclass for email marketers who want to build stronger email strategies backed by logic, not just best practices. 💡 Key Takeaways: 📬 Frequency is not the enemy: Most brands under-mail their subscribers. The belief that you can “send too many emails” is rarely backed by data—it’s mostly based on fear or outdated thinking. 📈 Engagement doesn’t mean open rate alone: People might ignore an email for months and then search for it when they’re ready to act. Gmail knows this and doesn’t necessarily penalize you for low open rates. 🧠 The inbox is like Netflix: People save, revisit, and search for emails the same way they binge their favorite shows. Don’t assume an unopened email is a failed one. 👻 Inactives are misunderstood: Brands often waste money reacquiring lapsed customers through paid channels when they could simply continue emailing them—at a fraction of the cost. ✅ Every subscriber should get at least one email a week: This provides a baseline for performance metrics and ensures you’re in the inbox when the subscriber is ready to act. 📉 Gmail isn’t stupid: Their algorithms consider behavior across the Google ecosystem (search, maps, store visits) to determine deliverability—not just whether someone opened your last email. 🚫 Never email addresses you didn’t collect directly: This is the fastest path to getting flagged. Confirmed opt-in remains the gold standard. ⚙️ Your ESP’s shared IP reputation matters—big time: For small senders, a solid ESP with a strong deliverability track record can make or break your email success. 🧮 Focus on long-term brand building, not just short-term conversions: Email is a powerful branding channel, but marketers often underutilize it because it’s “too cheap” to be taken seriously. 🙌 Final Thought: Dela’s approach is refreshingly pragmatic, ditch the myths, focus on value, and treat email as the most cost-effective branding channel in your arsenal. Whether you’re a startup or an enterprise brand, there’s something in this episode that will challenge the way you think about email marketing. 🔗 Want more from Dela? Connect with him on LinkedIn or visit delaquist.com. Get 5,000 free Kickbox credits with the code HMBT https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rx1cE2Zcun8 Audio:

December 15, 2025Episode 29933 min

HMBT #299: Just Jack

Former “Kickboxer” Jack Wrigley joined me on this episode to talk about staying focused and developing real relationships. I’ve always admired Jack’s blend of sharp business insight and genuine relationship-building skills. He’s currently the President of Omnivery, a secure, high-deliverability transactional email platform, and in this episode, we tackled something a lot of people are thinking about right now: how to stay focused and thrive in a noisy, uncertain business climate. We started by talking about how businesses can get pulled in a million directions with AI, remote work, shifting budgets, and all the other distractions out there. Jack emphasized the need to double down on your core values and mission, not just writing them out, but making sure they’re baked into how everyone shows up to work every day. I added a few tips on how to keep those values top-of-mind, like automating monthly Slack reminders, adding them to your workspace, or even incorporating them into your custom GPTs if you’re using AI tools. One thing I loved about our conversation is that we both believe good leadership doesn’t just flow top-down. Jack pointed out how powerful it is when people are empowered to articulate how their work contributes to the company’s mission. I completely agree, leadership happens at every level. Whether you’re a founder or an entry-level team member, your ideas matter. We also got into the nitty-gritty of email marketing and cold outreach. Jack didn’t hold back, he’s not a fan of cold email, and I get it. Deliverability is harder than ever, inboxes are tighter, and honestly, most cold emails just don’t land. Instead, he encourages brands to build trust through content, storytelling, and relationships. I shared some of my thoughts too, if you’re going to do cold email, make it thoughtful, personal, and extremely targeted. But more importantly, find ways to make people come to you. And we couldn’t have an episode without touching on networking, one of Jack’s superpowers. He broke down his no-pressure approach to connecting with people: walk into a room, be curious, and lead with genuine interest rather than an agenda. It’s a refreshing reminder that real relationships still matter more than flashy pitches. 🔑 Key Takeaways 🌟 Stick to your mission and valuesDon’t just write them—live them. Print them out, set up reminders, and make sure they guide every decision. 💬 Leadership isn’t just top-downEmpower your team to connect their work to the bigger mission. That kind of buy-in is how great cultures are built. 📧 Cold email is getting harder to do wellFocus more on building relationships through valuable content and let potential customers come to you. 📖 Storytelling still works (and always will)People connect with stories, not features. Make storytelling a consistent part of your brand voice. 🤝 Great networking isn’t about anglesApproach every interaction without expecting something in return. Ask questions. Be interested, not just interesting. 🎯 Email with purposeWhether it’s for marketing or transactional, make sure your email strategy is secure, relevant, and aligned with your brand. Connect with Jack on Linkedin. Make sure to check out Omnivery for your transactional email needs! Get 5,000 free Kickbox credits with the code HMBT https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5siRnJ2X3tk Audio: