Ahrefs Podcast

Adam Robinson, Founder and CEO of Retention.com and RB2B, reveals how to transform LinkedIn into a powerful customer acquisition tool without spending on ads. He discusses the art of building a personal brand and authentic storytelling, emphasizing the importance of engaging content. Learn practical tips for growing your LinkedIn audience, crafting captivating posts, and leveraging video to create emotional connections. Robinson also highlights the balance between AI and human creativity in content generation, showcasing effective strategies for impactful engagement.

Nathan Barry (founder of Kit, formerly ConvertKit) joins Tim Soulo to break down one of the boldest rebrands in SaaS, and why it wasn’t just a logo change, but a complete overhaul of identity, voice, and vision.We talk:• Why they spent $260K with a top agency (and what they actually got)• How to design word-of-mouth marketing that actually works• Using AI to scale brand consistency• The Minimum Viable Personal Brand for founders• Building creator flywheels instead of chasing funnels• What Kit learned from celebrity newsletters (Tom Brady, Dua Lipa, McConaughey…)If you care about brand, growth, or building in public, this is the episode to watch.00:00 - Intro00:54 - Why spend $360K for a rebrand? 06:14 - Using AI to stay on brand10:28 - Acquiring a three-letter domain16:05 - Business decisions beyond immediate profit 21:26 - Turning a rebrand into a marketing flywheel26:06 - You can’t script word of mouth. But you can feed it32:56 - Customers as marketing assets42:30 - Funnels vs flywheels and landing celebrity clients53:45 - Delegating like a CEO (but still showing up)1:00:32 - OutroWe hope you enjoyed this episode of Ahrefs Podcast! As always, be sure to like and subscribe (and tell a friend). Where to find Nathan:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanbarry/X: @nathanbarryWebsite: https://kit.com/Where to find Tim:LinkedIn: (https://www.linkedin.com/in/timsoulo/)X: @timsouloWebsite: https://www.timsoulo.com/_______________Referenced in this episode:🔹 PeopleTom Brady — Referenced in relation to Kit newsletter visibilityhttps://www.instagram.com/tombrady/Patrick Campbell — Founder of ProfitWell (acquired by Paddle)https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickccampbell/https://twitter.com/pattycDua Lipa — Musician and creator, newsletter launched via Kithttps://www.instagram.com/dualipa/⸻🔹 Companies / Products / PlatformsKit — Formerly ConvertKit, platform for professional creatorshttps://kit.com/Koto — Design agency behind Kit’s $260K rebrandhttps://koto.studio/Ahrefs — All-in-one SEO and marketing platformhttps://ahrefs.com/ProfitWell — Subscription analytics and retention toolhttps://www.profitwell.com/Paddle — SaaS payment infrastructure company (acquired ProfitWell)https://www.paddle.com/Creator Network — Kit’s recommendation and newsletter growth enginehttps://kit.com/features/creator-network⸻🔹 Books / Concepts“Do Things That Don’t Scale” — Paul Graham (essay from Y Combinator)https://www.paulgraham.com/ds.htmlAhrefs PodcastHost: Tim SouloPodcast Producer: Michelle LindnerIntro Storyboard: Michelle LindnerIntro Video Lead: George DolgikhIntro Video Animations: Ilya YakymchuckFilmed at: Content HQ, Miami #branding #rebranding #marketing #emailmarketing #Kit #ConvertKit #domainnames #customerengagement #storytelling #businessstrategy #marketingstrategies #creatorplatforms #abtesting #directsales #networkeffects #teamprocesses #founderpassion

Everyone’s talking about AI in marketing. But most of it is hype, fluff, or screenshots of ChatGPT doing something useless. This episode is different.Gael Breton ( ⁨@AuthorityHackerPodcast⁩ ) shows the real systems he’s using to replace time-wasting tasks, write high-performing content, and ship more work, without losing quality.We’re talking about AI workflows that actually work in a lean, fast-moving marketing team.We cover: (00:00) Intro(01:35) AI in marketing is broken. Here's how to fix it.(03:22) Use Gemini to uncover B2B AI opportunities(05:57) Why content still matters in the age of AI agents(09:03) Auto-generate podcasts and deep research summaries(11:27) Research video libraries with NotebookLLM(15:31) Tim’s evolving take on AI-generated content(18:43) Use AI to write high-engagement newsletters(26:48) Feedback, refinement, and keeping AI content human(31:33) Smarter, not spammy: Using AI like a creative calculator(41:20) AI agents + MCP server to automate SEO tasks(47:18:07) OutroWe hope you enjoyed this episode of Ahrefs Podcast! As always, be sure to like and subscribe (and tell a friend). Where to find Gael:LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/gael-breton-78305118⁠X: @GaelBretonWebsite: https://www.authorityhacker.com/Where to find Tim:LinkedIn: (https://www.linkedin.com/in/timsoulo/)X: @timsouloWebsite: https://www.timsoulo.com/_______________Referenced in this episode:Ahrefs – https://ahrefs.com/Authority Hacker – https://www.authorityhacker.com/Gemini (Google AI) – https://deepmind.google/technologies/gemini/Claude (Anthropic) – https://claude.ai/NotebookLM – https://notebooklm.google/Perplexity AI – https://www.perplexity.ai/Firecrawl – https://www.firecrawl.dev/Make.com – https://www.make.com/n8n – https://n8n.io/CapCut – https://www.capcut.com/Opus Pro – https://www.opus.pro/Notion AI – https://www.notion.so/product/aiBuffer – https://buffer.com/_______________Ahrefs PodcastHost: Tim SouloPodcast Producer: Michelle LindnerIntro Storyboard: Tim SouloIntro Video Lead: George DolgikhIntro Video Animations: Ilya YakymchuckFilmed with:  ⁨@Riversidefm⁩  #ai, #automation, #businessscaling, #technology, #entrepreneurship, #saas, #innovation, #brand, #contentcreation, #marketingstrategies, #businessgrowth, #aiworkflow, #aicontentcreation

Amos Bar-Joseph, founder of Swan AI, shares insights into how autonomous business solutions can help companies scale without increasing headcount. He discusses the shift from automation to augmentation, emphasizing AI's role in enhancing customer support and onboarding. Amos reveals how AI can transform lead management through proactive engagement and real-time responses. He also tackles the challenges AI faces in web design and the vital importance of brand and user experience in today's competitive landscape.

Joe Glover, creator of The Marketing Meetup, shares his journey in building a 50,000+ member community with a focus on human connections. He emphasizes that community isn't a sales channel but rather a culture that thrives on authenticity and emotional bonds. Glover discusses the importance of storytelling in marketing and the unique elements that make events successful. He also reflects on the challenges of member engagement and the necessity of shared leadership in sustaining community participation.

Louis Grenier, the unapologetic founder of Stand The F*ck Out and host of Everyone Hates Marketers, offers radical insights into standing out in a sea of sameness. He discusses the pitfalls of typical branding efforts and unveils a four-step process to achieve unique positioning. From understanding audience insights to crafting a compelling brand narrative, Louis emphasizes the importance of authenticity, continuous engagement, and the need to address real customer challenges. His refreshing take challenges marketers to rethink their strategies and embrace clarity.

Tim Dalrymple, former Head of Growth Marketing at Notion and Director of Growth at Webflow, shares insights from the forefront of marketing. He discusses the crucial differences between growth and brand marketing, emphasizing measurable strategies for scaling success. Tim dives into the complexities of advertising attribution and the need for reliable tracking systems. He also highlights the importance of AI in marketing, production strategies for impactful video content, and the role of quality SEO in driving organic traffic.

Borko Kovacevic, co-founder of the fast-growing podcast studio network Poddster and podcast operations software Podyx, dives into the evolving world of podcasting. He discusses the shift from audio-only to video formats, revealing why YouTube is taking the lead. Borko highlights the common pitfalls businesses face, like assuming interesting guests alone make a successful show. He emphasizes the power of authenticity and trust, and how strategic guest appearances can double as a networking hack for business growth.

Meet Magnus Grimeland - the founder and CEO of Antler - a one BILLION dollar venture capital firm dedicated to investing in startups at the earliest stages. As of today, Antler has invested in over 14 hundred companies, making it the largest day-zero investor in the world. And they have an audacious goal to invest in 6 thousand companies before 2030. In this episode, you'll learn: (0:00) Intro (02:36) Why are people more important than ideas?  (06:04) Examples of iterating on ideas (19:17) Hipster, Hacker, Hustler vs. Spike, Drive, Grit (29:22) Can marketers be good founders (34:39) Soft skills vs hard skills (39:03) The role of marketing in zero-day investments (46:07) What do experts get out of advising zero-day startups?  (53:45) Borrowing other people’s platforms (1:00:54) The first marketing steps for any startup (1:05:42) Building a brand (1:15:27) Founder brand vs. building local networks (1:22:03) How Antler gets referrals (1:29:52) Why VC firms don’t use SEO (1:37:33) How Antler decides who to invest in (1:40:06) Outro We hope you enjoyed this episode of Ahrefs Podcast! As always, be sure to like and subscribe (and tell a friend). Where to find Magnus: LinkedIn Website Where to find Tim: LinkedIn X Website ------------------------- Referenced: • Zalora • Lion • Basket of goods • G&A _______________ Ahrefs Podcast Host: Tim Soulo Podcast Producer: Michelle Lindner Intro Storyboard: Michelle Lindner & Tim Soulo Intro Video Lead: George Dolgikh Intro Video Animations: Ilya Yakymchuck Filmed at:  @PoddsterSingapore 

Delbert Ty, CMO at Coffee Meets Bagel, has a rich background in viral marketing from his time at Procter & Gamble and Circles.Life. He reveals the secrets behind successful campaigns, stressing the importance of storytelling and audience understanding. Delbert discusses unconventional tactics that often challenge traditional ideas, like his hilarious billboard stunt and an innovative $3 data plan from a vending machine. He emphasizes the need for courage in marketing, balancing wild creativity with strategic objectives, and even highlights when ‘bad’ ideas can lead to success.