
The SDM Show
The SDM Show discusses all things Business, Marketing and WordPress. This show was formerly known as The SDM Business, Marketing and WordPress Show.
Latest episodes

Apr 24, 2025 • 48min
Episode 541 E Commerce and PPC With Sam Piliero
"The SDM show" featuring host Rob Cairns and guest Sam Piliero from Moonlighters, a digital marketing agency. The discussion focuses on the evolution of e-commerce and the challenges and strategies associated with digital advertising, particularly on platforms like Facebook and Google. They explore topics such as rising ad costs due to increased competition, shifts in consumer behavior and ad targeting methods, and the importance of a multi-channel approach to advertising. The conversation also touches on the significance of understanding key business metrics and optimizing website user experience, while highlighting the benefits of outsourcing advertising management to allow business owners to focus on core operations. Finally, they discuss the advantages of the Shopify platform and offer practical advice for businesses starting out with digital ads.

Apr 22, 2025 • 38min
Episode 540 When It is Time To Step Back From Social Media With Spencer Forman
Rob Cairns of the SDM show interviews Spencer Foreman about their decisions to significantly reduce their time on social media. They discuss how constant exposure negatively impacted their mental health, leading to anxiety and unwanted emotional involvement in online content. Both found that stepping back allowed them to be more present, engage in healthier activities like reading, and experience reduced anxiety, particularly before sleep. They critique the addictive nature and negativity prevalent on many platforms, contrasting it with more constructive online interactions and the distractions from real-life engagement. The conversation touches on the feeling of being overwhelmed by global issues amplified online and the benefits of focusing on controllable aspects of life. Ultimately, they advocate for a more mindful approach to technology and social media consumption to improve overall well-being.

Apr 21, 2025 • 29min
Episode 539 Copywriting With Todd Jones Humanizing Content
This audio excerpt from The SDM Show features a discussion between host Rob Cairns and Todd Jones about humanizing content in the age of AI. They explore the tendency of AI-generated text to sound corporate and lacking in a personal touch. Jones shares insights on prompting AI effectively to achieve a more human tone, referencing advice from copywriting experts and his own experiences. The conversation touches upon the limitations of AI in areas like storytelling, emotion, and originality, emphasizing the ongoing need for human editing and the importance of creating engaging and relevant content. Ultimately, they advocate for a thoughtful integration of AI in content creation, stressing the value of authentic and relatable communication.

Apr 17, 2025 • 31min
Episode 538 Neeto With Neeraj Singh
The provided text is an excerpt from The SDM Show, a podcast hosted by Rob Cairns, featuring an interview with Neeraj Singh about his company, Neeto, and its suite of business productivity tools. Singh explains the origins and motivations behind creating Neeto Cal, a Calendly competitor, and Neeto Record, a Loom alternative, highlighting their focus on user needs and affordability. The discussion touches upon the features, pricing models (including a unique free tier for Neeto Cal), and the future roadmap for these and other upcoming Neeto products like a CRM and invoicing system. Singh emphasizes Neeto's approach of offering a comprehensive ecosystem of tools while prioritizing user-friendliness and value over extensive marketing spending.

Apr 15, 2025 • 6min
Episode 537 How I Use Google Gemini AI Daily Practical Examples for Marketers & Creators
In this episode, Rob discusses his perspective on artificial intelligence, emphasizing its role as a tool rather than a replacement for human expertise. He specifically details various applications of Google's Gemini in his work, including generating podcast show notes, optimizing articles for SEO, creating graphics, and developing content for landing pages and a book series from past episodes. Rob outlines his motivations for using AI, citing its ability to improve his writing, save time, facilitate learning, and allow him to train the AI for specific tasks. The podcast is presented by Stunning Digital Marketing, a digital marketing and WordPress security company. The episode also includes dedications to Rob's late father and living relatives.

Apr 10, 2025 • 33min
Episode 536 Conversions On Your Website With Matthew Stafford
This podcast episode of the SDM Show, hosted by Rob Cairns, features Matthew Stafford discussing website conversion strategies for e-commerce businesses. They explore key elements influencing conversions, such as website speed, checkout processes, button placement and text, and the importance of understanding user behavior through heatmaps and recordings. Stafford shares his journey into conversion optimization and emphasizes the significance of fixing website issues to improve ad performance and overall sales. The conversation highlights that improving the user experience, removing unnecessary website clutter, and focusing on solving customer problems are crucial for increasing conversions. They also touch upon the differences between mobile and desktop conversions and the value of post-purchase feedback. Ultimately, the episode offers insights for e-commerce businesses aiming to optimize their websites for better conversion rates and revenue.

Apr 8, 2025 • 18min
Episode 535 SEO With Warren Laine-Naida Using Ai To Increase Your Search Visibility
This podcast episode of the SDM show features a discussion with Warren Laine-Naida about leveraging artificial intelligence to improve search engine visibility. The conversation emphasizes a shift in SEO strategy away from keyword stuffing towards a more semantic and entity-based approach, focusing on understanding the meaning behind search queries. Laine-Naida explains how large language models analyze text and context, highlighting the importance of creating natural, engaging, and informative content that caters to both users and AI algorithms. Practical advice includes defining business entities, utilizing search tools for research, structuring content with schema markup, building topical authority, and optimizing content for featured snippets and AI-powered search. The core message underscores that high-quality, user-focused content remains the most effective SEO strategy in this evolving landscape.

Apr 4, 2025 • 20min
Episode 534 Word Camp Canada With Dan Knauss
This audio recording is an episode of the SDM show hosted by Rob Cairns, featuring an interview with Dan Knauss, an organizer of WordCamp Canada. They discuss the upcoming 2024 event, scheduled for October 16-17 in Ottawa at Carleton University, with a potential contributor day. The conversation covers the theme centered around youth, campus life, and reinvention, as well as calls for volunteers and speakers. They also touch on the importance of community building within the Canadian WordPress ecosystem and opportunities for sponsorships.

Apr 3, 2025 • 50min
Episode 533 Analytics With Jeff Greenfield
This podcast episode of the SDM Show, hosted by Rob Cairns, features a discussion with Jeff Greenfield about the complexities of analytics in the modern marketing landscape. Greenfield shares his journey into analytics and highlights the limitations of relying solely on click-based metrics like Google Analytics. They explore the importance of understanding broader marketing concepts, including impressions and multi-touch attribution, and the challenges marketers face with evolving privacy regulations and the rise of non-clickable advertising channels. The conversation touches on the need for a unified source of marketing truth and the role of intelligent automation in providing actionable insights for businesses.

Apr 1, 2025 • 41min
Episode 532 Security With Tim Nash How To Recover From a Website Hack
In an episode of the SDM Show hosted by Rob Cairns, featuring Tim Nash, the discussion centers on website security, specifically addressing the crucial steps to take when a website has been hacked. They emphasize identifying the signs of a hack versus other website issues and caution against relying solely on backups for restoration due to potential reinfection. Nash details the common stages of a website hack, explaining why immediate detection and clean-up are essential, often recommending a complete rebuild for severely compromised sites. The conversation also covers misconceptions about SSL certificates, the limitations of website malware scanners, and the importance of transparent communication with customers following a security incident. Practical advice includes verifying local devices for malware, the risks associated with shared hosting and public Wi-Fi, and the necessity of securing e-commerce data like order information during recovery. Ultimately, the podcast episode provides valuable insights and actionable steps for website owners facing the challenges of recovering from a hack.
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