Is Anything Real?
Episodes
Hungry Buyers Beat Perfect Marketing | Ep. 59 w/ Gabriel Moldovan (Peak Growth)
06 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Most founders don’t fail because the product is bad — they fail because they’re marketing to people who aren’t hungry.In this episode, Gabriel...
Relationships Compound: Boston College Founders on Shark Tank & the Real Networking Game | Ep. 58 w/ Tiffany McCasland + Sarah Fox
05 May 2026
Contributed by Lukas
🎁 Bonus dropTwo Boston College-connected founders. Two Shark Tank episodes. Back-to-back weeks. And the lesson isn’t “how to go viral.” It’...
Deals Die in Follow-Up: How AI Saves the Sale | Ep. 57 w/ Steven Werley (Closable.ai)
29 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Most deals don’t die because your offer sucks.They die because the follow-up system is vibes, not structure.In this episode, Steven Werley (Founder,...
Representation Is Strategy: Equity, AI & Real Growth | Ep. 56 w/ LaShanda Jackson (No Ceiling Collective)
22 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Representation isn’t a “nice to have.” It’s a growth strategy.And if your systems ignore who’s missing, AI doesn’t fix that — it scales ...
Audience ≠ Community: Hip Hop Built the Blueprint | Ep. 55 w/ Jeffrey Roe (BRyC)
15 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Hip hop isn’t just music...it’s community infrastructure.In this episode of Is Anything Real?, Adam W. Barney sits down with Jeffrey Roe (Beats, R...
Stop Chasing Unicorns: Growth Psychology That Actually Works | Ep. 54 w/ Colin Hodge (DOWN) — Outrageous Startup Growth
13 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
📘 Book launch day: Outrageous Startup Growth by Colin Hodge (Wiley) —out today (4/13).The startup world is basically a myth factory…and founder...
Founder Growth Without the Ads Crutch | Ep. 53 w/ Daniel Perumal + Nick Alter (ThriveSide)
08 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Daniel Perumal and Nick Alter (ThriveSide/Founders Best Friend) explain why paid ads don’t work like they used to...and what founders should do when...
Humble Influence: Why Followership Wins | Ep. 52 w/ Jim Matuga (Inner Action Media)
03 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Jim Matuga (proud resident of West Virginia and Founder of Inner Action Media) has built a 14+ year agency, a statewide storytelling platform, and a l...
Paid Ads Are “Air Cover,” Not Pipeline | Ep. 51 w/ Penny Hill (Three Threads Consulting)
01 Apr 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Penny Hill (Three Threads Consulting) brings a reality-first leadership take on one of the most worshiped myths in B2B marketing: that paid ads drive ...
50 Episodes. 5 Truths. 1 Reality Filter. | Ep. 50 w/ Adam W. Barney
25 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 50 is a milestone - but it’s also a pivot report.After 50 conversations across growth, leadership, culture, equity, energy, and truth-tellin...
Fake Conversions: Metrics Lie, Truth Wins | Ep. 49 w/ Dana DiTomaso (Analytics Playbook)
18 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
If your “conversions” are just page views, you’re not reporting performance.You’re committing fraud with better fonts. In this episode, Dana...
Trader Joe’s Truth: Differentiation, Culture & Leadership | Ep. 48 w/ Patty Civalleri
16 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
SURPRISE DROP - Podcasthon Week (supporting the ACLU).Donate to the ACLU: https://action.aclu.org/give/nowPodcasthon: https://podcasthon.org/Trader Jo...
What Actually Works in Growth | Ep. 47 w/ Jesse Resnick + Walter Shock (Ei Digital)
11 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Most marketing teams are still trapped in a fake war: brand vs. performance. Jesse Resnick and Walter Shock (Co-Founders of Ei Digital) argue that’s...
Brand From the Soul | Ep. 46 w/ Alexander Michael Gittens (Rupert Rodney)
06 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Most people talk about brand from the neck up: strategy, tactics, frameworks.Alexander Michael Gittens talks about brand from the soul: identity, huma...
Carousels Beat Video: Meta Ads That Convert in 2026 | Ep. 45 w/ Jordan Hawn (Hawn Consulting)
04 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
If you’re still optimizing Meta for views, you’re not running ads - you’re renting applause.In this episode, Jordan Hawn (CEO & Founder, Haw...
Equity Over Optics: Human-Centered Demand Gen in Regulated B2B | Ep. 44 w/ Brandy Morton
25 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
What’s real: Paid ads aren’t fake - the expectations often are.Brandy Morton (PR → comms → B2B/GRC marketer → founder) breaks down how to bu...
Always Be Testing: Real SEO/SEM Plays for 2026 | Ep. 43 w/ Peter Kalanda (3 Horizons Interactive)
18 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
“SEO isn’t dead...LLM search just rewards brands that ship the fundamentals and answer real questions.”If you feel like your ad dollars buy less...
Reddit = Real: Zero-Click Wins & Comment Ads | Ep. 42 w/ Colin Belyea (Karmic)
11 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Reddit is the trust engine of the internet. It’s where buyers validate big decisions - and where AI and search borrow real perspective. In this epis...
Brand Soul > Super Bowl Shine | Exclusive Drop Ep. 41 w/ Steve Biegel (Dreamboat Group)
06 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Award-winning strategist Steve Biegel shows why purpose outperforms spectacle - and how to use Think > Say > Do to win beyond Super Bowl weekend...
Regulated Ads, Real Plays - What Still Works | Ep. 40 w/ Alexandra Prochshenko (Veloria)
04 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Regulated categories aren’t impossible - just unforgiving.Founder Alexandra Prochshenko (Veloria) and I get brutally practical about what still work...
Founder-First VC: Equity, Access & Real Signals | Ep. 39 w/ Christina Quinn (SSC VP)
28 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Founder-First VC: Equity, Access & Real SignalsGeneral Partner Christina Quinn (SSC Venture Partners) sits down with Adam W. Barney to move beyond...
Introvert Leadership: Inclusion Without Burnout | Ep. 38 w/ Sharon Hurley Hall (Introvert Sisters)
24 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
What if leadership stopped rewarding loudness and started rewarding truth?In this exclusive drop, Sharon Hurley Hall (journalist, author, anti-racism ...
Say Something True: Authentic Growth & Rev-Share Plays | Ep. 37 w/ Aaron Wolpoff (Double Zebra)
21 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
“Say something true.” In this episode, Aaron Wolpoff (Owner and Fractional CMO, Double Zebra) and I unpack authentic growth: the one-truth positi...
AR/VR, Not Hype: 70/20/10 Testing & Real-World Plays | Ep. 36 w/Adam Ortman (Kinetic319)
14 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Is spatial computing the next real channel...or another metaverse mirage? Adam Ortman (CEO/Founder, Kinetic319) brings operator truth: how to explore ...
Micro Beats Macro: Real Influence, Not Bot Views | Ep. 35 w/Matt Anthes (Advocators)
07 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
Matt Anthes (ex-federal campaign strategist, now Founder of Advocators) explains why micro and nano influencers outperform “big name” buys...and h...
Clicks Aren’t Customers: $5,266 in Ads, 1 Call | Ep. 34 w/Dan Newman (Learn to Scale)
31 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Founder/operator Dan Newman breaks down a six-month Meta ads test (spoiler: $5,266 in spend for one sales call) and the lessons that matter for small ...
Creative Angle over Dashboards: Full Journey Growth | Ep. 33 w/Gabe Wolff (Everything Bagel)
24 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Brand-side veteran turned collective leader Gabe Wolff makes the case that tidy ROAS and over-engineered account structures distract from what actuall...
Lead with Humanity: Caregiving, Clarity & Real Growth | Ep. 32 w/Yasmine de Aranda (360ANGLE)
19 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when the glossy leadership myth meets real life - kids, partners’ health, and aging parents? Yasmine de Aranda argues that caregiving i...
Break the Agency Mold: Right-Sized Teams, Real Results | Ep. 31 w/Jamie Read (BriteBirch)
17 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Agency polish without agency baggage. Jamie Read unpacks how BriteBirch Collective builds project-led, specialist teams that scale up or down fast, wh...
Community over Audience: Measurable ROI & CQLs | Ep. 30 w/Yurii Lazaruk (Community ROI)
10 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Most teams confuse audience with community. Yurii Lazaruk explains the difference (one-to-many vs. many-to-many) and maps a measurable framework for c...
Do the Homework: Foundations Before Ads | Ep. 29 w/Nikhil Vaish (BoostSolo)
05 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Agency veteran Nikhil Vaish, founder of BoostSolo, argues that most ad failures start upstream. We walk through his three-step model: Offer > Homew...
Attribution Is Fiction: Profit Over Dashboards | Ep. 28 w/Andrew Maffettone (BlueTuskr)
03 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
E-commerce isn’t single-touch - and your reporting shouldn’t pretend it is. Growth leader Andrew Maffettone breaks down how marketplace spillover ...
Community over Clicks: Women, Talent & Real Influence | Ep. 27 w/Shraddha Varma (Fuzia)
26 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Community isn’t a channel—it’s an operating system. Shraddha Varma, Co-Founder of Fuzia, shares how a women-centered platform turns creators int...
Credibility over Clout: Books, Wine & BS-Free Marketing | Ep. 26 w/Megumi Calver (Merobebe)
19 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Author credibility beats vanity metrics—and hospitality beats hacks. In this conversation, Megumi Calver explains how she helps nonfiction authors a...
Building a Global VA Agency Without Ads | Ep. 25 w/Utsav Nagori (DynaPro Global)
12 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if you could build a thriving global business — without spending a dime on ads?In this episode of Is Anything Real in Paid Advertising?, Utsav ...
Stop the Ad Addiction | Ep. 24 w/Jared Tang (Gaggle Social)
05 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Tired of chasing clicks and conversions that don’t convert?In this episode of Is Anything Real in Paid Advertising?, host Adam W. Barney sits down w...
Scrappy ABM, Real Results: Building Pipeline Without Paid Ads | Ep. 23 w/Mason Cosby (Scrappy ABM)
29 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when you stop chasing vanity metrics and start running ABM the way it’s meant to be — personal, measurable, and scrappy?In this episo...
EQ, Resilience & Real Influence | Ep. 22 w/Chuck Garcia (Climb Leadership International)
24 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
It's time for another Exclusive Drop you don't want to miss!Leadership isn’t forged at the summit: it’s forged in the storm.In this powerful conve...
Fix Your Bank. Scale Your Ads. | Ep. 21 w/Alex Steele (Opal)
22 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode of Is Anything Real in Paid Advertising?, host Adam W. Barney sits down with Alex Steele, Founder & CEO of Opal, to unpack how age...
Narrative Power in a Noisy World | Ep. 20 w/MK McGowan (MK McGowan Studios)
15 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In a world where ads fight for attention and algorithms dictate visibility, one thing still cuts through the noise: storytelling.In this episode of Is...
Filtering Noise with AI: Authentic Growth & Real Connections | Ep. 19 w/ Joe Apfelbaum (evyAI)
08 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
AI in sales and marketing isn’t about replacing people: it’s about amplifying them.In this episode of Is Anything Real in Paid Advertising?, I sit...
CRM That Pays: Lead Scoring, Attribution & ROI | Ep. 18 w/ Jason Kramer (Cultivize)
01 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Most companies pour money into marketing without connecting it to revenue. Jason Kramer, Founder & CEO of Cultivize, shows how to turn CRM, lead s...
Building Trust Before Ads | Ep. 17 w/ Abu Kamara (Green Zone Solutions)
24 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Most entrepreneurs feel the pressure to run ads before they’ve built a foundation. Abu Kamara, Co-Founder of Green Zone Solutions, took a different ...
The Future of AI & Creativity | Ep. 16 (Exclusive Drop) w/ Mike Todasco (SDSU, Ex-PayPal)
20 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The AI wave is reshaping industries faster than most leaders can process. Few people have navigated it from as many angles as Mike Todasco, former H...
AI That Actually Delivers: Clarity Before Paid Ads | Ep. 15 with Vinod Kumar (Syntheum AI)
17 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
AI that actually delivers.Vinod Kumar, CEO & Co-Founder of Syntheum AI, joins host Adam W. Barney to talk about clarity, discipline, and why most ...
Filtering the Noise: Offline Data, Ad Fraud & LTV | Ep. 14 w/ Noel Geer (Connected Interactive)
10 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Forget vanity metrics. Noel Geer, CEO & Founder of Connected Interactive, joins host Adam W. Barney to reveal why most brands are wasting money ch...
How Fuzia Built a 10M+ Community That Actually Converts | Ep. 13 with Priyanka Mishra (Fuzia Talent)
03 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Forget paid tricks. Priyanka Mishra, Business Head of Fuzia Talent, joins host Adam W. Barney to break down how she scaled a global, women-led platfor...
Strategy Over Shortcuts: Small Biz Growth That Lasts | Ep. 12 w/Lucy Wang (Pocketflows)
27 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
“AI without strategy is chaos.”Lucy Wang, Co-Founder & CEO of Pocketflows, joins me for a straight-talking breakdown of what’s real in small...
Data That Cuts Through the Noise | Ep. 11 with Ryan Stevens (Digital Reference)
20 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Too many agencies are drowning clients in dashboards, vanity metrics, and pretty charts that don’t move the needle. Ryan Stevens is here to burn tha...
Scaling Smarter: Agency Growth, Balance & Real ROI | Ep. 10 with Anthony Tsigourakos (ScaleSmarter)
13 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Anthony Tsigourakos, co-founder of SmartSpend Advertising and growth advisor at Good Name Consulting, knows the hidden costs of scaling. After helping...
Beyond Clicks and Chaos | Ep. 9 with Patrick Cumming (KleintBoost)
06 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What actually works when paid ads stop performing?In this episode, Patrick Cumming, Head of Marketing at KleintBoost, joins Adam W. Barney to cut thro...
Breaking the Vice Stigma | Ep. 8 with Pauline Schmiechen (Fanblast)
30 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What do you do when Google, Meta, TikTok, and every other ad platform shut the door in your face? You break the rules, rewrite the playbook, and scale...
Alignment Over Algorithms | Ep. 7 with Lea Miner (Intention & Insight)
23 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In Episode 07 of Is Anything Real in Paid Advertising?, we dive deep with Lea Miner, Founder of Intention & Insight, who’s building something tr...
From Grind to Growth: Micro-Niching, Daily Emails & Ditching the Social Media Hustle | Ep. 6 with Ziv Raviv (Kivi Media)
16 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
What if the real growth play wasn’t grinding on social media or spending wildly on ads?In this episode of Is Anything Real in Paid Advertising?, I s...
Creative Metrics, Messaging Clarity & Creator Grit | Ep. 5 with Nuria Garcia (NbN Marketing)
09 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Nuria Garcia of NbN Marketing joins me for a raw dive into the behind-the-scenes reality of creator-led growth. From ad platform bias to client misedu...
Creative Chaos & AI Mood Boards | Ep. 4 with Christina Magaña (Modish Creative)
02 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
AI may be getting flashier, but is it making your creative work better or just…blobbier?In this episode of Is Anything Real in Paid Advertising?, I ...
Funnels, AI, and the Human Touch | Ep. 3 with Nathalie Doremieux (Podcast LeadFlow)
25 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Is AI driving deeper connections, or just more noise?In this episode, I’m joined by Nathalie Doremieux, Co-Founder of Podcast LeadFlow, who reveals ...
PMax, AI, and the Myth of Set-It-and-Forget-It | Ep. 2 with Ben Lund (Rise Marketing Group)
18 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Performance Max can scale. But only if you control the inputs.Otherwise? You’re handing the wheel to a robot with no map.In this episode of Is Anyth...
Scaling with Soul | Ep. 1 with Kristi Broom (Lotus Transformation Group)
11 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this kickoff episode of Is Anything Real in Paid Advertising?, I sit down with Kristi Broom, Co-Founder of Rising Tide Cooperative to talk candidly...
Ep. 00: Is Anything in Paid Advertising Even Real?
10 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
You’ve seen the headlines. You’ve heard the hype. You’ve probably even burned budget on a “proven funnel.”But let’s be honest: is anything...