Marketing Leadership from the .com Boom to the AI Revolution: A Conversation with John Schultz on what Clients Want Today (Hint It’s Not An Agency)
In this episode, Raul and John discuss why hiring an agency feels risky today—cost, quality, outcomes, and commoditized “SEO/PPC shop” buying—then explore a shift toward providing open-ended marketing leadership focused on strategy, positioning, and execution using a mix of people, AI, automation, and outside resources. They argue project fees don’t fit a fast-changing landscape and consider retainers plus tool costs, while noting some work (like nailing brand positioning) can justify value-based pricing. They cover AI’s rapid acceleration, tool churn, and potential skill loss, alongside likely disruption to entry-level roles, and suggest human relationships will become more valuable in high-stakes B2B selling. John shares positioning lessons from customer interviews, a case study creating a sales/brand playbook used for onboarding, and examples of “marketing-adjacent” AI work that helps sales operations. 00:00 Do Agencies Still Matter? 01:18 What Clients Really Want 02:29 Marketing Leadership Model 04:57 Post Scope Era Pricing 06:52 AI Velocity And Tool Overload 09:00 Value Based Fees And Retainers 12:09 Skill Loss And Disruption 15:01 Meaning Work And Removing Toil 17:51 Human Connection Comes Back 22:18 Proof Points vs Positioning 22:55 Cloud Consulting Case Study 25:13 Tagline to Sales Playbook 26:52 Using AI for Messaging 28:25 Positioning Is for Buyers 29:18 When Positioning Doesn’t Land 30:49 Marketing Isn’t Just Opinion 32:39 Revenue as the Validator 33:39 AI Adjacent Opportunities 36:58 Relationships in a Tech World 39:12 Loyalty Means Real Dollars 40:59 Lifetime Value Marketing Model Connect with John Schultz: https://www.netstrategies.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnschultznetstrategies/ Connect with Raul: • Work with Raul: https://dogoodwork.io/apply • Free Growth Resources: https://dogoodwork.io/free-growth-resources • Connect with Raul on LinkedIn (DMs open): https://www.linkedin.com/in/dogoodwork/