Your marketing ROI is declining, and the traditional playbook isn't fixing it. This creates an unprecedented opportunity for businesses ready to evolve their approach.

After analysing hundreds of marketing strategies for businesses generating £5-50m turnover, we've identified the five critical disconnects causing ROI to flatline: misaligned metrics, broken targeting, outdated channel mix, risk aversion, and ignoring AI search.

The businesses fixing these issues aren't those with the biggest budgets — they're those making strategic adjustments that compound into transformative results.

In this episode, Charlie and Dale reveal:

• The hidden disconnect between marketing metrics and revenue (including why tracking share of voice whilst the board wants ARR creates dangerous blind spots)
• How Finisterre's attempt to "go broader" nearly killed their growth — and why narrowing your focus expands your potential
• Why spreading budget across every channel is like "betting £1 on every horse" and guarantees you'll lose money
• The 80/20 framework for balancing proven revenue generators with essential experimentation
• • How AI search is condensing the customer journey (users now make 3-5 ChatGPT queries before a single Google search)

Charlie and Dale also share real-world examples, including how Vita Coco dominated its niche before expanding, and why power users are actually searching Google MORE (13 times daily) while organic traffic declines.

As Charlie explains in the pod:

"If your bottom line goal is generating a certain number of leads or making a certain amount of revenue, then understanding which marketing channels are actually driving those leads or driving that revenue — and which percentage of your marketing budget is experimental — that's where most businesses fall down."

If you're ready to fix the disconnects undermining your marketing performance whilst your competitors cling to yesterday's playbook, this episode provides your complete roadmap for reversing ROI decline.

Get the show notes:

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/dojo-62/

Listen to these Dojo episodes next:

What is AI Search? And Why Is It So Important?

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/dojo-56/

Google’s AI Mode Goes GLOBAL + NEW Agentic Features!

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/dojo-61/

Only 2% of SEOs Are Optimising for AI Search (and Why That’s a BIG Mistake)

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/dojo-60/

A dangerous misconception is spreading through marketing circles that's holding businesses back while competitors master an entirely new game — and believing it could cost them their competitive edge.

With 800 million people now using ChatGPT to find information and make purchasing decisions, and 55% of searches resulting in AI answers, the message for marketers should be clear. Yet a pervasive myth persists: "AI Optimisation is just SEO. Nothing has changed."

This couldn't be further from the truth — and the evidence is indisputable.

For businesses targeting decision-makers who increasingly rely on AI tools for research and purchasing decisions, understanding these critical differences isn't just smart, it's becoming essential for survival.

In this episode, I reveal:

• The three pieces of indisputable proof that AI Search Optimisation operates by completely different rules than traditional SEO (including why 40% of sites in AI Overviews don't even rank on Google's first page)

• Why top-ranking websites frequently get ignored by AI tools, whilst lesser-ranked sites leapfrog into AI recommendations — creating unexpected opportunities for smart marketers

• The hidden mechanics behind how AI tools decide what to recommend, including when they skip web searches entirely and why they prefer third-party sources over brand websites

• Exactly why traditional SEO strategies fail when AI tools draw recommendations from Reddit, TripAdvisor, Forbes, and authority publications instead of your carefully optimised website

• The specific types of digital PR and earned media strategies that influence AI recommendations across ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude

I'll share real-world examples from almost three years of helping clients increase their AI visibility, including specific case studies of brands that have successfully navigated this new landscape, whilst their competitors remain stuck in traditional SEO thinking.

As I explain in the episode:

"Saying GEO is just SEO, nothing has changed, is like an archer on the battlefields of World War I looking at the first tank coming towards them and saying, 'Well, tank warfare is just like medieval warfare.' Good luck with that."

If you're ready to move beyond the dangerous misconception that's holding back your competition and implement strategies that actually work in the age of AI Search, this episode provides your complete roadmap for dominating this critical new landscape.

Get the show notes:

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/364/

Listen to these episodes next:

What is AI Search Optimisation (and How To Do It)

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/358/

How To Create and Optimise Your Content for AI Search

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/363/

9 Reasons Why Your Traffic Is DOWN This Year

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/361/

The search landscape is experiencing its most significant transformation in decades, and Google's AI Mode global rollout is creating unprecedented opportunities for forward-thinking marketing leaders — while competitors remain fixated on traditional search strategies.

While AI Mode currently captures just 1-2% of total search traffic, this low adoption rate masks a critical strategic opportunity: early positioning before mainstream adoption accelerates.

In this episode, Dale and Charlie reveal:

• Revolutionary agentic features that go beyond search — including how AI Mode can now make restaurant reservations and purchase tickets on behalf of users

• Why current 1-2% adoption rates create opportunity rather than concern (and how this compares to other Google search verticals)

• The exact overlap between traditional SEO and AI Mode optimisation (plus the crucial differences that could leave your competitors behind)

• Strategic timing insights — including why Google's accelerated rollout timeline signals urgent need for preparation

As Charlie explains in the episode:

"Now is very much the time to start experimenting with it..."

If you're ready to establish AI Mode dominance while competitors remain focused solely on traditional search metrics, this episode provides your complete strategic framework for capitalising on Google's most significant interface change in decades.

Get the show notes:

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/dojo-61/

Listen to these episodes next:

What is AI Search? And Why Is It So Important?

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/dojo-56/

Everything Marketers Need to Know About AI Max for Search

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/dojo-53/

“ChatGPT Agent” Is Changing How People Buy AGAIN

https://exposureninja.com/podcast/dojo-58/