ABOUT 1 MONTH AGO • 4 MIN READ

AI Audits: The Cheat Code You Didn’t Know You Needed

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Scale & Strategy

This is Scale & Strategy - your cheat sheet for being a creator.

Here’s what we got for you today:

  • Podcast Bros Take Over San Francisco: ‘Acquired’ Hosts Pack the Chase Center
  • AI Audits: The Cheat Code You Didn’t Know You Needed
  • IN THE LOOP

Podcast Bros Take Over San Francisco: ‘Acquired’ Hosts Pack the Chase Center

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What happens when you mix business, storytelling, and Mark Zuckerberg? You get 6,000 podcast fans crammed into the Chase Center in San Francisco, all there to see Acquired podcast hosts Ben Gilbert and David Rosenthal interview the Meta CEO himself.
Yes, you read that right. Gilbert and Rosenthal—known for turning business stories into epic, multi-hour episodes—took their show live, proving that yes, people will pay to hear about the finer points of corporate acquisitions… in person.

Zuckerberg as the Main Event
The highlight of the night? A 90-minute convo with Mark Zuckerberg, where he probably didn’t ask if anyone’s enjoying Threads (but we’re just speculating). Attendees were buzzing, but not just because Zuck was there. No, according to creative community builder Jesse Engle, the vibe wasn’t “OMG, it’s Zuckerberg!” but more like catching up with your really smart friends who just happen to know a lot about business.

Engle told us, “You really develop a personal relationship with these guys.” And he wasn’t talking about Zuck. Gilbert and Rosenthal’s episodes often run two to four hours, meaning fans are practically BFFs with the hosts at this point.

Price of Admission: Surprisingly Chill
Speaking of accessibility, tickets were only $50 to $100, which is shockingly affordable compared to fellow business podcasters All-In, who charged—wait for it—$7,500 for their event. That’s not a typo. Engle made a good point: “Charging thousands means you’re creating more of a velvet rope. Acquired felt way more approachable.”

Big Event, Bigger Takeaway
But Engle’s biggest lightbulb moment? Not every creator needs to pack an arena. “I left thinking, ‘If there were smaller meetups that grew organically—with a little support from Ben and David—I’d totally be there,’” he said.

So, moral of the story? Whether you’re charging $7,500 or keeping it cool at $50, community is key. But maybe skip the velvet rope next time.

Stories about activism from people changing the world.

  • All About Change features in-depth conversations with changemakers.
  • Hear moving stories about activism, change, and courage.
  • Join Jay and iconic guests changing the world.

Listen wherever you get podcasts.

AI Audits: The Cheat Code You Didn’t Know You Needed

Got a pile of marketing assets that need auditing but don’t feel like spending hours sifting through them? Say no more. Turns out, AI chatbots are the secret weapon you didn’t know you needed to whip up a top-notch audit—minus the robotic feel.

Andy Crestodina’s got the playbook, and we’re spilling the tea.

Step 1: Get Your AI Clued In on Your Audience
No one likes generic content. If you don’t prime your AI, that’s exactly what you’ll get. Give it a persona prompt, upload your ideal client profiles (bonus points if you have a PDF), or even create your own custom GPT. Once you’ve fine-tuned the output, hand it off to your team. Voilà, your AI suddenly seems way more in the know.

Step 2: Give It the Goods
Need to audit that cringey ad copy or the 20-page internal doc you’ve been avoiding? AI’s got you covered. Feed it the assets—whether it’s text, images, or even full documents—and let the magic happen. Leverage, leverage, leverage.

Step 3: Set the Ground Rules
Before you hit “go,” make sure you’ve laid out the best practices. You can either craft these manually or ask the AI to pull together a list for you. Once you’ve got that solid list of do’s and don’ts, toss it back to the bot to clean up and organize. Next time? Boom. Ready-made checklist.

Step 4: Craft That Killer Prompt
Now’s the fun part. Tell your AI what role it’s playing, give it your best practices, and let it know exactly what you want in return. Want to get fancy? Ask it to break down why its suggestions either hit or miss the mark—cue critical thinking.

Step 5: Filter the Good from the Garbage
The AI’s suggestions will range from “duh” to “wait, what?” and some might just make you raise an eyebrow. Before you act, give each one a human pass to make sure it actually makes sense. Then, rinse and repeat.

Now, you’re basically an AI audit pro. Andy has a few more tricks up his sleeve, so check out his deep dive here.

IN THE LOOP

Money
Say goodbye to “enhanced” clicks: Starting this October, Google is phasing out Enhanced Cost-Per-Click (eCPC) for new search and display ad campaigns. By March, it’ll be history for everyone. Google’s reasoning? Their machine-learning options like Maximize Conversions and Maximize Conversion Value are way better for improving performance. If you’re aiming for conversions, switch your goals to Max Conversions or Conversion Value now. If not, setting your goal to Max Clicks will let you cruise into March without any hassle.

Audiences
Politics meets the creator economy: Livestreams are quickly becoming the new digital rallying spots as creators dive into political discourse. With younger audiences wanting to hear their favorite influencers' political takes, content creators are jumping into the fray. Expect to see more content creators making politics their niche. The real challenge? Building a sustainable model that doesn’t depend on those juicy presidential election years.

Tech and Tools
Notes to podcast, the AI way: Google’s NotebookLM note-taking app can now turn your notes into a podcast with two AI “hosts” leading the discussion. Before hitting publish, give that AI banter a good listen—you’ll want to make sure it’s saying what you mean.

Private views don’t count: YouTube confirmed that only public views count toward engagement metrics. Private video views? Those stay under wraps until you make it public. It’s logical—YouTube wants public engagement data, not secret video stats.

And Finally
Books, books, and more books: A whopping 3.3 million ISBNs were issued in the U.S. in 2022, with Japan a distant second at 902.3K. ISBNs are the key to book discoverability, ensuring retailers can easily find and stock your latest page-turner.

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