The Truth About Social Ads

"The Truth About Social Ads" goes beyond just tips and tricks; it's your pathway to truth and education. Elevate your brand or your agency's operations, run ads more efficiently, and embark on a journey to grow and scale your business. From dissecting failed ads to uncovering the secrets of successful campaigns, we're here to guide you through the nuances of the advertising realm. Tune in to stay informed, inspired, and equipped with the knowledge you need to navigate the fascinating world of social media advertising.

The Truth About Social Ads is a business podcast hosted by Jason Smith, with 71 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

Jason Smith hosts The Truth About Social Ads, a business show with 71 episodes published.

Our AI reads these to draft pitches. Use them as grounding for a pitch that cites a real guest and a specific topic.

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  The Truth About Social Ads

  How BlueCotton Turned Investing in Employees Into Its Growth Engine — Julie Denton-Price

  Jul 21, 202656 min

  What happens when a custom t-shirt company starts treating its people like its best marketing channel? Julie Denton-Price, Co-Owner & Chief Revenue Officer of BlueCotton, went from customer in 2001, to employee, to buying into the company in 2022 — and she's helped build one of the most unusual workplace cultures in e-commerce. In this episode we get into: BlueCotton's accidental origin story: two college grads, 1,000 leftover t-shirts, and a credit card bill (1991) Julie's path from customer to employee to co-owner — and what each role taught her about revenue The Bitcoin Initiative: why BlueCotton mines Bitcoin and pays out employees who stay 5+ years — at zero risk to them Weekly personal development and personal finance classes — and how culture became their recruiting and retention engine How they made the Inc. 5000 list 8 times and were named a Best Place to Work in Kentucky What they're doing for marketing right now: working with specialized ad agencies, testing everything, and why they're diversifying beyond Meta The truth about agency relationships from a client who owns her numbers Guest: Julie Denton-Price — bluecotton.com | @bluecotton Host: Jason Smith — Spotlight Social Media Consulting, LLC | spotlightsocialadvertising.com

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  The Truth About Social Ads

  How GOHUNT Went From Idea to Helping Hunters — with Chris Porter

  Jul 14, 202657 min

  What do you do when your industry is one of the most restricted ad categories on Meta? Chris Porter, President & Co-founder of GOHUNT, built one of the most impressive brands in the outdoor space without leaning on the paid social playbook most brands take for granted. We get into how GOHUNT went from a 2013 idea to a full ecosystem — research tools, maps, gear, memberships, and original content — plus: Marketing lessons Chris brought over from Full Tilt Poker and online gaming Growing a brand when platforms restrict your ads Why the influencer landscape is shifting and what actually works with ambassadors now The membership-rewards flywheel that funds customer acquisition What GOHUNT's acquisition taught him about durable, community-first growth Guest: Chris Porter — gohunt.com | @gohunt Host: Jason Smith — Spotlight Social Media Consulting, LLC | spotlightsocialadvertising.com

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  The Truth About Social Ads

  Supplement Entrepreneurship: Building a Zero-MOQ Brand Model with Spencer Livingston

  May 31, 202649 min

  Starting a supplement brand no longer requires massive inventory investments, warehouse space, or manufacturing expertise. This episode explores how entrepreneurs are launching and scaling supplement businesses with lower risk while focusing on growth and customer acquisition. ABOUT THE EPISODE ⸻ In this episode of The Truth About Social Ads, host Jason Smith sits down with Spencer Livingston, Sales Director at On Demand Fulfillment, to discuss how entrepreneurs can launch private-label supplement brands without traditional inventory commitments. Spencer breaks down On Demand Fulfillment’s zero minimum order quantity (MOQ) model, how dropship fulfillment works in the supplement industry, and why preserving cash flow can be more important than maximizing product margins. The conversation covers fulfillment logistics, subscription-based revenue, supplement quality standards, third-party testing, inventory forecasting, Amazon compliance, and the challenges brands face when scaling rapidly. Whether you’re an entrepreneur exploring eCommerce, an agency owner serving product-based businesses, or a brand looking to improve fulfillment operations, this episode provides practical insights into launching and growing a supplement company with reduced operational risk. ABOUT THE GUEST ⸻ Spencer Livingston is the Sales Director at On Demand Fulfillment, a white-label dropship fulfillment company specializing in supplement brands. Based in Salt Lake City, Utah, On Demand Fulfillment operates alongside Vox Nutrition, a supplement contract manufacturer that produces and fulfills products from the same facility. Spencer works directly with entrepreneurs, eCommerce operators, and growing supplement brands to help them launch products with no inventory commitments while maintaining quality standards through FDA-registered manufacturing processes and third-party testing. He also helps established brands transition into custom formulations as they scale.

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  The Truth About Social Ads

  Clean Tequila Branding: Building additive-free female-focused brand strategy with Mara Smith

  May 27, 202632 min

  From corporate law to building a premium tequila brand, Mara Smith shares how she identified a gap in the spirits industry and turned it into Inspiro Tequila. ABOUT THE EPISODE ⸻ In this episode of The Truth About Social Ads, Jason Smith sits down with Mara Smith, founder of Inspiro Tequila, to discuss her unconventional journey from attorney and corporate strategist to entrepreneur in the tequila industry. Mara shares how discovering undisclosed additives in many premium tequilas inspired her to create a cleaner, additive-free alternative designed for modern consumers. The conversation explores the realities of building a beverage brand from scratch, including grassroots marketing, retail growth, organic social media, email marketing, collaborations, influencer partnerships, and the challenges of advertising alcohol brands on Meta platforms. Mara also explains how Inspiro Tequila differentiates itself in a highly competitive market with an all-women leadership team and a strong focus on authentic consumer connection. ABOUT THE GUEST ⸻ Mara Smith is the founder of Inspiro Tequila, an additive-free tequila brand created to offer a cleaner and more approachable tequila experience. Before launching Inspiro Tequila in 2020, Mara worked as an attorney at a large law firm and later joined the corporate strategy group at McDonald’s Corporation. After stepping away from corporate life to raise her family, she pursued entrepreneurship and built a tequila company focused on premium quality, female-led leadership, and modern consumer preferences. Inspiro Tequila is distilled, owned, and led by an all-women team.

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  The Truth About Social Ads

  Better-For-You Desserts: Scaling a Clean Ingredient Bakery with Addison LaBonte

  May 25, 202642 min

  CPG brand Sweet Addison’s is reshaping gluten-free baking through storytelling, organic Instagram growth, and a founder-led approach to scaling with Meta ads. ABOUT THE EPISODE ⸻In this episode of The Truth About Social Ads, Jason Smith sits down with Addison LaBonte, founder of Sweet Addison’s, a fast-growing better-for-you bakery known for gluten-free and dairy-free cookies and brownies shipped nationwide. Addison shares her powerful journey from being a Division I college soccer player and finance professional to becoming a CPG founder after a life-changing health discovery. She opens up about being diagnosed with compartment syndrome, how eliminating gluten helped her return to running, and how that experience led her to deeply research food, inflammation, and ingredient transparency. From building a viral Instagram presence under “Organically Addison” to launching Sweet Addison’s from her home kitchen, Addison breaks down how organic content, customer demand, and storytelling shaped her brand before ads ever entered the picture. The episode also explores scaling a food business, product development, and why authentic marketing now outperforms traditional advertising. ABOUT THE GUEST ⸻ Addison LaBonte is the founder of Sweet Addison’s, a premium gluten-free and dairy-free bakery brand specializing in cookies and brownies shipped across the United States. She is also the creator behind “Organically Addison” on Instagram, where she shares recipes, lifestyle content, and her journey building a health-conscious food brand. A former Division I athlete from the University of Maine and ex-finance professional, Addison transitioned into entrepreneurship after discovering how dietary changes impacted her health and performance.

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