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)
Do Good Work
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/