The Marketing Tactics Everyone Uses (But Won’t Admit) | Bathroom Break #100

For the 100th episode of Bathroom Break, Jay and Daniel are doing something a little different: calling out the marketing habits everyone uses but rarely admits. Through a rapid-fire “never have I ever,” they unpack real-world tactics marketers quietly rely on, like fake urgency in promotions, deleting underperforming posts, and experimenting with questionable email tricks. It’s an honest (and slightly chaotic) look at the gap between “best practices” and what actually happens behind the scenes. They also get personal with career horror stories, including Jay’s all-time embarrassing conference moment and Daniel’s on-stage panic that proves even seasoned marketers still get nervous. If you’ve ever stretched the truth in a subject line, deleted a post that flopped, or avoided a conversation at a conference, this episode will feel very familiar. Follow Jay: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/schwedelson/ Podcast: Do This, Not That Follow Daniel: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@themarketingmillennials/featured Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Dmurr68 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: https://themarketingmillennials.com/ Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: https://workweek.com/

Most Marketers think they need more budget to drive more results. Truth is, they just need to understand how people actually make decisions. In this episode, Daniel sits down with Bas Wouters, founder of the Online Influence Institute, to break down how behavioral psychology and AI are reshaping modern marketing…and how you can use both to drive more conversions without increasing spend. From why 95% of decisions are made emotionally, to how small changes like removing options or rewriting a single sentence can increase conversions by hundreds (or even thousands) of percent, Bas shares the proven frameworks behind what actually makes people say yes. They also dive into the difference between system one and system two thinking, why most marketers optimize the wrong things, and how to use AI to scale behavioral science across your Marketing. If you’re a marketer trying to get more results from the traffic you already have without spending more, this is the episode for YOU. https://customer.io⁠ helps brands turn data into personalized messages that actually connect, across email, SMS, and beyond. Learn more at https://customer.io/tmm Follow Bas: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/baswouters-cmct/ By the way, if anyone listening wants to see how their funnel scores on behavioral design, we give teams a free Optimization Plan where we map their pages against 35 proven persuasion principles we’ve used for companies like Disney, Booking.com, and Coca-Cola. Just go to https://onlineinfluence.com/, fill in your details, and let us boost your results. Follow Daniel: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing/ Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: www.workweek.com/brand/the-marketing-millennials Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: www.workweek.com

Most marketers don’t have a channel problem. They have a measurement problem. Daniel talks with James Connolly, CEO of Charlie Oscar, to unpack why so much Marketing spend gets wasted, how brands should rethink measurement, and what it actually takes to build a smarter growth strategy in the AI era. From launching one of the first mobile Marketing agencies at the start of the iPhone era, to helping brands move beyond click-based reporting, James breaks down what separates great Marketers from everyone else. They also dive into why creative is becoming the new targeting, how to think about creator Marketing as a content engine, and why the real danger is being either too early or too late to the next wave. If you’re a Marketer trying to understand what’s changing in performance, creative, and measurement (and how to avoid wasting budget in the process) this is the episode for YOU. https://customer.io⁠ helps brands turn data into personalized messages that actually connect, across email, SMS, and beyond. Learn more at https://customer.io/tmm Follow James: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesaconnelly/ Follow Daniel: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing/ Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: www.workweek.com/brand/the-marketing-millennials Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: www.workweek.com

TV isn’t just a brand channel anymore. And if you still think it is, you’re already behind. Daniel sits down with Lucas Coyle, Director of Brand Media & Awareness at MANSCAPED, alongside Mauricio Lizarazu from Tatari, to break down how MANSCAPED turned TV from a test channel into a real growth engine and what it took to go from social-first Marketing to a Super Bowl moment. From treating TV with the same rigor as digital to learning that female-skewing channels could drive surprising results for a men’s grooming brand, Lucas shares how MANSCAPED built a smarter, more modern TV strategy. They also dive into halo effects across Amazon and other channels, how direct publisher relationships unlock better buys, and why the brands winning on TV are the ones measuring it like a performance channel. If you’re a Marketer trying to understand how TV can drive both brand and revenue without wasting budget, this is the episode for YOU. Tatari helps brands run TV like a modern performance channel. Unlike most platforms that focus only on programmatic CTV, Tatari gives marketers access to all of TV - linear, streaming, programmatic CTV, and direct publisher inventory - in one platform. By combining premium inventory with transparent reporting and outcome-based measurement, Tatari lets growth teams evaluate TV the same way they evaluate paid search or paid social. The result: more control, better reach, and TV spend that can actually be tied back to business results. Learn more at ⁠http://bit.ly/40kwEAQ Follow Lucas: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucas-coyle/ Follow Mauricio: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mauricio-lizarazu-90b58b4b/ Follow Daniel: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing/ Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: www.workweek.com/brand/the-marketing-millennials Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: www.workweek.com

Not every marketing strategy works…ad some of the ones everyone talks about are quietly underperforming. Jay and Daniel break down what’s actually working in marketing right now AND what’s falling flat. Jay shares why going all in on YouTube hasn’t translated into meaningful conversions (yet), while Daniel explains one of the biggest mistakes brands make with B2B Influencer Marketing: relying on one-off creator deals instead of building long-term partnerships. Plus they dive into the growing importance of building your own AI knowledge base for your brand, and feeding it real customer insights so your AI actually understands your business. If you want a quick snapshot of what Marketers should double down on (and what to rethink) this is the episode for YOU.  Follow Jay: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/schwedelson/ Podcast: Do This, Not That Follow Daniel: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@themarketingmillennials/featured Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Dmurr68 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: https://themarketingmillennials.com/ Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: https://workweek.com/

AI is making Marketing faster than ever. But if faster just means more mediocre content, you’re not winning…you’re just creating more noise. Daniel sits down with Elizabeth Maxson Martinet, CMO of Contentful, to unpack how modern Marketing teams can balance speed, personalization, and quality in the age of AI. From why entry-level Marketers now need to think more like engineers, to how brands can use AI without creating “AI slop,” to why personalization is still wildly underused, Elizabeth shares what it actually takes to build a high-performing marketing team right now. They dive into the “great content collapse,” how to use AI to save time and money without losing the human element, and why ungating your content is one of the smartest plays in modern B2B Marketing. If you’re a Marketer trying to use AI more effectively without sacrificing creativity, strategy, or customer experience, this is the episode for YOU. https://customer.io⁠ helps brands turn data into personalized messages that actually connect, across email, SMS, and beyond. Learn more at https://customer.io/tmm Follow Elizabeth: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emaxson/ Follow Daniel: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing/ Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: www.workweek.com/brand/the-marketing-millennials Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: www.workweek.com

Luxury skincare can’t just look beautiful anymore. It has to build trust, feel approachable, and actually work. And the brands that can balance all three are the ones that win. Daniel sits down with Blair Lancer, CMO of Lancer Skincare, to unpack how you modernize a legacy beauty brand without losing the clinical credibility and heritage that made it iconic in the first place. From bringing “your mother’s skincare brand” into a new generation, to balancing Dr. Lancer’s medical authority with Blair’s lifestyle-driven voice, to refreshing the brand without doing a full rebrand, Blair shares what it really takes to make a heritage brand feel relevant again. They also dive into influencer trust, why celebrity cachet doesn’t hit the same way it used to, and why transparency is the marketing hill Blair would die on. If you’re a Marketer trying to evolve a brand, connect with a younger audience, and build trust in a crowded category, this is the episode for YOU. https://customer.io⁠ helps brands turn data into personalized messages that actually connect, across email, SMS, and beyond. Learn more at https://customer.io/tmm Follow Blair: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blair-lancer-596b3ba6/ Follow Daniel: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing/ Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: www.workweek.com/brand/the-marketing-millennials Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: www.workweek.com

Marketers spend too much time chasing new ideas when the smartest move might be repeating the ones that already worked. Jay and Daniel break down one of the biggest time-saving strategies in modern Content Marketing: reposting and repurposing your best content.  They explain why audiences don’t remember most posts, why a 90-day repost window works incredibly well, and how brands can get better results by recycling top performers instead of constantly creating new content. Daniel shares how he tracks high-performing posts and reuses winning hooks across memes, videos, text posts, and more. Jay explains why Marketers overestimate how much their audience remembers and why repeating your core ideas is actually the fastest way to grow. If you feel like you’re running out of content ideas, this episode is your reminder that you probably already have everything you need. Follow Jay: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/schwedelson/ Podcast: Do This, Not That Follow Daniel: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@themarketingmillennials/featured Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Dmurr68 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: https://themarketingmillennials.com/ Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: https://workweek.com/

We all know social media is important. But what’s the difference between those who DO social media and those who are social media managers?  This episode’s guest, Jon-Stephen “JS” Stansel, breaks down what it really means to be a social media manager. Just because you have a car doesn’t make you a mechanic, and just because you have social media accounts doesn’t make you a manager. From scheduling content to making the content and posting it, managers wear a lot of hats. What’s within their actual scope and what’s not? How do you set your social media manager up for success? Plus, what does compromise look like as a manager when your client wants something that clashes with your strategy? JS gives an example of this and how making difficult decisions is just part of the job.  And, JS reveals why change has to happen little by little, even if you want to revamp things right away.  If you’re a marketer who wants to polish your social media operations, this is the episode for you.  ⁠https://customer.io⁠⁠ helps brands turn data into personalized messages that actually connect, across email, SMS, and beyond. Learn more at ⁠https://customer.io/tmm⁠ Follow JS: LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/jsstansel/⁠ Follow Daniel: YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@themarketingmillennials/featured⁠ Twitter: ⁠https://www.twitter.com/Dmurr68⁠ LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing⁠ Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: ⁠www.workweek.com/brand/the-marketing-millennials⁠ Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: ⁠www.workweek.com

“Authenticity” is one of the most overused words in Marketing. And if you’re still chasing it like it’s a strategy, you’re already behind. Daniel sits down with Christina Le, Head of Marketing at Slate, to unpack what “authentic” content actually means in a world where every post is performative, reviewed, and optimized for attention. From why audiences don’t really want raw unfiltered honesty, to what people actually mean when they say “be authentic,” Christina shares how social teams can stop chasing gimmicks and start building a message that sticks. They also dive into why depth beats distribution in the age of AI sludge, how to avoid shiny object syndrome, and why social media only works when you treat it as social and media, not just posting and ghosting. If you’re a Marketer trying to win on social without burning out your team or pumping out forgettable content, this is the episode for YOU. https://customer.io⁠ helps brands turn data into personalized messages that actually connect, across email, SMS, and beyond. Learn more at https://customer.io/tmm Follow Christina: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thesechapters/ Follow Daniel: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-murray-marketing/ Sign up for The Marketing Millennials newsletter: www.workweek.com/brand/the-marketing-millennials Daniel is a Workweek friend, working to produce amazing podcasts. To find out more, visit: www.workweek.com