What's Working

Real strategies. Real results. What's actually working right now. Hosted by Isaac Medeiros and Zain Ali, What's Working Pod is a weekly business podcast dedicated to one question: what's actually working right now? Isaac Medeiros is the founder of Mini Katana and Content Forge. Zain Ali is the co-founder of Zainith Agency and Etta Maison Each episode covers the strategies, tools, and business models that are producing real results for founders and entrepreneurs.

What's Working is a business podcast hosted by What, with 17 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.

What hosts What's Working, a business show with 17 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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  Episode #17

  Is Meta dead in 2026?

  Sep 9, 202645 minS1

  Bryan Bumgardner is the head of media buying at North Beam, the first party data attribution tool used by some of the fastest growing e-commerce brands in the world. His team sits with over 1,000 ad accounts and he is one of the few people actually backing his opinions with real data. In this episode we go through every major ad platform, rank them S tier to D tier, and break down what is actually working for DTC brands in 2026. We also get into why Meta feels broken but is still mandatory, why ChatGPT ads are too on the nose, and why Bryan thinks performance marketers need to go back and read David Ogilvy. Whether you’re a brand owner, media buyer, or agency running paid ads this year, this episode covers everything from TikTok Shop strategy and connected TV to App Lovin, partnership ads, and why account structure basically does not matter anymore. Key Takeaways: Meta is Still Mandatory: It is the only platform that moves someone from awareness to purchase inside one app. Nobody else is within five years of replicating that. You have to be there. Their Earnings Mean Nothing for You: Spend is up 20% year over year but customer acquisition costs are up 10%. Meta making more money and your ads performing better are two completely different things. Performance Marketing Made us Worse at Marketing: We forgot how to tell stories. The brands that win the next decade will be the ones who go back to the basics. Go read David Ogilvy. Connect with Bryan: Follow Bryan on X: https://x.com/BryanBumgardner Connect with the hosts: Follow Isaac on X: https://x.com/theisaacmed Follow Zain on X: https://x.com/NotZainAgain Production & Scaling Partners: This video is fully edited and produced by Content Forge. Need DFY YouTube organic for your brand or full-service editing for your YouTube channel? Get a free consultation here: https://getcontentforge.com/ Need help launching or scaling your brand on TikTok Shop? Book a free consultation with Zain at: https://zainith.agency/ Chapters: 00:00 - Bryan Bumgardner And What North Beam Actually Does 00:56 - Is Meta Broken In 2026? 04:00 - The Ad Load Problem And Meta's Real Objective 05:01 - Does Account Structure Still Matter? 06:04 - Why Creatives Are Now The Only Lever That Matters 07:23 - Spend Is Up But Performance Is Down — What The Data Shows 08:33 - Meta's Goal Is Stock Price Not Your Ad Performance 09:02 - Consumer Sentiment On AI Generated Content 11:42 - Why Brands Cannot Quit Meta Despite Worse Results 13:59 - TikTok Users Will Not Click And Why That Matters 15:10 - How TikTok Shop Unlocked Ad Spend For The Platform 18:05 - ChatGPT Ads: The $60 CPC Experiment Nobody Liked 23:43 - CTV And Why Everything Eventually Becomes Cable TV 28:05 - How Vibe Is Opening CTV To Small And Local Businesses 31:43 - Performance Marketing Has Made Us Worse At Marketing 32:15 - Ad Platform Tier List: Meta, CTV, Snap, TikTok, App Lovin, YouTube, OOH 36:17 - Why You Need To Build Brand From Day One 38:43 - Partnership Ads: Borrowing Trust At Scale 40:37 - Does Clipping Actually Drive Incremental Results? 42:15 - How To Become A Better Storyteller 43:49 - Where To Find Bryan And The North Beam Newsletter #PerformanceMarketing #MetaAds #TikTokShop #EcommerceMarketing #WhatsWorkingPod

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  Episode #16

  How they Built an 8-Figure Brand on iMessage | Calvin Klaski

  Aug 26, 202639 minS1

  Calvin Klaski and the founders of NOBS waited until they were generating $1 million a month in revenue before quitting their corporate day jobs. Now, they run a massive oral care empire with just a 3% operating expense, managing the entire business from an iMessage group chat. In this episode of What's Working, Calvin pulls back the curtain on how NOBS disrupted the legacy toothpaste industry without taking a single dollar of VC funding. He explains their backdoor strategy to get into 960 Target stores, landing in the beauty minis section and quickly becoming the number one seller in dollars per store. Calvin also breaks down their brilliant TikTok Shop strategy, paying 20 to 40 creators and running aggressive retargeting ads to artificially engineer a viral trend before organic affiliates jumped on board. Plus, he shares why Nano Hydroxyapatite (nHA) is replacing fluoride, why you should never buy programmatic podcast ads, and how they funded their Mexican manufacturer's machinery to scale production. Key Takeaways: The iMessage OpEx Hack: NOBS operates with a staggering 3% OpEx by running the entire company through a three-person founder group chat, eliminating corporate meetings and communication bottlenecks. Engineering TikTok Shop Virality: After failing at short-form video for six months, Calvin manufactured a trend by commissioning 20 to 40 creators simultaneously and hammering retargeting ads to make affiliates think the brand was already exploding. The Target Backdoor Play: When brokers failed to secure a meeting, the NOBS team passed a message to a Target executive offering free product, eventually landing them discovery-focused space in the beauty minis section of nearly 1,000 stores. Connect with Calvin: Follow Calvin on X: https://x.com/CalvinandNOBS Check out NOBS Routines: https://x.com/nobsroutines Connect with the hosts: Follow Isaac on X: https://x.com/theisaacmed Follow Zain on X: https://x.com/NotZainAgain Production & Scaling Partners: This video is fully edited and produced by Content Forge. Need DFY YouTube organic for your brand or full-service editing for your YouTube channel? Get a free consultation here: https://getcontentforge.com/ Need help launching or scaling your brand on TikTok Shop? Book a free consultation with Zain at: https://zainith.agency/ Chapters: 00:00 - Intro & The 1,000 Store Target Launch 02:25 - Driving Digital Traffic to Physical Retail 04:06 - Why NOBS Uses nHA and Xylitol Instead of Fluoride 06:59 - Hacking the TikTok Shop Algorithm with 40 Creators 10:14 - Staying Anonymous Until Hitting $1M/Month 12:47 - Calvin's Background: From Bow-Fishing to Corporate Retail 16:17 - Why NOBS Rejected VC Money & Investors 18:03 - Running a 3% OpEx Business from an iMessage Chat 21:40 - When You Should (and Shouldn't) Hire a Marketing Agency 22:30 - Training AI to Write Product Descriptions 24:01 - Retail Expansion & The Danger of Over-Storing 26:12 - Building the "Down to Health" Podcast 28:42 - The Power of Focus: Don't Quit After 60 Days 31:14 - Why Programmatic Podcast Ads Are a Waste of Money 35:00 - Moving Manufacturing to Mexico & Iterating on the Fly 37:59 - Outro & Where to Find Calvin

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  Episode #15

  The GLP-1 Effect: Why The Beauty Industry is Crashing

  Aug 17, 202642 minS1

  Cody Plofker took Jones Road Beauty to $160 million in revenue without a VP of Finance or a VP of Marketing. Now, he’s stepping down as CEO to stop the burnout and build the future of lean, AI-powered e-commerce. In this episode of What's Working, Cody breaks down the reality of running a 9-figure family business, why he stepped down to focus on high-level strategy, and his unapologetic take on why "AI UGC" is a complete oxymoron. He also pulls back the curtain on his exact AI tech stack (including Claude, Codex, and multiplayer AI tools like HQ) and explains how he is building a brand new sleep supplement company in public with near-zero operating expenses. If you want to know what the next era of DTC looks like, this is the episode. Key Takeaways: The Reality of Scaling Too Fast: Cody sped-ran Jones Road Beauty to nine figures but suffered from burnout due to a lack of proper organizational structure and executive support. Cody is extremely bearish on AI-generated creative, noting that true UGC relies on authenticity, while AI should be reserved for data analysis, web design, and administrative workflows. The DTC Twitter Bubble: Performance marketing isn't everything. Cody argues that real-world, larger brands invest heavily in brand health and tracking upper-funnel metrics, contrary to the hyper-performance bias of "DTC Twitter". The 1-Person Brand Era: As part of the new "Operators Build" podcast, Cody is helping launch a sleep supplement brand in public, aiming to use AI to replace entire agency functions for just a few hundred dollars a month in token costs. Retail Leverage: Jones Road Beauty opted to build its own brick-and-mortar stores rather than rely on Sephora, allowing them to control their own product trends and avoid being dictated by massive retailers. Connect with Cody: Follow Cody on X: https://x.com/codyplof Listen to the Marketing Operators: https://www.youtube.com/@Operators9 Connect with the hosts: Follow Isaac on X: https://x.com/theisaacmed Follow Zain on X: https://x.com/NotZainAgain Production & Scaling Partners: This video is fully edited and produced by Content Forge. Need DFY YouTube organic for your brand or full-service editing for your YouTube channel? Get a free consultation here: https://getcontentforge.com/ Need help launching or scaling your brand on TikTok Shop? Book a free consultation with Zain at: https://zainith.agency/ Chapters: 00:00 - Intro & Why Cody Stepped Down as CEO of Jones Road Beauty 02:35 - Running a Brand Without Industry "Passion" 04:16 - Transitioning to AI Consulting & CRO Bounties 06:06 - Why "AI UGC" is a Complete Oxymoron 08:11 - Cody's AI Stack: Claude, Codex, Hermes, and HQ 10:19 - How to Actually Implement AI in Creative Teams 13:23 - The State of the Beauty Industry & K-Beauty Trends 17:23 - Retail Strategy: Why Jones Road Avoids Sephora 20:21 - The "DTC Twitter" Bubble & Investing in Brand Health 25:30 - The Death of Non-Subscription DTC Brands 29:23 - Announcing "Operators Build" & The Sleep Supplement Brand 34:11 - Building a Brand Skeleton on a $200/Month Token Budget 39:37 - The Power of Building in Public & Networking 41:42 - Outro & Where to Find Cody

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  Episode #14

  Going ALL in on TikTok doubled their Sales (Beauty By Earth CEO interview)

  Aug 10, 202638 minS1

  In Episode 14 of the What's Working Pod, we sit down with Prudence Millsap, co-founder of Beauty by Earth, to unpack the exact strategies she used to build one of the most successful bootstrapped beauty brands on the internet. Prudence pulls back the curtain on how taking TikTok Shop in-house catapulted them to $700k/month, and how that external traffic miraculously slashed their Amazon ad spend by 34% while increasing top-line revenue. We dive deep into the gritty reality of bootstrapping with just $20,000, why she insists on US manufacturing, and how she maintains a shockingly low 4-7% OpEx using an in-house Texas warehouse and Latin American offshore talent. Beyond the business, Prudence shares her refreshing philosophy on personal branding, how she balances entrepreneurship with family life, and why she recently sold off a brick-and-mortar business to stay hyper-focused on DTC. Key Takeaways: The TikTok Shop "All-In" Strategy: After burning $20k/month on agency retainers with zero growth, Prudence brought TikTok in-house and cracked the algorithm by aggressively seeding 30-40 product units a day. The Amazon Halo Effect is Real: Generating external demand on TikTok allowed Beauty by Earth to lower their Amazon ad spend by 34.2% year-over-year while actually growing their top-line revenue by 33.3%. Ruthless Financial Discipline: Prudence built the brand off an initial $20,000 investment. She took zero distributions in year one, lived exclusively off her husband's income, and ran the business purely on credit cards for the first 6-7 years. US Manufacturing: Manufacturing 100% of their formulas in the US is more expensive upfront, but it is exactly what their consumer wants and protects them from high finished-goods tariffs. Hyper-Lean Operations: Beauty by Earth operates on a 4-7% OpEx. They achieve this by running their own warehouse in Texas and heavily leveraging offshore talent in Latin America for their growth team. Connect with Prudence: Follow Prudence on X: https://x.com/MillPrue Connect with the hosts: Follow Isaac on X: https://x.com/theisaacmed Follow Zain on X: https://x.com/NotZainAgain Production & Scaling Partners: This video is fully edited and produced by Content Forge. Need DFY YouTube organic for your brand or full-service editing for your YouTube channel? Get a free consultation here: https://getcontentforge.com/ Need help launching or scaling your brand on TikTok Shop? Book a free consultation with Zain at: https://zainith.agency/ Chapters: 00:00 - Intro & The TikTok Shop Strategy Hook 00:39 - Cracking TikTok Shop & Seeding Strategy 01:45 - The Amazon Halo Effect 02:35 - Why Expensive TikTok Agencies Failed 06:45 - Dialing in Amazon PPC & Slashing Ad Spend 09:36 - Bootstrapping from $20k 11:41 - Standing Out in the Beauty Market & K-Beauty 17:49 - Navigating Business with a Co-Founder 19:14 - Why They Avoid Retail (Sephora, Ulta) 21:51 - The Anti-Personal Brand Philosophy 26:37 - Quitting the 9-to-5 & Building While Parenting 29:04 - Using AI (Claude) for Market Research 30:53 - US Manufacturing vs. China 33:13 - Running a 4-7% OpEx with Offshore Talent 34:57 - The ROI of Hiring a Fractional CFO 37:58 - Killing Distractions: Selling a Brick & Mortar Business #tiktokshop #AmazonSeller #Ecommerce #BeautyBrand #WhatsWorkingPod

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  Episode #13

  This 9-Figure Founder Replaced His Whole Creative Team with AI | Nik Sharma

  Jul 7, 202633 minS1

  Nik Sharma sold his agency Sharma Brands for a reason most people miss, and now he's building entire DTC brands using only AI, from ads to assets. In this episode of What's Working Podcast, Nik breaks down the exact move that led him to sell Sharma Brands through a reverse RFP process, why he wanted a blank slate going into January, and how he went from running one of the most recognized DTC agencies to becoming Chief Growth Officer at Lunar Solar while quietly launching an AI first brand holdco on the side. He walks through launching a health and wellness brand using nothing but AI, covering static ads, UGC, copywriting, and design briefs, including what happened when they finally commissioned a real photo shoot. Nik introduces the concept of the creative supply chain, the idea that brands don't fail because of bad products or poor media buying, but because they run out of creative to feed the machine. He explains every format of creative a brand needs, how to build an endless supply behind it, and what most agencies get wrong. The conversation also covers whether services still have a real moat in an AI world, why taste is the only durable advantage left, how he's validating new brands for under $150K before scaling, and what he learned from watching brand incubators raise millions and still fail. Nik also shares his personal brand strategy, why he's most bullish on Twitter and YouTube, and what he'd do differently building a personal brand from scratch today. If you're running an agency, building a DTC brand, or figuring out where AI fits in your business in 2025, this episode is essential. Nik Sharma is a DTC operator and former founder of Sharma Brands, now Chief Growth Officer at Lunar Solar. Key Takeaways: AI is a tool, not a replacement for "taste": While AI is democratizing software and automating lower-level tasks, human taste and strategic direction are becoming the ultimate moats for both brands and agencies. The "Creative Supply Chain" is the biggest growth bottleneck: Brands trying to scale from $50M to $100M usually don't fail because of a bad product or bad media buying—they fail because they haven't built a system to constantly generate a diverse, never-ending supply of ad creatives. Connect with Nik: Follow Nik on X: https://x.com/mrsharma Connect with the hosts: Follow Isaac on X: https://x.com/theisaacmed Follow Zain on X: https://x.com/NotZainAgain Production & Scaling Partners: This video is fully edited and produced by Content Forge. Need DFY YouTube organic for your brand or full-service editing for your YouTube channel? Get a free consultation here: https://getcontentforge.com/ Need help launching or scaling your brand on TikTok Shop? Book a free consultation with Zain at: https://zainith.agency/ Chapters: 00:00 - Intro 00:34 - Who Is Nik Sharma? 01:31 - Why He Sold His Agency 04:17 - His AI Wake-Up Call 05:13 - Do Services Still Have a Moat? 07:42 - Launching a Brand With Just AI 08:39 - What Categories He's Building In 12:10 - The 70% Ads Budget Future 13:06 - AI Video Ads That Actually Work 15:12 - The Creative Supply Chain Explained 18:01 - Will AI Kill Jobs? 21:29 - How to Build a Personal Brand Today 23:47 - Twitter vs YouTube vs LinkedIn 27:31 - The Holdco Model 32:35 - Where to Follow Nik #NikSharma #Ecommerce #WhatsWorkingPodcast

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