Empowering Small Business with AI & Strategy

Sara Nay is the CEO of Duct Tape Marketing and a pioneer in strategy-first marketing for small businesses. With over 15 years of experience in roles from intern to fractional CMO, she now leads the charge in redefining what it means to run a successful, modern agency. In this episode, Sara unpacks her new book Unchained, which introduces the groundbreaking "anti-agency" model—a practical, AI-enabled approach that empowers business owners to stop renting their marketing and start owning it. Listeners will walk away with actionable insights on building lean, AI-enhanced marketing teams and why leadership—not just execution—is the future of scalable growth.

Today we discussed:

00:00 Start
00:43 Introducing Sara Nay
01:37 Identifying Problems with the Traditional Agency Model
03:30 The Anti-Agency Model and AI's Impact on Marketing
05:22 Timeless Marketing Principles in the Age of AI
07:23 Challenges and Dangers of AI Adoption in Small Business Marketing
09:47 The Fractional CMO Plus Model for Small Businesses
14:45 Agency Mindset Shift to Stay Relevant in the AI Era
16:36 Practical Steps for Small Businesses to Take Ownership of Marketing
18:22 How Small Businesses Should Approach AI Integration
20:33 Closing and Resources

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The Duct Tape Marketing Podcast
Insightful interviews with authors, experts, entrepreneurs, and thought leaders who share valuable marketing tips, growth strategies, and resources. Hosted by John Jantsch, one of America's top small business marketing experts, this show is dedicated to helping you craft effective marketing strategies that will grow your business. Whether you're a small business owner, marketing professional, or marketing agency owner, you'll gain valuable insights and actionable advice on topics such as marketing strategy, consulting, social media marketing, content marketing, SEO, email marketing, lead generation, business management, entrepreneurship and much more. With over 900 episodes since its inception in 2005, The Duct Tape Marketing podcast is your go-to resource for all things marketing or business growth. Join us each week as we dive into the latest marketing trends and strategies that will help you achieve your business goals. Don't miss out on this opportunity to learn from the best in the business. Tune in to The Duct Tape Marketing podcast and start listening today!

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Syndication

| Thu, 31 July 2025

Empowering Small Business with AI & Strategy

Sara Nay is the CEO of Duct Tape Marketing and a pioneer in strategy-first marketing for small businesses. With over 15 years of experience in roles from intern to fractional CMO, she now leads the charge in redefining what it means to run a successful, modern agency. In this episode, Sara unpacks her new book Unchained, which introduces the groundbreaking “anti-agency” model—a practical, AI-enabled approach that empowers business owners to stop renting their marketing and start owning it. Listeners will walk away with actionable insights on building lean, AI-enhanced marketing teams and why leadership—not just execution—is the future of scalable growth. Today we discussed: 00:00 Start 00:43 Introducing Sara Nay 01:37 Identifying Problems with the Traditional Agency Model 03:30 The Anti-Agency Model and AI's Impact on Marketing 05:22 Timeless Marketing Principles in the Age of AI 07:23 Challenges and Dangers of AI Adoption in Small Business Marketing 09:47 The Fractional CMO Plus Model for Small Businesses 14:45 Agency Mindset Shift to Stay Relevant in the AI Era 16:36 Practical Steps for Small Businesses to Take Ownership of Marketing 18:22 How Small Businesses Should Approach AI Integration 20:33 Closing and Resources Rate, Review, & Follow If you liked this episode, please rate and review the show. Let us know what you loved most about the episode. Struggling with strategy? Unlock your free AI-powered prompts now and start building a winning strategy today! 👉 Get Your Free Prompts: https://dtm.world/freeprompts

Direct download: DTM_-_John__Sara_-_Audio.mp3
Category:Podcast
-- posted at: 3:30am MST |

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