Data Beats Opinion

Google said the campaigns were doing 8x ROAS. The bank account said otherwise.

Broken conversion tracking, inflated branded results, and agencies that barely log in can make a money-losing Google Ads account look like a winner. So how do you know if your ads are actually working?

In this episode of Data Beats Opinion, SegMetrics founder Keith Perhac talks with David Pourquery, founder of Groas, whose AI agents manage about $35M a month in Google Ads spend. They dig into why Google Ads got so much harder, the one report that shows whether your agency is doing anything, and the two levers that still decide whether your ads work at all.

If you run ads, manage them for clients, or pay someone else to, this one's for you.

About the Guest:
David Pourquery is the founder and CEO of Groas, an autonomous AI agent for managing Google Ads. Groas's network of agents manages around $35M a month in ad spend, trained on optimization patterns from more than $500B in Google Ads spend. Before Groas, David was a private equity investor at HIG Capital and built a portfolio of seven-figure e-commerce brands. Groas is fully bootstrapped.

Connect with David on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidpourquery) or at Groas.com (https://www.groas.com).

ABOUT SEGMETRICS

Why Choose SegMetrics?
- Instant clarity on what is and isn't working in your business
- Full-funnel analytics that lets you optimize every marketing touch point for revenue
- Unify your cross-platform data into a single source of truth

Better data → Smarter decisions → Faster growth. Accelerate your growth with SegMetrics.

Get Started Today:
- Learn how SegMetrics can uncover your hidden profits: https://segmetrics.io/
- Start a 14-day free trial: https://segmetrics.io/pricing
- Book a demo: https://segmetrics.io/book-a-demo
#googleads #ppc #roas #segmetrics

AI is trained to be average. So how can you deliver above-average marketing at AI-speeds?

In this episode of Data Beats Opinion, SegMetrics founder Keith Perhac sits down with Brandon Shelton — who drove a record $28M year as CMO of GearBubble, scaled it past $165M as CEO, and now builds AI systems for growth teams. They break down what separates real AI leverage from expensive AI busywork.

If you already use AI but suspect you're leaving results on the table, this one's for you.

Brandon Shelton is the founder of Buddy Prompt and builds AI systems for marketing and growth teams. He's been in marketing since 2007, working with B2C and B2B software companies as a CMO, chief growth officer, and CEO. As CMO of GearBubble he drove a record $28M year, then stepped into the CEO seat and scaled the company past $165M in total revenue — and has been working on getting above AI's "average line" since 2022.

Connect with Brandon on LinkedIn (linkedin.com/in/brandonshelton1) or at BuddyPrompt.com.

ABOUT SEGMETRICS

Why Choose SegMetrics?
• Instant clarity on what is and isn’t working in your business
• Full-funnel analytics that lets you optimize every marketing touch point for revenue
• Unify your cross-platform data into a single source of truth

Better data → Smarter decisions → Faster growth. Accelerate your growth with SegMetrics.

Get Started Today:
• Learn how SegMetrics can uncover your hidden profits: https://segmetrics.io/
• Start a 14-day free trial: https://segmetrics.io/pricing
• Book a demo: https://segmetrics.io/book-a-demo

Your website ranks for your name. The problem is, nobody who'd hire you is searching your name.

They're searching your topic — or asking AI who to hire. If you're not the answer to that search, your site isn't working, no matter how polished it looks. So how do coaches and speakers actually get discovered now?

In this episode of Data Beats Opinion, SegMetrics founder Keith Perhac talks with Benas Leonavicius, founder of Avium, a search and AI visibility expert for people instead of companies. They dig into why ranking for your name is useless, why AI search is easier to win than everyone thinks, and the one habit that keeps most experts off every shortlist — being too scattered to be known for a single thing.

If your reputation is bigger offline than it is online, this episode is about closing that gap.

Show Notes

Subscribe for monthly episodes covering conversion optimization, content strategy, copywriting, and other growth tactics that actually move the needle.

About the Guest:

Benas Leonavicius is the founder of Avium, a personal-branding agency that builds online visibility for keynote speakers, book authors, and founders whose real-world authority outpaces their online presence. A longtime SEO specialist, he shifted from ranking companies to ranking people — engineering a client's website, LinkedIn, and podcast presence into one system where each channel lifts the others. His clients include names like Jay Baer and Dr. David Burkus.

Connect with Benas at Avium (https://avium.vip/) or on LinkedIn (https://www.linkedin.com/in/benasleo/).

ABOUT SEGMETRICS

Why Choose SegMetrics?

Better data → Smarter decisions → Faster growth. Accelerate your growth with SegMetrics.

Get Started Today:

#personalbranding #seo #aeo #aisearch #segmetrics

More than half of your new leads may never see a single email you send.
It’s not your subject line, offer or copy. It's something happening silently before your email ever reaches an inbox.

In this episode of Data Beats Opinion, SegMetrics founder Keith Perhac talks with Adrian Savage, co-founder of EmailSmart and one of the sharpest minds in inbox visibility. They dig into why the open rate you're tracking is probably lying to you, the single most-overlooked engagement metric, and why blasting your entire list could be quietly wrecking the one marketing asset you actually own.

If email is core to how you sell — and it should be — this episode will change how you read your own numbers.

Show Notes
[00:00] Introduction
[00:53] Catching up with Adrian
[01:34] How Adrian got into email deliverability
[02:52] How email deliverability rules have changed
[04:23] Why deliverability is such a confusing word
[05:54] Why you can't measure if an email is actually seen
[08:31] Getting people to rescue emails from spam
[12:44] Tracking engagement instead of guessing
[14:43] The 30-day metric nobody tracks
[16:50] A real launch that failed from bad visibility
[19:41] Attention spans and the point of no return
[22:21] Reply rates, sending addresses, and domain reputation
[28:20] Cold outreach and staying under Google's radar
[30:44] The future of AI and personalized email
[35:30] “List size is vanity. Engagement is sanity.”
[40:06] Why AI can't handle deliverability
[44:18] Where to find Adrian

Subscribe for monthly episodes covering conversion optimization, content strategy, copywriting, and other growth tactics that actually move the needle.

About the Guest:
Adrian Savage is co-founder of EmailSmart, maker of the Deliverability Dashboard, where he helps senders diagnose email visibility problems that mailbox providers won't reveal. He’s analyzed thousands of email accounts and pioneered rolling 30-day engagement tracking as a way to measure list health that open rate alone can't capture.

Connect with Adrian at EmailSmart (https://emailsmart.com/).

Why Choose SegMetrics?
• Instant clarity on what is and isn’t working in your business
• Full-funnel analytics that lets you optimize every marketing touch point for revenue
• Unify your cross-platform data into a single source of truth

Better data → Smarter decisions → Faster growth. Accelerate your growth with SegMetrics.

Get Started Today:
• Learn how SegMetrics can uncover your hidden profits: https://segmetrics.io/
• Start a 14-day free trial: https://segmetrics.io/pricing
• Book a demo: https://segmetrics.io/book-a-demo

#email #deliverability #marketinganalytics #emailsmart #segmetrics

Is your retention making or breaking your lifetime revenue?

After the first purchase, most e-commerce brands go quiet — or start blasting discount codes. But the brands that win long-term treat every purchase as the beginning of a relationship, not the end of one.

In this episode of Data Beats Opinion, SegMetrics founder Keith Perhac sits down with Ishita Agarwal — founder of Tapp — to dig into why retention is the biggest untapped lever in business, why CAC math is breaking for most brands, and what it actually looks like to turn one-time buyers into loyal fans.

What you'll discover:

About the Guest:

Ishita Agarwal is the founder of Tapp, a post-purchase engagement platform that helps e-commerce brands turn one-time buyers into loyal fans. With roots in M&A consulting and emerging technology, she went on to study design and behavioral science at Stanford before zeroing in on the post-purchase gap in commerce. Ishita brings a tech-world playbook — onboarding flows, habit loops, and gamification — to the e-commerce brands that need it most.

Connect with Ishita at thetapp.io or on LinkedIn.

About SegMetrics:

Why Choose SegMetrics? 

Better data → Smarter decisions → Faster growth. Accelerate your growth with SegMetrics.

Get Started Today:

Why does every marketing channel feel broken right now?⚠️

Ads are expensive. SEO is getting buried under AI overviews. Cold outreach is noise. So what actually works? Turns out, it's the same thing that worked before Facebook ads existed: relationships and owned distribution.

In this episode of Data Beats Opinion, SegMetrics founder Keith Perhac sits down with Greg Digneo — founder of Content Guppy and a 20-year marketing veteran — to break down the owned distribution revolution. Greg makes the case that one good partnership conversation can replace a thousand cold emails, why founder-led content consistently outperforms polished marketing, and how to build a growth engine that doesn't break every time an algorithm changes.

E-commerce success means learning the new rules for trust, security and growth in 2026

What you'll discover:

Show Notes
[00:00] Meet Greg Digneo
[02:00] How cheap Facebook ads killed affiliate marketing
[03:00] The partnership revolution
[06:13] What a modern partnership looks like
[09:31] Why the internet is becoming a walled garden
[13:53] How Google killed the affiliate listicle game
[17:43] Owned distribution explained
[19:32] What most people get wrong about their email list
[20:46] How Greg actually builds owned distribution
[24:27] Finding qualified leads hiding in your email list
[27:00] One to one to many
[28:18] How creators vs SaaS think about owned distribution
[29:00] Why the old SaaS playbook is breaking down
[32:21] How SegMetrics turned off $15K in ads and grew
[33:46] When Greg stopped recommending SEO
[36:04] People follow people, not brands
[38:00] Parasocial relationships and founder-led content
[40:22] Founders who get out there grow faster
[42:02] How to create content when you hate creating content
[44:40] Repurposing conversations into newsletters and posts
[45:49] How to use AI to streamline founder-led content
[49:41] Where to find Greg

Subscribe for monthly episodes covering conversion optimization, content strategy, copywriting, and other growth tactics that actually move the needle.

About the Guest:
Greg Digneo is the founder of Content Guppy, which helps B2B SaaS companies grow through owned distribution and organic visibility. With 20+ years of marketing experience, Greg has evolved Content Guppy from a traditional SEO agency into a partnership-first growth model — helping SaaS brands build audience presence that outlasts algorithm changes and paid ad volatility.

Connect with Greg on LinkedIn or at Content Guppy.

About SegMetrics:

Why Choose SegMetrics?
• Instant clarity on what is and isn’t working in your business
• Full-funnel analytics that lets you optimize every marketing touch point for revenue
• Unify your cross-platform data into a single source of truth

Better data → Smarter decisions → Faster growth. Accelerate your growth with SegMetrics. Learn more https://segmetrics.io/

Get Started Today:
• Learn how SegMetrics can uncover your hidden profits: https://segmetrics.io/
• Start a 14-day free trial: https://segmetrics.io/pricing
• Book a demo: https://segmetrics.io/book-a-demo

#partnerships #growthmarketing #SEO #ai #segmetrics

“Is your website just a billboard?”

In this episode of Data Beats Opinion, SegMetrics founder Keith Perhac sits down with Brennan Dunn, founder of RightMessage. They explore the future of personalization and segmentation-based marketing. If you’re not personalizing your marketing, then yes, your website IS just a billboard. As are your emails.

Are you ready to see how you can double conversions with some simple, automated techniques?

What you'll discover:

Subscribe for monthly episodes covering conversion optimization, content strategy, copywriting, and other growth tactics that actually move the needle.

About the Guest:

Brennan Dunn is the founder of RightMessage, a platform that helps SaaS and Creator businesses personalize their websites and emails based on who’s visiting. He’s spent years helping marketers move beyond one-size-fits-all funnels by using zero-party data, real-time segmentation, and smart automation to deliver more relevant, higher-converting customer experiences.

Connect with Brennan via LinkedIn or RightMessage

About SegMetrics:

Why Choose SegMetrics?

Better data → Smarter decisions → Faster growth. Accelerate your growth with SegMetrics.

Get Started Today:

Is comedy the secret to conversion copywriting?

In this episode of Data Beats Opinion, SegMetrics founder Keith Perhac sits down with Lianna Patch (founder of Punchline Copy) to how brands can use humor and personality to stand out in an increasingly competitive market.

What you'll discover:

Subscribe for monthly episodes covering conversion optimization, content strategy, copywriting, and other growth tactics that actually move the needle.

About the Guest:

Lianna Patch is the founder of Punchline Copy. A former standup comedian and improv performer, she specializes in using humor to drive conversions for SaaS and e-commerce businesses. Lianna is also co-founder of SaaS Marketing Gym and a TinySeed mentor.

Connect with Lianna via LinkedIn or Punchline Copy.

About SegMetrics:

Why Choose SegMetrics?

Better data → Smarter decisions → Faster growth. Accelerate your growth with SegMetrics.

Get Started Today:

Outbound sales is undergoing a complete transformation — and most marketers are missing it entirely.

In this debut episode of Data Beats Opinion, SegMetrics founder Keith Perhac sits down with Harris Kenny (founder of OutboundSync) to explore how AI, programmatic outbound, and precision targeting are revolutionizing cold outreach.

What you'll discover:

Show Notes
[00:00] Intro
[02:11] Going from agency to SaaS
[07:41] The current state of Outbound Sales
[11:00] Parallel dialing, propensity scoring and other advanced phone tactics
[14:21] AI-powered segmentation
[16:21] Outbound as a marketing strategy
[21:05] When & how to start outbound
[25:40] The ROI on agencies
[29:41] Measuring outbound success
[32:37] Outbound & advanced attribution
[34:19] Quality vs. AI-spam
[38:17] How to reach offline industries
[46:40] Favorite metrics?

Subscribe for monthly episodes covering conversion optimization, content strategy, copywriting, and other growth tactics that actually move the needle.

ABOUT THE GUEST

Harris Kenny is founder of OutboundSync, helping companies integrate outbound campaigns with HubSpot and Salesforce. 15+ years in go-to-market strategy, closed hundreds of deals from startups to Fortune 150. Previously ran Gold Tier HubSpot agency before building OutboundSync (TinySeed-backed).

Connect with Harris on LinkedIn ( / harriskenny ) or via https://outboundsync.com/.

ABOUT SEGMETRICS

Why Choose SegMetrics? 

Better data → Smarter decisions → Faster growth. Accelerate your growth with SegMetrics.

Get Started Today:

Potent Quotes:

Steffen Hedebrandt:  No. Even just for ourselves, I know, obviously, we do multi-touch tracking all itself, and just for a demo call to be booked on our website, normally, it takes five sessions. And that typical pattern will be the true referral source initially, which could be an ad or something else, then it could be an organic visit, and then maybe you see three direct visits afterwards. And if you want to look at the original source fields in your CM system, it'll tell you, "Oh, this is one converted from a direct visit."

But, what you're not seeing is that you actually spend money on starting that journey, which means either you're growing a lot slower than you could do, or you're just wasting a lot of money because you can't really connect your spend to the business outcome that you're trying to achieve.

Keith Perhac:  Right, exactly. And what I've seen in a lot of ... Because I think CRMs are starting to ... They want to have the bullet point of, "Oh, we track attribution," right? When they have the bare minimum that they need to be able to say that. But even something like ads, where you're looking at, now, branded search where ... Essentially, the Google tax. You have to be spending all this money in order to be ranking high in Google, and the CRMs are attributing that as paid traffic, even though, really, it shouldn't be paid traffic, because it's not, right? It's a tax. So, that's something where a system like yours, or what we do, becomes more important because you need to be able to drill into that more than just the top level, like, "Oh, it was an ad."

Steffen Hedebrandt:  Yeah. But I think we can at least see, typically, when we look at, for example, the paid channel, there's 3 to 5x difference in terms of you understanding the world as a last touch world, or the true first touch, which means if you can invest 5x the amount of money into your marketing, then you're going to completely outgrow your competition.

Steffen Hedebrandt:  And we just released some benchmarks from our own customers now, and we can see that, on average, there were 32 touches involved in an account from first touch to a deal being won, and you know, I really, honestly don't think that one touch makes a difference except that, actually, I think if there were one touch, it would be the first touch that you are actually able to get in front of the person who started that journey with you.

Steffen Hedebrandt: Forget about that funnel and just focus on getting quality touches in front of people every week. Do high-quality content, do high-quality calls, do high-quality meetings. Just pegging those high-quality touches along the way. It would be nice if there were such a thing as a data recipe for what to do, but I fear you would end up in a too-average place to say something smart.

Keith Perhac:  I think that's always the challenging part about analytics, especially in the agency world, because there are always 800 ways to slice the data. And whether consciously or not, you tend to go towards the one that makes you look better.

Steffen Hedebrandt:  I think there's a lot of things that are interesting, but one of them is an average journey from the first touch to a B2B deal being won is 192 days.

Steffen Hedebrandt:  Yeah. There's nothing as dangerous as a pretty graph.

Steffens  go-to-market benchmark 2022