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7 Lessons to Grow From Freelancer to Agency Owner

7 Lessons to Grow From Freelancer to Agency Owner

by | Aug 23, 2026 | Professional Development

James Blundo, Co-Founder of Sparq Designs, shares practical lessons from more than a decade of building his award winning agency, showing freelancers how to price smarter, hire carefully, build recurring revenue, protect cash flow, delegate effectively and grow into agency operators.

AMA Pittsburgh’s Coffee Connections roundtable series brings local marketers, entrepreneurs and business leaders together for candid conversations like this one, with practical ideas you can put to work right away. Check out our events schedule for the next Coffee Connections roundtable!

 

If you’re a freelancer thinking about building an agency, the hardest part may be changing how you think about the business.

That was the core message from James Blundo, co-founder of Sparq Designs, at AMA Pittsburgh’s August 2026 Coffee Connections roundtable, “From Freelancer to Operator: The Real Mechanics of Building an Agency.” Blundo has spent more than 13 years building Sparq into a 24-person agency, including expansion into Fort Lauderdale through the acquisition of Kip Hunter Marketing.

Blundo distilled that shift from freelancer to operator into 7 practical lessons. Together, they focus on the mechanics that make growth possible, from how you sell and price work to when you hire, how you structure client relationships, and when you need to let go of control.

 

Lesson #1: Sell the vision

As a freelancer, the product is usually you. As an agency operator, that has to change.

Blundo described one of the biggest shifts as learning to sell the vision of what the business can become. You may be selling a broader capability before every piece is fully built. That requires confidence in your people and the resourcefulness to deliver once the opportunity is won.

You’re no longer asking, “What can I do for clients right now?” You’re asking what the business can become capable of doing in the future.

 

Lesson #2: Price for opportunity, not just effort

Freelancers often price by the hour or by estimating what a client is willing to pay. Blundo encouraged the group to add another variable: the opportunity behind the work.

A project might open a new service line, help you enter a market or give your team experience you can sell again. That hidden value can justify taking a deal that looks less attractive on immediate margin alone.

Blundo shared how Sparq priced an early integrated PR and content engagement below its eventual market rate because it gave the Pittsburgh and Florida teams a chance to work together and learn how the combined service should operate.

 

Lesson #3: Sell before you hire

Hiring too early can put a small agency underwater.

Blundo’s rule is straightforward: oversell before you hire. Win the business first, then add the capacity needed to deliver it.

He illustrated the point with a story from Sparq’s earlier years. A major dental client asked whether the agency could handle a large video project. Sparq did not yet have a video department. Blundo said yes, then found the talent, bought the equipment and built the capability around the work. The project generated about $150,000 and launched a service Sparq could sell to other clients.

It also means building a strong freelance network before you need everyone on payroll.

 

Lesson #4. Build a book of business, not just a project list

Project work can keep you busy while still leaving you uncertain about next month.

Sparq learned early to move as much work as possible into recurring retainers. Even a three-month engagement creates more predictability than a one-off project. Longer relationships also make you more valuable because you understand the client’s business and working style.

Blundo compared it to building a book of business. If you retain good clients while steadily adding new ones, revenue can compound instead of constantly resetting to zero.

Recurring work cannot become autopilot. One of his tests is whether clients are still saying no to new ideas. If they never push back, you may not be challenging them enough.

 

Lesson #5. Stay focused on cash flow

One of the most tactical lessons of the morning was also one Blundo repeated several times: bill at the beginning of the month.

After seeing the cleaner receivables of Sparq’s Florida operation, he became convinced that billing before work starts creates a healthier dynamic than trying to collect after delivery.

For a young agency, cash flow affects your ability to pay people, invest and keep operating. His related advice was equally direct: when a client consistently does not pay, act quickly.

 

Lesson #6. Learn to delegate for long-term growth

The freelancer-to-operator transition eventually forces a personal question: can you trust someone else to do work that used to depend on you?

If every client relationship, decision and deliverable still needs you, you have created a bigger job, not a scalable business.

Blundo said strong hiring and delegation can improve the client experience. The right specialist may deliver more value because that person can focus more deeply and may be better at the work.

That is also how you build a business with value beyond the founder. Systems, processes and trusted people turn an agency into an asset that can operate without you at the center of every account.

 

Lesson #7: Get comfortable with being uncomfortable

The roundtable kept returning to one idea: growth means doing things before you feel completely ready.

That does not mean being reckless. It means learning to sell ahead of capacity, price with a longer view, protect your cash flow and steadily remove yourself as the bottleneck.

For freelancers in Pittsburgh who want to build something larger, the skills that made you successful on your own still matter. Becoming an operator requires different habits.

You have to build the business, not just do the work.

 

About the Speaker

James Blundo, Co-Founder of Sparq Designs, has spent over 13 years building and operating a real agency business with offices in Pittsburgh and Fort Lauderdale. In this session, he pulls back the curtain on the specific mechanics that separate freelancers from operators, covering how to price work, when to hire, how to structure client relationships, and what you have to let go of if you want to build something that runs without you.

 

Playbook for Lean Marketing from HBT Digital and Geena Greguric Consulting

Playbook for Lean Marketing from HBT Digital and Geena Greguric Consulting

by | Nov 22, 2025 | Events & Programming, Professional Development

AMA Pittsburgh’s Coffee Connections is a monthly roundtable discussion designed to bring together marketers, business leaders, and creative minds from across the Pittsburgh region. This casual yet insightful gathering is where big ideas meet real-world strategies, giving attendees the opportunity to learn from experts, exchange perspectives, and build valuable professional relationships.

 

Each Coffee Connections session focuses on a timely and relevant marketing topic, featuring industry leaders, guest speakers, and thought-provoking discussions. Whether you’re a CMO shaping strategy, a startup founder looking to grow, or a marketing professional eager to stay ahead of industry trends, Coffee Connections is your chance to gain actionable insights and network with the region’s top marketers.

 

Maximize Impact, Minimize Spend: The Playbook for Lean Budget Marketing

At a time when marketing budgets are under pressure, the November AMA Pittsburgh Coffee Connections brought together two experts who know what it means to make every dollar work harder. Hosted at COhatch Shadyside, Playbook for Lean Marketing was led by Geena Greguric, founder of Geena Greguric Consulting, and RJ Huebert, founder of HBT Digital Consulting. Their session delivered a practical blueprint for marketers and business owners to maximize results without overspending—focusing on clarity, smart prioritization, and measurable efficiency.

The Reality of Lean Marketing

Budgets are tightening everywhere. Between rising ad costs, shifting consumer behavior, and constant economic uncertainty, small businesses and lean marketing teams face a perfect storm of challenges. Many are being asked to produce more results with fewer resources—a trend Huebert summed up simply: “This is about efficiency, not big budgets”.

The problem, as Greguric emphasized, often starts with weak positioning. Most businesses focus on product features instead of outcomes, using language that sounds like every competitor. “When your message doesn’t differentiate, you get treated like a commodity,” she noted. And in a market defined by cost cutting, commodity brands are the first to be cut from budgets.

Common Frustrations for Business Owners and Marketing Pros

Huebert shared a familiar list of pain points he hears daily from clients:

  • Not enough qualified leads

  • Poor tracking and attribution

  • Campaigns that don’t convert

  • High spend with low return

  • Lack of in-house marketing talent or strategy

  • Frustration with agency performance

These are symptoms, not causes. The real issue? Most companies are reacting rather than strategizing. “If you’re not measuring ROI, you’re just spending,” Huebert reminded the group.

Reframing Marketing: From Expense to Investment

Greguric walked through one of the session’s most memorable slides—titled “Reframing from Expense to Investment.” The idea is simple but transformative: stop talking about your product as a tool and start positioning it as a profit lever.

Her framework breaks down like this:

  • Problem: What pain does your audience feel daily?

  • Stakes: What’s the cost of doing nothing?

  • Solution: How do you fix it uniquely and effectively?

  • Payoff: What tangible success will they see?

This shift—from cost to ROI—is the difference between sounding like a vendor and sounding like a business partner. When your messaging makes a CFO nod, Greguric said, “you’re doing it right.”

Start with Strategy, Not Spend

The temptation in a lean environment is to jump straight to tactics—more ads, more posts, more hustle. But Huebert cautioned that this approach often wastes money. “Every dollar matters,” he said, quoting Peter Drucker’s classic line: What gets measured gets managed.

His advice: define what success means before spending a single dollar. Are you after website traffic? Booked meetings? Sales? Conversions? Only then can you decide which metrics—and which channels—truly matter.

Prioritize Smartly Across Channels

Once you know what success looks like, the next step is choosing where to focus. Huebert shared that for most small businesses, the smartest advertising mix typically includes:

  • Google Ads for active intent and lead generation

  • LinkedIn for B2B awareness and authority building

  • Meta (Facebook and Instagram) for retargeting and storytelling

The key is not being everywhere—it’s being in the right place, with the right message, at the right stage of the funnel.

Know Your Audiences

Targeting drives efficiency. Huebert walked through how to segment audiences into:

  • Owned or custom lists

  • Interest-based and behavioral audiences

  • Remarketing and lookalike audiences

  • In-market segments on Google

He shared how HBT Digital uses a three-tier ad strategy across Meta—starting with awareness ads for broad reach, then remarketing at the consideration stage, and finally conversion-focused ads for the most engaged prospects.

Simplify to Build Lean Funnels

One of the strongest takeaways: complex funnels kill conversion.

Huebert showed examples of campaigns that outperformed by doing less—one clear offer, one landing page, one call to action. “You don’t need a 20-step nurture journey,” he said. “You need clarity and simplicity.”

When every step in your funnel has a single job—awareness, consideration, or conversion—you can more easily test, measure, and improve performance.

Leverage Automation Without Losing Control

Automation isn’t about replacing humans—it’s about giving marketers back their time. Huebert demonstrated how AI chat tools and CRM automation can book meetings, manage reviews, and follow up with leads 24/7.

He shared HBT’s own setup using HighLevel CRM, which combines chat, SMS, and email automation with a built-in scheduler and review request workflows. “You can literally book sales calls while you sleep,” he said.

The trick, both speakers agreed, is to use automation to enhance personalization, not erase it. AI should handle repetitive tasks, freeing humans to focus on strategy and storytelling.

The Paid Campaigns Checklist

Before launching any paid campaign, the speakers advised, marketers should walk through this simple checklist:

  1. Define your goal (leads, awareness, traffic)
  2. Know your audience—and test new ones
  3. Test ad placements
  4. Test your offer
  5. Test your creative
  6. Track performance carefully
  7. Scale only the winners

Huebert emphasized that testing and iteration are where efficiency happens. “Small tests prevent big waste,” he said.

Smart, Budget-Friendly Marketing Tactics

Beyond paid media, Greguric shared a series of low-cost growth channels that often outperform expensive campaigns when done right:

  • Partnerships and collaborations: “Borrow trust instead of buying it.”

  • Community-led growth: Participate in niche communities and earn credibility through consistency.

  • Content repurposing: Turn one blog into multiple pieces of content across formats and platforms.

  • Guerrilla marketing: Handwritten notes, pop-up events, or “surprise and delight” activations that build loyalty.

As she put it, “Lean doesn’t mean limited—it means focused.”

Get Started: Download the Lean Marketing Playbook

To help attendees apply what they learned, Greguric offered her Lean Marketing Playbook—a structured, step-by-step guide for planning and optimizing marketing on a small budget. The playbook includes a growth strategy outline, quick-win checklists, and practical tools to audit your marketing plan.

It’s available for download at geenagreguric.com/lean-marketing-playbook .

Yinzfluence: How VisitPITTSBURGH Builds Authentic Partnerships with Creators

Yinzfluence: How VisitPITTSBURGH Builds Authentic Partnerships with Creators

by | Sep 15, 2025 | Events & Programming, Professional Development

AMA Pittsburgh’s Lunch & Learn is a monthly webinar series bringing together marketers, business leaders, and creative minds from across the Pittsburgh region. We invite industry-leading marketers to share their insights and experiences and present real-world strategies, giving attendees the opportunity to learn from experts, exchange perspectives, and build valuable professional relationships.

 

 

Bringing the city’s stories to life through local voices

Influencer marketing has matured. It’s no longer about one-off campaigns or chasing quick likes. It’s about connecting with audiences through trusted voices and making sure those collaborations serve a brand’s larger goals. That was the focus of AMA Pittsburgh’s recent webinar, Yinzfluence, featuring Courtney Kuzemchak, Senior Social Media Manager at VisitPITTSBURGH.

Courtney guided attendees through how her team partners with creators to showcase Pittsburgh’s neighborhoods, food, and culture in authentic ways. She shared the organization’s approach to strategy, creator selection, measurement, and maintaining the distinctive “yinzer” voice that sets Pittsburgh apart. Throughout, she also answered questions from marketers on budgets, micro vs. macro influencers, and managing partnerships—turning the session into both a case study and a practical playbook.

Why Influencers Matter for Place-Based Marketing

VisitPITTSBURGH’s brand is Pittsburgh itself. Promoting a city requires more than polished advertising; it requires lived-in perspectives. Creators act as storytellers who give potential visitors a glimpse into the real Pittsburgh.

Courtney explained that her team looks for creators who can authentically bring the city to life. The measure of success is not whether someone can recite tourism talking points but whether they can share experiences that ring true to their own followers. That might be as simple as a neighborhood walk-through, a behind-the-scenes look at a local festival, or a meal at a beloved restaurant.

She reminded marketers not to discount small creators. “Sometimes a creator with 5,000 followers gets more meaningful interaction than someone with 100,000,” Courtney said. Audience size matters far less than the trust a creator has built with their community.

Building a Strategy That Fits Your Brand

Influencer work cannot exist in a vacuum. Courtney stressed that campaigns must connect to an organization’s broader goals. For VisitPITTSBURGH, that often means raising awareness about specific neighborhoods, drawing attention to seasonal events, or encouraging tourism during slower months.

The team begins by clarifying campaign objectives, then selects influencers whose audiences and styles align with those goals. This is where the question of micro versus macro influencers often comes up. Larger creators can expand the city’s visibility beyond the region, while smaller, community-based voices may resonate more deeply with locals and repeat visitors.

Courtney added that planning includes thinking through budgets and deliverables. She reminded attendees that influencer campaigns don’t have to be prohibitively expensive. Some partnerships involve paid contracts, while others are based on organic exchanges of experiences or event access. Blending these approaches allows VisitPITTSBURGH to stretch resources while keeping the content authentic.

Vetting the Right Creators

One of the most common questions from marketers is: how do you choose the right influencers when so many options exist? Courtney’s answer was clear—don’t be swayed by follower counts alone. “We look closely at engagement rate and how people interact with them,” she explained.

That interaction is a signal of trust. If audiences are leaving thoughtful comments and the creator is responding in kind, the relationship feels real. If the feed is filled with endless sponsored posts, the connection is weaker and the content risks blending into noise.

Courtney also described the importance of long-term relationship building. “We stay in touch with our influencers year-round, even when we’re not running a campaign. That way when we do ask, it’s a true partnership,” she said. By maintaining contact outside of active campaigns, the VisitPITTSBURGH team ensures that when creators share content, it feels natural rather than transactional.

Defining Success Beyond Likes

In many organizations, influencer work is still judged by surface metrics. Courtney cautioned against this mindset. “Likes and shares are nice, but they don’t tell us if someone actually visited or booked a trip,” she explained.

VisitPITTSBURGH measures outcomes that matter to its mission—hotel bookings, attendance at cultural events, and website visits tied to tourism planning. To do this, the team uses trackable links and codes, connecting specific influencer content back to measurable results.

Just as importantly, they track results in real time. “We check performance mid-campaign so we can adjust if something’s not working,” Courtney said. This agility allows them to double down on what resonates and shift strategies before a campaign ends.

Keeping the ‘Yinzer’ Voice

Perhaps the most distinctive part of VisitPITTSBURGH’s approach is its commitment to local authenticity. “We always want the yinzer voice to come through,” Courtney emphasized. “That’s what makes Pittsburgh different. It’s not polished. It’s real.”

This philosophy shapes every partnership. Rather than forcing creators into rigid scripts, the team encourages them to show Pittsburgh through their own lens. That might mean embracing the quirks of Pittsburghese, highlighting community pride in a neighborhood parade, or sharing an unscripted moment that captures the city’s character.

By leaning into what makes the city unique, campaigns resonate with both residents and visitors. Locals see their culture represented with pride, and outsiders glimpse a side of Pittsburgh they might not encounter through traditional ads.

 

What Marketers Can Take Away

Courtney’s insights, combined with the audience’s questions, form a roadmap that marketers in any industry can follow when developing influencer strategies. Here are six steps to guide your approach:

  1. Clarify your goals first. Before reaching out to influencers, define what you want the campaign to achieve. Are you driving awareness, event attendance, or direct sales? Objectives should shape every decision that follows.

  2. Choose alignment over audience size. Look for creators whose values and voice align with your brand’s. A smaller influencer with genuine credibility may drive more meaningful action than a larger name who lacks relevance.

  3. Evaluate engagement, not just numbers. Review how influencers interact with their followers. Healthy two-way conversations signal trust. Avoid feeds that are dominated by repetitive sponsored posts.

  4. Treat creators as long-term partners. Build relationships beyond individual campaigns. Staying in touch year-round creates stronger partnerships and makes collaborations smoother.

  5. Measure real business outcomes. Likes and shares may look good on a report, but conversions, bookings, or sales are what truly matter. Use trackable links, codes, and dashboards to connect content to measurable results.

  6. Lean into authenticity. Encourage influencers to highlight what makes your brand or community unique. For VisitPITTSBURGH, that means celebrating the yinzer voice. For your brand, it might mean embracing culture, quirks, or customer stories that only you can tell.

 

Moving Forward

Influencer marketing is evolving into a more strategic and measurable discipline. As Courtney made clear, the brands that will thrive are those that think beyond vanity metrics and focus on authentic partnerships.

For VisitPITTSBURGH, this means working with creators who reflect the city’s neighborhoods, culture, and people in ways that feel real. By doing so, they ensure that every campaign carries the distinctive yinzer spirit—and they demonstrate a model that marketers across industries can adapt.

Mapping Your Marketing Career Journey with Pete Schramm

Mapping Your Marketing Career Journey with Pete Schramm

by | Aug 30, 2025 | Events & Programming, Partnerships, Professional Development

AMA Pittsburgh’s Coffee Connections is a monthly roundtable discussion designed to bring together marketers, business leaders, and creative minds from across the Pittsburgh region. This casual yet insightful gathering is where big ideas meet real-world strategies, giving attendees the opportunity to learn from experts, exchange perspectives, and build valuable professional relationships.

 

Each Coffee Connections session focuses on a timely and relevant marketing topic, featuring industry leaders, guest speakers, and thought-provoking discussions. Whether you’re a CMO shaping strategy, a startup founder looking to grow, or a marketing professional eager to stay ahead of industry trends, Coffee Connections is your chance to gain actionable insights and network with the region’s top marketers.

 

Your career isn’t a straight line—it’s a map you create as you grow. That was the central message from Pete Schramm, Founder & CEO of Lattitude, who led August’s AMA Pittsburgh Coffee Connections. In an energetic and personal session, Pete shared how marketers can market themselves with the same intentionality they bring to their organizations.

“Life is what you make of it—why not make it amazing for yourself and those around you by inspiring potential and igniting the fire inside others?” Pete told the group.

His framework for building a Personal Board of Advisors resonated strongly with attendees. Much like a brand depends on diverse input to succeed, individuals thrive when they surround themselves with the right people.

The 10 People You Need on Your Personal Board of Advisors

Pete emphasized that every professional should create a personal board, a network of trusted people who provide guidance, feedback, and accountability. Just as companies rely on boards of directors to navigate strategy, your board helps you chart your career map.

“You wouldn’t run a company without advisors,” Pete explained. “Why would you try to run your life and career without them?”

The ten roles Pete outlined include:

  1. Mentor – Someone who has walked your path and can provide lessons learned.
  2. Sponsor – An advocate who opens doors and speaks your name in the right rooms.
  3. Peer Coach – A colleague who understands your challenges and helps you problem-solve.
  4. Challenger – The person who pushes you out of your comfort zone.
  5. Visionary – Someone who helps you dream bigger.
  6. Connector – The networker who introduces you to new people and opportunities.
  7. Listener – The trusted confidant who gives you space to process.
  8. Accountability Partner – The one who keeps you on track with your goals.
  9. Technical Expert – A specialist who sharpens your skills.
  10. Cheerleader – The encourager who celebrates your wins and keeps you motivated.

For marketers, these roles can be invaluable. A sponsor may introduce you to a CMO opportunity. A technical expert might be the analytics colleague who helps you interpret campaign data. A challenger could be the creative partner who refuses to accept “safe” ideas.

“Having the right ten people around you gives you balance,” Pete said. “It keeps you from relying on just one perspective—and it accelerates your growth.”

How to Build Your Personal Board of Advisors

Pete shared practical steps to intentionally create this network rather than leaving it to chance.

1. Clarify your aspirations.

“First, you have to be clear on what you want,” Pete stressed. “If you can’t communicate your professional aspirations with clarity, no one can help you get there.” For marketers, that may mean defining whether you want to be known for brand strategy, analytics, or leadership.

2. Identify gaps in your current network.

List the ten roles and ask yourself: who do I already have? Who’s missing? If you have several peers but no sponsor or visionary, you’ll know where to focus.

3. Reach out intentionally.

Pete recommended asking for short, focused conversations rather than vague networking. “Say, ‘I admire your path in digital marketing. Could we talk for 20 minutes about how you approached your career decisions?’ That’s specific and respectful.”

4. Diversify your board.

“Don’t just find people who look like you, think like you, or are in your same industry,” Pete reminded attendees. “You need variety—different perspectives sharpen you.” For marketers, this could include advisors from sales, product, or even outside the industry.

5. Maintain the relationship.

Pete advised following up with gratitude, updates, and reciprocity. “It’s not a one-way street. Think about how you can also add value to your advisors.”

LinkedIn as a Career Marketing Tool

Pete also shared tactical ways to use LinkedIn to strengthen your board and tell your story.

“LinkedIn is your personal brand’s billboard,” he said. “If people can’t see who you are, what you stand for, and where you’re going, you’re missing opportunities.”

He encouraged marketers to:

  • Post consistently, sharing lessons and insights from their work.

  • Use the headline to state not just a job title, but a value proposition.

  • Engage with mentors, sponsors, and peers publicly to strengthen connections.

  • Share career aspirations openly—“Don’t just say what you’ve done. Say what you want to do next.”

Pete emphasized that LinkedIn isn’t just about job hunting; it’s about demonstrating expertise and attracting opportunities.

Lessons for Marketers

Throughout the discussion, Pete drew parallels between marketing brands and marketing yourself.

“Marketers are often great at telling the story of their company, but not their own,” he said. “Your personal board helps you see yourself clearly and communicate that story.”

For professionals at any stage—whether charting a new move, strengthening their current role, or building their executive presence—the framework is actionable.

Some key takeaways:

  • Think long-term. Just like a brand strategy, career strategy unfolds over years.

  • Invest in relationships. Your network determines opportunities.

  • Blend aspiration with action. Define your goals, then align mentors and sponsors to help you achieve them.

  • Keep evolving. As your career map changes, so should your board.

 

Why This Matters for Marketing Professionals

In a field where change is constant—AI, data privacy, new platforms—marketers need guidance from multiple vantage points. A personal board gives you that diversity of thought and accountability.

For leaders, it’s also a retention strategy. Encouraging employees to build boards helps them feel supported and reduces the risk of burnout or disengagement.

Pete’s message ultimately challenged attendees to view their careers as a brand campaign. “If you were a product, how would you position yourself? Who are the voices you’d want influencing that positioning?”

About Pete Schramm

Pete Schramm is an entrepreneur, TEDx speaker, and author who thrives on uniting people and leading diverse teams through complex challenges. Raised on a farm in Butler, PA, he built his work ethic early and cultivated a passion for connections. After earning mechanical engineering degrees from Catholic University and excelling at Lockheed Martin, Pete founded Lattitude in 2020 to empower engagement through meaningful conversations. His clients include the Army, Air Force, UPMC, and financial institutions. Certified in Lean Six Sigma, Agile HR, and Project Management, Pete also contributes to boards like HCEF and Sewickley Academy. His mission: to kindle potential and inspire others’ passions.

AI and SEO in 2025: Users As Your Competitive Edge

AI and SEO in 2025: Users As Your Competitive Edge

by | Aug 5, 2025 | Professional Development

This article is brought to you by our partner, RedTree Design.

 

Search has changed. AI-generated answers from tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, Google’s Search Generative Experience, and Gemini are reshaping how people research, evaluate, and choose — often without ever clicking through to a website.

That doesn’t mean SEO is dead. It means the rules have shifted.

To stay relevant, your site needs to do more than just rank. It needs to be useful enough to be cited, clear enough to be trusted, and structured enough to be surfaced by AI tools and search engines alike.

This isn’t a post about title tags or meta descriptions. It’s a strategic guide for marketers who need to deliver results now. In this article, we’ll break down:

  • What AI search is and how it works
  • How AI and SEO work together (and what’s changing)
  • What we’re seeing in real time from client performance
  • What your content needs to look like in 2025
  • How to build pages that serve users and hit your KPIs

Whether you’re managing SEO in-house or juggling multiple vendors, this guide will help you lead with more clarity, confidence, and results.

Related: Adapting Your Paid Ad Strategy in the Era of Zero-Click Searches

The Buyer Journey Is Unchanged, But AI Search Is The Starting Point

Buyers still need the same things: clarity, confidence, and content that helps them make the right decision. That part hasn’t changed.

But the way those answers get delivered has.

Today’s users are turning to AI search tools for quick, direct, conversational answers. These platforms pull information from multiple sources — summarize it — and serve it back without requiring a click.

That means SEO and content now have two jobs:

  • Help you rank in Google
  • Make you the source that AI tools pull from

If your content isn’t designed for both, you’re leaving visibility on the table.

 

Is It Possible To Get Traffic from AI and SEO?

Yes — but the game has changed.

AI search tools still rely on websites to generate their answers. But instead of sending users to your site, they often summarize your content and serve it up directly.

That’s why SEO now goes beyond rankings. You need to create content that’s clear, structured, and useful enough to be quoted.

This is the heart of generative engine optimization (GEO) — optimizing your content to be understood and cited by AI search tools, not just indexed by Google.

We’re already seeing this pay off for clients. Content that’s structured for both humans and AI is showing up faster, performing better, and holding attention longer.

Right Now: Client SEO and AI Search Insights

We’ve tracked how users interact with client content in this new landscape, and we’re measuring real patterns through Google Analytics, including traffic sources we’ve identified as AI-generated.

Here’s what’s standing out:

  • Speed matters: Pages are being cited within weeks of going live.
  • AI can quote AI: Well-structured, AI-assisted content is getting visibility.
  • Clarity wins: Direct answers (think “what is,” “how to,” and comparison content) get surfaced more often.
  • Topical focus beats brand size: Niche content outperforms broad, unfocused pages — even on smaller domains.
  • AI is a tool — not a shortcut: The best-performing content combines AI assistance with human insight and strong editorial review. Google penalizes low-quality AI content, and users bounce from it too. It’s a lose-lose.

We also use AI internally to streamline our own ops, including generating regex for traffic tracking and speeding up repetitive workflows. Using AI to automate repetitive work has made our team faster and more data-aware.

What High-Performing Content Looks Like in the Age of AI and SEO

These are the core tactics we use with clients who need both visibility and results. All of them start with a simple principle: make the content serve the user first, and the algorithm will follow.

Build for the Question, Not the Query

Your audience isn’t typing fragments — they’re asking questions.

Build content that directly answers what your buyers are actually trying to figure out. (“Which platform is best for mid-sized eComm brands?” is more useful than “email tools.”)

Design Content That’s Easy to Cite — by AI and Users

Short paragraphs. Clear headers. Concise definitions near the top. Schema implementation throughout your site.

AI bots crawl and summarize. If they can’t parse your page, they won’t cite it. Structure matters.

Measure Visibility Beyond the Click

You may be getting visibility from AI tools without traffic.

We monitor brand mentions (via Ahrefs), direct traffic spikes (via GA), and AI summaries to see where our clients are being cited. Brand exposure without attribution is still visibility, so track it.

Turn Missed Citations Into Opportunities

Audit who’s being quoted in your space — then out-answer them.

If someone else is getting cited for something your brand should own, update or create content that’s clearer, faster, and better structured.

Outrank by Owning Your Niche

Don’t go wide. Go deep.

Instead of covering everything lightly, dominate a niche topic cluster with interlinked, high-quality content. That’s what builds authority in AI and Google alike.

Make Your Structure Work for AI

Structured data matters — especially for AI visibility. Use schema to define your content and heading structure to guide both users and AI to the most relevant content on the page.

Align Each Page to a Buying Moment

Every page should move the user forward in their decision-making.
Ask: “What is the user trying to decide here?” If you answer that, you not only gain trust, you improve your conversion rate.

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AI and SEO Are Raising the Bar — Here’s How to Keep Up

AI isn’t replacing SEO — it’s revealing what works.

If your content is bloated, unfocused, or trying to please an algorithm more than a person, it won’t perform. Not in Google. Not in AI. Not in your funnel.

But if your content is helpful, scannable, and decision-oriented — the kind of page that helps your buyer move — it’ll earn visibility across channels.

This article is structured around the kinds of decisions you’re making right now and what we’re seeing work in real time.

That’s what it means to make the user the hero.

So, what’s next?

Audit your content. Track what’s performing. And make sure every page is built to earn its place in both AI and SEO, not just as a ranked result, but as the answer worth trusting.

 

Turning Ideas into Impact: The Marketing–Innovation Connection

Turning Ideas into Impact: The Marketing–Innovation Connection

by | Aug 1, 2025 | Events & Programming, Partnerships, Professional Development

AMA Pittsburgh’s Coffee Connections is a monthly roundtable discussion designed to bring together marketers, business leaders, and creative minds from across the Pittsburgh region. This casual yet insightful gathering is where big ideas meet real-world strategies, giving attendees the opportunity to learn from experts, exchange perspectives, and build valuable professional relationships.

 

Each Coffee Connections session focuses on a timely and relevant marketing topic, featuring industry leaders, guest speakers, and thought-provoking discussions. Whether you’re a CMO shaping strategy, a startup founder looking to grow, or a marketing professional eager to stay ahead of industry trends, Coffee Connections is your chance to gain actionable insights and network with the region’s top marketers.

 

At AMA Pittsburgh’s special edition Coffee Connections on July 30, two seasoned innovators—Jennifer Sydeski, Head of Growth with EKTO VR and Michael Skrzypczyk, innovation consultant, shared best practices for how breakthrough ideas move from concept to commercial reality.

The conversation spanned industries from consumer products to health tech, revealing that innovation, branding, and customer experience are inseparable when building products and services that resonate deeply in the market.

Innovation Is More Than an Idea—It’s a System

Both speakers emphasized that ideas are only the starting point. What determines success is the system around them: a repeatable process for testing, refining, and launching new products and services.

Michael framed it as building “innovation pipelines”—structured yet flexible frameworks that turn raw concepts into viable business opportunities. This includes:

  • Defining a clear process for moving from insight to concept to prototype to launch.

  • Integrating cross-functional teams so marketing, product, operations, and leadership all share ownership.

  • Setting KPIs for innovation, ensuring teams know how progress will be measured and celebrated.

That process orientation doesn’t just keep projects moving—it builds trust across teams and gives leadership the confidence to back new ideas.

The Role of Culture in Scaling Innovation

Culture emerged as a recurring theme. “Culture is the hardest thing to shape, but it’s where innovation really scales,” Michael noted. Without a culture that embraces curiosity, openness, and calculated risk-taking, even the best ideas can stall.

Trust, confidence, and an “action orientation” were cited as essential cultural ingredients. Teams need to feel safe sharing early ideas, confident enough to move forward without perfect certainty, and empowered to act decisively.

Emotional Intelligence as a Competitive Advantage

One of the most powerful points was the importance of “other orientation”—the skill of focusing intently on others, whether customers or colleagues, rather than on oneself.

Listening, empathy, and emotional intelligence aren’t just soft skills—they’re innovation accelerators. They help teams:

  • Spot emotional drivers that shape customer decisions.

  • Build brand messages that speak to identity and values, not just function.

  • Anticipate unspoken needs that can lead to category-defining solutions.

“When you really hit on that deeper need—that deeper emotion—that’s where it lasts,” Michael said, noting that billion-dollar brands often succeed because they tap into a cultural shift or identity-level desire, not just a functional gap.

The Brand–Innovation–Customer Loop

Innovation and branding are often treated as separate disciplines, but both speakers argued they should be intertwined from the start.

New products should align seamlessly with the brand’s promise, while brand strategy should evolve based on what’s learned through innovation. Marketing isn’t just a go-to-market function—it’s a co-creator in shaping what gets built and how it’s experienced.

Jenn described this as “experience marketing”—understanding the customer journey so deeply that you design not just a product, but the entire experience around it. That means aligning brand touchpoints, customer interactions, and product features so they tell the same story.

Timing Is Often the Deciding Factor

One surprising insight came from Jenn’s discussion of startup success factors. Research shows that 42% of startup success can be attributed to timing—launching at the right moment in the market’s readiness cycle.

She described “converging technologies” as a sweet spot for innovation: when two or more advances mature at the same time, they open up opportunities that didn’t exist before. The challenge is spotting these moments early and aligning innovation pipelines to capitalize on them.

The AI Factor—Promise and Pitfalls

The group dove into the emerging role of AI in innovation and customer research. Both speakers acknowledged AI’s ability to speed up analysis and idea generation, but warned against overreliance.

Today’s AI excels at reassembling what’s already been done, which means it risks steering everyone toward similar, predictable answers. Human creativity and context-setting remain essential for producing original, market-defining ideas.

Jenn advised using AI to “accelerate the learning loop” rather than replace it—letting it handle data-heavy tasks so teams can spend more energy on creativity, insight gathering, and strategic thinking.

Practical Advice for Marketers

Throughout the session, the speakers offered practical advice for marketers aiming to play a bigger role in innovation:

  • Start with insight, not solutions. Spend more time listening to customers, understanding their stories, and identifying needs before generating ideas.

  • Keep customers involved throughout the process. Test concepts early, refine them with feedback, and make customer input a continuous loop.

  • Simplify your internal message. A clear mantra—like “The consumer is the boss”—helps embed customer focus in organizational culture.

  • Leverage in-person engagement. While digital tools are powerful, nothing replaces the trust and understanding built through face-to-face interaction.

  • Think beyond your category. Borrow ideas and methods from adjacent industries to spark new ways of thinking.

Where Marketing Fits

The conversation reinforced that marketing is not just the final step in launching an innovation—it’s a driver throughout the journey. Marketing teams:

  • Surface the insights that spark new ideas.

  • Shape concepts so they connect emotionally and align with brand values.

  • Influence product design through understanding of customer experience.

  • Build narratives that accelerate adoption and loyalty.

When innovation, brand, and marketing are integrated, companies can move faster, connect more deeply with customers, and build products that last.

As Michael summed it up, “The product, the brand, and the strategy all need to fit together. Play nice. Show up as one story.”