The Built To Scale Podcast

If your business is stuck in low ticket, you may be funding your own slow decline. Kyle Kostechka, former ClickBank performance marketing leader and advisor at Trident Growth, makes the case for why high ticket has shifted from "nice to have" to essential in this economy and what that means for how you buy traffic, build funnels, and think about 2026.=================================What you'll learn:Why targeting premium buyers is now a survival strategy, not just a growth lever, and how the current economy backs that up with dataHow a $27 front end product can justify a $200 CPA when the high ticket backend is structured correctlyThe types of high ticket offers almost any business can bolt on right now: coaching, done-for-you, access, masterminds, and premium customizationWhy Meta's Andromeda update is penalizing aggressive VSLs and what a compliant, converting funnel actually looks like in 2026Why Connected TV is the most underpriced paid media inventory available right now and how to get in before the big budgets followHow Kyle's team deployed an AI support agent that took a Hebrew-speaking customer from a 2 AM refund request to buying more products=================================About Kyle Kostechka:Kyle spent over a decade at ClickBank mastering performance marketing at scale. He now runs Triton Growth, a venture studio focused on high ticket offer ascension, affiliate strategy, and premium product development. He has spoken from stages on Connected TV and AI-driven marketing, and works with brands building offer structures that can survive and thrive in today's market.=================================Connect with Kyle Kostechka:Email: kyle@tritongrowth.com (reach out for a free affiliate program audit or a free high ticket offer assessment… Just tell him Shmuel sent you!)LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kyle-kostechka-aa0b504/ =================================Key moments:01:44 - Why high ticket is a critical survival move in a contracting economy07:25 - What price point actually defines high ticket ($10K is the floor)11:24 - The $27 front end with a $200 CPA: how high ticket transforms your media buying math25:39 - The death of aggressive marketing (not TSLs) and what Meta's algorithm is actually seeing32:06 - Channel breakdown: Meta, YouTube, Native, and why Connected TV is the next big move42:22 - How Kyle reduced headcount substantially without losing revenue or output using AI51:15 - How to build AI tools for your business without blowing your budget or losing control of your data=================================About The Built To Scale Podcast:Follow us on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/built-to-scale-agency/ For more information about Built To Scale visit: https://www.builttoscale.co/ If you have any questions, suggestions, or ideas for a future episode, please email podcast@builttoscale.co.

Most brands are sitting on a revenue stream they have never touched. The moment someone buys your front-end offer, supplement, course, or gadget, there is a window of peak intent that closes fast. Max Kramer built an entire company around owning that window for other brands, and his model converts fresh buyers into $5,000 high-ticket coaching clients before the transaction is even a memory.What you'll learn:How Kramer Media operates as a white-label coaching division for info, supplement, and ecom brands without disrupting what those brands are already doingWhy the moment of purchase is the highest-leverage contact point and why email follow-up is already too lateThe trust formula Max learned from marketer Eben Pagan: explain the customer's problem better than they can and they will trust you instantlyWhy Max believes AI will never fully replace human coaching, and the one psychological dynamic that makes human accountability irreplaceableThe monkey brain problem with SOPs: why it is not enough to build systems, you have to become a slave to them even when your instincts say otherwiseWhere Max lands on the quality vs. quantity dial for sales teams, and why his answer might surprise youWhy Max's biggest fear is not AI or competition but something entirely internal=================================About Max Kramer:Max Kramer is the founder of Kramer Media, a white-label coaching company that plugs into brands in the info, supplement, and ecom space and converts front-end buyers into $5,000 high-ticket coaching clients. He built his first coaching brand in the dating advice space in 2012, grew it to over one million social media followers, and used that decade of operational experience to build a backend coaching engine that now serves multiple verticals. He is based in the world he built from scratch, starting with nothing but a personal problem and a willingness to solve it.=================================Connect with him at:Email: max@kramermediainc.com Telegram: @kramermedia=================================Key moments:05:46 - The white-label insight that changed everything17:01 - What coaching actually is and why AI cannot replace it24:44 - The trust principle Max learned from Eben Pagan that closes $5K sales33:05 - The monkey brain problem and how SOPs save you from yourself35:52 - Quantity vs. quality: where Max sets the dial on leads and salespeople=================================About The Built To Scale Podcast:Follow us on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/built-to-scale-agency/ For more information about Built To Scale visit: https://www.builttoscale.co/ If you have any questions, suggestions, or ideas for a future episode, please email podcast@builttoscale.co.

Most people know what they want. The problem is they're their own biggest obstacle.Paul Hoffman has lived multiple lifetimes in one. He wrote one of the most iconic advertising jingles in history, built and lost everything, found his way back, and has since spent decades helping over 3 million people redesign their lives from the inside out. As founder of Sculpting Your Life and creator of a binaural beat brain technology distributed by Mindvalley, Paul's framework is part neuroscience, part philosophy, entirely grounded in lived experience.What you'll learn:Why your subconscious mind is running the show, and the only way to change how you thinkPaul's 7-step "Tuning In" framework for identifying what's holding you backHow to build a morning ritual that sets the frequency for your entire dayWhy scaling starts with your foundation, not your funnelHow Paul uses AI as a creative tool without being technical at all=================================About Paul Hoffman:Paul Hoffman is the founder of Sculpting Your Life and a personal transformation architect who has worked with over 3 million people worldwide. He is a former advertising jingle writer behind the iconic "Have You Driven a Ford Lately?" campaign and the creator of a binaural beat brain technology marketed globally through Mindvalley. He speaks, coaches, and builds tools designed to help people stop living by default and start living by design.=================================Connect with him at:WhatsApp/Cell: (323) 810-5588Email: paulhoffman24@gmail.comWebsite: https://sculptingyourlife.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PaulHoffmanProfile Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/paulhoffman7946 & https://www.instagram.com/agoodmorninggreatday =================================Key moments:5:14 - The Ford jingle, imposter syndrome, and early career9:01 - November 14, 1988: the day that changed everything13:50 - The moment Paul knew he had to reinvent himself15:11 - How meeting T. Harv Eker launched the second chapter of his career18:36 - Why a morning ritual is not optional19:11 - The evening ritual: highlights vs. insights33:55 - Paul's full morning ritual, step by step42:09 - The 7-step Tuning In framework43:19 - Paul's take on AI and why it's just a conversation46:41 - What he would tell his 25-year-old self=================================About The Built To Scale Podcast:Follow us on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/built-to-scale-agency/ For more information about Built To Scale visit: https://www.builttoscale.co/ If you have any questions, suggestions, or ideas for a future episode, please email podcast@builttoscale.co.

Most marketers chase tactics. Nicole Starling built a seven-figure affiliate career by doing something almost no one does well: actually following through.Nicole made the leap from 30 years of professional performing into digital marketing in 2020 with no background, no network, and no safety net. What she learned in the trenches of affiliate and influencer marketing cuts straight to the core of why most brand partnerships underperform.What you'll learn:Why follow-through and accountability are more powerful growth levers than any funnel tacticHow Nicole closed over a million dollars in affiliate sales for a single product through cold outreach and relationship managementThe real difference between influencer marketing and affiliate marketing, and how to structure deals that protect your budgetWhy brands are overpaying for content creators who can't deliver, and how to structure smarter partnership dealsThe truth about email marketing in 2026: not dead, but definitely not a one-trick ponyHow to build a diversified creator strategy across micro and macro partnerships without blowing your budget=================================About Nicole Starling:Nicole Starling spent 30 years as a professional musician performing 12-18 shows per week before pivoting into digital marketing in 2020. She's now Partnership Manager at Starling Studios, where she builds and manages affiliate and influencer relationships for brands across health, wellness, and e-commerce. Her superpower is relationships: she's known for relentless follow-through and building the kind of trust that actually converts.=================================Connect with her at:Email: nicole@starlingstudios.coLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicole-starling-4bb58a310/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nicoledesireestarling Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nicstarling/ =================================Key moments:[0:00] Why a 30-year musician became a digital marketer overnight[11:22] The one word Nicole credits for scaling a product past $1M in sales: follow-through[20:21] Nicole's honest take on the current state of email marketing[28:55] Affiliate vs. influencer marketing: where they overlap and where they diverge[36:32] What it actually means to be a content creator in 2026[42:23] The smart way to diversify your influencer budget instead of betting on one big name=================================About The Built To Scale Podcast:Follow us on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/built-to-scale-agency/ For more information about Built To Scale visit: https://www.builttoscale.co/ If you have any questions, suggestions, or ideas for a future episode, please email podcast@builttoscale.co.

Do you have a revenue engine sitting in the form of an email marketing list? Many do and they are scared to turn it up and email en masse. Liss Graham Ellis has been managing and monetizing email lists for over a decade. Her verdict is blunt: if you have buyers on your list, you should be selling to them. A lot. One of the first things she does when she takes over a new list is simply start offering buyers more opportunities to buy. Because whoever ran it before her was afraid to ask.What you'll learn:What each subscriber is actually worth per month (buyers vs. leads, and why the gap is much bigger than you think)Why a 100-word email outperforms a long-form essay and what your real job as an email sender actually isThe silent mistake bleeding subscriber volume (hint: not all your acquisition streams are connected to your ESP)Why most brands are over-jabbing and under-punching, and how to fix the balance immediatelyHow email, SMS, TikTok, direct response, and direct mail work together to build a full brand universeWhy your email list and social channels are business assets with real valuation value, not just marketing tools=================================About Liss Graham Ellis:Liss Graham Ellis is the founder and president of List Management, where she manages and monetizes email lists for clients across health, e-commerce, and direct response. She is also the co-founder of a TikTok Shop management company helping brands connect with influencers to scale on the platform. Her path into marketing was accidental: she entered a fitness transformation contest, won, landed on a podcast, and built a full business from there without a single day of formal marketing training.=================================Connect with her at:Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61557548173916Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lisst_management/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mlgraham9 =================================Key moments:3:46 - What a buyer vs. lead is actually worth per month on your list8:26 - The 100-word email argument (she got challenged on this publicly and she is right)11:00 - The jab/punch imbalance and why you are leaving clean money on the table14:46 - How TikTok Shop works and why most direct response brands are missing it28:51 - Why direct mail is making a serious comeback in 202636:53 - The SMS trick that comes directly from your email performance data=================================About The Built To Scale Podcast:Follow us on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/built-to-scale-agency/ For more information about Built To Scale visit: https://www.builttoscale.co/ If you have any questions, suggestions, or ideas for a future episode, please email podcast@builttoscale.co.

Most e-commerce brands are optimizing for the wrong number. James Klein has spent 25 years in the supplement space watching founders chase ROAS while their businesses quietly decay. In this episode, he makes the case that lifetime value is the only metric that truly matters — and breaks down exactly how to build around it.What you'll learn:Why a high affiliate CPA model is structurally broken and what to do insteadHow to build a retention engine that turns first-time buyers into multi-year customersWhy blended ROAS across all channels gives you a clearer picture than platform-level reportingHow to use the first 30 days post-purchase to build a relationship, not just push the next saleThe difference between running offers and building a real brand (and why only one of them scales)Why the Spanish-speaking market in the US is one of the most underserved and highest-spending segments in direct response =================================About James Klein:James Klein is the CEO of Harmonium and Adonis Vitality, with 25 years in the nutritional supplement industry. He has built brands, scaled e-commerce companies, and advised dozens of seven and eight-figure health entrepreneurs. His focus is retention, lifetime value, and building businesses that are worth something — not just offers that convert once. =================================Connect with him at:LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/james-klein-2a33904Harmonium: https://harmoniumhealth.com/Adonis Vitality: https://adonisvitality.com =================================Key moments:08:32 — When James first realized LTV mattered more than front-end ROAS14:14 — What he does with a customer in the first 30 days (and why it's not a sales push)23:57 — The deep fake problem in VSLs and where the platforms are headed28:41 — The underserved Spanish-speaking market hiding in plain sight36:29 — Why looking at Meta and Google separately is costing you clarity================================= About The Built To Scale Podcast:Follow us on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/built-to-scale-agency/For more information about Built To Scale visit: https://builttoscale.co/If you have any questions, suggestions, or ideas for a future episode, please email podcast@builttoscale.co.