The Indispensable Marketer Wed, 09 Sep 2026 13:00:08 -0400 https://theindispensablemarketer.buzzsprout.com en-us © 2026 The Indispensable Marketer yes 237c07d7-92c5-5489-9413-c5b4cf01580e Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle episodic false Become the marketer your CEO can't run the business without.

You bring the CEO a plan. The numbers aren't bad. You're still explaining yourself instead of leading.

That's the Trust Gap. The work comes back wrong, results stall, and neither of you can say why. It's why talented marketers get treated like a vending machine instead of the architect of growth.

The Indispensable Marketer is hosted by Disruptive Advertising for marketing leaders at $3M-$50M scale-ups done managing perception and ready to build real authority. Every episode runs on VSET: Vision, Strategy, Execution, Team, the framework behind the Indispensable Marketer book and Assessment. Closing the Trust Gap is a skill you can learn, prove, and measure.

Some weeks it's a solo teaching on extracting real Vision. Other weeks it's a conversation with a leader who closed their own Trust Gap and can tell you what it cost.

We turn away most prospective clients and 96% of marketers who apply. Selectivity protects the standard.

If you've wondered whether you're the right person for the job, start here.

]]> Buzzsprout (https://www.buzzsprout.com) Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle https://storage.buzzsprout.com/xsxuh9p5ejwen0om6azg0wpesluh?.jpg The Indispensable Marketer https://theindispensablemarketer.buzzsprout.com Opinion or Math? Only One Works on Your CEO Opinion or Math? Only One Works on Your CEO FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Push back with an opinion and you're difficult. Push back with math and you're indispensable. Same conversation, opposite outcome.

You already got the destination out of your CEO's head. Nobody warns you that knowing the destination doesn't tell you how to get there, and that's where a lot of marketing careers quietly end. The number comes down, you nod, and then you spend twelve months hiding the gap between that number and what's actually possible. Jacob and Chad walk through the four questions a real marketing strategy has to answer, then get into the part nobody talks about: why almost no marketer does this work. It exposes what hasn't been going well. Jacob names the fear directly, that your CEO will ask why you haven't already been doing this. Chad was certain that saying no would get him replaced, and explains why the opposite happened. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 Two ways to push back: with an opinion, or with math

0:19 Where marketing careers quietly end

0:55 Who owns the destination, and who owns the map

2:04 What it feels like when your marketer brings channel ideas instead

3:25 The uncomfortable conversation now versus the one later

4:16 The four questions a real strategy has to answer

6:11 Why this takes courage: the convenient lie versus the inconvenient truth

8:39 "Why haven't you already been doing this?" The fear underneath it.

9:08 Chad: saying no felt like career suicide, and did the opposite

10:02 Why a strong strategy is how you cover yourself when you screw up

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number. Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He spent years doing the math alone because he thought bringing it into the room would make him a problem.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check: We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses. When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve. We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone. We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard

Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/






]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Push back with an opinion and you're difficult. Push back with math and you're indispensable. Same conversation, opposite outcome.

You already got the destination out of your CEO's head. Nobody warns you that knowing the destination doesn't tell you how to get there, and that's where a lot of marketing careers quietly end. The number comes down, you nod, and then you spend twelve months hiding the gap between that number and what's actually possible. Jacob and Chad walk through the four questions a real marketing strategy has to answer, then get into the part nobody talks about: why almost no marketer does this work. It exposes what hasn't been going well. Jacob names the fear directly, that your CEO will ask why you haven't already been doing this. Chad was certain that saying no would get him replaced, and explains why the opposite happened. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 Two ways to push back: with an opinion, or with math

0:19 Where marketing careers quietly end

0:55 Who owns the destination, and who owns the map

2:04 What it feels like when your marketer brings channel ideas instead

3:25 The uncomfortable conversation now versus the one later

4:16 The four questions a real strategy has to answer

6:11 Why this takes courage: the convenient lie versus the inconvenient truth

8:39 "Why haven't you already been doing this?" The fear underneath it.

9:08 Chad: saying no felt like career suicide, and did the opposite

10:02 Why a strong strategy is how you cover yourself when you screw up

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number. Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He spent years doing the math alone because he thought bringing it into the room would make him a problem.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check: We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses. When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve. We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone. We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard

Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/






]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19779912 Wed, 09 Sep 2026 13:00:00 -0400 781 1 16 full false I'll Bet You Don't Have a Marketing Strategy I'll Bet You Don't Have a Marketing Strategy FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:
indispensablemarketer.com/free/

If I was a betting man, and I am, I'd bet you don't actually have a marketing strategy. You have reports, and a set of tactics you're testing while hoping the results show up.

Execution is the part being commoditized right now. Software can do most of it for about 2% of your salary, which is why the pressure feels the way it does. Strategy is how you get the trust back. In this episode Jacob breaks down the four questions every real marketing strategy has to answer: does the math support the goal, do you know
your target customer well enough to fill in the blanks, can you show the journey from stranger to advocate, and are you measuring each stage of it. He also names the cost, because building this means going back to your CEO and admitting where the math doesn't work. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS
0:00 I'll bet you don't have a strategy. You have tactics.
0:19 Why a map is useless without a destination
0:49 Why execution-only marketers are getting commoditized
2:20 Question 1: does the marketing math support the goal?
3:13 Question 2: do you actually know your target customer?
4:00 Question 3: can you show the journey from stranger to advocate?
4:29 Question 4: the data funnel, and where things break down
5:18 The uncomfortable part: telling your CEO the math doesn't work
5:49 What this looks like from the CEO's side of the table

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.

When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of
ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------
On the 30th, we're opening up VSET's Strategy pillar — the same session where Chad walked into my office with budget he didn't need and handed it back. We'll cover how to challenge a growth number without torching the relationship, why starting with 90-day priorities is backwards, and the line that changes how CEOs and marketers see each other: how far out on the timeline you can align is what makes you indispensable.

Save your seat: https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/live-pre-launch/
--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/
Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit
Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/
The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/
Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:
indispensablemarketer.com/free/

If I was a betting man, and I am, I'd bet you don't actually have a marketing strategy. You have reports, and a set of tactics you're testing while hoping the results show up.

Execution is the part being commoditized right now. Software can do most of it for about 2% of your salary, which is why the pressure feels the way it does. Strategy is how you get the trust back. In this episode Jacob breaks down the four questions every real marketing strategy has to answer: does the math support the goal, do you know
your target customer well enough to fill in the blanks, can you show the journey from stranger to advocate, and are you measuring each stage of it. He also names the cost, because building this means going back to your CEO and admitting where the math doesn't work. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS
0:00 I'll bet you don't have a strategy. You have tactics.
0:19 Why a map is useless without a destination
0:49 Why execution-only marketers are getting commoditized
2:20 Question 1: does the marketing math support the goal?
3:13 Question 2: do you actually know your target customer?
4:00 Question 3: can you show the journey from stranger to advocate?
4:29 Question 4: the data funnel, and where things break down
5:18 The uncomfortable part: telling your CEO the math doesn't work
5:49 What this looks like from the CEO's side of the table

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.

When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of
ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------
On the 30th, we're opening up VSET's Strategy pillar — the same session where Chad walked into my office with budget he didn't need and handed it back. We'll cover how to challenge a growth number without torching the relationship, why starting with 90-day priorities is backwards, and the line that changes how CEOs and marketers see each other: how far out on the timeline you can align is what makes you indispensable.

Save your seat: https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/live-pre-launch/
--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/
Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit
Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/
The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/
Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19757358 Mon, 07 Sep 2026 10:00:00 -0400 417 1 15 full false I Handed My CEO Money Back I Handed My CEO Money Back FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:
indispensablemarketer.com/free/

A few months ago Chad walked into Jacob's office on a Thursday, pacing ahead of goal,
holding budget he didn't need, and offered to give it back. Jacob almost cried.

When your CEO hands you a growth number you have two options: nod, or validate it. Almost every marketer nods. In this episode Jacob and Chad get into why that Thursday moment is so rare, why marketing leaders smile and nod while sales leaders push back,
and how to challenge a number without torching the relationship. Jacob walks through the reverse engineer, ten-year North Star down to three years, one year, and 90-day priorities, and explains why starting with the 90-day priorities is backwards. Then the line that reframes the whole thing: how indispensable a marketer is comes down to
how far out on the timeline they can align with their CEO. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS
0:00 The Thursday Chad handed budget back, and Jacob almost cried
1:00 "As a CEO, you feel like an ATM machine to everybody"
1:40 Why marketers nod and sales leaders push back
2:19 The optimism that's a marketer's greatest gift and biggest trap
3:16 Whose job is the goal, and whose job is the reality check
4:09 Two questions: what's the most we could do, and the least?
6:29 The ten-year North Star, and the one Disruptive is chasing
9:10 Reverse engineering: three years, one year, 90 days
11:53 How far out on the timeline can you align with your CEO?
14:50 Executive hat versus marketing-only hat

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO handing out the numbers.

Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He's the one who walked in and offered the budget back.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.

When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve. We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs
everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------
On the 30th, we're opening up VSET's Strategy pillar — the same session where Chad walked into my office with budget he didn't need and handed it back. We'll cover how to challenge a growth number without torching the relationship, why starting with 90-day priorities is backwards, and the line that changes how CEOs and marketers see each other: how far out on the timeline you can align is what makes you indispensable.

Save your seat: https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/live-pre-launch/
--------------------------------------------
FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/
Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit
Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/
The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/
Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:
indispensablemarketer.com/free/

A few months ago Chad walked into Jacob's office on a Thursday, pacing ahead of goal,
holding budget he didn't need, and offered to give it back. Jacob almost cried.

When your CEO hands you a growth number you have two options: nod, or validate it. Almost every marketer nods. In this episode Jacob and Chad get into why that Thursday moment is so rare, why marketing leaders smile and nod while sales leaders push back,
and how to challenge a number without torching the relationship. Jacob walks through the reverse engineer, ten-year North Star down to three years, one year, and 90-day priorities, and explains why starting with the 90-day priorities is backwards. Then the line that reframes the whole thing: how indispensable a marketer is comes down to
how far out on the timeline they can align with their CEO. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS
0:00 The Thursday Chad handed budget back, and Jacob almost cried
1:00 "As a CEO, you feel like an ATM machine to everybody"
1:40 Why marketers nod and sales leaders push back
2:19 The optimism that's a marketer's greatest gift and biggest trap
3:16 Whose job is the goal, and whose job is the reality check
4:09 Two questions: what's the most we could do, and the least?
6:29 The ten-year North Star, and the one Disruptive is chasing
9:10 Reverse engineering: three years, one year, 90 days
11:53 How far out on the timeline can you align with your CEO?
14:50 Executive hat versus marketing-only hat

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO handing out the numbers.

Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He's the one who walked in and offered the budget back.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.

When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve. We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs
everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------
On the 30th, we're opening up VSET's Strategy pillar — the same session where Chad walked into my office with budget he didn't need and handed it back. We'll cover how to challenge a growth number without torching the relationship, why starting with 90-day priorities is backwards, and the line that changes how CEOs and marketers see each other: how far out on the timeline you can align is what makes you indispensable.

Save your seat: https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/live-pre-launch/
--------------------------------------------
FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/
Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit
Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/
The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/
Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19742886 Wed, 02 Sep 2026 12:00:00 -0400 1061 1 14 full false Your CEO Wants 10x. Here's What to Say Back. Your CEO Wants 10x. Here's What to Say Back. FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:
indispensablemarketer.com/free/

The CEO wraps the meeting where we're going to 10x the business. Everyone's fired up. You've got a pit in your stomach, because you're the one who has to make it happen. There's no faster way to end your marketing career than accepting a goal you never had a chance of hitting.

The CEO's job is to bring the vision. Your job is to bring how. In this episode Jacob breaks down the three layers of goal setting that let a CEO dream big while the business stays grounded: the North Star target you shouldn't yet know how to reach, the three-year reverse engineer, and the one-year number where reality sets in. Then
the part most marketers avoid, reflecting the math back until the ask becomes visible, and the three trade-offs that follow: change the goal, change the budget, or change the timeline. Jacob also admits what it's like on his side of the table, because he doesn't enjoy being told no either. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS
0:00 The 10x meeting, and the fastest way to end your marketing career
1:22 Whose job is the vision, and whose job is the plan
2:57 A CEO admits he doesn't like being told no
4:13 The North Star goal, and why you shouldn't know how to hit it yet
6:21 What would have to be true three years from now
7:20 The one-year number where reality sets in
8:25 Reflecting the math back, and why it gets almost comical
9:37 The three trade-offs: change the goal, the budget, or the timeline
11:14 Two questions that keep growth tied to purpose

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it setting the big targets.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses. When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/
Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit
Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/
The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/
Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:
indispensablemarketer.com/free/

The CEO wraps the meeting where we're going to 10x the business. Everyone's fired up. You've got a pit in your stomach, because you're the one who has to make it happen. There's no faster way to end your marketing career than accepting a goal you never had a chance of hitting.

The CEO's job is to bring the vision. Your job is to bring how. In this episode Jacob breaks down the three layers of goal setting that let a CEO dream big while the business stays grounded: the North Star target you shouldn't yet know how to reach, the three-year reverse engineer, and the one-year number where reality sets in. Then
the part most marketers avoid, reflecting the math back until the ask becomes visible, and the three trade-offs that follow: change the goal, change the budget, or change the timeline. Jacob also admits what it's like on his side of the table, because he doesn't enjoy being told no either. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS
0:00 The 10x meeting, and the fastest way to end your marketing career
1:22 Whose job is the vision, and whose job is the plan
2:57 A CEO admits he doesn't like being told no
4:13 The North Star goal, and why you shouldn't know how to hit it yet
6:21 What would have to be true three years from now
7:20 The one-year number where reality sets in
8:25 Reflecting the math back, and why it gets almost comical
9:37 The three trade-offs: change the goal, the budget, or the timeline
11:14 Two questions that keep growth tied to purpose

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it setting the big targets.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses. When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/
Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit
Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/
The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/
Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19730508 Mon, 31 Aug 2026 12:00:00 -0400 674 1 13 full false Your CEO Isn't Impressed by Your Numbers Your CEO Isn't Impressed by Your Numbers REE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:indispensablemarketer.com/free/You report your numbers and they're green. Your CEO looks at the bank account and it's red. Neither of you can explain it to the other. That's the gap.A client once slammed his hand on the desk over a $40,000 invoice, vein bulging, refusing to pay. Jacob drove over in person, walked him through the math they'd already agreed to, and the guy signed. In this episode Jacob and Chad break down the business math almost no marketer is ever taught: the percentage of revenue that makes sense for your stage and industry, why your acquisition cost isn't real untilit includes your own salary, the CAC to LTV ratios that tell you whether the model works, and why a fixed annual budget is worse than a percentage. Chad also owns the version of this he got wrong, walking into rooms strutting like a peacock because the numbers looked good. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.--------------------------------------------CHAPTERS0:00 Your numbers say one thing, the bank account says another0:21 The client who slammed his fist over a $40,000 invoice2:18 Why nobody ever taught you the business math3:38 What percentage of revenue should actually go to marketing5:18 Your cost per customer isn't real until it includes your own cost7:22 CAC to LTV, and the ratios that tell you if it works8:41 "I just have a set budget." Why that's the problem.11:53 Chad: walking into the room strutting like a peacock12:43 The moment a marketing leader becomes a business partner14:20 Why marketing and sales should share one acquisition budget17:44 Why the math protects the creative work--------------------------------------------WHO'S TALKINGJacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number.Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He runs a team of designers, copywriters, and producers, and he'll tell you exactly how it felt to learn this the hard way.--------------------------------------------ABOUT THE SHOWThe Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.--------------------------------------------FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imauditDisruptive Advertising: disruptiveadvertising.comThe Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/NEXT EPISODE: the Wednesday afternoon Chad walked into Jacob's office and offeredto give budget back.

]]> REE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:indispensablemarketer.com/free/You report your numbers and they're green. Your CEO looks at the bank account and it's red. Neither of you can explain it to the other. That's the gap.A client once slammed his hand on the desk over a $40,000 invoice, vein bulging, refusing to pay. Jacob drove over in person, walked him through the math they'd already agreed to, and the guy signed. In this episode Jacob and Chad break down the business math almost no marketer is ever taught: the percentage of revenue that makes sense for your stage and industry, why your acquisition cost isn't real untilit includes your own salary, the CAC to LTV ratios that tell you whether the model works, and why a fixed annual budget is worse than a percentage. Chad also owns the version of this he got wrong, walking into rooms strutting like a peacock because the numbers looked good. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.--------------------------------------------CHAPTERS0:00 Your numbers say one thing, the bank account says another0:21 The client who slammed his fist over a $40,000 invoice2:18 Why nobody ever taught you the business math3:38 What percentage of revenue should actually go to marketing5:18 Your cost per customer isn't real until it includes your own cost7:22 CAC to LTV, and the ratios that tell you if it works8:41 "I just have a set budget." Why that's the problem.11:53 Chad: walking into the room strutting like a peacock12:43 The moment a marketing leader becomes a business partner14:20 Why marketing and sales should share one acquisition budget17:44 Why the math protects the creative work--------------------------------------------WHO'S TALKINGJacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number.Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He runs a team of designers, copywriters, and producers, and he'll tell you exactly how it felt to learn this the hard way.--------------------------------------------ABOUT THE SHOWThe Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.--------------------------------------------FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imauditDisruptive Advertising: disruptiveadvertising.comThe Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/NEXT EPISODE: the Wednesday afternoon Chad walked into Jacob's office and offeredto give budget back.

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19706400 Wed, 26 Aug 2026 11:00:00 -0400 1122 1 12 full false This Is Why Your CEO Won't Give You More Budget This Is Why Your CEO Won't Give You More Budget FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:
indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Ask most marketers what percentage of revenue their budget represents and they
can't tell you. Their CEO can. That gap is why the answer is no.

A client's invoice went from $5,000 a month to $40,000, and he didn't want to pay it. "You didn't hire more people. You didn't work more hours. Why should I pay you more?" Jacob walked in with the math they'd already agreed to. Eighteen months later that client had tripled the business. Marketers think in platforms and campaign metrics. CEOs think in revenue and cash in the bank, and both assume
they're speaking the same language. This episode gives you the two numbers that translate between them: the percentage of revenue it makes sense for your business to spend on marketing, and your true acquisition cost measured against lifetime value. Healthy ranges, the costs almost every marketer leaves out of CAC, and how to reverse-engineer a budget from a growth target so you walk in with the math
instead of a request. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS
0:00 The budget question almost no marketer can answer
0:15 The client who refused to pay a $40,000 invoice
2:00 Marketers and CEOs both think they're speaking the same language
3:00 What percentage of revenue healthy companies actually spend on marketing
4:15 Two audits: bleeding cash, and leaving growth on the table
5:00 CAC to LTV, and the costs most marketers leave out
6:15 The ratios that tell you whether your marketing math works
7:30 How to reverse-engineer a budget your CEO will approve

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author
of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.
When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.
We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/
Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit
Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/
The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/
Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:
indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Ask most marketers what percentage of revenue their budget represents and they
can't tell you. Their CEO can. That gap is why the answer is no.

A client's invoice went from $5,000 a month to $40,000, and he didn't want to pay it. "You didn't hire more people. You didn't work more hours. Why should I pay you more?" Jacob walked in with the math they'd already agreed to. Eighteen months later that client had tripled the business. Marketers think in platforms and campaign metrics. CEOs think in revenue and cash in the bank, and both assume
they're speaking the same language. This episode gives you the two numbers that translate between them: the percentage of revenue it makes sense for your business to spend on marketing, and your true acquisition cost measured against lifetime value. Healthy ranges, the costs almost every marketer leaves out of CAC, and how to reverse-engineer a budget from a growth target so you walk in with the math
instead of a request. This is the Strategy pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS
0:00 The budget question almost no marketer can answer
0:15 The client who refused to pay a $40,000 invoice
2:00 Marketers and CEOs both think they're speaking the same language
3:00 What percentage of revenue healthy companies actually spend on marketing
4:15 Two audits: bleeding cash, and leaving growth on the table
5:00 CAC to LTV, and the costs most marketers leave out
6:15 The ratios that tell you whether your marketing math works
7:30 How to reverse-engineer a budget your CEO will approve

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author
of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.
When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.
We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/
Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit
Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/
The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/
Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19694233 Mon, 24 Aug 2026 11:00:00 -0400 506 1 11 full false "This Isn't Us." My CEO Rejected My Copy for Months. "This Isn't Us." My CEO Rejected My Copy for Months. FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:indispensablemarketer.com/free/For months Chad wrote copy and Jacob sent it back with three words: "This isn't us." That was the entire feedback. Chad thought it was a taste problem. It wasn't.What was actually happening was that Jacob had stopped knowing what he believed in. He describes feeling like a drug dealer running a marketing agency, clients lining up for their next hit of performance, and what a brand consultant pulled out of him that changed how Disruptive positions itself. Then the two of them get into the fix: the five differentiators every business has to define, operational, philosophical, talent, outcome, and access, with Disruptive's own as the worked example. They also sort out the questions people actually ask, like how a differentiator differs from a core value, whether all five have to be unique, and who owns defining them versus marketing them. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.--------------------------------------------CHAPTERS0:00 "This isn't us." The only feedback Chad could get for months0:38 "The worst part of my job is when I meet with you"1:14 Why Jacob felt like a drug dealer running a marketing agency2:00 The consultant conversation that changed what Disruptive stands for4:48 The traps businesses fall into when naming their differentiators5:28 Why "we care more" isn't a differentiator without evidence5:51 The five differentiators, with Disruptive's own as the example12:12 Values vs differentiators: what's the actual difference?13:15 Do you need all five, and do they have to be truly unique?16:05 If the feedback is vague, it's probably not youTen chapters on a sixteen-minute conversation, which is more than I'd normally run, but the back third is a genuine Q&A and each question is its own search intent. Worth the density here.--------------------------------------------WHO'S TALKINGJacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number.Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He's the one who kept getting the copy sent back.--------------------------------------------ABOUT THE SHOWThe Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve. We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.--------------------------------------------FREE RESOURCES: ⁠indispensablemarketer.com/free/⁠⁠Disruptive Advertising: disruptiveadvertising.comThe Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/NEXT EPISODE: the client who slammed his fist on Jacob's desk over a $40,000invoice, and the three numbers that turn marketers into partners.

]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:indispensablemarketer.com/free/For months Chad wrote copy and Jacob sent it back with three words: "This isn't us." That was the entire feedback. Chad thought it was a taste problem. It wasn't.What was actually happening was that Jacob had stopped knowing what he believed in. He describes feeling like a drug dealer running a marketing agency, clients lining up for their next hit of performance, and what a brand consultant pulled out of him that changed how Disruptive positions itself. Then the two of them get into the fix: the five differentiators every business has to define, operational, philosophical, talent, outcome, and access, with Disruptive's own as the worked example. They also sort out the questions people actually ask, like how a differentiator differs from a core value, whether all five have to be unique, and who owns defining them versus marketing them. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.--------------------------------------------CHAPTERS0:00 "This isn't us." The only feedback Chad could get for months0:38 "The worst part of my job is when I meet with you"1:14 Why Jacob felt like a drug dealer running a marketing agency2:00 The consultant conversation that changed what Disruptive stands for4:48 The traps businesses fall into when naming their differentiators5:28 Why "we care more" isn't a differentiator without evidence5:51 The five differentiators, with Disruptive's own as the example12:12 Values vs differentiators: what's the actual difference?13:15 Do you need all five, and do they have to be truly unique?16:05 If the feedback is vague, it's probably not youTen chapters on a sixteen-minute conversation, which is more than I'd normally run, but the back third is a genuine Q&A and each question is its own search intent. Worth the density here.--------------------------------------------WHO'S TALKINGJacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number.Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He's the one who kept getting the copy sent back.--------------------------------------------ABOUT THE SHOWThe Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve. We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.--------------------------------------------FREE RESOURCES: ⁠indispensablemarketer.com/free/⁠⁠Disruptive Advertising: disruptiveadvertising.comThe Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/NEXT EPISODE: the client who slammed his fist on Jacob's desk over a $40,000invoice, and the three numbers that turn marketers into partners.

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19673066 Wed, 19 Aug 2026 16:00:00 -0400 981 1 10 full false This Is Why Your CEO Keeps Rejecting Your Copy This Is Why Your CEO Keeps Rejecting Your Copy FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:indispensablemarketer.com/free/Everyone in the company has an opinion about your copy, your headline, your colors.Nobody can tell you what would be better. That's not a taste problem, it's adifferentiator problem.If a competitor was cheaper, why would a customer still choose you? Until you and your CEO can answer that in concrete terms, you're doing commoditized marketing and competing on price. In this episode Jacob breaks down the five differentiators every business has to define: operational, cultural, philosophical, outcome, and access.Once they're documented you can point at the specific differentiator a piece of copy is built on, which turns "I don't love it" into an actual conversation. You can also load them into your AI project so every draft stays on message. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.--------------------------------------------CHAPTERS0:00 Why everyone in the company has an opinion about your marketing1:04 If a competitor was cheaper, why would they choose you?3:06 Differentiator 1: operational, or the "Amazon way" test3:54 Differentiator 2: cultural, and what your hiring bar actually proves4:39 Differentiator 3: philosophical, or the revenue you'd turn down5:24 Differentiator 4: outcome, and getting there faster than the competition6:06 Differentiator 5: access your customer can't get on their own6:35 How to use all five to end the copy debates for good--------------------------------------------WHO'S TALKINGJacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number.--------------------------------------------ABOUT THE SHOWThe Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve. We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costseveryone.We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.--------------------------------------------FREE RESOURCES: https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/free/Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/

]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:indispensablemarketer.com/free/Everyone in the company has an opinion about your copy, your headline, your colors.Nobody can tell you what would be better. That's not a taste problem, it's adifferentiator problem.If a competitor was cheaper, why would a customer still choose you? Until you and your CEO can answer that in concrete terms, you're doing commoditized marketing and competing on price. In this episode Jacob breaks down the five differentiators every business has to define: operational, cultural, philosophical, outcome, and access.Once they're documented you can point at the specific differentiator a piece of copy is built on, which turns "I don't love it" into an actual conversation. You can also load them into your AI project so every draft stays on message. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.--------------------------------------------CHAPTERS0:00 Why everyone in the company has an opinion about your marketing1:04 If a competitor was cheaper, why would they choose you?3:06 Differentiator 1: operational, or the "Amazon way" test3:54 Differentiator 2: cultural, and what your hiring bar actually proves4:39 Differentiator 3: philosophical, or the revenue you'd turn down5:24 Differentiator 4: outcome, and getting there faster than the competition6:06 Differentiator 5: access your customer can't get on their own6:35 How to use all five to end the copy debates for good--------------------------------------------WHO'S TALKINGJacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it asking marketing for a number.--------------------------------------------ABOUT THE SHOWThe Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:We've done over $150 million in revenue and managed over $3 billion in ad spend for thousands of businesses.When we studied more than 2,000 of those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve. We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costseveryone.We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.--------------------------------------------FREE RESOURCES: https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/free/Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19673055 Wed, 19 Aug 2026 16:00:00 -0400 553 1 9 full false Growth at All Costs Is Costing You the Right Customers Growth at All Costs Is Costing You the Right Customers Chad's dashboard was green. Volume up, cost per lead down, every target hit. Then sales pulled him aside and said the leads weren't closing, fulfillment made a face at the water cooler, and Jacob walked in asking why revenue was flat. He had won the quarter and lost the year.


This is the episode about the volume trap. Jacob starts with his first real win as a data analyst, telling one of the largest agricultural equipment companies in the world that it was burning money chasing the cheapest clicks. Then Chad turns it on himself. They get to the question that changed how Chad ran every campaign after it, why the CEO's honest answer is usually "I don't know either," and why bringing your CEO a finished customer profile is the fastest way to get it thrown in the trash. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.


------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 You can hit every marketing number and still get fired 

1:02 The Fortune 100 campaigns nobody wanted to spend money on 

4:39 What chasing volume does to profit, customers, and your sales team 

5:22 Why AI and the algorithms made this problem worse 

7:16 Little Adventures: a brand that knows exactly who it serves 

8:48 How to find your real ideal customer, then validate it with the numbers 

11:32 Why we say no to 80% of the leads that come through the door 

13:40 Getting sales, marketing, and comp plans pointed at the same customer 

14:59 The courage to hold the line when the transition gets rocky



------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat on both sides of this table: marketing director at a public company, and now the CEO asking marketing for a number.

Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He's the marketer whose dashboard was green while the business was bleeding.

--------------------------------------------


ABOUT THE SHOW


The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a

performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with

the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the

seat that comes with it.


For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:


We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no

attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we

exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs

everyone.


We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward

to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the



--------------------------------------------


FREE RESOURCES: https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/other side of it.

--------------------------------------------


NEXT EPISODE: why anyone should choose you when your competition is cheaper.



]]> Chad's dashboard was green. Volume up, cost per lead down, every target hit. Then sales pulled him aside and said the leads weren't closing, fulfillment made a face at the water cooler, and Jacob walked in asking why revenue was flat. He had won the quarter and lost the year.


This is the episode about the volume trap. Jacob starts with his first real win as a data analyst, telling one of the largest agricultural equipment companies in the world that it was burning money chasing the cheapest clicks. Then Chad turns it on himself. They get to the question that changed how Chad ran every campaign after it, why the CEO's honest answer is usually "I don't know either," and why bringing your CEO a finished customer profile is the fastest way to get it thrown in the trash. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.


------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 You can hit every marketing number and still get fired 

1:02 The Fortune 100 campaigns nobody wanted to spend money on 

4:39 What chasing volume does to profit, customers, and your sales team 

5:22 Why AI and the algorithms made this problem worse 

7:16 Little Adventures: a brand that knows exactly who it serves 

8:48 How to find your real ideal customer, then validate it with the numbers 

11:32 Why we say no to 80% of the leads that come through the door 

13:40 Getting sales, marketing, and comp plans pointed at the same customer 

14:59 The courage to hold the line when the transition gets rocky



------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat on both sides of this table: marketing director at a public company, and now the CEO asking marketing for a number.

Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He's the marketer whose dashboard was green while the business was bleeding.

--------------------------------------------


ABOUT THE SHOW


The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a

performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with

the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the

seat that comes with it.


For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:


We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no

attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we

exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs

everyone.


We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward

to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the



--------------------------------------------


FREE RESOURCES: https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/other side of it.

--------------------------------------------


NEXT EPISODE: why anyone should choose you when your competition is cheaper.



]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19673047 Wed, 19 Aug 2026 16:00:00 -0400 1045 1 8 full false You Can't Market to a Demographic You Can't Market to a Demographic FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: indispensablemarketer.com/free/


"Moms 25 to 45" is a targeting parameter. It is not a customer. And if that is what your profile looks like, every campaign you build on top of it is guesswork your CEO gets to second-guess.


Jacob Baadsgaard walks through the costume company that thought it sold dress-up clothes and discovered it sold a mom's freedom to say yes. He gives you the three questions that pull your real customer out of your CEO's head, the anti-customer exercise most companies are too scared to run, and the reason Disruptive refers away roughly 80 percent of the companies that come asking. This is the Vision pillar of VSET, and it is the conversation you cannot have alone.


------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 Do you actually know who you're marketing to?

0:59 John Deere was spending millions on leads that never converted

1:44 The $7 million they saved by marketing to fewer people

3:14 Your best customers are most of your revenue. Most of your budget isn't on them.

3:58 The three questions to ask your CEO about who you serve

5:20 Why the "who" belongs to the CEO and the "how" belongs to you

6:34 What to do when the data says you've been wasting budget


------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He started as a data analyst, became a marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now sits in the CEO's chair asking marketing for a number. He built Disruptive from scratch to over $150 million in lifetime revenue.

--------------------------------------------


ABOUT THE SHOW


The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a

performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with

the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the

seat that comes with it.


For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:


We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no

attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we

exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs

everyone.


We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward

to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the

other side of it.


--------------------------------------------


FREE RESOURCES: https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/



]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: indispensablemarketer.com/free/


"Moms 25 to 45" is a targeting parameter. It is not a customer. And if that is what your profile looks like, every campaign you build on top of it is guesswork your CEO gets to second-guess.


Jacob Baadsgaard walks through the costume company that thought it sold dress-up clothes and discovered it sold a mom's freedom to say yes. He gives you the three questions that pull your real customer out of your CEO's head, the anti-customer exercise most companies are too scared to run, and the reason Disruptive refers away roughly 80 percent of the companies that come asking. This is the Vision pillar of VSET, and it is the conversation you cannot have alone.


------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 Do you actually know who you're marketing to?

0:59 John Deere was spending millions on leads that never converted

1:44 The $7 million they saved by marketing to fewer people

3:14 Your best customers are most of your revenue. Most of your budget isn't on them.

3:58 The three questions to ask your CEO about who you serve

5:20 Why the "who" belongs to the CEO and the "how" belongs to you

6:34 What to do when the data says you've been wasting budget


------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He started as a data analyst, became a marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now sits in the CEO's chair asking marketing for a number. He built Disruptive from scratch to over $150 million in lifetime revenue.

--------------------------------------------


ABOUT THE SHOW


The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a

performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with

the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the

seat that comes with it.


For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:


We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no

attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we

exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs

everyone.


We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward

to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the

other side of it.


--------------------------------------------


FREE RESOURCES: https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/



]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19673029 Wed, 19 Aug 2026 16:00:00 -0400 509 1 7 full false We Walked Away From a $1 Million Client We Walked Away From a $1 Million Client FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Disruptive walked away from a client paying over $1 million a year in management

fees. At the time, that contract was the majority of the company's profitability.

If you've ever needed a shower after writing ad copy, this episode is for you.

Jacob walks through the account, the months spent trying to fix it, and the

strategist who closed his office door and said it still wasn't working. Then Chad

turns it into the part you can use: how a marketing leader gets a CEO's values

into the open, why the CEO's personal values and the company's core values are

two different lists, and the single test that separates a real value from a

preference. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 The $1 million client we walked away from

1:28 Before you invoke your values, ask how you're contributing to the problem

1:59 The strategist who closed the door

3:29 Values aren't values until they cost you something

5:23 The two questions that surface a CEO's values and their anti-values

7:38 The exercise to run with your leadership team

8:43 The hire-or-fire test that separates a value from a preference

10:45 Why Chad chose to work for a CEO who isn't easy to work with

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author

of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat on both sides of this table: marketing

director at a public company, and now the CEO asking marketing for a number.

Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at

Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He's worked at companies where the values

were words on a wall, and he'll tell you the difference.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a

performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with

the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the

seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no

attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we

exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs

everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward

to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the

other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/ Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/


]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Disruptive walked away from a client paying over $1 million a year in management

fees. At the time, that contract was the majority of the company's profitability.

If you've ever needed a shower after writing ad copy, this episode is for you.

Jacob walks through the account, the months spent trying to fix it, and the

strategist who closed his office door and said it still wasn't working. Then Chad

turns it into the part you can use: how a marketing leader gets a CEO's values

into the open, why the CEO's personal values and the company's core values are

two different lists, and the single test that separates a real value from a

preference. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 The $1 million client we walked away from

1:28 Before you invoke your values, ask how you're contributing to the problem

1:59 The strategist who closed the door

3:29 Values aren't values until they cost you something

5:23 The two questions that surface a CEO's values and their anti-values

7:38 The exercise to run with your leadership team

8:43 The hire-or-fire test that separates a value from a preference

10:45 Why Chad chose to work for a CEO who isn't easy to work with

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author

of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat on both sides of this table: marketing

director at a public company, and now the CEO asking marketing for a number.

Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at

Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He's worked at companies where the values

were words on a wall, and he'll tell you the difference.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a

performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with

the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the

seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no

attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we

exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs

everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward

to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the

other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/ Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/


]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19673002 Wed, 19 Aug 2026 16:00:00 -0400 796 1 6 full false We Fired 450 Clients in One Year. It Saved the Business. We Fired 450 Clients in One Year. It Saved the Business. FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

In 2020 Jacob fired 450 of Disruptive's 650 clients in a single year. The revenue

math said don't. He did it anyway, and it's the best decision the business has

ever made.

This episode is about what made that decision possible: a CEO who could finally

name why the business exists. Chad walks Jacob back through the Covid moment he

quietly hoped it was all over, the screen he ran every client through, and how

the company reacted when the directive came down. Then they get to the part

that's your job as a marketing leader. Every CEO has a why in their head whether

they've said it out loud or not, and extracting it is your work, not theirs. This

is the Vision pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 The year we fired 450 clients, and why it saved the business

0:24 Brazil, 2020: the moment Jacob hoped his business was over

3:52 The screen Jacob ran every single client through

5:00 The math: 200 clients we believed in, 450 we didn't

6:04 How the company reacted, and why sales pushed back hardest

9:41 The two questions that pull a CEO's why into the open

13:40 The mistake almost every marketer makes with their CEO's why

14:55 The four founder stages, and how to meet your CEO where they actually are

17:50 What to do when your CEO seems closed off to this conversation

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author

of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat on both sides of this table: marketing

director at a public company, and now the CEO asking marketing for a number.

Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at

Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He was in the room when the 450-client

decision came down.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a

performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with

the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the

seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no

attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we

exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs

everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward

to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the

other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/ Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/

NEXT EPISODE: the multi-million dollar contract we walked away from because it

conflicted with our values.

]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

In 2020 Jacob fired 450 of Disruptive's 650 clients in a single year. The revenue

math said don't. He did it anyway, and it's the best decision the business has

ever made.

This episode is about what made that decision possible: a CEO who could finally

name why the business exists. Chad walks Jacob back through the Covid moment he

quietly hoped it was all over, the screen he ran every client through, and how

the company reacted when the directive came down. Then they get to the part

that's your job as a marketing leader. Every CEO has a why in their head whether

they've said it out loud or not, and extracting it is your work, not theirs. This

is the Vision pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 The year we fired 450 clients, and why it saved the business

0:24 Brazil, 2020: the moment Jacob hoped his business was over

3:52 The screen Jacob ran every single client through

5:00 The math: 200 clients we believed in, 450 we didn't

6:04 How the company reacted, and why sales pushed back hardest

9:41 The two questions that pull a CEO's why into the open

13:40 The mistake almost every marketer makes with their CEO's why

14:55 The four founder stages, and how to meet your CEO where they actually are

17:50 What to do when your CEO seems closed off to this conversation

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author

of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat on both sides of this table: marketing

director at a public company, and now the CEO asking marketing for a number.

Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at

Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He was in the room when the 450-client

decision came down.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a

performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with

the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the

seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no

attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we

exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs

everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward

to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the

other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/ Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/

NEXT EPISODE: the multi-million dollar contract we walked away from because it

conflicted with our values.

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19672991 Wed, 19 Aug 2026 16:00:00 -0400 1310 1 5 full false I Interviewed the CEO Who Almost Fired Me I Interviewed the CEO Who Almost Fired Me FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

For ten years Chad ran marketing for Jacob. Then he told the executive team he

wasn't sure he was the right guy for the job. Jacob told him he agreed.

This is the conversation most marketing leaders never have with their CEO. Chad

asks Jacob what was actually going through his head in that conference room,

why he'd already burned through five marketing leaders in nine years, and what

changed when he realized he might be the common denominator. If you feel the

heat in every leadership meeting and can't name why the trust isn't there,

start here.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 The conversation every marketing leader avoids with their CEO

1:55 Inside the meeting where Chad said "I'm not the right guy for this job"

3:54 What Jacob was actually thinking, and why he didn't reassure him

4:56 Five marketing leaders in nine years, and the moment the CEO became the

common denominator

6:49 The Trust Gap, named: why it isn't a skills gap or a budget gap

10:17 Why marketers who lead with execution are becoming dispensable

13:17 VSET explained: Vision, Strategy, Execution, Team, and who owns what

17:46 Why having the hard conversation is the less risky path

20:55 What to put on the table with your CEO this week

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author

of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat on both sides of this table: marketing

director at a public company, and now the CEO asking marketing for a number.

Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at

Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He spent years doing the smile and nod

in executive meetings. Here he tells you what it cost him.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a

performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with

the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the

seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs

everyone.

In 2020 we fired two-thirds of our client roster on purpose. Purpose without

performance is a hobby. Performance without purpose is a trap.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward

to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the

other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: ⁠indispensablemarketer.com/free/⁠⁠

Disruptive Advertising: disruptiveadvertising.com

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/

NEXT EPISODE: Jacob fired 450 clients during Covid. It almost broke marketing,

and it turned out to be the best decision we ever made.

]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

For ten years Chad ran marketing for Jacob. Then he told the executive team he

wasn't sure he was the right guy for the job. Jacob told him he agreed.

This is the conversation most marketing leaders never have with their CEO. Chad

asks Jacob what was actually going through his head in that conference room,

why he'd already burned through five marketing leaders in nine years, and what

changed when he realized he might be the common denominator. If you feel the

heat in every leadership meeting and can't name why the trust isn't there,

start here.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 The conversation every marketing leader avoids with their CEO

1:55 Inside the meeting where Chad said "I'm not the right guy for this job"

3:54 What Jacob was actually thinking, and why he didn't reassure him

4:56 Five marketing leaders in nine years, and the moment the CEO became the

common denominator

6:49 The Trust Gap, named: why it isn't a skills gap or a budget gap

10:17 Why marketers who lead with execution are becoming dispensable

13:17 VSET explained: Vision, Strategy, Execution, Team, and who owns what

17:46 Why having the hard conversation is the less risky path

20:55 What to put on the table with your CEO this week

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author

of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat on both sides of this table: marketing

director at a public company, and now the CEO asking marketing for a number.

Chad de Lisle has been in marketing for nearly twenty years, half of that at

Disruptive working directly with Jacob. He spent years doing the smile and nod

in executive meetings. Here he tells you what it cost him.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a

performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with

the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the

seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs

everyone.

In 2020 we fired two-thirds of our client roster on purpose. Purpose without

performance is a hobby. Performance without purpose is a trap.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward

to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the

other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: ⁠indispensablemarketer.com/free/⁠⁠

Disruptive Advertising: disruptiveadvertising.com

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/

Connect with Chad on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-de-lisle/

NEXT EPISODE: Jacob fired 450 clients during Covid. It almost broke marketing,

and it turned out to be the best decision we ever made.

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19672981 Wed, 19 Aug 2026 16:00:00 -0400 1299 1 4 full false Growth at All Costs Is Costing You the Right Customers Growth at All Costs Is Costing You the Right Customers FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:  indispensablemarketer.com/free/

A top strategist walked into Jacob's office, closed the door, and told him he hated logging into a client account worth over $1 million a year. Disruptive walked away from the contract.

Most marketers have never asked how core values help them do better marketing, which is why for most companies they stay words on a wall that cost nothing. This episode fixes that. Jacob gives you two questions to ask your CEO that surface their real values and their anti-values, a third to run with your executive team,

and the test that separates a value from a preference. Then you run the same exercise on yourself, because marketing is the best job in the world or the worst one depending on whether you believe in what you're marketing. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 The $1 million contract we walked away from

1:21 If a value doesn't cost you something, it's just a preference

2:56 Why core values are a marketing tool, not an HR poster

4:15 Question 1: who inspires your CEO, and what that actually tells you

4:56 Question 2: the sassy one that surfaces their anti-values

5:46 The third question to run with your executive team

6:44 "It's not my job to set the values." Correct. It's your job to extract them.

7:08 Now run the same exercise on yourself

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: marketing analyst, head of marketing at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it. He built Disruptive from scratch to over $150 million in

lifetime revenue.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/ 

]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer:  indispensablemarketer.com/free/

A top strategist walked into Jacob's office, closed the door, and told him he hated logging into a client account worth over $1 million a year. Disruptive walked away from the contract.

Most marketers have never asked how core values help them do better marketing, which is why for most companies they stay words on a wall that cost nothing. This episode fixes that. Jacob gives you two questions to ask your CEO that surface their real values and their anti-values, a third to run with your executive team,

and the test that separates a value from a preference. Then you run the same exercise on yourself, because marketing is the best job in the world or the worst one depending on whether you believe in what you're marketing. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 The $1 million contract we walked away from

1:21 If a value doesn't cost you something, it's just a preference

2:56 Why core values are a marketing tool, not an HR poster

4:15 Question 1: who inspires your CEO, and what that actually tells you

4:56 Question 2: the sassy one that surfaces their anti-values

5:46 The third question to run with your executive team

6:44 "It's not my job to set the values." Correct. It's your job to extract them.

7:08 Now run the same exercise on yourself

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: marketing analyst, head of marketing at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO on the other side of it. He built Disruptive from scratch to over $150 million in

lifetime revenue.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/ 

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19672971 Wed, 19 Aug 2026 16:00:00 -0400 544 1 3 full false Your CEO Can’t Tell You Why The Company Exists Your CEO Can’t Tell You Why The Company Exists FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

If you and your CEO can't say why the business exists beyond making money, no marketing plan will ever satisfy them. You'll throw spaghetti at the wall for your whole career and never know why.

Jacob Baadsgaard has been on both sides of this. In this episode he gives you the three questions that pull a CEO's why into the open, the story of the moment he realized he'd fallen out of love with his own agency, and how to turn the answers into a why statement you can actually market against. He also breaks down the four founder stages, because the same question lands completely differently on a CEO who's still proving it than on one thinking about legacy. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 Why "we exist to make money" guarantees you'll never satisfy your CEO

1:23 Brazil, 2020: when I realized I'd fallen out of love with my own business

3:19 Question 1: the founding story, and why nothing works without it

4:46 Question 2: the customer success story that reveals what they actually care

about

5:31 Question 3: the employee outcome they're proud of

5:58 How to turn their answers into a three-part why statement

7:19 The four founder stages, and how to meet your CEO where they actually are

9:51 The question to ask yourself once you have their answer

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He started as a data analyst, became a marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now sits in the CEO's chair asking marketing for a number. He's had this conversation from both sides of the table, including badly.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/ 

]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

If you and your CEO can't say why the business exists beyond making money, no marketing plan will ever satisfy them. You'll throw spaghetti at the wall for your whole career and never know why.

Jacob Baadsgaard has been on both sides of this. In this episode he gives you the three questions that pull a CEO's why into the open, the story of the moment he realized he'd fallen out of love with his own agency, and how to turn the answers into a why statement you can actually market against. He also breaks down the four founder stages, because the same question lands completely differently on a CEO who's still proving it than on one thinking about legacy. This is the Vision pillar of VSET.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 Why "we exist to make money" guarantees you'll never satisfy your CEO

1:23 Brazil, 2020: when I realized I'd fallen out of love with my own business

3:19 Question 1: the founding story, and why nothing works without it

4:46 Question 2: the customer success story that reveals what they actually care

about

5:31 Question 3: the employee outcome they're proud of

5:58 How to turn their answers into a three-part why statement

7:19 The four founder stages, and how to meet your CEO where they actually are

9:51 The question to ask yourself once you have their answer

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He started as a data analyst, became a marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now sits in the CEO's chair asking marketing for a number. He's had this conversation from both sides of the table, including badly.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/

Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/ 

]]> Jacob Baadsgaard and Chad de Lisle Buzzsprout-19672191 Wed, 19 Aug 2026 13:00:00 -0400 649 1 2 full false This Is Why You Hate Your Marketing Job This Is Why You Hate Your Marketing Job FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: ⁠indispensablemarketer.com/free/⁠

Being a marketer is either the best job in the world or the worst one, and it comes down to two things: whether you believe in what you're marketing, and whether you can actually get results. Most marketers right now have neither.

If you're aligned with your CEO in the planning meeting and underwater a quarter later, this is the diagnosis. It isn't effort and it isn't your playbook. It's the trust gap between what the CEO holds in their head and what you're executing against. Jacob went through five marketing leaders in eight years before he admitted he was the common denominator, and then hit the same wall with the sixth, the one person he was certain he'd been clear with. What came out of fixing that

is VSET: Vision, Strategy, Execution, Team. This video is the introduction to the framework and the place to start on this channel.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 Why marketing is either the best or the worst job in the world

2:28 The cycle: aligned in the meeting, underwater a quarter later

3:43 The trust gap, and why executing harder won't close it

4:14 Five marketing leaders in eight years, and the moment I realized I was the

common denominator

5:21 What happened with Chad, the one person I was sure I'd been clear with

7:33 VSET explained: Vision, Strategy, Execution, Team

8:32 Why most marketers start with execution, and why that breaks everything

9:00 You are not the problem. The system you're working in is.

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO asking marketing for a number. Over 14 years he's built Disruptive to more than $150 million in lifetime revenue, employed over 500 marketers, and worked with thousands of businesses. He's also been the CEO he admits he'd have struggled to work for.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the

other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/  

Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/


]]> FREE: the tools and templates to become an indispensable marketer: ⁠indispensablemarketer.com/free/⁠

Being a marketer is either the best job in the world or the worst one, and it comes down to two things: whether you believe in what you're marketing, and whether you can actually get results. Most marketers right now have neither.

If you're aligned with your CEO in the planning meeting and underwater a quarter later, this is the diagnosis. It isn't effort and it isn't your playbook. It's the trust gap between what the CEO holds in their head and what you're executing against. Jacob went through five marketing leaders in eight years before he admitted he was the common denominator, and then hit the same wall with the sixth, the one person he was certain he'd been clear with. What came out of fixing that

is VSET: Vision, Strategy, Execution, Team. This video is the introduction to the framework and the place to start on this channel.

--------------------------------------------

CHAPTERS

0:00 Why marketing is either the best or the worst job in the world

2:28 The cycle: aligned in the meeting, underwater a quarter later

3:43 The trust gap, and why executing harder won't close it

4:14 Five marketing leaders in eight years, and the moment I realized I was the

common denominator

5:21 What happened with Chad, the one person I was sure I'd been clear with

7:33 VSET explained: Vision, Strategy, Execution, Team

8:32 Why most marketers start with execution, and why that breaks everything

9:00 You are not the problem. The system you're working in is.

--------------------------------------------

WHO'S TALKING

Jacob Baadsgaard is the founder and CEO of Disruptive Advertising and the author of The Indispensable Marketer. He's sat in every seat at the table: data analyst, marketing director at a publicly traded company, and now the CEO asking marketing for a number. Over 14 years he's built Disruptive to more than $150 million in lifetime revenue, employed over 500 marketers, and worked with thousands of businesses. He's also been the CEO he admits he'd have struggled to work for.

--------------------------------------------

ABOUT THE SHOW

The Indispensable Marketer is Disruptive Advertising's podcast. We're a performance marketing agency, and our mission is to connect great marketers with the brands they believe in. The goal of this show is simpler than that: we want

marketing leaders to win. Not just hit the number, but earn the trust and the seat that comes with it.

For anyone who has no reason to trust us yet, some things you can check:

We've managed marketing for more than 2,000 client accounts.

When we studied those accounts, we found that on average 76% of ad budget had no attributable revenue impact. Not low impact. No impact. That's the problem we exist to solve.

We reject 96% of applicants, because the wrong person in the wrong seat costs everyone.

We publish around 8 videos a month. We want these to be the episodes you forward to your CEO or drop in your team's channel, because you're both better on the

other side of it.

--------------------------------------------

FREE RESOURCES: indispensablemarketer.com/free/  

Indispensable Marketer assessment: https://assessment.disruptiveuniversity.com/imaudit

Disruptive Advertising: https://disruptiveadvertising.com/

The Indispensable Marketer (book): https://www.indispensablemarketer.com/book/

Connect with Jacob on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jakebaadsgaard/


]]> The Indispensable Marketer Buzzsprout-19662300 Mon, 17 Aug 2026 19:00:00 -0400 642 1 1 full false