Cody Slingerland

If your CRO agency is only running UI/UX tests you’re leaving most of the money on the table. Because most agencies stop at Level 1 of testing. They’ll tweak a button. Rewrite a headline. Maybe test a layout shift. And sure, those things can move the needle. But they’re just scratching the surface. If you're serious about scaling profitably, especially with rising CAC and squeezed margins, you need to operate on all three levels of testing. This is CRO 2.0 - Customer Revenue Optimisation. I had a great chat with Alex McEachern 💎 at Intelligems recently, and this framework came through clearly. Here’s how it breaks down: Level 1: On-page testing This is what most people think CRO is. Buttons, headlines, PDP tweaks, layout changes. You're nudging conversion rate or AOV up. Example: bundling skincare products into “routine kits” to increase basket size. These tests are quick and measurable, but they only optimise what's on the surface. If you stop here, you're optimising the symptoms, not the system. Level 2: Beyond-the-page testing Now you're optimising how the business actually works behind the scenes. Things like: - Pricing structures - Shipping thresholds - Promotions and offers These levers impact both conversion and profitability - especially as acquisition costs rise. One brand we audited recently saw their CPM double in 30 days. Same ads. Same targeting. No change in website performance. If you’re not testing margin protection in that environment, you're relying on the whims of Meta to stay profitable and spoiler alert- they don't care. Level 3: Business decision testing This is where CRO becomes a company-wide growth engine. You're testing operational strategy, not just customer-facing tweaks. Examples: - Flat-pack vs pre-built shipping - Trialling subscriptions with a small cohort - Soft-launching new products to validate demand - Testing internal tools that reduce cost or increase capacity This is business model optimisation. And it's where compounding growth happens. Most brands, and most agencies, never get past Level 1. Some touch Level 2. Very few even think about Level 3. But if you want sustainable, profitable growth - all three levels matter. This is the difference between CRO as a service, and CRO as a growth engine. P.S. If you want to test deeper growth levers before Black Friday, now’s the time. Drop a comment or DM me - happy to walk through your testing layers.

49

14 Comments

Most agencies lose tens of thousands hiring the wrong SEO talent. Time. Trust. Momentum. Burnt. I’m breaking down the 6 biggest hiring traps that cause it and how to avoid them. Everyone claims they know SEO. Few can prove it. Ask any agency owner or marketing lead what their biggest hiring headache is, and most will say the same thing: “Finding real SEO talent is near impossible.” I hear this every week. Here’s why hiring for SEO roles burns so many businesses. 1. You’re competing with independence The best SEOs often don’t want jobs. They run their own sites, consult or build their own thing. If they are open to working with you, they want something special. they expect six figures, a strong growth trajectory and autonomy.  Otherwise, they’ll keep doing what works, for themselves. 2. The snake oil is real Flashy resumes. Big talk. But when it’s time to audit site structure or build a scalable content plan, crickets. We hear horror stories all the time.  SEOs killing the interviews then when it’s time to cook they forget their apron. 3. Titles mean nothing Everyone’s a “Head of SEO” after a course and a blog. True SEOs who understand tech, content, links, commercial awareness and business are RARE. If someone claims to be an expert in everything, be suspicious. Most are experts can talk the talk but can’t own the outcomes. 4. The salary gap is real $60K won’t get you what it did in 2019. Most experienced SEOs know their value and won’t move for less than $100K. Expecting “A player” performance on “B player” salaries is a fast track to hiring regret. 5. Hiring channels don’t work like they used to Job boards and generalist recruiters send you what’s easy to find. Not what actually performs. You get 50 resumes. None can explain what they ranked, how or why. You’re back to square one. 6. You’re not just hiring skills. You’re hiring retention It takes months for SEO results to materialise. So if your new hire bails in month four, you’ve wasted time, budget and trust. The best hires have the mindset to build with you, not bounce after a few client wins. What does the ideal SEO hire look like? • Deep execution ability. Not just audits and slides • Takes ownership of outcomes, not just tasks • Communicates clearly with clients, not just internally • Has proven results and can show you exactly how they did it • Fits the culture and sticks around If that sounds like a unicorn, you’re not wrong. But they exist. You just won’t find them through lazy hiring tactics. That’s why specialist SEO recruiters like us exist. To vet, pressure test, and bring you the real deal, fast (25 days on average) What’s been your biggest challenge hiring SEO talent? Drop it in the comments. I’ll share what’s worked (and what to avoid).

21

8 Comments

I had no idea so many SEO companies would hate my software AI Trust Signals… but they do...and not for the reasons I expected. Turns out, there are a lot of SEO companies doing bad work and not being honest with their clients. And when their clients finally ask hard questions, things get...well...interesting. Here’s a recent example (true story): A lady heard me speak, ran her website through AI Trust Signals, and her scores came back rough. She forwarded the results to her SEO company and asked for an explanation. Their response? “It’s a pile of $hit.” 💩 That was their technical analysis. (seriously, I'm not kidding) But it also triggered alarm bells for her. So she started digging. Eight weeks later, here’s what she uncovered: • GDPR violations • Her entire e-commerce section not visible to Google Shopping • Falsified SEO reporting • A laundry list of mistakes no competent agency should ever miss Her words to me: “You name it… it happened.” She fired the agency and is now fixing what was an extremely broken website. And the crazy part? I'm starting to see similar stories all the time now. When some SEO companies see a low score on AI Trust Signals, the default response isn’t curiosity… it’s defensiveness: “It’s trash.” “It’s wrong.” “Don’t trust it.” Anything to avoid accountability. Why? Because too many firms are still clinging to a world where everything revolves around ten blue links, “keywords,” and link-building spreadsheets. And that world is disappearing...fast. The day is coming when we’ll laugh at how we used to get information online. If you’re using an SEO company, don’t assume they’ve kept up. The shift from “rank me on Google” to “make AI recommend me” is rewriting the industry. Some agencies will adapt. Many won’t. Your job is to know the difference...before the market finds out for you. ----------- Your take? I'd love to hear your thoughts below. 👇

170

66 Comments

𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗶𝗻𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲. 𝘠𝘰𝘶’𝘳𝘦 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘨. SEO isn’t dead. Social isn’t saturated. Your market isn’t “too competitive.” You’re just not saying anything new. Or loud enough. Or with enough conviction. The fix? → Say something polarizing → Package it smart → Own a repeatable lane It’s not crowded if you lead.

40

18 Comments

Most marketers overcomplicate their planning process. But with ChatGPT, you can map out a full marketing campaign in under 30 minutes... if you know how to guide it. Here’s the exact 3-prompt workflow to build sharper, faster marketing plans: 1. Brainstorm content ideas I need to create a marketing campaign for [product/service]. Here’s what you need to know: [INSERT NOTES AND CONTEXT INCLUDING GOALS, TARGET AUDIENCE, BUDGET, ETC] 2. Build the strategy & messaging Now develop the campaign’s positioning and key messaging. Summarize: the core message, the problem it solves, the emotional trigger that drives action, and the primary call-to-action. 3. Map out the execution plan Turn this strategy into an actionable rollout plan. Outline: the key channels & content needed, timeline for execution, and KPIs to measure success. Simple. Strategic. Repeatable. — 📋 Want the full system? Join the waitlist for The Strategic Marketing Plan Playbook: https://lnkd.in/g7PB9huV

225

6 Comments

Agencies often talk crap on other agencies and it's a pointless exercise but here's why I find it amusing Hiring is hard Running a company of 10 is hard Running a company of 40 is harder Most agency owners can never scale above either 40 heads or 40 clients because they don't replace themselves The reason I am at 450 clients and 500 employees is because processes (sops etc) simply outperform talented people who ignore checklists My interns beat anyone Thrasio hired for example, they with ultimate sophistication ignored commandment 1 of selling on Amazon. They let their top sellers go out of stock. Boutique agencies claim better talent allows them better results, often posting on social media like a solo fashion show Not only is this misleading but it's also their only claim they can make because they can't or haven't yet scaled their own company to merit a higher level argument But with that said, it's not me against you (other agencies), it's all of US vs Amazon There is simply no need to attack other agencies to gain ground, the ground is infinite and I get more client referrals when I help my competitors anyway Business is not a zero sum game, on the contrary it's an infinite value giving game This is why I give away everything Some of you will hate on me just because I am successful But most of you who learn something and apply it to your own business will grow And to the few who come back and say thank you for all the content? You're the reward that keeps me going

85

27 Comments

The Truth about When To Expect SEO Results: "But when will I get clicks and leads?" Every new SEO client asks this question. Here's what I tell them... SEO isn't a light switch. It's more like planting seeds. The brutal truth: - Most people quit right before breakthrough happens - Google needs 1-2 months just to trust you exist - Your competitors have years of head start But here's what they don't tell you: The businesses crushing it online? They started SEO 6 months ago. While you're waiting for "the perfect moment" to start, your competitors are already ranking for your dream keywords. Two types of business owners: → "I'll start SEO when I have more time/money" → "I'll start SEO now and have more time/money later" Guess which one ends up dominating their market? Pro tip: The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is today. Stop overthinking the timeline. Start building your authority 🚀 Your future self will thank you in 6 months. And if you did better than this timeline... Congrats! 👍 ___ Loved this? Don't miss my next posts: 1) Hit LIKE now 👍 (thanks for the support!) 2) Leave a comment 🧡 3) Follow me: Samy Thuillier 🔔

170

52 Comments

Local SEO PSA for all you biz owners freaking out this weekend because the local map rank tracker is showing you losing ground as you checked it for the millionth time this month. All of these grid rank tools will almost always show different Local Pack rankings, even when you use two different tools for the same query at exactly the same time. There are so many factors influencing these rankings at any given time (ip address of the searcher, query, personalization, time of day, etc.) that they are almost always going to be "wrong", or at least often won't match up with what you are seeing, regardless of how you search. Search Darren Shaw's feed for when he answers questions about rank tracking accuracy. He's like a broken record, but his tune is spot on.

54

9 Comments

I heard a comment yesterday: use GA ROAS for "short term" optimizations, and use incremental ROAS for "long term" optimizations. This is wrong. I get where they're coming from, and I appreciate that they're trying to incorporate incrementality at all. But this is confusing causality with latency. • Causality: something that CAUSED something else • Latency: the delay between the cause and effect People will say some sequence of logical statements like: "GA4 only favors the bottom of the funnel." "iROAS takes a long time to calculate." "TOF channels have higher iROAS than BOF." And then they somehow, in their mind, combine these different ideas into thinking that "GA4 = short term" and "incrementality = long term." The reality is that using any kind of traffic or click based attribution is just capturing the very last step in the long mental journey the consumer had to make before they purchased. If you dump a bunch of emails and then see a spike in GA4 attributed email revenue, that isn't because you "made more short term revenue." What's actually happening is that a bunch of people who were likely going to buy anyway happened to click on your email link because there was a coupon in there. Let's use the car dealership example again: • GA4 attribution: the car lot itself (your website) • Incrementality: the TV ads that made people want a car Yes, you need to have a car lot, and you arguably need salespeople to convince the user to buy. But it's foolish to give 100% of the credit to the car sale to the person who "convinced" the customer to buy THAT particular car. When in reality: • The customer NEEDED a new car • The customer was AWARE of a few brands • The customer had AFFINITY toward one brand • The customer lived LOCALLY to your car lot • The customer saw your lot's ADS on TV • The customer read good REVIEWS • The customer did RESEARCH All before they ever showed up to the lot. They came there and they had in mind "We're trying to buy a Doyoford Land Shark for our family of 4. I can't spend more than $50k. I heard that Ben's Car Lot is really good, and they're only 10 mins away." And when they got to Ben's Car Lot, Ben was there and did a good job of "selling" them the Doyoford Land Shark (which they had already selected). Incrementality measurement is attempting to understand the true contribution of all of those steps, or at least the ads on TV for the car lot, prior to the customer ever stepping foot locally. Attribution is just giving all the credit to the sales guy. So if you want to "juice" more short term revenue, you don't just "push more budget" toward the channels that have better GA4 ROAS. That's like just hiring more car salespeople on the lot without running ads to get people there. #incrementality #attribution

71

12 Comments

How to Track Creative Testing at $10K/Day Spend (Without Burning Cash) If you’re scaling to $10K/day (or want to), creative testing can’t be random. At this level, every ad needs a clear system for tracking performance—otherwise, you’re just guessing. Here’s how we track creative testing at scale: ✅ Naming Conventions Matter → Every ad has a structured name including: Hook | Angle | Offer | Format | Launch Date. This makes it easy to analyze trends over time. ✅ Daily & Weekly Tracking → We log CTR, CPC, thumb-stop ratio, and early add-to-carts within 24-48 hours to determine if an ad deserves more spend—or if it’s dead. ✅ Segmentation by Intent → We bucket creatives into Testing, Scaling, and Evergreen campaigns—so we always know what’s feeding our scaling engine. ✅ Automated Performance Flags → If an ad crosses a certain CTR threshold, it’s flagged for iteration. If it falls below a set CPA multiple, it’s flagged for removal. ✅ Creative Heatmaps → We analyze top-performing visuals, messaging, and formats across different audience segments to double down on what’s working. Scaling isn’t about launching 100+ creatives and hoping for the best. It’s about systematizing what works—and cutting what doesn’t—at lightning speed. How are you tracking creative performance at scale?

60

19 Comments

Most agencies get addiction treatment SEO completely wrong. They target high-volume keywords that drive thousands of visitors. And their clients love seeing those traffic numbers go up. But here's what really happens → TRAFFIC rarely converts to ADMISSIONS. Why? Because they target broad addiction information keywords: → "Signs of alcoholism" → "Drug withdrawal symptoms" → "[Insert Celebrity Name} rehab" These searches come from people researching addiction. Not people seeking treatment. Real treatment seekers use different search terms: → "[City] rehab near me" → "Insurance coverage for rehab" → "Same day addiction treatment" Your traffic might drop 80% targeting these keywords. But your admissions will explode. Because you'll attract people ready for treatment → not just research. Quality beats quantity. Focus on INTENT over volume. Target searches from people who need help TODAY. That's how you build a sustainable treatment center.

14

5 Comments

Your obsession with CPL is destroying your agency’s lead gen. Here’s why it’s stifling your growth: 1️⃣ CPL blocks the outcomes that matter “What should my cost per lead be?” → Wrong question. Agency marketing is expensive. You’ll often pay $500–$1,000 per form-fill or enquiry. When you cap CPL at $200 or $300, here’s what happens: → You filter out high-quality leads → You miss high-intent search moments → You underperform in competitive auctions And your pipeline? It suffers. 2️⃣ Focus on revenue, not cost Instead of what's our CPL, think of it this way: If I spend $1,000 and close a $5K/month client who stays for a year... Was that a good investment? Absolutely. You just turned $1K into $60K. So stop obsessing over CPL. Start tracking: → # of MQLs per month → Pipeline generated from MQLs → Deals won from MQLs That’s your real growth engine. 3️⃣ Understand what good ROI really looks like Here’s how to measure your return: Spending $10K on marketing in a month? Aim to close at least $10K in new MRR per month from it. But here’s the nuance - it won’t happen overnight. To consistently close $10K+ in new MRR from a single month’s marketing spend: → It will take 6-12 months of consistent investment & testing. → Circa the 12-month mark, you'll make $20 back for every $1 spent. Too many agencies quit at month 3 - Right before momentum starts to build. Want your marketing to truly work? Patience and consistency are non-negotiable. It's all in the "how" you do it, not the "what". 4️⃣ Looking at CPL per channel is sabotaging your marketing success Because in reality: → Meta helps Google → Google helps SEO → SEO helps Meta → Events boost everything → Website/LP converts it all → Everything works together to win If you only exist in one channel, you will not win. So stop asking: → What’s my CPL from Meta? → What’s my ROI from SEO? Start asking: → What’s our blended cost of acquisition? → How much MRR have we added across all channels? → How much pipeline have we generated from marketing? 💡Final thought: The best agencies I’ve worked with - The ones that scale fast (and sustainably)- All do a few key things: → They don’t obsess over CPL → They don’t treat marketing like a silo → They focus relentlessly on outcomes over activity Those same agencies? For every $1 they’ve spent on marketing They’ve made $20 or more back. Others who obsessed on CPL? Flopped. Marketing isn't just CPL Focus on the bigger picture If you do, you'll win BIG. If you don't, you stifle growth. Which path will you choose? — 👋 Hey, I’m Wasif An agency coach who helps agencies of all sizes. Are you next? Bigger agency? (>$100k MRR) → DM me for a free 1:1 Smaller agency? ($20–$100k MRR) → Ask me about 3x Scaler Bigger agencies I've helped: → StudioHawk, Defiant Digital, Neil Patel Digital, Online Marketing Gurus & many more. Smaller agencies I've helped scale: → Umped, Karma Media, Superbrick, Avoca Digital, FoxGiven & many more.

63

27 Comments

You hired an SEO agency. They got you ranking. But your sales pipeline hasn’t changed. This happens all the time. Businesses focus on getting traffic but ignore what happens after a visitor lands on their site. SEO alone doesn’t drive revenue, it just gets people in the door. If your site isn’t built to convert, they’ll leave without taking action. Here’s why your traffic isn’t turning into leads (and how to fix it): 1️⃣ Your Website Pushes Visitors Away 🚨 Problem: Users land on your page, but poor UX makes them leave. ✅ Fix: ✔️ Make sure your site loads fast...slow pages kill conversions. ✔️ Optimize for mobile-first...most visitors won’t be on desktop. ✔️ Simplify navigation...don’t make people work to find what they need. 2️⃣ No Clear Conversion Path 🚨 Problem: Visitors don’t know what to do next. ✅ Fix: ✔️ CTAs should be clear, direct, and visible above the fold. ✔️ Forms should be easy to complete...no unnecessary fields. ✔️ Remove distractions...every page should have one clear goal. 3️⃣ Your Site is Optimized for Clicks, Not Conversions 🚨 Problem: SEO agencies focus on rankings, but rankings don’t pay the bills. ✅ Fix: ✔️ A/B test CTAs...the best SEO headline isn’t always the best conversion headline. ✔️ Heatmap analysis...see where users are dropping off and fix the leaks. ✔️ Funnel optimization...guide users step by step toward conversion. How We Solve This at HigherVisibility At HigherVisibility, every SEO client we work with uses our Targeted Growth System™...which includes CRO. Because rankings without conversions don’t grow your business. If your traffic is up but your leads aren’t, you don’t need more SEO, you need a better strategy.

62

27 Comments

If your SEO is NOT ranking, try this: 1) Keyword Research for 1h with ahrefs to find...see next 2) Find keywords nobody is ranking for. (Look for "Low DR", DR = Domain Rating) 3) Write blogs on these keywords 4) Publish 5) Wait Pro-tip: build 4/6 backlinks per month (in the image: one month doing this for a US client, and we've got them to rank top 20 for 311 keywords)

65

11 Comments

eCommerce brands must stop working with email agencies if they expect to "fix" their growth problems. After working with over 200 brands at my Klaviyo Elite Agency, here are the top 5 dirty truths most agencies won't tell you. 1. Email's success is intrinsically tied to acquisition Over 70% of your customer base will likely never buy from you again. Increasing returning customer revenue is a critical part of building a healthy business, but true growth comes from increasing your database of customers to target. That comes from new visitors to your website, not existing ones. 2. Email can't fix poor retention alone Retention rates & churn are largely a bi-product of the lived experience with your product. If the customer experience sucks and your product fails to deliver, no amount of emails can solve this problem. You can use email & lifecycle strategies to diagnose the problem, but it's going to be up to a separate department to drive true change. 3. 80% of email results are driven by brand equity The best marketer in the world can't polish a turd. An agency can only help you if they're working with solid raw materials. That means product market fit, reliable shipping and a strong customer experience. If you have these in place, most people will be able to generate revenue for your brand as they'll be capitalising on trust you've already built with your customers. 4. Arbritrary % of email revenue is irrelevant Many email marketers will argue until they're blue in the face that over 40% of your revenue needs to be driven by email marketing. This is a nonsensical platitude not backed by any meaningful data. It's healthy to have a significant portion of revenue driven from retention channels, but it's also going to be impacted heavily by the stickiness of your product, seasonality, assortment and pricing strategy. A generic % target doesn't give you any indication as to how healthy your strategy is. 5. Short-term revenue strategies come at the expense of long-term profitability If you see an agency with an absurd guarantee, it's inevitable that their "strategy" is going to be hammering your customers with a lot of heavy discounting to achieve revenue targets. Front-loading revenue this way nearly always leads to profit erosion and subsequent drops in returning customer revenue. _______ What did I miss from this list? Would love to hear your thoughts too. #emailmarketing #klaviyo #ecommerce

44

12 Comments

SEO is evolving—fast. And AI is quietly rewriting the rules. With AI-powered search results, chat-based assistants, and zero-click answers... Being “ranked” isn’t enough anymore. Here’s where smart dealerships are leaning in: -> Content that answers real questions. AI scrapes and summarizes. If your content isn’t useful, it won’t surface. -> Structured data = clarity. AI looks for clean signals to understand who you are and what you do. Schema markup isn’t optional anymore. -> Local authority matters more than ever. The rise of AI doesn’t replace local relevance—it amplifies it. Dealers who show up with purpose win. -> Speeeeeeeeed. Right Kyle Mountsier ??? This shift isn’t about doing more SEO. It’s about doing it more intentionally. Because the future of search isn’t just about visibility— It’s about being understood by our target audience. What would you add? #SEO #automotiveindustry #cardealership

34

14 Comments