Joshua Counsil is the co-founder of Good Robot Brewing in Halifax, a multi-award-winning hospitality and beverage company with three venues, national wholesale distribution, and The Beverage Factory, a co-manufacturing facility serving brands all the way to Costco.

Good Robot Brewing was weeks away from insolvency. No ad budget. No agency. No playbook. Co-founder JOSHUA COUNSIL posted about a silent reading event on Facebook, and within 72 hours the taproom was at capacity. That single idea didn't just save the business, it became 5% of their website traffic for the next five years and helped fuel a $10M brand built almost entirely on earned media, raw authenticity, and doing the opposite of what every competitor was doing.

He explains:

◼️ How one $0 Facebook post pulled a brewery back from the brink of insolvency

◼️ The "zig where they zag" framework that turned a corn beer into an award-winning product and a viral campaign

◼️ Why publicity is the most underrated marketing channel — and how to manufacture it without a PR budget

◼️ The brutal truth about running a business vs. opening one (and why most entrepreneurs get blindsided)

◼️ How Josh uses AI as a strategic thinking partner — not a content machine — to break through writer's block and sharpen product positioning

◼️ Why founder-led content still wins, and what happens to your brand when the founders stop showing up

◼️ The mindset shift that keeps entrepreneurs going when the fire hose of problems never turns off

Timestamps

02:15 – Why Josh loves conferences more than most people love vacations

05:00 – Raised by murder mystery dinner theatre owners: how that shaped everything

09:30 – From engineering to entrepreneurship — quitting his job in Seattle for a brewery idea

14:00 – Landing in Halifax and the culture shock of a non-hustle market

18:30 – Weeks from insolvency: what the early days of Good Robot really looked like

23:00 – The silent reading event that packed the taproom in 72 hours

27:30 – Zigging where competitors zag: the corn beer campaign that no one expected

32:00 – Publicity over paid ads: why earned media builds brands that ads can't

36:30 – Knowing what you suck at — the most underrated business skill

40:00 – Using AI as a strategic partner, not a shortcut

🔗 Connect with Joshua Counsil on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/joshuacounsil 🍺 Good Robot Brewing: goodrobotbrewing.ca

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🎓 Want the AI tools and strategies we use at Merged Media? Join the Amplify Your Brand community: skool.com/ayb

Learn more about Jay: jayhunt.social

Everyone's automating their LinkedIn outreach. Everyone's using AI to personalize at scale. And almost everyone is getting ignored. Zivko Dodovski, CEO of DoneMaker, has built a thriving B2B lead generation firm by doing the exact opposite; zero automations, zero AI messages, and a manual outreach process that consistently books 8-10 qualified calls per month for his clients.

Zivko started in radio broadcasting before pivoting into B2B sales, where he discovered that genuine human connection on LinkedIn outperformed every tool, shortcut, and automation he tested. He now runs DoneMaker, a LinkedIn organic outreach firm that has helped clients like J Baker Media land 5 clients in 2 months and Jones & Lamb LLC generate $14K in a single month — all without spending a dollar on ads.

He explains:

◼️ Why "over-personalization" is the new spam — and how savvy buyers spot it in seconds

◼️ The exact connection message framework Zivko uses to start real conversations without pitch-slapping

◼️ Why LinkedIn's API suppresses automation tools and what that means for your outreach results

◼️ How to use Sales Navigator to build targeting so precise it turns outreach into a near 50/50 yes-or-no conversation

◼️ The profile optimization mistake most small businesses make — and why the "billboard approach" backfires

◼️ Why commenting on viral posts can generate more impressions than posting on your own feed

◼️ The dot-space LinkedIn trick that instantly reveals who's using automation to reach you

◼️ When LinkedIn simply won't work for your business — and what to do instead

Timestamps:

02:00 – From radio broadcasting to B2B sales and founding DoneMaker

05:00 – Is radio advertising still relevant in 2026?

08:00 – How Zivko personally uses LinkedIn to grow his business

09:20 – The hot take: no AI, no automations — everything manual and why

12:00 – "Over-personalization" — the new red flag buyers can smell a mile away

15:00 – The exact connection message framework that starts real conversations

18:00 – Why Sales Navigator is the most underutilized LinkedIn tool

21:30 – From connection request to booked call — the full outreach sequence
24:00 – Profile optimization: what to do (and what to ditch) depending on your company size

26:00 – Where posting fits into the outreach strategy

29:00 – The commenting strategy that beats posting your own content

32:00 – Cadence, blog strategy, and the top/middle/bottom of funnel approach

36:00 – LinkedIn articles and newsletters — worth it or not?

38:00 – LinkedIn ads vs. Meta ads — why you should never test creative on LinkedIn

40:00 – The dot-space automation detection trick and when LinkedIn won't work for you

Connect with Zivko:

Website: donemaker.com

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/zivkododovski

Connect with Jason: Website: https://jayhunt.social

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/socialmediaspeaker/

Andy has a very diverse cultural background - he speaks fluent German, English and Spanish and for this reason he is well versed in Global markets and the special needs of different cultures. Every year he attends more than 25 different expos around the world as a representative of multiple global brands as their Traffic Captain, or in other words Brand Ambassador!

Andy has won several awards during his career, including:

• Businessperson and CEO of the Year
  
• Community Figure of the Year
  
• Affiliate Manager of the Year
  

Welcome to the Merged Marketing Podcast. Today, our special guest is YouTube star Evan Carmichael!

Evan is a huge believer in Entrepreneurs. At 19, he built and then sold a biotech software company. At 22, he was a venture capitalist helping raise $500k to $15mil. He now runs the biggest YouTube channel for entrepreneurs with 2M+ subscribers, wrote 4 books & speaks globally.

He wants to solve the world's biggest problem. He's set 2 world records, uses a trampoline & stand-up desk, owns Canada's largest Salsa Dance Studio & has a giant Doritos bag in front of him all day long to remind him that he’s stronger than the Doritos. Toronto is his home. He's a husband, father, TSM fan & Teemo Main.

Without further adieu, let's merge into the episode to hear Evan talk about arguably the most important topic of your life!

Today’s special guest is Joey Gabra. Owner of more than 20 guitars, and with just over 30 years of experience playing them, Joey, a.k.a. J-Gabz has recorded, performed, composed, and taught guitar at some of the highest levels and in countless styles and genres including, jazz, blues, country, folk, rock, metal, punk, pop, and a whole lot more.

He is the Founder and Executive Producer of ‘Audio Epidemic’...a growing YouTube channel and brand that is geared primarily around all things guitar, but also has found its way into the hearts of all music nerds alike.

J-Gabz also plays the ukulele, bass, piano, banjo, and mandolin.

When not shredding, he is a digital marketing guru, a photographer, a podcast host of The WisDumb Podcast, a successful entrepreneur, and a very proud husband and father of 3 wonderful kids.

Deepak Anand, Chief Executive Officer and Director, has a wealth of knowledge and experience in the global cannabis industry. He is a public speaker and is regularly engaged with Canadian and International media on all subjects related to the Cannabis industry. Mr. Anand holds a Master’s in Business Administration (MBA) and Management from Vancouver Island University. He is a recognized thought leader and brings 15 years of leadership experience in the health, charitable/non-profit, and private sectors in Canada.

Within the global cannabis sector, Mr. Anand has worked with senior government officials, politicians, policy makers, health professional organizations, clinical practitioners, educators, investor, patients as well as producers. He has also served on the boards of various pharmaceutical associations across Canada, the United States and Europe.

Currently, Mr. Anand serves on a variety of boards within the international cannabis space which include not for profit, advocacy and patient driven organizations

Prominent positions, Mr. Anand has previously held in the Cannabis industry include:

• Vice President of Business Development and Government Relations at Deloitte- CCI., Canada.

• Vice President for Zenabis Global Inc. (A Health Canada License Holder) with operations in Canada and Malta.

• Adjunct Professor at Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU). At KPU, Mr. Anand wrote, and taught Canada’s first and only Cannabis course titled ‘Cannabis Professional Series’ taught via an online module.

• Executive Director for the Canadian National Medical Marijuana Association (CNMMA). The CNMMA was the first and only industry association that factored in all facets of the nascent Cannabis industry in Canada.

Rich Brooks is the founder and president of flyte new media, a web design and internet marketing company in Portland, Maine. He has been interviewed by Inc. Magazine, CNN.com, The Huffington Post, and many other news sites, all looking for his insight into online marketing for small business.

He teaches a web marketing and social media for small business class at the University of Southern Maine.

Finally, he loves sharing ideas and showing people how they can successfully market their business through social, search and mobile marketing, no matter how busy they are!

On this week's episode of the podcast, we are discussing word of mouth marketing with Christel Wintels. Christel Wintels is the Franchise Owner & Executive Director for BNI Golden Horseshoe. Christel has spoken, and written numerous articles about business networking and building a lifetime of referrals through the philosophy of Givers Gain. She has received Outstanding Achievement Awards from BNI both nationally and internationally, including Director of the Year in 2019. Christel’s mission is to eliminate cold calling by helping business people create a lifelong referral network.

Check out Christel from @BNIGHRegion on IG and Facebook; @christelwintels.