Podcast Summary:

Podcast: The Game with Alex Hormozi
Episode: Why I Still Learn New Ad Platforms The Same Way I Did At $0 | Ep 980
Date: December 18, 2025
Host: Alex Hormozi

Episode Overview

In this episode, Alex Hormozi unpacks why he continues to approach learning new advertising platforms with the same rigor and humility as when he was just starting out. Through live business call-ins and insightful solo commentary, Alex shares practical frameworks for skill development, scaling marketing efforts, and adapting strategies for both beginners and established business owners. The episode is a masterclass in continuous learning, organic and paid acquisition, creative ad strategy, and niche authority building.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Skill Building, Earning, and Industry Experience

• "You will build skills by failing. So I would try and try and do stuff, like just being real. Like, do stuff, learn from it." – Alex Hormozi ([00:21])
• Alex emphasizes the importance of hands-on experience, advocating for gaining 1–3 years of industry experience before launching your own thing.
• He likens assembling businesses to building furniture without instructions: experience and models shorten the learning curve.

2. Organic Growth & Social Content Strategies

Guest Business Case 1: John's Back Pain Program

• John (caller) reports $95k/mo in revenue using Instagram and TikTok for lead gen, primarily selling via DMs to sales calls.
• Content Volume Myth: Alex debunks the idea of audience "fatigue" with too many posts, explaining that platforms limit reach per post — more quality posts reach more of your audience.
  • "I think more realistically, you're fatiguing your editor, not your audience. Your audience has an insatiable demand for value." ([05:41])
• Platform Tactics:
  • For TikTok: Use call-to-actions (CTAs) directing viewers to DM on Instagram, leveraging your existing Instagram DM team.
  • Vary lead magnets and keep CTAs brief (under three seconds) to optimize view-through and engagement rates.

Key Advice for John

• Increase post frequency (at least double).
• Rotate and improve lead magnets to maintain engagement.
• Shorten CTA time to boost post reach.
• Use lighter "asks" (e.g., offer cheat sheets instead of directly booking a call on every post), thus broadening lead capture.
  • "If you want to broaden kind of like the net that you're going through, just make the ask that you have a little bit lighter." ([08:19])
• Start paid ads and sales reps when ready, but recognize organic strategy as the long-term growth driver.

3. Authority, Proof, and Personal Branding

• Alex advocates for building proof (external and effort-based), which means documenting progress and giving away skills/services for free to collect testimonies.
  • "When you do effort-based achievements, it's kind of like grind or pay. Right? And so in the beginning, you don't have the money or the proof. You have to grind." ([12:02])
• Starting in a small niche or "puddle" is more effective than challenging established giants.
• Beginners can compete by offering direct access and stronger customer focus:
  • "Of course I’m not better than Alex, but I am better than the third rung down on his company. And you’re going to get my phone number." ([14:57])

4. Learning Paid Traffic Hands-On

Guest Business Case 2: Stephen's Local Medical Practice

• Stephen is capped at $3k/month in Google Ad spend and feels agency-constrained.
• Alex’s story from an 8-figure mastermind:
  • Budget a set percentage for ongoing learning, accepting that most learning investments won’t offer immediate ROI, but the ‘10th’ will pay off big time.
  • Urges Stephen to operate his own campaigns or at least “control the mouse” during agency collaborations for maximal practical learning.
    • "I control the mouse and you tell me what to do and I’ll do it. And I recorded my screen and I would ask questions along the way and they would tell me… within six weeks I was like, I get it. I don’t need this guy anymore." ([21:27])

5. Content, Collaborations & Storytelling for E-commerce

Audience Question: Jewelry Brand Using TikTok

• For brands selling physical products:
  • Leverage TikTok Shop.
  • Use aggressive influencer/affiliate programs.
  • Double down on Instagram and collaborate with creators.
  • Most importantly: Tell the product’s story to imbue value and differentiate.
    • "You need to do that within your content... pair this commodity of jewelry with the meaning that you then ascribe to it or the narrative or the story that you put on top of it." ([24:45])
• Content variety is overrated; the same core idea, restated through different examples and stories, keeps audiences engaged ala Dave Ramsey.

6. Scaling Ads—Identifying True Constraints

Guest Business Case 3: Liz Scaling a Marketing Automation Agency

• Liz is stuck trying to scale Meta ad spend for her $600k/month business.
• Alex diagnoses that ad campaign structure isn’t the bottleneck; creative is the real constraint.
• Scale is limited because the messaging and offers are only resonating with the "bottom of funnel" (highly aware/warm) leads.
  • "If you have a hard ceiling on your advertising spend... it's typically because the nature of the hooks and the content that you're talking about only really relate to the bottom of the funnel." ([29:53])
• Move up the funnel: Create curiosity-driven hooks for less-aware audiences, use lead magnets instead of just sales calls, and provide so much value up front that prospects want to buy.
  • "Give away all the secrets, all the sexiest stuff, put it in your lead magnets, put it in your ads... they’ll be like, I don’t wanna deal with that. I’ll just have them do it." ([32:46])
• Recognize that campaign tweaks matter far less than strategic creative changes for true scaling.

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• "You will build skills by failing. So I would try and try and do stuff, like just being real. Like, do stuff, learn from it." — Alex ([00:21])
• "I think more realistically, you’re fatiguing your editor, not your audience." — Alex ([05:41])
• "Your audience has an insatiable demand for value... and has almost no appetite for fluff and waste." — Alex ([05:44])
• "Be king of a very—not even a pond, like a puddle." — Alex ([13:56])
• "I control the mouse and you tell me what to do... within six weeks I was like, I get it. I don’t need this guy anymore." — Alex ([21:27])
• "Give away all the secrets, all the sexiest stuff, put it in your lead magnets, put it in your ads." — Alex ([32:46])
• "Content variety is overrated... people still tune in every day when they know what the message is, because they're like, I wonder how this will apply to a stripper. I wonder how this will apply to somebody who won the lottery..." — Alex ([25:45])
• "It doesn’t matter—like, how you’re doing your bidding and campaigns is like, we’re talking about, like 5% differences... Strategic in nature is what gets you to the next level." — Alex ([33:10])

Important Segment Timestamps

• 00:00-03:19: Skill-building vs. earning; importance of real-world experience; "building with bricks" analogy.
• 03:20-11:35: Social content strategies, lead generation, CTAs, posting volume, and audience "fatigue" myth (John’s case).
• 11:36-16:30: Branding, authority, and personal proof vs. external validation; "puddle" niche competition framework.
• 16:31-22:29: Learning by doing in paid media; controlling ad spend and agency relationships (Stephen’s case).
• 22:30-26:05: Storytelling and collaboration strategies for e-commerce; lessons for jewelry/TikTok content.
• 26:06-33:10: Scaling paid ads, identifying real limits (creative vs. media buying), lead magnet and funnel strategies for marketing services (Liz’s case).

Episode Takeaways

• Always seek direct experience—learning by doing trumps theory or outsourcing, even (or especially) when you have money.
• Maximize the value you give and the number of quality touchpoints with your audience; don't be afraid of "too much content."
• Diversify your lead magnets and make softer asks to widen your funnel and nurture colder audience segments.
• When scaling paid ads, creative strategy beats ad set structure—move up the funnel and educate with value.
• Beginners win by being accessible, giving away value, and outworking established players, while established players leverage credibility.
• Storytelling and narrative turn commodities into brands people care about.
• Maintain a relentless commitment to self-education—invest a set percentage of income and experiment knowing most investments won’t pay off immediately.

This episode shines as a dynamic Q&A and tactical marketing breakdown with Alex Hormozi's signature clarity, humor, and intensity—packed with actionable advice for entrepreneurs at every level.