[#042] My First Billion: my ad test flopped

I ran an ad test this week that didn't go the way I wanted it to go.

Usually my first instinct is the same instinct most people have when a campaign misses…

Go change something.

New hook.
New creative.
New audience.

I didn't do that this time. I went back to the foundation.

The ATM Ad Method™

→ A is Attention
→ T is Trust
→ M is Monetize

Every ad system I've ever built, mine or a client's, lives or dies on those three letters.

And here’s what I’ve learned after spending over four million on ads over the last 3 years…

When a campaign misses, the whole machine is rarely broken.

One letter is.

So the question stops being what ad do I change and becomes which letter am I missing?

What I did about it

First, I updated our Paid Ads Playbook to what's working right now in 2026.

Then I simplified the growth engine.

↓ Someone raises their hand

↓ We invite them to have us help them implement what's in the playbook, live

↓ Then we keep giving… email, retargeting with valuable content, retargeting with testimonial videos.

That’s the T.

Most people treat trust like a step you complete.

It's the guts of the whole process.

When trust is doing its job, monetizing stops feeling like selling.

People show up already sold and start telling you why you should let them in.

Which leads me to the next point…

The show is coming back

We restart filming Season 2 of the Strategic Scale Show in two weeks.

Live deep dives with business owners.

We find the biggest constraint in the business and you walk out with an actionable game plan.

And the reason we're doubling down is simple…

Out of everything we put on YouTube, the deep dives outperform all of it.

Turns out people would rather watch a real business get worked on than watch me teach.

And tbh, the deep dives is the content I enjoy making most.

So we're going where it's already working (same lesson as the ad test).

The first two filming days are already filled, plus half of the third.

Want one of the spots that's left?

Send me a DM on Instagram and let's get it scheduled (no charge for now).

If you wanna get a feel for how the show goes, check this out.

One adjustment

I set a goal, starting this week, to be done with work by 2:30.

My youngest gets home right at three…

So that gives me enough room to be at the bus stop or go grab him from school and still be present for homework…

…talking about his day or playing something he wants to play.

My kids are getting older and I'm at a point in my life where, as Henry David Thoreau put it…

"I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life."

So two thirty it is.

Almost helps me be more intentional during my work hours.

The rest of the week consisted of

→ My wife went out of town for a women's retreat… my nieces came to help, so I've been locked in with the boys and my G-Son.

→ Week one of the meal plan my fitness coach has me on. Eight weeks to hit the goal.

→ Scouted a potential spot for the next CEO Camp for our private clients.

Might need a bigger room.

→ Wife's truck. Looks like we're gonna be putting a new engine in it. I thank God for the provision.

→ A partnership we'd already started moving on that we're probably about to pull out of.

One of those is a decision to stop something.

And that's most of what a good week actually is…

One or two things you start, and one or two things you're honest enough to walk away from.

So here's what I'm sitting with, and I'll hand it to you too…

When your marketing isn't working, do you know which letter is broken?

Or are you just changing the ad or just doing MORE?

Tell those you love that you love them.

Marquel

 P.P.S. Whenever you're ready, here are 2 ways we can help you grow your coaching or consulting business 2 or 3x this year:

1) Binge my best trainings… for free on YouTube.

2) For the fastest & simplest path to get consistent, qualified leads that convert into high-ticket clients, go here.

Start from the beginning → Issue 001