Chris and Corey are joined by Blackpearl Group’s CTO, Sam Daish. In this episode, he’s dousing us with the reality of why most sales AI tools are basically expensive cat toys. Blackpearl has built Bebop.AI, a tool that makes sense as an addition to a sales pro’s tech stack. It could probably replace several nonsensical shiny AI tools they are currently batting around instead of making calls. Corey’s firing questions about AI fatigue (because let’s face it, we all have it), while Chris goes full mathematician on us with this brutal insight: sales reps are like cats chasing laser pointers with AI. Lots of movement, lots of fascination, but nobody’s actually catching anything. You may wonder how this fits in with BeBop.ai. It will make more sense after you hear the origin story – they almost called it “Hot Pipe” until someone pointed out the, uh, alternative interpretations. Instead, they went with a full bebop jazz vibe in the function and tone because they wanted sales to feel like improvisation, not a pile of dated, rigid playbooks. As the real kicker, Chris breaks down why most AI implementations fail: false negatives. You’re not just calling the wrong people – you’re missing the right ones entirely. And Sam’s nodding along because BebopAI tackles this by making the entire Internet your database instead of some limited proprietary dataset. The feature that gets reps most excited? Not the fancy prospect data. It’s the objection handling. Turns out confidence beats information every time.
The flood of AI-generated content has made it harder than ever to know what’s real, and easier than ever to lose trust. In this episode of Leader Generation, Tessa Burg talks with Shouvik Paul, COO of Copyleaks, about how marketers can create and protect content while building trust. Shouvik shares experience scaling multiple SaaS companies to successful exits, and how those same principles—like recurring revenue and scalable systems—can help marketers build sustainable growth rather than chasing short-term wins. Listeners will hear practical ways to use AI to speed up research, personalize marketing at scale and tap into customer data for new opportunities—all while avoiding the pitfalls of overreliance. Shouvik explains why keeping a human in the loop is critical, what happens when AI “hallucinates,” and how legal and IP issues are evolving around AI-generated content.
Teresa Huber and Susan Finch talk about the importance of an ADA-compliant website. When most marketing departments think of disabilities and ADA compliance, they think about blind people, those in wheelchairs, and more obvious issues. Don’t forget about those with dyslexia, those who are color blind, hearing disabled. You may not realize how many of your buyer personas include people with a variety of disabilities. Why would you want to exclude them from viewing your site, doing research on your site, and ultimately paying for your product or service? Join us for some interesting facts and examples, as well as tools to do a quick assessment of your existing sites. Visit her website – you will learn VERY interesting facts immediately on the home page. Tools for quick evaluations so you can initially know, “… just how bad is it?” webaim.org and achecker.ca.
In this episode of Success Beneath the Surface, Deborah Fell gives commentary on last week’s episode with Tom Zucker, president of EdgePoint Capital. Tom emphasizes that gross margin is becoming a critical indicator of a company’s value and that sustained margins are a reflection of the company’s worth. He underlines that businesses must offer unique value propositions that differentiate them from competitors and resonate with their clients and customers. To illustrate this point, Tom provides an example of a closely held family business that developed a unique friction-break product with superior intellectual property. The company should have traded for six times its value, but it traded for north of 11 times because it offered a distinct value that no one else had, enabling it to maintain and grow its margins. Deborah and Tom discuss the fragility of business owners and the importance of ego fulfillment in M&A advisory services. They also acknowledge that family dynamics are consistent among businesses, regardless of their size and sophistication.
Financial stress doesn’t always show up in obvious ways—but it’s quietly impacting your people, your productivity, and your retention. Guest, Katie Rapley, Head of Marketing at BrightDime, shares why HR leaders should think of financial wellness as preventative care. On The Granite List Live, Leigh, Sally and Katie explore what financial stress really looks like at work, the ripple effects organizations often overlook, and how the right support can completely shift an employee’s experience. Katie shares a powerful comparison of one employee’s journey—with and without access to financial guidance—that highlights just how much is at stake. Katie also breaks down the key ingredients of a financial wellness program that actually gets used—and how HR teams can make progress even without a big budget.
Father Bill followed up on Fr. Dominic’s homily from last week with his version, “Jesus is coming. Look Busy.” It’s a bumper sticker on his car, which made everyone laugh, and is so true. How are we staying BUSY? What are those activities – binge-watching another series, playing video games, and gossiping? Who are we serving? As we grow in that loving relationship, our hearts are moved to love and serve our families and neighbors, the poor and lonely.
We hope you enjoy this playlist of our favorite episodes of the week.
