Neal Schaffer

Neal Schaffer

Practical AI and digital marketing for founders, entrepreneurs, and business owners who want to do it themselves and save time and money. New videos every Thursday on LinkedIn, AI, personal branding, and the strategy that ties them together.

I'm Neal Schaffer, a digital marketing practitioner since 2008 and a Fractional CMO through my consultancy, PDCA Social. I've keynoted on four continents, and I teach personal branding and influencer marketing at UCLA Extension and social media marketing at Rutgers Business School.

I've written six books, including Maximizing LinkedIn for Business Growth, Digital Threads, and The Age of Influence (HarperCollins Leadership).

Newsletter: https://newsletter.nealschaffer.com/
Blog: https://nealschaffer.com
Podcast: https://podcast.nealschaffer.com
Books: https://books.nealschaffer.com
Fractional CMO services: https://nealschaffer.com/cmo
Book me to speak: https://nealschaffer.com/social-media-keynote-speaker/
Collabs: neal@nealschaffer.com
My AI Search Traffic Dropped 45%. Here’s What I Learned
Neal SchafferOctober 22, 202600:08:18

My AI Search Traffic Dropped 45%. Here’s What I Learned

Everyone says AI search traffic is exploding. I measured 12 months of my own data across roughly 700 blog posts, and my AI referrals fell about 45%. I'm more invested in AI search now than I was a year ago, and this video explains why. I share what my numbers actually showed: AI assistants sent 1.6%...

STOP Treating Your LinkedIn Profile Like a Resume
Neal SchafferOctober 15, 202600:06:23

STOP Treating Your LinkedIn Profile Like a Resume

Most professionals treat their LinkedIn profile like an online resume. That's the biggest profile mistake I see, and in 2026 it costs you visibility with people and with AI search. In this video I walk through the four parts of your profile that do most of the work: your cover photo, your headshot, ...

The 10 Social Media Principles Behind MrBeast's Beast Games, Lord of the Rings & Invincible
Neal SchafferApril 25, 202600:33:38

The 10 Social Media Principles Behind MrBeast's Beast Games, Lord of the Rings & Invincible

MrBeast's Beast Games. Lord of the Rings. Invincible. Jon-Stephen Stansel has run social for all of them — and today he's breaking down the 10 principles that separate brands that win from brands that just post. We cover goals, audience alignment, how to hire the right social media help, measuring R...

Stop Chasing AI Prompts. Build This System Instead.
Neal SchafferApril 23, 202600:19:10

Stop Chasing AI Prompts. Build This System Instead.

Consumer trust in AI content has collapsed from 60% to 26% in two years. Here's the marketing system that works in 2026 — and why AI cannot replicate it. This is a summary from my recent DigiMarCon keynote presentation: The SES framework (Search, Email, Social) plus the people ecosystem that separat...

Stop Being Creative. Start Being Consistent.
Neal SchafferApril 10, 202600:28:47

Stop Being Creative. Start Being Consistent.

Most marketers have more design tools than ever — and worse visual branding because of it. Jim MacLeod, author of The Visual Marketer, explains why. We cover brand identity, color psychology, competitor visual analysis, and a content repurposing strategy that keeps your brand consistent from day one...

Why Your AI Isn't Getting Smarter (And How to Fix It)
Neal SchafferApril 08, 202600:21:17

Why Your AI Isn't Getting Smarter (And How to Fix It)

91% of marketers use AI — but it's only touching 15% of their work. Here's why, and how to fix it with the AI workflow flywheel. I break down the framework that makes your AI get smarter every single time you use it — no automation, no coding required. Most people use AI like a fancy search engine —...