Bonjour Millionaire,

I've gathered you all here today to discuss...channels! 

How to figure out…

When to stay. 

When to go.

When to return, because you know better now.

Let’s begin! 🏃‍♀️

Was this email forwarded to you?

SPONSORED BY TVSCIENTIFIC

TV briefings still come across my desk as “brand-only.” I do not relate.
I mean, I can understand why: TV was, historically, tough to measure!
But if you think that's STILL the case? Actually, no, very much no. 🖤

Case in point: tvScientific sells Performance TV like paid social: pick the outcome (sales, installs, clicks, site traffic), set a target, then let their AI optimize your bids, audiences, inventory, and creative against it.

A few of their many receipts:
🧛🏻‍♀️ : 1100% revenue growth for LG*
💎 : 13%+ incremental lift for MTN Ops*
🌾 : 150% YoY subscriber growth for Wildgrain*

Worth exploring if you're trying to prove TV's working - OR figure out if it isn't!

*tvScientific Internal Data, US, 12/3/2025, 9/29/2025, 9/18/2025

ON THIS EPISODE OF GO-TO-MILLIONS 

An old client of mine was convinced a certain channel was wrong for their brand.

They thought they’d given it a fair shot, because they’d tried it ONCE. 

Sometimes that’s a good way to make a prediction. But, it’s not necessarily accurate.

Old outcomes are NOT permanent truth.

Too often, channels are written off WITHOUT considering all the variables that impacted the previous test. 

Especially ahem, marketer error.

I kept pushing, and got a look at how the channel performed, and…

IT WAS ACTUALLY AMAZING!

The issue was that it hadn’t been goaled properly. 

Plus, the creative wasn’t native to the channel.

Not surprising, because the person running the test didn’t know the channel. And, didn’t know HOW MUCH they didn’t know. 

But overall, a strong start. Until it abruptly ended.

Imagine how it could’ve performed. 

If you’ve ever been the “bad guy” (or just the annoying guy), you know how hard it is to push back and say, “Wait, let’s try this again.”

Especially when everyone thinks the 1st time wasn't worth it. 

But we’re not trying to be right, we’re trying to WIN. 

Ready to do some spring cleaning?

🧹 Take inventory

Start by listing every channel you’re running AND that you’ve quit in the last 2-3 years. 

Paid, organic, lifecycle, partnerships, marketplaces, retail, creative partners… EVERY channel!

🖊 Write what you BELIEVE is true

1 sentence per channel: “We believe [channel] _______.” This is the lore you want to interrogate.

📦 Pull 6–12 months of data

For each channel, pull the same basic cut: spend, revenue, CAC, MER, new vs. returning mix, how long the test ran, frequency, and exclusions. 

🔎 Be fair (and HONEST) as you check your priors

Go channel by channel and answer these questions. Give the channels that “didn’t work” extra attention.

EVERY CHANNEL, PAST & PRESENT 

• Did/do we goal the channel on what it actually does? 
• Did/do we fund it enough to learn anything?
• Did/do we test long enough?
• Was/is it the optimal season to test?
• Was/is the right person running the channel? 
• Was/is the creative native to the placement?
• Have/had we seen a change in the algorithm?
• Have/had we changed our offer or product mix since the test?

Now, let’s dive a little deeper…

SOCIAL CHANNELS (organic + paid + creator)

• What formats are we shipping weekly?
• Do we have a channel owner with taste and knowledge?
• What’s this platform’s JOB: attention, acquisition, or retention? 

SELLING CHANNELS (email/SMS, site, retail, affiliate, etc.)

• Are incentives aligned with the channel goal?
• What offer is the channel built to sell?
• If we turned this channel off before, what constraint was true THEN that might be false NOW?

📍 Set the record straight on the channels you’re rethinking

If you’ve had an “oh, shit” moment during this audit, you’re doing it right.

Maybe you need to retry a defunct channel, because you ran a broken test.

Maybe you need to kill your darlings, because they’re not working.

If you don’t preserve the facts and context, the old lore may return. 

For defunct channels you want to retry, write:

• Why we turned it on
• Why we turned it off 
• What we didn’t understand at the time
• What’s changed 
• What we’d do differently now
• What success looks like this time

For poorly performing channels you want to unplug, write:

• Why we turned it on
• Why we should turn it off 
• What’s changed 
• What might work better

🏴‍☠️ Run 1 small re-test per quarter

After the channel audit, you KNOW better.

Now, seize the day free ad credits and DO better with a clean experiment that includes:

• The same creative standards you use on your best channel
• A real budget
• A defined timeline
• A defined goal
• 1 qualified owner 

Still with me?

This channel audit isn’t for the faint of heart, the fragile of ego, the unambitious of marketing.

Good thing that’s NOT us.

The more we learn, the more we realize we’re STILL learning.

🪻Okay, 1 LAST question: What’s a channel you’ve been rethinking, re-testing, or really surprised by? 🌼 Bonus points, if it’s the same one my old client wrote off (then changed their mind about). 

GO-TO-MEME

^ remains 1 of my favorite things I'v seen on the internet. I cannot market a product that isn't great. Makes me sick. 

Yours,

Ari 

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