Max Sinclair sits down with Simon Cockram to reflect on his biggest learnings as a Founder from his three years building Azoma (previously Ecomtent) thus far, in a must-listen episode for prospective tech founders.

Max starts by emphasising the importance of having a distinct edge and a counterintuitive belief when launching a venture. He walks through the ideation process learned at Entrepreneur First, and the power of leveraging inflection such as a rapidly changing technological or regulatory landscape.

Max then dives into the intricacies of validating ideas quickly through MVPs, and how he raised early capital through angels and accelerator programs like Techstars. He shares tactical strategies around storytelling, customer validation, and go-to-market strategies.

The episode closes with a thought-provoking discussion on the future of AI, its potential impact on education, employment, and governance. Max offers both optimism about AI’s role in democratizing entrepreneurship and learning, and caution around data centralization and ethical risks. From startup hustle to global implications, this is a must-listen for anyone curious about how AI is reshaping business and society.

This podcast is brought to you by ⁠Amazing Wave⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Azoma⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ecomtent⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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In this episode of New Frontier, Jo Lambadjieva hosts Alina Vlaic, a Romanian entrepreneur and founder of aRank, which has facilitated over 6,000 Amazon product launches. Alina shares how her failed private label baby product unexpectedly led to creating her successful agency. She explains that Amazon's ranking algorithm has evolved dramatically since 2017, shifting from simple giveaway strategies to a complex system focused on "relevance" where listings must align perfectly with categories and keywords.

The conversation explores controversial ranking strategies like "search find buy," which Alina describes as in a "light gray area" of Amazon's terms of service but still effective when done properly. They discuss Amazon's AI assistant Rufus, with Alina suggesting sellers shouldn't overreact to the hype as traditional keyword searching still dominates. Alina also introduces her company PressX, which connects brands with high-authority publishers to generate authentic articles that provide both social proof and valuable external traffic to Amazon listings.

This podcast is brought to you by Amazing Wave⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Azoma⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ecomtent⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Announcement: Ecomtent have just launched a Freemium version, check it out here

In this episode of The New Frontier, Max and Jo welcome brand strategist and author Trevor Bradford to celebrate the launch of his new book, What Captures the Heart Goes in the Cart (learn more). Trevor has 35 years of experience in branding as an agency owner, is a mentor in the Titan Network, and owns his own 6 figure brand.

Trevor introduces listeners to his IDEA framework—Insight, Distinctiveness, Empathy, and Authenticity—which underpins his approach to branding. He details how this methodology, combined with a revamped "Avatar 2.0" customer profiling tool, helps sellers understand and connect with their customers on a deeper emotional level. By anchoring branding in real buyer intent and emotional triggers rather than traditional demographics, Trevor aims to foster genuine trust and loyalty. He also discusses the importance of consistent brand voice across platforms and the power of personalization, citing Trinny London's success as a model of customer-centric innovation.

The conversation closes with a compelling discussion on the implications of AI in e-commerce. Trevor emphasizes the need for authenticity and humanity in AI-generated content to maintain customer trust. He advocates for sellers to build personal brands and multi-channel strategies to avoid over-reliance on platforms like Amazon. The episode wraps up with Trevor providing details on where to purchase his book and how sellers can reach out for brand consultations. This episode is a masterclass in aligning brand strategy with customer psychology in the age of AI.

This podcast is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠⁠Azoma⁠⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ecomtent⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ and⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Amazing Wave⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠.

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