Think AI is too generic for your brand? Rob Schultz joins Lou Bortone to explain why the problem isn't the AI—it's your willingness to push it further.

What You’ll Learn:

• The "Jump Through Hoops" Philosophy: Why you should never settle for the first AI response.

• Contextual AI: How to use transcripts to teach ChatGPT your specific voice, tone, and point of view.

• Visual Storytelling: A look at the tools bridging the gap between text and high-end video production.

• The "Take 48" Mindset: Why elite content creation requires pushing AI through multiple iterations.

• Tool Spotlight: Deep dives into Blotato and Poppy for visual content and source-based prompting.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – Why AI doesn't judge: Making technology work for you.

• 03:15 – The origin story: How one Facebook post launched a prompting obsession.

• 04:30 – Start with the Problem, not the Tool.

• 05:40 – The Secret Sauce: Training AI on your own transcripts to clone your voice.

• 07:50 – From "Yesterday" to "Scrambled Eggs": Lessons in iteration from The Beatles.

• 10:30 – Blotato & Poppy: Advanced tools for visual and source-based marketing.

• 13:40 – Final Thoughts: Why AI is just the latest "electric guitar" in marketing history.

Are you overwhelmed by the "tool-of-the-week" fatigue? Jen Lehner joins Lou Bortone to pull back the curtain on how to actually integrate AI into your business workflow rather than just playing with it.

What You’ll Learn:

• The Meta-Prompting Secret: How to make ChatGPT interview you to build a perfect business knowledge base.

• Google Workspace Studio: How to use the "Zapier-killer" built directly into your Gmail.

• Custom "Gems": The difference between automation and AI, and how to use Gems as specialized employees.

• The App-Building Revolution: Watch as Jen builds a functional YouTube dashboard in seconds using Google AI Studio.

Timestamps:

• 00:00 – Intro: The early days of live streaming vs. the AI revolution.

• 05:40 – The "Interview Prompt": Training AI to know your business.

• 06:35 – Meta-Prompting: The prompt that creates better prompts.

• 11:30 – Google Workspace Studio & "The Zapier Effect."

• 13:10 – Real-world automation: Auto-forwarding receipts to AI bookkeepers.

• 17:00 – Live Demo: Building a custom dashboard in Google AI Studio.

Are you overwhelmed by the "New AI Tool of the Week" cycle? Lou Bortone welcomes social media agency founder and short-form video expert Nika Stewart to discuss how to quiet the noise and use AI to amplify your unique human voice.

What You’ll Learn:

• The Overwhelm Antidote: Why focusing on one tool 100% is better than testing four tools at 25%.

• Meet "Goldie": How Nika trained a Custom GPT on her books and life story to create an effortless writing assistant.

• ChatGPT vs. Claude: Why Nika disagrees with the "experts" on which tool is a better creative writer.

• The NotebookLM Edge: How to use Google’s newest tool to eliminate "AI hallucinations."

• Creative Freedom: Why Nika is spending 2026 on documentaries, children's books, and music—powered by AI.

Ready to move past "playing" with AI and start profiting from it? Lou Bortone sits down with the "Live Stream Queen," Tanya Smith, to discuss the high-level frameworks she uses to automate video production and analyze social data.

What You’ll Learn:

• The "VIDEO" Framework: A specific strategy for creating high-conversion prompts in Sora.

• The Copywriting Shift: Why Claude is Tanya's go-to for brand-consistent copy over ChatGPT.

• Agental Automation: How to connect Vista Social to Claude via MCP servers for deep data analysis.

• The Future of Content: Building a "Digital Twin" to maintain visibility while you focus on high-level strategy.

• Closing the Gap: Addressing the growing "AI Pay Gap" and Tanya's mission to teach the next generation.

Is AI a replacement for your creativity, or the ultimate amplifier? Lou Bortone welcomes long-time friend and digital marketing expert Bob Sparkins to cut through the "shiny object" noise and focus on tools that actually save time and generate revenue.

What You’ll Learn:

• The "Invisible" AI: Why SaneBox is the must-have tool for email sanity you didn't know was AI.

• Juicing the Brain: How to use interviews and ChatGPT as a ghostwriter to create high-converting content.

• The Realist’s Privacy Take: Why standard platforms like Gmail and Facebook have already set the privacy bar.

• Workflow Optimization: Leveraging Descript and Riverside for a seamless video editing process.

• The Future of Search: How early adopters of AI tools are securing their spot in future search results.

Are you using AI as a toy or a teammate? Rich Brooks, founder of flyte new media and the Agents of Change podcast, joins Lou Bortone to pull back the curtain on the exact AI workflows driving his multi-decade agency.

What You’ll Learn:

• The Workflow Shift: Why Claude is beating ChatGPT for brand-voice writing.

• The "Invisible" Teammate: How to build an AI assistant for podcast show notes and social promo.

• The Privacy Play: How (and why) to run LLMs locally on your own laptop.

• SEO Evolution: What "AI Overviews" mean for your website traffic in 2025.

• Future-Proofing: Why relationships still trump algorithms in a world of "AI Slop."

http://www.LouBortone.com presents…Day 12: Building Websites with AI-Powered Lovable | 12 Days of AI Tools FinaleJoin Lou Bortone for the grand finale of the 12 Days of AI Tools series! On the final day, Lou introduces Lovable, an AI-powered web development platform that transforms written descriptions into fully functional websites and web apps. Learn how Lou used Lovable to create the 12 Days of AI Tools website, complete with countdown timers and door-opening animations. Discover how Lovable makes web development accessible to everyone and delivers clean, professional code. Don't miss out on this innovative tool and catch more AI insights on the AI Today Podcast. Happy holidays and happy new year from Lou Bortone!00:00 Introduction and Day 12 Announcement00:26 Introducing Lovable: The AI-Powered Web Development Platform00:40 How Lovable Works: Building Websites with Natural Language01:39 Real-World Example: The 12 Days of AI Tools Website01:59 Why Lovable Stands Out02:50 Conclusion and Final Thoughts

Discover Canva's New AI-Powered Features | 12 Days of AI Tools - Day 11Welcome to Day 11 of the 12 Days of AI Tools! In this episode, we dive into Canva's AI integrations that have transformed it from a simple template tool to an advanced AI design platform. Explore features like text-to-image, background removal, Magic Write for copy, Magic Design for layouts, and AI video editing. Perfect for anyone creating social media content, presentations, or marketing materials, these tools make Canva a one-stop shop for all your visual content needs. Don't miss out on these transformative features!00:00 Introduction to Day 1100:17 Unveiling Canva's AI Features00:54 Transforming Design with AI01:28 Practical Uses of Canva AI02:07 Wrapping Up and What's Next