Sparkbound

We exist to unlock the potential of people to do more good, better.

Sparkbound is a leadership development academy disguised as a medical sales organization and medical device distributor. We are focused on going beyond transactions and enriching the lives of our people, partners, and practitioners.

Founder & Principal

Enovis

Sr. Salesperson building Sparkbound ❇️

Arthrex

Agency Sales Manager

Arthrex Extremity & Trauma Lead & Territory Manager

Upper Extremity Sales lead

Arthrex Clinical Specialist

Arthrex Technology Consultant | Sales Professional 

Empire Medical

Executive Sales Manager

P4L Fitness & Torque Sports Performance

Director of Sports Performance

Hospital for Special Surgery

Worked independently for Dr. Adele Boskey’s laboratory. Dr. Boskey is 	interested in tissue mineralization; the ultimate goal in the lab was to improve bone quality by providing insight needed for new 	therapies and tissue engineered products. My specific research project was focused on the role of proteoglycans in the bone mineralization process. More specifically, I looked at the effect of 	the interaction between the large proteoglycan, aggrecan, and aggrecanase (ADAMTS) and aggrecanase inhibitors (TIMP) on hydroxyapatite formation in a gel system. My work was paralleled 	with identical studies performed in this laboratory in a cell culture 	system.

Research Assistant

Weill Cornell Medical College

Presented and participated in weekly journal clubs. Partook in a Lab Techniques Workshop and Clinical Skills Workshop. Scrubbed into surgeries at the New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Gave an oral 	presentation at Leadership Alliance National Symposium and written and poster presentation of my research at Weill Cornell Medical College.

Intern

I help salespeople become sales leaders w/ the Salesblazer Method™️ | Executive Sales Leader

Over the last decade, I helped build multiple multi-million dollar medical device territories by developing new markets and strategic sales teams. I also helped customer-partners build their personal brands and land consulting contracts, which led to developing new products/techniques and enhanced patient outcomes.

Then, in 2023, I hit a fork in the road. Do I continue building someone else's company at the expense of my convictions, or do I risk my comfortable life to gain personal agency, take complete ownership over my future, and craft something worth telling a story about?

Building something on my terms and diversifying my income would be the best pathway towards control over my calendar, autonomy over the work I get to do, and the direct impact I can have.

While this pathway has not been easy, the results have been remarkable.

Since leaving a sales executive role with a great brand, I have been able to replace my income by working for myself with less effort (working smart).

I have launched Sparkbound, a medical sales & marketing organization that goes beyond the transaction and seeks to enrich the lives of others.

Sparkbound not only helps our people build influential careers, increase our partners' influence, or improve our practitioners' patient outcomes, but we also want to help aspiring difference makers become the change they wish they could make... and then help them make positive change happen.

My mission is to help you see that you're not stuck. You don't have to labor and live as others expect you to. My mission is to help you challenge the status quo, lead by design, and choose the impact you wish to have.

I love writing about leadership, specifically leadership without titles, about how high-impact professionals can earn personal agency, purposeful productivity (doing more good, better), and meaningful work.

Francisco Martinez

Most people wait for the perfect opportunity to start leading.

The perfect promotion.
The right work/life balance. 
The sales kickoff meeting.
A bigger team.

But here’s what I’ve learned after building sales teams:

There is no perfect opportunity.

The promotion won't make you a leader.
There is no such thing as work/life balance in sales leadership.
Leadership happens before the title. 

The people who get promoted don't wait. 

They start.
They lead anybody.
Create opportunities to serve.  
They find solutions that everyone has been aching for. 

Because they understand something most people ignore:

You don’t build influence by a title. 
You earn it by leading. 

Serving builds trust.
Solving problems makes you indispensable.

That’s exactly how I've gone from a sales demotion to now running my own sales organization.

Not with a perfect plan.

But by showing up every day seeking to enrich the lives of others.

What about you?

Making Leaders Remarkable | Follow for systems & strategies for effortless leadership & remarkable work | Founder & Principal building an 8-figure sales agency from scratch

The best leaders aren't the smartest in the room. 

More knowledge won't get you promoted. Try this instead:

Acquire wisdom. 

Here's why:

🧠 Knowledge is about knowing more. 
🦉 Wisdom is about knowing you don't know enough. 

🧠 Knowledge says, "I know the answer." 
🦉 Wisdom asks, "What's the right question?"

🧠 Knowledge recites best practices. 
🦉 Wisdom knows when to break them.

🧠 Knowledge speaks first in meetings. 
🦉 Wisdom listens, then synthesizes what others missed.

🧠 Knowledge focuses on being right. 
🦉 Wisdom focuses on being useful.

🧠 Knowledge collects information. 
🦉 Wisdom connects the dots others can't see.

The leaders who get promoted aren't the ones with the most certifications or the biggest vocabulary.

They're the ones who can navigate complexity, read between the lines, and make decisions when the data is incomplete.

They turn information into insight. Problems into opportunities. Chaos into clarity.

Stop collecting knowledge. Start cultivating wisdom.

Your career will thank you.

What's one moment when wisdom mattered more than knowledge in your career? Share below 👇

-- 
♻️ Repost to help others lead with wisdom
➕ Like and follow Francisco Martinez for more insights

The best medical sales reps don't sell. They serve.

After 13 years in medical sales, I've watched too many reps crash and burn trying to be the smartest person in the room.

Here's what actually works:

Stop trying to impress doctors.
Start trying to improve patient outcomes.

This mindset changes everything.

Here are the non-negotiables for high-performing medical sales reps: 

✅ Lead with patient impact, not product features
✅ Create opportunities to serve your customers. 
✅ Play the long game and build trust as you build your pipeline.
✅ Educate, educate, educate. 
✅ Don't knock the competition. 

Here's the interesting truth:

When you stop selling and start serving, your numbers go up.

In medical sales, we don't just move products.
We're integral to someone's healing.

Act like it.

What's the most important lesson you've learned about putting people before profit?

♻️ Repost if this resonates
➕ Follow for more on character-driven sales leadership

The wrong path looks promising. 

Until you are replaced. 

I used to think success came from putting in the most hours.

→ First in. Last one out.
→ Say yes to every opportunity.
→ Take work off your boss’s plate. 

The formula they sold us:
Be everywhere → Pay your dues → Trust the process

But here’s the problem:

Budget cuts happen.
Burnout persists.
And no one is looking after your career. 
One bad performance can make you replaceable. 

Now I focus on building what can’t be replaced:

1. Your Attitude
You can’t control every outcome.
But you can control whether people want you in the room when things get tough.

2. Your Wisdom
Thanks to ChatGPT, Knowledge is cheap these days.
But applying that knowledge? That’s hard-earned. 
Wisdom only comes from personal experience plus reflection.

3. Your EQ Skills
Tools change. Markets shift.
But people don’t. The ability to communicate and win with people will outlast AI. 

4. Your Character
Character can’t be bought. 
It is developed and tested over time. 
While others focus on competencies and credentials, build the foundation that no one else is. 

5. Your Discipline
Motivation can pack a punch, but has a short fuse. 
Discipline keeps your butt in the chair no matter how you feel. 


6. Your Leadership
Leadership isn’t a title.
It’s creating opportunities to initiate acts of service.

7. Your Point of View
A unique, well-reasoned perspective is a moat.
It sets you apart in a world drowning in copycats.

These 7 things made me indispensable.
No org chart. No market shift. No competitor can take them away.

You don’t need to protect yourself.
You need to build value that no one can replace.

♻️ Repost to help your tribe become indispensable
➕ Follow to learn how to become the one your company can't live without

Don't just pray for a great culture.

Be the answer to your prayer.

It's easy to hope for a healthy workplace—one where you feel safe, valued, and seen.

But culture isn't something you stumble upon.

It's something you help create.

Culture is not:

- Pizza, ping pong, or even pickleball
- Unlimited PTO or remote work
- A profitable business unit
- A mission statement
- HR department
- Core values
- The CEO

The success or attitude of individual contributors is not the measure of culture. 
But is measured by:

- Low burnout
- Employee referrals
- High retention rates
- People celebrate each other
- Alignment of all people and parts
- The way employees feel on Sunday night

Yet, no culture is perfect. Even great workplaces will disappoint at times.
And that's okay.

That's why what matters is how you carry yourself and champion the culture you wish you had.

You bring attitude, habits, and values everywhere you go.

The best cultures aren't found. Courageous people cultivate them.

So yes, pray for a great team, a mission you can stand behind, and a culture that breathes life.

But don't stop there.
Be the person who:

- Gives credit
- Has a bias for action
- Chooses to lead without a title.
- Praises the efforts and success of others.
- Isn't waiting to be asked to serve but creates opportunities to serve.

You're not just a recipient of great culture.
You're crafting it—every day.

How else can someone be the solution to a better culture?

If you want to work remotely, that's great.

If you want a hybrid workplace, that's awesome.

If you want to return to the office to be present with people, wonderful.

If you want to quit and work for a remote company, go for it.

If you want to bring everybody back from their home offices, own up to it.

If you want to go to a 4-day work week, that's also cool.

So many people are trying to fortune-tell the future of work.

Many are trying to push their version of success on others.

They pretend that one way of working is better or superior to the other.

Stop believing everyone's opinions.

You live in the digital revolution, which provides many options.

Determine the direction of your life and what works best for you this season.
Then get after it!

Be faithful no matter where you work.
That's true success.

99% of people overcomplicate career moves.

So, in 2023, I simplified the riskiest career decision of my life. 

What they won't teach you in school or corporate America is that all you need is:

1. Direction - where do you want to go in life? 
2. Anti-goals - what are you not willing to give up?
3. Convictions - Why and what must you do no matter what?
4. People - whom do you have as your personal board of advisors?

Things you don't need:

1. To listen to your heart.
2. 5 & 10-year plans.
3. Large network.

The key is to decide on your career before you need to choose. 

And no matter what, be excellent and intentional. 

Because none of this matters if you suck at your work.

What would you add to this career decision framework?

After 13 years in medical sales (17 total in sales), I've had to reinvent my career several times. 

I have been demoted, stuck, and promoted. 

I have represented large brands and startups. 

Every time, it has come down to these basic but powerful habits. 

Here are the 17 powerful habits of high-impact salespeople:

1. Focus on what you can control: your attitude & actions
2. Learn to say, "I don't know, but let me find out." 
3" Give, don't take. Give away your time, expertise, & self. 
4. The day starts the night before. Wake up to execute. 
5. Practice patience, not passivity. Growth takes time. 
6. Like navy seals, train with a pod of peers. 
7. Sundays are for strategy. Plan an ideal week.
8. Get aligned every quarter with your values and mission
9. Always be checking in on your character. 
10. Do what you say you will do, even if it costs you. 
11. First impressions are for impact, not to impress. 
12. Time block high revenue activities. Ruthlessly stick to it
13. Send a weekly highlight report to your boss. 
14. Send a weekly lessons learned report to your team. 
15. End each day with a self-assessment review of yourself.
16. Solve big problems instead of reacting to fire drills.  
17. Go beyond the transaction and seek to enrich lives. 

Medical sales, and all sales, is more than hitting quota. 

It's about becoming the person you would rave about doing business with. 

What did I miss? 

--
♻️ Repost to help your network become a high-impact salesperson
➕ Follow for more tips on how to grow your sales career

The best sales leaders don't obsess over numbers. 

They obsess over people (and their growth). 

Here's a simple playbook for developing your people: 

> Invest in everyone, not just top performers.
> Be the leader you wished you had.
> Know your people's strengths & weaknesses (personal SWOT).
Create an actionable development plan that drives better paychecks.
> Become a broken record with the company's mission, values, and vision.
Connect people's "why" to the company's purpose.
> Coach, don't command.
> Delegate to grow people, not just clear your plate.
> Lead from the trenches with daily rep face time.
> Make 1:1s sacred (& follow through).
> Celebrate effort, not just results.

The math is simple:
Better people = better culture = better results. 

Choose people over profit because people matter more. The byproduct? They generate profit. 

Do you agree?

Character is king. 

You can't fake true character. 

The truth of one's character is revealed in time.

Trust me when I say:

- mastering influence
- excelling in your role
- crafting solutions as a niche
- teaching others to create success

And above all, being worthy of remark...

Will make it 100x easier to get promoted.

Waiting for an opportunity isn’t reliable. Go create a demand for your skills.

The sales boss who kills careers obsesses over numbers. 

Instead of the growth of their people. 

This is especially true in medical device sales, where companies want market share at the expense of people.  

That's why they obsess over acquiring managers and not leaders. 

Leaders help people grow. 

Sales leadership needs to stop:

❌ Managing spreadsheets
❌ Celebrating ONLY the quota achievers
❌ Compromising culture for short-term wins
❌ Measuring success by one bad quarter report

Instead leaders do the following:

✅ Help their salespeople make SMARTER goals
✅ Help align their goals with the company's purpose and goals
✅ Have clear expectations and stop micromanaging
✅ Recognize growth moments that build character
✅ Invest in their potential even when it costs you today
✅ Measure success by their consistency and direction

The leaders who get this right are the ones who:

↳ Ask more questions of their people (they care about them)
↳ Spend more time coaching and practicing
↳ See potential in people before they see it in themselves
↳ Build careers, not just quarterly results

I've watched this play out over and over.

When you care about the people you care for more than just their numbers. 

You want people not just to hit their targets because they have to. 
You want them to crust it because they want to, and they are bought in. 

What's the most impactful way a leader has invested in your growth?

♻️ Repost if you believe in people-first leadership
➕ Follow for more insights on better sales leadership

Caring isn't a strategy you implement. 

It is a lifestyle you embody daily.

So stop acting like you care. Start actually caring. 

❌ Don't perform empathy for your team 
✅ Genuinely invest in their growth

❌ Don't fake interest in customers
 ✅ Detach from profit and connect as humans

❌ Don't care for the applause 
✅ Care because it's a person you can impact

If you feel you are acting, tell yourself to care genuinely.

Do the work to make an impact, not just to impress.

What's one way to embody authentic care?

♻️ Repost to create a more caring world
➕ Follow and like for more unconventional musings

The most dangerous attitude in sales?

"I already know that" or "I don't need help."

I've seen sales careers, especially med sales, crash and burn with that attitude.

Earlier in my career, I saw my own ego get me demoted because of words like that.  

I've seen the most talented salespeople miss opportunities because of that attitude. 

Here's what I've learned about success in sales:

The moment you think you know it all or don't need help, you've already lost.

The top performers who succeed in the long run are the ones who:

↳ Still walk through their checklist before time with a customer
↳ Invite teammates to review your performance
↳ Ask "what would you have done differently?" after every encounter
↳ Read and learn daily
↳ Do not defend against correction from leadership

You only learn from every conversation in the field if you have a humble attitude.

An attitude that wants to improve. 
Craves to learn. 
Never comfortable. 
Is teachable. 

Being humble means:
- You haven't arrived (& never will)
- You can't get there without others

It's not about being weak.
It's about being wise.

Sales is hard and competitive. 

But if you stay teachable and humble
You'll overcome.

Choose a leader instead of a job. 

The wrong manager can hold your career back for years. 

The right managers see your potential, help you unlock your potential, and champion your promotion. 

The best leaders are agnostic to the logo they represent. 
They are believers in the people they are responsible for. 

The best managers prioritize people first, then profit. 

I've worked for great leaders. 

- They believed I had potential.
- They asked about my wife & children. 
- They invested in me even when I deserved to be fired. 
- They designed comp plans around revenue goals, not quota.
- They created roles to solve problems that fit my passion and strengths. 
- They listened - and did not turn on me - when I considered outside offers.

I once struggled because I wasn't sure I wanted to be in this industry. 
My leaders noticed my decreasing excitement, put their arms around me, and said, "Where do you want to be? We'll help you get there." 

They are why I stayed when I was offered better financial offers. 
They are the reason I haven't quit the medical device industry.

Ultimately, their leadership has produced several promotions for me, bigger paychecks, and once-in-a-lifetime career opportunities. 

Choose leaders who want to see you grow today. 

Agree? Let me know your thoughts👇

The best ideas don't come from dreadful meetings. 

More brainstorming on a whiteboard won't move your business forward. 

Ideas matter.
All great things started with an idea. 
That was executed. Iterated. Reshipped. 

Whether ideas to improve the workplace.
Or ideas for new products or companies. 

Ideas accelerated my career. 

I went from being demoted to an accelerated promotion track due to the high-impact ideas I brought to the table and executed. 

But if you never make time to break away to generate ideas, you'll never make time to execute them. 

Here's my Idea OS:

1) Get outside
> Find a happy place. 
> Schedule it during the best time. 
> For me, it's sunrise mornings in the hills and trails behind my house. 

2) Have a plan
> Have an exercise plan: you can walk, ruck, or run
> Have a thinking plan: what are you listening to? Podcast? Music? Audio book?
> For me, it's whatever I am working on or wanting to create. 

3) Come prepared
> I get to my happy place and set time with juices already flowing.
> This means I have already read, prayed, and prepared my heart. 
> Getting out and moving takes it to the next level. 
> Bring the right tools: notepad & pen, notes app, podcast app, etc. 

4) Capture
> When an idea or thought arrives that I want to capture, I pause. 
> I use Ali Abdaal's Voicepal app to record and transcribe all my thoughts. 

5) Create
> Don't just waste this session by doing nothing after the fact. 
> When resolve is high, take action. 
> Make a plan to outline the next steps of the best and most crucial idea you had. 
> Take a step to execute the first thing in that idea. 
> Schedule the following steps. 

Commit to a place and time to get outside and move. 
Chart a course for your time there. 
Capture what matters most. 
Commit to execution. 
Craft a plan around the most essential idea. 
Create and execute. 

For me, not one week goes by without me getting out there at least once. 

What are your favorite ways to get your creative juices flowing? 

♻️ Repost to help your tribe ditch meetings and be more creative. 

Follow Francisco Martinez for more insights like this.

The brutal sales career truth about quota achievement, presidents club, and MBAs:

None of these buys you job security. 

My first year of quota achievement actually got me a demotion.

I was putting up solid numbers. But my attitude? 

 Not helpful. Not responsive. Not aligned with what leadership needed from me.

That demotion was a wake-up call.

Being a top performer doesn't make you irreplaceable.

Showing up consistently with results, character, and attitude buys you security. 

Consistency is hard because it requires discipline.
It requires being a person of high character.
Someone true to their word.

Knowledge is abundant.
Tricks and Hacks are everywhere. 
Dependability is scarce.

Once I changed my attitude, everything changed:

- I became someone leadership could count on.
- I showed up for my team, not just my quota.
- I did what I said I would do, even when it cost me.
- I stopped chasing numbers and started building trust.

My career not only recovered, but it also skyrocketed. 
Then I earned endless opportunities from within and from other companies. 

Instead of focusing on bigger numbers, ask yourself: "Am I someone people can truly count on?"

What's one way you've seen reliability beat raw talent?

Don't quit. Don't give up. Turn that frustration around. 

Success is not a corner office, a title, or a bigger role. 

Thinking vanity metrics measured success almost destroyed my career. 

Thinking I could impact lives if I had that bigger role hindered my effort. 

I realized that it wasn't my managers keeping me from bigger and better things. 
It was me. 

Once I chose to be a salesblazer, making positive change happen right where I was and leading without a title, my career blossomed. 

Here's the mindset that finds success with or without titles:

- You make change happen for the sake of others. 
- You initiate solving common problems your way. 
- You think beyond your role. Create a rising tide. 
- You are willing to ask for help from your tribe.
- You are faithful with what you've been given.
- You detach from outcomes. Create systems. 
- You know what makes you unique. 
- You don't hate small beginnings.
- You adopt the 12-week year. 
- You aim to work hard. 
- You excel. 

The result? 

You build an impactful and successful career.

The most impactful leaders are the ones who serve. 

Leadership is not a license to do less but a responsibility to serve. 

But everyone gets servant leadership wrong.

It's not about being willing to serve.

But initiating acts of service.

Change from this:

- "If there is any way I can help you let me know."
- "I love helping and serving others."
- "Tell me how I can help."
- "Do you need any help?"

Initiate service this way:

- "I see the best way I can help you is by option a or option b. Which one is it?"
- "You have a lot going on. I am going to take this off your plate."
- "I knew you would say you didn't need help, but I showed up anyway and am ready for you to put me to work."

Most people will not ask for help or say they need it, even if you ask.

Servant-leaders know this and create ways to serve and surprise others.

How will you create opportunities to serve others next week?

Distinctiva Strategies

We build content growth flywheels that works like a 24/7 sales team.

What we do:

- Create killer content strategies across LinkedIn, Newsletters, YouTube & more
- Handle everything from writing to design to animation
- Build lead magnets that actually convert your audience into customers
- Craft content that feels like YOU (but we do all the heavy lifting)

Our no-BS approach:

- We dig into what makes your brand special and where the opportunities are
- We build a content strategy that actually makes sense for YOUR business
- We handle the execution so you can focus on what you do best

I personally oversee every client's strategy (we only take on a handful each quarter) because quality > becoming a sad depressed scammer millionaire every single time.

Want content that builds your brand AND brings in business? Let's chat :)

Founder & Content Marketing Strategist

The Workflow

The Workflow is a bi-weekly newsletter by Sara Lattanzio & Diandra Escobar that breaks down one expert-tested Al and automation workflow in every issue. 

We show you exactly how it's built, what works, and what doesn't, so you walk away with fresh ideas you can actually implement. No "replace your marketing team with 40 agents." No "10 Al tools that will change your life." Just proven, actionable strategies for marketing, growth, and GTM - powered by Al.

Subscribe to get battle-tested Al & automation recipes that ship results, not just vibes.
https://www.theworkflow.digital/

Chief Content Officer & Co-Founder

Backlinko

Organic Social Lead

Content Marketing Strategist 

HeyReach.io

Content Marketing Strategist

Semrush

Brand Partner

Contact Studios

Partner

Built from scratch the inbound marketing and content strategy, outbound sequences, and partnership/ affiliate programs.

Demand Gen & Growth Marketing Manager

Search Atlas

TopicRanker.com

Distribute

Content Marketing Strategic Advisor

Create Content that Sells | Content Strategist & Demand Gen Marketer @contactstudios → SEO, Content and Video for Online Businesses

"Content is like a sales team that never sleeps."

Content changed my business' trajectory and my life.

It's the secret weapon behind every client success story I'm proud to tell.

I firmly believe it's one of the best things you can do for your growth.

Content never gets sick, takes a vacation, or shows up late. 
Content can close sales with multiple customers at once.
Content is always on message. 

It's how you build trust and a reputation in your industry at scale. 

What I call: Content-Led Growth.


At Distinctiva we help you build your content strategy from the ground up.

With content & creative strategies, copywriting/ghostwriting, design and video editing/animation. 
You have the whole package to grow on platforms like LinkedIn, Newsletters and YouTube.

We create across all formats - from text, videos, carousels, one-pagers to high-converting lead magnets that turn audience into customers

The results?

Clients going from unknown to 10K followers in 3 months
Some approaching 60K (more than I have!)
YouTube channels hitting 6K views on their 2nd video
Millions of impressions, hundreds of podcast invitations
Posts ranking #1 in Google Search

Best part?

Their content is one of the main sources of revenue. 

One attributes 80% of their leads to LinkedIn Organic. 
Another can attribute LinkedIn as their top-performing referral traffic (3x'd their website traffic!)


I only accept a limited amount of clients a quarter. And make sure I'm behind your strategy always. 

I don’t believe in massive hiring and scaling because I prioritize lean, focused teams that drive impactful results.


Thinking this might be right for your business?

Let's hop on a call and figure it out together. 
I'll take a look at where you're at, where you want to go, and we can map out if content could be your growth engine.

And hey, if content isn't the right fit or you're looking to grow on other platforms, I'm happy to point you toward the right people who can help.

Diandra Escobar

Creating BOFU content that actually converts is harder than most marketers want to admit. You’re writing for buyers who are already weighing options, not scrolling for generic advice. They want proof, facts, specifics, and reasons to choose you over the competition. 

Most miss that completely. 

You get generic listicles, keyword stuffing, and zero connection between what sales hears and what content says.

Lashay Lewis spent years in agency trenches dealing with this exact problem. She wasn't losing deals to other consultants - she was losing them to content tools.

So she built BOFU.ai, a system that turns messy product docs and sales calls into content that actually converts.

Her framework fixes that by starting with actual customers, not keywords.

What she does instead: pull sales calls, listen to how prospects talk about competitors, use their exact words. That's what separates content that converts from content that sounds like everyone else.

This week's The Workflow issue breaks down her full system:

- How to extract BOFU insights from product docs and sales calls
- Competitive landscape mapping that finds positioning gaps
- The BOFU Radar for high-intent keywords across Google + LLMs
- Content brief templates that eliminate blank-page panic
- Exact prompts to speed up each step

Drops this week! 
https://lnkd.in/eVGABaVr

Building content machines | Founder, Distinctiva.io - Organic Content Production House | Content Strategist | Speaker

The BOFU Workflow for killer product-led content

I checked where my brand shows up in ChatGPT yesterday. Turns out, we don't. At all.

800M people are searching AI engines monthly and most brands are invisible on ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude.

Then I found: AirOps.

The only tool built to track your visibility AND fix it, if you’re not visible in AI search.

Companies like Carta are getting 75% of pages cited in under 3 days.

Here's what AirOps found after analyzing 21,311 brand mentions across ChatGPT, Claude, and Perplexity.

→ 68% of brands only appear in ONE AI model
→ 9 out of 10 third-party mentions come from listicles
→ 85% of citations come from third-party sources, not your own website
→ You need both owned content AND external validation working together

Carta used AirOps to scale content without losing brand voice or compliance:

- 300% increase in content velocity
- 75% of new pages cited by AI search
- 3 days average from publish to citation

The brands winning in AI search aren't guessing. 

They're tracking where they show up, identifying gaps, and creating content that gets cited.

AirOps shows you where you're invisible, what competitors are doing, and helps you create optimized content - all in ONE platform.

If you're not tracking AI search visibility, you're flying blind on where 800M+ people are discovering brands.

Check out airops.com

AirOps insights from 500+ AI searches and Carta use cases

Our clients regularly hit posts with 8K to 34K+ impressions. Despite the algorithm today. And without huge followings

And here's the thing - these are all from the same company. They trusted us with multiple team members' LinkedIn presence because the system works.

When we started working with them over a year ago, their LinkedIn profiles were basically empty. Deep expertise, but no audience.

Today? Growing audiences - one at 28K followers and climbing.

- Posts consistently getting thousands of impressions. 
- Recognized by industry platforms as a creator worth following.
- Invitations to podcasts. 

But here's what most people get wrong:

They see posts like these - 8K, 22K, 34K impressions, hundreds of reactions, dozens of comments and think "they went viral.”

That's not what happened.
These posts worked because of the SYSTEM we built over the last year.

What we actually did:
We didn't chase viral moments. We built a content flywheel.

STEP 1: Clarified their positioning:

Practical industry insights + personal reflections on growth and career. Not just tips. Real voices.

STEP 2: Established content pillars:

- Actionable expertise from their field
- Industry commentary
- Lessons from their work experience

STEP 3: Built feedback loops:

Every week, we tracked what worked. Doubled down on topics that resonated. Treated LinkedIn as a testing ground.

STEP 4: Strategic engagement:

We helped them understand that commenting isn't just engagement - it's relationship building. Their comments started driving as much traffic to their profiles as their posts.

STEP 5: Consistency over virality:
Posted with rhythm. The algorithm rewards consistency. So does trust.


The results:
- 0 to 25K+ followers in a year (100% organic) across multiple executives
- Collaboration requests from other industry leaders
- Posts consistently hitting high engagement
- Podcast invitations

And posts like these (8K, 22K, 34K impressions) aren't flukes.
They're the result of a system that compounds.

Growth isn't about "going viral."
It's about building repeatable systems that compound over time.

These posts got those numbers because of the hundreds of posts before them that built their authority.

That's what "million-dollar" LinkedIn content actually looks like.

I broke down 21 LinkedIn mistakes with HeyReach.io. 
Mistake #20 is the one I regret most (cost me 3 years of growth)

Expertise doesn't speak for itself on LinkedIn. 

You can be genuinely exceptional at what you do, have a decade of experience and still get zero traction if your positioning is wrong. Why? Because nobody can tell. 

Here’s a sneak peak of 7 mistakes:

 1. You post randomly whenever you feel like it

Here's the problem: when YOU don't have a set schedule, it's way easier to skip days and fall off completely. You need the discipline of a routine.

And your audience? They're creatures of habit too. They check LinkedIn at similar times every day. If you're not showing up consistently when they're online, they forget you exist. People have packed calendars, endless notifications, and their own fires to put out. You're competing for mental real estate

 2. You're still formatting like it's 2022

Every. 
Single. 
Word. 
Gets. 
Its. 
Own. 
Line.

When everyone does it, it becomes wallpaper. Your brain tunes it out. Write how you naturally write. Be readable. Standing out means not looking like every other LinkedIn coach from two years ago.

 3. You only share wins

Every post is "we hit 7 figures" or "just closed the biggest deal." People don't connect with perfection. They connect with struggle and relatability.

Share your failures. Share what went wrong. Vulnerability builds trust, and content is a trust game.

 4. Your posts just end

No CTA. No next step. People read it, maybe like it, scroll away forever.

Ask a question. Link to something. Give them a specific action. This also boosts engagement, which tells the algorithm to push your post further.

 5. You treat DMs like cold email

"Hi, thanks for connecting. Here's a wall of text about my offer."

This is a relationship-first platform. Start with context. Reference something from their profile. Ask a relevant question. 

 6. You never repurpose your best content

You posted something 4 months ago that crushed. You never touched it again.

 Most of your followers never saw your best post from months ago. Take your winners and rewrite them with a fresh angle. 

 7. You're creating content in a vacuum

You're guessing what your audience wants instead of studying what's already working.  Study top performers in your niche - what formats, hooks, and topics get engagement. 


Go check out the other 14 mistakes in HeyReach.io's video! 

Especially mistake #20
You gotta watch the video for that one (yes, I will be that guy 🫢)

It's the mistake I regret most and I broke it down so you don’t make it. 

Watch the full breakdown of all 21: https://lnkd.in/emShCTyf

Scaling HeyReach.io's content operation. Here's how we took their CMO's already strong LinkedIn presence, 2-3x'd the reach, and are building it into a full scale content engine:

We started working with HeyReach earlier this year.

It began with LinkedIn coaching for their CMO Vukasin Vukosavljevic.

Now? I'm co-hosting their YouTube channel and building content systems their entire team can use.

Here's exactly how it happened and how one coaching engagement turned into their entire content operation:

 1. Start with one person, nail the fundamentals:

Vuk's LinkedIn was already getting decent engagement. But he knew there was untapped potential.

Better hooks. More strategic posts. A system that didn't require starting from scratch every time.

We worked on it together. Tested everything: carousels, videos, images, text-only.

Built feedback loops. Tracked what actually worked with his audience. Doubled down.

Result: 2-3x reach with better audience quality (actual qualified leads, not just vanity metrics).

 2. Prove the system works before you scale it:

HeyReach didn't want to stop at one person's LinkedIn.
They saw the results. They wanted the system for their whole team.

The ask evolved from "coach our CMO" to "help us build a content operation that works across the entire brand."

So that's what we're building now.

 3. Expand into adjacent channels strategically:

Now I'm:
- Co-hosting videos on their YouTube channel (breaking down LinkedIn strategy)

- Creating influencer content for a new feature launch

- Building frameworks their team can replicate across platforms

 4. Build systems, not just content:

The best clients don't want you to just 'do their content.'

They want to understand how it works. They want their team to replicate it. They want systems that scale beyond any one person.

When you deliver real results and show them the process behind it? Clients don't just renew. They expand.

 5. What I learned:

People don't just want the content done for them. 
They want to understand the system so they can use it themselves.

That's what the Distinctiva team is working on now.

Turning everything we've built for clients into frameworks and systems others can actually use.

More on that soon.

The best posts I've ever written came from my actual life. The worst ones came from trying to sound smart. AND that’s all AI does… try to sound smart.

Actually being smart isn’t just about having the right answer. 

It’s about having the tacit knowledge… the unspoken know-how that only comes from actually doing the thing.

It’s about depth that comes from actually living through something.

LinkedIn has become that graveyard of AI posts.

Generic “lessons learned” with no specifics. 10 bullet points that could apply to literally anything.

And here’s the thing: it’s working. Kind of.
These posts are getting impressions. 

But they’re not generating revenue.

I came across this study from Graphite recently. As of November 2024, AI generated content has officially surpassed human-written content on the web.

More than 50% of articles being published right now are written by AI.

But here’s what the study actually found:

These AI articles don’t perform well in search. They don’t show up in Google or ChatGPT results. And they sure as hell don’t generate revenue.

So if AI content can’t win at SEO (“where it’s about ranking”) why would it work on LinkedIn, where success depends entirely on trust?

On LinkedIn, you’re not competing for rankings. You’re competing for trust.

Look, I’m not saying don’t use AI. If you don’t, then I’d ask you if you live under a rock. 

It’s about learning how to use AI right.

Most people are using raw ChatGPT with zero context.

Meanwhile, you could create a custom GPT or Claude Project and feed it:

	•	Transcripts from your client calls
	•	Your ICP documents
	•	Your product pages
	•	Past posts that performed
	•	Your tone of voice examples
      •     etc

Suddenly, the AI isn’t guessing. It’s working from your expertise.

That one change makes a massive difference. But most people skip this step entirely.

And then, come ooonnn, at least read what AI gives you. Take out the words you’d never actually say. Edit it. Proofread it. Make it sound like you.

So where does real content come from?

Your actual life.

The client call you just had. The mistake you made last week. The system you built that actually worked.

That’s your content. Not “10 tips for success” that ChatGPT could write in 3 seconds.

AI can generate a thousand posts about “leadership lessons.”

But it can’t tell the story of the hard conversation you had with your team yesterday. 

It can’t share the exact mistake you made that cost you a deal. 

It can’t explain the system you built that finally fixed the problem.

That’s what people actually want to read.
Your specific experience. Your actual insights. Your real voice.

AI can help you write faster. If you aren’t using it at all, you’re making things harder for yourself.

But if you’re using it to replace your thinking? You’re just adding to the noise.

The goal isn’t to write faster. It’s to write better, and that only happens when AI amplifies your expertise, not replaces it.

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We built a newsletter from scratch for a client. Just a blank Beehiiv account and a strategy. A few months later? ChatGPT recommended it when you asked for the best emerging newsletters in our category.

Here's the thing: 
Creating great content isn't enough anymore. 
If AI can't "read" what your newsletter is about, it won't recommend you.

All that effort we were putting in had to be met with results.

P.S: We're NOT an SEO agency. 

But just like my friend Jairo Guerrero says:
"SEOs are becoming Social Media managers."

The lines are blurring. So we figured it out.
We combined Backlinko's Branded GEO playbook with some trial and error of our own.

Check out exactly how we did it 👇

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The Battle

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Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Francisco Martinez's LinkedIn Performance

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