oakpool

building teams, systems, and software for sustainable growth

proud member @1percentFTP

[yamez @yamezhamilton]

What in the world do Jon Favreau, Vine, the SpaceX IPO, and digital marketing talent all have in common?

That kid from the movie "Chef" (2014) -- @oakpoolxyz really wants to hire him.

Well not him specifically, but anyone who, like him, helped their family business keep up with the times as a kid.

If you created and managed the social accounts for your family business as a kid in the 20teens and now you're looking for your first or second job in the "real world" -- hit us up 🤝

[yamez @yamezhamilton]

"Business stuff at the speed of AI -- increase efficiency and drive margin expansion with new Business AI by megacorp."

That's every podcast ad right now, and most of the conference keynotes.

The efficiency story is real, and nobody is disputing it. Costs are coming down, margins are expanding, businesses are doing more with less, etc, etc.

What fewer people are asking: what is AI is doing to the topline?

Customers are already using AI to find things the same way they used Google fifteen years ago. Product recommendations, vendor comparisons, and brand alternatives on ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and Claude. If you're not showing up in those answers, someone else is.

You wouldn't have skipped the Yellow Pages in 1985. This is the same bet.

Happy Friday -- go have a Dark 'N Stormy.
cc: @oakpoolxyz // @TheBlackSeal

[Goslings Rum @TheBlackSeal]

Strenuous activity has its place. This isn't it.

Goslings Stormy Ginger Beer, effortlessly delicious, now in three varieties.

[Goslings Rum @TheBlackSeal]

A ship that never made it to Virginia. A salty sailor who gave it a name. One hundred years (give or take) of Goslings doing the rest. Dark 'N Stormy® Day is three days away. Before you celebrate, here's some lore worth knowing.

[Goslings Rum @TheBlackSeal]

A true leisurist knows when to check the scorecard, and when to check their glass.

[Goslings Rum @TheBlackSeal]

We’ve been serving spirits on our home island of Bermuda since 1806.

That’s over two centuries of honing this craft. Lucky you.

[yamez @yamezhamilton]

ChatGPT ads are live, and our team is having fun with them.

Reach out if you'd like to explore piloting a campaign with @oakpoolxyz

[Goslings Rum @TheBlackSeal]

Goslings is proud to support Transforming the Beautiful Game: The Clyde Best Story, a documentary about Bermuda's own Clyde Best, the first Black football superstar of the modern TV era.

Upcoming US Screenings:
Portland, OR: June 4–5

Boston, MA: June 18–26

Falmouth, MA: July 29

Link in bio for tickets and more showtimes.

[yamez @yamezhamilton]

We learn a lot by running AEO/GEO audits for our clients.

Not only about them, their LLM visibility, their website, where their off-page signal is or is not coming from, etc. But also, their competitive landscape.

Here's a quick lesson from the street on the importance of practicing what you preach and how we found the claims of one of the major news wire sector players to be categorically false (but luckily, relatively easily fixed)

cc: @oakpoolxyz

[yamez @yamezhamilton]

We talk to a lot of CMOs, Brand Managers, and CEOs.

One thing that we regularly hear is this concept of "agency fatigue." Marketing leaders are continually forced to do more with less, and oftentimes that looks like outsourcing *almost* everything to "specialist" agencies or service providers.

This concept makes sense in theory: hire the best email marketing agency you can find, hire the best organic social agency you can find, hire the best meta ads agency you can find, hire the best SEO agency you can find, etc.

But, in practice, this means that the CMO's week is dominated by separate meetings with each one of those vendors. It means that the CMO's job becomes project manager and carrier pigeon between siloed agency groups.

This unbundling has been great for the agency services sector. It means that every time a new channel pops up, there's an opportunity for a new specialized agency.

It has not, however, been great for those CMOs and brand managers who are now responsible for managing an ever-expanding roster of external service providers.

cc: @oakpoolxyz

[Goslings Rum @TheBlackSeal]

Friendly reminder:

We’ve been winning medals since before your parents reached drinking age.

[yamez @yamezhamilton]

LLMs.txt is not a cheat code. AI Search visibility is a problem solved by a variety of strategies and tactics.

That being said, even Google is now saying that if one wants a site to be accessible to AI agents, then an LLMs.txt file is not a bad idea.

Our POV is not that other firms were wrong to bash LLMs.txt, it is simply that one cannot fully understand a category that is evolving this fast.

Firms who approach the space with an open mind and “shoshin” (google it) will be the ones that produce results.

cc: @oakpoolxyz

[forage fish campaign @foragefishcmpgn]

Atlantic herring. Down 95% since 2009. Atlantic mackerel. Down 98% from peak.

Protect the foundation of America’s coastal economies. Act now.

#ForageFish #ForAmericasWaters #AmericanJobs #ProtectOurWaters

[Macgill Davis @macgillbdavis]

Every podcast guest we talk to says the same thing:

"We know AI is helping. We just can't prove it."

After interviewing agency owners, accountants, and consultants about how AI is changing their work, one pattern keeps emerging:

Everyone is adopting AI tools.

Nobody is measuring the before and after.

The agencies multiplying output by 5x? They feel it but can't show it.
The accounting firms automating data entry? They know it's faster but have no baseline.

This is why we built https://t.co/k59hRV5y3S

Deploy automatic time tracking before the AI rollout. Capture the baseline. Deploy the tools. Measure the delta.

No manual logging. No employee compliance needed. Just real data on what changed.

If you're rolling out AI tools and your CFO is going to ask "what did we get for this" — you need the before-and-after.

https://t.co/SabYf3kHjY

[yamez @yamezhamilton]

Today, I could share some thoughts and insights on @Google I/O 2026.

But you've probably heard and read enough of those today.

Instead, we're talking about @oakpoolxyz's commitment to our planet through @1percent, what that means to us, and how we do it.

[forage fish campaign @foragefishcmpgn]

It all starts at the bottom of the food chain.
Recreational fishing supports 1.7 million American jobs and $148 billion in economic activity every year.
Protect forage fish. Protect America’s waters.
Link in bio.

📷: @klementovich

[forage fish campaign @foragefishcmpgn]

When the base of the food chain collapses, nothing above it is safe.
Restore balance. Link in bio.

#ForageFish #ForAmericasWaters #AmericanJobs #ProtectOurWaters

[Goslings Rum @TheBlackSeal]

You already know what the entry requirements are.

[forage fish campaign @foragefishcmpgn]

Introducing our Executive Director, Whit Fosburgh.
As seen in @politico
#ForageFish  #ProtectOurWaters

[Goslings Rum @TheBlackSeal]

The official rum of @PGAChampionship

Because Golf’s finest moments deserve the official Rum of Leisure. Join us at the Leisure Lounge at Aronimink.