Episode · 2026-05-05
The Hudson Method
The Hudson Method | Manage Your Shopify from Claude/Chat | Aidan Brannigan x OSF
Rundown
Chris and Colin open with sponsor reads and dig into the 'Hudson method' of publicly recruiting mass creator affiliates (à la Frost Buddy), then react to OpenAI quietly sharing user data with advertisers. The back half features two guest segments: Aidan Brannigan on building viral B2B/SaaS creative through Snowboard Brands, and an RTD/Web3 founder (OSF) discussing crypto-incentivized product drops and rewarding early brand supporters.
Takes from this episode
Chris argues the Frost Buddy-style model of paying many low-follower creators a revenue-share commission per video is a fundamentally different, more effective way to work with creators than traditional influencer deals.
everybody who is used to the previous type of influencer creator relationships that I was describing that we had at Bruce Bolt, they need to pay attention because this is a totally different way to play the game
Colin argues publicly disclosing creator earnings (the 'Hudson method') is a powerful recruiting tool that drives mass creator-generated content and cheaper organic/paid reach.
somebody with 8,000 followers made 8K, made 6K just on the ad juice last month... That's the whole method that we're talking about here, the Hudson method
Chris and Colin argue OpenAI sharing user data with advertisers, despite Sam Altman's earlier promise not to, signals a pivot toward an ad-data business model driven by missed revenue targets.
the reason that this is happening is that they very much need to make more money. They have missed some revenue goals... which is part of why I think they cut Sora
Aidan argues that when branded content underperforms, the root cause is almost always weak ideation/concept rather than poor execution.
it just comes down to the mere fact it's not the execution or poor execution it's poor ideation
The RTD/Web3 guest argues rewarding early, loyal customers with crypto-token incentives is a core part of building a brand from day one.
part of building a brand is like how do you start to reward your early consumers, people who support you from from day one
The guest argues their Web3-hype drop launch model was effective for making a market statement but is not a sustainable, scalable revenue strategy on its own.
that's obviously that's not a sustainable business model. I can't say oh, we're going to... make a hundred million dollars in annual revenue from just doing random drops every every few weeks