This episode was supposed to be about something else entirely…but TikTok's algorithm had other plans. Sarah and Nate fall headfirst into a conversation about why our For You Pages are changing how people perceive content, other people, products, and the world…and what that means for the ads we create in 2026.

From cave-death phobias to zoo-bear attack headlines, we unpack why humans are magnetized to bizarre, emotionally charged micro-stories, and why traditional "polished" ads have no chance against that dopamine roulette.

They break down:
→ How the TikTok algorithm broke the entire marketing industry
→ What it really takes to stop a scrolling brain trained on chaos
→ Why identity-based ads are exploding (and why the platforms are rewarding them)
→ The truth about personas: how more of them, narrower, and built for one emotional moment at a time is the only way to win
→ The surprising shift from "better" ads to accurate ads…ads that lock onto a universal story the brain can't ignore

The episode ends with a simple question that might reshape your 2026 creative strategy:
What's the repeatable story your customers will always stop for, no matter the platform?

This one is a wonderfully unplanned, unnervingly honest look at where attention is going and how brands can evolve with it.

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CoHost: Nate Lagos

Twitter: https://x.com/natelagos
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natelagos/
Tactical and Practical Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tactical-practical/id1752915534

CoHost: Sarah Levinger

Learn more at: https://www.tetherinsights.io/
Twitter: https://x.com/SarahLevinger
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahlevinger/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sarah.levinger/
Watch me on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKwfjt_7PU5N_2fTfHemXXg