Ep. 17: Is Your Search Rigged? w/ Mandy Poston

In Today’s Episode: Is Your Search Rigged? Join us as we talk with Mandy Poston, founder and CEO of Availyst, who shares her insights on why small food and beverage brands struggle to be discovered and how Availyst is working to fix this broken system. We dive into the flaws of traditional food marketing, the role of ad budgets in visibility, and what consumers can do to find better choices. Key Takeaways from Today’s Episode: -How pay-to-play marketing keeps innovative food brands hidden -Why consumer choice is often influenced by ad dollars, not quality -How Availyst is changing food discovery by making visibility more fair Questions We Answer in This Episode: -Why can’t you find better food options? -How do ad budgets control what we see? -What can small brands do to compete? (0:00) Welcome and introduction with guest Mandy Poston (1:31) Mandy's background and interests (3:08) Special message from Dr. Laura and Mandy's connection (5:17) Mandy's influences and life philosophy (11:41) Mandy's personal journey and community ties (15:32) Mandy's evolution over the past decade (17:11) Mandy's toughest challenges (18:02) Introduction to Availist and its mission (20:43) Availist's approach to solving market problems (22:23) The origins and vision of Mandy's company (23:37) Startup experience and product targeting (26:38) Marketing strategies and pandemic business insights (29:07) Availist's role in consumer access to information (31:19) Balancing consumer and business responsibilities (34:02) Impact assessment and support for small businesses (38:41) Building trust and transparency in Availist (43:01) Predictions for future food consumption trends (45:53) Expanding partnerships and reflecting on decisions (48:50) Question for the next guest and closing thoughts (50:36) Farewell and subscription reminder