Scaling with Giveaway Marketing | Van Oakes of Goat Media

Van Oakes is the founder of Goat Media and one of the top voices in giveaway marketing and paid ad strategy. He’s helped brands like Diesel Brothers scale to 9 figures using giveaway-based customer acquisition, direct response funnels, and Shopify-first thinking.

In this episode, Van opens up about:

• The business model that made Diesel Brothers a $100M brand

• Why giveaways still outperform traditional ads in 2025

• How Goat Media scales brands using performance-first paid ads

• The numbers behind real ecom growth: CAC, LTV, and AOV benchmarks

• Transitioning from door-to-door sales to owning a top-tier agency

• What most ecom brands get wrong when trying to scale

• Balancing family, business, and personal trials without losing it all
  

Timestamps:

0:00 – Intro

1:20 – Van’s first big win in D2D

10:45 – Building Diesel Brothers with giveaways

18:50 – The Goat Media model explained

30:00 – How to price and position a giveaway

40:15 – Mistakes to avoid in paid ads

50:05 – Life after $100M: family, trauma, and truth

1:10:00 – Final thoughts on scaling sustainably

If you’re in e-commerce, digital marketing, brand building, or growth strategy, this episode is a masterclass in what works now. No fluff—just real frameworks, tested campaigns, and the story of a founder who’s led from the front, failed big, and still came back stronger.

💬 Connect with Van on IG: @itsyourboyvan

💼 Learn more: https://goat4media.com/