7 Simple Moves That Make Customers Trust You Before You Ever Sell with John Horn

George disappeared from the internet for three years. When he came back, he found an entire Reddit thread:  a community of people genuinely unsure if he was still alive. He had no idea it existed. And that's exactly the point. Your online reputation is working for you or against you right now. Whether you're watching it or not. John Horn is the CEO of StubGroup, a top Google Premier Partner agency that has generated over half a billion dollars in client revenue. In this conversation, he and George break down what online reputation actually is in 2026, how AI has permanently raised the stakes, and the simple actions every business owner can take today to make sure what people find online matches who they actually are. What You’ll Learn In This Episode: Why your online reputation is the first thing a prospect sees and why most owners have no idea what it looks like How AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini are surfacing old reviews you forgot existed The 80/20 approach to managing your presence without spreading yourself thin Why responding to every review (good and bad) is one of the highest-ROI things you can do The "painting vs. garden" strategy for platforms you no longer actively use How to audit your curb appeal and what to fix first The ethical approach to paid ads that builds trust instead of eroding it Why the buying cycle is never linear and how to control what prospects find at every touchpoint Key Takeaways: ✔️Perception is reality. You can do the best work in the world, but if your online presence doesn't reflect it, prospects will never give you the chance to prove it. ✔️Google your own name, then Google your name plus "reviews." Be surprised. Then fix it. ✔️AI is surfacing reviews from 2014. Negative reviews you forgot about are being cited by ChatGPT and Gemini right now as part of prospect research. ✔️Respond to every review, especially the positive ones. Two minutes per review. Massive signal to prospects that you're human, present, and you care. ✔️Don't delete inactive social profiles, turn them into paintings. Update the bio, pin a redirect post, and let them quietly direct traffic where you actually exist. ✔️You don't have to be everywhere. Pick one platform to anchor your reviews. Monitor where Google surfaces everything else. Show up just enough to demonstrate you're alive. ✔️Ethical marketing means your online presence and your actual client experience are the same thing. Inconsistency is the trap. ✔️The buying journey is not linear. Someone may find your Facebook page at 10pm after a movie. What they see at that moment sets the tone. Timestamps & Highlights: [00:00] — The Reddit thread George didn't know existed and what it taught him about reputation [01:16] — Welcome: half a billion in client revenue and a decade in the trenches [03:47] — What becomes possible when you actually know what your reputation looks like online [05:41] — How to define your online reputation and where to start [08:15] — Curb appeal: the best metaphor for everything we cover in this episode [09:40] — Perception is reality: why the best work in the world doesn't matter if it's not visible [11:25] — The 80/20 review strategy and why Google is still the anchor [13:20] — When the market tells you where to show up (the roofing company on Yelp) [18:00] — Responding to reviews: why it's the most underused reputation tool [22:00] — AI and your old reviews: what ChatGPT is surfacing from 2014 [30:00] — The non-linear buying cycle and controlling your touchpoints [32:07] — The "painting vs. garden" strategy for inactive social profiles [35:49] — The biggest missed opportunity John sees across every client [42:00] — Ethical paid advertising: what it means and why it actually scales better [52:00] — Generative engine optimization: the new frontier of online reputation [58:54] — Where to find John and how to connect [1:00:49] — Tattoo wisdom: don't let AI suck the soul out of your client relationships [1:02:00] — George's closing: one thing, today, not next month Connect with John: John Horn is the CEO of StubGroup, a top Google Premier Partner agency. Over the past decade, he and his team have generated over half a billion dollars in client revenue and taught more than 100,000 students how to navigate paid digital marketing. Website: stubgroup.com   Free Resources: stubgroup.com/free   YouTube: youtube.com/stubgroup   Instagram: instagram.com/stubgroupadvertising   Facebook: facebook.com/StubGroup   LinkedIn: Search John Horn — StubGroup Your Challenge This Week: Go Google your name right now. Then Google your name plus "reviews." Whatever you find, fix one thing today. Questions for John? George is bringing him back for Round 2. Send your questions to [email protected] or DM George on Instagram. Follow George: @itsgeorgebryant Work with George: The Alliance — Community for entrepreneurs building reputations that compound. 1:1 Coaching — Limited spots. Apply at mindofgeorge.com/coaching-consulting Live Retreats — In-person experiences built around showing up as who you actually are. Follow for dates.