EP 131: From Architect to $8M With Affiliate Lead Gen in 12 Months w/ Manuel Perez-Trujillo

Manuel Perez-Trujillo is the co-founder of both Leads Icon, a performance marketing company specializing in high-quality insurance lead generation, and BetterWase, an ACA health insurance brokerage.

In this episode, Manuel shares how he went from studying architecture and running a small dropshipping store to scaling to six-figure days with his insurance campaigns. He shares the story behind how he came up with the creative for his viral car-drop ad, the challenges of early mentorship, and how he shifted from media buyer to CEO.

In this episode

00:00:40 – Introducing Advanced Affiliate

00:02:00 – Meet Manuel: the last-minute mastermind guy

00:08:40 – Enter affiliate: why he skipped the black-hat chapter

00:10:10 – The lead gen “aha”: stop selling trinkets, start selling savings

00:12:30 – $6M Q4 and $8.5M+ in the first 12 months

00:18:50 – The Trojan Horse ad strategy

00:22:20 – More insane stunts: mariachis, alligators & Money Heist masks

00:24:50 – Why quality beats quantity (and gets you paid more)

00:32:10 – Having the adult conversation with buyers about data

00:49:55 – The hiring system behind a $50M year

00:57:00 – Final advice: stop playing solo, build a team

Key Takeaway

If you want to stop living launch-to-launch, stop thinking like a media buyer and start thinking like a business owner: build standout creatives, obsess over quality, talk to buyers like partners, and hire people that not only match your drive, but crucially, also fit into your company culture.

One Grand Slam ad can change your life, but a real team and real systems will keep it that way.

About Manuel Perez-Trujillo

Manuel Perez-Trujillo is an architect turned performance marketer who went from grinding in corporate and tech to doing six-figure days in lead gen. He co-founded a 120+ person operation focused on big, entertaining “Trojan Horse” creatives in evergreen niches like auto insurance and debt relief. He’s the guy dropping cars, chasing people with mariachis, and somehow turning all that chaos into serious, recurring revenue.