From Hustle to Heatmaps: Eric Clark’s Multifaceted Playbook for the Outdoor Industry

The outdoor industry has no shortage of bold personalities, polished brands, or big-budget campaigns. But if you’re looking for someone who’s built their career in the space by mixing tenacity with transparency, Eric Clark stands out. As the digital director at Gunpowder PR and the co-founder of Okayest Hunter, Eric is straddling the line between boardroom strategy and boots-on-the-ground reality—and he’s not afraid to say what’s working and what’s broken.

Eric’s story isn’t one of overnight success or unicorn valuations. It’s the story of what happens when you bootstrap an app, build a brand around honesty, and go deep on the unsexy mechanics of affiliate marketing. In a world filled with noise, he’s found a way to tune in to what actually moves the needle—and it starts with relationships.

From $5K to 70,000 Downloads: A Crash Course in Outdoor Tech

Eric’s entrance into the hunting tech space wasn’t slick—it was scrappy. Armed with $5,000 in savings and a connection to a development team in India, he launched the Where To Hunt app, a digital tool designed to show public land hunters which areas were occupied or open in real time. It was early. So early, in fact, that most people scoffed at the idea of using a phone in the woods.

“I actually had people tell me no one was going to use a cell phone while hunting,” Eric recalls. “That’s how early it was.”

But people did use it. Where To Hunt grew to 70,000 downloads, and Eric found himself facing a potential acquisition. The deal didn’t close—and looking back, he’s glad it didn’t. The experience forced him to mature fast, learning about app infrastructure, AWS scaling issues, and business fundamentals like EBITA and contribution margin. He eventually rebranded the app as Outland, rebuilt the codebase from the ground up with a DevOps engineer, and added a heat map feature for crowd-sourced hunting pressure data.

Now, Outland is set to relaunch with a twist: more accurate, real-time insights for public land hunters. Think Waze for the woods, with user-submitted data on cell cams and hunting pressure. It’s a one-trick pony—but a valuable one.

Building the Affiliate Engine at Gunpowder PR

While Eric’s tech story might’ve started with duct tape and grit, his marketing career has evolved into something much more structured. At Gunpowder PR, Eric heads up the affiliate marketing division, helping major outdoor brands tap into one of the most misunderstood corners of digital: performance-based marketing.

“A lot of brands think affiliate is this magic tool,” he says. “But it’s not ‘set it and forget it.’ It’s a relationship channel. You have to manage it like you would a sales team.”

His day-to-day includes everything from PR and paid social to BI dashboards and influencer strategy. But affiliate is where his team really shines. They treat it like a pie, balancing categories—bloggers, podcasters, YouTubers, cashback sites, influencers—to avoid overweighting one channel.

Eric has a sharp read on the pitfalls brands make. Too many confuse influencers with affiliates. Too many send out product and hope for miracles. Too few recognize that this work is slow, detailed, and deeply human.

“It’s a decentralized salesforce,” Eric explains. “You’ve got to onboard them, train them, support them, and stay in touch. It’s not a transaction. It’s a partnership.”

Okayest Hunter: A Media Brand Built on Humility

Eric’s not just working behind the scenes. He’s also front and center with Okayest Hunter, a content platform and podcast network that’s become a movement in its own right. Born from the idea that not everyone tags out or shoots a 180-class buck, Okayest Hunter champions the experience—not just the outcome.

The brand now supports 14 different podcasts, all tied together under a shared ethos and backend infrastructure. By prioritizing cultural alignment over follower counts, Eric’s helped create a network that’s growing faster than his original flagship show—and that’s exactly how he wanted it.

“We’ve done everything the long, hard way,” he says. “But it’s built to last. I’d rather have clean protein than fast food growth.”

The network effect is real. Shows cross-pollinate listeners. Hosts collaborate in a shared group chat. And each show ladders up to a common message: being a hunter isn’t about a score—it’s about showing up.

The Reality of ROI: What Influencer and Affiliate Marketing Really Requires

Ask Eric what drives conversions and you won’t get hype—you’ll get a masterclass.

He’s seen influencers with 2000 followers outperform ones with a million. He’s seen brands blow $900 a month on platforms like Impact without any strategy. And he’s quick to point out the key factors that determine success: brand recognition, product breadth, and category flexibility.

“If you’ve got one product and no audience, you’re going to hit a wall,” Eric warns. “And if you expect influencers to sell for you without training, tools, or direction, it’s not going to happen.”

The magic, when it happens, is rarely accidental. One example: Eric’s Hunting Season Survivor sweatshirt took off after influencer Sam Matthews unboxed it on Instagram Stories. No paid deal. No affiliate code. Just authentic enthusiasm—and $10K in sales overnight.

“The right influencer can absolutely crank,” Eric says. “But you have to build those relationships first. You have to give without expectation.”

Looking Ahead: AI, SEO, and the Next Shift in Discovery

The outdoor industry has always had to work around mainstream restrictions. Gun ads get flagged. Hunting content gets throttled. But Eric believes the future lies in how brands adapt to new modes of discovery—especially through AI.

“Everyone’s talking about impressions tanking, clicks not tracking,” he says. “But we’re seeing a huge rise in branded search. That tells me the LLMs are working. People are finding you, just not in the way they used to.”

From programmatic SEO to schema markup and answer engines, Eric sees opportunities for outdoor brands to lead the curve—if they’re willing to invest the time.

“The brands who win are the ones who align all the channels. Email, ads, influencer, PR—it all has to move in concert. That’s when you hit critical mass.”

Final Word: Work That’s Built to Last

Whether he’s talking affiliate structure, podcast publishing, or PR campaign strategy, Eric comes back to one core idea: real relationships are the edge. Not hacks. Not platforms. Not pixel-perfect creative. Just showing up, staying honest, and doing the work.

“Affiliate is incremental. It’s not going to save you. But if it’s integrated, it can scale beautifully,” he says. “That’s what I’ve learned.”

From a bootstrapped hunter app to directing digital strategy for major industry brands, Eric Clark has navigated the outdoor industry with a rare mix of humility and depth. And whether or not Outland becomes the next big tech tool, he’s already shown what it looks like to build something that actually sticks.