On this episode of Rhodes to Success, I interview Stephen Christopher about his show The Business Revolution podcast. This is another in the case study series where we peel back the curtain and look at the real-life mechanics of what it takes to launch and produce a podcast. We discuss target audience, format, facing fear, why guest interviews are a better way to grow a podcast, how podcasting fits into a weekly schedule, marketing, and email lists.

Main Questions Asked:

• What inspired you to start a podcast?
• How did you get over your fear of podcasting?
• Tell us about the format and frequency. Has it changed?
• How do you see guest interviews as a better way to grow the podcast?
• What were your expectations on how podcasting would fit into your schedule?
• Tell us about how you have been marketing the show.
• What marketing tactics are effective with regards to downloads?
• What is working for you in terms of emailing your list?

Key Lessons Learned:

Target Audience 

• The show is for business owners who are running a business and are moderately happy with it, but are working too much and can’t figure out how to get to the next level.
• Figure out who your ideal audience is and how to get in front of them.

Format

• Before launching, Stephen thought the episodes would be between 12-15 minutes.
• Originally, Stephen planned for the shows to just be him, thinking that no one would want to be a guest on his show. He is now moving toward more interviews.
• Episodes now run between 20 to 70 minutes.

Guest Interviews

• This is a way to grow the podcast, as you have access to your guest’s audience.
• A lot of times interviewees have their own podcast and you are invited to be a guest on their show. 
• Guest interviews are a great way to build professional relationships.

Scheduling & Time Management

• Stephen records a lot of the solo shows on the weekend and does the interviews during the week.
• Stephen has an executive assistant and someone who produces the show.
• To run a podcast, you need to be able to delegate or have money to pay people to do the behind the scenes work.

Podcast Marketing

• You have to find ways to stand out in front of your ideal client or audience.
• Even the people who are subscribed to your podcast and you think are listening need weekly reminders.

Email List

• Email filters are increasingly getting difficult to get past.
• Follow the people who are making a good living doing it do.
• Stephen is taking all his email titles and reducing it to one or two word titles.
• The emails are aimed at entrepreneurs, so it is sent out early on Tuesday in order to catch them before they go to work.
• Keep yourself out of spam filters by not putting too many links in the email.
• The Business Revolution podcast has a separate email from Stephen’s business.

Progress

• The show you start with isn’t always the show you end up with.
• Sometimes it’s not about download numbers but more about trending up.
• It can take 6 months to find your groove and to be sure you are getting the right guests, have the right format, and are targeting the right audience.

Subscribe to the show in iTunes or Stitcher Radio!

The music in today's episode was written by The Danger Os and produced by Nick Palmer. Check them out at https://www.facebook.com/thedangerosmakemusic 

Links to Resources Mentioned

Seequs Digital

Business Revolution Podcast

Stephen@seequs.com

On this episode of Rhodes to Success, we continue our case study series where I ask guests how they use their podcasts to market and grow their businesses. Philip ‘PT’ Taylor is the founder of FinCon and host of The Money and Media Podcast. He joins me on the podcast and discusses starting, marketing, and executing a niche conference, as well as how his podcast is an additional platform for the conference.

Main Questions Asked:

• Tell us about FinCon and when you started it.
• Was marketing and content marketing missing from the personal finance and investing world?
• What were you thinking when you decided to put on a conference?
• How did you market the conference and get people to attend before you launched your podcast?
• How was the podcast introduced to the mix?
• When did you introduce the podcasting track to FinCon?
• Talk about having a podcast co-host.
• How has the podcast helped marketing, and what have been the results with FinCon attendance?

Key Lessons Learned:

FinCon

• This was founded in 2011, and is a national conference where money and media meets.
• FinCon took the three pillars of finance, social media, and affiliate marketing and combined them into one conference.

Starting A Conference

• It was PT’s love for the community that was the catalyst for starting FinCon.
• When starting a conference, ensure the people you want to get together already want to get together badly.
• Open source the conference and let the community tell you what they want, and help build it with regards to locations and sessions. This helps the community having investment and ownership with the conference.

Marketing the Conference

• Prior to the podcast, there was a blog, social media channels, email list, social proof that other people from the community were coming to the event. 
• Use the authority of attendees to leverage ticket sales.
• PT developed a print magazine that circulated leading up to the conference, and featured the agenda and list of speakers.

Podcasting

• The podcasting track at FinCon was introduced in the forth year of the conference.
• Live podcasting was allowed at the event since the second year.
• PT started The Money and Media Podcast on his own and brought in Joe Saul-Sehy as a co-host.
• The podcast hasn’t increased conference registrations. However, it provides the opportunity to celebrate conference speakers.

The Money and Media Podcast Downloads

• The podcast download stats are in the hundreds and isn’t taking off beyond the existing community, which is around 1,500.

Subscribe to the show in iTunes or Stitcher Radio!

The music in today's episode was written by The Danger Os and produced by Nick Palmer. Check them out at https://www.facebook.com/thedangerosmakemusic 

Links to Resources Mentioned

Money and Media Podcast

FinCon

On this episode of Rhodes to Success I interview Frank Sardella who uses his podcast Will Work 4 Patience a way to market his chiropractic business. This episode is another in the case study series as Frank and I discuss how important your backstory is in positioning yourself as an expert, the importance of the niche, whether or not to create a pilot episode, predictability and evolution, and monetization.

Main Questions Asked

• What is your business and how do you make money?
• Who are your clients and when did you start your business?
• What was the turning point of getting into podcasting?
• What were your expectations going in and how did your perspective change the longer you podcasted?
• Why did you create a pilot episode and do you think it's a good idea?
• Do you see as podcast sponsors as distracting the audience from what you do?

Key Lessons Learned

Getting Into Chiropractics

• Frank got started in chiropractics after a chiropractor saved his live more than 20 years ago.
• Within 3 months of taking a job at the chiropractor chain he was promoted to the role of director of marketing and learned the ropes of the industry.
• Frank decided to help thousands of chiropractor help their patience in order to have a bigger impact and help millions of people.
• He connected his art, advocacy and public speaking and expanded to modern wellness professionals.
• Frank has a system of face-to-face marketing and e-marketing, which is the model of his business on how he generated revenue.
• In 2011 Frank discovered online conferencing, which revolutionized the business and enabled him to work with people globally.

Backstory and Creditability

• When you use a podcast as a marketing tool you need to position yourself as an expert and let people know what you do.
• When people consider working with you they want to know who you are as a host, your backstory and if you are credible.
• In order to have credibility you need to put some of yourself into your show and demonstrate passion and purpose to the listener.

Your Niche

• Its not enough to say you just want to do a podcast you have to have something to give.
• You have to have a niche and avoid being general.

Podcasting

• In radio you do a live broadcast and it’s gone forever. With a podcast, you do an episode and it’s there forever.
• Many podcasters use elements from different media in each show.
• It took Frank 2-3 years of recording 20-30 episodes to just get the show well and truly rolling.
• The podcast isn’t about getting coaching clients first, its about getting listeners and readers of the blog.
• Podcasting is about providing so much value that it brings people into your community.

Expectations, Patience and Pilot Episodes

• From the time you start to when you see the results could be an obscenely amount of time.
• Pilot episodes help create the platform and enable you to figure out where you want to go from there. 
• Glean format from other podcast rather than content.

Format: Predictability & Evolution

• After about 5 episodes you need to get into a rhythm and be consistent with the format.
• Every episode should be predictable. 
• It’s important to evolve and let the show go where it will go.
• The biggest evolution should be due to feedback.
• You have to be okay with testing something and it not being a good idea.

Monetization & Affiliate Marketing

• Frank had the idea of affiliate marketing before he had the idea of the podcast.
• The types of affiliate relationships you want to build are those that come through you but build the relationship you already have.
• If the client wins then you win.
• Can you expand on your niche and make it valuable to the sponsors?

Subscribe to the show in iTunes or Stitcher Radio!

The music in today's episode was written by The Danger Os and produced by Nick Palmer. Check them out at https://www.facebook.com/thedangerosmakemusic 

Links to Resources Mentioned

Chiropractic Marketing Advice (Podcast)

Ready Fire Aim (Book)

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Agenda for the most powerful 5 hours of your trip to Chicago!

❏      Introduction: Who are Corey and Jess and attendee intros

❏      Behind the Scenes! Corey and Jess will reveal how they created Season 1 of The Podcast Producers, the ten episode audio series selected by Apple as a Hot to Podcast show in iTunes.

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❏      Why Corey and Jess approach each season of The Podcast Producers as its own unique show

❏      Hot Seats! Jess, Corey and fellow podcasters will provide laser focused advice to some of the attendees on how to take their podcast to the next level.

❏      Round table interview recording for a future episode of The Podcast Producers

Who The Podcast Producers Mastermind is NOT for:

• You don’t know what a microphone is
• Your dream of a successful podcast is just that, a dream.

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• You already know the basics of podcasting and are ready to uplevel your game
• You care more about creating a high quality show more than a quick flash in the pan

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On this episode of Rhodes to Success I interview James Kevin O’Connor in a new mini-series of case studies on podcasting. James has a niche podcast in the music category called The Dharmic Evolution podcast, which focuses on original music. During the show we discuss connecting to your passion, using four touch points, monetization, how to get your show live, audience size and stats.   

Main Questions Asked

• Tell us the story of when you had the first idea to start the Dharmic Evolution podcast.
• When you started, was there a business around it or was the podcast first and later built out revenue streams around the show?
• What were the first steps to getting your show live on iTunes and Stitcher?
• How many episodes did you lach unch with on iTunes and what is the frequency of your release schedule?
• When did you know it was the right time to invest in a virtual assistant to help you find guests?
• Talk about your download numbers and expectations.
• What has happened in your life and business as a result of the podcast?
• What things do you do with your podcast that make it high quality?

Key Lessons Learned

• Do your due diligence before you offer an interview to ensure it will be a good interview rather than find out it’s not a good fit while you are recording.
• Most people aren’t connected to their passion and some can’t even find it.
• Podcasting leads to all kinds of opportunities that you may not be aware of  or predict when you go through the process.

The Dharmic Evolution Podcast

• The year before he started his podcast, John decided to educate himself online.
• Four songs by the guest artist are included in the podcast episode, which gives the audience four chances to connect with the artists work.
• Most musical people have found their passion, so this podcast is a great way for people to listen in and follow the trail of how others got connected.
• John’s guests aren’t big stars but rather are on the cusp of getting to the next level and have been producing records and touring.

Monetization

• James didn’t have a monetization strategy when he started the podcast.
• Revenue streams include life transition and podcast launch coaching for individuals and small business.
• The common thought for podcasters is to get a high amount of downloads and be able to sell advertising time to advertisers.
• Podcast audiences can turn into a community and clients that can be monetized. Podcasting monetization doesn’t just have to be about ad revenue.

Going Live

• Nothing has changed with broadcasting except technology. It’s still a microphone, audience and intimate conversation back-and-forth.
• James released three shows when the show went live and had at least 30 shows recorded. He likes to be 6-8 weeks ahead of schedule.
• Then plan was to go to two shows per week after 6 months and now does 8-10 shows per month.
• As you learn you will get better guests, become a better

Show Stats

• The podcast is just under 4,000 lifetime downloads in one year.

Sound

• The way you sound is out there in perpetuity so spend at least $50 on a quality microphone.
• Send .WAV files rather than.mp3 when sending files to hosts.
• Start on a higher platform and the output will sound much better on  compressed generations.

Guest Relations

• Every podcast guest has a dedicated blog post on the website, which includes their bio and links.    
• Tweetable links of guest quotes are sent out in order to encourage them to send to their mailing lists and promote to their audience.
• James gives each guest an autographed CD with a thank you note.
• There are at least 5 different follow-ups after the guest is on the show.

Subscribe to the show in iTunes or Stitcher Radio!

The music in today's episode was written by The Danger Os and produced by Nick Palmer. Check them out at https://www.facebook.com/thedangerosmakemusic 

Links to Resources Mentioned

Dharmic Evolution Podcast 

On this episode of Rhodes to Success I interview Mike Saunders who helps position his clients as an authority in their niche. Mike is the host of the Business Innovators Radio Show, holds an MBA and is an adjunct professor. He says if you give him 60 minutes and 60 days he’ll get your book done and you will be an Amazon bestseller!  During the show we discuss positioning yourself as an authority, why you should considering writing a book for Amazon, and how to publish and interview-style book.

Main Questions Asked

• What has your MBA brought you that other entrepreneurs who didn’t go to business school?
• Why is it important for entrepreneurs to position themselves as an authority?

Key Lessons Learned

Positioning

• This is one of the 4 P’s of marketing and how you are perceived in the mind of your target audience.
• Most people don’t proactively position themselves; however, if you create the positioning you win the battle.

Positioning Yourself As an Authority

• You need to systematically and rapidly positioning yourself as a celebrity to your clientele and target market.
• Get the media talking about you, this can be via local media or podcasting and doesn’t necessarily have to be national.
• Post your ‘humble brag’ on social media.
• By appearing on shows you are providing yourself with authority positioning.
• The ultimate focus is to be an educator and advocate for your prospect and clients’ success. 

Create your Authority Position

• Google indexes content that is reputable.
• 87% of the time a prospect will Google instead of calling.
• You don’t have to make a video to put it on YouTube you an convert an MP3 to an MP4.  It can be a YouTube video of the audio.
• The more backlinks you have the more your site will rank on Google.
• A lot of podcasters do show notes, which is where the guest link back lives on the site.
• Just because you have done one guest post or podcast interview doesn’t mean you have completed the task and can check it off the list. It has to be consistent.

Self-Publishing on Amazon

• Getting your content into written word offers another level of authority that podcasting, videos and blogs don’t.
• The benefits of being an author include being invited to speak at conferences events.
• Experts close three times as many deals as sales people.
• Sales people have brochures and experts have books.
• You won’t get paid for writing the book but because you wrote the book.
• Think of one problem and one solution for your target audience.
• People throw away business cards and brochures but not books as they have significant shelf life.
• Amazon allows you to self publish your own book and buy small numbers at a time. The cost of self-publishing can be $3-4 each so is affordable to hand out to potential clients.

Interview Style Book

• The audio from an interview is transcribed and edited to create an interview-style book.
• Mike says if you give him 60 minutes and 60 days he’ll get your book done and you will be an Amazon bestseller. 
• Once you publish the book you have to build the business behind it

Positioning Yourself as an Expert

• Make sure you know the FAQ as well as the ‘should ask’ questions.

Subscribe to the show in iTunes or Stitcher Radio!

The music in today's episode was written by The Danger Os and produced by Nick Palmer. Check them out at https://www.facebook.com/thedangerosmakemusic 

Links to Resources Mentioned

Business Innovators Radio Show

Rev

Marketing Huddle