Influential Voices of Authority

HOW TO SURVIVE THE ENTREPRENEUR ROLLER COASTER Have you ever been on the entrepreneur roller coaster? It is all about the ups and downs of being an entrepreneur. IMPORTANT LINKS Next chance to launch is coming up. See the launch workshop details at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/podcastfast. If you have a podcast and you're ready to grow now, here's your chance. See my next workshop at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/workshop. THE BOOK As I've created this podcast, I've experienced the entrepreneur roller coaster time and time again. One day it is the best thing going. You get a client to enroll and you're on cloud nine. The next day you get the email that a client is not renewing and they are moving on. You're bummed for the next three days. This all comes to life everyday for most of us as entrepreneurs. It is also described in an amazing way in the book The Entrepreneur Roller Coaster by Darren Hardy. Darren currently owns and runs DarrenHardy.com where he and his team help people be exceptional. He is an author, speaker, and advisor. Darren is also the former publisher of Success Magazine. In addition to The Entrepreneur Roller Coaster, Darren Hardy also wrote Living Your Best Year Ever and The Compound Effect. It will prepare you for the wild ride of entrepreneurship. It will warn you of the forthcoming fears, doubts, and the self-defeating conditioning of your upbringing and past. It will inoculate you from the naysayers, dream-stealers, and pains of rejection and failure. And it will guide you safely past the landmines that blow up and cause the failure of 66 percent of all new businesses. MY ENTREPRENEUR ROLLER COASTER 2024 is a perfect example of my own roller coaster. This year started with two of my coaching clients and one of my editing clients not renewing for another year. I loved each of them. It was painful and felt like a breakup. I knew they had amazing potential. Each of them had achieved so much to this point. The progress was fantastic. Over the year, I had a few amazing calls with coaches who didn't sign up for the coaching I felt would help them in such a big way. Each of them had their own reasons. We continue to stay in touch. I believe the time will eventually be right for them. THE FUN PART OF THE RIDE Then there were call like my most recent client who couldn't enroll fast enough. He has been in my world for a few years, and we finally got on a coaching call together. On that call, he signed up and has been knocking it out of the park. It feels so great. Each time I get on a call with my other clients, they tell me of all the great progress they are making and the lives they are changing. I just wrapped up a coaching program helping Neil and Taylere launch their "The Leadership Pause" podcast. They sent me an email that said, "Thank you for everything, Erik! We appreciate all your guidance. This course was terrific." It has happened in my business year after year. A few years ago it was really getting to me to the point I was going to throw in the towel. THE DATA Then one day I looked at the data. I noticed a trend in my business. Listening to my podcast tends to dip in the summer. My workshops are less attended in the summer. Fewer clients sign up in the summer. When August arrives, my downloads increase. I have more speaking opportunities. My workshops have great crowds. And more clients enroll. It's nothing I'm doing. The entrepreneur roller coaster is just the nature of my business. That's when I realized I didn't need to be scared of that first roller coaster drop. It always happens. Then comes the fun of the turns and loops. Once I started understanding the entrepreneur roller coaster is natural, podcasting and business became much more fun. WE ARE ALL ON THE ENTREPRENEUR ROLLER COASTER I was on a summit this week. During a roundtable discussion with the other experts who were speaking, I discovered we all have our own entrepreneur roller coasters. We all have our own journey. Don't compare yourself to others. Enjoy your path. The entrepreneur roller coaster is normal. We are all on it. You need to learn to enjoy the ride. Step back and examine your roller coaster, so you can anticipate the drops. Anticipate the dips, turns and thrills, so you can enjoy the journey. Stop looking at your downloads this week compared to last week. Look at this month compared to the same month last year and the year before. Do you see seasonality in your podcast? Is the roller coaster natural in your business? Start planning the next year with the entrepreneur roller coaster in mind. When you see the dip in the history, plan things to embrace and counter the dip. Create content on your podcast people will consume during the dip. Help them with the challenges that happen in their lives at that time. YOUR NEXT STEPS Next chance to launch is coming up. See the launch workshop details at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/podcastfast. If you have a podcast and you're ready to grow now, here's your chance. See my next workshop at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/workshop. If you don't have a mentor who can take your hand and walk you every step of the way, go to www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply, click the button and apply to have a chat with me. We will develop your plan and see how I can help and support you to achieve your podcast goals.

CLAIM YOUR TIME As you produce your podcast each week, how do you get your time back? I've invited Kathi Burns on this episode to help you with your productivity and organization. She is a board certified professional organizer. Your time is something you can never get back. It's important that you use it as wisely as possible. I want to see you spending your time building your business and working with your clients. When you spend more of your time than necessary producing your podcast, you business suffers. SPENDING YOUR TIME EDITING? You may think you can save money producing your podcast yourself. Let's take a look at what that costs you. There are a variety of things you need to do to publish an episode. As an example, we'll say you need to edit your audio, export it as an .mp3, edit your video, export it to file, create your show notes, create your podcast artwork, create your YouTube thumbnail, create a couple audiograms to promote the episode, upload the episode and artwork to your podcast host, and upload your video and thumbnail to YouTube. How long will that take you? I'm guessing 90 minutes to two hours. Let's go with 90 minutes. If you spent 90 minutes of your time hosting a webinar, how many sales could you make? What if you spent 90 minutes on sales calls. What is one coaching client worth to you in lifetime value? In our example, let's say you sell a $2,000 coaching package. Wouldn't it make more sense to spend $200 to have the production done for you so you could spend your time on sales calls instead of editing? Even if you only close one out of every four sales calls, you're spending $800 to free your time for four sales calls to generate $2,000 in revenue. This is how you leverage your time. This is possible. You can see my basic editing package as an example. See your editing options at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/editing. ORGANIZE FOR EFFICIENCY Now if you're going to spend those 90 minutes watching television instead of pursuing business, keep editing your own show. But if you're going to leverage your time, make it count. The best way to do this is being organized. Plan your week. Plan your day. Batch your tasks. Get focused on what you want to accomplish, so you know where to spend your time. When I create this podcast, I take many of my summit interviews and use them as episodes of the podcast. I record 24 interviews in 3 days. That's nearly half a year of episodes. As I create my daily emails, I write the entire week on the same day. I get my mind in my connection and relationship mode to write great content and connect with my tribe. What tasks are you doing every day or every week that you can group together to save more of your time? KATHI BURNS These are just a few examples. My guest has many more ideas for your time. Kathi Burns, CPO® is a Board Certified Professional Organizer, Image Consultant, author and speaker. As the founder of OrganizedandEnergized.com, her mission for almost two decades has been to end overwhelm, energize, and transform lives by creating systems clients can stick to. Kathi is nationally recognized for her simple organizing and style solutions. She has also been featured on Good Morning America as a successful woman-owned business. She hosts Organized and Energized! The Podcast. Kathi is here to help you spend your time more efficiently. Enjoy my conversation with Kathi Burns. Big thanks to Kathi Burns for taking some of her time to join us today. You can get Kathi's checklist at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/organize. To attend her Get Gone masterclass on October 8th, you can get registered at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/gone. If you don't have a mentor who can take your hand and walk you every step of the way, go to www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply, click the button and apply to have a chat with me. We will develop your plan and see how I can help and support you to achieve your podcast goals.

MONETIZE A PODCAST WITH FOCUS Focus is the key to monetize a podcast. [Get info on ThriveCart through my affiliate link - CLICK HERE] When I started, I struggled until I focused on one offer to one avatar. As I launched Podcast Talent Coach, I wanted to do everything. I started with one-on-one coaching. I wrote a book that was to be part of a comprehensive course. There were plans for a membership. I was helping people launch their podcast. It was everything I could think of to create multiple streams of income to monetize my podcast. But, nothing was working. There was no traction. Then one day I met my mentor. He taught me the power of creating a signature course. Through his process, I created my signature course through market research with a single avatar. I focused on coaches trying to grow their business. He then showed my how to focus all my efforts on that one offer. My business quickly took off and created my best year yet. DON'T MONETIZE A PODCAST WITH SPONSORS Create one stream of income. Focus is powerful. It is tough to avoid getting distracted. I know multiple streams of income sounds appealing. But you can't create multiple streams until you create your first. And you can't create your first without focus. Many podcasters want to start with sponsorships. It's difficult without a real focus. Trying to monetize a podcast with sponsors is a challenge. Rick was able to get a sponsor in a much different way. Rick Sizemore is the host of the VR Workforce Studio podcast. It is a podcast focused on Individuals with disabilities and stories of employment including training and education, vocational rehabilitation. On the show, Rick celebrates the champions of employment who hire people with disabilities as well as vocational rehabilitation professionals and the work they do to create hope and a path forward to employment for people with disabilities so they can work and lead better lives. The audience for Rick's podcast is very focused and niche. He is totally focused on those in and around vocational rehabilitation. He connected with an organization who wanted to reach that specific group. Rick showed that group how effective his podcast was in sharing a message with the rehab community. The group paid Rick a nice sum to be the sponsor of his show. He was able to land the sponsor, because the show was focused on one specific avatar. NOT ALL LISTENERS ARE THE SAME Unfortunately, most sponsors don't understand the power of the podcast audience. Most podcasters, sponsors and ad agencies treat ads on podcasts like they are ads on traditional media. On traditional media, commercials are sold at a rate per thousand listeners. If the rate is $25 per thousand listeners, and you have 2,000 listeners, an ad on your show is worth $50. But podcast listeners aren't equal to traditional media listeners. If QuickBooks advertised on a football game, only a fraction of those listeners or viewers would be interested in QuickBooks. Therefore, paying $25 for a thousand listeners doesn't really get them a thousand listeners. It's just a fraction. On the other hand, if QuickBooks advertised on a small business podcast, nearly every listener needs accounting software. Paying for a thousand listeners will get you nearly a thousand listeners interested in their product. Podcast listeners are immensely more valuable than traditional listeners. Unfortunately, traditional advertisers treat them the same. You become a commodity with ads and sponsors unless you find that special unicorn of an advertiser that understands the power. Finding that unicorn takes a lot of time and effort. Time away from your business. Monetize a podcast by focusing on your core offer. Ads and sponsorships also cap the revenue potential. How many ads can you possibly put on your podcast? Finally, your listeners don't want ads and sponsors. They are fleeing traditional media to escape ads. How irritated do you get when an ad pops up in the middle of a YouTube video you're watching? MONETIZE A PODCAST WITH YOUR OFFER Instead of ads, monetize your podcast by marketing your own stuff. Focus on one offer. You might think it is easiest to sell a low ticket offer. Something like a $19 book or a $47 course. The opposite is true. Price conveys value. If you are offering a $47 course, people think it's worth $47. Few people are clamoring to buy $47 anything. If it's a $2,000 program, people feel it should be packed full of value greater than $2,000. People save up to buy a $2,000 product. It isn't uncommon to buy a $47 course and never even start it. When people invest $2,000 in a program, it is much more likely they will consume it. People value what they invest in. LOW TICKET TAKES MORE TIME AND EFFORT It also takes just as much time to sell a $47 product as it does to sell a $2,000 product. A sale is a sale. Low ticket products also create more headaches. People who purchase low ticket items tend to complain and want refunds. When I was selling my $497 course, I had multiple people want payment options. It's a 4-week course for $497. How can I possibly break that into payments. When I started selling my $20,000 coaching program, coaches would ask how to pay in one lump sum or just simply as how to pay. There were very few issues. Those who can afford to invest in high-end programs tend to have their business dialed in. They aren't worried how to make a $200 payment. It's more about the results than the price. I recently stopped offering my free strategy call. It was a struggle to get people to take advantage of the opportunity. People value what they pay for. Then, they would often book and not show up. Instead of free strategy calls, I began offering an hour of my coaching for $150. You can see it at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/apply. On the first day I changed from free to the $150 call, I had someone sign up. People value what they pay for. MONETIZE A PODCAST WITH PARTNERS We now have your avatar and offer dialed in. You have offered it and sold it. More importantly, you want to keep selling it. It is time to market your offer to monetize a podcast. Instead of buying ads, get partners to promote it. Joint venture partnerships are a powerful way to market your stuff to your ideal clients. Find partners who are already speaking to your avatar. When a partner promotes your offer, they are typically paid a commission on those sales. If the offer is digital or a physical product, commission is typically around 50%. When the offer involves your time such as coaching, commission is 10% or 20%. These sales are tracked through affiliate links. When you have affiliate tracking software, it will create a link specific for each of your partners. Your JV partners then promote your offer through that link. When their tribe clicks the link to make the purchase, your affiliate software tracks it. THRIVECART OPPORTUNITY I currently use ThriveCart. It is a great way to track affiliates and pay commissions. I have been using it for a few years now. Here is the best thing about ThriveCart. You can currently purchase ThriveCart for a one-time payment rather than a monthly fee like most software. You can see ThriveCart at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/ThriveCart. That is my affiliate link. When you purchase ThriveCart through that link, I'll make a small commission from your purchase. It doesn't cost you any more. This is just a way ThriveCart markets their software. Now, I can't tell you how long it will be a flat fee purchase and when they will move to a monthly fee. I can only tell you that as of this recording, it is a flat fee and you own it. Check it out at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/ThriveCart. MONETIZE A PODCAST WITH ONE STREAM Now you have an offer for an avatar and you have partners promoting you. The next step is to do more of the same. To monetize a podcast, really get your process working. You'll be tempted to focus on other products and additional streams of income. Stay the course. Get this offer really refined. Make it generate more cash with less work. It may sound boring, but it's worth it. Avoid the headaches that come with juggling multiple offers. Once your offer is generating over $100k in annual revenue, you can then begin working on offer number two. Until then, keep refining your primary offer. Sell more to more people. There are two ways to make more money. First, sell to more customers. Next, make more from each customer by increasing prices or selling more. Business is a simple process when you focus. To monetize a podcast, focus on your offer. If you don't have a mentor who can take your hand and walk you every step of the way, go to www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply, click the button and apply to have a chat with me. We will develop your plan and see how I can help and support you to achieve your podcast goals.

PEOPLE STAY WHEN YOU CREATE A COMMUNITY One powerful way to grow your audience is by leveraging communities of other influencers. You can also leverage that attention to create a community. When another expert will put you in front of their tribe, they are endorsing you. That expert is telling his audience that you are someone the tribe should pay attention to. As you demonstrate your expertise to that audience, you build your authority and influence. You can then invite them to your podcast. CREATE A COMMUNITY FOR RELATIONSHIPS As you create a community that is powerful, you need to build a relationship with your audience. Spend time showing them why what you do is so important in their lives. Once you've built enough relationship with your why, you can then invite them to get more in your community. THE COACHING JUNGLE On this episode, I've invited Marc Mawhinney to join us to talk about his amazing community. Marc had been on the show in the past, and he is amazing. Marc Mawhinney is a lifelong entrepreneur who has been helping coaches get more clients (without paid ads) since 2014! He's the host of the "Natural Born Coaches" podcast, which has almost 900 episodes to date, and the Tarzan of "The Coaching Jungle" Facebook group which has over 25,000 coaches in the community. In this conversation with Marc, we delve into the art of creating and nurturing a thriving online community. With a focus on Marc's successful venture, "The Coaching Jungle," Marc gives you deep insights into the strategies and principles that have guided the group to grow to a robust membership of over 25,000 coaches. Discover the pivotal role that a strong foundation, distinctive branding, and the implementation of theme days can play in establishing a community that fosters engagement and growth. JUNGLE VIP One of the noteworthy discussions in this episode is the launch of The Jungle VIP membership, a transformative development aimed at generating recurring revenue and offering an accessible option for members not ready for larger packages. Priced at $97 per month or $997 per year, this membership includes privileges such as promotional posting rights, expert badge status, access to a private VIP group, and monthly networking meetings. Marc shares candidly about the initial concerns among community members, ultimately highlighting the positive reception and benefits of the VIP program. Marc Mawhinney brings invaluable advice on simplifying access to your community by utilizing a custom domain, making it more convenient for potential members to find your group. He also stresses the importance of laying a strong foundation before launching a group—picking a clear and relevant group name, distinctive branding, and consistent theme days, such as Promotion Friday or Book Sunday, to ensure a variety of content. As Marc underscores, providing consistent value to members while simultaneously monetizing the community is essential for its long-term success. GROWING YOUR COMMUNITY We also get into the intricacies of growing an online group, pinpointing the critical tipping point for the Coaching Jungle's growth at around 1,000 members. Marc attributes this surge to increased organic requests to join and emphasizes the necessity of promoting the community through multiple channels, including email lists and a dedicated domain name. Additionally, we discuss our early journeys into the coaching industry, highlighting similar pricing models and the importance of coaching in generating quick revenue streams compared to creating courses. We also touch a bit on the value of joint venture partnerships, where Marc shares his successful collaborations with industry peers like Terri Levine and Rob Goyette. These partnerships not only resulted in business growth but also provided rich learning experiences and enduring friendships. Marc's journey offers practical and actionable insights for anyone looking to build and sustain a vibrant online community. You can find information on the Coaching Jungle VIP program through my affiliate link at www.NaturalBornCoaches.com/Erik. If you don't have a mentor who can take your hand and walk you every step of the way, go to www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply, click the button and apply to have a chat with me. We will develop your plan and see how I can help and support you to achieve your podcast goals.

START A PODCAST FOR THE RIGHT REASONS Why did you start a podcast? I'm talking about the real reason. Coaches tell me they want to grow their audience or make money. That can't be your real why. When you ask why about seven times, you'll get to the real reason you wanted to start a podcast. Your struggles to grow and monetize your show has nothing to do with your podcast. The problem is you. Your podcast is just the vehicle. If people aren't coming for you, they aren't coming at all. Let me show you why. THE START OF PODCAST TALENT COACH When I started my show, I thought I wanted to help people become better hosts and build a consultancy. Over the years, I learned that wasn't my real reason. That purpose wouldn't keep me motivated. In 2005, I came across an article in Wired Magazine. The article was about former MTV VJ Adam Curry creating this thing called podcasting. He was interviewing a guest in his car and distributing the show through the RSS feed technology used by blogs. This sounded really cool, but was way over my head. At this time, I had been in radio for about 12 years. The thought of owning my own show in this new medium was exciting. But I had no idea where to start. Around 2009, I got my first iPhone and started listening to a ton of podcasts. At the time, there were about 80,000 podcasts. In 2012, I was hooked and started writing a blog about podcasting. The content helped podcasters sound more professional like radio broadcasters. That blog led to an opportunity to write for the New Media Expo blog where Dave Jackson from School of Podcasting discovered me. During our conversation, Dave asked why I didn't have a podcast. That was the start of this podcast in 2013. The show started with the blog content. I was showing people how to sound more professional. Listeners got a lot of tools and tips that we used in radio. The show struggled to grow. It was struggling, because people weren't dying to know how to sound more professional. More professional also wan't my deep, burning passion. THE REAL REASON Then one day I was talking with a client when he said, "If we are able to generate leads, that is awesome. If we are helping change people's lives, and they are reaching out to us, that would be a success. Becoming a resource is the goal." That was the day I realized my purpose needed to be bigger. Giving people information to sound better was ok, but it wan't life-changing. As I looked inward and reviewed the clients in my world, I realized I really want to help people become that magnetic, influential personality and show host. Not just somebody sharing information. But somebody who entertains, builds relationships, and can inspire people to take action. When I can do that, I make the world better. That gets me fired up. I saw it in my radio career as well. When I started in radio, I thought the music knowledge would get me to the top. I shared trivia, music news, tidbits about the bands. I had it all. And, nobody cared. Then one day I started sharing my story and who I am. I began building relationships with my listeners. That was the day I started my climb to the top and have been there ever since. Attract people with who you are. IT'S ABOUT YOU It's not about your content, but you. People will show up for your content. They'll come for your 6 steps to success. But once they learn the 6 steps, nothing about your content will keep them coming back. The only reason they come back every week, is because they want to be around you. The confidence you portray helps you become magnetic. It's not about what you're saying. It is who you are being while you're saying it. Your podcast really has little to do with it as well. The podcast is just the vehicle. It's about authority, not the podcast. I believe podcasting is the best way to share your message for a variety of reasons. Podcasts are portable. You can consume podcasts while doing other things. Your show is delivered right to your subscribers phone in their feed. And audio builds relationships through theater of the mind. WE HEAR IN PICTURES We speak in words. We hear in pictures. Stories build relationships. Relationships build trust and authority. Everyone can be a storyteller. Stories start with a intriguing introduction. They are filled with vivid details. Great stories end with a powerful conclusion. Powerful stories are also filled with personality. These stories make people laugh, cry, or marvel at something. Everyone has a personality. We just need to uncover it and make it shine. So, why did you start a podcast? Your successful podcast is about relationships, not ads. LISTENER ATTRACTION STRATEGY Attract listeners rather than chasing them. Let's get clear on your strategy. Do you want to keep chasing clients or are you ready to stand out as the well-known authority who attracts clients into your world? Let's build your strategy. Go to www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply, click the button and apply to have a chat with me. We will develop your plan and see how I can help and support you to achieve your podcast goals. You can develop your personality and storytelling. You can become a magnetic, influential personality and show host. Let me show you how. Visit www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply, click the button and apply to have a chat with me. I'll see you there.

What defines success in podcasting? It's not just about audience size or sponsorships. Discover the importance of having a strong 'why' that fuels your creativity and commitment. Listen to a podcaster's journey as she navigates struggles with purpose and consistency, ultimately learning to connect with her audience. A five-step strategy is shared to help you define your mission and achieve success.

There is a right way and and wrong way to use social media for digital branding and business. Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, and TikTok are all used in different ways. Many times, it's the wrong way. DIGITAL BRANDING WITH SOCIAL MEDIA On this episode, we talk with Dr. Dumont Owen about Digital Branding with LinkedIn and social media. Download Dumont's Lucrative LinkinIn Roadmap HERE. THE WRONG WAY TO USE SOCIAL MEDIA I recently went through my Facebook friend requests to decide which I would accept. There were the usual fake profiles. Plenty of coaches and podcasters. And as I always discover, many marketers disguised as a potential friends. As soon as I accepted these friend requests, eight of them sent me a DM. APPOINTMENT SETTER The first said, "Hey, Hope you're doing well! Do you need a trained and experienced appointment setter who will book 5-10 sales calls every day on your calendar and increase your sales up to 2X ROI & Results?" There wasn't even small talk. This guy just went straight for the pitch. I usually unfriend these people and then block them. When I use social media, I enjoy partnerships and collaboration. This guy would have made more progress with me had he said, "We offer trained and experienced appointment setters. Would you be interested in collaborating?" With a question like this, I might put them in front of my audience. He could have even asked, "Who do you know?" If I needed it, I would have said, "Me." Much less spammy. IGNORING THE QUESTION The next DM flat out ignored my question. He said, "Hey Erik! Great to connect...I see you're a coach." After I confirmed that I am a coach, I asked who he likes to connect with. He ignored my question and pasted this response: "Hello Erik..nice to meet you!I actually work for a coach who runs a free fb group he allows his members to promote for free in front of 27,000+ active members! It's great place for you to get leads but also be a part of a really supportive community. Happy to send you the free link to join if you feel it could be valuable for you." He ignored my question and appears to only be interested in pitching. Time to unfriend. LIKE-MINDED PEOPLE ON SOCIAL MEDIA The next was a way I appreciate. She said, "Thank you Erik, for accepting my invitation to connect here on FB. Looking forward to seeing more of your posts and getting to know you." After an exchange about who she connects with, she told me she is just looking to connect with like-minded people. She then asked about me. I replied with a bit about my interest in partnerships. It was a conversation to see how we might build a relationship. This is the way to use social media. Relationships. I love it. COMMON SOCIAL MEDIA FRIENDS The next guy did something similar. He said, "Hey Erik, thanks for accepting my friend request. It appears we have quite a few friends in common." We had a good chat about the people we know and how we might connect with others. This again was about relationships. Great work here. JUST HEY Another just said "Hey". We know each other, because I was on her summit. This is a perfectly acceptable way to use social media. Connect and build relationships with people you met elsewhere. All good here. MY MASTERCLASS Next was another pitch. He said, "Great to connect with you here Erik. Hope you're having a good day so far!" I replied with, "Thanks. I love to connect people. What type of people do you like to connect with?" His response was, "Mostly entrepreneurs, coaches and consultants. Actually, I don't know if you're interested but on the 1st of August, I'll host a Masterclass called... Cool if I send you more info here?" Uh, no thanks. I'm not interested in another masterclass. Learn a bit more about me. BLAH BLAH BLAH The next message looked oddly like an earlier message. But, it was from a different person. I don't know if this is an agency who has hired a bunch of people to scrape Facebook or a coach who has a bunch of minions. The message started with, "Hey Erik, it's great to connect with you." My typical response is, "Thanks. I love connecting people. What type of people do you like to connect with?" She said, "You're welcome. I see you're a coach as well. I actually work for a coach who has a free FB group for coaches & course creators like yourself. Blah Blah Blah. Happy to send over the link to join if you feel this would be valuable for you." No. I don't need another Facebook group. I'm in too many right now. THE SOCIAL MEDIA FRIEND PITCH Another previously ran a company in the podcast space. I thought we were already friends on Facebook. My bad. After a quick exchange, he says, "Finally got back into the podcast space. I'm basically doing freelance marketing." Then came the question about his product. I'll give him some slack. I actually know him. His question may be a way we can collaborate. We'll see what happens here. NO FRIEND REQUEST One final DM didn't even send me a friend request. This message was just a DM that said, "I hope you are staying well and healthy. I am Rosey, a virtual assistant who loves doing any repetitive administrative and marketing tasks you may have." It continued on with the pitch. I didn't respond. I just blocked. Facebook isn't a place where I'm looking for solicitation. I wish I had one of those "no solicitation" signs people put on their front doors. RELATIONSHIPS ON SOCIAL MEDIA Using social media to build relationship and increase your brand is a much better approach. Granted, this takes a lot longer than spamming people trying to get someone to take your offer. However, it is much better in the long run. Your business will be much healthier. DIGITAL BRANDING Dr. Dumont Owen leverages her extensive knowledge of personal and digital branding to help coaches, consultants and subject matter experts get clients in record time using LinkedIn. A storyteller at heart, she weaves magnetic brand narratives that distinguish her clients from their competitors and position them as the go-to experts in their field. Dumont is the creator of the Lucrative LinkedIn System, a 5-step system for attracting, engaging, and converting contacts to clients on LinkedIn. Download Dumont's Lucrative LinkinIn Roadmap HERE. 17:56 Started on LinkedIn, quickly found success. 22:17 LinkedIn connections should be meaningful, not numerous. 25:29 LinkedIn's tool measures social selling performance. 28:31 Audio on LinkedIn is recent and beneficial. 29:34 Create content to engage and build trust. 33:58 Digital branding application: tools, resources, strategies, ownership. 36:42 Authenticity means owning your story and being bold. 42:06 Clarify goals, know niche, promote brand, update profile. 43:47 Step by step guide to LinkedIn success. If you don't have a mentor who can take your hand and walk you every step of the way, go to www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply, click the button and apply to have a chat with me. We will develop your plan and see how I can help and support you to achieve your podcast goals.

To be a successful podcaster, you can't simply be a nice host who offends nobody. You need to be an authority and influencer in your niche. THE KEY TO BECOMING AN INFLUENCER You need the confidence to step up, step out and embrace your personality. Sure, you have a personality. You just need to define it, refine it, and let it shine. We sometimes get too caught up in what we do rather than why we do it. Your "why" is so much more important than your what. I recently discovered Myron Golden on YouTube. Myron said, "There are many people out there who would love to buy what you already love to sell if they only knew you existed. Instead of finding more people to sell to, make yourself more findable to those people who already want to buy what you already love to sell." You become more findable by being more interesting. Your six steps to success isn't interesting. Everything interesting is about people. Create more relationships, and you'll attract more people. WE LACK RELATIONSHIPS It's my mission to create more relationships in society. Tech has sucked relationships out of society. That makes it too easy to be against each other rather than supporting each other. We don't shop at the store any longer. Our shopping is done online. When I was a kid, we would go hang at the mall. Today, the malls barely exist. If my kids watched Mallrats or Fast Times at Ridgemont High, they wouldn't understand most of the jokes. Many of us work remotely. We don't hang with our coworkers around the water cooler or at happy hour. You aren't even required to go into the gas station any more. It's pay at the pump. We don't watch movies with others at the movie theaters, because movies are on our television. Kids aren't congregating at the arcade or in the park or at the pool. They are at home online with their virtual friends. CONNECTING WITH PEOPLE My daughter knew most of her freshman class in college before she ever stepped foot on campus. She graduated high school as COVID hit. Before her first semester began, they began having meet-ups on Zoom with all incoming freshman. She met a lot of people. On the day I dropped her off, we were walking down main street right off campus. I suddenly hear someone say, "Hey, Emma." I was stunned. We are in a small town thousands of miles from home. How could anyone possibly know her. After a brief chat, she tells me that was one of the girls on the Zoom calls. During that semester, all students attended class virtually from their dorm rooms. Meals were delivered by food service or picked up to be eaten in their room. Nobody was allowed to have roommates due to the pandemic. It was very easy for students to have no relationships with anyone. They could do everything alone in their room. If Emma hadn't been diligent about meeting others, she could have easily gone through college unnoticed. Fortunately, she met as many as possible. She also became president of her freshman class. GET NOTICED If you want to get noticed, build your audience, and attract your ideal clients, you need to get noticed as well. Tech will kill your relationships unless you're diligent about getting in front of your target audience. Solopreneur is a dangerous career if you're not careful. So, how do you become an influencer? You define your personality. Share that personality through stories that allow people to get to know you. Then, get on stages as often as you can to get people familiar with you. Like Myron said, they would love to buy what you already love to sell if they only knew you existed. It's time to let them know. There were two recent articles in Inside Radio that show why this is so important. PODCASTERS ARE INFLUENCERS The first article referenced Magna's Media Trials and Vox Media study called "A New Era Of Influence". The study referenced individuals whose influence matters most to listeners. It found that 75% of respondents value podcasters' influence. Social media influencers and celebrities from TV/film both landed at 15%. If you want to be an influencer, have a podcast and be unique. INFLUENCERS AREN'T ADVERTISING The second article showed the importance of using your podcast for influence rather than advertising. We've talked about this many times before. Advertising on your podcast is just a bad idea. If you really want this to sink in, grab a pen and paper to write down a few numbers. Podcasting has taken the term CPM from traditional media. CPM is an acronym for Cost Per Mille, or cost per thousand. Mille is Latin for thousand. According to investopedia.com, cost per thousand is a marketing term that refers to the cost an advertiser pays per 1,000 advertising impressions. In radio, it would be the cost to reach 1,000 listeners. It might be said that a radio station had 3,000 average quarter hour listeners. That would mean on average 3,000 people are listening to that particular station at that particular time. If the CPM is $25, the price of a commercial would be $75. You would divide 3,000 listeners by 1,000 to get the number of thousands. That equals 3. We then multiply our 3 by our CPM which is $25 to get our $75 commercial. All stations in a market are treated roughly the same. How many thousands of listener do you have for your show? THE ADVERTISING ABYSS According to the other article in Inside Radio, "Podcast CPMs ticked up slightly in June according to Libsyn Ads. Based on the spots sold through its platform says the average CPM for a one-minute ad was $21.90." Let's do the math. The big agencies are looking for podcasts with at least 5,000 downloads per episode. Libsyn says only 7% of all podcasts on Libsyn reach that level. Let's pretend that you're lucky enough to be one of those 7%. If you have 5,000 listeners, that would be five groups of 1,000 for our per thousand calculation. If the CPM or cost per thousand is $21.90, your one-minute commercial on your show is worth $109.50. Now, how many commercials are you willing to clutter your show with before your listeners tune away? Let's say that number is six with two at the beginning, two in the middle and two at the end. But really, how often do you listen to the two minutes of commercials at the beginning of your favorite show before you hit the skip button? We'll go with six for the sake of discussion. Now each episode is worth six commercials times the $109.50 for each ad. That's a total of $657 per show. Four episodes per month generates $2,628. If you sell your advertiser by quarter, it would generate $8,451. That would be 24 clients over the course of the year to generate $34,164 annually. Now $34,000 sounds pretty good. I can hear you saying, "Erik, I'd take $34,000 for creating my podcast." WHY YOU WON'T WIN WITH ADS Here's the problem... or problems. One, you are trading the goodwill you've built with your audience for the cash the ads are generating. Your fans don't like the commercials. How many times have you been listening to your favorite podcast or watching a YouTube video and said, "Fantastic! Another Wix commercial!" Right. You get just as aggravated as I do. Do you really want to do that to the people you are trying to attract as clients? I didn't think so. Problem number two... it takes a lot of time to land an advertiser. I've spent 35 years in radio. We had 15 sales people working 40 hours a week trying to sell advertising. Now granted, we were selling 24 hours of content. But many of those advertisers were on multiple hours a day. You're trying to land coaching clients. You're trying to find time to produce your podcast on a regular basis. There needs to be time to market your business and handle the other tasks. You don't have time to sell advertising. And you don't have time to keep your advertisers happy when they tell you, "It's not working." It doesn't matter how many customers the advertiser gets, they always think it should have been more. And problem number three is the revenue. $34,000 sounds like a lot, but that is it. The number doesn't go any higher unless you add more commercials, which we know is a bad. You can't charge more due to the CPM. The CPM treats your listeners just like every other listener. You're a commodity. BECOME AN INFLUENCER Instead, build relationships. Demonstrate your authority. Become an influencer in your niche. Are you ready to see if it's possible for you to become an authority and influencer? Let's have a conversation. Go to www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply, click the button and apply to have a chat with me. We will develop your plan and see how I can help and support you to achieve your podcast goals.

Do you have questions about your podcast? YOUR QUESTIONS I get questions quite often from coaches and podcasters ranging from building your audience, becoming an influencer and growing your business. On this episode, we answer a variety of questions. Where do I find listeners in my target audience? If we try to control what people think about us, isn't that manipulation? Is it detrimental to skip a week? What is the right mix of relatable and creative for a show? When I promote the show, where should I send people? Are there unwritten protocols for podcast conferences? If you have questions regarding your podcast strategy, email me at Coach at podcasttalentcoach.com. I might just answer your question right here on the show. REFINE YOUR PERSONALITY In a recent email, I wrote... To become a known influencer in your niche, be intentional about your personality. Decide how you want to be known. Are you funny, logical, aggressive, loving, zany, generous, or something else? Be intentional. Then, share stories that show that side of you. Let your listeners get you know you in an authentic way. Nancy replied with this... I'm all of the list you shared and more. That is true for any human being. That is a calling in itself - to live in a way that reminds people to be their full, authentic selves. If we choose one slim aspect, then we are typecasted - and what we share suffers. We really have zero control over what people think of us. If we try to control it, is that not manipulation? I just can't be one thing when I am (and everyone is) the universe in physical form. Have a good day, - Nancy MANIPULATION QUESTIONS Manipulation is a tough word. And it's foolish to think we have zero control over what people think. If that were true, marketing wouldn't work. To be clear, I'm not saying be something that you're not. And I'm not saying don't be something that you are. Yes, you may be all of those things I listed. You may be funny, logical, aggressive, loving, zany, generous, or something else. However, your listeners only have one file to keep you in. We mentally compartmentalize everything, so our brains can handle all of the information. When you think of the Beatles, what do you think of? If you're like most, you think of 4 lads from Liverpool performing their music on stage causing many girls to scream. Why didn't you think movie actors? They did a few movies. You think musicians, because that's their brand. That's the mental folder you have them in. How about Matt Damon? What comes to mind? Oceans Eleven? Jason Bourne? Good Will Hunting? Great actor? Why didn't you think of co-founder of Water.org? https://water.org Because you store him where his brand fits. So you may be funny, logical, aggressive, loving, zany, and generous. But your brand needs to be one. And your role development on your show needs to highlight one of those characteristics. Be intentional about your brand. Otherwise, your listeners will create their own files and put you where they think you belong. FIND YOUR LISTENERS Where to find listeners in my target audience? - Greg The first step in finding your listeners is to get clear who those listeners are. You can't hit a target you can't see. Clearly define as much as you can, both demographically and psychographically. Determine their gender, age, and family composition. But also define their wants, needs, pains and goals. Go as deep as possible. My coach calls it the one inch mile. Go an inch wide and a mile deep. The more you know about your ideal client, the easier it will be to find them. And be specific. I was working with a client the other day. We were defining his ideal client. He said the his ideal client earns between $50k and $80k. I told him those are two very different people. A person making $50k lives a much different lifestyle and has more discretionary income than a person making $80k. $80k is 60% more than $50k. Those two people have much different needs and wants. And they can afford different fees when it comes to paying you. Once you define your ideal client, determine already has their attention. Who is already speaking into their lives? Now, partner with those influencers to speak to their audiences. Invite them to your show. Kimberly Crowe of Podapalooza says never turn down a mic. If you're offered the opportunity to get on stage or on a mic, take it. You'll be attracting listeners before you know it. QUESTIONS ABOUT CONSISTENCY How detrimental is it for you to skip a week in between episode releases OR delay a few days due to time constraints? Leading from that due to time constraints, is it ok to push out for a season, i.e. you are needing to focus on another area of the business so you take a break for a couple of months from your show and then kick back up later in the year? - Tony Brown Lessons From the Pit Consistency is key. People are creatures of habit. Once you get people in the habit of listening to your show, keep them listening by publishing consistently. I would suggest you record a few episodes at one time. This would give you time to take a week off and still publish. Work ahead by a week or two. When you are working on this week's episode this week, any disruption in your schedule can throw off publishing. If you work a week or two ahead, the episode to be published this week is already done. You're working on the episode for next week. If there is any disruption in your schedule, you have a buffer. You can also record an "emergency" episode. This would be an evergreen episode that you could publish when you run into time constraints. I'm not a fan of seasons unless your content lends to seasons. If you do a podcast around a sport, school year, or TV show, seasons might make sense. Most people create content around a topic. When that's the case, seasons make little sense. When you view your podcast as a marketing tool, it becomes easier to find time in your calendar to create your content. If you stop marketing, you stop attracting clients. Block out time, batch your tasks, and schedule production. Create a process, and it will become easier to publish consistently. CREATIVE OR RELATABLE? What is the right mix of relatable and creative for a show? The FreeMatt Podcast freemattpodcast.wordpress.com - Matt FreeMatt Why does it need to be either/or? Why can't it be both? That's like asking what's the ideal balance of short or funny. Why can't it be both? In fact, it should be both. When you create your content, it should be relatable to your ideal listener. Use the ideal listener definition you created as a filter for all of your content. Then, determine who you can be creative with it. What can you do with the content to make it unique? Infuse the content with your story and personality. Brainstorm ways to be creative with it. Could you do an interview or play a game? Maybe you tell a story or play some example audio. You could incorporate listeners or a roundtable of experts. None of this prevents you from being relatable. It should all be relatable. SENDING LISTENERS Right now, I don't have a website for my podcast. When I share an episode (or my podcast in general) on social media, should I link to the podcast host (buzzsprout, libysn, etc.) or to Spotify, Apple podcast, etc.) Or should I send people to a site like pod.link that provides links to everything? Thanks! - Ken "The Bad Boss Podcast" https://pod.link/1689109552 My first preference would be your home base. That would be your website. If you don't have a website, work to get one. You could build a simple site on Wordpress. It takes a bit of technical knowledge, but not much. One great option is PodPage. Find it at https://www.podpage.com. They build websites specifically for podcasters. You should never direct people directly to a podcast platform like Apple or Spotify. The numbers vary. Some reports list Spotify as having 34.4% and Apple 32.5% of podcast listeners. That's according to Buzzsprout as of June 2024. https://www.buzzsprout.com/stats So directing listeners to a particular platform will exclude most of your audience. I do like the idea of directing them to Pod.Link. Unfortunately, it's not easy to send people to pod.link/1689109552 without seeing it in writing. If you are sharing it on social, that link works. If you are mentioning it during an interview, it poses a problem. At the end of the day, you own your website. Don't build your house on rented land. Invest in a website and send your audience there. QUESTIONS ABOUT PODCAST CONFERENCES When should I start going to podcast conferences and when I go, are there any unwritten protocols that should be followed? My #1 goal in attending would be to connect with other podcasters and exchange interviews to grow my email list. -Edwin It's never too early to start attending podcast conferences and networking. Understand that not all conferences are created equal. Podcast Movement is quite large. Over 3,000 people attend each year. https://podcastmovement.com There are many tracks, lots of people, and quite a few networking opportunities. More and more big companies are also attending each year. Podfest is another great conference. Over 3,000 people attend this one each year as well. https://podfestexpo.com Then there are small meet-ups and other podcast events throughout the year. Attending to connect with other podcasters and exchange interviews is a great goal. Connect with the right people. Find shows that are speaking to your ideal target listener. Know exactly who you help. You want hosts to say, "I have those people in my audience. You'd be a great fit." If I tell you my show is for entrepreneurs, what does that mean? Steve Jobs was an entrepreneur. So is my nephew Jimmy running his roofing business off his dining room table. Who are we talking about? On the other hand, I could tell you I help coaches attract their ideal clients by using their podcast to become the known, go-to authority in their niche. Now, that is a lot clearer than simply entrepreneurs. Before you attend a conference, know exactly who you are trying to attract and who would make the ideal partner. PROTOCOL In terms of protocol, don't look for clients. Look for partners. Seek to help first, and you'll do just fine. Get involved in the events. Have conversations in the hallways. Ask questions at every session, so people become familiar with you. When my buddy Rem attended Podcast Movement, he was the first at the mic in every session I attended. By the end of that conference, everyone knew who Rem was and what his podcast was about. It is one tactic most people miss. When they see you on the mic, you'll have more conversations than you can imagine. DO YOU HAVE QUESTIONS? If you have questions regarding your podcast strategy, email me at Coach at podcasttalentcoach.com. I might just answer your question right here on the show. You can also apply to have a call with me by filling out the application form at http://www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply.

As we celebrate 500 episodes of Podcast Talent Coach, I want to share with you six mentors who have shaped my journey over the past 10 years. LEARNING FROM MENTORS I learned long ago that I don't know everything and never will. Every experience is an opportunity to learn something. Conferences and conventions are always such a powerful experience for me. Many people say they rarely go to the session and instead have conversations in the halls. I can understand that. But, I think they are missing the power of the collective mind. Mingling in the halls during a conference will definitely grow your network. It has a place in your business. However if you skip all the sessions, you are missing ideas that could take your business to an entirely new level. We would attend the Country Radio Seminar every year in radio. I would travel with my music director for the station. During the day, we would take in all the sessions of the conferences. At night, we would split up to attend events and network with artists and record labels. From the sessions, we would learn new ideas to implement with the stations. At night, we would network with people who could help us implement those ideas. Then one day our company decided it wasn't necessary for both of us to be there. That single decision cut our learning in half and diminished the networking we were able to do. The company thought the conference was nothing but a party. It may have been for those who spent all of their time in the halls. When you're learning from mentors and expanding your thinking, things are possible beyond your imagination. These six mentors helped my achieve levels bigger than I every dreamed. It is my hope that these nuggets spur some new ideas for you as well. DAN MILLER The first is the mentor who has influenced my life the longest. Dan Miller's book and podcast "48 Days To The Work You Love" inspired me to follow my dream and start my own business. Dan is author of the New York Times best-selling 48 Days To The Work You Love and Wisdom Meets Passion, No More Dreaded Monday and An Understanding Heart. His 48 Days Podcast consistently ranks in the top 1% of all podcasts worldwide and his 48DaysEagles.com community is viewed as an example around the world for those seeking to find – or create – the work and the life they love. His podcast sits at the center of his multiple streams of income. Unfortunately, we lost Dan in January of this year after a very brief battle with cancer. Dan's attitude through that entire struggle was impressive and uplifting. He kept asking as he always did, "What does this make possible?" Dan saw the silver lining in every cloud. He was an amazing man and a mentor to me in so many ways. Dan joined my on Episode 466 to discuss multiple streams of income. You can find the episode at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/466. DAN'S NUGGETS Here are a few nuggets from that episode. Resilience in the Face of Adversity: "When we hit Covid and I couldn't have live events for a couple years there, that had been a big resource for us, a big revenue stream, but not being able to have live events, it didn't really affect us. My revenue continued to go up because we made content available to people in other ways that they could experience, even if they didn't come to Franklin, Tennessee."— Dan Miller 00:24:39 – 00:25:03. Life Reassessment in Midlife Careers: "What surprised me is I had doctors and dentists and pastors and engineers and accountants showing up and why you guys here? And it was like, well, we're doing okay. You know, everybody looking in from the outside to see us is doing okay, but I don't think this is it."— Dan Miller 00:26:29 – 00:26:45. How to Turn Your Writing into Income: "How do you take just a raw idea and turn it into real income? But those came directly from people asking, how do I do that?"— Dan Miller 00:30:42 – 00:30:50. Easy Income Streams for Podcasters: "The easiest next step is coaching. Because if you have a podcast and you're talking about personal development and growth or business success or how to scale or those things, you're inevitably going to have people ringing your doorbell saying, can I talk to you?"— Dan Miller 00:44:47 – 00:45:43. I'll always cherish everything I've learned from Dan and all the inspiration he provided. You can find more about Dan at https://www.48days.com. MARC MAWHINNEY The next mentor who has been a big influence on me over the past decade and 500 episodes was one of my very first coaches. Marc Mawhinney is a lifelong entrepreneur who helps coaches get more clients without paid advertising! He achieves this with his coaching programs, his podcast Natural Born Coaches, his Facebook group The Coaching Jungle, and his Secret Coach Club. Marc has been a speaker at events like Social Media Marketing World, frequently makes media appearances and contributes for Entrepreneur.com. He is a master at joint venture partnerships. I discovered Marc through his Coaching Jungle Facebook group and he soon became my coach. He taught me the power of sending a daily email. Our coaching sessions helped me refine my offers and get my business to the next level. Marc appeared on episode 333 with me to discuss the power of joint venture partnerships. You can find the episode at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/333. MARC'S GEMS Here are a few gems Marc shared during our conversation. Stand Firm on Your Beliefs: "Sure, you're going to turn some people off, but you're going to attract the people who you want to attract, and that's exactly what you do."— Marc Mawhinney 00:16:25 – 00:16:31. The Importance of Community for Coaches: "Whatever you do, you need a place to gather your potential clients. You know, people to get to know, like and trust you."— Marc Mawhinney 00:20:27 – 00:20:34. Viral Topic - The Power of Community: "I can't count how many times someone said to me, mark, I love your Facebook group. It's helped me so much the last few years."— Marc Mawhinney 00:20:55 – 00:21:44. I can't thank Marc enough for pointing me in the right direction with his coaching. Find Marc in his Coaching Jungle Facebook group. CINDY J. HOLBROOK One day Marc was invited to participate in a giveaway. It didn't fit in his marketing plan at the time, so he sent the organizer to me feeling we might work well together. That organizer was Cindy J, The Visibility Wiz. Not only did I participate in her giveaway, Cindy soon became my next coach and she's one of the best in the business. Cindy guides entrepreneurs and small business owners to thrive as you go up the ladder from being the best-kept secret to Trusted and In-Demand Authority. She has been coaching since 2009. Through our work together, Cindy taught me the power of visibility, how to use giveaways to grow my list, and ways to partner with others. She is simply an all around great person. I love her to death and really appreciate all she has given me over the years. Cindy was on episode 479 of Podcast Talent Coach to talk about visibility. You can find the episode at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/479. CINDY'S SUGGESTIONS Here are a few things we learned in that episode. From Social Services to Coaching Success: "But I have all this knowledge of the online world that I utilized to get clients. And, I was able to leave social services within 2 years of becoming a coach, and that's when I started attending a lot of events. And people were constantly coming up to me."— Cindy J. Holbrook 00:20:23 – 00:20:41. Title: Maximizing Advertising DollarsQuote: "My advertising dollars goes towards participating in giveaways or speaking in front of people, you know, being a sponsor at events. That's where my advertising dollars go because I get more return on my money that way."— Cindy J. Holbrook 00:35:04 – 00:35:18. The Power of Collaboration: "I didn't start collaborating with other experts till, 2014. And that's what finally pushed me over to 6 figures was whenever I started collaborating with other experts."— Cindy J. Holbrook 00:39:11 – 00:39:24. How to Boost Your Business Today: "If you start doing something every day, you make sure you do at least 1 money making activity Monday through Friday or whatever your workdays are. You're going to start seeing an increase in everything, in visibility, influence, and profits."— Cindy J. Holbrook 00:42:44 – 00:42:58. Cindy is amazing when it come to leveling up your visibility. Find her online at https://www.cindyjholbrook.com. IMAN AGHAY After I was working with Cindy for a few months, she suggest I attend Collaborate. It was an amazing 3-day event to meet JV partners. This one event changed my business more than I could ever have imagined. At the time, Collaborate was run by Iman Aghay and Rich German. Iman has been so influential in so many aspects of my business. Through this event, Iman taught me how to properly joint venture with others. He has taught me how to create my courses and events. More importantly, Iman showed my how to sell what I do. Iman Aghay is a serial entrepreneur, international speaker, and a nine-time #1 best-selling author. He is best known as the co-founder of Actionera, a platform that assists experts in building mobile apps to enhance their income and impact. Iman hasn't been on the podcast. However, I did a deep dive into finding promotional partners using everything Iman taught me. You can find that in episode 391 at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/391. IMAN'S INSPIRATION Here are few takeaways from that episode. How to Skyrocket Your Podcast Growth: "Just imagine how your podcast and your business could grow if you could find 40 partners who would be willing to promote you to their fans, to their tribe, to their followers."— Erik K. Johnson 00:01:07 – 00:01:14. The Best Part of Pitch Refinement: "But the best part is everybody in the circle's on the same page with regard to who talks, what they talk about, how long they talk. There's no pressure. You don't need to awkwardly walk up to anyone to strike up a conversation like you would in a at a networking event."— Erik K. Johnson 00:06:20 – 00:06:38. Power of Partnerships: "I've been able to grow my email list from about 500 to nearly 4,500. My podcast downloads have doubled. I've made affiliate commissions from promoting those partners, and I had partners promote my courses and my coaching to their audience as well just to help me grow."— Erik K. Johnson 00:10:08 – 00:10:30. The Power of Partnership: "If you wanna go fast, travel alone. If you wanna go far, travel together."— Erik K. Johnson 00:10:53 – 00:11:01. Iman Aghay is an amazing online marketer. He is also the co-owner of Actionera. It is a platform to help you build your own mobile app. Find details on Collaborate at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/collaborate. You can learn more about Actionera at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/actionera and find Iman at https://www.imanaghay.com. JIM PADILLA While I was attending one of the Collaborate events, Iman invited a guest speaker to that event. That guest talked a lot about actually making sales. He was Jim Padilla and he is my fifth mentor on this journey. Jim is a Global Impact Strategist & Investor and the founder and CEO of Gain The Edge. It's a done-for-you provider of industry-leading sales systems and unicorn sales professionals. Jim co-heads Gain the Edge with his amazing wife, Cyndi Padilla. The two of them have generated over quarter billion dollars in sales for a long line of high-level entrepreneurs. Jim's mission is to help purpose-driven thought-leaders untangle themselves from the day-to-day minutiae of seeking leads and sales, so they're free to amplify their impact - while scaling their business! Shortly after getting into Jim's world, he became my coach. Jim helps me build my sales systems and strategies. I've gone from being an entrepreneur to actually running a business. The transformation has been amazing. Jim joined me on episode 465 to discuss making sales. If you want to increase your sales, find this episode at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/465. JIM'S GENIUS Here are few nuggets from my conversation with Jim. From Struggle to Success: "And little did I know that, you know, 20 years later, I'd be making 1,000,000 of dollars teaching other people how to read the room and how to bend influence in their direction so you can be asset instead of a threat to the people who show up in your world, and then they wanna be able to buy from you and give you their credit card."— Jim Padilla 00:12:06 – 00:12:58. The Core of True Expertise: "What people need to dive into is they understand that you're an expert, but they really need to understand who you are as a person and why what you do matters."— Jim Padilla 00:19:07 – 00:19:11. Seeing Opportunities in Chaos: "All they see is all the problems that are in the world are truly just opportunities waiting to be solved if you know how to talk about it and know how to articulate it and to see things differently."— Jim Padilla 00:24:57 – 00:25:04. Maximizing Your Existing Network: "Most obvious buyers you have are the people who already bought from you."— Jim Padilla 00:44:07 – 00:44:10. Jim and Cyndi are amazing. Find them at https://www.gaintheedgenow.com. DAVE JACKSON The last mentor I want to share with you is the guy who became the inspiration for this podcast. In 2013 I was writing articles about podcasting for New Media Expo. Out of the blue, I got an email from Dave Jackson at the School of Podcasting. He was interested in having a conversation to see how we might support each other. During that conversation, Dave said he loved my articles. Then he asked why I didn't have a podcast of my own. Great question, Dave. If I'm writing about podcasting, shouldn't I have a show of my own. Shortly after that conversation, this show was born. And our friendship has continued over the years. Dave Jackson launched the School of Podcasting in 2005. He was inducted into the Podcasting Hall of Fame in 2018. He is the author of the book, Profit from Your Podcast: Proven Strategies to Turn Listeners into a Livelihood. Over the years he has launched over 30 different podcasts with over 4 million downloads. Dave and I currently co-host the Podcast Review Show where we help podcasters improve. You can find that show at https://www.podcastreviewshow.com. Dave was a guest on episode 485 to talk all things podcasting. You can listen to that episode at www.podcasttalentcoach.com/485. DAVE'S BRILLIANCE Here are a few takeaways from my conversation with Dave. Viral Topic: The Importance of Mic Technique: "When I moved into this house had no carpet, and it was just this giant echo chamber. So the first thing I did was, like, okay. We need we need a carpet. We need some rug, something like that."— Dave Jackson 00:32:58 – 00:33:07. The Blue Yeti Misconception: "Technically, it's not a bad microphone, but what most people overlook is that thing can pick up, if you want, in every single direction. Well, that's just screaming, pick up the neighbor's lawnmower and everything else."— Dave Jackson 00:33:44 – 00:33:57. Mastering Freelance Success: "If I'm trying to position myself as an expert, I either want to interview people who know the people that should be hiring me or in some cases, just interview the people who should be hiring me."— Dave Jackson 00:37:54 – 00:38:03. Big thanks to Dave Jackson for all the help and inspiration over the years. Find Dave at www.SchoolofPodcasting.com. FIND YOUR MENTOR Those are six mentors who have had the biggest impact on my journey. There are so many other people who have inspired, helped, and collaborated with me over the years and through these 500 episodes. I would never have enough time to name all of them. From my wife Jen, to Jon Fugler and the various members of our mastermind over the years. From the clients, partners, and supporters, each has played a part in this journey. But most of all, I want to thank you. Without your support week after week and episode after episode, this show would never have reached 500 episodes. Thanks for being here. Thanks for allowing me to be part of your podcast journey. Let me know how I can help. If you don't have a mentor who can take your hand and walk you every step of the way, go to www.PodcastTalentCoach.com/apply, click the button and apply to have a chat with me. We will develop your plan and see how I can help and support you to achieve your podcast goals.