May 23, 2025 • 36 mins
Episode 102 Conversations Over Funnels: The New Era of Marketing with Tom Schwab Frederick Dudek (Freddy D) Copyright 2025 Prosperous Ventures, LLC
Unlock the secrets to business growth with Tom Schwab, the godfather of podcast interview marketing. In this episode, we dive deep into how meaningful conversations can be your game-changer in a crowded marketplace. Tom shares invaluable insights from his experience with over 1500 clients, revealing why you’re not just one funnel away from success, but rather one conversation that could transform your business.
We explore the importance of storytelling, building trust, and leveraging podcasting as a powerful marketing channel. If you’re ready to elevate your brand and connect with your audience authentically, this episode is your go-to guide.
Discover more with our detailed show notes and exclusive content by visiting: https://bit.ly/44RsQuK
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Engaging in a powerful dialogue with Tom Schwab, a recognized innovator in podcast interview marketing, brings to light the essential shift in how businesses can connect with their ideal audience. Tom, a Navy veteran with a background in engineering, founded Interview Valet, which has transformed the marketing landscape for over 1500 clients, including Fortune 500 companies and elite coaches. This episode delves deep into the philosophy that today’s businesses aren’t merely one funnel away from success; they are one conversation away. Tom emphasizes the significance of authentic connections and how leveraging podcast interviews can create meaningful engagements that not only attract potential clients but also foster trust and loyalty. The conversation highlights the evolution of marketing from simply capturing attention to building genuine relationships, asserting that trust is now the currency of choice in business interactions.
Throughout the discussion, Tom shares insights into his personal journey, revealing how his experiences in corporate America and the military shaped his understanding of effective communication. He provides actionable advice for listeners, urging them to focus on storytelling as a means to convey their value and expertise rather than resorting to traditional sales tactics. By encouraging business leaders to embrace their narratives, Tom illustrates how sharing experiences can resonate with audiences on a deeper level. This episode serves as a reminder that in a world filled with noise, it’s the conversations that truly matter, and those who can connect authentically will rise above the competition.
Listeners will walk away with practical strategies to implement in their own marketing efforts, including the importance of selecting the right podcasts for guest appearances and crafting compelling messages that engage listeners. With an emphasis on the old-school marketing principle of building relationships, Tom’s approach underscores a refreshing perspective in the digital age, where personal touch often leads to lasting business success. This episode is not just about marketing; it's about creating advocates for your brand through genuine interactions and shared stories, a must-listen for anyone looking to elevate their business game.
This podcast is hosted by Captivate, try it yourself for free.
Takeaways:
- Podcast interviews are the new marketing channels, transforming passive listeners into engaged leads.
- Building genuine relationships is crucial; it's not just about selling products, it's about connecting.
- Success in business comes...
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(02:07):
Hey, superfan superstarFreddie D. Here in this episode 102,
we're joined by Tom Schwab,the godfather of podcast interview
marketing and a true pioneerin using podcast guest appearances
and AI powered strategies todrive business growth. As the founder
of Interview Valet, Tom hashelped over 1500 clients, from Fortune
(02:31):
500 companies to elitecoaches, turn meaningful conversations
into real conversions. With abackground as a Navy veteran and
an engineer, Tom blendsanalytical precision with bold marketing
innovation. He's also theauthor of Podcast Guest Profits,
widely considered the bible ofpodcast marketing. Get ready. Tom's
(02:55):
here to show us why you're notjust one funnel away, but one conversation
away from growing yourbusiness. Let's dive in. Welcome,
Tom, to the Business Superfans podcast.
Freddy, I am thrilled to be here.
Yeah, we're excited to haveyou. We had a great conversation
before we started recording.We both spent some time in Chicago
(03:16):
and talked about the Bears andthe Cubs and all that stuff and being
super fans of those teams. So,yeah, excited to have you.
Oh, excited to be here. Andit's like, yeah, that the idea of
we promote what we loveprobably more than they do, right?
Absolutely.
I didn't know the Cubs wereplaying their opener until my brother
(03:36):
in law told me about it. Andhe was promoting it more than the
owner of the company was.
Sure. So, Tom, what is yourbackstory? I know you've been an
engineer, you've been involvedin the military and things like that.
What's the story that came upto create Interview Valet? I mean,
there's a whole backstory thattook place before Interview Valet
(03:58):
arrived.
You know, it only makes sensein the rearview mirror. I'm an engineer
by degree. I've worked incorporate America. My last company
before this was HubSpot'sfirst E Commerce case study in about
2014. People said, well, howdid you grow that company from a
regional player to a nationalleader and sell it? I said it was
guest blogs, but they don'twork anymore. I hypothesized that
(04:23):
for the same reason we tappedinto that audience, you could do
the same thing with podcastinterviews. My grandfather, God rest
his soul, was doing it. He'dgo to the country club, he'd go to
the rotary. And people havebeen doing it as seen on tv, as seen
on radio.
Right.
And now it's really leveragingother people's audiences on podcast
(04:44):
interviews. We've been doingit a decade. We've got a team of
22 that works with thoughtleaders to get them on podcast interviews
as a marketing channel. And Ithink it's a great way to put your
point of view out there, thevision, and attract the super fans.
Right. I always say peoplewill either turn you up or turn you
(05:04):
off. Either one is fine.
Sure. And what you brought upthere is really important because
it is the new way of marketingthese days, because now you can share
your authenticity, providevalue, and it positions you as an
expert in your vertical. It'sshareable. So it's not like just
direct mail where you send outthe one piece to an individual. In
(05:27):
today's world, you can sharethe podcast, hey, you need to listen
to this episode. And we canbring up our smartphone and you can
forward the link to thatperson. It's a whole different ecosystem
of communications.
It is. And I think we've gonebeyond attention to trust, because
for so long, people werebuying attention. And that's what
the influencers do, they buyattention on social media, but people
(05:50):
aren't buying from them,they're buying from people that they
trust. And I think it's aninteresting dilemma now, right? It's
not that loud, counterablemarker that's getting all the business.
No, it's the practitioner,that humble hero sharing their information.
And now the platforms existwhere they can do that and really
reach their clients whereverthey are.
(06:12):
And we're kind of blending newschool, which is all the modern social
media stuff, and the platformsand the tools, and now AIs come into
the conversation. But the guysthat are really accelerating are
still those that bring in oldschool stuff back into there. So
it's just like you just said,Tom, building that reputation, providing
that value, acknowledgingpeople's birthday, recognition. One
(06:34):
of the things I talk about isthe little things are really the
big things in today's world.
I had a client that called itWarren Buffett Marketing. And I said,
well, what do you mean? And hesaid, well, Warren Buffett would
never invest in anything hedidn't understand.
Right.
Consequently, he lost out onApple. But he said, for too long,
(06:57):
I've been spending money onmarketing that I didn't understand
for decades, spent money onSEO, trying to chase this elusive
algorithm. And he's like, nowI've got to understand the marketing,
and if I can go someplace, getintroduced by the thought leader,
right? Have a discussion withpeople I know that drives my business,
(07:19):
Right? And there's like thesame things you were talking about
where you acknowledgesomebody, you wish them a happy birthday,
you acknowledge theirpromotion, those little things, and
people will say, well, thosearen't scalable. Well, it may not
Be scalable. But you knowwhat? They're really effective. And
I think too often now in lifewe're getting more efficient at things
(07:42):
that are getting less effective.
Right.
Where they're like, I couldsend a million emails right now and
they'd all go to spam. Youknow, why don't you just talk to
one person?
What a novel concept, right? Imean, it's quite interesting because
my success in sales was therelationships I built in helping
(08:03):
those individuals achievetheir goals and their aspirations
at the companies that theywere at. I got involved in the inception
of SAS basically in computeraided design and computer manufacturing.
We called it CAD Cam MarketSpace. I was selling to tool and
die shops and the objectivewas not selling the technology, even
though that was my job. Ievolved to where I was really looking
(08:25):
at the business strategy forthem and how my tool helped them
get that goal and thenmaintaining that relationship afterwards.
They became my superfan andthey were promoting me and said,
you need to talk to this shopand that shop. It collapsed the whole
sales cycle. Because now I wasan invited guest.
(08:47):
Exactly. I mentioned the lastcompany we built, the guest blogs,
but as you said that the waywe really got it off the ground was
all personal referrals. We'dwork with one client and they happen
to be orthopedic surgeons. Theorthopedic surgeons would talk to
other orthopedic surgeons andthey were solving the problem. And
it was, go talk to Schwabi. Istarted to get calls from it. That's
(09:10):
the best kind of marketing.When you don't have to pay for it,
you don't have to do it.You've got other people marketing
selling for you. And thatmakes it fun too.
Yeah. And that's where I comeup with the term. They're a super
fan. They're a super fan ofyou. They're taking time out of their
day to promote you because ofwhat you've done for them. You know,
(09:30):
there's an old saying, peopleforget what you said, people forget
what you did, but everybodywill remember how you made them feel.
Exactly.
So let's go into what doesinterview valet do?
So our point of view is thateverybody's biggest problem is obscurity.
Right.
(09:51):
There are thousands of peopleright now that would buy your product
or service. They just don'tknow you exist. So the question is
how to get known. Right. Somany people will say, just break
through the noise.
Right.
Most people are just adding tothe noise. I'd rather get in on the
conversation. So we're workingwith coaches, consultants, professional
(10:13):
services, category designers,even a lot of nonfiction authors
to go out there and identifythe right podcasts that their ideal
clients are listening to. Thencraft the message so that you're
interesting to the podcast. Wereach out to the podcast hosts. We've
(10:34):
got relationships, we've beendoing it for a decade. And really
it's more than just podcastguesting. It's using it as a marketing
channel to help move peoplefrom being a passive listener to
an actor visitor, to anengaged lead. So we help people use
podcast interviews as amarketing channel.
(10:55):
Now, do you work with theguests to help them understand if
they've never done podcasting,what do you do with this? Say, okay,
I raise my hand, says, yes,I'd love to be on podcasts. I've
never done one. What do I do?
Yes. And we work with them.We'll give them all the equipment
so that they sound great. Wedo a practice interview and it's
(11:15):
interesting. We've got theentire gamut, right? So we've got
some people that are mediatrained, but we've got to talk with
them. And it's like, this isnot television. You've got to tell
stories, right? You've got togive longer answers. A lot of the
people we work with, Freddie,are introverts and they're like,
well, what will I talk about?And I'm like, this is the great part,
(11:37):
is it's not like giving a 45minute keynote. It's just having
a discussion. And I thinkintroverts really excel there because
they're used to one on oneconversations. Pretty much everybody's
comfortable on Zoom now. Andthey talk about their business, they
talk about their passions.Nobody's going to ask me about my
(12:00):
opinion on macroeconomicpolicies. I've got no expertise in
that. But as we talk about thebusiness and things that I'm interested
in, those are the things thatpeople ask you. People are more ready
for podcasts than ever andwill also listen to their first few
podcasts to give feedback. Oneof the most common feedback is slow
(12:22):
down. 70% of all podcasts arelistened to sped up. Often people
get excited. They'll talkfaster and faster. I always give
this example. Early on, abuddy of mine said, why did you call
the company Interview Ballet?And I'm like, no, it's interview
with a V. I said, ballet,that's stupid. He's like, I thought
(12:44):
so too, but you say so dangfast. That's what I heard. So I had
to remind myself to slow downon the interviews. We help our clients
with all of that.
You bring up an interestingpoint, because I was saying, business
superfans super fast, and itwas picking it up. And you would
listen, it would say businesssuper fan, not super fans. Those
(13:05):
little things. Go back to thelittle things are the big things.
So I've slowed down in how Iintroduced the show. Just like you
said, it was boom, boom, boom.But the other thing that you brought
up, Tom, that's reallyimportant, and I want to reiterate
that is stories sell. When Iwould sell manufacturing software,
web design services forinterpreting services, I always incorporated
(13:27):
a story into it to pullsomebody in. It wasn't always about
how cool my stuff was. It washow my stuff helped somebody else
go from this point in businessto that point in business, people
were intrigued. They said,well, geez, I want to have that happen
to my business. And so nowthey were emotionally connected to
(13:49):
the conversation, and thatcollapsed the whole sales cycle.
You're so spot on. And thestory should not be about me and
my product or my service. Iremember early on my last company,
I was covering the phonesduring lunchtime, and a happy customer
called in and he's like, youguys are just like Preparation H.
(14:12):
I paused. He's like, yeah,it's a compliment. He said, you provided
fast relief. You wererecommended. And it really struck
me that nobody cares about ourproduct or service. They care about
the problem in their rear end.If you can start telling stories
about the person that had asimilar problem as you, this is what
(14:33):
we did for them. This is therelief they got. Boy, people will
start to relate to that. Ithink that's the key to any story,
is to put the spotlight not onyou, but on the customer. Another
super fan and say, you can bejust like them.
Also, Yeah, I saw a brilliantmarketing strategy done via video,
(14:54):
and I'm going to share thestory because it was quite brilliant
the way they did it. Thecompany was an interpreting company.
It was a competitor for thecompany I was working with. Nate
did a video of an agencyproviding services for multilingual
children. I don't remember allthe details specifically, but the
(15:16):
video was more about theorganization. And it just happened
to be that this interpretingcompany was providing the interpreting
so that they could do the jobthey were doing with these children.
The focus was really on theservices company that was doing it.
These guys were behind thescenes that made it happen. And it
(15:39):
really stuck me as someingenious marketing. It wasn't talking
about how wonderful I am. Itwas really, look at the great Things
that these people are doing,and we're just the guys behind the
curtain pulling the levers andhelping make them look like rock
stars.
And the flip side is if I putthe spotlight on myself and it's
(16:00):
just like, look at me, dothis, do that, I might get some attention,
but I'm not going to get thetrust, I'm not going to get the empathy.
And it's funny. Even in socialmedia now, there's a thought that
the more eyeballs, right, thatyou've got in a picture or a video,
the more trust it gets and themore they amplify it. So if it's
just me in a picture, it goesto a certain level, but if it's me
(16:23):
and other people, it goes to adifferent level. People just like
that, right? There's that oldjoke of, you know, how do you sell
newspapers in a small town?Put everybody's name in it, right?
Everybody will buy a copy ofit and their mom will buy five. You
go back to that example thatyou gave every one of those people
that their face was in thatadvertisement. They're going to promote
(16:48):
that. If you look on ourwebsite early on, I said, this is
not the Tom Schwab show,right? This is not about me. It's
about our clients. Every monthwe update the image on the top. It's
always four different clients.It's usually diverse. A couple females,
a couple males, younger,older, different industries. I highlight
(17:11):
them and give them moreexposure. My title is chief evangelist
Officer. I'm supposed to beevangelizing for my company, my team
for my category and all ofthose things. Turning the spotlight
on your super fans gives themthe love, appreciation and encouragement
(17:31):
to go out and promote you.
Sure, sure. So Tom, share astory of somebody that was hesitant,
never done a podcast before,was a business owner, and then how
you guys brought him into youragency, got him set up, and that
in turn helped grow their business.
Yeah, there's so many outthere. But the common theme that
(17:54):
we have is I can think of oneguy, Kevin, he came and he's like,
what would I talk about? And Ibelieve that what's ordinary to you
is amazing to others. Whatthis person had thought about and
gone through resonated with somany people. He was doing alternative
investments, self storageunits, and he wanted to talk with
(18:15):
other people like him. Salesreps making a lot of money but paying
a lot of taxes. They were toobusy to invest. He made this story
and I'm like, that's amazing.But it was ordinary to him. So we
Started to focus on what arethe themes and topics to talk about?
Who do you talk to? And westarted to really boil it down based
(18:37):
on data. Where are thesepeople listening to podcasts? Then
he got out there and talkedabout his story, how he got into
it and how it changed hislife. Some of the people he worked
with, and we weren't probablythree months into it, he's calling
me, thanking me so much. Heexpected to get more leads and more
(18:57):
traffic, but he's like, I'mnot getting more leads, I'm getting
better leads. And I thinktoday everybody's talked about this
sales funnel, right. If I canget a thousand people at the top,
I'll get one out of thebottom. And what he saw and what
so many people see frompodcast interview marketing is they
go from a sales funnel to acylinder. He talks and people either
(19:20):
turn him up or turn him off.And that's fine because now he can
talk to five people and havefour become clients. And that's really
the power of the conversation.One of the things I always say, I
learned so much from ourclients. One of them said, I used
to believe that I was onefunnel away. I just build a funnel
and fill it.
(19:41):
Right.
And he's like, now I realizeI'm one conversation away. And that's
what we've seen so much withdifferent clients. He built his entire
business off of that. Heenjoyed it. It was consistent with
his marketing and what hewanted to do. It was so great because
not only did it help him, butit helped all of those people that
heard him and became clients.
(20:03):
Yeah. So I went back to old school.
Conversation conversations arepowerful. And I think especially
today in the AI world, Right.I get emails and it's like, I don't
know if this is a real personor not. I'm sure not going to invest
major amounts of money becauseI got some spam email. But if I hear
somebody and it's like, wow,they understand me, that trust builds
(20:28):
there and it becomes. Thesales calls after a podcast interview
are really interesting. Youknow, Freddie being a sales guy,
they're not so much salescalls anymore. They're qualification
calls.
Right.
Because the people havealready heard you, they've checked
you out, they've listened.They already have said, yes, I like
you, I appreciate your values.
(20:49):
Right.
I want to work with you. Soreally it's more of a qualification
call. Is this a good fit?
Yeah, it goes back to one ofthe sales approaches I used back
in the day when the technologywas new and computer aided design
and manufacturing were new. Iwould invite a lunch and learn to
all the VP of Engineering, VPof Manufacturing. We didn't really
(21:10):
try to sell this technology.We presented how it's transforming
the manufacturing space,demonstrated our product to drive
the point home. But it wasn't.Look at how wonderful it is. And
it turns this and it flipsthat, and it saves time. We incorporated
that in there, just like yousaid. I got invited back to these
(21:32):
shops and take a look and tellus how this could potentially transform
our business. They invited mein. I was like inviting the fox into
the hen house. Yeah, becauseyou invited me in. So now you're
already buying, just like yousaid. Those people that are calling
in from hearing them onmultiple podcasts are inviting that
(21:55):
person into their world. It'sa completely different sales approach.
It collapses that cycle. Andyou don't get into the conversation
so much about pricing and allthat stuff because they're already
sold.
There's a phrase out therecalled category design, and it's
very powerful. And one of thebig things with that is to have a
(22:16):
strong point of view. And Ican think of one client we worked
with, Spiro AI. It's a CRMcompany. Their big thing was they
hated CRM too. And they wouldcome out and say that it's broken.
It's not easy to work with.That's why we're anti CRM. Once people
are like, oh, yeah, I agreewith that too, then they would look
(22:38):
at them and say, oh, you'vegot a different way of doing this.
Accomplishes a similar thing.But all of a sudden, we're not talking
across the table anymore. Nowwe're partners. We're both on the
same side of the table. Andjust like you said, you get invited
in as a peer. And I always sayif you talk about the problem, if
you talk about that point ofview, but now we're talking shoulder
(23:01):
to shoulder. If you're justtalking about your product, now we're
talking across the table, right?
Yep. Yep. Those were one ofthe things I had learned when I would
sit there and talk to theowners of the company. What were
their challenges and issuesand what was holding them back and
stuff like that. And then westarted talking about their vision
and everything else. We didn'tget into the tools tool, and it was
(23:24):
really about the objective andhow can this tool help them accomplish
that. A lot of those customerswere my superfans. I wasn't the world's
greatest prospector, but I hadthe best team promoting me to all
their peers.
I think there's a differencebetween selling a product or a widget
(23:46):
and selling a service. Toooften the people that are selling
$7 products are saying you canuse same thing to sell your high
ticket offer or service. Ifthat was the case, Boeing and Ernst
and Young would be selling offof Facebook ads and masterclasses
(24:07):
and webinars.
Right.
It's not the same thing. Andso this idea of that, it's not just
a transaction.
Right.
It's one thing to sell a product.
Right.
Because if all they're lookingat is the spec sheet, they don't
need you as a sales rep.
Right.
We'll just look at the specsheet of the different ones. But
what they were really buyingwas the service, the support, everything
(24:29):
that went with that. Andthat's the intangible. And that's
where you bring value andpeople see the differentiation there.
Right.
I am not a Cubs fan becausethey have the best winning record.
I am not a super fan of theCubs based on the spec sheet. No.
It's the emotional tie topeople buy.
(24:51):
Emotionally and justifylogically has been like that forever
and will always be that way.With the Cubs the perfect example
because you've got the superfans that are die hard. They did
win one World Series, but theywaited 100 years for that to happen.
But it did happen. Wewitnessed it. People today are getting
(25:11):
caught up in the speed oftrying to be an influencer and really
not building thatrelationship. You really need to
blend the two. You need toblend the relationship, old school
relationship with today's newway of incorporating AI to really
differentiate yourself fromthose sitting on the sidelines. I
(25:32):
have a saying that there'sthree types of people. Those that
make things happen, those thatwatch things happen, and those that
wonder what the heck happened.
What happened. I remember thatone from the Navy. I think of another
one that Christopher Lockhead,father of categories Zion, talks
about. He's like, there'sthree types of businesses. Those
that suck, those that don'tsuck, and those that are legendary.
(25:57):
And the only ones that peopletalk about are the ones that are
legendary, right? Maybe badreviews for the ones that are really
bad. But you want to just belegendary, something that people
can remark about. That's thewhole idea of being remarkable, being
such that someone would remarkabout your company.
And I think that's some of thestuff that you guys do because you
(26:19):
guys have sent me some greatreferrals and great guests to the
show. They've been greatpeople, great guests on the show.
And we've had Some greatconversations. So a testament to
the things that you guys do.I'm a super fan of Interview Valet
because of the quality of theguests that you've brought on to
my show.
I appreciate that. We've beendoing it for a decade, and one of
(26:42):
our core principles is heckyes or no. When somebody comes to
our company, I talk with allof the prospects, and there's two
questions, right? Can we bringthem great results? And they can
they bring great value to apodcast? Both of those have to be
a heck yes before we eventhink about engaging with them. We
(27:06):
look at it and say, we're aheck yes. And then they've got to
be a heck yes, too. This ideaof, well, maybe never works out.
Right? Right.
I want to be a heck yes or ano. And it's the same way with the
podcast we work with. We'reproud to work with them. Is this
a great podcast? Heck yes.Then we work with them. If not, no
(27:26):
judgment, but no, we don'twork with them.
That's an important thing,because same thing with whatever
you're doing in life. That's alife statement. Because when you
look at that and think aboutit, we make decisions based on the
experiences that weexperience. At the end of the day,
(27:49):
you go to a restaurant andit's a bad experience. You don't
go back. You buy something,and the onboarding experience is
not good. You don't go back.You're not a super fan. In today's
world, we look at all thereviews, pull out our smartphone,
and see what everybody'ssaying. It's a social proof. Before
(28:10):
you make a decision, you'redoing that, in a sense, of how you're
qualifying the people thatyou're representing and the podcast
that you're promoting thosepeople. Yeah.
And it's one of these thingswhere I've gotten to the age where
I don't make judgments. I trynot to make judgments, but I can
say whether or not you alignwith us and the podcast we work with
(28:31):
or whether you don't.
Right.
Our mission is to personallyintroduce inspiring thought leaders
to millions of people theycould serve for the betterment of
all. And I remember when Ishowed that to my mom, she's like,
what's that got to do withpodcasts? And I'm like, it's not
about the podcast. It's aboutthose connections and the discussions.
It's really important that wesee life as a win for everybody.
(28:56):
Right.
For the betterment of all.That means the host has to win the
audience has to win, theclient has to win. So it's not just
using and abusing an audience.That's important. And the other one
too is inspiring thought leader.
Right.
There are people out therethat in 2025 are teaching you how
(29:17):
to write a blog that's so old,I'm not interested in that anymore.
Or other ones that arepromoting things that amplify the
darkness. I want inspiringthought leaders that have new ideas
and can help us see the futureand make the best out of that.
Yeah, because like you justsaid, blogging is important, but
(29:39):
it's more yesteryear. Andtoday podcast is probably the new
blogging. In a sense.
It is. And I laugh sometimeswhen I hear the word podcast.
Right.
Podcasts have been around now,what, over 20 years. The pod refers
to an ipod. Most of the peoplethat are listening to podcasts today
have never owned an ipod intheir life. But it's still called
(30:01):
a podcast. Right. They couldbe listening to it on terrestrial
radio. Still a podcast.
Right.
They could be watching it onYouTube, I guess. It's still a podcast,
right? Today they say JoeRogan gets heard by 100 million people.
And Freddie, when I heard thatstat, I was like, there is no way
(30:22):
one out of three adults in theUS is listening to a three hour podcast.
So I looked in our databaseand he gets 2.2 million downloads
per episode. That makes himthe number one podcast in the U.S.
the other 98 million people,they're listening to that 60 second
clip or that 90 second clip,and that's where they're getting
(30:45):
the information. So I don'tcare what they call it. It's just
so that people get connectedwith the right ideas.
No, that's a really good pointthat you bring up because the majority
are really listening to thesnippet, because a lot of times that's
where you put the value.
And it's one of those thingswhere there's a lot of problems in
(31:05):
the world, but there's nobetter time to be alive. I'm an engineer
by degree and I've written alot of blogs in my life, but every
one of them felt like ahomework assignment. Now we can just
talk and we can share thevideo, we can share the audio, we
can get the transcript, makeblogs out of it and articles out
(31:25):
of it. It's really an amazingtime where we can create in the way
that's easiest for us and thenrepurpose it in the way that's easiest
for other people to consume.
Yeah, it's a completely newgame. Because now you can do the
podcast episode, get all thetranscripts, create the blog. You
can make reels out of it andshare those snippets as we just talked.
(31:47):
That usually gets moretraction. I've seen it myself. When
I put out snippets, reels getmore traction than my episode.
Yeah. We work with contentcompanies and SEO companies where
we partner with them. Thecontent company used to send a film
crew to their office afterCovid. Everybody was working remotely.
(32:09):
Still need B roll footage. Sothey realized that they could get
them on podcast interviews.They get all of this content that
they can use, and they'regetting months worth of content from
Interview. Another client,Mickey Kennedy, runs a great company
called E Releases.
Oh, yeah. I used the platformyears ago when I was in charge of
(32:31):
global sales. Used it forpress releases.
Well, press releases. Andthat's what you know him for. Well,
his SEO company said thatterm, that keyword is so competitive,
you will never rank for that.
Right.
Mickey has been on podcastsfor years talking about all the different
ways small business can usepress releases and the best, best
(32:54):
practices for that. The searchengines are listening, AI is listening,
and all of a sudden he startsranking for all these different keywords.
He goes back to the SEOcompany and says, how did I do this?
And they're like, oh, it'sjust from all the podcast interviews.
So there's great ways. Youknow, that whole idea of exposure
brings opportunity.
Absolutely correct. Absolutelycorrect. Yeah. Tom, it's been a great
(33:18):
conversation, and we couldprobably go on for several hours
on this stuff. We both haveengineering backgrounds, so thank
you for the time. How canpeople find you?
Thank you for having me here.The best way to find me is just go
back to interview ballet witha V.com forward slash superfans.
(33:40):
Everything Freddie and Italked about will be there. There's
an assessment. 10 questions.Will podcast interview marketing
work for you? I wrote a bookcalled Podcast Guest Profits. How
to grow your business with thetargeted interview strategy. You
can buy it on Amazon or if youwant a free copy, happy to mail you
a copy. If you're in the U.S.if you're outside, I'll email you
(34:02):
a copy. And then, of course,I'll put my calendar scheduling link
there. All my social media. Ifyou want to get in touch with me,
that's back@interviewvalet.com forward/superfans.
Yeah, we'll definitely havethat in the show notes. Tom, thank
you very much for your timetoday, and we definitely would love
to have you on the show downthe road and continue the conversation.
(34:24):
I would enjoy that.
Thank you. Hey Superfansuperstar Freddie D. Here. Before
we wrap, here's your three Aplaybook power move to attract ideal
clients, turn them intoadvocates, and accelerate your business
success. Here's a top insightfrom this episode. You're not one
(34:44):
funnel away. You're onepowerful conversation away from growing
legendary business. So here'syour business growth action step.
Book one podcast interviewthis week where you can share a bold
story that connectsemotionally and positions you as
a trusted guide, not the hero.If today's conversation sparked an
(35:08):
idea for you, or you know of afellow business leader who could
benefit, share it with themand grab the full breakdown in the
show notes. Let's acceleratetogether and start creating business
super fans who champion your brand.
Hey, superfan superstarFreddie D. Here in this episode 102,
we're joined by Tom Schwab,the godfather of podcast interview
marketing and a true pioneerin using podcast guest appearances
and AI powered strategies todrive business growth. As the founder
of Interview Valet, Tom hashelped over 1500 clients, from Fortune
(02:31):
500 companies to elitecoaches, turn meaningful conversations
into real conversions. With abackground as a Navy veteran and
an engineer, Tom blendsanalytical precision with bold marketing
innovation. He's also theauthor of Podcast Guest Profits,
widely considered the bible ofpodcast marketing. Get ready. Tom's
(02:55):
here to show us why you're notjust one funnel away, but one conversation
away from growing yourbusiness. Let's dive in. Welcome,
Tom, to the Business Superfans podcast.
Freddy, I am thrilled to be here.
Yeah, we're excited to haveyou. We had a great conversation
before we started recording.We both spent some time in Chicago
(03:16):
and talked about the Bears andthe Cubs and all that stuff and being
super fans of those teams. So,yeah, excited to have you.
Oh, excited to be here. Andit's like, yeah, that the idea of
we promote what we loveprobably more than they do, right?
Absolutely.
I didn't know the Cubs wereplaying their opener until my brother
(03:36):
in law told me about it. Andhe was promoting it more than the
owner of the company was.
Sure. So, Tom, what is yourbackstory? I know you've been an
engineer, you've been involvedin the military and things like that.
What's the story that came upto create Interview Valet? I mean,
there's a whole backstory thattook place before Interview Valet
(03:58):
arrived.
You know, it only makes sensein the rearview mirror. I'm an engineer
by degree. I've worked incorporate America. My last company
before this was HubSpot'sfirst E Commerce case study in about
2014. People said, well, howdid you grow that company from a
regional player to a nationalleader and sell it? I said it was
guest blogs, but they don'twork anymore. I hypothesized that
(04:23):
for the same reason we tappedinto that audience, you could do
the same thing with podcastinterviews. My grandfather, God rest
his soul, was doing it. He'dgo to the country club, he'd go to
the rotary. And people havebeen doing it as seen on tv, as seen
on radio.
Right.
And now it's really leveragingother people's audiences on podcast
(04:44):
interviews. We've been doingit a decade. We've got a team of
22 that works with thoughtleaders to get them on podcast interviews
as a marketing channel. And Ithink it's a great way to put your
point of view out there, thevision, and attract the super fans.
Right. I always say peoplewill either turn you up or turn you
(05:04):
off. Either one is fine.
Sure. And what you brought upthere is really important because
it is the new way of marketingthese days, because now you can share
your authenticity, providevalue, and it positions you as an
expert in your vertical. It'sshareable. So it's not like just
direct mail where you send outthe one piece to an individual. In
(05:27):
today's world, you can sharethe podcast, hey, you need to listen
to this episode. And we canbring up our smartphone and you can
forward the link to thatperson. It's a whole different ecosystem
of communications.
It is. And I think we've gonebeyond attention to trust, because
for so long, people werebuying attention. And that's what
the influencers do, they buyattention on social media, but people
(05:50):
aren't buying from them,they're buying from people that they
trust. And I think it's aninteresting dilemma now, right? It's
not that loud, counterablemarker that's getting all the business.
No, it's the practitioner,that humble hero sharing their information.
And now the platforms existwhere they can do that and really
reach their clients whereverthey are.
(06:12):
And we're kind of blending newschool, which is all the modern social
media stuff, and the platformsand the tools, and now AIs come into
the conversation. But the guysthat are really accelerating are
still those that bring in oldschool stuff back into there. So
it's just like you just said,Tom, building that reputation, providing
that value, acknowledgingpeople's birthday, recognition. One
(06:34):
of the things I talk about isthe little things are really the
big things in today's world.
I had a client that called itWarren Buffett Marketing. And I said,
well, what do you mean? And hesaid, well, Warren Buffett would
never invest in anything hedidn't understand.
Right.
Consequently, he lost out onApple. But he said, for too long,
(06:57):
I've been spending money onmarketing that I didn't understand
for decades, spent money onSEO, trying to chase this elusive
algorithm. And he's like, nowI've got to understand the marketing,
and if I can go someplace, getintroduced by the thought leader,
right? Have a discussion withpeople I know that drives my business,
(07:19):
Right? And there's like thesame things you were talking about
where you acknowledgesomebody, you wish them a happy birthday,
you acknowledge theirpromotion, those little things, and
people will say, well, thosearen't scalable. Well, it may not
Be scalable. But you knowwhat? They're really effective. And
I think too often now in lifewe're getting more efficient at things
(07:42):
that are getting less effective.
Right.
Where they're like, I couldsend a million emails right now and
they'd all go to spam. Youknow, why don't you just talk to
one person?
What a novel concept, right? Imean, it's quite interesting because
my success in sales was therelationships I built in helping
(08:03):
those individuals achievetheir goals and their aspirations
at the companies that theywere at. I got involved in the inception
of SAS basically in computeraided design and computer manufacturing.
We called it CAD Cam MarketSpace. I was selling to tool and
die shops and the objectivewas not selling the technology, even
though that was my job. Ievolved to where I was really looking
(08:25):
at the business strategy forthem and how my tool helped them
get that goal and thenmaintaining that relationship afterwards.
They became my superfan andthey were promoting me and said,
you need to talk to this shopand that shop. It collapsed the whole
sales cycle. Because now I wasan invited guest.
(08:47):
Exactly. I mentioned the lastcompany we built, the guest blogs,
but as you said that the waywe really got it off the ground was
all personal referrals. We'dwork with one client and they happen
to be orthopedic surgeons. Theorthopedic surgeons would talk to
other orthopedic surgeons andthey were solving the problem. And
it was, go talk to Schwabi. Istarted to get calls from it. That's
(09:10):
the best kind of marketing.When you don't have to pay for it,
you don't have to do it.You've got other people marketing
selling for you. And thatmakes it fun too.
Yeah. And that's where I comeup with the term. They're a super
fan. They're a super fan ofyou. They're taking time out of their
day to promote you because ofwhat you've done for them. You know,
(09:30):
there's an old saying, peopleforget what you said, people forget
what you did, but everybodywill remember how you made them feel.
Exactly.
So let's go into what doesinterview valet do?
So our point of view is thateverybody's biggest problem is obscurity.
Right.
(09:51):
There are thousands of peopleright now that would buy your product
or service. They just don'tknow you exist. So the question is
how to get known. Right. Somany people will say, just break
through the noise.
Right.
Most people are just adding tothe noise. I'd rather get in on the
conversation. So we're workingwith coaches, consultants, professional
(10:13):
services, category designers,even a lot of nonfiction authors
to go out there and identifythe right podcasts that their ideal
clients are listening to. Thencraft the message so that you're
interesting to the podcast. Wereach out to the podcast hosts. We've
(10:34):
got relationships, we've beendoing it for a decade. And really
it's more than just podcastguesting. It's using it as a marketing
channel to help move peoplefrom being a passive listener to
an actor visitor, to anengaged lead. So we help people use
podcast interviews as amarketing channel.
(10:55):
Now, do you work with theguests to help them understand if
they've never done podcasting,what do you do with this? Say, okay,
I raise my hand, says, yes,I'd love to be on podcasts. I've
never done one. What do I do?
Yes. And we work with them.We'll give them all the equipment
so that they sound great. Wedo a practice interview and it's
(11:15):
interesting. We've got theentire gamut, right? So we've got
some people that are mediatrained, but we've got to talk with
them. And it's like, this isnot television. You've got to tell
stories, right? You've got togive longer answers. A lot of the
people we work with, Freddie,are introverts and they're like,
well, what will I talk about?And I'm like, this is the great part,
(11:37):
is it's not like giving a 45minute keynote. It's just having
a discussion. And I thinkintroverts really excel there because
they're used to one on oneconversations. Pretty much everybody's
comfortable on Zoom now. Andthey talk about their business, they
talk about their passions.Nobody's going to ask me about my
(12:00):
opinion on macroeconomicpolicies. I've got no expertise in
that. But as we talk about thebusiness and things that I'm interested
in, those are the things thatpeople ask you. People are more ready
for podcasts than ever andwill also listen to their first few
podcasts to give feedback. Oneof the most common feedback is slow
(12:22):
down. 70% of all podcasts arelistened to sped up. Often people
get excited. They'll talkfaster and faster. I always give
this example. Early on, abuddy of mine said, why did you call
the company Interview Ballet?And I'm like, no, it's interview
with a V. I said, ballet,that's stupid. He's like, I thought
(12:44):
so too, but you say so dangfast. That's what I heard. So I had
to remind myself to slow downon the interviews. We help our clients
with all of that.
You bring up an interestingpoint, because I was saying, business
superfans super fast, and itwas picking it up. And you would
listen, it would say businesssuper fan, not super fans. Those
(13:05):
little things. Go back to thelittle things are the big things.
So I've slowed down in how Iintroduced the show. Just like you
said, it was boom, boom, boom.But the other thing that you brought
up, Tom, that's reallyimportant, and I want to reiterate
that is stories sell. When Iwould sell manufacturing software,
web design services forinterpreting services, I always incorporated
(13:27):
a story into it to pullsomebody in. It wasn't always about
how cool my stuff was. It washow my stuff helped somebody else
go from this point in businessto that point in business, people
were intrigued. They said,well, geez, I want to have that happen
to my business. And so nowthey were emotionally connected to
(13:49):
the conversation, and thatcollapsed the whole sales cycle.
You're so spot on. And thestory should not be about me and
my product or my service. Iremember early on my last company,
I was covering the phonesduring lunchtime, and a happy customer
called in and he's like, youguys are just like Preparation H.
(14:12):
I paused. He's like, yeah,it's a compliment. He said, you provided
fast relief. You wererecommended. And it really struck
me that nobody cares about ourproduct or service. They care about
the problem in their rear end.If you can start telling stories
about the person that had asimilar problem as you, this is what
(14:33):
we did for them. This is therelief they got. Boy, people will
start to relate to that. Ithink that's the key to any story,
is to put the spotlight not onyou, but on the customer. Another
super fan and say, you can bejust like them.
Also, Yeah, I saw a brilliantmarketing strategy done via video,
(14:54):
and I'm going to share thestory because it was quite brilliant
the way they did it. Thecompany was an interpreting company.
It was a competitor for thecompany I was working with. Nate
did a video of an agencyproviding services for multilingual
children. I don't remember allthe details specifically, but the
(15:16):
video was more about theorganization. And it just happened
to be that this interpretingcompany was providing the interpreting
so that they could do the jobthey were doing with these children.
The focus was really on theservices company that was doing it.
These guys were behind thescenes that made it happen. And it
(15:39):
really stuck me as someingenious marketing. It wasn't talking
about how wonderful I am. Itwas really, look at the great Things
that these people are doing,and we're just the guys behind the
curtain pulling the levers andhelping make them look like rock
stars.
And the flip side is if I putthe spotlight on myself and it's
(16:00):
just like, look at me, dothis, do that, I might get some attention,
but I'm not going to get thetrust, I'm not going to get the empathy.
And it's funny. Even in socialmedia now, there's a thought that
the more eyeballs, right, thatyou've got in a picture or a video,
the more trust it gets and themore they amplify it. So if it's
just me in a picture, it goesto a certain level, but if it's me
(16:23):
and other people, it goes to adifferent level. People just like
that, right? There's that oldjoke of, you know, how do you sell
newspapers in a small town?Put everybody's name in it, right?
Everybody will buy a copy ofit and their mom will buy five. You
go back to that example thatyou gave every one of those people
that their face was in thatadvertisement. They're going to promote
(16:48):
that. If you look on ourwebsite early on, I said, this is
not the Tom Schwab show,right? This is not about me. It's
about our clients. Every monthwe update the image on the top. It's
always four different clients.It's usually diverse. A couple females,
a couple males, younger,older, different industries. I highlight
(17:11):
them and give them moreexposure. My title is chief evangelist
Officer. I'm supposed to beevangelizing for my company, my team
for my category and all ofthose things. Turning the spotlight
on your super fans gives themthe love, appreciation and encouragement
(17:31):
to go out and promote you.
Sure, sure. So Tom, share astory of somebody that was hesitant,
never done a podcast before,was a business owner, and then how
you guys brought him into youragency, got him set up, and that
in turn helped grow their business.
Yeah, there's so many outthere. But the common theme that
(17:54):
we have is I can think of oneguy, Kevin, he came and he's like,
what would I talk about? And Ibelieve that what's ordinary to you
is amazing to others. Whatthis person had thought about and
gone through resonated with somany people. He was doing alternative
investments, self storageunits, and he wanted to talk with
(18:15):
other people like him. Salesreps making a lot of money but paying
a lot of taxes. They were toobusy to invest. He made this story
and I'm like, that's amazing.But it was ordinary to him. So we
Started to focus on what arethe themes and topics to talk about?
Who do you talk to? And westarted to really boil it down based
(18:37):
on data. Where are thesepeople listening to podcasts? Then
he got out there and talkedabout his story, how he got into
it and how it changed hislife. Some of the people he worked
with, and we weren't probablythree months into it, he's calling
me, thanking me so much. Heexpected to get more leads and more
(18:57):
traffic, but he's like, I'mnot getting more leads, I'm getting
better leads. And I thinktoday everybody's talked about this
sales funnel, right. If I canget a thousand people at the top,
I'll get one out of thebottom. And what he saw and what
so many people see frompodcast interview marketing is they
go from a sales funnel to acylinder. He talks and people either
(19:20):
turn him up or turn him off.And that's fine because now he can
talk to five people and havefour become clients. And that's really
the power of the conversation.One of the things I always say, I
learned so much from ourclients. One of them said, I used
to believe that I was onefunnel away. I just build a funnel
and fill it.
(19:41):
Right.
And he's like, now I realizeI'm one conversation away. And that's
what we've seen so much withdifferent clients. He built his entire
business off of that. Heenjoyed it. It was consistent with
his marketing and what hewanted to do. It was so great because
not only did it help him, butit helped all of those people that
heard him and became clients.
(20:03):
Yeah. So I went back to old school.
Conversation conversations arepowerful. And I think especially
today in the AI world, Right.I get emails and it's like, I don't
know if this is a real personor not. I'm sure not going to invest
major amounts of money becauseI got some spam email. But if I hear
somebody and it's like, wow,they understand me, that trust builds
(20:28):
there and it becomes. Thesales calls after a podcast interview
are really interesting. Youknow, Freddie being a sales guy,
they're not so much salescalls anymore. They're qualification
calls.
Right.
Because the people havealready heard you, they've checked
you out, they've listened.They already have said, yes, I like
you, I appreciate your values.
(20:49):
Right.
I want to work with you. Soreally it's more of a qualification
call. Is this a good fit?
Yeah, it goes back to one ofthe sales approaches I used back
in the day when the technologywas new and computer aided design
and manufacturing were new. Iwould invite a lunch and learn to
all the VP of Engineering, VPof Manufacturing. We didn't really
(21:10):
try to sell this technology.We presented how it's transforming
the manufacturing space,demonstrated our product to drive
the point home. But it wasn't.Look at how wonderful it is. And
it turns this and it flipsthat, and it saves time. We incorporated
that in there, just like yousaid. I got invited back to these
(21:32):
shops and take a look and tellus how this could potentially transform
our business. They invited mein. I was like inviting the fox into
the hen house. Yeah, becauseyou invited me in. So now you're
already buying, just like yousaid. Those people that are calling
in from hearing them onmultiple podcasts are inviting that
(21:55):
person into their world. It'sa completely different sales approach.
It collapses that cycle. Andyou don't get into the conversation
so much about pricing and allthat stuff because they're already
sold.
There's a phrase out therecalled category design, and it's
very powerful. And one of thebig things with that is to have a
(22:16):
strong point of view. And Ican think of one client we worked
with, Spiro AI. It's a CRMcompany. Their big thing was they
hated CRM too. And they wouldcome out and say that it's broken.
It's not easy to work with.That's why we're anti CRM. Once people
are like, oh, yeah, I agreewith that too, then they would look
(22:38):
at them and say, oh, you'vegot a different way of doing this.
Accomplishes a similar thing.But all of a sudden, we're not talking
across the table anymore. Nowwe're partners. We're both on the
same side of the table. Andjust like you said, you get invited
in as a peer. And I always sayif you talk about the problem, if
you talk about that point ofview, but now we're talking shoulder
(23:01):
to shoulder. If you're justtalking about your product, now we're
talking across the table, right?
Yep. Yep. Those were one ofthe things I had learned when I would
sit there and talk to theowners of the company. What were
their challenges and issuesand what was holding them back and
stuff like that. And then westarted talking about their vision
and everything else. We didn'tget into the tools tool, and it was
(23:24):
really about the objective andhow can this tool help them accomplish
that. A lot of those customerswere my superfans. I wasn't the world's
greatest prospector, but I hadthe best team promoting me to all
their peers.
I think there's a differencebetween selling a product or a widget
(23:46):
and selling a service. Toooften the people that are selling
$7 products are saying you canuse same thing to sell your high
ticket offer or service. Ifthat was the case, Boeing and Ernst
and Young would be selling offof Facebook ads and masterclasses
(24:07):
and webinars.
Right.
It's not the same thing. Andso this idea of that, it's not just
a transaction.
Right.
It's one thing to sell a product.
Right.
Because if all they're lookingat is the spec sheet, they don't
need you as a sales rep.
Right.
We'll just look at the specsheet of the different ones. But
what they were really buyingwas the service, the support, everything
(24:29):
that went with that. Andthat's the intangible. And that's
where you bring value andpeople see the differentiation there.
Right.
I am not a Cubs fan becausethey have the best winning record.
I am not a super fan of theCubs based on the spec sheet. No.
It's the emotional tie topeople buy.
(24:51):
Emotionally and justifylogically has been like that forever
and will always be that way.With the Cubs the perfect example
because you've got the superfans that are die hard. They did
win one World Series, but theywaited 100 years for that to happen.
But it did happen. Wewitnessed it. People today are getting
(25:11):
caught up in the speed oftrying to be an influencer and really
not building thatrelationship. You really need to
blend the two. You need toblend the relationship, old school
relationship with today's newway of incorporating AI to really
differentiate yourself fromthose sitting on the sidelines. I
(25:32):
have a saying that there'sthree types of people. Those that
make things happen, those thatwatch things happen, and those that
wonder what the heck happened.
What happened. I remember thatone from the Navy. I think of another
one that Christopher Lockhead,father of categories Zion, talks
about. He's like, there'sthree types of businesses. Those
that suck, those that don'tsuck, and those that are legendary.
(25:57):
And the only ones that peopletalk about are the ones that are
legendary, right? Maybe badreviews for the ones that are really
bad. But you want to just belegendary, something that people
can remark about. That's thewhole idea of being remarkable, being
such that someone would remarkabout your company.
And I think that's some of thestuff that you guys do because you
(26:19):
guys have sent me some greatreferrals and great guests to the
show. They've been greatpeople, great guests on the show.
And we've had Some greatconversations. So a testament to
the things that you guys do.I'm a super fan of Interview Valet
because of the quality of theguests that you've brought on to
my show.
I appreciate that. We've beendoing it for a decade, and one of
(26:42):
our core principles is heckyes or no. When somebody comes to
our company, I talk with allof the prospects, and there's two
questions, right? Can we bringthem great results? And they can
they bring great value to apodcast? Both of those have to be
a heck yes before we eventhink about engaging with them. We
(27:06):
look at it and say, we're aheck yes. And then they've got to
be a heck yes, too. This ideaof, well, maybe never works out.
Right? Right.
I want to be a heck yes or ano. And it's the same way with the
podcast we work with. We'reproud to work with them. Is this
a great podcast? Heck yes.Then we work with them. If not, no
(27:26):
judgment, but no, we don'twork with them.
That's an important thing,because same thing with whatever
you're doing in life. That's alife statement. Because when you
look at that and think aboutit, we make decisions based on the
experiences that weexperience. At the end of the day,
(27:49):
you go to a restaurant andit's a bad experience. You don't
go back. You buy something,and the onboarding experience is
not good. You don't go back.You're not a super fan. In today's
world, we look at all thereviews, pull out our smartphone,
and see what everybody'ssaying. It's a social proof. Before
(28:10):
you make a decision, you'redoing that, in a sense, of how you're
qualifying the people thatyou're representing and the podcast
that you're promoting thosepeople. Yeah.
And it's one of these thingswhere I've gotten to the age where
I don't make judgments. I trynot to make judgments, but I can
say whether or not you alignwith us and the podcast we work with
(28:31):
or whether you don't.
Right.
Our mission is to personallyintroduce inspiring thought leaders
to millions of people theycould serve for the betterment of
all. And I remember when Ishowed that to my mom, she's like,
what's that got to do withpodcasts? And I'm like, it's not
about the podcast. It's aboutthose connections and the discussions.
It's really important that wesee life as a win for everybody.
(28:56):
Right.
For the betterment of all.That means the host has to win the
audience has to win, theclient has to win. So it's not just
using and abusing an audience.That's important. And the other one
too is inspiring thought leader.
Right.
There are people out therethat in 2025 are teaching you how
(29:17):
to write a blog that's so old,I'm not interested in that anymore.
Or other ones that arepromoting things that amplify the
darkness. I want inspiringthought leaders that have new ideas
and can help us see the futureand make the best out of that.
Yeah, because like you justsaid, blogging is important, but
(29:39):
it's more yesteryear. Andtoday podcast is probably the new
blogging. In a sense.
It is. And I laugh sometimeswhen I hear the word podcast.
Right.
Podcasts have been around now,what, over 20 years. The pod refers
to an ipod. Most of the peoplethat are listening to podcasts today
have never owned an ipod intheir life. But it's still called
(30:01):
a podcast. Right. They couldbe listening to it on terrestrial
radio. Still a podcast.
Right.
They could be watching it onYouTube, I guess. It's still a podcast,
right? Today they say JoeRogan gets heard by 100 million people.
And Freddie, when I heard thatstat, I was like, there is no way
(30:22):
one out of three adults in theUS is listening to a three hour podcast.
So I looked in our databaseand he gets 2.2 million downloads
per episode. That makes himthe number one podcast in the U.S.
the other 98 million people,they're listening to that 60 second
clip or that 90 second clip,and that's where they're getting
(30:45):
the information. So I don'tcare what they call it. It's just
so that people get connectedwith the right ideas.
No, that's a really good pointthat you bring up because the majority
are really listening to thesnippet, because a lot of times that's
where you put the value.
And it's one of those thingswhere there's a lot of problems in
(31:05):
the world, but there's nobetter time to be alive. I'm an engineer
by degree and I've written alot of blogs in my life, but every
one of them felt like ahomework assignment. Now we can just
talk and we can share thevideo, we can share the audio, we
can get the transcript, makeblogs out of it and articles out
(31:25):
of it. It's really an amazingtime where we can create in the way
that's easiest for us and thenrepurpose it in the way that's easiest
for other people to consume.
Yeah, it's a completely newgame. Because now you can do the
podcast episode, get all thetranscripts, create the blog. You
can make reels out of it andshare those snippets as we just talked.
(31:47):
That usually gets moretraction. I've seen it myself. When
I put out snippets, reels getmore traction than my episode.
Yeah. We work with contentcompanies and SEO companies where
we partner with them. Thecontent company used to send a film
crew to their office afterCovid. Everybody was working remotely.
(32:09):
Still need B roll footage. Sothey realized that they could get
them on podcast interviews.They get all of this content that
they can use, and they'regetting months worth of content from
Interview. Another client,Mickey Kennedy, runs a great company
called E Releases.
Oh, yeah. I used the platformyears ago when I was in charge of
(32:31):
global sales. Used it forpress releases.
Well, press releases. Andthat's what you know him for. Well,
his SEO company said thatterm, that keyword is so competitive,
you will never rank for that.
Right.
Mickey has been on podcastsfor years talking about all the different
ways small business can usepress releases and the best, best
(32:54):
practices for that. The searchengines are listening, AI is listening,
and all of a sudden he startsranking for all these different keywords.
He goes back to the SEOcompany and says, how did I do this?
And they're like, oh, it'sjust from all the podcast interviews.
So there's great ways. Youknow, that whole idea of exposure
brings opportunity.
Absolutely correct. Absolutelycorrect. Yeah. Tom, it's been a great
(33:18):
conversation, and we couldprobably go on for several hours
on this stuff. We both haveengineering backgrounds, so thank
you for the time. How canpeople find you?
Thank you for having me here.The best way to find me is just go
back to interview ballet witha V.com forward slash superfans.
(33:40):
Everything Freddie and Italked about will be there. There's
an assessment. 10 questions.Will podcast interview marketing
work for you? I wrote a bookcalled Podcast Guest Profits. How
to grow your business with thetargeted interview strategy. You
can buy it on Amazon or if youwant a free copy, happy to mail you
a copy. If you're in the U.S.if you're outside, I'll email you
(34:02):
a copy. And then, of course,I'll put my calendar scheduling link
there. All my social media. Ifyou want to get in touch with me,
that's back@interviewvalet.com forward/superfans.
Yeah, we'll definitely havethat in the show notes. Tom, thank
you very much for your timetoday, and we definitely would love
to have you on the show downthe road and continue the conversation.
(34:24):
I would enjoy that.
Thank you. Hey Superfansuperstar Freddie D. Here. Before
we wrap, here's your three Aplaybook power move to attract ideal
clients, turn them intoadvocates, and accelerate your business
success. Here's a top insightfrom this episode. You're not one
(34:44):
funnel away. You're onepowerful conversation away from growing
legendary business. So here'syour business growth action step.
Book one podcast interviewthis week where you can share a bold
story that connectsemotionally and positions you as
a trusted guide, not the hero.If today's conversation sparked an
(35:08):
idea for you, or you know of afellow business leader who could
benefit, share it with themand grab the full breakdown in the
show notes. Let's acceleratetogether and start creating business
super fans who champion your brand.
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