Interview

307: Elevate Your Brand, Create Evergreen Podcasts, and Build an Audience with Podfest Founder and Tampa Event Planner Chris Krimitsos

Chris Krimitsos has run over 1700 live events in the Tampa, Florida area, created the Florida Podcaster's Association, and most importantly, runs the PodFest conference for podcasters in Orlando every year. He explains to us how he built a following for his live events and how to get your branding right (start with problems and people instead of keywords).

He also has a very concept called evergreen podcasts: look at the 5-10 frequently asked questions (FAQs) on your sites and create a podcast episode answering each of those questions in order to have a podcast that promotes your offers forever.

Quotes:                                                                                                                                   

“Audio strategically placed well within the podcast medium makes it searchable online content that people might stumble upon.” – Chris Krimitsos

“Keep your feet on the ground and your eyes on the stars. Take action and prioritize what truly needs to be done.” – Chris Krimitsos

“If you have a business and want people to truly understand what you do, replace the FAQs on your website with a five- or ten-episode evergreen podcast.” – Chris Krimitsos

Takeaways:

05:02 Networking and personal connections can be more effective than broad marketing strategies.

13:37 Most podcasters are introverts who prefer speaking into a mic without seeing their audience.

18:29 Build your brand by understanding what unique experience or information you can provide to your target audience.

22:06 Create podcast content that addresses specific audience pain points and provides clear value.

27:53 Marketing your content is just as important, if not more important, than creating the content itself.

Resources

• Email Chris: chris@podfest.us
• Podfest Conference (Site)
• The Messengers documentary (Site)
• The Messengers podcast (Podcast)
• Shake Creative (Website)
• Chris (Twitter)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 32:46 — 30.0MB) | Embed

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305: Boost Your Confidence, Get More Opportunities, and Discover Deals with Negotiation Consultant Kwame Christian

Negotiation consultant Kwame Christian from the American Negotiation Institute wants to give you the confidence (competence breeds competence) to get what you want in your business relationships with others. Go into negotiations with information beforehand, ask open-ended questions, then adjust (be flexible). Use curiosity to find the right deal, and discover if a deal exists. Spend 70% of your time listening and 30% of your time speaking.

Quotes:                                                                                                                                   

“Negotiation isn't the art of deal-making; it's the art of discovering deals.” – Kwame Christian

“Competence breeds confidence. Success or failure in negotiations isn't determined by your ability to think quickly and deliver witty retorts; it's rooted in thorough preparation beforehand.” – Kwame Christian

“Every negotiation begins with an ask. We need to articulate our needs, and that's where most people stumble.” – Kwame Christian

Takeaways:

01:49 Negotiation is about discovering deals, not forcing predetermined outcomes.

09:33 Research your counterpart thoroughly, like you're preparing for a first date.

14:59 Practice "rejection therapy" to build confidence and overcome fear of asking.

17:50 Create high-value service packages with multiple elements to expand client budgets.

21:49 Ask open-ended questions and listen 70% of the time during negotiations.

Resources

• American Negotiation Institute (Website)
• Negotiate Anything podcast (Podcast)
• Kwame Christian (LinkedIn)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 27:09 — 24.9MB) | Embed

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301: Market Yourself as An Authority Figure, Clean Up Your Social Presence, and Build a Service People Use with Anthony Couch

Anthony Couch from GetSuitable has created a tool called Cachet that cleans up social media. Listen in as he explains what people need to do to keep themselves "hireable" and likable on social media, as well as the struggles and breakthroughs he's had gaining popularity from social media, as well as his trials and tribulations getting his apps to catch on.

Quotes:                                                                                                                                   

“I'm not passionate about helping people hide who they are. I'm passionate about helping people avoid losing opportunities for things they did years ago.” – Anthony Couch

“Whatever you do for a living, you have to have your social presence reflect you as a professional.” – Anthony Couch

“We need to build a product that our customers or ideal users want, instead of building something that we have to sell them on.” – Anthony Couch

Takeaways:

02:26 Cleaning up inappropriate social media content is crucial for future employment opportunities.

10:25 Social media profiles should reflect your professional identity and career goals.

13:40 Reading and sharing industry-specific content demonstrates professional growth and commitment.

21:35 Using strategic hashtags can help build a professional online brand and attract relevant followers.

25:03 Employers view blank or hidden social media profiles as suspicious and potentially problematic.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 31:16 — 28.6MB) | Embed

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300: Systems, Coaching, Peer Support, Massive Action, and Focus with Jason Treu

Motivational speaker Jason Treu wants you to enjoy better relationships in your entrepreneurial journey, career changes, and business transitions. He says that there are three pillars to success:

1. have the right systems, processes, strategies, and best practices
2. find coaching and mentors to shrink the path to where you want to go
3. get peer support, others who know your pain, and develop relationship building skills

Jason provides a great deal of actionable advice in our discussion today to make those three items the best they can be. For example:

• To improve your networking opportunities at events, research some of the speakers and perhaps high-profile attendees. Aim for 25 or so people. Pitch meetings beforehand, offer value, and interview them for podcast episodes
• To locate a great mastermind, join one that costs money, dig into who's leading that group, and try it out for a meeting or two
• To find an amazing mentor who's on their way up but is still approachable, read blogs and find successful people who look like rockstars but aren't quite to the "Pat Flynn" level yet

Quotes:                                                                                                                                   

“Everything we accomplish in life is with or through other people. So unless you're out there actively building relationships in the right way over time and managing those, you're leaving a significant amount on the table.” – Jason Treu

“If books could solve our problems, then no one would need coaching. It just doesn't work like that.” – Jason Treu

“Do what 99% of people aren't willing to do, and you will be significantly more successful, especially over the long term.” – Jason Treu

Takeaways:

02:05 Most personal limitations stem from childhood experiences and beliefs learned before age 10.

08:41 Success relies on three key pillars: systems/strategies, coaching/mentorship, and peer support.

16:50 One powerful connection can open doors to multiple unexpected opportunities.

22:48 Finding emerging experts who are skilled but not yet top-tier can provide high-value, cost-effective coaching.

26:32 Entrepreneurs must understand their core purpose and have clear metrics beyond just money and listeners.

Resources

• Social Wealth (Book)
• Jason Treu (Official Site)
• Jason Treu's (Blog)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 29:14 — 26.8MB) | Embed

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299: Organize a Virtual Summit for Instant Traffic, Credibility, Subscribers and Sales with Tom Morkes

Tom Morkes and his company Insurgent Media specialize in virtual summits, affiliate marketing, and book launches.

A virtual summit is a virtual online event where 10 to 30 subject matter experts each present in their sub-area of expertise with you as the organizer. This is a fantastic way to build a list, get credibility, and network with your peers. He walks us through his entire 4-6 month process in 5-6 phases that he plans with clients:

• strategy/planning: 1 month (two half-hour calls)
• research/recruitment: celebrities, leaders, popular/interesting topics (14 days for research, 2 months for recruitment)
• trust building: start conversations
• pre open-cart / pre-promotion: 2 weeks
• summit: 1-2 weeks

Tom also discusses upsell opportunities. For example, summits are not very evergreen and tend to contain specific, cutting-edge information, while a membership site (which you can have as an upsell) contains evergreen information. You can also have a lot of fun with your summit and offer it for free, but later charge for replays and shownotes.

Quotes:                                                                                                                                   

“The nature of a summit is that it's live to some degree. It's exciting because it's happening now, so it's cutting-edge material.” – Tom Morkes

“There has to be congruence across everything you do. There has to be a purpose behind it.” – Tom Morkes

“Summits that work best are selling something beyond just content—some kind of service, software, experience—not just ‘here’s more content.” – Tom Morkes

Takeaways:

01:55 Virtual summits are powerful lead generation tools that offer free, high-quality education to potential customers.

12:42 Successful marketing campaigns focus on solving specific problems within a narrow, well-defined niche.

27:16 The most effective summit upsells are services or experiences, not additional content.

25:50 Virtual summits work best as time-sensitive, live events that create excitement and urgency.

29:46 Selling more content after a free content-rich summit is challenging and often ineffective.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 34:45 — 31.8MB) | Embed

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298: The Leadership Gap: Unleash Your Greatness (and Potential) By Rethinking the System with Lolly Daskal

Executive Leadership Coach Lolly Daskal, author of The Leadership Gap, says that entrepreneurs fall into one of seven archetypes: the Rebel, Explorer, Truth Teller, Hero, Inventor, Navigator, and Knight. Knowing your type allows you to identify your gap and achieve greatness.

For example, if you're a "rebel" then you lack confidence and suffer from impostor syndrome. In this case, identifying your uniqueness can be the key to improving your competence and confidence.

Lolly also opens up about her morning ritual where she reads a book every morning and lists what she's grateful for. Every evening, she also asks herself, "What did you do well today" And, "What can I do better tomorrow than I did today?"

Quotes:                                                                                                                                   

“Within all of us, I believe we have greatness, and my job is to unleash that greatness for every single client I work with.” – Lolly Daskal

“Confidence isn't believing in yourself, but knowing that you're able to do the things you need to do.” – Lolly Daskal

“Imposter syndrome comes from always looking over your shoulder and thinking, ‘I need to be like this one, and I need to be like that one.’ The truth is, you need to be like no one but yourself.” – Lolly Daskal

Takeaways:

05:24 Confidence alone isn't enough; true leadership comes from developing genuine skills and competence.

09:16 Daily self-reflection rituals can help individuals track personal growth and avoid comparing themselves to others.

11:21 Continuous learning through daily reading can expand perspectives and improve professional capabilities.

17:23 Leaders should focus on understanding their unique strengths rather than trying to imitate someone else's path.

20:55 Vulnerability and sharing personal stories can create deeper connections with teams and clients.

Resources

• Lolly Daskal (Official Site)
• The Leadership Gap (Book)
• Lolly Daskal (Twitter)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 23:50 — 21.8MB) | Embed

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