Getting booked is only step one. Carl Richards shows coaches, consultants, and experts how to pick the right show, speak clearly, and end with a call to action that brings leads.
GROWTH PILLAR: Marketing & Branding
WHO THIS IS FOR: SMB owners / Solopreneurs / Coaches and consultants / Leaders building systems
WHAT THEY'LL GAIN: A simple plan to choose the right podcast shows, deliver clear answers, and close with a call to action that people actually use. Plus ways to reuse every appearance.
DESCRIPTION
Most people think getting booked on a podcast is the win. It's not. Without a clear call to action, every guest spot ends with zero leads.
Carl Richards helps coaches, consultants, and experts get booked as guests and launch shows of their own.
Carl Richards is the founder and CEO of Podcast Solutions Made Simple, a podcast production agency in the Ottawa area. After 25 years in radio, he helps coaches, consultants, and experts launch a podcast or get booked as a guest. In this conversation, Carl shows how a podcast can work as a marketing strategy and a lead generation tool. He explains how to pick the right shows, speak in sound bites, and write a call to action that people actually use. He also shares how to reuse each episode to support business growth. Results take time, but every appearance builds trust and visibility. This episode is for business owners, coaches, and consultants who want their voice to bring in clients.
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Bernie (00:22)
Question to the audience.
You finally landed a podcast guest spot. Now what do you actually do with it? Well, most people show up, hit record, hope for the best, but hope isn't a strategy. And a great conversation that nobody hears is just a missed opportunity. Carl Richards has been behind the mic for 25 years. And today he's going to walk us through exactly what it takes to get booked, show up right, and make every appearance count long after the episode drops.
Now he's been in the broadcasting industry for 25 years, as we already mentioned. That's a long enough time to figure out how a mic works. And but it's what he's done after that. He's the founder and CEO of Podcast Solutions Made Simple, a full service podcast production agency based in the Ottawa area. Carl helps coaches, consultants, and subject matter experts launch podcasts, build their audio brand, and now get booked as guests on the right shows. And here's something most people didn't know about Carl.
He was a serious stutterer as a kid, like really serious. He almost stopped speaking altogether. He went from hiding in the back of the room to becoming a radio broadcaster, a TEDx speaker, and a three time best selling author, and a Toastmasters competition winner.
The backstory matters because it's why he understands what it costs someone to put their voice out there.
He also runs the Podcast Alliance Made Simple, a community where hosts, guests connect, learn, and grow together quarterly. You can also find Carl at Podcast Solutions Made Simple dot com and connect with him on LinkedIn under Carl Richards Podcast Solutions Made Simple. Carl, you are a returning guest. A pleasure to have you back. And do you have a favorite quote or saying, sir?
Carl (01:57)
Bernie, it is great to be back. It's almost like I could co-host this show. I get asked a lot to be here, but thank you. It's always an honor to be here with you. you know what? A quote that always sticks with me, and I know it isn't relevant to to this particular show or even what I do, but quote that always sticks to me is one that I heard in high school, and I heard the whole piece of poetry from Dylan Thomas, and it's do not go gentle into that good night.
And I know it's not about you know, passing on to the next, you know, realm, as it were, but I believe that when you do something, you need to do it with intention. And if you're just doing it gently, if you're just sticking your toe in, you'll get just sticking your toe in results. But if you go full on, do not go gentle, no, don't be a bull in a China shop, but do not go gentle, keep moving forward. Life will happen the way you want it to. I firmly believe that.
Bernie (02:44)
So twenty-five years in radio and then in you swung into the podcast space. And in in fact, you not only swung into it, you helped train people up into it, but now you're also doing the, hey, you you wanna you wanna talk? Where's that all coming from? how did that all kind of go ta-da?
Carl (03:00)
That's funny how I tarzaned right into that, I wish it was that that simple an answer for you. But they say you haven't made it in radio till you've been fired at least once. I was fired twice. Lucky me. Yay! between the first go around between radio gigs, I started a part time business as a speaker trainer, always wanting to take it full time. never really had the opportunity or had the the confidence to do that, got back into radio, and that second go around, this is what really happened, Bernie.
As I'm building this business part-time, I'm learning the business side of radio. So because I wasn't just on air, I was a program director, music director. So we started doing things like strategic planning. I had a team, a lot of meetings, talking about sales, all of those things that were very relevant. When the pandemic hit, that's when things really shifted. The radio world lost about 70% of its revenue, and it was a matter of the writing being on the wall. That was myself and several other people who were let go. And this was my opportunity.
Now take a part-time business and move it into full-time. And it started out, as you indicated, by training people how to launch their own show and teach them how to edit. You were through that process, and congratulations on still having a show. You didn't give up. Thank you very much. one of the poster children that I could hang out there every now and again for for how to do a successful podcast. but then we quickly realized that there were, you know what, as much as people want to be in the podcasting space.
There's this saying, do what you're good at, for the rest, hire someone else. So we were recognizing that people don't have the time or the technical skills to do a lot of that back end work. And we knew that we could do that and accelerate beyond just production. So that's how the the agency was birthed. And we're having fun along the way. Here it is at the recording of this. We're six years, almost six years in.
Bernie (04:39)
Wow, congratulations and thank you. the training has worked well. I now recognize sine waves for editing purposes. But you also added another layer into the pro so it shows that the business is dynamic. You're also doing podcast booking. What's what's what's kind of the framework behind that? You know, obviously not everybody wants to do a podcast. Maybe someone wants to understand how podcasts work. Well actually, you know,
See it in action? Is that is that kind of the driver or is is there something else that's pushing this?
Carl (05:09)
Yeah, it's interesting that you asked that because the real driver, Bernie, is the fact that there are about between four million and five million podcasts worldwide. Of those, only about half a million are active. Not going to have a deep dive conversation about podfade, but there are some that come and go, or maybe they were, you know, did 20 episodes 10 years ago and they were happy with that. Well, those still exist in the podcasting space, and it's very hard to take them down. So, you know, and the number of podcasts out there is growing exponentially every day.
Here's the other side of that though. There are about a hundred million people just waiting and ready to be guests on podcasts. So there are a lot of individuals who want to be guests, but really don't have the desire or the time, or they're just not ready to be hosts. So that's where the guesting piece really came in. We were we figured out we were actually we were leaving money on the table, and that we also realized that we could have a huge impact and help people.
Step into the podcasting space with intention, st strategically, of course, because everything we do is with strategy. and whether they're planning on hosting their own show or not, still enjoy the journey of getting their messaging out there in the podcasting space because podcasting is becoming it's not replacing conventional media, but as a conventional media erodes, radio, television, print, a lot of people turning to podcasting and videos.
platforms to get their messaging out there. So it just made sense to use that as an opportunity to help people who may never want to be a podcast host, but really want to leverage the podcasting space as a guest to give them that opportunity and help them on their journey.
Bernie (06:46)
So how do you match the right cheese to the right wine in this scenario? because you know this podcast, you know, if if you have something inflammatory to say, it's like, yeah, that's watch my editing finger work hard and fast because that's not the purpose of the show. However, there are shows out there where yeah, we we w we want to have the flashbang going off, we want to have the flames licking the ceiling and all that.
almost like a a circus show, right? Or a drama show. I I just turn on TV. You don't need even need a podcast for that, right? You need to get it wound up. Yeah. How do you match people so that, you know, yeah, this goes well.
Carl (07:20)
Yeah, so what we do up front is we figure out up front why is it that they want to be a guest on podcasts? Is it because they've written a book and they want to get that information out there? Are they on a speaking tour and they want to, you know, parlay that also with
what they're doing on their speaking tour? Is it because they have intellectual property, you know, courses, workshops, things that they've created that they they also want to put out there, their their methodology. So we figure that out up front. Then from there, we can say, okay, well, based on that, based on the work that you do, these are the podcasts that are perfect for you. So if you're in business, for example, Bernie, you probably don't want to go on the cooking show.
Or the gardening hour. You might. if you had green thumbs and, all your fingers from using a knife in the kitchen, good for you. but that might not be what's what's impacting or what will be the most impactful for you in your business. Because a lot of people leveraging podcast guesting for business. It's not just for business, but a lot of people leveraging it for business. So we really help people figure out what is it that they're what what is their messaging? We need to understand that.
Then we can help them figure out what is it, what are the best shows that they can be on. Like you said, Bernie, it's like pairing the wine and the cheese together. So if you are somebody who talks about business finance, you might not want to talk about tech in business. You might, if that's if if that's in your wheelhouse, but you might want to talk about business strategies, business startup, capital, things like that, things that
that really gravitate to you. Business development might also be a piece of that. So we really try and make sure we understand so when we start to set up your your podcasting profile and get you bookings, that it's a match.
Bernie (09:03)
Well So
Someone comes comes up to you and says, Listen, I gonna wanna get my word out, I wanna get my name out, I wanna get my product out, book, whatever whatever the item might be.
Do you also look at where the host sits, who the where the guest is gonna go and what that reach is? Is that part of the journey too? Like in other words, if if your neighbor has three people that listen to you and that's all you've ever had and you've had maybe a hundred downloads over five years.
he there's instr th that megaphone's really tiny.
Carl (09:33)
Yeah, yeah, hopefully they're sitting in a chair if they are sitting. the ground can be very uncomfortable for recording podcast episodes, but seriously now. very good question. When you're starting, we always say this. We say when you're starting out, you've never been a guest before on podcasts, or you've had one or two opportunities. When you're starting, get on as many as you can. Still relevant for your business or your brand or your credibility.
But get on as many as you can that are in alignment, regardless of how many downloads or how many episodes, because that's great, a great arena to practice and get your messaging out there and then fine-tune it. And then from there, you can be a little bit more selective of, you know what, I only want to get on shows that have at least a hundred episodes or at least a thousand downloads or ten thousand downloads or whatever it is. But, but, and that that
Isn't more of a vanity metric, anyways. It's because there are people who have very successful shows, very low downloads, right? So, but I would base it on the number of episodes versus downloads. Episodes, because if you've been around for five years and have 500 downloads or you know, even 250, 300 downloads, you're seasoned. You know what you're doing, and you probably have a dedicated audience.
So that's the metric that I would look at for sure when you're ready. But then that that also prepares you. If you're at the if you're in practice mode, getting on pretty much any show that fits, then there's the next level, which is okay, great shows that have about a hundred, a hundred episodes or more. But then there's a level after that that says, you know what, these are shows that we either might have to pay to be on, could because they're at an executive level, or they're high-end, for example, some of the AWS podcasts or
Gartner podcast, things like things that are very, high profile business shows, those take a little longer to get on. Not impossible though, but it's a it's a building block to get there. So shoot high, of course, create that wish list, but understand that if you start out at the bottom and then work your way up, eventually you will find those shows.
Bernie (11:35)
it's one thing to have that gusto to go for go for the ring, right? Yeah. But how you come to the ring, how you show up. Yeah. So are these podcasts are they online or in person? And if they're in person, then you know, obviously how how you dress. If they're online, also yeah, at least from the shoulders up, right?
Carl (11:54)
Depends on the show, but generally you should still come dressed, yes.
Bernie (11:57)
Just
just just don't stand up wrong if you're yeah, if you're not fully fully complete. Yeah. But in that instance, second instance, it's like what kit you have around you. And what I mean by kit is the the camera, the microphone, lighting, noise interruptions, you know, the what is it, the the screaming dogs and the barking kids in the background, you know.
Carl (12:15)
Fire trucks, all of that stuff.
Bernie (12:18)
Where I've been going by you going hi as going and then as you go off. Yeah.
Carl (12:22)
dancing frog. Hello my baby. Hello my hell going across the screen. Yeah, you don't want that.
Bernie (12:26)
Well, you you might if you need it you need a segue for some from some particular reason, but but typically no, unless of course you're doing improv. how do you prep them? How do you set up for the stage, either their own stage or the live stage?
Carl (12:40)
Yeah, that's a very good question. live is definitely in some ways live is easier because people understand how they show up in person a little bit better than how they show up on on camera online. And we see this in networking settings. You've seen this in networking settings. because I know you host a a series of networking groups. but but it's very similar. So how you show up in person, you then again, it doesn't need to be a you know, a fancy dress. It doesn't need to be a tuxedo or a ball gown. It just needs to be
However, you show up in person as a professional is how you want to show up on camera as well. So if you're showing up in person for a podcast and your business says, you know what, business casual is where most people are right now, anyways. unless in the financing space, they're still wearing, you know, if they're on Bay Street or Wall Street, they're still wearing button-down suits and things like that. But you know, showing up in a in a nice pair of you know, dark blue jeans and a and a blazer and a button-down shirt still looks pretty professional.
Showing up like that, I'm talking about the guys, although it could be the ladies too. Showing up that could certainly be very good, but also show up that way on camera or in whatever way that you feel is going to benefit you. At for for for for those who are listening to this show, I'm wearing a branded polo, branded golf shirt that I wear quite often. It's still a very professional look.
my background looks professional because it it has my logo, it has a a picture of a studio. It's not my studio, but it's a really good looking studio. So how would you show up if you were in a studio though? Would you be wearing a jacket? Would you be wearing a polo? How would you look? That's what I really want. That's what I really want to see. If you're doing it online, also microphone, we always check to make sure that that the guests have a and not just earbuds, but a decent microphone to record in.
Computer audio, even though it's gotten really good over the years, it's still not the best. And you can tell when people are recording using computer audio. Sometimes you can even tell the type of computer they're recording on based on that. Mac and PC, different programs, different qualities. but the other thing too is the lighting. You know, don't record in a dark alley or don't record in a dark room. Make sure that the lighting is bright enough. You don't want it to be like you're on the surface of the sun, but bright enough so
like this, this lighting here, I don't have front or side lights or backlights on, but my background is such and my overhead light is such that it still looks and I have a lot of real estate on the top of my head, shall we say. So sometimes that does create a little bit of extra light. Guys, it does actually make a difference. but you know, make sure it's a bright area. I will also go a step further, Bernie, and say if when you are showing up on camera, especially in the virtual space,
Don't rely on your internal webcam on your laptop. If you're really wanting to be that sought after guest, invest $100 and get a separate webcam that you can adjust and tilt and move around appropriately. Firstly, so that it, you know, you can sit your microphone on your desk and not have it impede your your camera, but then also so you have a little bit more flexibility and a little bit more options for how it's going to look.
In the final product. So those are the two things. Lighting, three things, I guess. Lighting, decent camera, and definitely, definitely the most important thing is a mic, a decent mic.
Bernie (15:46)
The one thing I might add to the camera, if you have one of those tracking cameras, you like you move your head a little bit over and all of a sudden it's like, I'm sitting there watching I as an editor, I'm going, this is gonna be interesting. Okay.
Carl (15:58)
So my new lap my new laptop has that and I haven't figured out how to turn that setting off yet. So I haven't recorded any episodes using the laptop yet. And I don't usually take an external and I don't usually record on the road, anyways. But when I do, yeah, you need to make sure that the the zoom in feature, the zoom out or whatever it is, or the hey, I'm gonna follow you, the follow spot that that is disabled, at least for your recordings, because you don't want it to be distracting.
but you also don't want it to do things you know, adjust in such a way that it cuts your head off and then your head all of a sudden comes back up from the bottom of the screen or you in one or at the other. And like it doesn't it doesn't look good, right?
Bernie (16:37)
Kilroy was here, yeah.
Carl (16:38)
Yeah, yeah.
Bernie (16:39)
Also in the prep though, so we've talked about, appearance and the hardware around you, but it's more than just that. So if you're a host, what should you have pre assembled that you're giving somebody?
Carl (16:50)
that's a that's
Bernie (16:51)
Yeah.
Carl (16:52)
a really good question. Yeah, that's a really good question. And it's funny how my my answer is going to my answer has evolved. even in the last 24 hours, it's evolved. So number one, some hosts like to go in with a list of questions. always go in with a framework so the guest knows how the show flows together. And by the way, guests, you should also know how the show flows by just listening to an episode or two.
But hosts should definitely be sharing that. If there's anything that jumps out at you, any any features that are built in, for example, I always have a final thought at the end of every episode. So I let the guest know if I haven't shared it with them up front. I'll say, and by the way, as we're wrapping up our conversation, I will give you the final thought. It can be a quote, a mantra, something you live by, or even something that has come to you during our conversation. And nine times out of ten, actually, probably even ninety-nine times out of a hundred.
increase it a little bit. most people will have something already pre-selected or they'll have something to say based on our conversation. So it's very rarely do I trip them up. But some hosts say what book you're reading right now. If you just randomly asked me that, I'd be thinking, what book am I reading right now? Actually I can honestly say I'm reading freshly brewed coaching from a mu from a mutual colleague. but you know what you you need to not throw your guest any any curve balls like that. You need to give them a little bit of direction.
As I say, some hosts like to have a framework. Bernie, I know you have a very detailed question sheet that is your guide. Should you have a guest that maybe isn't as verbose as say me, so that you can go to the questions and say, okay, what question can I answer next? You next you have it all laid out, which is very, very efficient of you. The other thing that I'm realizing as we get into as we get deeper into podcasting is that there are certain legalities.
that you really need to think about if you're a host. So you should probably start thinking about having your guests sign a release form, a waiver. Nine times out of ten, you're protected. It's podcasting, it's you know, the indie podcasters, you're probably not going to run into any issues, but it's that one time that you interview someone and then all of a sudden you're being dragged into you know a lawsuit that it's just a good check and balance.
that I've realized in recent weeks it's good to have that release form in place. And if you don't have one yet, don't stress, but it's not a bad idea to have one, even a simple one created for you to protect yourself and also to protect your guest.
Bernie (19:14)
We've talked about you know what we need, how to go into it, and but you mentioned something rather interesting in your last comment.
And the point is, the person goes, very short answers. One of the things I'm always looking for is if you are like you're on the witness stand and you see me as opposing counsel, this, you know, it could be a comedy show, but it no one's gonna want to listen to it. And you know, unless of course you really make it entertaining. How do you how do you prep someone who's gone from like I'm very stoic? Yes, no. I mean, there's actually there's actually a meme out there.
And it shows this old old time firefighter going, how did the building catch on fire? Heat.
Carl (19:52)
Yeah.
Bernie (19:53)
What happened next? It burned. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. I mean, he's right, right? He's just like, Yeah, you know, I I how do you get them to enrich their communications?
Carl (20:05)
It's it's funny you're asking this question because it it is a very good point. It's one of the things that I learned years ago in broadcasting, and even if you're on the stage, it's a very similar, similar point is that when you are doing a QA session or when you are whether it's a round robin discussion, whether it's a podcast interview or conversation, whatever it is, do not do not ask closed questions. So if you allow the the guest to
Give you a yes, no, or maybe answer, or kind of sort of, those don't fly. But then if you do ask them that, you need to be ready to say what the next thing is. So, can you go into that a little bit more deeply? Can you elaborate on that? So, what I like to do up front is I like to avoid closed questions altogether and have a conversation. There's a difference between asking questions and having a conversation. So if you were having a conversation.
With somebody over coffee and you said, Hey Bernie, how are you? Or I already said, Hey Bernie, how are you? You I'm doing well. great, what's going on? Like you would know what the next thing is to say, right? So think about it as being a conversation, number one. Number two is if you're a guest, try to speak in sound bites. Don't give a War and Peace, you know, litany answer to the qu to one question.
Because then we're gonna run out of digital tape, electronic, virtual tape, right? from the broadcasting days where had real tape, magnetic tape, actually. But speak in sound bites. Try and speak in sound bites that are one to two minutes. This is probably a longer sound bite, but it makes it easier for the host to know where to edit, to clip, to maybe that break is a little bit too long. We can s shorten it a little bit. So that's for the that's for the guest.
But then also, hosts, you need to be able to know and steer the conversation forward. Not just to ask questions, but steer the conversation forward. And you've been a master at this, Bernie, in this conversation, because you've been driving the conversation forward. But don't hesitate to drive that conversation. You're in the driver's seat as the host. So whether you have a guest who says, yes, 17, whatever, like you need to be able to say, and 17, what does that what does that mean?
17 is the magical number that you need to hit before somebody does business with you. yes, that is the magical number. And in your experience, does you know, how often does that happen? Like really dig if you have to. and some guests are easier than others, but that's why I'm saying to guests, try and speak in sound bites. Don't give short, you know, terse three, four, five-word answers. Give enough of an answer that the host can say, I can work with that.
Bernie (22:36)
At the end of the day, when you're also, you go through the podcast and just before you wrap up, there's usually there's something you want to share with the audience that's, and and and the there's a strategy behind some of this. Some of it is just, you know, straightforward sales. Here here's you know, here's a special, right? Some of it also is a lead funnel, which starts a process and you're g doing a giveaway, right?
Carl (22:59)
Yep.
Bernie (23:00)
it's I believe it's called CTA. And can you elaborate on that, Carl? What is a CTA and how does how do you leverage the CTA?
Carl (23:07)
I can definitely leverage and elaborate on that. I'm glad you asked me that question. A CTA is an abbreviation for call to action. Some people actually refer to it as a CTI, which is a call to influence. Because if you had or call to impact, if you have had an impact with your audience, hopefully with your host as well, that you want the audience, and if you're listening to this, then t take take note of this.
You want your audience, whoever is listening, to take that action. So ideally, you have presented your information in a way that shares that you can solve a problem. So the problem we solve at Podcast Solutions Made Simple is we help, as you indicated, Bernie, we help subject matter experts, coaches, consultants who
Don't have the time or technical skills to be in the podcasting space, get booked or launch their own show because it's a very long process to get booked on shows that you want to be on, right? So we help do that. We partner with people to help them do that. My call to action from that would be indicative of what the problem is when you're not getting booked on the right shows, which we have talked about.
So now my call to action would be, I'm not going to give it to you right now because I know that's a question you're going to ask a little later on, but my call to action would parallel with that. Now there are some good calls to action. They are, for example, here's a checklist, here's a PDF, here's an assessment, depending on what your conversation or what the problem is that you're solving. not so good calls to action are just follow me on social media. I'm all over TikTok and LinkedIn.
That's not a very viable call to action. You want to give the listener an opportunity to engage with you right away. And I'll show you when Bernie gets to the call to action piece what that is. Because for me, it's a little bit more simple, but there are some folks who'll say, Yeah, you know what, we have a checklist, we have an assessment, or even if you have a downloadable tool or PDF or an app.
That people can start using right away. Those are really good calls to action. But send me an email or just go to a random page on my website or follow me on socials. Not a very good call to action. And guess what, Bernie? Guess how many times people do that when you give that as a call to action? You're right, the answer's zero. I wasn't gonna go wait for your answer. You're like, is it 10%? No, it's zero.
Bernie (25:29)
So the show is done. It's in the can and it gets edited and it gets pushed out into the wild. And it ends up either in Apple, the platform or Spotify, iHeart, and there's a myriad of them out there. What do you do as a guest? you know, the host is gonna do something, they they would do a little bit of a fanfare, but what do you do as a guest? Like what how how do you leverage that?
How do you leverage it? Because it's not just I understand it's not just here's like a 20-minute conversation and that's it. I I have to move this 20 minutes around. Do I parse it up? Do I do I put it on my X or on my TikTok or my LinkedIn on my Instagram, Facebook?
Carl (26:08)
Yes, yes, yes, yes. Next question. No, just kidding. There's a close question. But no, I'm just I'm I'm just I'm just giving you a hard time. But yes, absolutely. As a as a guest, now before I I'll say what the guest's role is on this, as a host, your role is to let the guest know when that episode is live and then share whatever resources you can with them. It can be graphics, it can be promotional tools like
audiograms, reels, other artwork. If you're you can even share whatever posts, like if you have if you have swipe copy that you want to get, if you have that, great. By all means share that. and of course the link to the episode, very important. the other piece is to I will also share with a guest. I'll share the embed code so they can put it directly on their website. Now, here's where we get into what the role is. and as a host also.
Make sure that you are connected with your guest. So when you are posting it on your social media channels, that you can tag and they can like, share, follow, reshare, whatever. But as a guest, it's your due diligence to also do your own posts if you'd like. Or you can, for example, when Bernie makes this episode live in the future, he's going to let me know when it's going live. And he's going to say your episode's live now.
Here's all the tools. Here's what you need. And also when it's live, he's going to tag me. And I know this because I've been through this process with him that he's going to share with that. Now, next step for you, though, as a guest is ask the host can I use this in other ways? In other words, can I leverage this interview or can I reshare it in some of my own posts or in my blog or in my email, my my my email campaigns? Guess what the host, 99 times out of 100, is going to say.
Yes, absolutely. Reshare as much as you like because it's good traction for you, but it's also good traction for them. The other piece that I like as a guest is create a media page for yourself on your website and the interviews and the conversations that you have, put them up there. That's why I give the embed code to my guests. So
They can do that. So they can have a media page on their website and start to, promote the fact that they are guests on shows. Not just for podcast episodes, by the way. You can put any media appearances that you might have, be they you know, YouTube or any even conventional media, if you've been featured in an article or if you've been on, you know, CTV news or whatever, put those all on a media page and
You want to talk about elevating your brand, your business, your credibility, and your expertise level, do that. Media Page makes a big, big difference.
Bernie (28:44)
I had a guest one time, and his nature of his business is SEO optimization. He's he's in Southwest US. And he says he actually has a book about it, why you want to be a guest on a podcast. And apparently it involves your name getting mentioned by an outside party that's linked back to you in a in a favorable light. So it's not just only the the the verbosity of by the way.
I've got the dancing frog or the dancing elephants, right? but it also has an attribution back to you. So it's not just is it more than just the the sound bite that someone listens going, you know what, I I think I gotta talk to Carl 'cause you know, I wanna be a guest.
Carl (29:21)
absolutely. Yeah. It goes it definitely goes deeper than that too. And this is why the podcasting space is ever evolving. we're seeing a lot of video podcasts now because video has a different a different reach, a different appeal, a lot of millennials or or Gen Gen Zs and or Gen Z, I guess depending on which side of the pond which side of the the the pond you're on, or river or whatever it is.
Or the line that separates our two countries. but also depending on what what you're what you're doing in your business, I mean I mean the the transcript is also a huge piece now. Like having a transcript, having SEO friendly, you know, capsu it captures SEO, keywords, all of those things become huge tags in your episodes.
Even something as simple as chapter markers. it sounds like it's a huge process to go through, but it does make a difference. The other piece that makes a difference too. Here we are in in at the recording of this, it's it's the spring of 2026. AI is playing a huge part in this too, because a lot of people are looking for you or doing searches for business aspects of business using AI. They're not using,
H what do you call it? search engines like they used to, you know, Google and and other search engines like they used to, you know, Safari, they're not using them the same way. A lot of people are using AI the same way they would use Google. Right? So think about that. Because if you're if you are searchable on on a Google or on a Safari or Mozilla or whatever it is, great, but are you also searchable on AI?
'Cause a lot of people are going to be looking for you there in one capacity or another. So your name can't be dropped enough. so yeah, very important.
Bernie (30:59)
So two quick questions about the person into the store that you offer of goodies of services, I should say. If they've never guested, if they've never been a guest before, where do they start? And once once in, how do they know that this is this is working? Is it like you know, tomorrow they'll get you know a thousand people clamoring for them? Do they turn into a rock star?
Carl (31:21)
Yes, results are always instantaneous in this in this world. yeah, yeah, the Justin Bieber effect. It happens to everybody. I'm being very facetious, as you might be able to tell by the tone of my voice. And if you're watching clips like this, by the way, Bernie is laughing hysterically. but no, seriously, ve very good question. If you've never ever been a guest before, understand that anytime you are putting yourself out there.
I liken being a podcast guest in some ways to getting on somebody's stage, right? Getting on another stage, getting in front of a hundred people or a thousand people or whatever it is and speaking on a physical stage. Would you say no to that? Most people say, well, no, I wasn't wouldn't say no to that, especially if I know there are there's going to be some people in the audience who are my potential clients and prospects. So think of it that way as you are leveraging being a guest on podcasts as well.
Also understand that the results are not instant. Unless you are already a complete success, you're already an established thought leader. Chances are it's going to be a bit of a climb, right? And if you've already said you've never been a guest on podcasts, you're probably starting at ground zero. Give it some time. Give it six months or a year. Get 52 episodes or whatever it is under your belt. See if you can do one.
one a week or even two a month, between that 26 and 52 episodes, do the suggestions that I've I've shared, create a media page. And also, as you're sharing on your social media channels or even in your own email campaigns what you've done by being a guest on podcasts, guess what? That is elevating your credibility, even if you don't make a dime from that, all of a sudden it puts you in a different platitude, it puts you in a different place.
Because now you're not just the invisible expert. You've gone from being invisible to being visible and out there. And that makes a huge difference. I would say, and again, obviously shoot for shoot for the moon, because if you miss, at least you're among the stars. That's another quote I like, by the way. but also understand that if you don't get any if you have zero sales from any podcast guesting opportunities that you've been on.
The one thing that you have done is you've leveraged it from a marketing perspective. And also keep in mind that your host is also a potential referral partner, somebody you can joint venture with. They're a potential client, depending on where that lands. Okay, so don't diminish what that I have created relationships with people.
Having been a guest on their show, and now we're looking at, okay, well, how do we work together on things? Right. So think it, think outside the box, think beyond just the dollars and cents of it. Is it putting you in a place that is elevating your professional persona and who you are and your place in the business world? And if you can say, you know what, I guess it's on 52 shows this year, and yes, is it leading to speaking opportunities? Is it leading to follow-up conversation? What?
There's where the there's where the proof is in the pudding, right? so you might not make a cent from it, but you should definitely be getting results from it. And again, I'm gonna circle it back to if you really want the best results from it, get on the shows where you're going to have the most impact. But then also make sure as you're getting on the those shows, you're showing up as the expert and you're giving them a call to action that gives them a reason to follow through or follow up with you and get into your world.
Bernie (34:40)
The Podcast Alliance Made Simple. How does someone go, hey, how do I get into that quarterly meeting?
Carl (34:45)
Well, they could reach out to you because yeah because you're very well connected. But yeah, we usually post the information about the meeting because we have separate links for for sign up and stuff like that. But definitely you can connect with Bernie or you can connect with myself. But but it's a it's a very, very great place for podcast guests, podcasts hosts, Bernie, as you said earlier, content creators, coaches, consultants, people who like to network and meet other people and learn about different things. It's a great place to do that. So
I would say if that's something that you're interested in, we're already looking at our our next quarterly meetup, which will be coming up well, it's quarterly, so this episode might drop afterwards, but we always have great guests. we've had people who are video experts, content creation experts, social media experts. we have our we have an alliance coming up that will feature somebody talking on the legal side of podcasting. we have somebody else who'll be talking about their
their journey as a podcast host and as a guest and l and how to leverage those tools. So there's always something in every alliance. You'll get something out of every single meeting. But I think it starts with a, a conversation. So I always say connect with me or connect with Bernie for sure. And happy to share with you the information when it is ready to be out there.
Bernie (35:56)
Segue question coming up. What's the wildest moment you ever had on mic?
Carl (36:00)
my goodness. Me per we talking radio or are we talking podcasting? Because I think that's
Bernie (36:05)
Whatever whatever you wanna share.
Carl (36:07)
my gosh. I think that okay, let's let's let's keep it to podcasting because I had some pretty wild moments on mic when I worked in radio. Some of the stunts that we did, everything from my goodness, I I got drunk on the radio once. It was a stunt. It was around police weekend, it was testing the
how what you know what your performance is like. And I was hook hooked up to an Intoxilyzer and all of that. That was that was interesting. It didn't take me long, apparently. To took me four tall boys to to really start to you know for it to add impact. we also cooked cookies on a dashboard in a in a a hot vehicle on a hot summer's day, except they weren't fully cooked all the way. So they were kind of like that chewy, but were they cooked enough? We don't know.
But anyway, so that was on the radio side. That was probably some of the most fun I had in broadcasting. A lot of other great things too that I did in the radio world. But I think in the podcasting space I I had
I had a conversation with an individual who, I don't know if it's the wildest, but was the most intriguing conversation I've had to date. And he used to organize all of Tony Robbins' firewalks. Tony Robbins basically pulled him out of the he would, you know, he the this individual himself had been through drug and addictions.
But then started working for Tony for a bit and then ended up organizing his firewalks, his glass walks, and he shared so many amazing stories about his journey. That was an amazing conversation because we most of us know what the firewalks are. I didn't even know there were glasswalks, apparently there are. but an amazing story on how he how he did things, how he got out of his addictions.
And what he does now. He runs his own company now, above and beyond what what Tony does. just a phenomenal individual. His name has escaped me, but I might have it for you in time for the show notes for sure. But just an amazing guy. and his story as to how he how he came out of that. But actually talking to someone who was it's like the six degrees of Kevin Bacon, right? This was literally a degree away from Tony Robbins. It's kind of cool.
Bernie (37:58)
So Carl, as the call to action piece is now coming up on the horizon, what is the call to action that you have for our audience?
Carl (38:06)
Yeah, I'm glad you shared that, Bernie. Everything starts with a conversation. So if anything that I have said today has resonated with you, I'd love to I'd love to have a conversation with you. And in order to get started, sometimes we just need that that help, that nudge, that information. So what we have created is an opportunity for people to jump into a podcast strategy session. This is where we identify
What your goals are for podcasting. Now, I if if it's guesting, great. If it's hosting your own show, great. So we identify what that is. We also then look at what is holding you back. Is there, is it a financial thing or is it a is it a timeline thing? Is it a hadn't thought about that? so we look at that. What is it that's holding you back from taking that step to being in the podcasting space? And then from there, we set a plan in motion and ideally figure out a timeline.
to get you either guesting or get you hosting your own show. So it's a podcast strategy session and it's complimentary, by the way. So take me up on the offer. I'd love to love to walk you through that.
Bernie (39:04)
Perfect. So folks, listen, reach out to Podcast Solutions Made Simple dot com. Book a call with Carl. It's a good conversation. I would just like to say thank you to Tony Gyenis from the Phoenix Business Exchange, because he's the reason that both Carl and I had a chat and he's part of the Knack 4 Business universe. he's he actually he's part of the genesis of that universe, I should actually say.
and yeah, This is Carl's fifth conversation with the Knack 4 Business So obviously he's got merit, he's got content, and he's a good person to connect with. So if you're an entrepreneur, you need to get a message out there. Either want to become a podcast host, you want to be a host with the most, or a host that has support. Carl can do that.
But if you want to first start the journey out and connecting with people and being a guest and understand what's behind the scenes, again, reach out to Carl, right? So that's it's it's a good way to get heard and seen. To get a hold of us, it's knack4business.com. That's the word knack, K-N-A-C-K, the number 4 business.com. And you can also check our chat bot because it'll help you find other other episodes and or even book a call with us.