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Why Selling to Podcast Hosts Instead of to Listeners May Be The Right Strategy
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How are you doing in podcasting as a guest, host, or both?
Deconstruct and reimagine the podcast marketing processes you think you understand. Podcasting profitably today is the opposite of everything you’ve ever learned. In this post, Chris Williams challenges us to take a step back and see what’s really going on behind the microphones of the best high-ticket sales and lead-gen hosts and guests in podcasting.
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Read the Blog Post: Why Selling to Podcast Hosts Instead of to Listeners May Be The Right Strategy
I was recording a show with another podcast host when he said, “I am so glad you are on our show today. What a great opportunity to learn something. I have been trying to figure out how to do this in my own business.”
Suddenly, a light bulb went on in my head. I was doing it backward! I picked up a whiteboard and set about figuring out the quickest way to convert someone new to the world of podcasting (a host or guest) into a client.
After all, we all know it’s very difficult to build a huge audience and sell enough products or affiliates to make a living from podcasting.
But when another host said, “I invited you as a guest to learn from you,” it was as if he was literally screaming at the top of his lungs, “I am a prospect. Please come pick me up.”
So I decided to reverse engineer the whole process. I reached out to other podcast hosts and offered to share my podcasting expertise with them and their listeners.
In the process, two things happened that were really important in initiating a sale.
The first is that they look at my podcast host or guest profile.
That often leads to them saying, “Hey, this guy is relevant to my audience. My audience would find this guy really fascinating, entertaining, and informative.”
They might also say, ” I want to know what this guy knows. I want him on my show just so I can ask him questions.”
Where the Magic Happens.
Now I approach the podcast host as a fellow host and say, “Hey, I see what you are doing. And I think it’s pretty cool. If there’s anything I can do to help you or your listeners, I am in.”
Even a simple message like that to another podcast host is pretty magical because now I am an expert offering my expertise.
In the world of podcasting, we are equals.
Forget about who has the bigger audience and all those things. We are both podcast hosts and I just offering to serve. I do not ask if I can be on your show.
I do not ask, ‘Can I sell you something?’ I do not ask if you can be on my show. I do not ask any of that.
As a result, so many of these hosts contacted me and said, “Yes, I would love to have you on the show.”
Now I have a chance to jump through the door and help their audience.
And I can also explain to them what I do as an expert. More often than not, at the end of the show, the podcast host says to me, “Hey, that was really great. I want to learn more about what you do.
How can you help me do that?”
I can help you understand what I understand, how I build my business, how I grow the things I do, how it all works from a behind-the-scenes perspective of what I am building professionally.”
That’s where the traction starts to really kick in. Almost always they say yes and I immediately have a discovery call with a highly qualified prospect.
Here is a Question For You
Who has already raised their hand and said, “I am interested in what you have to say. And I’d like to pick your brain.” That’s the perfect prospect for your offer.
That being said, it can get sticky in one or two places.
First, you need to make sure you are appropriately targeting the people you want to talk to.
Platforms like PodMatch do a really good job of this. There are so many people who label themselves hosts. They have an audience.
They are trying to influence people.
So what my team and I do is just go to a platform like PodMatch. This is where we find out who our ideal client is and how they express that in their PodMatch profile.
We just poke around there. It’s really not hard to do. Search for keywords and you’ll find them very quickly.
Once we do that, we look for a couple of key things.
One, I want to look at their audience. Is their audience a right fit for this topic? If it’s not, our message will not make sense. Do I think this person (the host) can really use what we do?
If both the host and the audience can use what we are doing, it’s a win-win situation.
“Hey, I think what you are doing is great. Thank you so much for your commitment to serving the community. If there’s anything we can do to help, let us know.
By the way, if you want to stalk me a little more, here is my host/guest profile. Take a look. Again, I am here for you anytime. ”
A simple message like this brings us so many responses.
That’s because it gives the podcast hosts a chance to pre-screen and qualify us without it getting weird or icky.
Sometimes it takes one or two messages or a little time to build a relationship.
They may ask, “Yeah, tell me more about what you do.” I can understand that. The good thing is that those little messages back and forth build a relationship.
What Do You Have to Offer?
There are so many products and services we offer as podcast hosts. Many of us talk about marketing, building high-ticket programs, sales, prospecting, lead generation, storytelling, creating audiences, creating better families, having happier pets, travel or whatever it is we do.
We all have our areas of expertise, and that is very valuable to others in the community. That means you do not have to just talk to audiences. That’s a gamble.
You can reach out directly to podcast hosts who are looking for your genius area of expertise. That’s where it all becomes magical.
Our initial attraction model was doing cold outreach on social media platforms and email lists.
We also ran ads. Today, our model has changed significantly. That’s because, with a very small amount of money per month, I can buy a membership to a platform that matches hosts and guests and categorizes all these people perfectly for me.
It’s also a dating service for people who offer their services to podcast hosts and guests.
Think about the power of social media, the power of market niches, the power of screening, the power of filtering, and the power of relationship building that goes into a platform like PodMatch.
You instantly break down barriers of trust. Now you can overcome the distrust, the skepticism, and all the things that are so painful on so many platforms.
You can just talk to like-minded people who have similar goals and help each other. I love this model. It’s very simple and very doable.
The Easiest and Most Natural Way to Sell
At the end of the interview, this conversation often comes up:
Host: That was a great interview. Thank you so much for all the information.
Me: Absolutely, glad to help you. If you’d like to jump on another call and I can help you whiteboard these ideas. If I can help you in any way, I will be very happy to do that.
Or I could say.
Me: Hey, we still have a few minutes left. Why don’t we just talk this thing through? You have asked some really good questions in the last 30 minutes. What can I do to help you?
You are really trying to crack the code here. How can I help you?
And if they tell me right off the bat exactly what they need, and I’m able to help them, I’ll make them an offer.
You can do the same thing. It’s the most natural and easiest way to sell. It’s so nice to talk to someone who is actually on the same wavelength as you.
They’re going down the same path as you and just need your help to take another step forward. This is a great opportunity.
One-on-one coaching, group coaching, whatever you’re offering, this is the fastest way to find and close clients, sort through and get through all the mess of high-ticket prospecting and closing.
As we keep saying in my communities:
Do the right work to get the right results.
About Chris Williams
Chris Williams works with entrepreneurial and business experts, speakers, coaches, and leaders, helping them market, monetize, and lead their own high-ticket mastermind (or group coaching) programs. As the world continues to shift, many experts are trying to build high-ticket groups for additional income, lead generation, or impact. Chris teaches experts how to generate leads, close high-ticket deals, and build strong, transformational groups. He has his own digital agency, leads two masterminds of his own, and has learned many of these lessons the hard way, so sharing his journey and offering strategies is why he is here.
- Visit Chris Williams’ Website
- Find out if building a high-ticket mastermind would break or boost your business: Schedule a Call
- Chris Williams on Social Media: PodMatch | Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram | YouTube