31: Why did Billy Samoa Saleebey leave Tesla to start Podify?

[Paris Vega]: Welcome to the First Customers podcast. Today we have Billy Samoa Salibi, [Paris Vega]: who is a former Tesla executive, and now he's the co-founder and CEO of Podify, [Paris Vega]: a service that produces podcasts, podcasts like Language of Love with Dr. Laura [Paris Vega]: Berman from Oprah's TV network. Billy, honored to have you on the show. Thank [Paris Vega]: you for being here. Welcome to First Customers. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Oh, Paris, it's an absolute delight. We got a chance to meet last week, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and I'm super excited to have our conversation today. [Paris Vega]: So you've got an awesome resume, obviously, big name like Tesla on there. You [Paris Vega]: worked with some big podcasts. So you could start wherever you feel like, [Paris Vega]: but how'd you get your first customers? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah, well, you know, I love the premise of this show because it [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: allows me to reflect and think back to the beginning of forming [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: my company and I'll start with that because [Paris Vega]: OK. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I left tesla and I I thought you know I could do whatever I wanted [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to do at that point I could Get another job and incorporate I could [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: work for a big company a small company a startup There's so many different [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: things that I could do but ultimately I felt a to podcasting. And [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I just had to start with my own show. And so I started my own show [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: in 2019 and based on my experience very early on in starting my [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: own show I realized quickly that it takes a lot of work. And so [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I decided I needed people to help with my show so I made the priority [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: finding great people to help me produce my podcast. And basically [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: what I realized is because of the volume of work, I needed people to help [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: me with my show. I knew other people needed help with the show. And [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: so I started my own company, Potify, to do just that. And so when [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I think back to my early customers, I thought, you know, go to my own [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: warm market, go to the people that I know, because ultimately, Those [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: are gonna be the people that have the instant trust. They know me, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: they like me, they trust me. And even if they themselves don't have [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: a podcast, they may have somebody in their orbit that has a podcast. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: So one of my first customers was the person who you mentioned, Dr. Laura [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Berman. And Dr. Laura Berman, she had her own show on Oprah, she [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: had her own radio show, nationally syndicated. And so she came with [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: a fair amount of celebrity status and credibility. way for me to get my [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: first client. And so she wasn't my very, very first client, but [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: one of my first clients. And the way that I found her was through my [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: old boss, a guy that I used to work with about a decade before that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: at a small solar company in Orange County. And so the key point though [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that I really want to remind every listener who's listening right [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: now is you never know who might know someone. And so I like the idea [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of always building relationships that last. And this particular relationship, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: this is a guy that I talk to off and on throughout the years, I [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: didn't lose contact with him. And the fact that I didn't lose contact [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: with him made me top of mind. And so I'll share a little exercise [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that I learned from Jordan Harbinger. And Jordan Harbinger is a [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: podcaster, is a huge show. I got a chance to interview him and he [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: talks about this idea of going back and looking at your text messages [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and going back to the oldest text message that you have. and start [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: engaging with those people. It may be a weak or dormant tie, somebody [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that you haven't talked to a lot. And ultimately, those people, they're [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: not expecting to hear from you. So if they hear from you, they might [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: be a little bit skeptical at first. So you just gotta remind them that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you're just calling to reach out, you're just calling to catch [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: up or see how they're doing, or they popped in your mind, because [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you don't want people to think like you're after something, and you [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: shouldn't. You don't wanna dig a well when you're thirsty. Right? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: You want to dig the well before you're thirsty. So you have that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: water. And Jordan shared that, that quote. And I think this is a really [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: key thing to remember about the power of relationships. You never [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: know which person from your past could open a door of opportunity. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: So in this case, I got a call from, from my old boss. He says, Hey, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I have this, I know you started a podcast company and by the way, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you need to let people know whatever it is you're doing, whether that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: be through social or through talking. You let him know, and I have [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: this friend who wants to start a podcast. I would love to connect [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you to her. And then one thing led to another and that's how it [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: started. [Paris Vega]: Okay, here we are again, the power of the network seems to be a common theme that [Paris Vega]: shows up on the show. All right, do you remember the very very first customer [Paris Vega]: that you onboarded onto Potify? So you got that specific one, the bigger name [Paris Vega]: customer through your old boss. Is that similarly how you got the other ones [Paris Vega]: just talking to different people, working the network? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah, it's so funny because as I look back and think about, okay, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: where did this person come from? And where did this [Paris Vega]: Yeah. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: person come from? So there's really three places where they came [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: from. Number one is referrals. And that means somebody that I know, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: somebody that I built a relationship with referred somebody. Number [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: two, through LinkedIn. And when I say LinkedIn, I didn't do cold outreach. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I was posting on LinkedIn. And because I was posting on LinkedIn, people [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: knew what I was doing, and people started asking me questions. So [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: tell me about what you're doing. Okay. That's, that's the second place. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And then the third place it came from is conversa- what I'll just call [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: simply conversations. So people reaching out to me because they were [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: referred, people finding me or knowing about me because they saw me [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: on LinkedIn, or people who- I've reached out to, I've started a conversation. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: So to answer your question about my very, very first customer. Well, there's [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: probably two that happen simultaneously. One was a referral from a person [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: who I used to work with at Tesla. And, but here's the interesting thing. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: He was also somebody that got to know me through the power of LinkedIn. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: He saw my posts. So I got introduced through a connection on LinkedIn, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: through a DM on LinkedIn. And then he saw me making posts. So then he [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: proactively, we scheduled a meeting and got to know each other. But then [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: he scheduled a second meeting because he wanted help. with his podcast. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And then the other person that was early, early on, it came because I [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: believe in what I call backyard barbecue conversations. And what I [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: mean by that, well, when you have a conversation with somebody [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: on the DM in LinkedIn or any social media platform for that matter, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: what you don't want is a monologue and a long paragraph to paragraph [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: thing with somebody. telling you everything they did. That would [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: never happen in a backyard barbecue where you meet somebody, [Paris Vega]: right. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: hi, my name's Billy and this is what I do. Do you wanna sign up? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: That would never happen. And so I just like to have casual conversation [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: where it's get to know you conversation. I always like to look at [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: the profile and say what areas of common ground exist that doesn't [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: feel forced. Example of something that feels forced, hey, I see [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: we have connections in common. Well, I have 35,000 Connections. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: So yeah, there's probably gonna be a few we have in common. So that's [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: not really what I would start with What I would start with is is there [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: something unusual about their Background like I in my in my headline [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I put ramen addict So if I was reaching out to me, I would say I [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: noticed you're a ramen addict. I am too. What's your favorite spot? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: That's a backyard conversation. Okay, or another thing that I like to do is [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I like recommending things or asking questions about their show [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: so like hey, I see you should have a show about Somebody has a show [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: about people who didn't make it into the Hall of Fame of baseball That [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that maybe should have and I said, you know, your show premise is [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: really interesting Would love to know who do you think out of everyone [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that you've talked about? Who do you think is most deserving of being [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: in the Hall of Fame that never made it? So that's a backyard conversation [Paris Vega]: Yeah, just taking it to the personal interests. Okay, so working the network, getting [Paris Vega]: referrals, it sounds a lot like the Benjamin Franklin, the squeaky wheel method [Paris Vega]: where he would make sure that he didn't grease his wheels so that everybody [Paris Vega]: would know he was working whenever he was pushing his cart back and forth [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah! [Paris Vega]: across the town square or whatever. And that's kind of like social media today. [Paris Vega]: You just wanna let people know, as you're going about your business, at least [Paris Vega]: put it out there. Let the wheel squeak a little bit. Um, so had you transitioned [Paris Vega]: at all to doing like traditional advertising or, you know, digital marketing [Paris Vega]: and other ways of actually like paying to promote your services or moved into [Paris Vega]: that at all. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I haven't and honestly, I don't know if I will with the current structure [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of my company the way it is Because we don't it's not like we can [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: take on unlimited clients and what I mean by that is we have the luxury [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of being selective with who We choose to invite to be a client of ours [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and who we choose not to there's sometimes where I meet with people [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And it's clear that it's not a fit. It's not a fit because they're [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: not someone who I think we would mesh well with as a company. Either [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: we can't provide what they're looking for, or maybe it's something [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: else that makes me have some reservation and 1% doubt and you're out. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I kind of subscribe to the philosophy of life's short, work with [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: people who you wanna work with. And so for me, I don't see a need [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to do some sort of mass marketing strategy that's gonna push out the [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: company to the masses yet. Now, if we had technology or if we were [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: trying to promote some SaaS product or digital service that, you know, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: our course or something like that. Yes, we could do it for that. And [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: we will do that for some of our clients. But as far as for our [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: core service offering, we won't do that. And especially because I [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: firmly believe that the best way to attract the right people is [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to show up in places where your ideal customer avatar hangs out. [Paris Vega]: Okay, there we go. Okay, talk a little bit about that. Like what is your [Paris Vega]: target customer, your ideal target customer? Because you could say, well, podcasters, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah. [Paris Vega]: but [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Hehehehe. [Paris Vega]: there's probably a smaller niche within that that you've defined. So it'd [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah, [Paris Vega]: be good to hear you talk about that. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: totally. There's really two core client avatars. The first one is we'll [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: call them the solopreneur, entrepreneur, or personal brand that is a speaker, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: is a consultant, is a coach, or maybe they have a small service [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: business. Someone that wants other people to know what they do, that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: wants some credibility for what they do, and wants to build a loyal [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: following. That's one core bucket. And maybe they use it as a networking [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: tool or as a marketing vehicle, something of that nature. And then [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: the other one is what I'll call a celebrity or influencer who has [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: a known and existing, pre-existing audience. So Dr. Laura Berman [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: would be an example, [Paris Vega]: Yeah. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: or Danny Lopriori, [Paris Vega]: Okay. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: who's got off the cuff, he was a Vine influencer. People like that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: who have a following, maybe some comedians, for example, because [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: if they have a following, Chances are people are gonna wanna be a part [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of whatever they're doing in a podcast or other kinds of media. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And so we, yeah, we're a podcast production company, but we do more [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: than podcast production. We do video production, we do social media, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and we do all sorts of written content and web development, things [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of that nature. And so we always look for people who will attract [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: an audience because of who they are. So those would be the two [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: core. [Paris Vega]: Okay. And it sounds like it's, it's more of a white glove service. Like you're [Paris Vega]: saying you're not doing mass scale advertising because it's, it's not just some [Paris Vega]: automated service. It's more of a high touch manual effort. Okay. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah. [Paris Vega]: So that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah. [Paris Vega]: makes [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And then like, I mean, I'm, we use some things that are like tools [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that help us with our, with what we do, because we're certainly not [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: ignoring the ground swell of momentum that is happening because [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of AI and all the things that are allowing people to work more effectively [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and efficiently. And so we employ those, all those that we can because [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: they're helpful. But as a, as a business, we recognize that people [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: want human. interaction. They want that one in one attention. And even [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: though there is going to be a subsection of the market that wants [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: all AI and nothing else, I'd say there's also a very big section of [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: the population that wants to know they have a person who may be [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: using AI tools, but a person who's really making sure that everything [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: runs smoothly. And that's what we provide. [Paris Vega]: As of right now, there's not the marketing robot or the podcasting robot that [Paris Vega]: just is the all powerful that you can just say, make me produce my podcast, [Paris Vega]: please. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Not [Paris Vega]: And [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: yet, [Paris Vega]: it [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: it's [Paris Vega]: doesn't [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: coming [Paris Vega]: everything. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: though. [Paris Vega]: Right, it seems like it's a matter of time at this point, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Totally. [Paris Vega]: the way everything's moving so fast. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: It really does. [Paris Vega]: I was just talking to somebody yesterday about that. It's like they were asking [Paris Vega]: me how I saw marketing in the next five years. I was like, five years? I [Paris Vega]: have no idea about five years from now. There's no way to know what's gonna [Paris Vega]: happen by then. It's like maybe one year we can make some predictions, but [Paris Vega]: things are changing so [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: It's [Paris Vega]: fast [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: crazy [Paris Vega]: at this point [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: how [Paris Vega]: in time. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: fast [Paris Vega]: Wow. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: things are happening. And if you're not, look at the way I see it [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: is if you're not at least, if you're not using the tools, you're [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: going to get beat by somebody who is using the tools. That's the [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: thing. So. [Paris Vega]: For sure. Yep. Yeah, I think that's a good point that there's always going to be [Paris Vega]: a gap between the businesses who just want to focus on their core business versus [Paris Vega]: the people who are using all the latest tools and staying up to date on those [Paris Vega]: latest tools. Until of course, if there does become some all powerful AI that [Paris Vega]: can just be a human for you. But okay, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: 100%. [Paris Vega]: so we can still all make money until that happens. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah [Paris Vega]: You can get back on track now. All right, so no advertising, the traditional [Paris Vega]: way or digital marketing, but it sounds like you're using content marketing, [Paris Vega]: so to speak, like putting out good bit of content on social media. Which [Paris Vega]: platforms do you prefer? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: For me, I think the go-to, well, one, I know it has been, and I [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: think [Paris Vega]: Thank [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: it will continue [Paris Vega]: you. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to be LinkedIn, because there's enough [Paris Vega]: because you're deaf, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: people on [Paris Vega]: people [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: LinkedIn [Paris Vega]: aren't just there. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: who [Paris Vega]: You're deaf. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: fit one or both of those client avatars that I just mentioned, more [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: the former than the latter, but both exist on the platform, especially [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: there are some influencers who we've produced podcasts for. But I would [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: say LinkedIn is very interesting There are very, very few relative [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to the number of people who are viewing content, very few content creators. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Now more and more are coming into the mix, more than when I started [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: three [Paris Vega]: Yeah, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: years ago. [Paris Vega]: for [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: But [Paris Vega]: sure. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: still the ratio is relatively small. When you look at something like Instagram, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: for example, almost everyone who uses Instagram also posts photos. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Not everyone, but a lot, a lot do. And so with LinkedIn, it's a [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: little bit different. There's a lot of lurkers. There's a lot of [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: people that just go there to consume content. They're not necessarily [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: going to create content. The other thing about LinkedIn that's really [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: fascinating is there really is absolutely zero that can get in your [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: way of being successful except for your own work ethic. And what I [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: mean by that is if you dedicate the time, you can see success. If [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you dedicate the time to one, making, making it a priority to pour [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: into other people. and get to know other people and be there for other [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: people. If you come into LinkedIn with a selfish or what I call [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: a getters mindset, you're going to get nothing. You're gonna basically [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: waste your [Paris Vega]: Yeah. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: time. But if you come in with a heart full of giving and you give [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: relentlessly through engaging in other people's content, celebrating [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: other people, making it a priority to set time to meet other people. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and you build a tribe and you get to know other people on the platform, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: it's very reciprocal, right? It's very like, you shouldn't do it [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: with the idea of like, hey, I'm doing this so I get it back. But the [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: reality is you do get it back. It may not be directly, hey, I'm gonna [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: engage in Paris's post, therefore Paris will engage in my post. Sometimes [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: it happens that way, but it doesn't always happen in that way. [Paris Vega]: So I think that that message needs to go far and wide to all the salespeople selling [Paris Vega]: call services, Legion service, all the things that I think blow up everybody's [Paris Vega]: DMs on LinkedIn constantly. It's like, I have no idea who you are. I'm not gonna [Paris Vega]: do business with you from these random, you know, like you were saying, just [Paris Vega]: here's all my services. You know, notice me and connect with me. It's like. It's so worn out. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Well, trust [Paris Vega]: So yeah, that makes me want to think. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: but verify. I mean, [Paris Vega]: Right. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you might trust that the message is, you assume positive intent [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and you assume that what they're saying is real, but look at their [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: content, look at their digital presence. Do they have the elements [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: out there to back up what they're saying with something that you [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: could see and also get to know them? I mean, that's why video is so [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: powerful. Somebody watches a video of you talking, of me talking, Even [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: this podcast. I mean, somebody could watch this and get to know me. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: They could watch this and get to know you. And it builds that trust. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: We trust people who we get to know. And the better we know people, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: the more likely we trust them more. And the more we trust somebody, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: the more willing we are to give them a shot. [Paris Vega]: Yeah, and I think that LinkedIn might could do something to help sort through just the loads of spam [Paris Vega]: that come through so that you can kind of tell some kind of quality ranking like, yeah. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: You would think so, right? I mean, they are Microsoft, owned by [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Microsoft. You think they can figure that out. [Paris Vega]: Yeah, there's gotta be some kind of metrics. What's like if you have certain connections or I don't know, [Paris Vega]: there's gotta be an algorithm you could write to where you could see, hey, this is most likely somebody [Paris Vega]: that you'd wanna talk to based on your past conversations [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Mm-hmm. [Paris Vega]: or something. Okay, so content marketing on LinkedIn. Do you still post just for the sake of awareness [Paris Vega]: on other platforms, like just to get it out there or are you just hyper-focused on LinkedIn? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah, well, I would say super candidly, it's gone in waves. I'd [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: say there's been times where I post more on Instagram. There's been [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: times where I've posted on YouTube. I don't post on Twitter that much, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: although I have. Um, and, and yeah, so I'd say for me, it's, uh, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: LinkedIn's always been the constant, the other platform that I went [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: knee deep in and maybe more waist deep or maybe even more up to the [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: neck deep is clubhouse. But Clubhouse isn't really anything like it [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: used to be. So I spent an obscene amount of hours on Clubhouse, probably [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: like eight, 10 hours a day in some cases. And it was an amazing [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: experience. I got to meet some incredible people. But what a lot [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of people don't tell you is the less glamorous parts of social media. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And so yeah, while there are some examples of people who are brilliant [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and can come up with great content and it blows up and they're just... [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: They have a knack for creating content. There are a lot more people [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: out there who have grinded, who have put in the work, who have tested, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: who have put in the time. If you look at like quote unquote LinkedIn [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: influencers, the stark reality is they've just put in more time than [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: everybody else. Now they've gotten better at creating content and [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that didn't happen by accident, [Paris Vega]: Yeah. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: it happened by doing. [Paris Vega]: Right. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And so I think if somebody is looking for a free pass, I'd say, better [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: off picking a platform to focus on and go really hard at that platform. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: So to get to the spirit of your question, which is, you know, am I [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: spending time on other platforms? For all intents and purposes, no, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: because most of my traction has been on LinkedIn and most of my time has [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: been on LinkedIn. And I don't know how to quantify how much time [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I put on early on, or I don't know how accurate I'd be, but it wouldn't [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: be inaccurate to say I spent at least 25, to 30 hours a week on [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: platform in the early stages. [Paris Vega]: Wow. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: That might be underestimating it. And so what does that look like? I'll just [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: give a few quick tips because it might be helpful for somebody. The [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: first thing is find people like you. I always say, find your you. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Find somebody out there who's doing something like you do, maybe it's [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: your industry, maybe they're a podcast or maybe they're a business [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: owner, maybe whatever it is, they're a coach, but they're really... [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: doing well on LinkedIn, they're crushing it on LinkedIn. Follow them, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: connect with them, and most importantly, engage in their content, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: not just to engage in their content, but engage into the comments [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: in their comments. So other people's comments, you comment on other [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: people's comments, not just the post. Guess what? Now you get to know [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: them, and you also get to know their audience. And as you get to know [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: their audience, some of those people also post, so you connect with [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: them, you... follow them and you comment on their posts. And all [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of a sudden you have this tribe of friends that you're creating [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: because you're building relationships in the comments. So you build [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: those relationships in the comments over time and you don't need [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to force it. It doesn't need to happen overnight. So maybe in the first [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: week, you're connecting with people, you're sending a few backyard [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: conversation type messages, you're commenting. And then make a list of [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: everyone that you want to engage with, making it a hot list, an engagement [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: list. And what that does is it gives you the ability to regularly [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: check in and chat and be top of mind with those people. Because people [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: who are commenting on other people's posts likely will comment on [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: your post. And so when you post, they're going to be notified they [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: might comment. And the more people engage, it's kind of like a pinball [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: machine. And I took this from Andy Foote. He basically says LinkedIn [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: comments are like a pinball machine because when you put the ball [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: out there Every time it hits something is like a comment or a like [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and to keep the pinball in the game You need more of those comments [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and likes and the flippers are like more comments, right? And so you want [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to keep the the ball in the game as long as possible And [Paris Vega]: Yeah, keep it moving. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: so you want to get that early traction with your posts and the more [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: your posts get visible the more people start following you connecting [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: with you and then just builds from there. But it all starts with you [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: finding those people who are in your niche or in your domain expertise [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that you get to know and that you build relationships with and it'll [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: expand from there. [Paris Vega]: Yeah, I think that the comments are definitely underrated because I've seen even on other platforms like Facebook [Paris Vega]: and there was like a viral, I think TikTok going around recently about using your Facebook ads [Paris Vega]: and realizing that every ad has a comment section and that's like a whole other aspect of the ad, [Paris Vega]: not just the direct impressions and clicks or whatever, but every question in there. is the potential to like you're saying, it's like to bounce the ping pong ball back up [Paris Vega]: through the system through notifications. Because every time somebody comments and you respond, they get a notification. [Paris Vega]: And back in the day, they were way more generous with notifications. And like if you commented on one person's thing, it's kind of more like LinkedIn is [Paris Vega]: now. They'll notify like everybody who ever commented on that post and say, so and so also commented on that post that you commented on, even if they're not responding to your comment specifically. [Paris Vega]: pounding or exponential awareness builder by just engaging in the comments. It's such a simple hack that is powerful. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Well, a lot of this stuff, it goes back to what I said a minute [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: ago, which is it's got to put in the work. Yes, there's strategy and [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: yes, there's hacks or secrets or things like that, but ultimately [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: a lot of it is really basic stuff done over and over and over again. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And Instagram is the same way. I mean find people who you want to, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you know, they're in your space, you engage in there, you follow, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you engage, and you follow other people and you're, it's like kindling [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: for a fire. In order for a fire to start, you need to have that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: kindling. And that kindling is those early relationships that people will, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you know, see your content and like your content, and it builds from there. [Paris Vega]: good. All right, so we've got working your personal network and then growing your network through LinkedIn, social media, engaging in the comments. Is there anything else in your tool [Paris Vega]: chest you think that would kind of... [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah, yeah, I mean I would say podcasting itself is really important [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and the reason why You can build immense loyalty through the power [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of audio communication and The reason why is that when you speak to [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: somebody in their ear? It's probably the most intimate form of communication [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and So there's three things that you're getting you're getting intimacy [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: You're getting Frequency, you're getting duration. What is frequency? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Frequency means on a regular basis, you get this connection with [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: this person. Duration is that the length of time that you get that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: communication is greater than any other medium out there where it's [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: a one-way communication, right? So you're talking to somebody for 50 [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: minutes, an hour, 60, you know, 30 minutes, whatever that may be. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: It's a long duration of time. You really get to know people because [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of that and you hear them over and over again through that frequency [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: You really get to know them and then the intimacy hammers at home [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and makes it so much more Just at the heart level right like somebody [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: listening right now really hears the inflection They hear the character [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of another human being's voice and we relate to that because we're all [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: human beings and so I Love the power of the medium So I would say [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: for anybody who wants to build loyalty that it's a great great medium [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to choose. But you got to be willing to, guess what, put in the work. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Or pay somebody to put in the work. In my case, you could hire [Paris Vega]: I'm going to go ahead and close the video. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: me, or you can hire a company like mine. And so I'll give you a [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: couple really quick hits about how to think about starting a podcast. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: So the first one is I'm going to do a book recommendation. The [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: book is called Make Noise. And I [Paris Vega]: Awesome. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: often recommend this book. Great, great book. It really covers the. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: full spectrum of what it takes to be successful in the podcast space. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: It's a little bit older, so some of it's just a little bit dated, but [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: honestly, the principles apply. It talks about interviewing. It talks [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: about show concept, talks about show structure. I mean, it's a [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: fantastic book. So that's the first thing. The second thing I would think [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: about with the podcast is get really, really clear on why you're doing [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: it. And if your idea of doing it, it really is ego driven. then [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: check that at the door and figure out what is the other reason you're [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: doing it. Cause that exists, that will exist regardless. Your ego [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: is your ego, but what's the other reason you're doing it? Are you doing [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: it [Paris Vega]: Yeah. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: as a business development tool? Are you doing it to gain clients? Are [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you doing it to, uh, raise awareness for a cause? Everybody's going [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to be different, right? So figure out what that is. And then the third [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: piece is clearly identify who it is. Will listen to your show. why they [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: will listen to your show and what I mean by that is you could have [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: like an idea of like a broad sense of like who might be interested [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: but Why does it matter? Why would they care? And so I always strive [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: when I'm thinking of show concepts to think about what can I do [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to differentiate my show from any? Other show that's out there [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: so that it it gives the potential audience some kind of feeling [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that what they're getting with your show, they can't get everywhere else. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And that's one of the things that Make Noise talks about. So when [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I'm coaching and helping podcasters, I like to use the s'mores analogy [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: because this graham crackers great, right? Bar Spelos great and [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Hershey's bars, they're great too. But you put them together and it's [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: magical. A s'mores is such a great treat because of the combination. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And in the same way that a Hollywood producer is gonna say it's [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Gremlins, meets Titanic, right? It puts two dissimilar things together [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: and joins them into one. Think about that for your show and think [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: about that for your niche. And so I interviewed somebody, she was [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: gonna do a wellness podcast, but then she said, I need a niche [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: down. She said, I'm gonna do a wellness podcast, but more on like [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: the spirituality. And then she said, well, you know, maybe not spirituality, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: but I'm gonna do oils, essential oils. And she's like, okay, but that's [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: too, even that's too broad. So she did a specific brand of essential [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: oils. She went from wellness, spirituality, to essential oils, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to a specific brand of essential oils. And so niche down, niche [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: down again, and then niche down till it hurts. Now that's conventional [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: wisdom. And what I'll say is there's not podcast police out there. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: So you can always choose to go wider. Just know the wider you go, generally [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: speaking, the longer it takes. The more narrow you go, the faster [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you're gonna find your audience. And so when you identify what that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: list, who that listener is and why would they care, really try to give [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: yourself the ability to narrow and sharpen the focus because then [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you, you can always expand from there. [Paris Vega]: Awesome. That's some gold. And we're coming up on needing to wrap up here soon. So if someone is, let's say we've got a thousand, [Paris Vega]: ideal, Spotify target audience, exact listeners or that you're going for, exact audience, what's that pitch kind of going on what you're saying [Paris Vega]: off of what you're saying? of what it takes to get a podcast going. What's that overlap to where they should reach out [Paris Vega]: to you guys and use your service? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: say we buy people back their time and it's really as simple as that. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: So if you're a business owner, if you're a influencer, if you're somebody [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that wants to do a podcast but does not have the time or wants to use [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: their time in other ways because we all have the same amount of [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: time, then you'd reach out to Potify or another company and we're [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: not the only players in the space. I'd say What makes us and what [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: separates us that makes us different that would make it the right fit [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: is the people And you wouldn't know that until you until you meet [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: us So i'd say schedule a strategy call and see if it's the right fit [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Starting with me. Am I the right fit? Am I not and then my team [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: members? we have an extremely dedicated and talented team of artists [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: who help make whatever it is you want to make a reality and I having [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: been at Tesla, I take a lot of pride and care into the recruiting [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of team members. And so for me, I always avoid the settle on talent [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: thing that can happen. 1% doubt and I'm out. And so I use that phrase [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: again, because it is not worth my time and it's definitely not worth [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: my partner clients time to have people on the team that are slowing [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: us down or making it challenging. And so we always, always, always [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: strive to hire the best people. It's so, so important for me to have [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: those high levels of standards. And then the last thing I'll share [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: is, it really comes down to your needs. Every provider out there [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: can accommodate you in certain, in different ways. And so where [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: our sweet spot is, is do you host a show? that you want to have the [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: show edited, a video podcast, show up on YouTube, maybe some help [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: with some social media, might need help with web development. We can [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: do all those things and monetization and creating courses, doing [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: all of those types of things. Or creative producers. So we have a [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: pretty wide spectrum of services that we offer. And then there's [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: some companies that just specialize in editing. Or you can go hire [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: a freelancer and do just one thing. [Paris Vega]: Right. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: custom and white glove service, then we're probably the right fit. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: If you're looking for just one or two things done, then you might [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: want to go with a company or an individual who could just do those one [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: or two things. [Paris Vega]: Is there a threshold where you'd recommend like your target audience being a certain like downloads, tier or, you know, certain amount of popularity that usually fits? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah. [Paris Vega]: Or is that not a metric? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Good question. I'd say it's only a metric in that if it matters to [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you, you should think about it and figure out why it is important. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: But for us, downloads might not be important for some of our shows [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: because they're doing it as a networking or a business development. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And yeah, [Paris Vega]: Yeah. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: downloads matter to a certain degree, but if it's a niche show, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: I was just talking to a guy right now, he's a podcast consultant. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And he's working with a show that has a total potential audience [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: of 3000 people. But one of those 3000 could be a seven figure deal [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: for that podcaster. So downloads don't matter for a show like that. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: What matters is, is he getting the right people to listen to the [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: show? And so every show is going to be a little bit different. So we, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: what we do, and this is our kind of our sales process is we don't [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: know until we've met you. what is, if it's A, if it's going to be [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: a fit and then also what package would make the most sense. And [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: so I always meet with our prospective clients, first myself and then [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: the team. And the reason why is that we want to get to know you and [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: understand what's important. And even if you're not a client, we're going [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to give you strategy and say, hey, maybe you could think about this [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: or maybe you think about that. And here's what we've seen successful [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: for other shows. Cause we're always going to pour into you no matter [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: what. Cause not everyone's going to be a good fit. [Paris Vega]: So we've gone over a great set of advice for any business trying to get their first customers, starting off with building your network [Paris Vega]: and leaning on that network when it comes time to get customers for your business. And then defining your target audience super clearly. [Paris Vega]: And then I think, what was it? Working the network and then using social media, [Paris Vega]: engaging with that target audience. That's what it was. And then you switched over to, okay, specifically for building a podcast, [Paris Vega]: similar to a business defining their target audience, niche down the topic of your podcast as far as possible, niche down till it hurts, and then put in the [Paris Vega]: work of producing that podcast or hiring a service like yours to get it produced and putting it out there. Um, what about, so there's, there's somebody listening here, probably [Paris Vega]: thinking about starting a podcast. Um, Can you set their expectations a little bit for that, [Paris Vega]: let's say first month to three months of what they should expect? Cause I'm sure that a lot of people [Paris Vega]: listening to some famous podcasters thinking, I can do that. They're just talking to their friends or whatever [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Yeah [Paris Vega]: and jump in and then maybe first week, they're not famous yet. And they're like, wait a minute, [Paris Vega]: why am I not on the top of the charts? [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Well, you know it is interesting because I think I think most people [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: instinctually know they're not gonna be the next Joe Rogan But despite [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: them knowing that they do have often unrealistic expectations, especially [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: when it comes to what I'll call The vanity metrics right everybody [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: wants downloads and so can you get the downloads? Yes, but I want [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you to think about your podcast like you would a book a book will not [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: find readers unless you put in the work to help them find your [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: book. And it's the same thing with the podcast. It's like throwing [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: something in the ocean, expecting someone to find it. They're not gonna [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: find it. You gotta leave the bread crumbs for people to find whatever [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: it is you want them to find. And in this case, the podcast is no [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: different. And so I think the advice I'd give is like, how do you [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: think about show growth? Cause that's what people want. And so I'll [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: give three ideas for show growth and an answer to your question. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: The expectation is don't think of it like a short term gratification [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: opportunity. Think of it like a long-term tenure opportunity. And [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: if you're thinking about it short term, that's okay. Just realize that [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you're doing a seasonal show for fun. It's a passion project. If you [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: want to see long-term results, you got to put in the long-term effort. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And so doing something over the long haul. is really key to 90% of [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: shows success is that they've done it for a long enough period to [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: where they found their audience. So now to my three points on how [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: you find your audience. There's really three levers you can pull. First [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: one's organic. Second one is collaboration and the third one is paid. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And I think you and I spoke about this in a previous conversation. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: And when you think about organic, think about ways that you can step [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: in front of success. There's a lot of momentum generating. vehicles [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: out there like YouTube shorts Instagram reels tick-tock for social [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: media like SEO and Which include transcription blogs Show notes anything [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that's written 74% of podcasts are found because people search it's [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: getting them [Paris Vega]: Wow. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: into the news cycle Right and that's from podcast movement, you [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: know getting into the news cycle right now We have a bunch of shows [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that are talking about things that are on Netflix talking about things [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that are in the news, talking about things that are trending. And [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: why? Because we wanna get into the news cycle. So we could create [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: a short that might get go viral. So we can create other content. And [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: the podcast is really a vehicle to create other content because podcasting [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: by its nature is not a distribution vehicle, it's a loyalty vehicle. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: But how do you get that distribution? Well, go to distribution vehicles. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: So YouTube, Instagram, TikTok. The second lever point is you collaborate [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: with other people in your medium. So if you're a YouTuber, go on [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: YouTube. If you're a podcast, go on podcasts. So that's the second [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: one and do it at scale, do it as frequently as you can. And then the [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: third thing is you pay for people to find you. You could pay through [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: podcast platforms or players like Castbox, Overcast. You could use [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: tools and platforms like Mopod or Headliner. Um, a number of tools [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: out there that help you get downloads and listeners. Or you could [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: pay in other ways. The most effective way I've found is podcast promos. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: So [Paris Vega]: Hmm. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: if you, like, if I were to [Paris Vega]: Okay. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: do a promo for your show on my show, for example, [Paris Vega]: Yeah. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: that [Paris Vega]: Yeah. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: will work really, really well. And so those are just some ideas of how [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: to grow an audience. Again, knowing that it's not going to be easy, [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: it's going to take some time and attention over the long, longterm. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: Those would be some of the, I'd say most common and most effective [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: ways to grow a podcast audience. [Paris Vega]: Billy, this has been awesome. You've packed a ton of value into this for anybody starting a business [Paris Vega]: and especially starting a podcast. So thank you for being here today. Listeners, if you're thinking about starting a podcast [Paris Vega]: or if you know somebody who has a podcast or is thinking about it, share this episode with them. [Paris Vega]: A ton of value here that applies directly to what they're trying to do. Thanks again for being here, Billy. [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: It's been a joy. Paris has been a real fun conversation and always [Billy Samoa Saleebey]: love hanging. [Paris Vega]: All right, everybody, see you next episode.