Podcast Cafe: Insights from Podcasters for Podcasters

What started as a way to highlight the incredible women entrepreneurs quickly became something much bigger: a visibility tool, a relationship builder, and a space where she could show up as her full, unfiltered self.

In this episode, I talked with Teah Ojeda, host of Behind the Scene with Teah, about what finally pushed her to start podcasting after years of thinking about it, how she's using the show to build visibility for her photography and coaching work, and why you don't need a massive audience to build a brand people genuinely want to be part of. If you've been waiting until you feel more confident, polished, or "ready" to put yourself out there, this conversation is your reminder to grab the mic and do it afraid.

Listen to Teah interviewing me on her show: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/building-authority-before-you-feel-ready-with-hayleigh/id1809703505?i=1000776168397

JOIN: The Podcast Cafe Community — a private, application-only community for podcasters who already have a show and are done guessing alone. Apply here: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

In This Episode

• Why Teah spent years thinking about starting a podcast but kept holding herself back — and what finally made her realize she had to share her voice
• How Behind the Scene with Teah went from a passion project to an unexpected visibility tool for her branding, photography, and coaching businesses
• The reason she intentionally gets guests talking about the messy, uncomfortable, behind-the-scenes parts of entrepreneurship — and the "cheat codes" she's always looking for
• How she prepares for interviews by asking not just what she wants to know, but what would actually give listeners the most valuable insight
• Why your podcast branding doesn't need to start in a fancy studio — including how Teah turned her closet into part of her brand
• The power of showing up consistently and authentically so people start thinking, "Oh, there's Teah again" — and why recognition matters more than constantly reinventing your brand
• What happened when Teah had to get onstage despite being terrified, and why letting people see you nervous can actually make you more relatable and powerful
• Why a small audience isn't something to apologize for — and how 50 or 100 listeners can be an incredible opportunity to actually connect with your community
• The biggest thing podcasting has taught her about herself: what happens when you stop hiding your gifts and give yourself permission to tell more of your story

Connect with Teah:

Website: https://scenebyteah.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/the_scene_creative/

Connect with me, Hayleigh Hayhurst:

Apply to work with us: https://hello.dubsado.com/public/form/view/6521a4cc8fdeed003a859a44

Join The Podcast Cafe Community: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

Steal my Podcast Launch Checklist for free: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/checklist

Website: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/

⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/espressopodcastproduction/⁠

YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@EspressoPodcastProduction

What started as a way to keep creating content through the pandemic eventually became a twice-weekly show with more than 300 episodes, guests from across the entertainment industry, and opportunities that have directly helped grow Corcoran Entertainment.

In this episode, I talked with Franky about what happens when you stop treating your podcast like something you have to do and start treating it like something you genuinely love doing—and how his background in theater, acting, and improv has shaped the way he interviews, handles the unexpected, and builds real relationships through his show.

If you're wondering whether podcasting can actually create opportunities beyond downloads and listens, Franky is a great example of what can happen when you simply keep showing up.

JOIN: The Podcast Cafe Community a private, application-only community for podcasters who already have a show and are done guessing alone. Apply here: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

In This Episode

• Why Franky started a podcast after COVID shut down his theater plans—and how the “temporary” project turned into 300+ episodes

• How he went from one episode a week to two by building a system around the podcast instead of letting it take over his life

• The theater and improv skills that make him a better interviewer, especially when things go wrong

• How Franky researches guests without turning every interview into a formal interrogation

• The boundary rule he follows when discussing sensitive or personal topics with guests—and why the context of the interview matters

• How he landed some of his dream guests from Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul simply by reaching out

• The unexpected opportunities his podcast has created for his writing, theater work, collaborations, and brand

• The biggest thing he wishes more people understood about podcasting: getting on the mic is only a small part of the work

• What more than 300 episodes taught him about what he's capable of—and why he never expected the podcast to last this long

About Franky:

Franky Corcoran is the creator of Corcoran Entertainment and host of The Corcoran Entertainment Show, a twice-weekly podcast featuring conversations with people across movies, television, theater, music, writing, and the broader entertainment world. Based in Miramichi, New Brunswick, Franky started the show as a creative outlet during COVID after his theater plans were put on hold. What began as a way to keep creating has grown into a 300+ episode podcast that has helped expand his network, grow Corcoran Entertainment, and connect him with creatives and audiences far beyond his local community.

Connect with Franky:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/corcoranentertainment/

Connect with me, Hayleigh Hayhurst:

Apply to work with us: https://hello.dubsado.com/public/form/view/6521a4cc8fdeed003a859a44

Join The Podcast Cafe Community: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

Steal my Podcast Launch Checklist for free: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/checklist

Website: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/

⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/espressopodcastproduction/⁠

YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@EspressoPodcastProduction

Storytelling can be the difference between a podcast people hear and a podcast people remember. It's a skill you can never stop learning. And this week you are in for a treat because I invited Mario Juarez, the best storyteller I know, to come teach us podcasters a few things!

Mario has spent his career understanding what makes communication stick. Starting as a journalist before moving into the business world at Microsoft, storytelling has been the common thread throughout his work. Today, he helps leaders, businesses, and speakers become more compelling communicators by reconnecting them with something they already know how to do: tell a good story.

If you want your podcast to be more memorable, more human, and ultimately more worth talking about, this conversation with Mario is packed with practical storytelling advice you can start using immediately.

Mario and I are both in Seattle Executive Association, the longest running business community in Seattle. If you are in Seattle, come to a meeting to join us: https://www.seattleexecs.org/podcast

About Mario:

Mario is a storytelling and communication expert who helps people make their ideas more memorable, human, and impactful. His career began in journalism, where he spent 10 years professionally developing his storytelling skills before moving into the business world and joining Microsoft. Today, through his work in Storytelling for Impact, he works with leaders, businesses, speakers, and communicators to help them tell stories that connect with audiences and create meaningful outcomes.

His approach focuses on the human side of communication—using specific moments, emotion, tension, and concrete experiences to make ideas stick. He also works with people preparing TEDx talks, as well as through consulting, coaching, and workshops.

Connect with Mario:

Website: https://mario-juarez.com

I brought two of my favorite niche podcasters up on stage for this one: Hayleigh of Cork & Fizz, who's built a wine education business and podcast from the ground up, and Justin of Repertoire, who spent a decade in kitchens like The French Laundry before building a coaching company for culinary pros. We got real about what happens when you niche down hard, whether it's possible to go too specific, and how to actually turn a small, focused audience into a real business.

Attend the next Podcasters NW event on October 14th at Industrious: https://luma.com/7w0byjeu

We chat about:

• The moment you realize your niche might be too small, and the "concentric circle" trick for widening it without losing what made it work
• Why a rebrand after 130 episodes barely moved the needle (and why nobody notices you repeating yourself)
• Finding your audience where they actually hang out, not where you wish they hung out
• The underrated growth hack of guesting on podcasts that have nothing to do with your niche
• Why your favorite brands are probably terrible at content, and how that's your opportunity
• Turning a podcast into a trust-building funnel for private tastings, coaching, and community
• Solo vs. co-hosting, and the "crawl, walk, run" way to test a co-host before committing
• Video podcasts: why skipping them isn't the mistake you think it is
• Rethinking what "success" even means if sponsorships aren't the goal

JOIN: The Podcast Cafe Community a private, application-only community for podcasters who already have a show and are done guessing alone. Apply here: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

Connect with me, Hayleigh Hayhurst:

Apply to work with us: https://hello.dubsado.com/public/form/view/6521a4cc8fdeed003a859a44

Steal my Podcast Launch Checklist for free: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/checklist

Website: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/

⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/espressopodcastproduction/⁠

YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@EspressoPodcastProduction

A podcast makes it easier for me to network. And networking is probably my favorite part of business!

I go to multiple networking events each month, and host my own events, and my podcast is such a key part of it. Podcasts turn that awkward hello into a real relationship because I invite them onto my show to really get to know them!

Want to learn how? Listen to this episode! This is why I think every business owner should have a podcast!

What we get into:

• The one line I use to book guests in under a minute
• Why it's not salesy, it's just the fastest way to build a real connection
• How I grew Espresso Podcast Production from zero network in a new city, mid-2020, with cold invites
• Why I started Employee to Boss to meet people, not to get downloads
• Facebook groups then, Threads now — where I find guests today
• Give and trade: it's not about clients, it's about who they know
• Why guesting will never beat the leverage of hosting your own show
• Employee to Boss vs. Podcast Cafe: different goals, same playbook

JOIN: The Podcast Cafe Community a private, application-only community for podcasters who already have a show and are done guessing alone. Apply here: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

Connect with me, Hayleigh Hayhurst:

Apply to work with us: https://hello.dubsado.com/public/form/view/6521a4cc8fdeed003a859a44

Steal my Podcast Launch Checklist for free: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/checklist

Website: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/

⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/espressopodcastproduction/⁠

YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@EspressoPodcastProduction

Rebecca had already helped hundreds of families through adoption before she ever hit record on a podcast. She wasn't short on expertise, credibility, or things to say. What held her back for years wasn't the content. It was not knowing what to do with the file once she stopped recording.

In this episode, I talked with Rebecca, an adoption consultant and the host of The Adoption Roadmap Podcast, about what it actually took to launch a podcast inside a niche, sensitive industry, and how she built it to work for her business instead of existing next to it. If you run a business in a specialized or high-trust space and you're weighing whether a podcast is worth the lift, this is the episode to hear how she made that decision and what she'd tell you about doing it.

JOIN: The Podcast Cafe Community a private, application-only community for podcasters who already have a show and are done guessing alone. Apply here: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

In This Episode

• Why the delay wasn't about confidence or content. It was the technical side, and how a single free step-by-step course finally got her unstuck
• The deliberate call she made not to compete with the adoption stories that were already everywhere, and to build her show around tactical advice instead
• How she scoped the show to fit her actual bandwidth: a simple, budget setup (one mic, one camera, ring lights, headphones) rather than waiting for a bigger production before starting
• How the podcast connects directly to her business, RG Adoption Consulting, and her sister company, Our Chosen Child, rather than living as a separate content project
• Why she's explicit that the podcast is doing two jobs at once: building authority and trust in a space where trust is the entire sale, and generating real business
• How she manages guest trust in a topic this sensitive, sending questions in advance and checking what's off-limits, including what she does when a guest wants an episode pulled after it's already recorded
• The reality check every business owner considering a podcast should hear: reach is the hardest part, even in a focused niche, and her first three episodes are still her most downloaded

About Rebecca

Rebecca is an adoption consultant and the founder of RG Adoption Consulting, where she's helped facilitate over 500 domestic adoptions for hopeful parents across the United States. She's also the founder of Our Chosen Child, the marketing arm of the adoption world, helping families build adoption profiles and helping agencies market their programs. She launched The Adoption Roadmap Podcast to give adoptive families the tactical, sometimes taboo, conversations that generic adoption content doesn't cover, and to build her business's authority at the same time.

Connect with Rebecca: https://www.rgadoptionconsulting.com

Connect with me, Hayleigh Hayhurst:

Apply to work with us: https://hello.dubsado.com/public/form/view/6521a4cc8fdeed003a859a44

Join The Podcast Cafe Community: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

Steal my Podcast Launch Checklist for free: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/checklist

Website: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/

⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/espressopodcastproduction/⁠

YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@EspressoPodcastProduction

I edit and grow podcasts full-time, and there are three tools I genuinely cannot live without. If you're DIY-ing your show or picking your stack, start here.

I share:

• My ranking editing tool, and why I ditched Adobe Audition for it
• The RSS feed I'm now pushing most clients toward (it's not the free one)
• Why I switched off Riverside for my recording platform, and where I landed
• My hot take on Zoom for podcasting: hard no

Conversations like this is exactly what we cover in The Podcast Cafe Community.

JOIN: The Podcast Cafe Community a private, application-only community for podcasters who already have a show and are done guessing alone. Apply here: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

Connect with me, Hayleigh Hayhurst:

Apply to work with us: https://hello.dubsado.com/public/form/view/6521a4cc8fdeed003a859a44

Steal my Podcast Launch Checklist for free: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/checklist

Website: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/

⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/espressopodcastproduction/⁠

YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@EspressoPodcastProduction

Some podcasts are built with spreadsheets and strategy sessions.

Amanda's was built at 2am, on her phone, in the middle of a breakup.

No mic. No plan. No idea anyone would ever listen.

And then it went viral.

In this episode of Podcast Café, I'm sitting down with Amanda Marks, the creator behind SoloInSeattle, a podcast that started as a personal journal and quietly became a community. We talk about what it actually looks like to build a show without rules, why she disappeared for a year after her first eight episodes, and how Season 3 ("Lonely at the Top") came to life in a golf simulator room in downtown Seattle.

If you've ever wondered whether you need a perfect setup before you start, this one's for you.

JOIN: The Podcast Cafe Community a private, application-only community for podcasters who already have a show and are done guessing alone. Apply here: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

About Amanda

Amanda Marks is the creator of Solo in Seattle, a podcast and brand built around the experience of showing up in life, in business, and in relationships as your fullest self. What started as a late-night voice journal after a decade-long relationship ended has grown into a platform with listeners across the US, a series of community-driven workshops, and a Season 3 that tackles the loneliness that comes with building something real. She holds a master's degree in counseling and uses that foundation to hold space, facilitate workshops, and create conversations that go places most people are afraid to take them.

Solo in Seattle on Instagram: @solo_inseattle

Connect with me, Hayleigh Hayhurst:

Apply to work with us: https://hello.dubsado.com/public/form/view/6521a4cc8fdeed003a859a44

Join The Podcast Cafe Community: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

Steal my Podcast Launch Checklist for free: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/checklist

Website: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/

⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/espressopodcastproduction/⁠

YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@EspressoPodcastProduction

This is a live recording from Podcasters NW, the largest networking group for podcasters in Seattle.About this episode: A woman going through a breakup who put her phone on her chest, hit record, and released eight raw, unedited episodes back to back. No plan, no strategy, no idea it would go viral.That's how Amanda Marks started Solo in Seattle. In this live conversation, we get into what happens after that: how she decided what stayed private and what didn't, how she built an entire network in Seattle by texting people directly instead of waiting on the algorithm, and how a podcast that started as processing a breakup became the foundation for paid workshops and a real brand.This one was recorded live at Podcasters NW — the largest in-person podcasting and creator networking community in the Pacific Northwest. If you've ever wanted a room full of people who actually get what it's like to make a show, this is it.In this episode:How Amanda's first season happened with zero plan, and why the rawness is exactly what made it resonateWhere she actually draws the line between vulnerable and too vulnerable nowWhy she thinks oversharing isn't the risk most podcasters assume it isHow she built her Seattle network through direct texts and DMs instead of relying on an algorithm, and how that "defrosted the Seattle freeze"How the podcast became the foundation for her Solo in Seattle WorkshopsHer answer to what's actually missing in the podcast space right now (it's not better equipment)Connect with Amanda: https://www.instagram.com/solo_inseattle/Join us at the next Podcasters NW event on September 16 at The Fishbowl in Lower Queen Anne — this one's on niche podcasting, with Hayleigh of Cork & Fizz and Justin of The Repertoire. It's free to join! https://luma.com/oz7hx6p6Apply to work with us: https://hello.dubsado.com/public/form/view/6521a4cc8fdeed003a859a44Steal my Podcast Launch Checklist for free: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/checklistWebsite: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/espressopodcastproduction/⁠YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@EspressoPodcastProduction⁠My favorite podcast tool, Descript: https://www.descript.com/?lmref=KkInCQProduced by Espresso Podcast Production: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com

Podcasting didn't just help Wendy Valentine grow her business—it helped her rebuild her life.

After navigating divorce, chronic illness, financial hardship, and becoming an empty nester all at once, Wendy found herself asking a question so many women in midlife face: Now what? What started as a desire to share her story soon became The Midlife Makeover Show, a podcast that has grown into a global platform, a thriving business, and even led to a traditional book deal.

In this episode of Podcast Café, I'm sitting down with Wendy Valentine to talk about building a podcast that grows alongside you. We dive into why she chose not to niche down despite all the conventional advice, how her podcast became the foundation of her business, and why treating your show as an ecosystem—not just a content channel—can completely change the opportunities it creates.

If you're building a podcast—or dreaming about starting one—this conversation is packed with practical strategies and a refreshing reminder that there are no rules except creating a show you'll still love making years from now.

JOIN: The Podcast Cafe Community a private, application-only community for podcasters who already have a show and are done guessing alone. Apply here: https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/community

About Wendy

Wendy Valentine is the host of The Midlife Makeover Show, a top-ranked podcast inspiring women to embrace change and create their next chapter with confidence. After completely rebuilding her life following divorce, chronic illness, financial struggles, and major personal loss, Wendy turned her experiences into a platform dedicated to helping women navigate midlife with purpose. Today, she's also the author of Women Waking Up, a speaker, entrepreneur, and coach who uses her podcast as the centerpiece of a business that reaches listeners around the world—proving that your voice can become one of your most valuable business assets.

Connect with Wendy:

Website: https://wendyvalentine.com/

Podcast: https://wendyvalentine.com/podcast/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hellowendyvalentine/

Substack: https://wendyvalentine.substack.com/

Connect with me, Hayleigh Hayhurst:

Apply to work with us: https://hello.dubsado.com/public/form/view/6521a4cc8fdeed003a859a44

Steal my Podcast Launch Checklist for free: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/checklist

Website: ⁠https://www.espressopodcastproduction.com/

⁠Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/espressopodcastproduction/⁠

YouTube: ⁠https://www.youtube.com/@EspressoPodcastProduction