Technically Speaking

Short and Sweet

Before anyone books you, they stalk you. They spend 10 to 30 seconds on your website or LinkedIn to see if you look legit, current, and worth a call. John DeMato used to be the guy who hated being in front of a camera. Now he helps experts make sure those 30 seconds work in their favor.

In this episode, John walks through the whole system: the strategy call he runs before every shoot (and why he won't open your mood board), the three kinds of photos in a visual authority library, how to audit every place your images live, and the event photos almost every speaker forgets to get.

Full Show Notes

Most speakers treat photos like throw pillows. Nice to have, a little decorative, swapped out when they start looking tired.

John DeMato treats them like the rebar in the foundation. John left the TV business (including a stint on Maury) to become a headshot photographer in New York City. For his first two years, his own face never showed up on social media once. He's now a personal brand photographer for speakers, coaches, and consultants, and he's spent a career learning why photos aren't a vanity project. They're about the person on the other side of the screen deciding whether to trust you.

This isn't a "go get new headshots" episode. It's a system. Decide how you want to be seen, build a library that shows it, and audit every place those images live.

What we get into:

• The quick scan every buyer does before they call, and what they're checking for
• Why photos get you in the door, but your IP, testimonials, and sales conversations keep you in the house
• The pre-session call and the two questions that become the North Star for a shoot
• The three categories of a visual authority library: core assets, visual evidence, and the missing details
• Why smartphone photos of the messy desk and the moment before a keynote matter as much as the polished ones
• How to audit your images, starting with your website and social profiles, then moving to your one sheet, PDFs, and courses
• How to tell when it's time for a new branding session, no calendar required
• The event photos speakers forget: before, during, and after the stage
• Why a testimonial paired with a photo of you hugging that client is a money piece

Find John at johndemato.com or on LinkedIn, and take his free Visual Presence Audit for Experts.

Short and Sweet

Jake White used to spam school principals because the program was worth it. Then he stopped outbound marketing cold turkey, started showing up at the two conferences where his buyers actually gather, and watched Vive18 triple three years running.

In this episode, Jake walks through the whole system: how he found the right room (he asked his favorite client), why he pays to sponsor events he used to get paid to speak at, and the form-to-CRM follow-up that turns a 20-second elevator pitch into a qualified lead. Plus why he refuses to take business cards.

Full Show Notes

Most speakers treat sponsor booths like the candy aisle. Grab a pen, maybe enter a raffle, keep walking.

Jake White, co-founder of Vive18, turned that aisle into his entire new-business engine. Vive18 helps young people have fun and feel good without drugs and alcohol, serving K-12 schools with speaking, trainings, events, and curriculum. A few years ago Jake dropped outbound marketing completely and put everything into conferences. Referrals and repeat clients aside, it's now the only marketing they do.

This isn't a "just buy a booth" episode. It's a system. Find the room, earn your way in, and have follow-up ready before the first conversation happens.

What we get into

• Using Claude and the CRM to reconnect with every past client, and why Jake stopped "checking in"
• The question that found his best conference: asking his favorite client where they hang out
• Deciding when to pay to be in the room, and doing the math on what a client is worth
• Why he won't take business cards, and the vive18.com/intro form that replaces them
• Talking to the content team before the marketing team, and how that turned a booth into workshops and a keynote
• Learning your buyer's boss's language so you understand their measurables better than they do
• Leading with curiosity instead of a pitch, and why that makes you a better speaker too

In this episode – the final episode of Season 3 – we're breaking down everything you need to know about us, including how we got here and, most importantly, where we're going from here.

This one's jam-packed with news and updates, so we'll keep it short and sweet, but don't skip it. This is an episode you won't want to miss!

Show Notes:

✅ Want to learn more about SpeakerFlow, our system, and where we're headed next? Book a call with us: https://speakerflow.com/demo/

📷 Watch the video version of this episode and subscribe for updates on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYAr3nGy6lbXrhbezMxoHTSCS40liusyU

🎤 Thank you to our sponsor, Libsyn Studio (formerly Auxbus)! Want the best podcasting solution out there? Learn more here: https://www.libsynstudio.com/

🚀 And as always, don't forget about all the mind-blowing free resources at https://speakerflow.com/resources/

There's a lot of truth in the phrase "Hindsight's 20-20" – no doubt about that – but it rings especially true as a business owner.

In fact, ask any entrepreneur, thought leader, speaker, you name it, and they'll share a host of things they've learned along their journey as a business owner.

To share her own business experience with us, we're joined in this episode by speaker, author, and coach Cindy Tschosik.

Cited as the "Go-To Book Writing Resource" for authors who want to "Change, Save, and Celebrate Lives One Story at a Time," Cindy has spent almost three decades across a wide range of industries including legal, IT, corporate, non-profit, marketing, entrepreneurship, writing and speaking.

Here, she shares insights from her last ten years as a business owner and seven lessons she wishes she'd known in the beginning.

That way, if you're at the beginning of your business ownership journey, you can skip some of the learning curve.

Show Notes:

✅ Learn more about Cindy and SoConnected: https://www.soconnectedllc.com/

📷 Watch the video version of this episode and subscribe for updates on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYAr3nGy6lbXrhbezMxoHTSCS40liusyU

🎤 Thank you to our sponsor, Libsyn Studio (formerly Auxbus)! Want the best podcasting solution out there? Learn more here: https://www.libsynstudio.com/

🚀 And as always, don't forget about all the mind-blowing free resources at https://speakerflow.com/resources/

Everyone wants to be known for doing something great, for making their mark, and, as a thought leader, that mark can also be what takes you from "getting by" to "making a decent living" in the industry.

So how do you find your big idea? How do you build a mindset that keeps you innovating and continually generating ideas for your audience?

Here to talk about that with us is keynote speaker, author, and innovation expert Bill Stainton.

Bill is a 29-time Emmy Award winner who produced Seattle's legendary comedy TV show "Almost Live!" the longest-running, highest-rated, and most award-winning regional comedy TV show in the United States.

Additionally, as a speaker and advisor on the topics of innovation, creativity, and breakthrough thinking, Bill has coached hundreds of organizations – like Microsoft, Boeing, and Nike – to tap into their creativity and, in doing so, generate their next breakthrough idea.

Let's dive into the details and find out how all of us can do the same!

Show Notes:

✅ Learn more about Bill and his speaking and coaching programs: https://billstainton.com/

📷 Watch the video version of this episode and subscribe for updates on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYAr3nGy6lbXrhbezMxoHTSCS40liusyU

🎤 Thank you to our sponsor, Libsyn Studio (formerly Auxbus)! Want the best podcasting solution out there? Learn more here: https://www.libsynstudio.com/

🚀 And as always, don't forget about all the mind-blowing free resources at https://speakerflow.com/resources/

There are plenty of challenges that come with running a small business – Any thought leader will tell you that.

But there are also countless benefits, not the least of which is the closer-knit relationships and exceptional experiences you can provide for clients.

In this episode, we're joined by speaker, financial expert, and owner of Get Looped, Chris Lautenslager to explain his "Get Looped" model.

This model is comprised of three "loops": prosperity, integrity, and community.

Here, we break down the topic of his first book and the first loop, "Prosperity," which centers around the idea that we have the opportunity, as small businesses, to scale the "unscalable" to make our customer experiences as rich as possible.

Put simply, in a large company, we're all just numbers. But, in small and medium-sized businesses, we have the chance to make real connections and, in doing so, be more prosperous.

Learn how you can do the same in this jam-packed episode!

Show Notes:

✅ Learn more about Chris's work at Get Looped: https://get-looped.com/

📷 Watch the video version of this episode and subscribe for updates on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYAr3nGy6lbXrhbezMxoHTSCS40liusyU

🎤 Thank you to our sponsor, Libsyn Studio (formerly Auxbus)! Want the best podcasting solution out there? Learn more here: https://www.libsynstudio.com/

🚀 And as always, don't forget about all the mind-blowing free resources at https://speakerflow.com/resources/

For many business owners – large and small – the thought of building better systems is an enticing one.

But it's also daunting. For instance, how do you know what components a system needs? What's the trigger for when one of these components needs to do something? How do you make it repeatable and iterative?

And, most importantly, how do you measure the results of the system to make sure it's successful over time?

Here to discuss that with us is speaker, author, sales expert, and nationally syndicated business columnist Shawn Rhodes.

In this episode, Shawn shars his insights about his own systems and how he identifies when an additional component is needed. He also shared his acronym for building new systems: Trigger, Replicatable, Iteratable, and Measurable (or T.R.I.M.).

Using this acronym, Shawn has helped companies across the country build systems – sales and otherwise – that not only bring in more revenue but do so consistently AND scale the business to new heights.

If you're ready to build systems in your own business, this is one episode you don't want to miss!

Show Notes:

✅ Connect with Shawn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shawnrhodes/

📷 Watch the video version of this episode and subscribe for updates on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYAr3nGy6lbXrhbezMxoHTSCS40liusyU

🎤 Thank you to our sponsor, Libsyn Studio (formerly Auxbus)! Want the best podcasting solution out there? Learn more here: https://www.libsynstudio.com/

🚀 And as always, don't forget about all the mind-blowing free resources at https://speakerflow.com/resources/

When you think about your favorite places to shop, there are likely a few things they all have in common, like polite and friendly team members or being quick to help when you have a question or concern.

It's also likely that these reasons keep you from looking at their competitors. After all, you've been happy with them – Why look elsewhere?

In the same way, providing an exceptional experience for your clients can keep them coming back again and again, and in this episode, we're joined by CX expert Shep Hyken to talk about just that.

A New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author, he's the author of 8 books, including his latest, "I'll Be Back: How to Get Customers to Come Back Again and Again."

Put simply, for the last 30+ years, Shep has helped countless organizations build loyal relationships with their customers and employees. Here, he explains how you can do the same.

Show Notes:

✅ Check out Shep's CX articles and weekly podcast: https://hyken.com/topic/sheps-articles/

📷 Watch the video version of this episode and subscribe for updates on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYAr3nGy6lbXrhbezMxoHTSCS40liusyU

🎤 Thank you to our sponsor, Libsyn Studio (formerly Auxbus)! Want the best podcasting solution out there? Learn more here: https://www.libsynstudio.com/

🚀 And as always, don't forget about all the mind-blowing free resources at https://speakerflow.com/resources/

Outbound sales is, undoubtedly, one of the hardest things to master when running your own business, especially if you don't have any prior experience in sales.

And even if you do, it can be frustrating, feeling like you can't get your foot in the door with potential clients or not knowing which sales strategies are worth trying.

That said, one tried-and-true approach to sales is a simple one, focusing on sales as relationships (rather than revenue), and who better to break that down for us than David Asarnow.

The founder of Business Nitrogen, David is an entrepreneur, trainer, speaker, and business growth mentor who's grown two companies to 8-figures — $10M and $45M, respectively, and both in less than five years.

He also once sent a shoe to the VP of a company, literally getting his "foot in the door" for future sales conversations and proving that sometimes the best sales tactics are the most out-of-the-box.

In this episode, David outlines more strategies like this and how you can take the same approach, building relationships that turn into sales down the road.

Show Notes:

✅ Check out Business Nitrogen: https://businessnitrogen.com/

📷 Watch the video version of this episode and subscribe for updates on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYAr3nGy6lbXrhbezMxoHTSCS40liusyU

🎤 Thank you to our sponsor, Libsyn Studio (formerly Auxbus)! Want the best podcasting solution out there? Learn more here: https://www.libsynstudio.com/

🚀 And as always, don't forget about all the mind-blowing free resources at https://speakerflow.com/resources/

We've all stumbled on instances where we didn't seem to be getting through to someone.

Maybe they were a potential client who misunderstood what products or services you provide. Maybe they were an existing client and, somewhere in your work together, their expectations were misaligned.

In any case, the best business owners are always on the lookout for ways to better communicate, and here to help all of us hit that mark is Jason Raitz.

The Founder and President of Speak with People, Jason's spoken on more than 500 stages throughout the United States and is passionate about coaching leaders to "Speak with people, not at them."

With that in mind, this episode's all about how to better "speak with" the people around you from clients to sales leads to family and friends.

Let's dive in!

Show Notes:

✅ Learn more about Speak With People: https://www.speakwithpeople.com/

📷 Watch the video version of this episode and subscribe for updates on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYAr3nGy6lbXrhbezMxoHTSCS40liusyU

🎤 Thank you to our sponsor, Libsyn Studio (formerly Auxbus)! Want the best podcasting solution out there? Learn more here: https://www.libsynstudio.com/

🚀 And as always, don't forget about all the mind-blowing free resources at https://speakerflow.com/resources/