The Power of Podcasting and Multi-Media Strategies | Barrett Matthews

David McBee: Hello, and welcome to Simpli.fi TV. I'm David McBee. Our guest today is Dr. Barrett Matthews, the visionary behind Media Boss Pro, a media powerhouse that elevates brands, captivates audiences, and boosts visibility. Barrett comes from a media production background and has a trailblazing spirit. As assistant director for WUSA TV, the top news station in Washington, DC, he honed his skills and delivered compelling stories. He further expanded his expertise as a production assistant and researcher for CBS Sports. His achievements include an honorary doctorate in humanities and being named a world civility ambassador and distinguished honoree. He received the Diplomacy Leadership Award, and became a royal liaison to The Development King in Ghana. Barrett, welcome to Simpli.fi TV. Barrett Matthews: David, it's a pleasure to be here, man. Thanks for having me. David McBee: I am so glad you're here, and I've been listening to your podcast, which I think is great, The Media Boss Pro, so I want to just shout out for that, for people to go check that out. But let's just jump right into it, because you have a background working in newspaper, and magazine, and radio, and television, and now digital, so you've kind of seen it all. So with that, I'd like to ask, what do you feel is the most important innovation in media in the past few years, and how can leaders in media leverage that innovation for their clients? Barrett Matthews: That's a great question, David. I think the biggest innovation is that of podcasting, because back when I started, many, many years ago, it... Basically, we had to rely on a producer to think you were interesting enough to interview you, to showcase you, or your skillset, your knowledge. Now, media is literally at your fingertips. You can actually start your own, and podcasting, in my opinion, is the easiest one to get going for any layman, because you don't have to know too much technology. You can talk into your phone, as Russell Brunson used to do. So it's very easy to get started, and you don't have to put too much thinking into it, because if there's something you love, you can talk about it all day long. You just hit record, you got a podcast. And of course, you can maybe require some editing, or if you want to upgrade it a little bit, but to get started, it's easy to start with that, and I think that's the biggest innovation, because it's so accessible for people. David McBee: Now, don't be making it seem too easy, because you know, this is what I do, and I want people to- Barrett Matthews: For people to start, for a layman to start. David McBee: I want people to think this is a big effort and a huge production. Barrett Matthews: Well, if you want it done right, that's different. David McBee: No, but you're right. Like, anyone can start a podcast, and there are so many tools for connecting hosts and guests, and I can have people like you, who have an expertise, come on my show and showcase it, and you do the same with your show, right? Barrett Matthews: Mm-hmm. Yeah, of course. David McBee: All right, so how do you think that a business can take advantage of that, or a marketing agency that is trying to help their business get more web traffic or more sales in the end? Barrett Matthews: Well, they're doing it now. A lot of them are having podcasts, corporate podcasts, business podcasts, because a lot of people in business, and if you look at the research, a lot of people in business, a lot of people who are business minded, listen to podcasts, some of them more than they do just terrestrial radio now. That's where a lot of them get their information, whether they're working out, whether they're on their commute to the office and so forth. And a lot of the purchases that they make are because of advertisements they've heard on podcasts, and a lot of businesses educate people by putting their information out into the stratosphere through podcasts, once again because it's accessible. They don't have to pay radio stations to put them on, or just to get a two-minute window that they can fit into. Now they can control their media, control how they're putting out their information, and when they're putting out their information, and even where they're putting out their information. A lot of businesses grow because of that, and then a lot of business owners that use media see a significant growth in the number of leads they generate and a growth in revenue. David McBee: All right, let's break it down. Let's do a scenario. Let's pretend I own a sneaker company. Barrett Matthews: Okay. David McBee: David's Sneakers. I obviously needed help with my marketing, because I just named my business David's Sneakers. And I come to you, Barrett, and I say, "Hey, help me get a podcast." You think I need a podcast. What does that look like? Barrett Matthews: Well, first, we want to sit down and go over who your target market is. Where do you want to target that, to get the people to pay attention to what you know about sneakers? Then I want to make sure that you have enough content, so we want to make sure you know enough about not just your product, but sneakers in general, because the people that are going to be listening to your podcast don't just want to know about your sneakers. They want you to be able to educate them on sneakers in general, so they know they want to come to you, because you are the expert in that field. So, as long as we can put together enough content, we can start putting together episode after episode. And the thing is, and you know this as well as I do, it doesn't have to be an hour long of content. You can talk for a short period of time, put that into the podcast, and it's enough to get people saying, "Ooh, I want more of him," so now they'll want to tune into more episodes of David's Sneakers. David McBee: I guess I might be doing something right over here at Simpli.fi TV then, because you know, Simpli.fi is focused on targeted advertising, programmatic, CTV, and that's not the conversation you and I are having at all. We're trying to reach media people in general, so would you say I'm on the right track? Barrett Matthews: I would definitely say so. David McBee: All right, so what else? What besides podcasting do you recommend to agencies, or small businesses, or large businesses who are really trying to take advantage of getting their name out there in 2023? Barrett Matthews: I honestly recommend various forms of media. I recommend Roku television. It's a great way for you to get yourself out there. Same thing kind of like with podcasting. Roku television is just a television format for it, so with that, you can actually have video of your content, put together shows, put together different packets, even have other people who are affiliated with your company to have a show on your channel, and that's that channel and that show, meaning you can have a Roku channel, where you can put as much programming about what you do as you want, because it's your channel. And it can reach a lot of people in a short period of time, because once again, it's different than how it used to be. You don't have to wait for a producer to call you and ask you if you'd like to do an interview or something. You can create your own media, put it out when you want to. Another thing, YouTube. YouTube has actually taken over, as far as podcasting, than Spotify and iTunes. YouTube is big, and the great thing about YouTube versus the audio podcasts, audio podcasts, you want to, of course, accumulate a lot of downloads. But, with the video from YouTube, you can get subscribers, and when someone subscribes, you actually know who subscribed, and you can follow up with them and get them into your cycle of business, so you can follow up with them and keep things going. Another thing, e-books, audiobooks, newsletters, and some print media you can put out there, because a lot of people like to read their information. And of course, I like to use documentaries. A business and corporate documentary can go a long way, because there are a lot of people who they see your sales pitch, they hear you, they understand what you're doing, but they want to know why, and a documentary can show a human side of your business. It can show people that you are more than just someone who's trying to peddle a product to them, or a service, that you're someone who has a real purpose behind what you're doing, and that can help you. So in that vein, I always tell people, you want to be everywhere, all at once, because everybody consumes their information through one form of media or the other. If you focus only on one, you're going to miss some other people, so I tell people, put media everywhere, so that way, you can attract people who are looking for you. David McBee: Awesome. Well, before we go, I like to ask all my guests, do you have a podcast or a book that you feel strongly has helped you be successful? Barrett Matthews: I would toot my own book, but no, I'm not going to do that, because- David McBee: No, no, no. If you want to shout out your own books, feel free. This is the place to do it. Barrett Matthews: Well, then that, then I'll say two, well, three books. One, of course, is the Bible. That's the first one. Then second, my book, which is my first book, actually, Why Didn't You Get it Done? That's my first book I wrote. And then there's a book called B.O.S.S. Moves, by Myron Golden, B.O.S.S. Moves, a great book, and I learned a lot from that book, on how to keep business going, how to market to people, how to generate more products and services, and how to get myself out there. David McBee: All right, sounds like I got some books to add to my list. Thank you for that. Barrett Matthews: No problem. David McBee: And thanks for being on the show today. I really appreciate you being here. Barrett Matthews: Oh, David, it's been my pleasure, totally. David McBee: And thank you guys for watching. Simpli.fi TV is sponsored by Simpli.fi, helping you to maximize relevance and multiply results with our industry leading media buying and workflow solutions. For more information, visit Simpli.fi. Thanks for joining us today. I'm David McBee. Be awesome, and we'll see you next time.