I am joined by the one and only John Lee Dumas. John is the man behind the Entrepreneurs on Fire website and the super popular EOFire podcast. This podcast is an award winning podcast that reveals the journey of inspiring entrepreneurs seven days a week. John has interviewed a list of who’s who in the business and entrepreneurship world including Barbara Corcoran, Tim Ferriss, Seth Godin and even me.
John is also an amazing example of a successful entrepreneur in the podcast industry. I don’t have to tell you this because his numbers and income reports speak for themselves. Today, we are going to talk about his first book Podcast Launch and why and how he wrote it. We also talk about how the book was the inspiration for JLDs successful podcasting course and community called Podcaster’s Paradise.
We also talk about how John built a list and used his book and podcast as a lead generation tool. He created a free podcast course and didn’t hold anything back. Some people said he was crazy for doing this, but the lead generation results of the course also speak for themselves. This is fun episode where my friend John shares how his book, course, and funnel led to his biggest earner at the time which was Podcaster’s Paradise.
You can find JLD here:
Entrepreneurs on Fire
Entrepreneurs on Fire Podcast
Books and Course by JLD including Podcast Launch and Free Podcast Course
Podcaster’s Paradise
Podcast Launch
@JohnLeeDumas Twitter
John Lee Dumas facebook
Show Notes
[01:41] In hindsight, writing a book seemed liked the most obvious step. Entrepreneur on Fire was meant to be about entrepreneurship, but listeners wanted to know John’s method for podcasting, so he decided it was time to tell his story.
[03:34] John and Kate wrote the book from start to finish, and he has rewritten and revised it several times. The day it launched it was the number one ranked book in Amazon for podcast and podcasting. He wrote the book in a weekend.
[04:29] The book launched in February of 2013 and Podcaster’s Paradise launched in October of 2013. Writing the book helped John realize that he did have a process.
[05:14] How starting is hard, but once things are started they flow. It took about 70 hours for John to write the book.
[06:29] The book helped John realize that there was an audience for people wanting to podcast. This sparked the idea for Podcaster’s Paradise.
[08:51] Podcast Launch was the MVP for Podcaster’s Paradise. John also had more to share and knew that people wanted a community.
[09:54] How John created a wire frame of what his course would look like, then he told his book readers that he was creating a live podcasting workshop. He also gave his early readers early access at a discounted price. He also said it would open in 45 days at a higher price.
[11:25] The webinar proved that it was a viable product and he created everything and opened the doors at $397 and he still has his lifetime founding members that got in at $197 early adopter discount price. Now the product costs much more.
[13:09] John was able to bounce ideas off of his 35 founding members as he built out the course. The feedback helped in the creation process.
[14:18] John put an offer for the free audio version of the book on the second page of the book. This was a great optin for his webinar. Even people browsing the book would find the optin link. This method combined with others helped build a nice targeted email list.
[17:39] Podcast Launch has been a great lead generation tool for Podcaster’s Paradise and the book continues to make sales.
[18:26] All of the funnels lead to Podcaster’s Paradise because at the time this was his biggest source of revenue.
[19:33] The best thing he did was create the FreePodcastCourse.com It teaches everything without being a cliffhanger. This allowed him to build a 12,000+ person email list that he can use to market.
[22:01] There is an image leading to the free course right at the beginning of the book, and it drives leads every single day. He also uses the Entrepreneur on Fire intros and Leaddigits.
[24:44] John has several intros that he uses to present his calls-to-action in his podcast.
[25:14] John shares how Chandler helped him increase his lead generation sign ups into the free podcast course.
[31:54] How John has found some great podcast mentors who he can recommend to his readers and listeners. The referral system generated revenue for John.
[33:07] How we have to pay our dues and have our seasons of work before we can learn and scale in a massive way.
[33:54] John also has people he recommends for intro, outros, and logos. He is also one of nine affiliates for LibSyn. Use promo code FIRE for two free months.
[35:18] When he has a guest recommend a book he mentions his Audible.com affiliate link.
[37:47] John recommends coming from a place from within to provide genuine value when writing a book. Then take a step back and add on marketing tactics and tools. Focus on email capture and bonus content that will grow your list.
Links and Resources:
self-publishingschool.com
Spsfreetraining.com
Ernest Hemingway
Leaddigits
1755: Growing your business past 7 figures using a book (how I did it) with Chandler Bolt
Entrepreneurs on Fire
Entrepreneurs on Fire Podcast
Books and Course by JLD including Podcast Launch and Free Podcast Course
Podcaster’s Paradise
Podcast Launch
@JohnLeeDumas Twitter
John Lee Dumas facebook
You might also enjoy:
- How to Use Interview Content as the Backbone of Your Business
- Publishing a Book: Traditional vs. Self-Publishing
Click here to be taken to the Self-Publishing School podcast on iTunes.