FYI: My last podcast series which, I did for my own Portland Oregon agency, faded away in 2008. Ya think I was too early for the podcast market?

My new podcast should launch in the very near future. The podcast is designed to be entertaining and filled with teachable moments. The keyword is entertaining. Entertaining for you advertising and marketing folks — and, frankly, anyone that just like a good story from the good old days. Stay tuned for it.

Oh, if you do not get my email newsletter — sign up on the left <- and you will automatically know when I launch my podcast.

A Quick — Advertising Agency Podcast Guide

There are 213,000 results for the Google search “Podcast Guide” so I am not going into big detail here. I’ll just point you to some of my thinking and the resources I’ve found.

PODCAST OBJECTIVES

I am moving my content plan into podcasting because:

• Podcasting listenership is growing. A quote from Podcast News Daily, “The podcast listening recovery continues, according to the latest data from Podtrac. It shows the number of Americans who consumed a podcast last week increased 2% for a second consecutive week. The number of podcast downloads held steady too, which together suggest the disruption to media habits caused by the coronavirus stay-at-home orders are beginning to fade. And Podtrac says year-to-date download growth since the first week of January is up 25%.”
• There are simply too many blogs. I feel like a well-read blog like mine is getting a tad drowned out.
• The majority of advertising related podcasts are either news or are not very entertaining as they all discuss tactics. Similar tactics that I can find in multiple places. Also, they are a bit yappy. Yes, I listen to many. But, I see a gap in the market.
• Importantly — People absorb information differently. Some read, some watch (as in the underutilized world of advertising agency videos) and some like to listen. I need to cover more bases.

Creating the podcast is all about marketing my business. I have a clear objective. In my case, I am going to build a podcast that directly supports my advertising agency consultation business. The podcast series will drive interest, awareness and will move people to this website.

My podcast will be different.

My ‘primary’ target market is any advertising agency manager that needs help in building a sophisticated business development plan. I say primary because my podcast will not be another how-to-do content marketing. It should, in fact, be of interest to anyone into the world of advertising. Even your mom.

ADVERTISING AGENCY PODCAST GUIDE — QUICK DETAILS

The Show: I am aiming to keep the podcast relatively short; I’ll do both me-speak and interviews; I’ve got a list of potential guests and subjects (based on my experience, discussions with my ad agency clients, and friends, Google Trends, and keyword searches).

Equipment: I bought an Audio Technica ATR-2100 mic; a desk stand and a boom (I am using the desk stand because of how the edge of my desk is built); a pop filter and a shock mount. All for under $200.

Information: I have a podcast title that is descriptive and will resonate with my audience; the subtitle adds to the mix and there is an intro paragraph that supports the podcast listing and should generate interest. I’ve got 7 smart SEO-related keywords; I’ll create artwork that is easy to ‘read’ and is designed to stand out on podcast sites. I did that for my book, so it stands out on Amazon and a bookshelf. You can see what I mean… The Levitan Pitch. Buy This Book. Win More Pitches.

Recording: I am using Apple’s Garageband. I’ll offer my interview guests the choice of their using either Zoom or Skype. Both record on two tracks.

Hosting: I will initially validate via iTunes. It will act as a test platform. Podcast hosting options (podcast hosts are where your podcast will live, where you manage your information and they interface with and publish to podcast players like iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, and the player I use… Pocket Casts). My choice for podcast host? I am going to use Libsyn. It is the biggest, oldest, and most famous host. I will go for the $15 package since this one includes statistics. Other hosting options include Buzzsprout; Captivate; Blubrry; Anchor. Your decision will depend on your specific needs and budget.

Interviews: I will have a set of emails that I will use to invite interviews to participate and then mage the process. I’ll go from invitation to show set up to thank you and then please share. Interviewees are an integral element in my marketing plan. Word of mouth, baby!

My website: Each show will have its own blog post including show notes and an embedded media player. Many people listen to podcasts directly in a website player. I’ll SEO the heck out of each show — as Google now loves podcasts.

Transcript: Each podcast will have an accompanying transcript. Transcription options include Rev.com, Overcast, CastBox, and Player.fm.

Marketing: In addition to word of mouth, I will alert my email list; LinkedIn followers and groups; Twitter followers and will do some direct marketing to advertising world influencers. I will wait till a have 3 to 5 podcasts in the can. There is no perfect number.

Video: I’ll test the use of the Headliner video creation tool. As they say, “Easily create videos to promote your podcast, radio show or blog. Share to Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Linkedin, and anywhere video lives.”

I THINK THAT THAT JUST ABOUT COVERS THE ESSENTIALS IN MY ADVERTISING AGENCY PODCAST GUIDE

Of course, you will hear about the podcast when it launches.

Let me know if you are thinking about podcasting and any insights that you want to discuss or have to offer.

Last year, two friends (visualize the type that want to build apps or Uber something) asked me to meet them for coffee. I imagined that they were going to pitch an investment in, yes an app or… whateva. No. Instead, they invited me to invest in two Portland marijuana dispensaries.

To make a longish story short, I did. In fact, I went home and told my totally non-toker wife what we had discussed and she immediately said, “Why not? Sounds like fun.” It has been.

So, Why Do it?

Frankly, It was a lark. Oregon had recently approved the sale of medical marijuana to card-carrying ‘patients.’ I, along with many, sensed that the tide was turning in Oregon — especially Portland.

The guys were savvy, smart and had been in the industry as growers for longer than they would ever tell you. They had great insights and optimistic spreadsheets.

The investment of $50K for a decent share didn’t break my bank. As you might expect, building out two pot shops isn’t as expensive as going into the vanity restaurant business.

It is also much more fun to tell your friends that you are in the marijuana industry than an investor in yet another new chat app or a Brooklyn farm-to-table restaurant.

That folks is the why. OK, one more big reason.

What we anticipated has come to pass. Today, October 1, marijuana is fully legal in Oregon. Our Bridge City Collective dispensaries can now sell marijuana to anyone over 21 in Portland where our two stores have been named the best in the city by Willamette Week. Because this is crazy Portland, the stores are more than doubling the retail staff in anticipation of our very own Portlandia ‘green rush’.

What’s The Potential?

Let me state the obvious. People like to smoke marijuana.

Warning, political rant coming… All of this pot smoking (and you know who you are) happens despite our third stupidest war, the War On Drugs, which has been an incredible failure. ‘Just Say No’, despite what I told my kids, has been a bazillion dollar nightmare for so many reasons it should make us all sick. By the way, like facts? The U.S. federal government spent over $15 billion dollars in 2010 on the War on Drugs, at a rate of about $500 per second. In the meantime, alcohol is responsible for 1 in 10 deaths according to the CDC. The beer, wine & liquor industries gave $25 million to your lawmakers in 2014. Just sayin.

Show Me The Green.

In spite of this craziness, as of today, recreational pot is now legal in four states (AK, CO, OR and WA) and D.C., while medical marijuana is legal in 20 other states.

What are the sales numbers? Check out this one metric: A fully legal marijuana retail store in Vancouver, Washington (just over the bridge from Portland) grossed over $2 million in August. I checked them out on a recent Tuesday at 3PM (just a business trip) and they had over 20 people shopping. That’s 20 customers on a Tuesday in the middle of a workday! Across the country, early adopter Colorado will collect well over $100 million in marijuana-related taxes in 2015.

As you might expect, big money is moving in. For example, marijuana investment pioneer, Seattle’s Privateer Holdings, raised its last round of capital at a whopping $415 million pre-money valuation. Its brands include Leafly, a professionally-produced online strain and dispensary guide; Marley Natural, Bob’s own branded line of pot and Tilray, a huge Canadian grower. Older stoner brand names moving into the industry include Jimi Hendrix, Willie Nelson and Snoop Dogg, who will soon be launching the media entity merryjane.com.

But. Yes, There Is A But. Actually, a Few.

The marijuana industry is attracting widespread interest. However, there are many “interesting’ problems that you should consider before jumping in this burgeoning multi-billion industry.

Marijuana remains is a Schedule I drug along with heroin, LSD, ecstasy, meth and peyote. Yes folks, marijuana is in the same category as heroin.

This classification has resulted in limited banking options (retail is in most cases is a cash business.) Worse, because marijuana remains a controlled substance under federal law, tax code section 280E specifically denies tax credits or exemptions to businesses “trafficking” in controlled substances. Therefore, marijuana dispensary business owners could have an effective federal tax rate of 60 to 90 percent. All of this has fueled a lucrative new business category for lawyers and accountants. Oh, and safe (those big locked cases) manufacturers are booming. Every shop has one or two.

So, even with the rush to legalization, the marijuana industry is still very much the Wild West. But, it is clearly changing fast.

Should you invest?

People are piling on. There are over 100 dispensaries in Portland alone.

There are many options in addition to retail including big grow facilities, and the manufacturing of oils and extracts, edibles, papers, vaporizers and bongs. It should be noted that just like it was in the early days of the Internet industry, one of the groups making the most cash are the people who run industry events. My advice is to go to one before you sign any checks. That said, be prepared because the excitement level is very, you guessed it… high.

By the way, if you want to see what these dispensaries and packaged products look like, head over to Blurb and take a look at my two new books… Potlandia and Jointlandia.

Like I said earlier. The marijuana industry reminds me of the Internet in 1995. There will be winners and losers. Just watch out for the big boys. Folks like Anheuser-Busch, Phillip-Morris and 7-Eleven are certainly smelling the, um, money.

October 2 Follow-Up:

There were lines of customers for most stores. Lines at open and lines into the evening. We will have to wait and see the difference between ‘opening day’ and average daily sales. That said, most people were buying grams. If they smoke their new found stash at the rate they drink craft beer in this town, who knows.

Well, Day One of lgalized marijuana is over.

Me? Peter. Lets just say I’ve been around the block a few times.

The ad is for Shinola Detroit’s Runwell watch from the hot advertising agency Partners & Spade. The headline, “A Watch So Smart That It can Tell You The Time Just By Looking At It.” is both brilliant — as in how true — and very well placed in an issue of WIRED (which, by the way, always has lots of watch ads. I guess the digerati are into their wrists).

While I was enthralled about the simple uses of an old-fashioned watch, I heard a fellow passenger explaining how much he loved his new Apple Watch.

The experience of reading the Shinola ad while listening to an early Apple Watch adopter rave about his new digital watch forced me to share the headline with the Apple Watch group. It got great laughs. Even the Apple Watch guy laughed… albeit with a bit less conviction.