Superserve Your Clients and Contacts

No matter what business you're in, it's crucial to superserve your clients.  I'm told there are two ways to build a business - the Amazon model (scale) and the Ben & Jerry's model (do one thing really well, then build on it).  I'm a Ben & Jerry's guy, and it has nothing to do with Phish Food or the fact that I lived in Vermont for 7 years.Something I pride myself on is above-and-beyond customer service. This relationship building has allowed me to build my business organically, without paid marketing or ads.  I was reminded of this twice in the last few weeks.  First, I had a non-profit client who's been with me since the beginning.  She never had much money, but I helped her out wherever I could.  Well, she got a grant for 2021 and is now going to pay me above my normal rate to produce a series of shows for her.  Turns out the time I invested in her was well spent.This week, one of my clients told me she was giving me a raise.  I had been on the fence about raising my rates with her, but she felt my work was worthy of additional compensation.  Some might say "if she's offering you more money, you're not charging her enough."   But I say, which makes her more likely to recommend me to a colleague?  Me asking her for more money, or her telling me I deserve more money?Onto this week's podcasting news....Apple now allows you to embed a podcast onto your website - something Spotify did long ago. https://tools.applemediaservices.com/apple-podcastsNice to see Apple do something as Spotify keeps closing the gap between them. According to Buzzsprout (and as reported in PodNews), Apple now accounts for LESS than half of their total downloads. It's still far and away #1 at 47%, but second place Spotify is at 24%, and Google Podcasts still lags in third place at 2.4%. After that is everyone else.  See for yourself: https://www.facebook.com/groups/BuzzsproutCommunity/permalink/3800456513307468Nielsen, the ratings people, say Podcasting will be a $1 billion industry in 2021. And with 20% annual growth, total audience is on pace to double by 2023. https://www.nielsen.com/us/en/news-center/2020/nielsen-at-podcast-movement-2020-opportunities-in-a-skyrocketing-industry/?utm_source=podnews.net&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=podnews.net:2020-11-18Podcasting event tomorrow, Saturday November 20th.  Audio Recess from PRX and the Google Podcasts Creator Program: https://googlecp.prx.org/audio-recessTwo new podcasts that I WON'T be checking out - That's Messed Up - which breaks down episodes of Law & Order: SVU - and Hunting Ghislane, about Jeffrey Epstein's accomplice Ghislane Maxwell.  2020 has been depressing enough.  Hard pass on both of those.Finally, the ex-radio guy in me would be remiss if I didn't pour one out for 89X, the Windsor Ontario based rock station that served Detroit for thirty years.  Their owners, Bell Media (now, shockingly, owned by iHeartMedia), flipped the station to country yesterday.  In response, Entercom flipped a frequency I used to be on 98.7, from soft rock to alternative to fill the hole.  What does all of this mean?  Music radio has spent the last two decades squeezing out most of its personality.  So today, if you don't have a spoken word (news, talk, sports) station, or at least an outstanding morning show, you don't have a chance.If you need help with your podcast, feel free to reach me here. https://jagindetroit.com/podcast-recording-packages/ Find jag on social media @JAGPodcastProductions or online at JAGPodcastProductions.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.