Leveraging Your Podcast – Laurie-Ann Murabito – Creating The Greatest Show – Episode # 029

by | Jan 27, 2023 | Content, Creating The Greatest Show, Hosting a Podcast, Marketing, Podcast Guest Experience

Guest Laurie-Ann Murabito on Creating The Greatest Show sharing her tips for being a great podcast host

Today, we’re learning from a speaking strategist, master coach, author, speaker & podcast host that helps people leverage speaking opportunities. Laurie-Ann Murabito is the Host of Be In Demand, Co-Host of the Contagious Leadership Live Show, and the author of Rethink Your Leadership. Laurie-Ann dove into how to plan out solo episodes for your podcast, why podcasts are so helpful for building trust with your audience, and the value of recording video for your podcast!

Watch Laurie-Ann Murabito on Creating The Greatest Show!

Takeaways: Making A Positive Impact With Your Podcast

  • Even when recording your video podcast remotely, you can get many of the benefits of establishing eye contact with your guest and audience by intentionally looking straight into your camera.
  • Recording video for your podcast is an important aspect of building the connection between the host and guest during the podcast recording and between the host and guest and the audience when consuming the podcast content.
  • You should make a conscious effort to help your guest with promoting whatever is important to them. They are providing value to you by sharing their insights on your podcast, so make sure you provide value to them.
  • Much like speaking events, your podcast’s impact can snowball and open new doors for you. A great way to find new guests and get in contact with more people that match your ICP is to ask guests who else should be on your podcast. 
  • Podcasts help your target audience get to know, like, and trust you on a deeper level while they get great value by listening to your podcast for free. Leverage your podcast by including a Call-To-Action in the show notes of your podcast episodes.
  • With solo podcast episodes, you have the opportunity to be the only voice that your audience is inviting into their personal space. Because of the intimate nature of solo podcasts, imagine you are just talking to one individual listener. 
  • Don’t worry too much about filler words in your podcast, they are a natural part of your conversation and you want to share your genuine self with your audience. That said, light editing is recommended for longer pauses and if you or the guest really get lost.
Listen to Laurie-Ann Murabito on Creating The Greatest Show!

Quote of The Show:

“Create some video because that’s how we’re building that know, like, and trust really fast”

– Laurie-Ann Murabito, Creating The Greatest Show, Episode # 029

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Transcript

[00:00:00] 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Recording to the cloud. 

Casey Cheshire: You know what? I’ve gotten to the age where I’m just telling people what I’m doing on the computer. I don’t know. I think I need to seek help for that, but what I don’t need is help with this next interview because I can’t wait to introduce you to the guest today. Honestly, we spent about half an hour.

On a pre-show, having a blast, and it was way funny. So now the rest of the show will not be funny just because we got it all out of our systems. Maybe we’ll bring some back in. But let me tell you, she is [00:01:00] absolutely fantastic. Her podcast, her style. Who is she? Casey. She’s a speaking strategist, a master coach, an author.

A speaker, a podcast host. Okay, that rhymed. We’re coming up on the holiday. I don’t know how that happened, but let’s just say, look she helps people leverage speaking opportunities. You have a speaking opportunity. Don’t just carelessly look at it and hope that it does well for you and your business.

No capitalize on it, and that’s what she does. So I can’t wait to just learn from her. She’s written two books. She’s the author of Rethink Leadership and Rethink Your Leader. Two shows be in Demand, a podcast, and also Contagious Leadership Live Stream. Without further ado, Lorianne Morabito, welcome to 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: show. Thank you. Thank you. I’m so excited to have this conversation and share my knowledge with your audience, so thank you, my goodness, so much for inviting. Absolutely 

Casey Cheshire: you. It was crazy. I actually messed up the introduction of your name, but we just magically edited it out so that I [00:02:00] sounded perfect.

That’s right. You were just 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: crazy . That’s right. I’ve done that before. I’ve actually introduced a guest and I didn’t pronounce her name correctly, and she was like, Leave it. She was just, cuz we were like, we’re imperfect humans. . Correct. So it was just a little bit of evidence. She was like, I don’t care.

And I said, great. I said, I’m just going to leave it because we’re just being real . Oh 

Casey Cheshire: yeah. If I didn’t totally butcher it beyond belief, that would totally still be in the show. But I would’ve 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: saved you. I would just been just I’ll just talk over you or something. . 

Casey Cheshire: And that’s. Great thing about this show is everything.

It’s so meta. Like we’re talking about what we’re doing at the exact same time. . And sometimes it gets weird and creepy. I once had someone say that if they don’t, if they don’t feel good about the podcast or if someone invites ’em on a prep call, they hate them. And I was like thanks for joining my prep call,

You’re like no, you’re different. You’re different. We’re catching up. It was all good, but I’m so glad you’re here. I can’t wait to learn from you. So with that Lorianne, pull back the curtain for us on your show and share your most important strategy [00:03:00] for a great interview podcast. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: So to have a great interview, it’s, it really, it’s about the pre, it’s all the stuff that you do beforehand, like maybe a little bit of research on your guest.

But really the other thing that I do, because I want to make the eye contact because I record my shows just like you’re doing right here on Zoom. So I want to look into the camera. I don’t want to be looking down at my notes because then I’m really disconnected from the person I’m interview. So I also use the chat here in Zoom so that I can just easily just look over there and say, okay, here’s the next question, or here’s another topic.

And I also word those questions. One, I’ve gotten those questions from my guest, but I will word them so that they sound conversational. 

Casey Cheshire: Interesting. Okay. Lot of things here. So the chat feature on Zoom fantastic. And then also wording them. Let’s talk about the [00:04:00] chat. So I’m even looking at our chat right now.

We can’t share this on the screen cuz it’s Zoom thing. People won’t see it. But, so you’ve written and these are notes for you when you’re speaking. And then also you do the same thing when you’re. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: I mostly do this for when I’m hosting. Hosting. Okay. Hosting a podcast. I did this here today because we had already talked about what we were going to like share on the show, and so now I have an idea of some of the different areas that you wanted to touch on to help your audience.

Casey Cheshire: Wow. Okay. And I won’t spoil all the things we have in a chat here cause we’re actually going to use them. But what a cool and what that does for you is it keeps you focused on the zoom window because they’re literally right here. Do you like move the window so it’s right under the camera?

Can I don’t think I can tell whether you’re looking at me or No. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: It’s like right off to the side. Yeah. It’s so, so, but I’m also the one who, I typed it, I physically wrote it already. Yeah. So part of that list, so I already know what it is. So I can literally just like glance over there and I can tell you what the next tip is.

Casey Cheshire: Just it’s [00:05:00] almost like a teleprompter, right? Just a little thing in front of your face to remind you . And that helps you from not having to look down or around or anything like that. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Interesting. And for anybody who doesn’t feel comfortable or isn’t using the chat, maybe you are being interviewed, then I would tell you to use sticky notes on your screen.

Oh, okay. You as either you’re doing the interviewing or you’re being interviewed and there’s like, you want to make sure that, let’s just say there’s some data points that you want to share during your interview and like maybe you get them mixed up or something. Like just put them on a sticky note and just stick ’em on the.

Don’t cover the camera, 

Casey Cheshire: but , you cover it. I thought I had to say that. You have a yellow hue to the rest of the podcast. ? Yes. Oh man. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: So that’s, so I’ve just you want to connect with your guest? Because if we connect, then our audience is going to feel like they are a part of this conversation.

Exact same thing that I do when I’m on stage and what I [00:06:00] teach my clients is, you’re not speaking to everybody all at once. And like passing over like their heads with your eye contact. No, you speak to one person at a time. Sharing some information and then you move your eyes to like another person, maybe a further in the back of the room closer so that everybody just feels like they’re a part of your conversation.

Casey Cheshire: And that’s, it’s interesting because podcasting enables you to do that. Because you, instead of looking at a wall and that’s why I do like video and I know you do video as well. Not everyone I’ve talked to on the show does. got to do video. They just, they don’t want to do their hair in the morning, I don’t know. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Let’s touch on this. 

Casey Cheshire: Easier for me. Let me just put that out there. . 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Me too. It just, yeah, it just takes a little bit of effort. Let’s talk about the video, but let me just add one more thing that I, yeah. Please add for before I start, before I hit record with my guest. Yeah. I ask my guest what would make this a.

Interview [00:07:00] a great podcast interview or episode for them. If they just want it to be very conversational, it’ll be very conversational. If there’s something that’s coming up that they’re going to be promoting, great. Then I’m going to make sure that I focus on that, that I bring that up and again, like I do this all very conversational so that the audience just feels, just so that.

It feels like a flowy conversation and not very choppy. 

Casey Cheshire: Yeah. I just spoke with the great and powerful John Barrows, who is a sales trainer, and he had like almost a d completely different approach. He is like, Having to protect his show from Wouldbe fellow sales hustlers coming on and just promoting and pitching the whole time.

So he tells ’em like, don’t you dare pitch, and if you do, I’m going to end the episode and we’re not going to air it. So behave yourself. And this is the opposite of that, but I feel like the measure, you’re setting expectations and boundaries. [00:08:00] Don’t do this but I do want to know this. So I feel like I’m glad I’ve had both of these conversations because I know okay.

Set your boundaries and your expectations for the guests, but also ask them what theirs would be Yeah. And what would be successful for them. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Because they’re also going to be promoting my podcast to their audience. 

Casey Cheshire: Yes. If they enjoyed their time, if they had a good time, they would. Yes.

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Hopefully. Yeah. And that I’m in, I’m introducing them to my audience. That’s the beauty of speaking, and podcasts is a form of speaking, is that it’s Opa other people’s audiences. That’s what speaking does for you. It puts you in front of other people’s audiences. Leverage opa. So by me letting them talk about what they do, and if there’s any program or any freebie, that they have, like they have an opportunity for people that are in my audience, to join their email list, to sign up for their freebie, to maybe join a program, join a Facebook group that they run.

There’s [00:09:00] so many different things. Hey, 

Casey Cheshire: What a simple, powerful question to ask. I don’t think I’ve ever been asked. On a show. And I don’t think, I don’t think I asked that. So it, I feel like that’s something I want to add to my prep call is asking that. So I, because I would love to know, cause I even if it’s something like, okay, they have a newsletter, they have a book, they have a this, they have a that.

But knowing that they in particular really want to get the word out. About the new book. I talked to someone who has four or five books and one was just coming out and that was the special thing for him. Yeah. And that came out, but I didn’t ask him specifically. But just to know That would be so cool cuz then you could weave it in yourself and every time you weave it in it’s just like making them smile.

Like angels are getting their wings and bells are Yes. Chiming and yeah. What a cool thing you could do for other. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: So check do that . Yeah. 

Casey Cheshire: Yeah. And it, it makes it much less transactional too, right? It’s Yes. [00:10:00] Yes, exactly. It’s like I’m here to help you and have a good conversation. And if I’m taking care of your promotion, then you don’t have to.

And I think it also sounds better if it comes from you than it does from the guests, cuz like you’re promoting them as opposed to them 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: promoting them. Yes. Cuz I’ll even ask them like towards the end, I Don’t you? Like I, I’ll even point out like you have this great like checklist, this great video series, you host your own podcast, so I’ll even roll out the red carpet for them to promote themselves too.

Yeah. 

Casey Cheshire: Smart. Smart. It’s only fair if they’re going to provide their wisdom and knowledge and Exactly. All that kind of good stuff. . Super 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: cool. Okay, so let’s just touch on this video thing. Yeah, please. Because I know there’s so many people out there. Just like I don’t feel comfortable in front of video.

I don’t like the way I look on video. Okay. So first off, learn how to use your settings in Zoom. That’s number one. Zoom can make you look good. Zoom can brighten up your room. Zoom can darken your room. 

Casey Cheshire: Zoom can smooth [00:11:00] your face, I believe. Yes. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: They ca it can, yeah. And I use 

Casey Cheshire: it totally little time.

I have, I have touch up my appearance on Max because I have a face made for radio, so it’s I, I wish Zoom had a little extra pay an extra $5 a month, and they’ll just do an even more, or they’ll sub in someone else’s face, 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: And they you should just, you ought give them that ideas in there you’re 

Casey Cheshire: right, like Zoom can definitely smooth things out, especially as you have HD cameras and all that. . 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: So that’s one thing. Yeah. Look at your own behavior. How many videos are you actually watching over reading written text? . And also listening to audio. I One of the things that I like to do every once in a while is I will ask my audience, and when I say ask my audience, like an email Hey, are do you prefer podcasts?

Do you prefer Facebook? And I’ll ask them questions. Yeah. And a lot of people are saying like, I watch short form video. I’ll wa I’ll watch, I’ll listen to a podcast from YouTube. So keep that in mind. Look at [00:12:00] your own behavior and if you’re afraid of creating video, but you love consuming video, like there’s a mismatch there.

People love video. And the reason, the other reason why I love video is that you get a sense of my personality. Ah-huh . So totally create some video because that’s how we’re building that. No, and trust really fast. 

Casey Cheshire: For sure. Like you’re constantly smiling, which just makes my day happier. , thank you.

And then I get a sense for who you are. Otherwise we’re trying to pick that out of the ether. I’m just hearing it. And I think the other thing too is it definitely keeps the guest focused, right? There’s a little bit of that accountability. Because I’ve heard people yeah. If I don’t have video on, I’m just doing other things.

As long as the sound is good, I’m, and then your guest is checking their email. But there’s something about being on a visual stage where it’s even more embarrassing to be visually out of the loop and not paying attention than it is to be just audio 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: based. And all you have to do, one is be dressed appropriately from the waist [00:13:00] up, essentially.

Sure. And just look in the camera. Make sure, and I do this all the time before, before I get onto to a Zoom is I clean the camera because it is, I’m working from a laptop and it is positioned in a pl in like the center of your screen. And that’s basically where I’m opening and closing my laptop so it can get a little bit of oil and fingerprints.

So just wipe. 

Casey Cheshire: Yes. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: And how that will change things. 

Casey Cheshire: Oh yeah. And this is just totally re telling me that I need to have a checklist for right before recording, yes. Couple things, couple key things. Checking my sound. Clean the camera. Settings is a bunch of things. The audio, the call.

Yeah. Between the camera people. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Yeah. So create more video. I. I’m creating video with my podcast guest, and that goes over to YouTube. . And am I repurposing it? Not quite yet. . But I have the video that I will be [00:14:00] able to cut it up into small, short form videos. God 

Casey Cheshire: love that. And then, Yeah. Yeah. Might as well. Yeah. , you’re already chatting, right? Might as well record both, right? If you don’t use it right now. . Yeah. We also put short promo clips on LinkedIn. We find that sometimes those will get. 10 times more views cuz they’re short and quick and they’re on a platform already.

. Your, video mate, your podcast may get 60 downloads, but your clip had a thousand views, so it’s don’t pass up on a thousand views. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Yes. Totally agree with all of 

Casey Cheshire: that. Hell yeah. So good. Do you do a prep call 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: with your guest before that? I don’t normally do a prep call unless it’s somebody that I don’t know.

Or it’s somebody, because a lot of times people will refer people, like at the end of the show, I’m going to ask you to refer me to some other podcasts that you know of that I’ll be like, so that’s, and I think we’re going to talk about this later, or I’d like, let’s talk about it right now. About how speaking [00:15:00] just snowballs.

Yes. Let’s talk. Okay, so any speaking event, whether it’s you’re on a podcast or you’re speaking on a stage or even a virtual stage, or you’re a guest expert in some sort of a mastermind, at the end, ask your guest or host, whoever invited you. Because hosts, guest coaches, people that are running masterminds, et cetera, they all know other people that are similar to them.

Ask them, who do you know that my story, my information, would best serve their audience? Just ask them for one or two names. So now one podcast can turn into two more. That can then turn into another two more. So you’re talking about another four that can then turn into eight, like it easily snowballs whether it’s a speaking event, or podcast guest.

And I’m also a big connector that once I’ve either been on someone’s podcast or they’ve [00:16:00] been on my podcast, I will introduce them to other people. Hey, you’d be a great guest for this podcast. Or, and vice versa I’m constantly thinking of other people. Wow. 

Casey Cheshire: It’s such a good point that I know sometimes at the end of a podcast your brain is mush, from just all of that.

But if you do have the chat notes or I have a Google doc with the outline and some questions at the end, put a reminder that says, Hey, mushy head, I know you’re tired, but don’t forget to ask, who else should I talk to on this show? Do you know any, who else would be good for this show or what other shows do you recommend?

I guessed on if you’re a guest. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Exactly, and the livestream show that I do for over on LinkedIn, contagious leadership. I’m just going to share with your audience how this came to be, because I’m not sure, how I became a co-host on this show. No. I was introduced to the host Rigo.

We had a pre-call, then we’re like, we’re finally like, we settle on a date that I’m going to be on the show [00:17:00] and he is got a co-host. The day I show up was the day that she was like, I can’t do this anymore. She was in a completely different industry, had just was swamped with clients and I just said to him and I don’t even know what possessed me to say this, again, every once in a while, that’s just what happened.

See, my outside voice is taking over, and I said to him if this goes well, maybe I’ll be your co-host thinking it was just going to be for, oh, I’ll just help him out for a couple of months. Here it is, we’re six months later, , and it’s like, it has become quite like, I’ve gotten more involved in the show, and that’s what I do.

I started asking the guest, who do you know that would be a great guest for our show? And I can tell you that Rico was like, oh. What a great idea. If you love this person, gold stars hang around with gold stars. That’s what I believe. So they’re going to know other people. Yeah. So tap into that.

Casey Cheshire: Absolutely. And. , and [00:18:00] you’ve got that trust. Now you’ve just spent some time with each other. It’s not like you’re just casually asking a random stranger. You’re asking someone you’ve just spent a good chunk of time with, and hopefully you built some kind of rapport. . And they would be, they’d be perfectly willing to do that.

And just ask. Yeah. They never know. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: And if they had a good time, which most of our guests do, they’re going to, oh, I know exactly who you should also interview. Yeah. Easy snowballs. 

Casey Cheshire: Yeah. And you can see it and then you’re like on all these different podcasts and what’s going on. It’s crazy.

Yeah. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: So why, it’s a lot of work to find a podcast and, do a cold pitch and do all the, this pre stuff where, you know, instead of ending there and, all right, let me go back to square one again. No just make the ask.

Casey Cheshire: Make the ask it. There’s something about, going back to square one, there are podcast bookers out there, right? Yeah. Who charge you Buco money. Lots of money to do what you could just [00:19:00] ask with a single sentence after a great interview, easy. Easy peasy. You I’ve watched your shows and you just have so much fun doing them, and I would just, I’d love to note, what do you personally get out of podcasting?

What boxes does that check for you? 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: One is connection. Connection is one of my highest values. So I get to have this personal time with somebody and really connect with them. And at times, like really at a deep level, like we will talk about stuff that it’s oh yeah, forgot this is going to go public.

But it’s a great conversation and we’re willing to share that. So that’s one. Taking advantage of O p a, other people’s audiences. That’s definitely another, but I also do a lot of solo episodes myself. But having a podcast is my, basically it’s a way to tap into my world, learn about speaking without making any big commitment.

It’s my. It doesn’t cost you anything to come and listen to my podcast and you’ll get some [00:20:00] great value. So it’s also my way of building that know and trust with my audience, right? So that when I’m pitching my program or my one-on-one coaching, my clients are going to be like, or excuse me, not my clients, but the audience.

It’s going to be like, you know what? I’ve been learning a lot. I really enjoy her podcast. I’m going to sign up for that sales. people do, they are in my audience. They’ll be listening to my podcast and they’ll be like, you know what? I really want to start leveraging speaking. I’m all about what Lorian is talking about and teaching.

So it’s like writing in the show notes, book a call with me, right? So it’s my, it’s another form of speaking and I’m leveraging the platform. 

Casey Cheshire: Tell me about connection. You said it was one of your, Values. What is it about podcasting that lends itself so well to connection? 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: I’m so on a solo episode, I am in my audience’s earbuds.

I’m in their ears whether they’re just cleaning the house, whether they’re [00:21:00] driving, to pick up the kids or go grocery shopping or at the gym they’re on the treadmill or something, so I’m in their personal space and I actually try to like my solo episodes that. I’m talking to one person, so I’m not trying to talk to a huge audience, like thousands of people at the same time.

I’m just talking to one. Yeah. And so that’s how I want my listener to feel. I want them to feel like she’s just talking to me. Wow. . And with my guest episodes, I’m going to connect with my guest at a deep level so that my listener, the audience actually feels like they’re sitting right next to us at a, like a coffee shop, and they’re ju and they’re listening to this conversation and they feel like they’re a part of it.

Casey Cheshire: Have you ever interviewed multiple people at the same. [00:22:00] and not yet. Not yet. Because I’d love your take on it. You should try it sometime because I feel like you just get a little bit less of that connection because there’s. There’s two people there. That’s also why I don’t have necessarily my amazing producer, Sam, join this call because I want it to be just the two, two of us.

And yes, it will go out to millions and millions of our fans. But it’s just the two of us. But somehow when you add that third person in there, it’s not this sort of one-on-one. We’re looking at each other now. There’s two people and it’s almost like you’re moderating a panel. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: I guess it depends on how you approach it.

Because the Contagious Leadership show with Rico, we have a guest two. Two 

Casey Cheshire: hosts, right? Two 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: hosts and a guest. Yeah. So it’s two hosts, one guest. Sometimes, like Rico’s got a d, and I we have to have this conversation even when we’re live. He gets off on tangents.

Yeah. That’s just who he is. And so so me as the other co-host, sometimes I have to reel him back in. . 

Casey Cheshire: Do you have any advice? Cuz I was literally talking, this is great. So we were talking about two guests, [00:23:00] but in this case, two hosts. I think you have more control over two hosts cuz then you least talk beforehand.

And it can 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: get a little chaotic though, still. Yeah. But I, one, one of the things like before the Contagious Leadership Show, I tell our guests, We’re going to interrupt you, so hopefully you don’t mind that, but it’s going to be like a conversation around the kitchen table. For my, for a solo episode, or I shouldn’t say like a solo but with my guest episodes, with myself on my podcast, being in demand, it’s like being in a coffee shop.

is my analogy. Like we’re having a conversation, but there isn’t a whole lot of interrupting. But on the Contagious Leadership Show, because it’s the three of us and that’s the energy that we want it to be like we are sitting at the kitchen table. And that’s just naturally what happens is that people start to wait.

I want to dive deeper into that particular. Before we move on, so that’s where the interrupting comes in. And I just started to warn our [00:24:00] guests mostly for myself cuz I didn’t want them to think that I was rude, like stopping them and interrupting them. Just Hey, this is what’s going to happen.

So lots of just letting people know, like warning people, like this is the energy of the show, this is what’s going to happen. If you do have a tendency to interrupt people, like just let them, to let your guests know so they’re not surprised. 

Casey Cheshire: I love the analogy of the coffee shop versus the kitchen table, and that you let them know this is the environment they’re joining.

I feel. It’s so important to let people know the energy they’re about to be taking part in is this going to be dry? Is this Sam Harris? Is , am I going to interrupt you the whole time? Or is this going to be, you know, what’s it going to be like? But giving people the heads up of that take te I want to stay on the two hosting for, because I definitely have worked with people who have done that.

I’ve done it for a little. Any tips, any, experiences you can share with us around making it successful? When you have two people in that command seat, 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: I would [00:25:00] say you got to know your roles. So like with contagious leadership RICO starts the show. We have the intro. And then he does start the conversation right after that.

Like we have a little bit of chit chat and even that, like we’re always molding this and modif making modifications. And then we like, we turn it over to our guests to introduce themselves. And then we know what we’re going to be talking about, what the show is actually going to be focused on.

But other than that, it’s really about knowing your co-host, cuz Rico and I now have been working together for enough time that I can see when like, all right, he’s getting distracted. There must. There must be something like every once in a while we get some sort of a troll from YouTube that’s starting to leave allies, obnoxious messages.

A troll in YouTube, . Yeah, I know. Go figure. Like they, they’re very rare. So I will continue the conversation with the guest knowing that Rigo is going to go take [00:26:00] care of it. . 

Casey Cheshire: Like on 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: chat, right? Not even on chat. It’s just I know like he’s already seen it. He knows that it’s happening and because it, it’s happened to us twice and the very first time it happened, I put in our private chat, somebody take care of the troll , afterwards he was like, I thought you were talking about me,

I was like no. I just wanted somebody to take care of that. So it’s about reading each other’s body language, but that comes with time. , 

Casey Cheshire: right? So if it is live, you can teamwork the trolls and and so you’re messaging behind the scenes. Are you using Zoom message to do that?

How 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: are you? In the Contagious Leadership Show, we actually use Restream, yes. . But for my guest episodes, I would just, I would just use, I, I use Zoom like what you do, but, so if I was to have two guests, it is about, Setting the tone. We’re talking around the kitchen table, so I would just tell people like, don’t feel like you have to be like uber polite and wait for a break in the conversation.

Like just [00:27:00] let’s have a conversation, and sometimes it’s like you chit chat beforehand, before you start hitting record. That kinda warms everybody up. And I also would recommend that if you were going to do that, this is, I used to do this in the beginning when I first started recording my podcast is there were a couple of questions that I would ask my guests what are you most proud of?

Okay. What and what book are you reading? And they would catch my guest off guard. They didn’t know I was going to ask these questions, but it was just to just warm them. And just like, all right, look great. Like we’ve gone deep a little bit. Let’s continue the conversation now.

Casey Cheshire: Gotcha. Gotcha. So good. I love, I love this show cause I just get to learn, go to school. Let’s talk solos. You talked a little bit about how solo episodes, you’re talking to one person in their ears. Yes. And. Tell me more about that. Any tips, especially cuz I, [00:28:00] your background as a speaking coach and trainer and strategist how do we do a great solo episode?

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Okay. Keep in mind, I’m going to tell you about my very first one. Yes, very first episode. So I am fortunate enough that I have a walk-in closet, so I’m going to go, that’s where I’ll go. That’s a, it’s a great sound booth, if you will. And so I went into my closet and I started to record. I stopped. I did it again.

Delete. Start again. Delete. And I came outta my closet and I was just like, oh my God, I can’t do this. Having like little adult temper tantrum. Yeah. And then I reminded myself, Lorianne, your podcast recording muscle is weak. You’ve never done this before. I’ve been a guest. But now all of a sudden I’m talking to my sweaters and blouses.

Okay? So what I did was, I remember hearing the story [00:29:00] from Gary about Gary v I can’t remember if he told the story or if somebody was telling the story about him, but when he did his first live stream, He didn’t want to talk to nobody. He’d want it to feel like he was talking to somebody. So he got a stuffed teddy bear and he put it on the, on some sort of a little bar stool, some sort of chair.

He hung it up. That was on the other side of the camera. So he was talking to the teddy bear. So I went and did the next best thing and I found a picture that was hanging around of me and a girlfriend when we were on some trip down to down in Florida. And I just, and I put that in my closet, so I was talking to her.

I love that. And and after a while you just, you build up your podcast recording muscle and it gets easier and easier. But I want to remind everybody, we all start with, 

Casey Cheshire: Yes. Talk to me about the perfectionism because I feel like there’s a little more [00:30:00] flexibility when you have two people riffing.

You can have the ums because it’s natural conversation and pauses and yeah, interruptions. But when you’re so low, there’s a, I’ve had the tendency, I remember trying to record even a 32nd. Sponsor ad for a podcast and somehow wanting it to be perfect and then doing the same thing you did. Record, hand head down on my hands.

Ugh, I’m ne I’m never going to get this right. And thankfully someone on my team was like, you can do this. You got this. And I went and did it again and I nailed it. But man, there’s that desire to be perfect. When Solo. How? How do you work with that? 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: I tell people that um’s are normal. So if you go listen to my podcast, you’re going to hear um’s and ah’s If there’s a lot of them, like my team knows to cut out the long pauses. If I repeat myself, like they, that’s their job is to make me look like a rockstar. Yeah, basically. But if there’s an occasional in there like it’s, that’s just normal [00:31:00] conversation. I don’t strive for perfection anymore.

Perfection. Trying to be perfect. You’re never going to get there. There’s always going to be something else that’s like that isn’t quite right, and it’s just a form of procrastination and you are just not going to get your brilliance out there. So just. Just put it out there. I do before I record something I’ve got an idea of what I’m going to talk about and I just trust, literally close my eyes, take a few deep breaths, and just trust that whatever I’m supposed to say is going to come out of my mouth.

Yeah, 

Casey Cheshire: I love that. Just. It’s meant to be and people are, they’re there for you or they’re not. And you know what, honestly, people don’t really want to watch, perfection on cnn. No, they don’t. They don’t at all. Yeah. Yeah. There’s even a marketing online marketing podcast. We were talking about this for a second, where, Big, little companies were trying to make their [00:32:00] photos look great and their videos look great, but bigger companies, giant companies were trying to actually reduce the quality of their photos and filming so that it didn’t read.

So corporate, . So it’s so funny that people, I want to make mine look so professional and people are like, I want to make mine look so amateur. So when in doubt, just be yourself. I think. Difference. That’s where the podcasting has really come, is that everyone now is okay with just being real. We want it, we seek it.

Yeah. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Reality TV has made being real like the norm now. So just, I would just say you just want really good audio equipment recording because great people will forgive. If we didn’t have good lighting here, people will forgive bad video. But if they can’t hear you, They’re going to move on to the next podcast, the next video.

So I would just say like audio, just really good audio,

Casey Cheshire: It’s so true. The most brilliant speaker in the world, best guess you could ever have. And if their audio is on AirPods people, right? I [00:33:00] just, and I’m doing the same thing. I would bounce instantly. can’t do it. Or clicking in the background, something. It just, you got to get rid of that.

Yes. You got to be bit of a tough, you got to be tough about the sound. Yeah. You got to stand up and have some stand up that Yes, absolutely. And perfect segue, you just you’re my like, perfect segue partner in this equation here. So challenges, everything’s grand with podcasting, but what are your biggest challenges or what is your biggest challenge?

Laurie-Ann Murabito: I, part of my biggest challenges is sometimes is finding good guests. That are appropriate for my audience cuz a lot of people, like I will get people who are pitching me and I want to know, I want to hear you. If I don’t know you, I need to hear or watch a video because I need I’ve had some people from other parts of the world who are pitching me to be on my podcast and they can’t speak English really well.

You’re not a good fit for my podcast. That’s one thing, but also, Staying on [00:34:00] topic, right? Another one is when I ask people to introduce themselves, you can tell like they haven’t prepared. have your intro. It shouldn’t be some five minute, 10 minute dissertation. When I say tell my audience about yourself.

Back in high school I was . Don’t quite want to go back that far. So that, that’s another thing. So finding good guests, and especially like when you’re pitching, cuz as a podcast, so I host, I’m sure that you get a ton of pitches. And sometimes you, do you ever like look at the pitch and you’re like, did you even listen to one of my 

Casey Cheshire: episodes?

Just most of my worst guests come from pitches. One out of 10 pitched guest makes it, and then one out of three of those is actually really good. So I don’t even know mine this 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: about. All right. So this is interesting. What is it about the ones that pitch you that don’t even make it. 

Casey Cheshire: With some of the bad pitch.

Yeah. It’s not even in the realm of what my show does. Hey, we’re a B2B [00:35:00] marketing podcast, and this is someone who does elephant counting. Like it’s not even in the realm. And other people it just, they maybe it’s not significance. It’s not They don’t have something interesting to talk about.

It’s the job of the booker to make it look like that, so , because, they need your help because essentially they could be the smartest person in the world, and what they’re presenting is not something I would want to talk 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: to. Yeah. I would say it’s the novel pitch. 

Casey Cheshire: The no. Yeah. Thank you.

Laurie-Ann Murabito: The know the pitch that goes on and on. I don’t need to know how wonderful you are. Just, I think to keep it short. Yeah. Short to like a paragraph. All you’re asking is what’s your process for choosing guests? . And here’s what I talk about. If you think this would be interesting to your audience, let’s have a conversation about that.

Short, sweet, to 

Casey Cheshire: the point. I love that. Do you have a template of that? Do you have that template? 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: I think I do . 

Casey Cheshire: You should. And then literally what you should do is give people your contact [00:36:00] information. In fact, how can people contact you and let’s say maybe they contact you on LinkedIn or email or something and then you could send them.

Cause I’d love to see that template because Yeah, that sounds 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: great actually. I actually, yeah, I do have this as a template. I usually give this to my clients cuz I actually have a cold pitch and a warm pitch. But this is definitely like what we’re talking about is a cold pitch. So if you find me on either LinkedIn, or even Instagram is where I hang out the most you can just send me a message that says, Hey, Lorianne really want that template.

You know that, that pitch to temp, you know that? Sorry, I’m like stumbling on my words 

Casey Cheshire: here. Yeah, no, let’s go. Just invented it for you. But I would, that’s right. I would do that. I’ll contact you right now. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Yeah. And this is the same, the exact same. For speaking opportunities. Yes, like stages and zoom.

You know those things like they’re all coming back so you can, it’s your criteria. Use this exact template for not just podcast guesting. 

Casey Cheshire: And practicing one [00:37:00] being on a podcast, I’m sure it helps you practice for being on that big stage and eventually being a keynote. 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: Yes, absolutely. So that’s one place.

And also you can find me on my podcast, which is Be and Demand with Lorianne, and my website is speak and standout.com. Love 

Casey Cheshire: that. Speak and stand out. Final question for you. Yes. If we chat again 50 episodes from now on your podcast, what do you want that to 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: look like? What do I want that to look like?

I want to see that my, my process has streamlined even more so that it’s much easier for me. I want to be repurposing. My podcast even more like creating not just written contact, but also short form videos, more clips. That’s what I, that’s it’s really more of a streamlined system because I know that the more streamlined it is, the easier it is for me to do, and then it frees me up for more promotion.[00:38:00] 

Yeah. Sharing it with more people because the stuff that I’m sharing on my podcast, I want to get out there because pub learning, public speaking skills is probably one of the best things that. ever learn, right? And as a reform, painfully shy girl , public speaking changed my world. 

Casey Cheshire: Yeah.

Thank you for, I can’t wait. Let’s chat again. We don’t have to wait for 50 episodes, but I can’t wait to see 50 episodes from now when your podcast does exactly that and is repurposed everywhere so that everyone who needs to hear and get better and who doesn’t need to get better at speaking right.

Can find you through those channels and find that content. That’d be amazing. Thank you so much for being on here. Thank you. I’ve had fun and I’ve. I wish this is what school was like when I was sitting . was great. Like I, so many takeaways, so many things I need to do now after this 

Laurie-Ann Murabito: podcast.

Oh, wonderful. Wonderful. Thank you so much. It was, this was a great conversation. [00:39:00] You’re a great host, by 

Casey Cheshire: the way. Thank you. And coming from a professional speaking trainer I will write that one down. I will clip that from the episode and Great. Use that as a alarm clock. Wake up. . . Great.

So good. And for those listening, if you’ve learned something and I freaking know you have, because I literally have pages of notes over here, then share this, know, front and back. Front and back. Share this with someone else. One person, nine people, 3000 who needs to hear this? , fellow podcaster, someone who could use some speaking training, have them reach out.

And again, Lauren, thank you so much. This is awesome. Thank you. All right everyone. This has been a crazy cool episode of creating the Greatest Show. We will see you all next time.

[00:40:00] 

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