The Proffitt Podcast
Are you thinking about starting a podcast? Launching a YouTube channel? Repurposing your old blog content into something fresh? Hi, I'm Krystal - host of "The Proffitt Podcast." And I'm happy to say you've come to the right place!
Business owners and content creators dream of building a platform where they can connect deeply with their audience, and marketing feels easy. But I also know what it's like to feel confused and overwhelmed.
Join us weekly as we strip down those processes and remove all the overwhelm with new tips, simple strategies, and great conversations with creators like you. Tune in to hear how I help creators start, launch, and market their content confidently. The motto here is, "We all have to start somewhere."
The Proffitt Podcast
How to Land Sponsorships in 2025: A Roadmap for Content Creators Without a Massive Following
Sponsorship coach extraordinaire Justin Moore joins us again (for the third time!), bringing insights and strategies from his new book, "Sponsor Magnet." Have you ever wondered how to maximize your content's earning potential beyond traditional product sales? Thanks to Justin's guidance and expertise, you'll discover how 2024 became my most lucrative year through sponsorships. Prepare to overcome any doubts about monetizing your content as we dive into the heart of securing sponsorships.
Writing a book is no small feat, and we candidly share the trials and tribulations of the process, from battling writer's block to ensuring the book's reach extends far beyond the usual suspects. It's about more than just putting words on a page—it's about creating lasting educational content and expanding our impact to those who may not yet see sponsorships as their path. Join us as we celebrate the community support that fueled this journey and discuss the strategies to engage broader audiences with authenticity and purpose.
As we celebrate the launch of Sponsor Magnet, the excitement extends to our upcoming event in San Antonio, where content creators can connect with brand marketing managers and win amazing prizes. This episode isn't just about imparting knowledge; it's about building networks and community, a vital component of our success stories. Whether you're a seasoned creator or just starting, the insights and camaraderie in this conversation serve as a testament to the power of collaboration and the endless possibilities it brings.
We're rolling out our 2025 Annual Audience Survey, and we'd love your feedback! And, because I know your time is valuable, I'm throwing in a digital copy of my Amazon Best-Seller, Start a Binge-Worthy Podcast, for everyone who completes the survey. Go to krystalproffitt.com/survey2025 to fill out the two-minute survey.
Click the "Send Krystal a Text Message" link above to send us your questions, comments, and feedback on the show! (Pssst...we'll do giveaways in upcoming episodes so make sure you leave your name & podcast title.)
What still inspires me and shocks me so much about being a content creator is the development of the relationships that I have that are just so special, inspiring, motivating I mean I could keep going on and on with synonyms about today's guest, but I am so dang grateful to have Justin back on the show for his third interview, which was so fun. We actually talked about this. So Justin Moore I've talked about him, I mentioned him multiple times. He is my sponsorship coach and he's helped me make tens of thousands of dollars in my business through sponsorships in different ways here at Profit Media, and I'm so grateful for the things that he has to share. But we are here today to help you make more money for your content in 2025 and beyond. So I hope your ears just perked up If you've been thinking about monetizing your content and you're still like, oh, I'm just not there yet, or maybe one day, one day, one day like that's been kind of the narrative you've had in your head. I hope today's conversation really changes that for you and you can step into a much bigger perspective of where you could be with your content in this whole year and beyond, like this year, next year, the next five to 10 years, because I just finished my year in review for 2024 and I made more in sponsorships and I don't think I told Justin this Maybe we mentioned this whenever we were chatting but I made more in sponsorships in 2024 than I did in selling my own products and services. So I hope that that got your attention.
Speaker 1:Okay, I hope that you are listening, because this is a big deal. This is a really, really big deal. So listen to today's episode, re-listen to it, and we're gonna be talking about Justin's book, sponsor Magnet. So I'm like throwing that out there right now because I want you to grab this book. This is your call to action Go grab his book. It is officially out whenever this episode airs and I'm so dang excited about it. So enjoy my conversation with Justin Moore.
Speaker 1:Welcome to the Profit Podcast, where we teach you how to start, launch and market your content with confidence. I'm your host, crystal Profit, and I'm so excited that you're here. Thanks for hanging out with me today, because if you've been trying to figure out the world of content creation, this is the show that will help be your time-saving shortcut. So let's get right to it, shall we? So let's get right to it, shall we All right Profit Podcast listeners, we are coming back to you, not with the first time, not with the second time, but with the third time. I'm excited to invite Justin Moore on the show today, so welcome back, justin.
Speaker 2:Crystal, I'm so thrilled and honored to be a third time guest. Who would have thought that me doing the caterpillar, doing the worm one time at an event, would lead to this illustrious relationship we built? Third time guest, excited to be back.
Speaker 1:Oh my gosh, you just like you can't just drop that little gem in and be like like I'm going to have to go, like ask my video editor, Like we're going to find that instant Cause.
Speaker 2:I know it lives on Instagram somewhere.
Speaker 1:Like you have it. Yeah, yeah, we're going to go grab that and put that in, because, oh my gosh, I think back to and now I'm trying to remember, if it was, it was crafting commerce, not last year, but the year before that.
Speaker 1:I was first exposed to you and all the things that you were teaching and working on, and I mean now we're recording this at the beginning of 2025. And I have to say, for a year and a half of learning about sponsorships, like my whole worldview has changed. Not just my world, but my entire worldview as a creator has completely changed, and I just want to say thank you so much because I feel like the things that I've learned from you, I've been able to bring that value back to my audience and share with them, like this is possible, and I just it was such a gift that you gave to me not just the actual tangible do this, do that, here's this, but it was. It's just a worldview about being a creator. So, thank you so much, I really appreciate it.
Speaker 2:That means a lot to me, so I really appreciate you saying that, and I could tell that was from the heart, so thank you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, a hundred percent. I mean you've made me lots of money, justin. Let's just throw that in there, like how fun is that? Like let's go. I was waiting. I should have put like bets on, like how long is it going to be before Justin shows in his cool?
Speaker 2:sound effects.
Speaker 1:It makes me jealous because I need something like that for the show. But okay, we are here, okay, we have had you on the show and I actually wanted to pull up some of these titles so everyone can go back and listen. We've talked about unleashing your creator potential through sponsorships before and what creating genuine sponsorships looks like. These are previous conversations we've had with Justin, but we are here to celebrate something really special today, because all the stars are aligning and when this episode drops, what happens? Justin? Tell everybody what's happening today. What is the big thing happening for you today?
Speaker 2:Holy cow Crystal. Today is the official launch date of my brand new book Sponsor Magnet Holy cow. I can't believe it. We're finally here. I feel like I've been writing this book forever. I feel like I've been planning the release of this book forever. I've been pre-marketing the book forever and we're finally here.
Speaker 2:It's kind of surreal. I mean the um, the process to well. First of all, why don't? Maybe it'd be interesting to talk about, like why, why did I even write a book? Um, because I think that a lot of maybe maybe you're listening or watching to this and you're thinking, man, I've always wanted to write a book, or maybe maybe that's in my future one day.
Speaker 2:Like I have a book inside me and I always very much felt that way for a long time, but it always felt like there's a huge opportunity cost to like spend so much time doing that right. There's all these other things. I've built this business, I've got courses, I've got coaching, I've got content that I could be putting out newsletter, youtube, social media. There's all these things vying for my attention which I think a lot of us can relate to, and so I'm like. I'm like sitting here thinking is this really, am I really going to spend carve out time out of like this, this schedule, that I don't even feel like I have time to do this, and basically it was a decision that I had to stop doing things. I was like, okay, well, like I can't do all these other things that I want to do If I really want to write the book and do it justice and write, you know, kind of the definitive uh text on sponsorship strategy, um, there's a lot of things I can't do and that. And that was hard because I'm I've always been the person where I just want to do everything. I want to like juggle everything and I pride myself on, like you know, working to the bone and all that. And it's not I'm not super proud of it, but like it just I love what I do, I love helping people in in this, in this topic, and so that was really hard.
Speaker 2:But it was like I had this thesis crystal where I was like, okay, right now, I built this business over the last three or four years and everything's been going pretty well, right, lots of you know customers and lots of success stories, and you know it's been a financial success because I've been serving people and it's been awesome. But at the same time, the people who I've been serving are all people who are actively having issues with sponsorships. They're like I'm in this negotiation with the brand, I need help, or I've got this opportunity in my inbox and I need like I don't know how much charge. I don't know how do I put a proposal together, all this. And so we serve those people really well because they know what they need.
Speaker 2:It's like an active pain, pain point, right, but that's like the point zero, zero, one percent of creators out there that are actively having issues. And I would have this experience when I would go speak at these conferences where I would start to kind of mix and mingle with people who weren't influencers, who weren't really call themselves creators. They were like authors or course creators or newsletter operators or event organizers and all these people who were like, yeah, I don't know sponsorships, I don't know, like that, I don't know if that's really for me. And then I would have this like three minute conversation with them and they would be like it would be like actually maybe sponsorships are for me.
Speaker 2:This is this is cool, maybe I should, maybe I should think about that, and so that I just I couldn't stop thinking about that and I was like, like I thought for a long time that, like my free YouTube videos or my free newsletter, like that's, I'm going to be able to help those people Like maybe they're interested. But the more I thought about it, like I'm never going to be able to reach or impact those people the, the, the, the creators who don't really think that sponsorships are for them or don't really know how much of an impact it could have on their business. And I thought, you know, probably the best way to serve them or or reach them would be basically to distill everything that I know about brand partnerships into a book. And so that that was really, um, that was like reason number one was impact. But then, candidly and we're going to get a little cheesy here, I think maybe a little, a little sentimental Um, I'm going to be 40 in not that long and I'm kind of feeling like I'm on the.
Speaker 2:You know, my wife and I have had so much been blessed with so much success over the last 10 or 15 years. I kind of feel like it's my duty to educate the next generation of creators, and I'm like, what is my legacy going to be when I'm, when I've left this earth? And somehow a book felt like the right way to do that. It's not. It's not the thousands of YouTube videos I've made over the, you know, 15 years, it's not all the blog posts or newsletter articles or social media posts that I've made. Somehow, a book feels more permanent, and so those were, I think, kind of the two main reasons I wrote the book.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I think about. I mean, when you look at people's dedications on their book, like half the time they're dedicating it to their spouse, their best friend, their mom, their dad, their kids, and like it is, it's a very different piece of content than like cause I don't start every YouTube video I create and thank my husband and my kids, Like I just don't, like that would be weird, off to a point where it's like you don't have to, like Crystal, we get it Like. You don't have to do that every single time. But a book is different because you are sacrificing your time, your energy. Maybe you had to, and actually I want you to talk about this, so I'm not going to spoil this. I want you to tell this story.
Speaker 1:But what did you do? Tell the audience what you did to complete your book? Because you were talking about, I was reading it, I think it was in your newsletter, which everybody's going to go. We're going to link to Justin's newsletter because it's incredible. But you were talking about how you had to do something drastic in order to get the book over the finish line. So can you share what that was about? Getting over your writer's block?
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know, I think that there was this point where I OK, so I had the structure, I had the bones of what I wanted to talk about. Like almost almost from the beginning I knew roughly I have this like eight step sponsorship wheel framework that I teach and I knew that that was going to be kind of the bones of the book. And so I was really excited to put pen to paper for the first kind of the sexiest chapters, which is usually pitching and negotiating. That's that's what a lot of people come to me for is like I need help getting on the radar of brands or I need help understanding how to negotiate better, charge my worth, et cetera. And so I wrote those chapters really quickly because I had so much to say about that.
Speaker 2:And it was the less sexy chapters, you know, which is like the contract, the concept, the production phase, the feedback round, the publication round, a lot of those aspects that are not as exciting for a lot of people. But honestly, those are the phases that tend to be when the brand decides whether they want to actually hire you again or not. Because if it's a nightmare to work with you during the actual execution phase of the book, that's when they're like we're never working with this person again, right, and so I found it a bit harder because I it was this, it was this like prescription medication that I had to give people. I'd be like, look, I know this is not fun, I know that this is not like super exciting and like thinking about all the money you're going to make, but you got to do this stuff, you got to do it right and it's just kind of like you got to sit down and take your medicine. It just it felt a harder, it was a heavier lift for me to actually write that in a way that was engaging and to the point where I was just banging my head against the wall for weeks and I was finally.
Speaker 2:I was like you know what? I got to do something. I got to change up scenery something, and so I I literally I was like I told my wife I was like, okay, we got to get out of out of Dodge here, we got to get out of town. Let's just like rent an Airbnb, let's just go there for a long weekend. We'll bring the kids.
Speaker 2:A lot of people responded to that email and they're like you brought your kids to a writing retreat. I was like I was like, okay, well, if officially it wasn't a writing retreat per se, but I have time, I could wake up early, the kids would still be sleeping. I'd go on the balcony. I had this beautiful views like the ocean or the lake and the mountains, and I just like sat on the balcony and I got more done. I got past that block and I got more done in like four days than I had gotten done in weeks and I think something about just like changing up the scenery allowed me to kind of see it from a different angle and, oh my God, it was so, it was, it was so worth it.
Speaker 1:Oh, it was so worth it. I think it's such a great lesson too, because I think that there's probably people listening right now that you're stuck on a project or you're trying to. You're like in this place, you're like gosh, I just keep creating the same content over and over and over again and it's just like it's not working or something. And just telling that little piece of your story, I think, is going to make people more interested in what you do. We talk about storytelling so much around here and I think that just having that extra piece like I wanted everybody first of all, we're going to tell you to go buy the book. You're going to have to go buy Justin's book, but I want you to think about that when you get to those chapters, it's just like oh, like he was writing this with you, know his wife and his kids in the other room, and like they were encouraged. But I think that that's the beautiful thing about you know you and April, your wife, and how y'all have been strategic partners in your entire creator journey. And it shows and I'm sure there's plenty of stories within your book I know there is within your content about how that's worked.
Speaker 1:But I wanted to ask you a question about um cause you, like you said, like you knew that a book was in you, you knew that you wanted to write it. But I want to ask how do you think your book would have been in year one of your content, which you're like maybe you wouldn't have had anything helpful to share, and what it is today? Because people come to me and they say, crystal, I think I want to write a book one day. I want to write a book one day, and it's really hard, like as someone who likes to be a coach, to say you're not ready, like you don't have the stories or you don't have, like it would just be surface level, maybe if you would have done it on year one. But now you have this rich, rich backlog of examples, stories, interactions, speaking on stage. So I don't know what does that make you think of if someone had asked you on year one versus today, to write a book, what does that make you think?
Speaker 2:of if someone had asked you on year one versus today, to write a book. The best analogy that I can draw about this is that, you know, I taught this course called Brandeal Wizard Live for several years. I ran it for 11 cohorts and the material, the collateral that I taught in cohort one, compared to cohort 11, it's like completely indistinguishable. It's. It's a completely different course, based on all of the feedback that I got from my students over those those years that I taught the program Cause I was constantly trying to improve it and get better and add better examples, and I would learn stuff. I would read books, I would go to conferences, I would learn different things from other people, because I'm always a student to the process as well and I absolutely, you know, would have had that same experience had I tried to sit down and write a book on year one when I hadn't codified a lot of my frameworks real people on real people's businesses and and seeing the real results that they've experienced.
Speaker 2:Um, I think I would just have less, much less confidence or certainty behind the advice that I was giving. I would, I would waffle, I would be like is this the right thing to say? Like I don't know it seems like it would work, but is it really going to work, right? And so there wasn't a single moment when I wrote the book, honestly, where I was questioning whether the advice was good or whether it was the wrong thing to say was more about like, how do I tell this story in a way that I'm holding someone's hand through the process, in a way that I'm keeping them engaged. So it was never like I was doubting, like if this was the right advice to give or not. It was more about, like, what's the right way to say it? And so I think that's a really important obstacle or hurdle that you need to overcome before you write a book is you really do need to like test out and prove it, especially if you're writing a prescriptive, nonfiction book, which is what I wrote, which is like how to do something right, like I really think it's important to have those concrete examples.
Speaker 2:Not only did I have concrete examples from, this is actually another really important thing, which is like there's a difference between you doing something successfully and you teaching someone to other people to do something successfully, because it's possible that, like, based on your circumstances or your story or your capabilities, that you just have some sort of special superpower to like get good results yourself, but the moment you try to teach someone else to do that, they're like I don't get it, like I'm not seeing the same results that you're getting, and so there is another chasm I think you need to cross when you can actually. Okay, how do I apply this to other people? How do I, how do I help other people who are in different situations get the same transformation or outcomes that I'm getting? And I think that's another important part of like writing a book is like, especially if you're trying to teach people to do something is like you. You do have to have those concrete examples where other people have seen results as well.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I think that I think that you just gave a big gift to someone, because there's a lot of people in our audience that they are brand new, like they are baby content creators. They're little infants that are just like oh, I just came here to learn how to get started and y'all are talking about things that you're doing years into your journey. But I wanted to again, I think it's just a gift that you give them by saying guys, we need wisdom to do some things too.
Speaker 1:Like you can't just even if you've done something for years and years in a previous life, but now you're doing it in an online forum, or you're doing it in a different industry, or you're doing it in a different way. Like, give yourself some grace and compassion to stumble along. And, like Justin said, like the first iteration of the course is totally different than the iteration that lives there today, and there's a reason for that. Like you needed to go through some of that heartache, some of those stumbles and challenges and everything in order to get to the other side and be a much better teacher and a leader for your communities as well. So I think it's just awesome, but were you going to say something else to that?
Speaker 2:No, I was just. I mean maybe kind of as a bookend to this. I think, you know, if you look at a lot of people who have written books, a lot of the people that you know everyone listening or watching might look up to. You know, even let's look at someone like Amy Porterfield, who I really admire, you know even let's look at someone like Amy Porterfield, who I really admire, you know she wrote her book Two Weeks Notice how many years into her journey, many years into her journey, right.
Speaker 2:And so a lot of really successful authors that you look at, it wasn't their book that put them on the map. Often it was like the thing that they did, the business that they had built, especially in the business space, right. And so I think that I'm not sure that a book is the right format for everyone to try to like put yourself on the map. I think that there's like that that could be looked at as a capstone oftentimes of all the success that you've had and and kind of codifying all that into um, into a tidy content format.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I think it's one of those things I mean I've I've watched Gabby Bernstein. She's actually someone I so we're going to get into the, the meta, like behind the scenes of all this stuff. Now it's like I bought one of her courses. It's all about, you know, writing and selling bestselling books. I mean, the woman has produced, I think, like 13 books and I don't even know how many of those are like immediate bestsellers. But at the same time, this is what she does, like she is. She has cracked the formula for herself and she's like I do this and I do this and I just market the crap out of the thing and I just like she has so much fun doing it and all those things. But what I love about what you did, I want to talk about the challenge that you put out to yourself about getting on so many podcasts before the book was out. So tell us the behind the scenes of what that was like.
Speaker 2:Okay. So again, I have no idea what I'm doing. I've never launched a book before, and so in my tiny little brain I was like, okay, well, honestly, like the only way, there's no way that I'm going to be able to reach the amount of creators that have the impact that I want to have if I only rely on my audience. And and so I I was working with a, a book launch strategist. His name is Casey he's amazing, casey Proctor and you know he basically told me he's like all right, justin sat me down and he was like look, you have built up a tremendous amount of goodwill over the last three or four years, just like helping people. Like you know, honestly, like I I this is not, was not like an intentional strategy. It wasn't like I was like this sneaky quid pro quo, like I'm going to like come back and ask for a favor in four years, you know, after helping you with a negotiation one time. It was never about that. It was always like I just wanted to be helpful to people and word kind of spread and, candidly, that's how a lot of my core students came like, you know, referrals are 20, 25% of my business. So, um, it was just like this, this um, you know, you, you open a thread on if someone on Twitter is like I'm having issues with brand deals, like you open it and like eight people are like, hey, talk to Justin, talk to Justin, right. And so it's like I definitely have built up this, this, this body of people who are happy to kind of recommend me.
Speaker 2:And so Casey basically told me he's like okay, dude, you wrote the book. Now is the time to go back and basically ask people like hey, would you be willing to like give a shout out for the book when it, when it comes out? And the really surprising a couple of surprising things about this is like number one, I was terrified. I was so scared because I've never asked for anything, I've never come. I'm just uncomfortable. Fundamentally, it's like way more comfortable for me to just like give, and so that prospect was like really scary.
Speaker 2:Number one and number two I went out and I asked about 100 people, including you, you're one of those people. I said, hey, you know like, would you be willing to like, you know, shout out the book, have me on your podcast, shout out in the newsletter, whatever? Um, and of the hundred, basically about a hundred people that I asked uh, all but three said yes, and the three people who said no, it was like they're not talking to creators anymore, that's not their audience. Or there was one person it was very weird who said no, and so that was. That's another story for another day. But the vast vast majority of people were like are you kidding me? Of course, and it was almost like. One thing that Casey said was like it's actually a blessing that you're giving them that, you're, they're finally able to like repay you somehow for like that help that you gave them that one time. And somehow that was a mindset shift. Man, I was like wow, that's actually cool, like allowing people a way to like thank me for help that I gave them once upon a time, like so that was what I did.
Speaker 2:I set a goal to like get on 100 podcasts and like basically a two or three month time span, and I didn't hit it quite yet.
Speaker 2:I'm like, maybe I'm 50, 60, something like that right now time of recording, uh, which is still awesome, but I've, I've definitely, holy cow, that's been, I've been doing two to three podcasts a day for like months and that's been, uh, that's been, you know, uh, over the you know, took a break for the holidays, obviously, but, um, there's been a lot, but it's, you know, honestly, it's uh, there's going to be this like tidal wave of content coming out around the book launch, which is uh exciting but also terrifying.
Speaker 2:I have no idea what's going to happen. So, um, I had someone DM me on LinkedIn the other day and they're, like, I saw that you're doing this Like aren't you a little concerned that, like you know, people are going to see all these pieces, like the content podcast, coming out in the same week and just like get tired of you. And I'm like I'm counting on it. They're going to be, they're going to be so overwhelmed. They're like going to be fine, justin, fine, I'll buy your book. Like you know, that's what I'm counting on. So I don't know it's going to be, we'll see.
Speaker 1:I guess. Well, but what I love about it is it's so right and you and I are cut from the same cloth. Like I am terrified to ask people for favors. I don't know what it is. I don't know if that's like deeply entwined into my ego, I don't know. Maybe we need to go to therapy about that, but it's, it's just like it's so hard. But then when I do, I don't know why, I'm shocked because I'm immediately like oh yeah, because this is the community that we've built.
Speaker 1:We've built this community of compassionate like amazing people, and then it's just another reminder of this is why I'm doing this.
Speaker 1:I'm doing this, not for me not to be a New York Times bestseller and sell billions of books, like I am here for these people. And then when I asked them to show up, even like with that, oh, I really don't want to do it. It's making me super uncomfortable, like it's just, it's so incredible. So I mean, as someone again in your audience and learn from you, like I, I do feel so grateful that I'm able to shout this out from the rooftops because I think it's going to help so many creators and I do.
Speaker 1:Actually, I want to switch to kind of the meat and potatoes of the book. Like you've kind of teased out a little bit. I got my pre-order bonuses and I got the first chapter and I'm like okay, like this is going to be so fun. But I want to talk about some of the things that my audience really struggles with and we've kind of touched on these a little bit in previous interviews. So we're not going to go super deep on like well, we have all these mindset shifts, like I'm not good enough or I don't have a big enough audience, but I want to think about the evergreen topics that you cover in this book. That won't matter if someone's listening to this in 2025, or 2035. Like some of the deep misconceptions that people have about monetizing content, is there something that immediately pops into your head that my audience is likely struggling with today that can help them?
Speaker 2:I think that one of the fundamental struggles for a lot of people is that they don't consider themselves influencers or creators. Maybe they have a business that they don't have a large following on the internet, right. Maybe they have an in-person event. Maybe they have a course or a community or a membership. Maybe they have some sort of a newsletter or something like that. That's like a kind of a non-traditional, I guess, format where they built their influence.
Speaker 2:And I think that there's this myth that if I'm not dancing on you know a short form platform, uh, that I can't get sponsorships. Um, and just a quick anecdote, I did a session for a community of coaches yesterday and every single person in this audience before I started talking we're like skeptical, like sponsorships. I'm a coach, I work with people one-on-one or like I have this like membership, community or group coaching program or something, and by the end of it, every single person was just like I can't thank you. And this was a huge mindset shift for me, because a lot of what I talk about in the book as well is that, regardless of where you've built your influence, there are brands and companies out there who would be so excited about getting in front of your clients, of your customers, because, for example, like when I actually have gotten my course sponsored because think about who that customer represents to a brand that is someone who has spent, who is spending money, proven.
Speaker 2:This is someone who has, like, taken out their wallet and they've spending money on this multi-thousand dollar course. That is a person that I want to get in front of. If I'm a brand, if I'm a company and I have a software tool or something, that is a very different. And so this I'm not talking about just like having a bunch of followers on social media. I'm talking about if I can get in front of 10 or 15 or 20 or five really hyper specific, engaged customers that might be interested in purchasing my software or joining my coaching program or joining our coming to our conference or something joining our, you know, coming to our conference, or something. That is five or 10 people that I would really get excited about, about getting in front of. And so I think that it's this mindset shift of like, regardless of where you've built your influence, whether it's online or offline you absolutely there are absolutely brands and companies out there who who may be interested in partnering with you.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I think it's one of those things that and again, we've had Justin on the show. He has so much helpful content on YouTube and other platforms. Again, plug for the newsletter. I think it's awesome. I think a customer, I am someone in Justin's world and the way that you continue to open my eyes is part of your newsletter.
Speaker 1:Content is and I can't remember what the cadence is, how often you send them out, but you will say, hey, don't sleep on these brands this month, like go pitch these people. And then I get this list and it's all of these brands that are in my inbox that we can go look at what the deal is. Or like go see what the specifications are, what they're looking for, and I'm like they're sponsoring stuff like I would have never in my life, because these are household products, these are things I use every day, these are stuff that my kids use, these are, and I'm just like looking around my house and I'm like, oh, these. So it's like again. It's like it continues to blow my mind because now I understand the process and I've done this myself. I've used your framework, I've successfully made tens of thousands of dollars with all the things that you've taught me. But then I look at oh yeah, exactly Anytime we start around money.
Speaker 2:I had to do it.
Speaker 1:Sorry, hang on, I got to do it again money, but it's just. It continues to blow my mind because I think I still have mindset blocks on. Well, I can only work with these, like boxed in companies within the podcasting industry, like I need to go after you know a Riverside, a Descript, a Buzzsprout, like these are the only ones that I need to go to. But then something comes across my desk through you know your content, and then I'm just like I'm shook because all of a sudden I'm like duh, this is so obvious. But it's uncovering those pieces of it that I think you continue to do just by sharing. Like hey, you could try this. Like I feel like you're just like giving all the things, like you're getting. You're seeing these ideas online and you're just throwing them back over the fence. You're like guys, here's more. Like it, just it keeps coming and it's blowing those scarcity mindsets just out of the water.
Speaker 2:You know one thing oh no, my book fell. Oh, I got to pick it up. I hit it. I got this beautiful book display behind me. I need to like tape it down or something.
Speaker 2:You know, one of the other obstacles, I think, for a lot of people is they just don't know what types of brands and companies they could partner with. Like you said, they just like think about the obvious ones, like, oh, the podcasting equipment and tools and gear and whatever whatever's in like my whatever exactly content niche I talk about. You know, I brainstorm five to 10 brands, but then who else? Right? Um, and I think another really helpful exercise that is timeless is just realizing that it's. It's just not about you, it's not about the tools you use, it's not about the products that you use, because if you were to reach out and pitch that brand and say that basically, I love your brand or tool, I've been using it for three years, that's just like kind of an instant delete. Or they ghost you because it's like that's what number one, that's what everyone says. It's not interesting in any way. They don't know who you are, they're busy, they don't know how they could collaborate with you. It's, it's kind of a a dead end, right, and so a much better approach would be hey, you know what you need to actually learn more about your audience and what's going on in their lives and what problems that they're having.
Speaker 2:I say there's this advice that I give around doing what's called a psychographic survey, where you actually send them a Google form or a type form, or maybe you are on social media, a YouTube community tab or Instagram stories or something like that. You basically just say, hey, I want to learn more about you. I can see the demographics, I can see the analytics on my back. I see that I know the ages, I know the geographies where you're based, I know your, you know your gender, et cetera. But, um, I want, are you married? Do you have kids? Like, what type of jobs do you have? Um, what, what's keeping you up at night? You know what problems you have. What brands and products and services are you using and loving right now? And so this is a game changer when you can, when you realize, wow, I could actually I have permission to just like ask questions like that to my audience. A hundred percent, you do, and you know what's going to be so awesome about that is that you're going to get results back from that survey that are probably pretty surprising.
Speaker 2:So maybe, maybe, crystal, you send out this survey to your audience, your newsletter next week, and you had an idea of what you thought the composition of your audience was Aspiring creators, smbs, small and medium businesses, whatever you had this impression of. You know store, I actually didn't realize I had that many people in my audience. Maybe I should go out there and pitch a point of sale. Like you know, square or Shopify, they have those point of sale things where you're swiping credit cards. I've never really covered stuff like that before, but again, it's not about me, it's about serving my audience and especially if you're able to segment those people on your newsletter, maybe you're able to do a sponsorship just to those 35% of people on your newsletter. So you're not exposing everyone to the sponsorship, but you've got, you know, 3,500 small business owners in your audience. The really exciting thing about that pitch is that it's that's a much more compelling pitch.
Speaker 2:Now, right, you reach out to Shopify and say, hey, I actually just did a survey. I've got all these like SMBs in my audience who are having this issue with inventory management or, you know, getting more foot traffic or whatever it is, whatever the issue is, um, I would love to expose them to your solution. So now you don't wonder like, oh, I hope people are into this. Like, no, you, you know they're into it. You surveyed them, right. And so I think that this, this is just a big unlock. Also, the big unlock here is like wow, maybe I should create some content to serve these people. I didn't, I didn't know that I had these SMEs. Maybe I should, you know, start creating some content around how to get more foot traffic into your brick and mortar shop, or how do you do whatever Right? And so I don't know. I just I think that this exercise is hugely, hugely valuable as a, as a creator, as an influencer, as a business owner, and can unlock a lot.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I think it's the underrated tool, right? It's like cause people talk about, like, oh, you know, I'll survey my audience one day or like I think there's a lot of people, especially my audience, they're waiting until they have. Well, let me get like 10,000 people and then also, then I'll have a bigger sample size and get these results. And I'm like y'all, I have done surveys to like 10 people and begged everyone to fill it out until I had three people fill it out and I'm like hey, this is more information than I had before and this is super helpful. So don't wait until you have thousands of people on your list or an Instagram that has enough people that you feel like you can finally pull them. This is so dang important. But I want to talk about your brain for a second. Justin, like this is what I love about your content is like it's never the dull. Like same thing, like same thing, like even just now. I'm like, oh my God, that's a really good idea Like.
Speaker 1:I'm totally. We're doing that Q2, like surveys coming, people just get prepared, because I haven't done one in a while. I'm like, oh yeah, we need to do that. So you're holding me accountable one. But just the amount of ideas that you're able to come up with, it's hard to say, but you do this all the time on your YouTube channel. You are doing coaching sessions with people. You are just like, hey, tell me about your business, Tell me about your content, and I will do this. So if anybody's listening right now and you're looking for more inspiration on, just go go check out Justin's newsletter, get his book. First and foremost. Go buy his book. It's on, it's everywhere you can get it today. Where is it's going to be? On Amazon? Where are the other places where?
Speaker 2:it's going to be everywhere. Sponsormagnetcom is probably the best place to get it, um, uh, directly. And um, uh, you know, because, uh, we'll actually let. Can we go here for a second? About, about, about, okay, so, um, sponsor magnetcom is the place that you can get it. That's direct with me.
Speaker 2:And, um, I did this intentionally, I decided to. You know, basically, like, my main call to action whenever I'm on a podcast or whenever I'm anywhere else is like hey, buy this directly for me, mainly so that I can establish that direct connection with my readers, with my audience, with the people who want to hear from me the most, because we're all business owners. And, let's be fair, like, of course, the number one goal that I have with the book is impact, but a secondary goal is I want to be able to establish a longer relationship with my readers, who may need my support down the line for other things, whether it's the course, whether it's for coaching or whatever. And if I'm driving you to other platforms like Amazon, I don't have that connection with you, right, and so I do think it's like an important thing to understand if you are planning on writing a book or leveraging. You know it's the same advice of like you're building a social following, right? You don't have that direct connection with those people.
Speaker 2:If, let's say, tiktok were to go away, I don't know, maybe the time, by the time that this is released, maybe it'll be banned in the U? S. I don't know.
Speaker 1:We'll see.
Speaker 2:Right, but but no, this is a real thing, though, right? I mean, if you've built up an audience on some of these platforms and then, poof, overnight you're suspended, you're demonetized. You don't have it Right, and so I very intentionally uh, from the beginning, decided like I'm going to, I'm going to do this. I do so to clarify I do have a publisher, which is tilt publishing, and they're great, but the awesome part about working with them is that I still maintain all that, all the control, and I'm able to do it directly on my website, and all that so, um, so yeah, so yeah long-winded way of saying, like I do think it's really important to like control this aspect of it if you also have other ways that you're hoping to monetize your business.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think it's so smart and I've self-published books on Amazon and I'm looking back and I'm like gosh, I wish I would have had someone tell me, like trying to have more, like, say, in the process, or having more of the distribution, just like the customer journey, is really what it's about, like this is what's so important to us too.
Speaker 1:It's like well, we can send those follow. I can't send follow-up emails to someone that orders something on Amazon. I have to do the whole like, well, come in and put your order number in here, and then you can get your bonuses. And then it's like this whole hoopla of stuff which still works.
Speaker 2:I'm doing that too, Like I'm definitely doing it too, you know.
Speaker 1:but it's not that high touch of like yeah. Crystal, I saw that you just ordered this Like. Thank you so much.
Speaker 1:And also here's your bonuses. Or here's the next step that you should take, or make sure you share this on social Cause. We're going to call that out, too, if you're in this audience, and because I've shared about your book before, and if you have ordered Justin's book, we want to see it on Instagram this week, like we want to see you tagging Creator Wizard on Instagram and put it out there, because, justin, like I said before, like this is something that I love, supporting other creators, but I also love supporting coaches and mentors that have really helped me, because, in essence, you've also helped this community in a way that I will never be able to even fully account for, because they are in also. They're going and helping their communities too. So it's this ripple effect. I think it's the beautiful thing about creating content and I just thank you so much. We're not going to wrap up just yet because you're crazy. I'm just going to call you this right now because you're doing something else really big this year and I'm like Justin.
Speaker 1:Justin, before we started recording, you were just like Crystal. This time on is what did I do to myself? But when you were here on the show, when we recorded in Boise this past summer. You were like I think I'm going to do an event, and I was like, oh, tell me more. You were like I think I'm going to do an event and I was like, oh, tell me more. And you're like, well, I can't, I can't share too much. It's still in the works, it's my, but it's happening. It's happening now at the same time releasing a book, so, um, yeah, tell us, this is a therapy set.
Speaker 2:This is a safe space. This is going to be a therapy session. Okay, yeah, so, um, so it's happening. It's called Sponsor Games and it's a very different type of event.
Speaker 2:You know, I for a long time I've been going to creator focused events like VidCon and VidSummit and Playlist Live and, like all you know, podfest and all these events that I've gone to over the years, just just learn and try to improve as a creator and all that, right, and every time I go to these events, like there would be maybe like one or two, maybe three talks about sponsorships out of like 300, you know, or whatever, like especially the big conferences, and that always, and I would always go to all of them because, like that was like the number one way that my wife and I were making income as creators, and so I was like I want to like learn more about how do I make more money with sponsorships, right, clearly, and so it never made sense to me. I was like, how is this like the number? You do look at any survey, even today, of like the you know, the income sources for most creators and influencers. Like, very far and away, it's like brand deals, spons, sponsorships is like a big chunk you know 60, 70% for for their revenue streams, and it never made sense to me. I was like, why is there no event focused on this? That makes no sense to me, and for years 10 years I've been thinking this, and so when I started building this business, um, it was always in the back of my mind. I was like one day it would be super cool to like have an event focused on this topic. And so I finally just decided. I was like I've got, I'm going to be the one to do it because, like I am, I have I'm kind of an unbiased advocate here for creators. I have, you know, like there are some events that are like put on by the industry or like the brands, and some that are like, uh, you know, uh, kind of tangentially about this, but there's no event where it's like this is for creators, this is not for brands, there's not going to be brands here. Um, well, we'll get into there is going to be a slight curve ball of brands there.
Speaker 2:But I was like I want to design an event for creators. And you know what, I took a uh mindset to the event actually, because I was like you know what I don't want this to be. You know a bunch of keynotes and panels and workshops where you fall asleep. I want you to have a transformation and outcome when you attend this. When you leave this event, you're going to be like, wow, I just learned so much. And that was like the best dang event I ever went to dang event I ever I ever went to and so I came at it from that perspective.
Speaker 2:When we started planning this event, I was like, all right, let's list out everything that we hate around about conferences. You know falling asleep at panels. You know wasting time on our phone playing Candy Crush. You know terrible food. You know just all these like things that we listed out. We're like we're going to do the opposite of all those things and so basically we're designing a intimate event.
Speaker 2:It's going to be in San Antonio, texas, march 16th to the 19th and basically I've turned my eight-step sponsorship wheel methodology into eight games that you're going to play to master these concepts. So the pitch game and the negotiate game, and you're actually going to be getting your hands dirty. You're going to be practicing these things. There's going to be real-time coaching to. You're going to be practicing these things. There's going to be real time coaching to you know, basically, improve, improve your pitch and all this stuff, um, and then there's going to be eight finalists. So eight finalists from the game are going to advance to something called the sponsor tank, where you're going to be pitching real brand marketing managers on a panel of judges, basically, uh, and there's going to be a grand prize winner. Who's going to walk away with? Uh, with five, five grand in cash? So, um, it's going to be so much fun and I just I cannot wait. Uh, it's going to be unlike any event I think I've ever heard of, um, and it's just going to be so much fun. It's right on the river walk.
Speaker 2:We rented out this baller uh venue, um, which we could talk about actually. So this is the, this is the stressful part is like, uh, I'm like putting a lot of money on the line personally to make this event happen. Um, and it's super scary. You know, I put, like you know, tens of thousands of dollars down for the venue, tens of thousands for catering, cause I want really good catering. Um, you know videographer and and flying my whole team out there and, uh, you know, just the an event planner, like there's just a lot of money, right, and and yet, um, I want this to exist. I want this event to exist and I want it to continue to exist year after year. And so, uh, I'm looking at it as much of like a, a brand building exercise, as much as like, uh, I'm not looking to like thinking I'm going to make make a bunch of money on this. It's like more, like this needs to exist.
Speaker 2:I think that also, I've I've I've talked to a lot of people who have had events, and they were always like the first year is the hardest. It's like you don't, no one knows really what to expect. You don't have a hype video. Year two, you have a hype video Cause it's like, oh, like, people are there and you see people, oh, this is cool, this is what we did. And then you know there's people at a place and you know, and so, uh, you don't have that until year two.
Speaker 2:And so I'm just banking on, like let's just like not lose a bunch of money on here year one, um, and uh, yeah, so I I think it's going to be a huge, huge. I think it's going to be institution, a staple. I think it's going to become a Mecca for creators who are making money on sponsorships or want to make money on sponsorships. I could see this becoming something that we do regionally, different parts of the world. Like I have a pretty ambitious vision for what this event ultimately becomes, but I decided, like, let's host this event less than two months after the book launches, and so there's just like so many logistics to do at the same time as launching a book, and so that's the stressful part is just like doing everything at the same time.
Speaker 1:But also I'm sitting here thinking I'm like it's kind of great too, because now you have this, like you can have a table of books for sale, justin. Like how fun is that, Like you've never been able to say that before at a conference I haven't that is totally true. How fun is that.
Speaker 1:You could be like oh, and we have a section where if you bought one of Justin's book, you can go get it signed, take a selfie with Justin. Now I'm throwing things at you. You're like oh my God, don't tell me that I'm going to go call my event planner, so I won't do that. But I'm just saying it's such a fun time and when this episode comes out, the event won't have happened. So people can still get tickets. They can learn more about it. So where do we go to do that?
Speaker 2:Should we do a special promo code for your audience? I actually wasn't planning on doing this. Okay, so, at the time of recording so, early bird tickets already expired, but I'm going to extend the early bird rate to your audience. How about that? Even though it's expired? But I'm going to. I'm going to. I'm going to extend the early bird rate to your audience. How about that, even though it's expired? Exclusive. This is an exclusive promo code. It's going to be. The promo code is going to be crystal 400.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:Awesome To get to get $400 off your ticket to sponsor games and I'm also inside baseball here. I'm going to set you up as an affiliate for this event too. So if you use Crystal's promo code, she's going to get a 30% commission on your enrollment. So if you want to thank Crystal for all the amazing podcast episodes and newsletters that she's given you over many years, use her promo code. If you're going to call.
Speaker 1:Thank you so much, justin. That's incredible and I know that we actually have cause. I'm based in Texas, I'm in Houston, so I know that we've got some Texas folks. That's going to be like right on our spring break. So that's why I like I can't go, justin, like it's the wrong time that I can't go.
Speaker 1:But I do want to encourage everybody to get there because I think that I thought it was so funny too, because you know it's called Sponsor Games and I have we talked about our kids right before we started recording. I'm like I have a 15 year old, I have a 12 year old, I have a nine year old. Beast games just came out this year too, like in the last six months. I'm like he did this on purpose.
Speaker 1:He did this on purpose. He heard about Justin's event and he was like, wait, I'm just going to have to steal it.
Speaker 2:So a hundred percent. Yeah, jimmy, come on, come on.
Speaker 1:Come on, what are you doing? What are you doing? But, oh my gosh, y'all, you have to go get Justin's book. So, again, that's like, if you're like, well, crystal, what's the call to action for today? Like, go get the book. That's what, the first and foremost, we want you to do, and we want you to take a screenshot and share it on social, because this is the thing that can really make all the difference. That can really make all the difference. You're going to be getting your hands on something that, by the end of 2025, you can say I have made more money with my content this year than I have any other year, because that's what happened to me last year, that's what happened to me last year after I started learning with Justin. So, again, get the money. Yeah, exactly, exactly.
Speaker 2:I had to break out the applies.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes, that's incredible. I've got to get some stuff You're showing up Like you're showing me up here. Stop Like I love it, but stop. But I want to get into. We have our rapid fire questions. Okay, I've asked you these before we're doing them again, because I guarantee you don't remember what you said last time.
Speaker 2:Okay, yeah, I probably don't All right, and these change.
Speaker 1:So okay, the first one what piece of advice would you give to a brand new podcaster or a brand new content creator?
Speaker 2:It doesn't matter how many downloads you're getting on your podcast. You can still work with brands.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's a good one. Oh, that's a really good one. I wanted to have any more of that, but we're doing rapid fire. Okay, dream podcast which one would you love to be on, and who's a dream podcast guest? Who?
Speaker 2:would you love to interview? Wow, I would love to be on Ali Abdaal's podcast at some point. I'm a huge fan. He's also a client, him and his company, but I love his content.
Speaker 1:And I think it would be an awesome conversation, Deep dive and then so you want to be on his podcast and you want to interview him. I would love it.
Speaker 2:So the person, well, I okay, yes, but also another hero of mine who greatly influenced my my journey would be Daniel Priestley. He wrote key person of influence.
Speaker 1:Okay, awesome, awesome, these are great Okay. And influence, okay, awesome, awesome, these are great Okay. And the last one is do you?
Speaker 2:consider yourself a perfectionist? Do I consider myself a perfectionist? Um, now I'm trying to remember what I answered last time. Uh, I think that I would say that, yes, but I am a recovering perfectionist now, um, because I have uh, uh, made significant efforts over the last like year, I would say to just have a much better work-life balance. Um, and that also helped because I hired another team member who took a lot of stuff off of my plate, um, and that was stressful decision as well. Um, but it was the best thing I ever did because I just I feel I don't stay up as late anymore working. I have more time with my kids, um, and so, uh, letting people flex their own genius and expertise on my team has been really fulfilling.
Speaker 1:Oh, my gosh, Like I feel like today was just a masterclass. And so many different things, Justin, and even that little gift right there is super special. So again one more time where can we go by Sponsor Magnet today?
Speaker 2:Because it's out, it's out. Sponsormagnetcom.
Speaker 1:Okay, my last question. I wasn't playing that. I'm like I need to ask this one how are you? Going to celebrate. Now it's launch day, right? How are you going to celebrate Just getting this baby out into the world, right, like you have just launched?
Speaker 2:it.
Speaker 1:We're not talking about sales. We're talking about like just it's done, it's out there.
Speaker 2:What are you going to do so. This is maybe totally cheesy, but I bought a really nice bottle of wine recently and I told my wife I was like we are not opening this until January 21st, that's we're cracking this open. And so my favorite winery, caymus, caymus, and I've got a really nice bottle. So I think we'll be cracking that open.
Speaker 1:Oh, that's fantastic. I love it. So celebrate those things today. Y'all go grab Justin's book. And again, thank you so much for coming on the show today and sharing all this, and I'm just so grateful to have you as my coach and mentor and friend and I can't wait to do the worm with you. Actually, watch you do the worm in the future, because I will not be doing that at our next dance party.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much again, Crystal. I truly, truly appreciate it.
Speaker 1:So when I go back and listen to my conversations with Justin, I'm always reminded. I'm like I really do need to get some like cool sound effects to add behind the scenes, because he does it so well and it's always like right on cue, right on time and it's just so much fun. That's that's the thing that I've learned from him is like keep your content light, keep it fun, but also make the biggest freaking impact on your audience that you can, and I feel like that's what his mission is about, and we didn't get too into the weeds about this in today's episode, but in previous episodes and again I talked about this is the third time Justin's been on the show. I'm going to link to our previous interviews on the podcast and on YouTube, so make sure you go check those out. But his mission is to enable creators, big and small, to land 1 million paid brand sponsorships by 2032. He has a goal that he is trying to reach and I hope that by listening to this conversation today, getting Justin's book right. We talked about this in the very beginning, but go get Sponsor Magnet. This is his brand new book. It is out whenever this episode goes out and I want you to grab it. You're going to find a link in the show notes to this, but go check it out because this is the thing that could be the catalyst for you having your biggest year in your business, in your content, in 2025. And I don't want you to sleep on that, like when this episode is going live it's in January 2025. Think about where you could be in January 2026.
Speaker 1:And, like I said in the very beginning, I just did my year in review. I made a ton of money. Okay, I made a lot of money in sponsorships last year that I originally hadn't set out to make. I had it. It was not on my vision board for 2024. It wasn't in my like forecasting revenue to make a bunch of money. It happened a lot of it naturally and organically and it didn't really have to do with me pitching a lot of brands and sponsors. It had me really just taking a step back and asking who do I want to work with in the industry? And I went after the low-hanging fruit. I didn't put as much time and energy and effort, but you can bet your bottom dollar I am this year.
Speaker 1:I already have an Asana project plan scheduled for like okay, who am I going to reach out to, who are the brands that I'm going to pitch, and all of this, this whole framework that I'm working off of, is what I learned from Justin and it's what he lays out in his book. So go grab his book, go check it out, because I want you to have this information at your fingertips and learn from him. Go to his event, if you're able and available to go. It's going to be in San Antonio in March and I want you to go check it out because I think it's going to be so much fun. It's going to be super cool to hang out with other people that are trying to get sponsored and talk to other people that are in this industry, because it's really how you get ahead. Like I don't talk about this enough, maybe I should.
Speaker 1:Networking has been everything for me in this business. It really has Getting connected with Justin, having conversations like this, becoming a student of his and then later becoming a success story, and later, like things have just been dominoing a lot more organically ever since I started being intentional about creating a network of other industry experts that can help not only me but my audience, and I encourage you to do the same. Find those people that can help not only me but my audience, and I encourage you to do the same. Find those people that can help you along your journey and ones that you can give back to whenever they launch books like this, because it's really fun to get back to Justin.
Speaker 1:So, justin, thank you again for coming on the show today for the third time. So awesome, like we need to. We need to do something special for, like, those returning guests that come back because it's it's really fun. It's really fun, but that's all I have for you today. So make sure, if you are listening for the very first time, hello and welcome, make sure you hit that follow and subscribe button wherever you're watching or listening today and, as always, remember, keep it up. We all have to start somewhere.
