In 2023, I decided to accept sponsorships for occasional episodes of CX Passport for the first time. I want to speak openly with you here and tell you a little bit about how I arrived at the decision point, why I accept sponsorships, and what are the rules. Hang with this post all the way to the end. It’s wordier than I normally am because this is a topic riddled with emotion. I think it’s important that you, the viewer/listener, know what this decision is all about.
How I arrived
My initial goal for CX Passport in April 2021 when it started (and still is the #1 goal):
“Interesting Conversations with Interesting People”
End of message. That was the goal.
No business development objective | No download count objective | No monetization objective
Just a chance to have conversations with interesting folks in and around the customer experience world…and then get to share their wisdom with the listening world.
That’s nice and all…but bills gotta be paid. That’s ok because my primary business was and is (as of writing this in March of 2023) my consulting company: EX4CX - Execution for Customer Experience which you probably know since you’re on EX4CX’s website right now. I love helping companies experience business growth and real financial results through improved customer experience…oh and the side benefit (or main benefit?) is that I help customers have better experiences with their brands.
Dabbling at first, then diving in deep, suddenly CX Passport had over 100 episodes and had been going weekly for almost 2 years. I grew CX Passport into video, along with creating my own video content as well.
The global nature of the guests, the wide expanse of their Customer Experience roles and levels, offered me such growth and learning and I hope it offered it to you too…the great listeners.
I’ve had the chance to learn so bloomin’ much through this. I’ve gotten way more adept at Audacity (the audio editing software in the audio-only days of the podcast) and had both the most frustrating and the most fun moments building videos in VSDC.
why I accept sponsorships
Remember that bills gotta be paid component? While EX4CX continues to be a thriving consulting practice, the reality is that creating a podcast takes a LOT of effort and time. I won’t bore you with the details but everything from identifying potential guests, scheduling them, brainstorming show topics, recording the show, editing content and then releasing and promoting a show…well…that’s a lot. I love it otherwise I’d stop…and that love finds me taking time.
There are also the costs associated with hosting, software and equipment. And there’s also opportunity cost. Each moment on the podcast is time not allocated to the other parts of my business.
No woe is me here. This is a labor of love…but it’s labor. Thoughts of “shouldn’t I consider getting paid for this” kept arriving.
Inspired by a blog post I read by Jordan Page on her blog Fun Cheap or Free where she went through a similar journey, I realized that this wasn’t some dirty topic that should be avoided or kept secret. She said…
“If I would blog about it anyway, might as well get paid for it.”
🤯Brilliant! That’s exactly what I was feeling. Taking her phrase to heart, that became my phrase. I will NEVER be a “Pay To Play” podcast. I will, however, eagerly co-collaborate with brands that I would have had on the show, even if they didn’t pay me. By offering them content marketing creation, I offer value to them beyond “access” to an audience.
And you…the listener…you are the priority. I’ll say it again. Nobody gets on CX Passport by paying to be there. Every guest is one that I genuinely am interested in their topic and what they have to say. I may not agree with every part of what they say and my opinions will not be swayed by their checkbook.
If I would have a guest on the show without a sponsorship, why would they sponsor the show? As part of sponsoring, guests and I co-collaborate on content creation which leaves them a suite of content they can then use with their own brand audience going forward. I’m much less interested in “sponsors” as I am in collaborators.
what are the rules
That leads us to my promotion rules:
NOBODY gets on the show by paying to be there. Nobody - I said it earlier and it’s a key part of the rules. The only guests that are on the show will be those that I would have had on there without sponsorship
Transparency - If there is a sponsor, the viewer/listener will know about it. It will be stated on the show, in the notes, in the descriptions
Sponsoring the show is not the same as my endorsement - I don’t agree with everything that every guest has to say on the show and that’s ok. I purposely want other voices and ideas than mine on the show
Not every show will be sponsored - The amount of fascinating potential guests never abates. CX Passport will continue to be show that amplifies guests from around the globe with a wide variety of CX roles. I never want to miss out on their wisdom
So that’s what I’m thinking about sponsorship of CX Passport. No change to the global perspective. No change to interesting conversations with interesting people. Just a little “change” in CX Passport’s pockets to keep this show running for the next 100 episodes…and the next 100…and the next 100 and the…