Topics discussed in this episode with time stamps

00:00 – 00:44 “I think that there are five principles to attracting new customers like magic to your business. I think the really short version of what they are is number one, who’s your target market and how laser-focused, micro-niche-specific can you get? Where do they hang out? Where are you going to reach them in an affordable, effective manner? Why should they do business with you as opposed to anyone else? Why are you different? What are you going to do for them? And then how are you going to communicate all of that to the right people in your target market in such a way that gets them to pay attention, raise their hand, say they’re interested, and then go through a process so by the time they talk to you, they are pre-qualified, pre-interested, and predisposed to do business with you.” — Seth Greene

00:45 – 01:02 Welcome to Peppershock Media’s Marketing Expedition Podcast

01:03 – 02:05 About Seth

02:06 – 07:42 Marketing Essentials Moment: Building Relationships as Revenue Channels

07:43 – 08:55 Welcome to the show, Seth!

08:56 – 10:34 Success Stories in Marketing

10:35 – 12:04 Common Marketing Mistakes

12:05 – 13:41 Innovative Marketing Techniques

13:42 – 14:43 Ideal Client Profile

14:44 – 15:28 Favorite Marketing Tools

15:29 – 17:05 Recommended Resources and Readings

17:06 – 17:41 Poderific, baby! Whether you’re looking for a podcast studio to rent or need help with the entire production and distribution of your podcast, we gotcha covered. 

17:42 – 18:48 Advice for Aspiring Entrepreneurs

18:49 – 19:29 Future Plans and Projects

19:30 – 20:36 Investment Strategies for Business Growth

20:37 – 21:52 Current Challenges in Business

21:53 – 29:42 Surprising Insights from Recent Experiences

29:43 – 30:11 Reach out to Seth

30:12 – 30:39 Thank you so much, Seth! Share this podcast, give us a review, and enjoy your marketing journey!

30:40 – 31:26 Join the Marketing Expedition Community today!

Like what you hear, but need more information?

Meet with Rhea Allen

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Read the full transcript

Podcast Intro

Welcome to the Marketing Expedition podcast—an auditory journey through the latest in marketing, branding, and advertising. Now, here’s your Marketing Expedition guide, Rhea Allen.

Rhea Allen: On this episode of the Marketing Expedition podcast, I get to speak with Seth Greene. He’s widely recognized as one of the nation’s leading authorities on growing a business through what he calls 50 Dream Affiliates, and he’s the founder behind a company that earned a spot on the Inc. 5000 list in 2023.

Rhea Allen: Seth is a serial entrepreneur who has started four successful businesses and built a reputation for turning smart partnerships into real, measurable growth. He’s also the co-host of Sharkpreneur, a podcast alongside Shark Tank’s Kevin Harrington—an award-winning show that’s been ranked as one of the top business podcasts to listen to.

Rhea Allen: On top of that, Seth is a nine-time best-selling author and a sought-after voice in the media, with features and interviews on NBC News, CBS News, Forbes, Inc., and more.

Rhea Allen: He’s also the only person in history to be nominated three years in a row for the prestigious GKIC Marketer of the Year Award.

Rhea Allen: We’re going to get into the interview, but first, it’s time for your Marketing Essentials Moment—the basics you need to keep building your brand and your bottom line.

Marketing Essentials Moment: Relationships as a Revenue Channel

Rhea Allen: Today, I want to talk about how relationships can become a revenue channel—and why you should track them like one.

Rhea Allen: Networking isn’t just showing up and hoping something happens. It’s using relationship-building to intentionally build your pipeline—without the “spray and pray” approach.

Rhea Allen: We do our monthly Word of Mouth Mixers in person, and I’ve also done online networking. One thing I see all the time: people meet you, ask for your attention, then never follow up.

Rhea Allen: If you want relationships to turn into referrals—and referrals to turn into revenue—you need a plan.

Rhea Allen: Here are a few ways to do that:

• Decide who you want to meet before you arrive. You can’t meet everyone well. If you try to meet everyone, you end up connecting with no one.
• Warm the relationship before the event. If you can see who’s attending (like on a Facebook event), send a quick message: “I saw you’re going to the Word of Mouth Mixer—so am I. Let’s connect while we’re there.”
• Look for collaboration, not just transactions. Maybe you share an audience. Maybe they know someone you want to meet. Maybe you can reciprocate.
• Create simple partnership plays. Podcast swaps, guest invites, webinars, joint events—anything that extends reach for both of you.
• Follow up and stay visible. Connect on the platform they use most, add them to your newsletter (with permission), and keep a steady touch cadence.
• Track it. Use a CRM, or start with a simple Google Sheet. The point is consistency.

Rhea Allen: Make it a habit. Pick a weekly block—like a Tuesday afternoon—for check-ins, value shares, and celebrating other people’s wins.

Rhea Allen: You’re in for a treat with this interview with Seth. Let’s get to it.

Interview: Seth Greene

Rhea Allen: Welcome to the Marketing Expedition podcast. I’m your host, Rhea Allen. I’m the President and CEO of Peppershock Media and the founder of the Marketing Expedition community.

Rhea Allen: Today’s guest is Seth Greene. Welcome to the show, Seth.

Seth Greene: Thank you so much for having me. I’m a big fan of the show, and I’m excited to be here.

Rhea Allen: Give us a little background on you and the work you do.

Seth Greene: I’m the founder of MarketDominationLLC.com. We’re a direct-response marketing agency.

Seth Greene: Here’s the short “brag bio”: I’ve written 11 best-selling books on Amazon. I co-host the Sharkpreneur podcast with Kevin Harrington from Shark Tank. We produce a couple dozen other shows.

Seth Greene: We’ve driven about 4.4 million downloads and generated about 7,000 profitable relationships for our clients. I’ve been nominated for Marketer of the Year by Dan Kennedy and Russell Brunson three years in a row. We’ve also been on the Inc. 5000. I’ll stop there.

Rhea Allen: Out of everything you’ve accomplished, what’s your favorite thing to do?

Seth Greene: My wife and kids.

Rhea Allen: Good answer.

Seth Greene: My kids are 19, 17, and 13 as we’re recording this—one in college, one a senior in high school, and one a freshman. There’s a lot going on in our house.

Rhea Allen: I can relate. I have an almost 21-year-old in college and an 18-year-old about to start.

Rhea Allen: What are a few success principles that have helped you on your marketing journey—books, downloads, partnerships—what’s worked and why?

Seth Greene: I think there are five principles to attracting new customers “like magic” to your business.

Seth Greene: The short version is:

1. Target market: Who are you going after, and how micro-niche can you get?
2. Where they hang out: Where can you reach them affordably and effectively?
3. Differentiation: Why should they do business with you instead of anyone else?
4. Outcome: What are you going to do for them?
5. Messaging + process: How do you communicate it so the right people pay attention, raise their hand, and move through a process—so by the time they talk to you, they’re pre-qualified, interested, and predisposed to do business with you?

Rhea Allen: What do you see people doing that doesn’t convert?

Seth Greene: The biggest marketing sin is being boring.

Seth Greene: There’s so much “me too” marketing. You could take Company A’s logo off, swap in Company B’s, and you wouldn’t have to change much else. Nobody stands out.

Seth Greene: The antidote is personality. People buy from people. They’d rather connect with a face than a company name.

Seth Greene: And you have to differentiate. None of us does something no one else in the world does. We all have competition. Standing apart is the job.

Rhea Allen: With all the new tools, AI, and techniques, what’s something you’ve done recently that you hadn’t done before?

Seth Greene: In the last seven months, we created a process where we can advertise your podcast on other people’s podcasts that reach the same target market.

Seth Greene: Think of YouTube suggested videos—“You might also like this.” We figured out a way to do that for audio podcasts on Apple.

Seth Greene: You don’t even have to listen to the other episode to get to yours. Nobody has copied us yet, so it works extremely well. It’s fast and relatively inexpensive.

Rhea Allen: We might need to talk about that for the Marketing Expedition podcast.

Seth Greene: I’d be happy to.

Seth Greene: We got my wife’s parenting podcast, Wynnie Belusa, to number one all of June—and it was still number one in July.

Seth Greene: Sharkpreneur is in a more competitive category. I’ve gotten as high as number four. I think I’m number seven today. It works, and our qualified U.S. downloads from real people are through the roof.

Rhea Allen: That matters—real qualified people, not bots.

Seth Greene: Exactly. If you want bots in Russia or Thailand, you can buy those anywhere.

Rhea Allen: Who is your ideal client right now?

Seth Greene: Our ideal client is a professional practice owner—accountants, attorneys, financial advisors.

Seth Greene: Ideally they’re doing over seven figures in revenue, but we have coaching programs for those below that. The done-for-you clients are usually already successful.

Seth Greene: They realize what got them here won’t get them where they want to go. They can’t work twice as hard to double the business.

Seth Greene: They’ve tried a bunch of marketing, hoping something sticks. It doesn’t work as well as they want, they get frustrated, and they call us at MarketDominationLLC.com.

Rhea Allen: What tool are you loving right now?

Seth Greene: There are a lot, and we’ve built some of our own. We’re fans of most AI engines.

Seth Greene: Lately, I’ve been having a lot of fun building in Lovable—building apps to automate processes.

Rhea Allen: What resources are you learning from right now—newsletters, books, masterminds?

Seth Greene: I get a ton of newsletters—Dan Kennedy’s, Russell Brunson’s, Ari Galper’s. I’m on everybody’s lists so I can see how they promote.

Seth Greene: I’m in a number of mastermind groups. And I read constantly—probably a book every other day.

Seth Greene: One of my recent favorites is The Science of Scaling by Dr. Benjamin Hardy.

Rhea Allen: I listen to books a lot because I’m driving. Are you more Audible or a physical reader?

Seth Greene: I prefer physical books. I read a lot on my iPad too.

Seth Greene: My wife listens to Audible every day. I can do audio for business books, but novels don’t work for me. When I read, I see the movie in my head. When I hear it, it’s not the same.

Seth Greene: When I’m driving, I listen to podcasts and marketing courses.

Rhea Allen: What podcasts do you love—besides Marketing Expedition, of course?

Seth Greene: Besides Marketing Expedition and Sharkpreneur, my two favorites are Alex Hormozi’s The Game and Roy Williams’ The Wizard of Ads.

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Interview Continued

Rhea Allen: What advice would you give to someone stepping into the real world—especially students?

Seth Greene: There are two answers—one for starting a business and one for working for someone else. But honestly, the same principle applies.

Seth Greene: Add more value than anyone else—whether it’s for your clients or your employer—and you’ll never have to worry.

Seth Greene: There is no competition on the extra mile.

Rhea Allen: What are you focused on over the next 90 days?

Seth Greene: In addition to our “podcast into profitable relationships” service, we’re launching what I’m calling the Local Authority Engine.

Seth Greene: It’s designed to keep a local business ever-present and top-of-mind in their community—in a way people are happy to sign up for and receive—so when they need that service, you’re the only person they call.

Rhea Allen: If you had an extra $100,000 to spend in the next two weeks for business, what would you spend it on?

Seth Greene: My first thought is paying my kids’ college tuition.

Rhea Allen: Fair.

Seth Greene: If it has to be business, I’d split it up: a large chunk to direct mail, a chunk to online advertising, and a chunk to sponsoring events where my target market is—so I can get speaker slots.

Rhea Allen: Online advertising—where specifically?

Seth Greene: YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook, and native advertising.

Rhea Allen: LinkedIn has been changing a lot—more video, more reels.

Seth Greene: Yep.

Rhea Allen: What’s your biggest challenge right now?

Seth Greene: Growing and scaling our sales team. I need a sales function that runs without me.

Rhea Allen: I’ve been there. Outsourcing sales usually doesn’t work the way people hope.

Rhea Allen: Fun, fame, or fortune—pick two.

Seth Greene: Fun and fortune. I don’t care about being famous.

Rhea Allen: Better, faster, cheaper—pick two.

Seth Greene: Better and faster.

Rhea Allen: If you could step into my shoes, what question would you ask yourself that I didn’t ask?

Seth Greene: What’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten?

Rhea Allen: Okay—what’s the best advice you’ve ever gotten, Seth?

Seth Greene: Who you are being affects how well what you do works.

Seth Greene: Focus on working on yourself, and your business will rise to meet the new, bigger, better you.

Rhea Allen: That’s great advice.

Seth Greene: That’s why I meditate twice a day and work out almost every day.

Rhea Allen: What’s your routine?

Seth Greene: I get up, meditate, work out, then get ready and go to work.

Seth Greene: I meditate before bed, and I read before bed.

Seth Greene: When I’m at work—eight, ten, eleven hours—I’m very productive. My wife says I need to work on having more downtime, because I’m nonstop in the office.

Rhea Allen: What should people be concerned about right now in our industry?

Seth Greene: With so many people using AI to create content, the one thing AI can’t replace is authenticity.

Seth Greene: It can’t be human. It’s more important than ever not to outsource all your content creation to AI and clog up the internet with fake content.

Seth Greene: Write in your own voice. If you’re authentically human, nobody can copy that.

Rhea Allen: When you run a successful campaign, what metrics matter most?

Seth Greene: It depends on the platform.

Seth Greene: For digital media: click-through rate, opt-ins, opt-in to booked call, opt-in to sale, cost per click, cost per lead, cost per appointment, cost per sale, and ROI.

Seth Greene: For direct mail: what I spent versus what it drove—leads, appointments, sales, and ROI.

Rhea Allen: Are you a fan of QR codes on direct mail?

Seth Greene: It depends on the market.

Seth Greene: If I were marketing to my parents in their 80s, probably not.

Seth Greene: For the right demographics, absolutely. For the wrong demographics, don’t use it—they won’t know what it is.

Seth Greene: I spoke at a conference for attorneys recently. I had the QR code on the slide, and I also had a short video of me scanning a QR code.

Seth Greene: Everyone younger scanned it instantly. A number of older attorneys watched the video first, then did it.

Rhea Allen: That’s a great idea.

Seth Greene: You can’t assume what people know, even if it feels obvious to you.

Rhea Allen: With postage costs rising, are clients resisting direct mail?

Seth Greene: No—actually we’re seeing more direct mail.

Seth Greene: There’s less clutter in the mailbox because fewer people are doing it. That makes it a bigger opportunity.

Rhea Allen: How do you stay sharp in a fast-changing industry?

Seth Greene: Podcasts, books, online courses and trainings, and mastermind groups with people who are smarter than I am.

Rhea Allen: I just joined Speakeasy Mastermind.

Seth Greene: They’re clients of ours—Eric Berman.

Rhea Allen: Small world.

Seth Greene: Welcome to the family.

Rhea Allen: Are there other masterminds you recommend?

Seth Greene: It depends on the size of the business. I’m happy to share options after the show and you can add them to the show notes.

Rhea Allen: I hear a lot about EOS, Vistage, and EO.

Seth Greene: We run EOS, and I’m in EO as well.

Rhea Allen: What’s been your biggest surprise in the last couple of months?

Seth Greene: About a year ago, we created a cheaper version of our flagship “podcast into profitable relationships” service.

Seth Greene: Some clients said, “I have a network. I can get my own guests. Can I pay less?” We said yes.

Seth Greene: Most of them failed. They didn’t know how to ask, or their network didn’t respond. They upgraded later so we could step in and deliver.

Seth Greene: I was unpleasantly surprised they couldn’t pull it off, and pleasantly surprised at how much credit my team deserves for being able to deliver consistently.

Rhea Allen: That’s a good surprise for your team.

Rhea Allen: Where can people learn more about you and your work?

Seth Greene: Our company website is marketdominationllc.com.

Seth Greene: For your listeners, if you go to ultimatepodcastbook.com, you can get a physical copy of my best-selling book, The Ultimate Guide to Growing Your Business with a Podcast, at 30% off the Amazon price.

Seth Greene: And if you want to listen to the show, it’s called Sharkpreneur. If you go to the marketing category on Apple Podcasts, we should be in the top five or six.

Rhea Allen: Any last words of wisdom for our expedition?

Seth Greene: Love the show. Keep doing what you’re doing. You’re helping people every day that you don’t even realize you’re touching.

Rhea Allen: Thank you, Seth.

Seth Greene: Thank you so much for having me.

Rhea Allen: The best thing you can do is share this episode with someone who needs to hear what Seth had to say—and leave us a review.

Rhea Allen: Until next time, enjoy the marketing journey.

Podcast Outro

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