Do This First Podcast

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! A blog without a strategy is just a public journal nobody reads. Elizabeth breaks down what purposeful blogging actually looks like — how to choose topics with intention, structure posts for SEO, and make every post pull its weight in your marketing ecosystem.

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! Marketing burnout is real, and it's killing more small businesses than bad strategy ever did. Elizabeth shares the early warning signs, the habits that accelerate burnout, and the minimalist marketing approach that keeps you consistent without running yourself into the ground.

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! Drew Dorenfest is the founder of Client Magnet CRM, a digital marketing agency helping small businesses get found online through SEO, local search, customer reviews, and marketing automation. He focuses on practical, affordable strategies that help small businesses build long-term visibility wi...

Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode! If you're still chasing clients, something is off. Elizabeth breaks down how to flip the dynamic — positioning yourself so clearly as the authority in your space that your ideal clients seek you out, not the other way around

Writing a book can be a daunting task, and you can make it more complicated and harder to finish if you don't have a framework around it. Use a mind map to organize your content before you start writing so you have a clear path of where to go and what to write about. https://www.writeforyou.me/publishing-for-professionals

Business partnerships are easy to start and hard to sustain, and most of them don't end well. Elizabeth talks candidly about what makes partnerships fail, what to nail down before you ever say yes to one, and how to protect yourself if things go sideways.

Joe Casabona helps solo business owners stop doing everything themselves. With 20+ years coding and teaching, he can break down complex concepts into understandable, actionable steps. Today he’s talking about the 4 signs of AI Brain Rot, how to prevent it, and how to use AI conscientiously. Wondering if you’re suffering from AI Brain Rot? Take his quiz at https://quiz.lovehate.ai

Bigger isn't always better, and more clients doesn't always mean a better business. Elizabeth makes the case for rightsizing — building a business that fits your actual life instead of scaling toward someone else's version of success.

A well-written book can still be the wrong book — if it's written for you instead of the reader in front of you. Ally Machate shares a client story about a memoir that almost cost him the business he was trying to build, and the one question every author needs to answer before they publish. Bio: Ally Machate is the founder of The Writer's Ally, where she helps entrepreneurs, consultants, coaches,...

Rebranding is either the best investment you'll make or a very expensive way to avoid your real problems. Elizabeth helps you figure out which one applies to you — the signs your brand genuinely needs a refresh versus the signs you just need better marketing.

Philippa Gamse is an independent website advisor and the author of Website Wealth. She helps business leaders use the evidence from their websites to uncover opportunities, solve problems and make better business decisions. What if your website could tell you where your next source of revenue is hiding? Philippa Gamse shares a real-life example of how looking beyond the obvious revealed a complete...

Marketing is a practice, not a project — and like any practice, it requires a core set of beliefs to keep you grounded. Elizabeth shares the fundamental marketing principles she returns to over and over, the non-negotiables that hold up no matter what the algorithm does next.

Dhana Kannan is a Fractional COO, speaker and former product founder with 26 years in tech and a PhD grounded in data and AI research. She helps CEOs build the operational systems their businesses need to scale, so they can step away from the day-to-day and build companies that don't depend on them. In this mini-episode, discover the 30-second decision framework designed to eliminate founder decis...

Not all clients are created equal, and the way you market determines who shows up. Elizabeth talks about the specific positioning, language, and visibility strategies that attract clients who respect your time, pay your rates, and actually implement your advice.

Short answer: yes. Long answer: this episode. Elizabeth explains exactly why your podcast needs its own web presence, what that website should include, and how it becomes your SEO engine, your media kit, and your pitch in one place.

One-time projects are exhausting to sell. Maintenance contracts create steady, recurring income from clients you already have. Elizabeth explains how to structure a maintenance offer, what to include, how to price it, and how to present it so clients see the obvious value in saying yes.

Part two of the discovery call deep dive — Elizabeth gets into the specific language, flow, and follow-up that turns a good conversation into a signed contract. The structure is simpler than you think, and once you have it, selling starts to feel a lot less like selling.

A discovery call isn't just a meet-and-greet — it's a structured conversation that either closes the deal or filters out the wrong fit. Elizabeth walks through exactly how to structure yours so you show up confident, ask the right questions, and end every call knowing what happens next.

AI is everywhere and everyone is either terrified of it or overselling it. Elizabeth cuts through the noise with a grounded introduction to AI for small business owners — what it actually is, what it's genuinely useful for, and how to start using it without losing your voice or your mind.

What if the biggest influence on workplace culture isn't a policy or mission statement—but communication? In this episode, Culture Architect, speaker, and author PeriSean B. Hall reveals why communication dictates conduct and how everyday conversations shape trust, accountability, and organizational culture. Discover one practical strategy you can implement immediately to strengthen relationships,...

Not every offer, platform, or sales opportunity is worth saying yes to. Elizabeth walks through her decision-making framework for evaluating whether something is worth selling — and why saying no to the wrong revenue is sometimes the smartest business move you can make.

Andrea Funk is the owner of Too Cool T-shirt Quilts, a custom T-shirt quilt company that has been making quilts since 1992. She created her first business website in 2003 and has been updating, testing, and improving it ever since. In this episode, Andrea shares a simple habit she uses in her own business: use AI to choose one helpful change to make on one important website page each day. It is a...

Affiliate marketing works — when you do it right. Elizabeth shares the practical tips that actually move the needle for small business affiliates: how to choose the right products, how to promote them without being obnoxious, and how to build a stream that compounds over time.

If someone asked you "are you successful" what would you say? Tune in to hear my "do this first" in defining your success. Connect with me at sanjai@successmatters.net or on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/sanjaimehta

Running ads without a solid funnel is like filling a bucket full of holes — you keep pouring money in and wondering why nothing stays. Elizabeth explains the leaky bucket problem in paid advertising and exactly what you need to plug before you spend another dollar on ads.