Direct Sales: the Other 99% Podcast

Hosted by Lisa Duck

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Episodes

136

Latest episode

Aug 2026

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About the show

Welcome to The Other 99%—the podcast that gives you a real-world look at what it’s like to build a direct sales business. Join host Lisa Duck, co-host Susan Larimer, and their amazing guests as they share stories, strategies, and smart tips from the everyday direct sellers who are showing up, standing out, and building success on their terms. You’ll hear honest conversations, relatable moments, and practical ideas you can actually use—plus a few laughs along the way. 🎧 New episodes drop every Tuesday—make sure to follow so you never miss a conversation worth hearing!

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60 recent

August 18, 2026Episode 13518 min

E135: Email Marketing Part 3/6: 4 Rules Every Welcome Sequence Needs (Most People Break Rule #1)

In part three of our email marketing mini-series, Lisa Duck and Susan Larimer are talking welcome sequences — the emails that make (or break) that first impression with a new subscriber. We cover the four rules for getting it right: writing to one person instead of your whole list, sticking to one topic per email, giving your new subscriber a quick win, and building trust before you ever make an offer. Susan also shares the "handraiser" concept from a training we took, and why a smaller, more engaged list beats a big cold one every time. Grab the Freebie first so you can get the subscriber offer on The 5-Minute Welcome Sequence Connect with Lisa: lisaduck.com Connect with Susan: susanlarimer.com 🎵 Music: French Morning Music by CreatorMix.com 📌 Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links. I only recommend tools I use and trust.

August 11, 2026Episode 13416 min

E134: Email Marketing Part 2/6: Your Lead Magnet Is Working... Now What?

You got someone to grab your lead magnet — but what happens next? In this episode, Lisa Duck and Susan Larimer talk about what to actually do once someone joins your list, why a proper welcome sequence matters, and why "set it and forget it" only works if you set it up right in the first place. We walk through what to send in those first few emails, how to set expectations so people don't unsubscribe, and the automation mistakes that trip up even experienced list-builders. Start here: Nobody Wants to Join Your Newsletter Connect with Lisa: lisaduck.com Connect with Susan: susanlarimer.com 🎵 Music: French Morning Music by CreatorMix.com 📌 Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links. I only recommend tools I use and trust.

August 4, 2026Episode 12918 min

E133: Email Marketing Part 1/6: Nobody Wants to Join Your Newsletter (And Here's What to Do Instead)

Nobody wakes up hoping to join another newsletter — so why does "join my list" keep showing up as the CTA? In this episode, Susan Larimer and I kick off a brand new mini-series on email marketing, starting with the thing that actually gets people to say yes: a real, valuable lead magnet. We talk about what makes a lead magnet work, how to find ideas hiding in the questions your customers already ask you, and why you don't need to compete with your company's sales emails to build a relationship that's actually yours. 🎙️ This episode kicks off a new mini-series on email marketing. More episodes coming soon! Grab the freebie - Nobody Wants to Join Your Newsletter Connect with Lisa: lisaduck.com Connect with Susan: susanlarimer.com 🎵 Music: French Morning Music by CreatorMix.com 📌 Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links. I only recommend tools I use and trust.

July 28, 2026Episode 13234 min

E132: Email Marketing for Direct Sellers and Small Business Owners: 5 Things You're Missing

Your company sends emails. Your upline sends emails. So why do you need your own email marketing? In this episode, Lisa and Susan get into five of the top ten things you're missing if you're not building and nurturing your own email list. They talk about why owning your contacts matters more than most people realize, what open rates and click rates actually tell you, why one call to action per email is a game changer, and how simple automations can do the follow-up work while you're living your life. If email marketing has been on your to-do list for a while, this is the episode that's going to make you finally do something about it. 📌 Grab the full list — 10 Things You're Missing Without Email Marketing at lisaduck.com 📌 Sponsored by CinchShare — free 30-day trial at lisaduck.com/cinchshare | Code: 99POD Connect with Lisa: lisaduck.com Connect with Susan: susanlarimer.com 🎵 Music: French Morning Music by CreatorMix.com 📌 Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links. I only recommend tools I use and trust.

July 21, 2026Episode 13155 min

E131: Our YouTube Game Plan: Strategies That Actually Work

In this episode of the Other 99% four direct sellers sit down for an honest conversation about building a YouTube channel in real life — not the highlight reel version. Lisa Duck, Susan Larimer, Jen from Craft What Matters, and Evelyn from Purple Essence by Evelyn talk about what's actually working on YouTube right now, including repurposing content, creating shorts, using AI for thumbnails, and researching the right keywords so the right people can actually find you. They also get into the bigger picture — how to use YouTube strategically to grow your email list, drive traffic to your offers, and build genuine connections with people who want to hear from you. If you've been thinking about starting or growing a YouTube channel, this one's worth a listen. 📌 Sponsored by CinchShare — free 30-day trial at lisaduck.com/cinchshare | Code: 99POD Find Lisa: lisaduck.com Find Susan: susanlarimer.com 🎵 Music: French Morning Music by CreatorMix.com 📌 Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links. I only recommend tools I use and trust.

July 14, 2026Episode 13016 min

E130: Your Intentional Life Part 5/5: Thriving by Doing Less

On this weeks episode of the Other 99% we are at part 5 of our mini series on Susan's brand-new workbook. Join Lisa and Susan as they dig into what it really means to live intentionally — saying yes to what fits your mission, vision, and values, and no to everything else. They talk about busting the "having it all" myth, the power of margins, what success actually looks like in direct sales, and walk through exactly what's inside Susan's new workbook. Get Susan's Workbook: The Intentional Workbook 📌 This episode is sponsored by CinchShare — the social media scheduler built for direct sellers. Free 30-day trial at lisaduck.com/cinchshare | Code: 99POD Connect with Lisa: lisaduck.com Connect with Susan: susanlarimer.com 🎵 Music: French Morning Music by CreatorMix.com 📌 Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links. I only recommend tools I use and trust.

July 7, 2026Episode 12721 min

E129: Your Intentional Life Part 4/5: Why Saying No Feels So Hard

This week on the Other 99% Podcast Lisa and Susan talk about why Saying "no" isn't a skills problem — it's a mindset problem. Dive in as they unpack why direct sellers struggle so much with boundaries, how the industry's culture of recognition keeps us chasing "yes," and why Lisa's own business only really took off once she was forced to start saying no. In this episode: the "let me think about it" trick for buying yourself time, the problem with chasing incentive trips, Lisa's honest story about staying in direct sales for the wrong reasons, and why a good "no" actually creates more freedom, not less. 📌 This episode is sponsored by CinchShare — the social media scheduler built for direct sellers. Free 30-day trial at lisaduck.com/cinchshare | Code: 99POD Connect with Lisa: lisaduck.com Connect with Susan: susanlarimer.com 🎵 Music: French Morning Music by CreatorMix.com 📌 Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links. I only recommend tools I use and trust.

June 30, 2026Episode 12823 min

E128: Your Intentional Life Part 3/5: Before You Say Yes, Ask Yourself This

Have you ever agreed to something and immediately regretted it?In Part 3 of the Your Intentional Life series, Lisa and Susan discuss why we often say yes out of guilt, obligation, or fear of missing out, and how an alignment filter can help us make better decisions. 📌 This episode is sponsored by CinchShare — the social media scheduler built for direct sellers. Free 30-day trial at lisaduck.com/cinchshare | Code: 99POD Connect with Lisa: lisaduck.com Connect with Susan: susanlarimer.com 🎵 Music: French Morning Music by CreatorMix.com 📌 Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links. I only recommend tools I use and trust.

June 23, 2026Episode 12714 min

E127: Your Intentional Life Part 2/5: What Are You Actually Building?

In this episode of The Other 99%, Lisa and Susan dive into part two of their five-part series on Susan's new workbook. This week's focus is on the big three: your why, your mission, your vision, and your values. Most of us in direct sales are so focused on chasing the next sale, the next recruit, or the next like that we never stop to ask why we're doing any of it. This episode gives you the space to actually think about that. We cover why we skip the why work, how reactive mode is draining your energy, and the three-to-five-year vision exercise from Susan's workbook that'll help you figure out exactly where you want to be — and whether the things on your plate are going to get you there. 📌 This episode is sponsored by CinchShare — the social media scheduler built for direct sellers. Free 30-day trial at lisaduck.com/cinchshare | Code: 99POD Connect with Lisa: lisaduck.com Connect with Susan: susanlarimer.com 🎵 Music: French Morning Music by CreatorMix.com 📌 Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links. I only recommend tools I use and trust.

June 16, 2026Episode 12621 min

E126: Your Intentional Life Part 1/5: You're Busy... But Is It Working?

In part one of our five-part workbook series, Lisa Duck and Susan Larimer are talking about something most of us don't want to admit — we're terrible at saying no, and it's draining us. Susan shares the inspiration behind her new workbook to help women figure out what to say yes to, what to say no to, and how to do it without the guilt spiral that usually follows. We get into why direct sellers are especially prone to saying yes to everything, share our most expensive yeses (spoiler: one of them cost a whole career), and Susan walks you through the first exercise in her workbook — the Life Inventory. 📌 This episode is sponsored by CinchShare — the social media scheduler built for direct sellers. Free 30-day trial at lisaduck.com/cinchshare | Code: 99POD Connect with Lisa: lisaduck.com Connect with Susan: susanlarimer.com 🎵 Music: French Morning Music by CreatorMix.com 📌 Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links. We only recommend tools that we use and trust.