My Weekly Marketing

Hosted by Janice Hostager

Business MarketingInterviews guests

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Episodes

161

Latest episode

Jun 2026

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EN-US

About the show

Join conversations about marketing, business, and life-in-between with marketing strategist Janice Hostager and a variety of world-class entrepreneurs! We will fill you with step-by-step training, marketing strategy, and life experiences from where life and business intersect. We'd love to have you join the fun!

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60 recent

June 16, 2026Episode 16234 min

How To Build Authority with AI with Cyndee Woolley

What happens when AI starts deciding who gets seen, trusted, and recommended?Whether we like it or not, tools like ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google's AI Overviews are already shaping how people discover businesses. The question is this: when AI goes looking for information about you, what story is it finding?In this episode, I sit down with PR strategist Cindy Woolley, founder of C2 Communications, to talk about the surprising connection between public relations, AI search, and business visibility. We dig into why credibility matters more than ever, how AI determines who sounds trustworthy, and what business owners can do now to strengthen their digital footprint.Cindy shares what happened when she tested AI-generated press releases (spoiler: they were terrible), why AI should be treated as a tool—not a replacement for human expertise—and how to create an authority blueprint that helps both people and AI understand what you do.We also cover practical strategies like optimizing your LinkedIn profile, using podcast appearances to build authority, creating thought leadership content with real-world insights, and leveraging third-party validation through media mentions, partnerships, and expert contributions.If you've been wondering how to stay visible, credible, and relevant in a world where AI is becoming the gatekeeper, this conversation is for you.For more information about , visit our show notes at myweeklymarketing.com/162.Send us Fan MailSupport the showShow Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!Take the Marketing Clarity Quiz and get instant insights on your marketing strategy.

June 9, 2026Episode 16128 min

Bots Don't Buy: How to Spot and Stop Fake Ad Traffic with Rich Kahn

What if a big slice of your ad budget never reaches a real human? If you've ever stared at your digital ads dashboard thinking “the clicks are there, so why is nobody buying?” you’re not alone and you’re not crazy. You might think there's a problem with your content or creative. But sometimes the problem isn’t your offer or your copy. Sometimes it’s ad fraud, click fraud, and invalid traffic quietly polluting your funnel.In this episode, I sat down with Rich Kahn, co-founder and CEO of Anura.io, to put plain language around a messy topic. Rich explains how fraud shows up for small businesses, what the common warning signs look like (high traffic, low conversions, leads that don’t respond, people who swear they never filled out your form), and why “good” KPIs like click-through rate can be dangerously easy for fraudsters to game. You’ll also hear how fraud can hide in places people assume are safe, including partner networks and even “organic” traffic.Send us Fan MailSupport the showShow Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!Take the Marketing Clarity Quiz and get instant insights on your marketing strategy.

June 2, 202623 min

Marketing That Works When You Don't Have a Decade to Wait

In this episode, we unpack why standard marketing advice fails when you’re starting a consulting or service business with a short runway and deep experience. I share three practical moves that help you get traction faster by leaning on relationships, focusing your effort, and pricing like the expert you already are. It includes:why most marketing advice assumes infinite time and why that doesn't work for midlife founders and laid-off corporate proswhy it's important to use your warm audience before cold audience and how to turn hidden connections into real leadswhy reactivating past clients is so valuablehow to choose one channel that fits your strengths and your ideal customerthe difference between compounding content and disposable contenthow to position around your years of expertise why to use pricing as a signal what “I can’t afford you” usually means and how to respond Send us Fan MailSupport the showShow Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!Take the Marketing Clarity Quiz and get instant insights on your marketing strategy.

May 26, 2026Episode 15941 min

The Hidden Signals That Make Customers Trust You with Gal Borenstein

Trust becomes the real sales gate in a world full of AI content, fake reviews, and copycat marketing. We break down how to build a resilient brand by tightening what happens inside the business before we try to persuade anyone outside it. • losing control of the narrative as AI and social platforms reshape reputation • differentiation as a trust strategy, not a slogan • internal culture and leadership consistency as the starting point • awareness of your digital footprint, including fake reviews and misinformation • alignment between brand promise and frontline delivery • authenticity through real proof, testimonials, and clear transparency • accountability as the make-or-break moment in customer support and follow-up • benchmarking a few trust gaps and improving them over time Well, the easiest way to find my books is on Amazon.com. Use LinkedIn. Visit our website at bornesgroup.com and delighted to respond and test us if we respond to you in less than one hour. Send us Fan MailSupport the showShow Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!Take the Marketing Clarity Quiz and get instant insights on your marketing strategy.

May 19, 2026Episode 15811 min

Stop Burning Down Your Marketing

Ever “fixed” your marketing by blowing it up and starting over… then felt worse? If you’ve ever felt the urge to start fresh with a new website, a new lead magnet, a new niche, or a totally new strategy, this is your reminder that the problem is often not that you need something new. The problem is "scattered marketing" and the quiet habit of reinventing before anything has time to be tested and refined. We talk through why entrepreneurs chase the dopamine of new ideas, how the IKEA effect makes brand new offers feel more magical than the ones already in the world, and why optimization is the unglamorous place where revenue actually grows. That means conversion rate optimization, clearer messaging, stronger hooks, better calls to action, improved follow-up sequences, and a smoother customer journey from “interested” to “ready to buy.” Send us Fan MailSupport the showShow Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!Take the Marketing Clarity Quiz and get instant insights on your marketing strategy.

May 12, 2026Episode 15728 min

How to Get Your Business Found in AI Search Results with Julia Bocchese

Your dream client is on the couch, ready to hire, and instead of Googling, she asks ChatGPT for “the best” person to solve her problem. If your name never appears, it may have nothing to do with your skill and everything to do with visibility in AI search. We break down what it takes to get recommended in a world where Google Gemini, ChatGPT, Claude, and other answer engines are shaping buying decisions.I’m joined by search strategist Julia Bocchese of Julia Renee Consulting to unpack AEO (answer engine optimization) and GEO (generative engine optimization) in a practical way.Send us Fan MailSupport the showShow Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!Take the Marketing Clarity Quiz and get instant insights on your marketing strategy.

May 5, 2026Episode 15634 min

Personal Branding That Sticks with Kelly Schuknect

If you’ve ever watched someone speak and thought, “Why is their message so magnetic?”, the answer usually isn’t louder marketing or a prettier color palette. It’s clarity. Janice sits down with Kelly Schoenick to unpack what personal branding actually means and why it’s one of the fastest ways to build trust, stand out in a crowded market, and make your marketing feel less like a grind.We talk about personal brand as reputation: the set of associations people build about you across touchpoints like LinkedIn, speaking gigs, podcast interviews, your website, and even the stories you repeat. Send us Fan MailSupport the showShow Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!Take the Marketing Clarity Quiz and get instant insights on your marketing strategy.

April 28, 2026Episode 15534 min

Experiential Marketing: How to Create Experiences That Convert with Heather Johnson

In this episode, I sit down with Heather Johnson to talk about how trade shows and in-person events can actually work for small businesses. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by crowded booths or unsure how to stand out without being pushy, this conversation will give you a clearer way to approach it.We walk through what makes a booth memorable, how to create real conversations that build trust, and what to focus on before, during, and after an event. Heather also shares practical ways to generate leads and measure results over time. If you want experiential marketing to feel more intentional and less exhausting, this episode will help you rethink your approach.SampleFinderPolaris Brand PromotionsSend us Fan MailSupport the showShow Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!Take the Marketing Clarity Quiz and get instant insights on your marketing strategy.

April 21, 2026Episode 15423 min

Why Handwritten Notes Still Win with David Wachs

In this episode, I sit down with David Wachs to talk about a simple, overlooked way to stand out in a crowded marketing world. We explore why handwritten notes still work, even with so much automation, and how they can create a more personal connection that digital messages often miss.We also walk through where handwritten notes fit in your customer journey and how to use them without making them feel forced or salesy. David shares practical insights on what makes these messages memorable and how businesses are using them to build stronger relationships. If you want your marketing to feel more human and lasting, this conversation will give you a fresh perspective.HandwryttenSend us Fan MailSupport the showShow Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!Take the Marketing Clarity Quiz and get instant insights on your marketing strategy.

April 14, 2026Episode 15342 min

How to Grow your Email List Without Paid Ads with Tracy Beavers

In this episode, I sit down with Tracy Beavers to talk about why email marketing still matters, even in a world dominated by social media. If you’ve been focused on growing followers while your email list stays flat, this conversation will help you rethink where real control in your marketing actually lives.We talk through how organic list growth really works, why many lead magnets fail to convert, and what it takes to turn visibility into subscribers. Tracy also shares how AI has raised the bar for simple PDFs and checklists, and why more interactive experiences are starting to convert better. If you want a clearer path to building an email list that actually supports your sales, this conversation will give you practical insight.Tracy's Free Facebook Group: Be A Confident EntrepreneurTracy's WebsiteTracy's PodcastSend us Fan MailSupport the showShow Notes Apply to be featured on My Weekly Marketing!Take the Marketing Clarity Quiz and get instant insights on your marketing strategy.