Listen to the Episode Now:

Subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, your your favorite other podcast player!

The Situation

When Gwen Bortner and Tonya Kubo came on the Business Podcast Spotlight, they were a year into The Business You Really Want – a show that started as a way to make their private strategy convos public, and quickly turned into their favorite marketing tool. With clients coming back, referrals arriving pre-sold, and a podcasting system that works, they were looking at what’s next: how to track success on their own terms, keep the content sharp, and make even better use of the show in their sales process.

About Gwen Bortner and Tonya Kubo

Gwen Bortner is a business advisor who provides outside perspective and unwavering accountability. She’s also the one to ask the hard questions others won’t. After four decades of working across 47+ industries, Gwen has learned that marketing and sales have built-in feedback loops – you know quickly if they’re working. But the behind-the-scenes engine that runs your business? That’s where the blind spots live. That’s where successful businesses secretly start breaking down, even when everything looks fine from the outside.

Gwen works with women who appear successful but are privately wondering how long they can maintain their current pace before something breaks. Her clients are doing “all the right things” yet find themselves overwhelmed and secretly questioning if this is what success is supposed to feel like.

Tonya Kubo is a community strategist, fractional chief marketing officer who helps business owners build thriving online communities rooted in connection, not conformity. In addition to co-hosting The Business You Really Want with Gwen, she also hosts Find Your Freaks, the podcast for people who never quite fit the mold.

What’s Happened So Far

Gwen and Tonya have built something pretty special with The Business You Really Want. What started as a way to capture their strategic conversations and make them public has grown into a consistent, well-loved podcast that’s doing exactly what they hoped it would – bringing former clients back, helping new ones feel ready to buy, and making Gwen’s deep expertise accessible without having to spend hours on one-to-one calls.

They kicked things off with a smart live-stream test to figure out what worked (and what didn’t), scrapped their first co-host idea, and leaned fully into their own dynamic – one part operations brain, one part marketing strategist. That balance is a big part of why the show works so well, and why they never seem to run out of things to talk about.

They’ve tested production teams, adjusted hosting platforms, navigated a winter dip in downloads, and still managed to keep a four-week content buffer almost all year. Most importantly, they know what role the podcast plays in the business: it’s not top-of-funnel, it’s nurture. It’s what turns warm-ish leads into ready-to-go clients.

Now that the show is over a year in and gaining traction again, they’re looking at how to double down: track success in a way that actually matters to them, use the content more actively in the sales process, and find a few small ways to make it even easier for people to say yes.

The New Plan

As you’ll have heard in the conversation, Gwen and Tonya have a clear sense of what’s working – the show nurtures leads, brings clients back, and shortens the sales cycle – but they haven’t quite built the system around it to actively use that content in day-to-day sales and referral conversations.

So the plan isn’t about changing the podcast itself. It’s still working, and they love making it. Instead, it’s about making it easier to use.

First step: build a simple internal reference sheet for Gwen with episode titles, topics, and quick links, so when she’s in a conversation or discovery call, she’s got her best episodes at her fingertips. Eventually, that can turn into a public-facing episode index or curated landing pages for specific topics like scaling, delegation, or team-building.

Second, they’re going to experiment with a warm lead call-to-action – something small and specific, like a bonus strategy session or returning client discount – and mention it lightly in an upcoming episode or two, just to test response.

These are easy wins that don’t require a huge time investment or production shift, just small tweaks that help the show do what it’s already doing, even better.

How to Use This Strategy

So if you want to use your podcast the way Gwen and Tonya are – as a tool to nurture leads and support your sales process – here are a few things to think about:

• When someone reaches out to work with you, what questions do they usually have?

• Are there parts of your discovery or sales process that could be handled with a well-chosen episode instead of another email or call?

• Do your past clients ever “forget” what it was like to work with you, and could a few episodes help remind them?

Once you’ve got a few answers to those, go take a look at your episode archive. Find the ones that speak to those moments. Then create a simple doc, spreadsheet, or private landing page with links and short descriptions. Bonus points if you include timestamps so people know exactly where to listen.

You don’t need a new season or a whole new show, just a smart way to get your best content into the hands (and ears) of the people who are already almost ready to buy.

If you’re looking for a partner to help you figure out and deploy a strategy that will work for your business, we can help! Book a call, and let’s talk!

How to Track Success

Here’s what you’ll want to track if your podcast is all about nurturing warm leads and making your sales process smoother:

1. How many people mention the podcast when they reach out to you, whether they’re returning clients or brand-new referrals.
2. How much faster the sales process goes for someone who’s been listening. That can be fewer calls, less back-and-forth, quicker yes.
3. The number of episodes you’re actually using during sales conversations, and which ones get the most traction.
4. And sure, if you like having the data, you can keep an eye on downloads, but the real wins are in the deals that close faster and feel easier because of what your podcast already did for you.

Connect with Gwen Bortner and Tonya Kubo

Gwen and Tonya are keeping The Business You Really Want going strong and now they’ve got a plan to make it even more useful in their sales process. We’ll be checking back in with them down the line to see how the new systems are working and what tweaks they’ve made along the way.

In the meantime, go listen to the show at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, especially if you’re a woman founder or leader who’s building a business that actually fits your life. You can also find Gwen and Tonya at Everyday Effectiveness – Gwen’s business that is focused on working with women entrepreneurs to really help them build a business that they really want, and where Tonya is the MOO (Marketing and Operations Officer, which definitely deserves spelling out).

Connect with Gwen on LinkedIn, and find Tonya at LinkedIn too — they’re both always happy to talk shop with fellow podcasters and business owners.