In this solo episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes breaks down how service businesses can grow to $1 million in annual revenue. Drawing from his experience building and acquiring seven-figure agencies, Karl explains how to calculate the client base and pricing needed to reach the milestone, find service-market fit through customer conversations, and focus on a narrow beachhead market. He also covers referrals, demand capture, pricing for healthy margins, identifying operational bottlenecks

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Robert Tuchman of Amaze Media Labs and Audience Lift, and Adam Hendricks of The Podcast Consultant, about what it takes to grow a podcast. They discuss who should start a podcast, why audience quality can matter more than raw download numbers, and the role of consistency, strong audio, compelling content, and host enthusiasm in organic growth. Robert explains the paid promotion options available to podcasters, including contextually

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Rachael King, founder and CEO of Pod People, about building a podcast production company over nearly a decade. Rachael shares how her background in social media and PR led her to podcasting, why audio is such an effective medium for building trust, and how Pod People grew steadily as a bootstrapped agency. They discuss creative excellence, paid podcast promotion, building the right leadership team, managing client concentration and

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Jeff Large, founder of Come Alive Creative, about his path from teaching middle school to building a podcast-focused agency. Jeff explains how his company evolved from web development into audio production, why podcasts can create unusually strong trust and engagement, and how businesses can use audio to support authority, sales, education, and client relationships. They also discuss choosing the right clients, the founder’s role in

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes speaks with Dr. Jeremy Weisz about using podcasting to build relationships, strengthen trust, and create business opportunities. Jeremy shares how his path from chiropractic to podcasting led to lasting professional relationships and eventually to building Rise25. They discuss why guest relationships can matter more than download numbers, how podcasts can shorten sales cycles, and ways businesses can use interviews to strengthen referral and st

In this episode of Retained Trust, host Karl Hughes welcomes back his business partner, Manuel Weiss, for a personal and business update. Manuel shares his move from Vienna back to the U.S., while he and Karl explain why they are shifting their attention toward the podcasting industry. They discuss stepping back from Draft.dev, acquiring Sundial Media and Rise25, and their approach to integrating teams while preserving brands that serve distinct parts of the market. Karl and Manuel also examine