Dear Listeners & LinkedIn Community,
If you’re reading this – THANK YOU! I’m grateful for all the support that got me here.
This newsletter, just like the podcast episode, is written from the heart. I wanted to share the raw lessons I’ve learned in creating 200 episodes of my Social Media for B2B Growth podcast.
I switched things up for this episode, and my friend, The Podmaster Neal Veglio, interviewed me. The best way I can describe the episode is we covered pretty much every emotion 😂😡🥰🤔😕🥲
If you want all the lessons, it will be well worth your time to listen to or watch the full episode. Some things are just betterto watch or listen to.
Looking Back: “I never imagined I’d be here”
I’m up to my 200th podcast episode, and I never in a billion yearsimagined I’d be that person. Especially when I don’t even listen to podcasts.
The first 100 episodes? I would love to delete them. I had no strategy. No plan. I didn’t even have a clue who I was recording for. But I leave them as a reminder that if I didn’t get started, I wouldn’t be here today.
👉 Lesson – Never skip the planning and strategy. Always be clear why you are doing this and who you are doing it for. You’ll need it when things get tough and nothing seems to be working.
The Moment That I Almost Quit
January 2024, I received a cease and desist letter from LinkedIn. At first, I didn’t think it was real, and then it felt like a gut punch as the gravity of the situation hit.
We had to change the podcast name, the website, every thumbnail that featured a LinkedIn logo, and every article that was linked, or I would lose my entire LinkedIn account. It’s safe to say that it was a scary time and a huge job for Lil and I to get through.
Subsequently, the number of downloads continued to spiral downwards, and nothing I tried seemed to stop them. It was awful to feel helpless, that I couldn’t stop it.
This was the fork in the road moment – quit or give it one last go with help from a podcast expert. Shout out to Neal Veglio. It was his podcasting strategy and expertise that saved the day.
👉 Hard Lesson – I can’t be an expert at everything, and asking for help isn’t a weakness. Sometimes it’s necessary. In this case, I wish I hadn’t left it so long.
Owning My LinkedIn Expertise
The podcast growth strategy we came up with centred around me doing mostly solo episodes. One part of me knew this was the best return on the effort that goes into producing podcasts (six to eight hours per episode), but mostly I was freaked out.
The rawest truth I can share here is that crippling self-doubt kicked in. Recording those first solo episodes, I can vividly recall the thoughts in my mind giving me every reason to pack it all in. I was scared that no one would listen if it was just me and no expert guests.
It turns out I was very, very wrong, and October 2025 set a new download record. 🥳
👉 Extra Hard Lesson – Back myself and learning new things is really uncomfortable. Persistence pays off.
I Don't Do This Alone
It’s important that I acknowledge Liliane Abboud for everything she does to bring this podcast to life, too. Yes, I’m the one you see and hear, but it really is a team effort.
What you don’t see is the hours of work Lil puts into editing episodes, creating social content to promote them, and ensuring everything comes together to bring each episode to life.
Not to mention how much she works to make sure I don’t become my own worst nightmare as the bottleneck for too long, or when she supports me through those moments of crippling self-doubt.
Thanks for being by my side through it all. (If only you appreciated the sound of my voice as much as all the listeners 😂)
Thank you Listeners!
Whether it’s on YouTube or your favourite podcast app, thank you so much for taking the time to listen to what I have to say.
For those of you who have become clients, I appreciate you! I mean it when I say you are always the best clients.
Want to work with me? Book a time here – https://calendly.com/michelle-j-raymond/book-an-intro-call-15mins
Cheers
Michelle J Raymond is the Founder of B2B Growth Co and has made her mark as the world’s leading authority on LinkedIn Company Pages, offering comprehensive strategies and training to brands eager to harness LinkedIn for business growth through thought leadership, content marketing or social selling techniques.
With 20+ years’ experience in B2B sales, and almost a decade of social selling on LinkedIn, Michelle stands out for her significant LinkedIn contributions as the co-author of two globally acclaimed books: “Business Gold,” the first book exclusively dedicated to LinkedIn Company Pages, and “The LinkedIn Branding Book,” and her insightful podcast Social Media for B2B Growth. Follow her YouTube channel @MichelleJRaymond for helpful how to’s.
