IE Business Daily Business news for the Inland Empire.
IE Business Daily caught up with Eugene Valdez recently to discuss his new podcast geared towards providing value to small business owners in the Inland Empire.
Question: So, Gene you have been a friend & supporter of IE Business Daily for many years, how are you doing, what’s new?
Answer: Well, for a while there I wasn’t doing that well. I had a full knee replacement surgery done in February of this year, but I am now fully recovered. The knee issue forced me to temporarily suspend my business activities for 8 months but I am back now with a vengeance
Q: Are you still operating The Loan Doctor & Associates?
A: Yes, I am, but I spend the majority of my time pursuing my passion which is a podcast show called CEO To Rainmaker. Both businesses are headquartered in the Inland Empire.
Q: Why did you start the podcast, how is it doing and why it is a passion?
A: I started the podcast to give something back to the Inland Empire community of small business owners. This small business sector has an exceeding high mortality rate reaching up to 70% for their first 10 years in business. The fix for this mortality rate is ongoing CEO education. A podcast is a convenient, flexible distribution method to disseminate information. You can listen to a podcast when you’re driving, working out or gardening at home.
My podcast content is geared to raising the level of CEO executive skills across many subjects. My podcast shows are free to any IE-based business owner who wants to access the information. My passion is to share all of the business knowledge that I have accumulated over last 50 years with those that need it. It’s the right thing to do. In essence, I am a teacher and business owners are my pupils.
As far as the podcast, it is doing very well but the 8-month knee surgery sabbatical didn’t help, I have some catching up to do. I have around 2500 listeners/followers. I am on all of the major podcast directories including but not limited to Apple, Google, Spotify, Audible and Amazon. I have recorded 67 episodes. I have listeners/ followers in North & South America, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. The shows are short, 30 minutes or less with me as the host or myself and a compelling guest.
Q: Which show topic is the favorite of your listeners?
A: Not surprisingly it is finance, i.e., how & where to access bank loans, reading financial statements, cash flow management, budgeting and establishing Key Performance Indicators, (KPIs). Most of my listeners want to grow their business but don’t really know how to go about it. The first step is figuring out how much capital you need.
Q: What other things can you tell us about your podcast?
A: As best as I can, I try to take care of my own backyard. What I mean by that is that I recruit most of my guest experts that are IE-based B2B service providers. This is good PR and exposure for them. Also, my guests include IE-based successful entrepreneurs who get an opportunity to “tell their story of best practices”. This raises their profile in the Empire as well. So, in summary I am the only podcast based in the IE, that uses the IE community to help other IE-based businesses. Other organizations are taking notice who have come on aboard as corporate sponsors. These include, Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship/California State University, San Bernardino and the Small Business Development Corporation of Orange County & Inland Empire.
On another note, one of my future plans is to have all of my podcasts translated from English to Spanish. The number of small businesses owned and operated by owners whose primary language is Spanish is rising dramatically. This is true not only in the IE but in the U.S. as well. We need this sector to have healthy companies, they employ a lot of people.
Q: This is great news Gene. If any IE-based organization or business would like to give your podcast a try, how would they do this?
A: They can find it three ways, through my website www.ceo2rainmkr.com; through my podcast host link https://ceotorainmaker.buzzsprout.com; or through apple podcasts, search CEO to Rainmaker- Gene Valdez.
Eugene E. Valdez is President and CEO of The Loan Doctor and Associates, Inc., a full-service banking and finance consulting company located in Upland, CA. He can be reached at 909-230-0024.
