Ian Truscott is a techie turned CMO and while he says he’s no rockstar, in this weekly podcast he chats to the true rockstars, his fabulous guests and chums, to share a wide range of practical experience and advice that they call marketing street knowledge. 

The Rockstar CMO F’in’ Marketing Podcast – or “Rockstar CMO FM” for short – launched in 2020; Ian has released 300 episodes, including various special eps.

What inspired your podcast? How has it evolved over the years?

It was a lockdown project, motivated by two things, the first was to keep networking and chatting with people – and the second was that, having experimented with podcasting about 10 years ago, I wanted to give it another shot, as a marketer I like to experiment and learn by doing it – and it just seems to have stuck. 

If you have more than one podcast, tell us about the others…

I just have the one stream, but I am currently experimenting with two shows, a virtual bar concept with my chum Robert Rose that we call the Rose & Rockstar which we publish on Saturdays, and the Rockstar CMO Studio, that I do with my other regular guests that we publish on Wednesdays

What do you know now that you wish you knew when you started your first podcast?

On the technical side, during the first five or ten shows, I learned a lot about audio quality, the right kit to use, and the software tools that dramatically improved the quality – I wish I’d come out of the gate with that. Especially when I had more guests and it was hard to encourage them to use a good mic or headphones – but of course, today, the tools for cleaning up audio are amazing!

I was probably a bit naive about the amount of time all the bits outside the actual podcast recording would take, including guest booking, preparation, production, and promotion.  

I’d also recommend being very clear about what your goals are for the podcast, as I mentioned, I drifted into this, so while I have consistently published pretty much every week for 5 years and around 300 episodes, the reason to do it has evolved, and it would have been easier to fit into my life and work, if I had a clear vision from the start. 

What are your long-term podcast goals?

That’s an interesting question, as many podcasts die after a short time. I think just being around long-term and being relevant to an audience that sustains my desire to continue to do it is a good goal to have – and the audience decides that. 

So, I guess my long term goal would be to continue creating something that has both educational and entertainment value for me and the audience. 

What is your podcast signoff?

Sometimes I use a line from the Dewey Finn character in the film The School of Rock: “You can’t just say it, man. You’ve gotta feel it in your blood and guts! If you wanna rock…”

Share a fun fact about yourself or unique hobby.

I live in the UK, but I have a left-hand drive Ford Mustang that I imported when we moved back after living in the US. 

Subscribe to Ian’s Rockstar CMO FM podcast: https://rockstarcmo.com.

Connect with Ian on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/iantruscott/