Heroes Media Group Founder and CEO Adam Bird is our featured Veteran Entrepreneur for this episode.  Adam founded Heroes Media Group (A digital media branding and publishing company) to give a voice to our community heroes and those who support them.

Adam Bird, Founder & CEO - Heroes Media Group

Adam enlisted in the Army National Guard after high school. His entry into communications and media was by accident; he “cut his teeth” in radio at KFNX in Phoenix and then began podcasting.

Originally, Heroes Media Group was to be the communications arm for a non-profit called The Heroes Alliance Network for the Dutiful but it grew to take on a life of its own. Adam expanded the content of Heroes Media Group beyond the military to include other community heroes like law enforcement, first responders, teachers and clergy.

We spend some time talking about entrepreneurship and how this path is not for everyone. It can be a grind and one truly MUST have a passion for what they do.

One of the services Heroes Media Group offers is podcast production and hosting. Nielson estimates there are over 700,000 podcasts in the US with more being added every week. “Pod-fade” affects many of these endeavors, with the majority of podcasts not making it past 7 episodes. We spend some time discussing the podcast phenomenon and Adam’s suggestions for persons considering breaking into this communication medium including monetization options and ways to diversity the message. One of Adam’s clients is transcribing elements of their podcast and converting it to a coffee table book. Adam’s bottom line advice; “If your heart’s not in it, you will go nowhere very quickly.”

Content and willingness to adapt the message is key to a successful podcast. Adam asked his “Decision Hour” podcast listeners what THEY wanted to hear and it led to some very different but entertaining episodes.

TAKEAWAY:  “Broadcasting is not a right for us – it’s a privilege. If I can affect just one person’s life it is worth all the time I put into my show.”