Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Alicia Haygood. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alicia, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

Every day you wake up, you make a choice on what that day is going to be like. You set goals/tasks for the day. You plan your day out as much as you can. And then something happens that completely throws you for a loop. Welcome to being a Small Business Owner. Where everyday brings a new set of challenges, risks and decision making responsibilities.

How are you to become successful without taking a risk? Most of the time, when we have to make a big decision, we weight the options. Make a pro/con list. Think about all the things that could happen. When I do this, I have the tendency to think about what could go wrong. I held myself back in life because I focused on “What could go wrong?” rather than “What could go right?!” When you shift your focus to the positive effects of the risk, you realize “Wow! I can do this. And I will do this!” When that mind shift happens, the doors and opportunities start happening.

Alicia, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

At a young age, I fell in love with the news. My idols were Barbara Walters, Diane Sawyer, Elizabeth Vargas. The OG’s of the news business. The pioneer women who worked hard, dealt with hardships I could never imagine (and I’ve had my fair share over the years) and paved the path for little girls like me to have a dream. I’m the lucky one who gets to live out my dream of informing others and teaching them.

I tell people all the time, “I’m gossipy, but in a positive way.” I love being in the know and informing others. Teaching others what is going on excites me. It’s why I thought I would be a teacher in life, until I found my career in TV.

After 12+ years in the news business, from sports production, live international news and TV agency work, I took some off to figure out my next step in life/career. My family and I moved a few times and when we finally settled in Scottsdale I looked at my husband and said ” I MUST get back to the business. I am desperate to connect with my community and bring people together.” That is when I turned to podcasting, the fastest growing medium out there.

I found a local podcast company and reached out to learn more. I bugged the owner until he brought me on as a guest. I wouldn’t leave the studio when my interview was over as I felt at home. This is where I belong, in the studio, informing others. Teaching them what is going on like I’ve done since a little girl.

After working for this company for 1.5 years, I was approached to buy them out and make it my own. Here comes that risk. The one where I wasn’t sure I, Alicia Haygood, could own and operate a media business. Even though all I ever wanted to be was a TV Station Manager. Here was my chance! I can be the “Station Manger” of my own podcast! But, how will I ever do this??! I’m here to tell you, 2 years later and Scottsdale Vibes Podcast ranks in the top 10% of all podcast, in the world. Scottsdale Vibes is the 15% most downloaded podcast in the world. And all because I took a risk, on me.

As the creator of the Scottsdale Vibes Podcast, I get to connect my community with one another. I focus on the people, places and events that are happening in my town. I introduce neighbors to each other. I bring awareness to places and events people may not know about. And I’ve meet people I would never get the opportunity to learn from otherwise. I crave connection. And now I get to bring my passion and love of the Scottsdale community to everyone.

Everyone thinks podcasting is easy. It’s a lot of work. A full-time job to be successful and a team behind me that I wouldn’t want to be without. I have an out going personality that genuinely cares in what you have to say. I love learning from others and sharing what I’ve learned. The more we want to help others, the more we help ourselves.

I put myself out there every day, by being vulnerable and taking risks. For so long I was afraid of being told “no” that I never took the risk to get a “yes”. The “yes’s” don’t happen every day and when I hear a “no”, I figure out a way to make it work.

Success doesn’t happen overnight. And when we want something so bad, we feel like it should happen now, almost. But nothing happens now, I learned early on from my intern boss, “Alicia, you have what it takes to make it. There is no doubt about that. But you need to work on your patience. The more you do and learn from others, the more successful you’ll be. Nothing happens overnight. And if you have that expectation, then you’ll miss out on the opportunities in front of you.”

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Social media is a scary thing. When I started out my career, I purposely chose to work behind the scenes. A place where the outside world couldn’t judge me. And I felt I had a bigger voice and more power if I stayed behind the camera rather than in front. When it was time to find my voice on the mic with the Scottsdale Vibes Podcast, I knew social media was going to have to be a large part of that.

I fought it for a long time. Showing things happening in the city and others enjoying a good time. Still keeping myself behind the scenes. But when I was looking at all the other podcasts on social media and other small business owners out there, everyone was putting together nice reels. Being in front of the camera and letting their audience/customers know who they were and what they stood for. I knew Scottsdale Vibes wasn’t going to grow unless I did the same thing.

This is when I found my amazing social media partner. She’d been in the marketing/social media business as long as I’d been working in TV. I needed to hire someone who I felt comfortable with. Who brought me out of my shell and got me to have fun. It actually took some convincing on my part to get her to work for me. Ha! She knew nothing about podcasting and wasn’t sure how she could help, but once I got her to realize that my podcast was a brand, she saw it in a different light.

Since bringing her on 1 year into my journey, my followers, engagement and community has grown 150%. Social media is a MUST for success. I’m still fighting being in front of the camera but, now I see the path she’s set for Scottsdale Vibes and I’m on board. Creating new content everyday for my listeners and followers. And the reason it’s working! We’re having fun doing it, together, and being authentic. If you’re not having fun, your viewers will see that. Laugh, enjoy, make fun of yourself. Whatever it takes. No social media means little to no growth for your business.  

Let’s move on to buying businesses – can you talk to us about your experience with business acquisitions?

When I first got into podcasting, I found a small local company that operated 4 neighborhood podcasts. I was first brought on as a guest for my neighborhood podcast. Six weeks after that first guest spot, I was co-host, 4 weeks after that I was host. Next thing I knew, I’m running all 4 podcasts and hosting many of them. Over the course of the 1.5 years I worked for them, I took every opportunity and joined every team meeting I could. I wanted to know how everything worked and why. The decisions that went into building the company. How sales worked. You name it, I wanted to know.

After one year, I became the owner’s right-hand woman. Making big decisions with him and influencing the decisions that were made. After 6 months of being his sidekick, he approached me about buying him and his partner out. I laughed so hard at both of them. “What do I know about running a business?” I asked. “Everything!” they told me. They reminded me that in actuality, I had been doing most of the work. I had been making the big suggestions and executing them. I was doing the hiring of hosts and fostering the connections with our sponsors. Why should they keep making money when I’m the one doing all the work? That’s when the light bulb went off, “yeah, why are you making more money than me when I’m doing the work?!” And so, I said YES!

It all goes back to the risk. This was a big risk. I’ve never owned a business. I’m not an accountant and I don’t know how to keep books. I don’t know about social media and how to get a podcast off the ground. What kind of LLC do I need and what should my new company be named? The list goes on and on. Once again, I was focusing on the what could go wrong rather than the what could go right. And once I shifted my focus to all the great things I could do with my own company, I knew this was the path for me.

I made sure I had the right people behind me to guide me. I dived deep into their books and asked questions. I wanted to know about past bad decisions they made to make sure I didn’t make the same ones. I kept my sponsors happy by always telling them what I was doing and never hiding from the truth. I kept the past owners close by to help me and still check in with them today. The truth is, I’ve never done this alone. I pick people who know more than me to be next to me. And I always ask myself, “How will this benefit me and the company?” And when I keep that the focus of my decisions, the outcome seems to be a win for all.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.scottsdalevibes.media
• Instagram: @scottsdalevibespodcast
• Facebook: @scottsdalevibes
• Linkedin: Alicia Haygood
• Youtube: @scottsdalevibes

Image Credits
@dasfotohaus