From 5% Acceptance Rate to Waiting List: Dave Gulas on Building Trust Through Podcasting | Iron Age Marketing 003

Welcome to Episode 003 Dave Gulas runs a logistics company. Third-party fulfillment, warehousing, transportation - the kind of business you'd never guess could use a podcast. That's exactly why I wanted to talk to him. Dave's the president and co-founder of EZDC 3PL. When he started his founder journey, the biggest help came from conversations with other entrepreneurs going through the same thing. So he thought: what if those conversations were public? The audience benefits, the guest gets exposure, and it creates evergreen content. From idea to first published episode? Less than 30 days. No equipment. No background. Just started. Two years later, his show Beyond Fulfillment is ranked in the top 2% globally with over 200 episodes. He went from a 5% acceptance rate (asking 20 people for every yes) to having a waiting list of 5-10 people weekly asking to be on. Here's what we dig into: The logistics puzzle. In an industry with 10,000+ faceless, nameless three PLs, having the founder out there interviewing successful entrepreneurs and providing value changes everything. When your clients are trusting you with their entire inventory - their livelihood - that visibility builds credibility before you ever have a sales conversation. The digital handshake. People know, like, and trust you before you've done any work. That parasocial relationship puts you three steps ahead in sales because the trust is already built. Broad beats narrow. Dave interviews founders across all industries - pre-launch to multiple exits. The best business lessons often come from industries you'd never expect. You don't have to be in the same space to learn something valuable. The bond of storytelling. Everyone wants to be heard. When guests share their journey - the dark nights, the failures, the pivots - something happens. Dave's had guests tell stories they've never shared on any other podcast. That creates a friendship that lasts beyond the episode. Celebrate your own progress. One of the best lessons from 200+ conversations: don't compare yourself to someone 20 steps ahead on social media. Stories of people going to the depths of despair and coming back through perseverance and resilience - those hit different than Instagram highlights. The messenger matters as much as the message. Clichés are clichés because they're true. But 30 people can tell you the same thing, and only one will make it stick because that's the person you resonate with. What stuck with me: Dave's the last person you'd expect to start a podcast. No knowledge, no equipment, no background. Just started. Kept doing it. The world's a mucky place sometimes. Podcasting builds relationships that leave you walking away thinking "that was an awesome person, my life is enriched for knowing them." That positivity compounds. Want to check out what Dave's doing? Beyond Fulfillment is available everywhere podcasts live. Website Referenced:

• Beyond Fulfillment Podcast & EZDC 3PL @ https://davegulas.com/