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The Secret Sauce Podcast
Helping people build big businesses & live big lives - one ingredient at a time. That's our mission. Welcome to the Secret Sauce Podcast.
The Secret Sauce Podcast
Why Even Taylor Swift’s Haters Should Be Taking Notes
Love her or hate her, Taylor Swift has built one of the most powerful brands on the planet. Ignoring her playbook might be the biggest mistake entrepreneurs and creators can make.
In this episode, we break down why Taylor Swift is not just a pop star. She is a master strategist. From billion dollar album launches to Easter egg marketing, reinvention, fan engagement, and protecting her energy, every move is a case study in business and branding.
Even if you do not listen to her music, you will walk away with lessons on:
Building a loyal fan base (your client community)
Reinventing yourself and staying relevant in any industry
Protecting your energy so you can perform at your best
Using storytelling as the ultimate marketing superpower
Why boldness, like Travis Kelce shooting his shot, changes everything
If you are serious about growing your brand, marketing smarter, and creating raving fans, do not miss this one.
#TaylorSwift #Marketing #BrandStrategy #Entrepreneurship #Storytelling #BusinessLessons #TaylorSwiftMarketing #TaylorSwiftBusiness
Whether you're a Swifty, a Chiefs fan, or maybe you just can't stand either. One of them, taylor and Travis, just taught us a valuable lesson that fortune favors the bold, and I think that in business and in life in general, that's a reminder that all of us need.
Lacey:We can all learn from it.
Chad:That's right. This is the Secret Sauce Podcast with Chad Treece and Lacey Moores, where we want to help people build big businesses and live big lives. We think every episode is going to maybe give you one ingredient that you can add to your recipe to create your own secret sauce. Let's get into it. Okay, this is an exciting one. It's, you know, in Kansas city, especially huge news. We're filming this just days after the engagement of Taylor and Travis was dropped. Uh, I know you feel really one way back.
Lacey:They got engaged in Lee summit summit, which is where my office is, where I live.
Chad:I mean it's Kansas city in general, Like we have a lot of pride in Travis and Taylor. Uh, whether you do love them or hate them, they are super polarizing and what I wanted to do is put an episode together, because I think there are huge business and life lessons that everybody can learn If you just set your polarizing view one way or the other aside and just look at them from literally their master class in business and marketing expertise.
Lacey:Just yeah, open your mind, like listen to some of this, because I you know, I agree, I think in Kansas city it's funny, but people are one way or the other. You know, they're either a big cheese fan and they don't like that Swifty has been in football, or vice versa. Screw that too, though.
Chad:Like I have a daughter who adores Taylor Swift. She's nine years old, right, and she will actually watch Chiefs games. I could never get her to watch a game before and now she's interested. There are girls all over the world who are now interested in football because of Taylor Swift. Like the NFL should literally be paying her millions of dollars, but I know that's why there's a lot of toxic masculinity that is very mad about Taylor being involved in anything being shown on broadcast and I would say open your mind a little shut it.
Lacey:You would say shut it I would just say open your mind a little bit, like listen to this, um, listen to this episode, like go with us through this and come with an open mind because there's so much, like you said, and I love it, because Chad gets pretty fired up about this. I'm wearing my you know I'm wearing my.
Chad:You know I'm wearing I got to get a new one. This is my Taylor go, taylor's boyfriend sweatshirt. I did have. I do have the Travis's Jersey I'm I'm to be fair, I've been a Travis Kelsey fan for a long time.
Lacey:Um I am a big.
Chad:I don't think I can call myself a Swifty. I used to. Then I realized just how crazed her fans are Like. They are so obsessed. I like huge respect, mad, mad respect for Taylor Swift. I do really, really enjoy her music. I think she's a generational talent. I will argue with anybody till they're blue in the face that they like she writes her own music.
Lacey:That's cool. I mean, not many do that anymore, right, and she's just been a leader through and through.
Chad:Every album is just banger after banger. Like she is amazing, whether you like her or hate her. Um, but I'm I would like to call myself a swifty I.
Lacey:I missed the opportunity when I think we'll call you a swifty yeah, yeah, I mean, I'm wearing this sweatshirt.
Chad:I feel like. I feel like they would adopt me. That's the thing. Is that taylor's fan base is so amazing too, is that like they love to celebrate people, like there's no hate there, so I don't think I would get thrown out of certain groups if I tried to like call myself one of them. I feel I feel like swifties would adopt me.
Lacey:Um I think you're in already.
Chad:Yeah, I'm like really upset, we didn't. I really want to take my daughter to the heiress tour. I missed it and I will forever live with that decision. Um, so now, hopefully she's going to be going on tour again soon, yeah, with this new album dropping, but, um, there are huge business lessons here. So let's talk about the engagement first.
Lacey:Like right away, um well, let's take it back for a second. So let's take it back, even back in the very beginning, when Travis started just talking I mean outwardly on social media that she, he was interested in Taylor, and how how many people were like good luck buddy, good luck dude. No way, no way, like it was everywhere. There ain't no way, dude, it ain't going to happen. Tell the story, though, about what he did.
Chad:But Travis is, um, yeah, so I mean, I think the story is definitely out there. But you know, for anybody who doesn't know, you know he uh decided he was going to put his number on, uh, a friendship bracelet like that they give out at all. You know, they traded all the concerts and everything and he wanted to get it to her while she was playing Arrowhead during the heiis tour and he went to the concert. Like he does it, like he is a Swift fan. First he was a Swift fan, he enjoyed her music and but did want to shoot his shot with her Like he. He wanted to throw it out there that she should, she should, yeah, that he was interested in her and she did the message and not get to her.
Chad:The. The friendship bracelet never made its way to her, um, but then they were talking about it on his podcast and his camp and her camp, like it finally got to her and she was like really like, wow, like the, the fact that he took the time, that he was bold enough to take that action, made her interested enough enough that then he said like hey, I did go watch you rock it at Arrowhead. I think you should come check out me rocking it at Arrowhead and she was interested enough to then say OK, well, and then they dated quietly for two weeks. Leading up to that Everybody thought that when she went to the game for the longest time, people thought when she went to the game, that was like their first date she went to the game for the longest time.
Chad:People thought when she went to the game it was the first, that that was like their first date and, um, she's made it clear now like she would never be that stupid. For that to be their first interaction would be a blind like, not a blind date, but you know her going to a chiefs game. So I think it's really cool though they were able to keep that like huge. Like she's in the limelight everywhere she goes she can't stay out of like she would love'd love to be more private, but somehow they were able to keep that private. They dated for a couple weeks leading up to that. I just think their story is amazing. I love, love, yep. But the message or the lesson there that we all need to learn from is what if Travis would have listened to everybody being like, yeah right, buddy, no chance.
Lacey:Listen to everybody, right.
Chad:Or got in his own head, which we all do. We listen to our, we listen to the little voice in our own head. That's like dude, get, get real. Like you shouldn't call that realtor that realtors. You shouldn't call that builder, you shouldn't have a chance. You shouldn't ask out that person, whatever it is. We convince ourselves that we're not worthy of that, and the lesson there is fortune favors the bold right. It's so good and think about-.
Chad:We all need that reminder. We all need that reminder. What if we all live just a little bit more boldly? What would our lives look like? What does our future look like, if we just choose boldness over vanilla, over letting people talk us out of things, letting ourselves talk us out of things, right, and so, like, let's learn from this. Like the world is forever changed. Their lives are certainly forever changed, and we're all of us now celebrating this. Uh, like, really, really amazing love story, right? But it all started with a bold move and had he not do that, the butterfly effect of that is they would not even have met by now.
Lacey:Right right.
Chad:None of this happens and there's a butterfly effect to every decision that we make. Why not make bold decisions? What's the worst that could have happened? If you know, travis chose to do that and she wasn't interested. What was the worst?
Lacey:He'd be right where he was, yeah.
Chad:I mean, yeah, like he'd been a little sad about it. He was going to go play football, you know, the next Sunday and move on with his life. His life wasn't going to change for the worse because of it, but it sure has improved for the better. I think it's super cool watching the kingdom Now, the documentary that's out to like seeing his teammates react, in that they were like interviewing it. It's like there's one with Chris Jones, who I just think he's like a kid on camera every time you see him, and one with Chris Jones, who I just think he's like a kid on camera every time you see him, and yep, and he was like they're looking around the locker room. He's like I think Travis just pulled Taylor Swift man. It was like so funny to see these huge grown men talking about love too, like, and being like like excited about their teammate, you know, falling in love with her going going after something that yeah yeah, it's, it is a huge life lesson choose boldness.
Chad:That's just one, though. When I started diving into this and actually, like I love diving into founders, and like founders of huge companies elon musk, steve jobs, you name it and like I study them because there are massive business lessons there, uh, and like you know, success leaves clues right. So, like I study the biographies of these people, I study the moves they make, the quotes that they say, anybody that doesn't think that Taylor Swift is a business genius is dead wrong. I truly believe, if they're not doing it right now, there will be Harvard Business School classes on Taylor Swift's business and marketing acumen someday.
Chad:It is a masterclass, and if there's not anybody willing to teach that, I will teach that. I nominate myself to teach that because there are so many business and marketing lessons that we can all learn from that, whether you love her or hate her.
Lacey:Yeah Well, even you know. Learn from that, whether you love her or hate her. Yeah Well, even you know. You know she just did the podcast um with Travis and man, some of the I just I like spend some time in some of just the the microphone drop comments that she made and I mean we could just do one chat, we could do one, yeah, yeah, I posted it at the other as soon as I saw it. The energy one the energy one let's.
Lacey:Let's read that, that one, because it's so good. She said you should think of your energy as if it's expensive, as if it's like a luxury item. Not everyone can afford it.
Chad:Mic drop Definitely. We just don't even have to say anything else after that. Not everyone can afford. It is such an amazing thing. We worry about what people think of us. We worry about.
Lacey:We spend so much time thinking and worrying yeah, and anybody. They can't afford it.
Chad:You know how many superstars really care about that stuff Most of them Right and to see her on the biggest stage in the limelight and she does not pay any attention. It does not drive her decisions. She is monomaniacally focused on her career and now love. But like she is, she has built a huge, huge business. She's a billionaire and she has built a massive business and that business is herself.
Lacey:Yep. Well, she protects her energy, she protects it, she guards her mind, like she's put things in place to lead with clarity and like what she needs to do. But not just doing those things, but now sharing.
Chad:Yep.
Lacey:Now being a leader, right, and stepping up and saying some of those things. Another thing that she said was anything you feed your brain, it will internalize. Anything you feed the internet, it will kill. Yeah, like it's there's just just there's so much truth and and for her to step up and say things like that, like it's there's wisdom.
Chad:There's that, like people think that she's just some dumb singer, she is brilliant, uh, and she has, she's studied. You can tell that like she's polished, but she has taken time to develop this way of thinking um that she is.
Lacey:She's not a mindless singer like a lot of people all while creating songs, and but, like, if you really stop and think about, like, how huge and all the stuff that she does at the highest level it is, it is just, you know, extremely, um, inspirational, but just mind blowing.
Chad:I mean literally every album alone is like a billion dollar case study in branding. If you look at every album she's ever dropped, like the things that she does, the Easter eggs that she puts in marketing and in the lyrics, the way that she then pulls her fans in, like it is.
Lacey:Let's talk about that.
Chad:You want to talk about it how?
Lacey:she pulls her fans in, like well, you already like it is, let's talk about that. You want to talk about it? How she pulls her fans in, Like well, you already said it earlier. Just, I mean loyal her brand. You know, we, we, we do. We talk about brand all the time Chad and our, our podcast here but her brand, how loyal her people are like well, to be fair, like, yes, does she put out great music?
Chad:I sure think so, um, but there's also there's reasons that her fans, like, are crazy. It's like cult level, uh, following, uh. But they love her and there's a reason for it because she interacts with them, right, she is a absolute master of storytelling and people engage with that. We've talked about storytelling. We've done episodes on storytelling. It is a superpower. She is a. She is like the superhero of superheroes of storytelling. She does it through her marketing and through her songs. Obviously, she when writing her own music. That's such a gifted storyteller, just there. But she pulls her fans in to engage with her as a storyteller. And then brand consistency Like we just did an episode about building your brand DNA again, masterclass in brand consistency, taylor. Um, you know her brand. It's an empire built around storytelling, but it's her brand identity is transparent, like. What I think of is transparency, emotional honesty, reinvention, constant reinvention. Every episode, every album. She's reinventing herself and then I think some people look at that and they're like you know, is that is she just like? Is this is fake?
Chad:Like oh now there's something else. No, I think that's. I think that's the beauty of the human experience is that we're constantly evolving, like we need to be reinventing ourselves. We we need to be thinking how do we make? Okay, that's.
Lacey:And stop shaming people who are like, open your mind and like that takes so much.
Chad:Every chapter, right, is like okay, that chapter is one, that was great, but let's, what's the next chapter hold? Like she is going out there putting out all these new albums and each one again is seriously, uh, what a master class in in marketing and branding. Um, she does it so well, uh, and it's calculated but it's consistent. Her messaging still is consistent across albums, but she reinvents herself for each album just a little bit right and you mentioned it earlier, and so I think we'll say you didn't mention it here.
Chad:You mentioned it off, uh, off the air. Think we'll say it. You didn't mention it here. You mentioned it off, uh, off the air to me. But um one thing, you're a huge country fan and I think you're a little conflicted because she started as a country.
Lacey:No, you asked me what you like. You're not really a Swifty and I said I'm not my. My sister is my nieces, um, and he, you asked me why not? And I said, well, honestly, I don't have anything against Taylor, I just don't listen to her music anymore. I listen to it all the time when she was country and she left country and I just I just don't anymore, and it's not nothing negative. But you made the mention that that you know that move kind of explain the story of why she moved out of country. I had, I didn't even know that story.
Chad:I mean, I think she was the. There's been a bunch of people.
Lacey:How many people have gone from?
Chad:country to mainstream, quite a few cents, right, um, but she was one of the one of the first to do that and, uh, I think she didn't feel fully. I I am not an expert in this, uh, in this part of it, but my understanding is that she didn't feel fully embraced by the country music industry as a whole. There was some barriers there that she felt like she wasn't going to be able to maybe overcome, based off of the stigmas and stuff like that, and she didn't feel fully embraced, I think, by that industry. Taylor, if you're listening to this and I'm wrong, please call me out. Yeah, I'll. If you're listening to this and I'm wrong, please call you, call me out. Yeah, I'll, uh, I'll get you my, I'll get you.
Lacey:I'll get you my number.
Chad:I'll have your uh people get with with our show people yeah. Your camp can get with our camp and we'll figure. I mean, we're here in Kent city, so you know we're at.
Chad:Shawnee, we're at Shawnee mission parkway in Lamar. You can come down and we'll have you on the podcast sometime because you're just a few miles away. Um, but I think I I understand where you're coming from, but I think also, like if you look at that from a different lens, is that that that reinvention is like okay, like that was a chapter in her life, but that doesn't define who she is. She doesn't have to be just country Right and then she's gone on to become well, what if she would have?
Lacey:what if she would have conformed and just stayed at what, whatever the country, industry wanted her to be? Yeah, then she would have never found all of this right and and and done everything she's done. I mean maybe she would have, but like at the level. So, you know, I think it's very impressive to you know, like step outside of that and go after. Like we keep saying, shoot your shot right, like go for it. And when you have limitations or when you have people telling you you can't go for it. And I mean I can think back on a much smaller scale, but things with me and my business that I was told I shouldn't do this or I couldn't do this, and it was the biggest fuel that pushed me forward, you know, to prove. So I admire that. Um, I think it's. I think it's like the story itself even if you're not a Swifty is so mind blowing and so incredible.
Chad:Yeah, when you just said it, like she shot. Her shot many times over her career and I hadn't even thought about that. We opened with. You know the butterfly effect of Travis shooting his shot. But you know that's probably one of the things that really attracted her to him is that she's been shooting her shot her entire career. She's been breaking the mold her entire career and then to see somebody be willing to do that you know, be vulnerable and do that for her.
Lacey:I'm sure is probably why she ended up picking up that phone Right.
Chad:So, yeah, I love it. So another thing that I put. So I was just trying to bullet point out some things that I've seen as I've studied now her career, business wise, Um, the reinvention is as a business and life strategy, like it keeps her relevant and newsworthy. Um, and we all need to look at that. Like we've all had chapters where we've been on top in this industry and if we don't continually see, okay, what's going on with the industry now, how can I maybe get out in front of this change? How can I break the mold a little bit? You get really stuck and all of a sudden you are behind the curve right, she makes the curve.
Chad:So I think we all can learn for that Like, get out there, make that Cause. Like, if you don't, you don't have to follow in anybody else's footsteps. Go create your own path, reinvent yourself, and I I think that's a huge life lesson. Um, her fan engagement and community building Uh, if you look at that, it's something that, as business owners, everybody should be doing. How do you then to your fan base? Is your database? Is your like the people that you that hopefully know, like and trust you, or they've done business with you before? Right, what are you actually doing with them? The way she engages with them and brings them in, they adore her for it Well you.
Chad:What can we learn from that?
Lacey:Right.
Chad:Right, yeah, she's got that cult level fan base because of the way that she does pull them all in. So think about in our marketing every day, what little things can we take from that and start doing. How do we pull our customers back in? How do we create some Easter eggs? So, like, how do we? I think about it with like when people close alone with us, they, we give them the signs behind you the big version of it but the little smaller, like Kansas city Western auto sign. Like how stupid it is of me that I've never taken the time now to be like hey, show us where this is in your house and we'll do a giveaway. And like pull people back in. Right, look at for opportunities to continually pull your people back in, not just when they are ready to buy a house or anything but just in life in general.
Chad:How do you?
Lacey:keep them checked in. You said that she interacts. You know what I mean. She's constantly interacting with her following, Like it's, and that's what makes them so drawn.
Chad:Yeah.
Lacey:They can't wait for her to do it again.
Chad:And I think one thing that I really yeah, they can't wait for her to do it again. And I think one thing that I really and like, maybe we leave it here. I don't want to go completely overboard, Cause I think I could go on an hour plus diatribe with you're going to teach the Harvard class.
Chad:I know, yeah, um, I think the her obsession with the creative process, so like, from writing her songs to the reinvention, to all the little things she does, that I mean even just her, her going on the pod, the new heights podcast, the way in which she did that and had little Easter eggs in the background and then released the album, like that, the creative process that she went through to figure out okay, how am I going to make this title and tie it all in and do it on a football podcast, of all things, which is a little tongue in cheek with all the football fans that don't want to see her as much.
Chad:And I just I'm obsessed with her obsession with the creative process and I think that's why I love this podcast. Like we're not trying to become professional podcasters, right, like I never envisioned that with this, but I geek out and I'm obsessed with the creative process of figuring out how do we bring some value to people, how do we make this interesting, how do I put a thumbnail on the YouTube video? Like I don't know anything about this, but I've become obsessed with learning it and there's so much power in that. Like to be obsessed with a creative process in something is it fuels you energy wise?
Lacey:Yeah, it lights you up.
Chad:So like find that whatever it is that gets you going. Find wise. Yeah, it lights you up, yeah. So, like, find that, whatever it is Get you going that gets you going. Find something that can pull your creative process out. Like that you can be obsessed with creating something or the creative act of something.
Chad:You are living life on fire when you're doing that and there's a reason why she is in the zone, why she is like people are just drawn to her, because she is obsessed with the creative process and that is fueling her fire. And when, when people are living their life by design and doing everything that lights them up, you are automatically people are drawn to it, right? So, um, fine, if you have not found that thing, take inspiration from Taylor in that Um, and, at the very least, honor that like that creative process is so, um, freeing.
Chad:Uh yeah, exactly so, Taylor. Thanks for all of the inspiration. I will like I'm going to end with a quick story. Um, I I've I met Travis Kelsey right at the very beginning of his career. He I'm going to end with a quick story. Um, I I've I met Travis Kelsey right at the very beginning of his career. He, I'm sure, probably does not remember this, uh, but he may remember the actual setup of it. He won't remember me, I'm sure, in this, but, um, he was just coming off his rookie season, Right, and um, he was pretty cocky back then, Um, but always knew that he he belonged, he always knew he was, he had something special, but he's always also been very available for family, Like he's very people love him, His teammates love him. He is not, uh, he is big and boisterous and everything but with this like playfulness, Right, and I remember meeting him.
Chad:Um, we this was, I mean, it was just pushing 15 years ago, somewhere between 10, 15 years ago Uh, we were at the big 12 tournament downtown at power and light and, uh, me and my friends used to this was my single era, Um and we used to party pretty hard for the big 12 tournament and we, um had a friend who had a connection at McFadden's and we had this little roped off area like velvet rope roped off area where everybody else is like squeezing in to get drinks. And we had this like roped off area and Travis comes walking into McFadden's and he's just drawn to the velvet rope. I think he's kind of like, well, that must be for me, Right? And uh, so there's a small group of us hanging out and he comes over and he's like, hey, man, is this for me? Uh, kind of joking around, obviously, but uh, he didn't want to stand there and it'd be shoulder to shoulder with people having to wait for a beer.
Chad:And of course we invited him in and um, spent a couple hours with him that day, just like learning more about him. He was sharing old stories from, uh, you know, his college days and then getting drafted, and like he was super just on the level, not trying to throw his weight around, Like he waited for us to invite him back there and then just hung out with us. And it was just one of the guys and I've always remembered that. It's why I buy his Jersey over anybody else, Because because, again, like Taylor, he is relatable, he is a genuine good dude.
Chad:No matter his ego, whatever His ego is not over the top. He knows that he is great, but you have to If you're going to play at that level. You've got to know and I think we all can learn from that too Like, yes, we got to keep our ego in check but at the same time, be relatable to people, but know your power, know your superpower and lean into it. Like he understands how great he is at things but also is an everyday dude, and I think that's a masterclass and how we should all live life.
Lacey:So love it I think we could leave it with that. I think it was wrapped it up. That was good.
Chad:Yeah, well, they're both invited on the podcast anytime. So I'm welcome. I'll go on the new heights sometime too. I mean I think I have time. But um, all right, guys, thanks for listening. Thanks for uh. Hopefully, you know, I didn't annoy you too much with all my Taylor Swift um adoration. But uh, let's learn some lessons here. That's all. That's all I'm saying. Love her, love them or hate them. Let's learn some lessons. And, um, yeah, we'll be back in a couple of weeks to talk more about Travis and Taylor.
Lacey:Thanks guys.
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