Make Money by Doing In Person Podcast Interviews

Summary

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Podcast Summary: Travis Makes Money

Episode: Make Money by Doing In Person Podcast Interviews

Host: Travis Chappell
Date: January 3, 2026

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Main Theme & Purpose

This episode explores the advantages and business opportunities of conducting podcast interviews in person rather than virtually. Travis Chappell, joined by a co-host, shares practical advice and real-world experiences on why in-person interviews lead to better podcast content, deeper connections, a stronger brand presence, and even ways to monetize the experience. The discussion covers logistical considerations, potential downsides, and actionable tips for podcasters aiming to grow their audiences and income.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why In-Person Podcast Interviews Are Superior

• Connection and Content Quality:
  • In-person interviews create a stronger personal connection and naturally lead to richer, more dynamic conversations.
  • Zoom or Riverside interviews often suffer from technical glitches and restricted conversational flow because only one person can be clearly recorded at a time.
    • Travis: “If the question that you’re asking yourself at home...is it worth recording in person versus doing it over Zoom? And the answer is a resounding hell yes.” (02:00)
  • Spontaneity and overlapping dialogue—a hallmark of real-life conversations—are lost online.
• Social Media Performance:
  • In-person content looks and feels more engaging on social platforms; viewers can immediately tell the difference in energy and authenticity.
  • Only shows with significant fame “face recognition” can get away with purely virtual formats without hurting engagement (e.g., “The Kelsey Brothers”, “SmartLess”).
• Flexibility and Flow:
  • Longer, more flexible interviews are easier in person; online, they tend to feel like rigid Zoom meetings with strict cut-offs.
    • “With virtual...Sometimes you have that feeling of, like, it’s a Zoom meeting. It’s done at 11:59.” (13:49, Co-host)

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2. Logistical and Financial Challenges

• Studio Fees and Travel:
  • Booking studios for every in-person interview is expensive and can quickly add up (e.g., $7,000/month for frequent use).
  • Time and effort are required for travel and logistics, which doesn’t always balance with the return unless managed carefully.
    • Travis: “They booked an hour. It’s 27 minutes there, 27 minutes back, some banter before, some after...this just took up my entire afternoon.” (08:53)
• Cost/Benefit Analysis:
  • Sometimes, even if the studio cost is covered by the guest, the time investment isn’t worth it for the podcaster unless there’s additional compensation or value.
  • Travis mentions beginning to charge guests who specifically request in-person interviews to make it worth his while, recognizing the additional value provided (e.g., extra video content).
    • “That’s why now we charge for some of the ‘Travis Makes Money’ interviews in person...if you want me to do extra stuff for you, then we’re gonna charge for this and we’ll make it better.” (10:02)

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3. Hybrid Strategies & Real Examples

• Hybrid Approach for Volume:
  • For large-scale content like ‘Travis Makes Money’ (TMM), it’s practically impossible to do everything in-person due to volume—up to 30 interviews per month.
  • Standard workflow: Do an initial virtual (e.g., “snack-size”) interview, then, if synergy is strong, schedule a longer, deeper in-person session when feasible.
• Upgrading Virtual to In-Person:
  • Virtual interviews can serve as a stepping stone, allowing for a future, more extensive in-person conversation if mutual interest exists.
    • Example: Travis interviewed John Levy virtually, then followed up with a comprehensive in-person session when Levy visited Las Vegas.
      • “We had a great conversation on the 25-minute virtual. So I was just like, hey, when you come to Vegas...we recorded like a 90-minute in-person interview.” (11:26)
• In-Person Studio Dynamics:
  • Studios rarely offer behind-the-scenes (“BTS”) or green room footage, but this could be a valuable service to differentiate content.

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4. Monetizing In-Person Interviews

• Charging for Premium Experiences:
  • If a guest wants the higher-quality, in-person treatment, adding fees is fair—especially if it includes extras like content clipping and social-ready video assets.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On In-Person Energy:

  • “As much as ‘vibes’ is a buzzword that everybody uses all the time now, it is a real thing in person...you get a little bit better energy in the room, a little more creativity, better flow, better questions, better answers.” (14:05, Travis)

• About Managing Expectations:

  • “Just because they were willing to pay for the studio does not mean that it was worth the time it took...in the future, if somebody wants...we’re gonna charge for this.” (09:53, Travis)

• On City Choice for Networking:

  • “There’s so many people that come through Las Vegas, so I can catch them when they’re in transit rather than being in Lancaster, which is a place that nobody comes through ever.” (15:17, Travis)

• Rating the Vibes:

  • [Co-host asks:] “On a scale from 1 to 10, what do you rate the vibes of this conversation?”
  • [Travis:] “Vibes are solid. Seven? Six, six, six, three.” (16:30)
  • [Co-host:] “The vibes just dropped like a four, so let’s go ahead and close out.” (16:44)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• 02:00 – Why in-person is much better than Zoom or Riverside: connection, content quality, and technical/flow limitations of virtual interviews.
• 04:45 – The challenge of social media “split screen” content and its lower performance vs. in-person clips for small brands or shows.
• 05:37 – Logistical hurdles of going fully in-person for high-volume shows; cost and feasibility.
• 08:34 – Real talk: Regret over investing in some in-person interviews due to hidden time/effort cost.
• 10:02 – Introducing paid in-person interviews for guests who specifically want them, and added value (e.g., video packages).
• 11:26 – Example of upgrading virtual conversation to full-fledged in-person session (with John Levy).
• 13:49 – The “Zoom meeting” problem—virtual is, by default, less personal and more rigid.
• 14:05 – The importance of “vibes,” energy, and natural conversational flow in person.
• 15:17 – Why Travis moved to Vegas for in-person guest opportunities.

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Takeaways & Actionable Advice

• If possible, prioritize in-person interviews for better content and stronger relationships.
• Weigh the financial and time costs of doing everything in person; hybrid approaches can work for high-volume podcasters.
• Don’t be afraid to charge for “premium” in-person interview experiences, especially when providing extra value.
• Use virtual interviews as networking footholds for deeper in-person connections down the line.
• Physical location matters—choose a city where guests naturally transit (e.g., Las Vegas) to maximize in-person opportunities.

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Final Thought:
Travis closes by reminding listeners: “Money only solves your money problems. But it’s easier to solve the rest of your problems when you got money in the bank. So let’s solve that one first here on the Travis Makes Money podcast.” (16:47)

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Transcript

[A]

You're listening to the Travis Makes Money podcast, presented by GoHighLevel.com for a free 30 day trial of the best all in one digital marketing software tool on the planet, just go to gohighlevel.com travis. What's going on, everybody? Welcome back to the Travis Makes Money podcast. We are officially back live in studio. Well, I mean, I was always here, but he was gone for like a year. Two years. Are you having a little bit of Superfoods for breakfast in the morning? I'm so. I, for one. I, for one, am thankful that somebody opened up an Ever bowl this close to my home.

[B]

I can't hear you. I was wearing these headphones that aren't plugged into anything.

[A]

That's a strange move.

[B]

And I just realized that I was muffling you.

[A]

Also, thank you to Sesh for sending me a bunch of pucks. I really like this cappuccino flavor. If you like drinking coffee in the morning, a little bit of coffee, a little bit of a cappuccino sesh for creative sessions, writing, podcasting, whatever. It's not too shabby. Although. Warning, this product contains nicotine. Nicotine is an addictive chemical. Just had to get that out. Is addictive.

[B]

But I was. It is funny now how things have changed in RFK's America, where you can run the. You can run the Everbowl ad and then you can do the nicotine ad.

[A]

Yeah. Simultaneously.

[B]

It's like Superfood and then brain.

[A]

They're both for biohacking or something.

[B]

Something like that. Yeah. I mean, I'm eating this delicious Ever bowl because I am in studio with you.

[A]

Yeah. Welcome back to Vegas. Yeah.

[B]

And I gotta ask. We could be doing this on Zoom.

[A]

Yeah, we could be.

[B]

Why are we doing this in person?

[A]

Because you moved back here. Oh, was that. Are you looking for an actual, like, a deeper answer of why that's better idea?

[B]

You're always, like, whining about, like, how do we do it on Zoom? In person is the best.

[A]

Well, in person is the best of topic. And I. Yeah.

[B]

Help.

[A]

Right? No, I'm. I'm. I'm picking up what you're putting down. No, so we've always done. We always did in person. And then you're like, I'm gonna go move to South Carolina. So then when you were there. When you were there, we didn't do much in person. We. To use Zoom, and I had to use a lot of Riverside as well for different interviews and stuff. But if the question that you're asking yourself at home listening to this is should I. Is it worth recording in person versus doing it over Zoom? And the answer is a resounding hell yes. It is absolutely worth doing in person for a couple of reasons. First of all, connection. It's just better for the overall content because the thing about Zoom or some of these other video recording softwares is like, you have a bad Internet connection or the, the tracks only allow one person's audio to come through. So when you're talking and then I say something and then like you, you can only ever hear one person talking at a time. So then the track might just not record for like six seconds and then you don't know what was said. So there's a lot of reasons to not record on Zoom if you can all, if you can help it at all.

[B]

Not to mention Riverside. And let me answer that question that I just asked.

[A]

Okay?

[B]

You know what bothers me about Riverside?

[A]

What?

[B]

Is how dependent you are on the other person's Internet connection. Their angle.

[A]

Yeah, because sometimes you have to sit there and awkwardly small chat or small talk for like, like 10 minutes after the interview.

[B]

They hop off and you have to go, hey, can you reopen this tab? And then basically once you. Nobody knows how to reopen it down.

[A]

That's right.

[B]

They're like, I forgot how my computer works.

[A]

We're just gonna forget the last four minutes of this podcast interview. And then secondly, if you're doing an interview especially interviews are so much better in person. And like half the reason you're doing it is for the connection to the other person. So when you're doing on Zoom, it's just not. You're not gonna get that same sort of, sort of connection. And especially like hanging out in person before, after everything's way better in person. And then lastly, is the content is gonna perform better on social for in person stuff, or at least it doesn't have to be. I was gonna say highly produced, but it doesn't have to be highly produced. Just needs to be look like we did this when we're actually together in person. If you're not like the Kelsey brothers or Smart Lists or some of these other massive shows, they. They can do that because they have this name recognition, face recognition, and people don't care. But if you're trying to grow on social, as you're small business owner, entrepreneur, podcaster, and trying to grow on social, then it's going to be much more difficult if you're doing like Zoom split screens instead of in person clips.

[B]

So let me ask you this. Why did you choose to go, like, fully virtual for TMM For Charles Makes Money, as opposed to everything you do on Charles. Snakes Friends now is. Is in person. Unless it's like. I think literally, unless it's Shaq.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

It's like it's Zoom or not doing an interview.

[A]

Right.

[B]

You're not like, sorry, Shaq.

[A]

Exactly. I'm holding out for Travis Makes Money is just because of the volume game we're playing. Volume on Travis Makes Money, what, By quite a bit. I see you're doing the other volume. Yeah. That's a good one.

[B]

That was actually pretty. That was pretty good. Mike Myers.

[A]

So, yeah, we just are doing so much content over there that it would be almost legit. It would be almost impossible to do it in person, especially when it comes to the interviews. Obviously, now we're doing this portion in person, which we were doing on Zoom before, but especially when it relates. When it. When it comes to the interviews, it would just be like, to get 30 people a month to come through Vegas in studio to sit down. First of all, we'd have to build more of, like, a guest studio here in the home studio, because if I rented a studio for 30 episodes, that would be like $7,000 a month just in studio rental fees. So there's several things that are sort of prohibitive in putting out all of our interviews in person. For Travis Makes Money, but Travis makes friends. It's 100 in person.

[B]

Yeah. Okay. And it is true studio fees stack up because I told you I'm going to Tennessee to do an interview, and I start going. I should just, like, start adding some other people in the mix, and then you start thinking of people, and then you start thinking of, like, okay, it's extra 250 bucks for them. Yeah. Am I going to recoup that? No.

[A]

No.

[B]

Let's grab coffee. You know, it adds up super, super fast, but also, it's just traveling.

[A]

Mic'd up coffee.

[B]

You know, it does make sense, I think. I don't know. I'm asking myself.

[A]

Yeah. I tend to think. My overall philosophy is that if I'm in a city, I. The extra couple hundred bucks to just book the studio and do the interview is. Makes more sense to me.

[B]

And I feel. I do feel like the. The credibility, like, on social, where it's like, I'm going off to Nashville, and I've got four interviews today. Yeah, you're showing people cycle through is pretty cool. We'll see. We'll see what I do.

[A]

Yeah. But the studio fees are not fun. Though.

[B]

No.

[A]

Yeah. It's like a necessary evil.

[B]

I wish. The other thing I was thinking. Now this is off topic, but the other thing I was thinking would be great is if more studios, like, filmed in like the room where you meet the guest, where you'd be like. Because I was thinking, I was like, one of the things I think would be so cool is like when they come in, you're like, hey, what's going on? Like, instead of doing that.

[A]

Oh, if the studio did BTS for.

[B]

You in the green room. Yeah, like my. You know, because I was thinking, I was like, man, I would pay a little bit extra stuff, have that, like.

[A]

Hey, like a floating camera. Yeah.

[B]

But obviously that's a hard thing to like ask, like, Right?

[A]

Well, they're just not. They're not set up for that either. You know, most of them are just like, they have like three cameras sitting on tripods and that's it.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

You know, it's not that they don't. That's a ton of gear sitting around.

[B]

All those business owners are like, no, we're never doing that.

[A]

Yeah, well, but also, like you said, a little bit extra though. Like, that's a. That's a good upsell.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

You set studio owners listening.

[B]

So I got. I gotta ask you this and maybe you don't answer this. Okay, what's the time that you. You did fork out some dough to do an in person conversation and you regretted investing in that?

[A]

You know, there's been several times where that's been the case. I don't feel like welcome to Travis makes enemies. Yeah, no kidding. I am not going to say their name specifically several times, but yeah, there's definitely been.

[B]

Were gonna say there hasn't really been any where I regret there's been.

[A]

There's been a. There's been. Definitely been a couple of times because I There. There was a while where I would just tell people I want, like, especially for Travis makes money. It was just like, I'm doing these virtually. And then they were like, well, what if I come in and pay for the studio space? I'm like, okay, cool, I'll do it in person. But then it was like, I didn't factor in the thought that, well, the studio that they booked is like 27 minutes from my house. So now I gotta like drive over that. I can't do anything for this. It's a three hour block in my calendar now, you know, because like, they want. They booked an hour. It's 27 minutes there. It's 27 minutes back there's some banter before, there's some banter after. It's like, well, this just took up my entire afternoon and I did not intend for that to happen. So just because they were willing to pay for the studio does not mean that it was worth the time that it took to like block off that whole piece of my calendar when I could have just done 25 minutes in over Riverside and done like six other interviews in that, that three hour block. So there's been a couple things like that, but in terms of like the in person connection, it's, it's very, very rare for it to not be better. So it's not like it's, it's not like it's something that I looked at as like, that was a horrible, dreadful use of my time. It was just like, ah, in the future if somebody wants. That's why now we charge for some of the Travis Makes Money interviews in person. Because it's just like a little bit of, a little bit of money to make it worth blocking off this massive block in my calendar here for, for something that's essentially doing them a favor in, in terms of like, they specifically wanting, like they, they, they pitched me to come on my show, I said yes, but they specifically wanted in person. So it's like, okay, well if you want me to do extra stuff for you, then we're gonna charge for this and we'll make it better. You know, the, the content quality will obviously better, will obviously be better. And then on those interviews, the in person interviews I have you like go through and clip more stuff so that they have more stuff. So it turns into almost like a little mini social media video video package rather than just an interview on the podcast. But, but yeah, we've actually, we've actually charged for a few of those recently just to encourage people to just book the Riverside interview.

[B]

You know, I mean, it doesn't make sense for you to do a Riverside interview because like, you don't even live in California anymore.

[A]

That's a Southern California cities joke for those who are listening.

[B]

Okay, here's another one. What's an interview you've done virtually that you. And don't say all of them. What's the interview you've done virtually where you're like, man, I wish I had been in person?

[A]

There's actually several. And one thing that's been kind of unique about this is since I interview so many people for Travis Makes Money, there's been a couple people where we've had the conversation and then it's been like, hey, when are you going to be in Vegas? And I just actually did one of those with a guy named John Levy. He's like a social psychologist and connections expert. Essentially he runs highly experiential events for really interesting people mostly out on the, on the east coast and wrote a couple books about connection and things like that. And then I had him on Travis makes money to talk about his new book. Because the, the new book that he wrote is connection as it relates to like corporate culture and things like that, like how to lead your team effectively and stuff. So it was more of like a Travis makes money type interview. But the more we started talking, the more I was like, I feel like I've. I feel like I read this guy's book like six years ago or something when I first started getting into build your network and or like heard him on Jordan Harbinger or something like that back in the day. And I was like, started doing more research. I was like, nah, I'm pretty sure this is that guy. And we had a great conversation on the 25 minute virtual. So I was just like, hey, when you come to Vegas. And he came out to Vegas a couple weeks ago and we recorded like a 90 minute in person interview on connection. So there's been several like that where it's like, I wish, I wish that this was done. I wish this was in person. But it, it kind of just opens the door as like this was our snack size interview. Now we can do the full meal interview whenever you come through veg, but it allows me to at least like get something on the books now and then punt something in the, in the future to further the connection a little bit more.

[C]

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[B]

Yeah, definitely. Doing the longer interviews is nice too.

[A]

Oh yeah.

[B]

And I feel like you can get away with it more in person. That's kind of why I'm interested to see because this is the first one I've done in person with like someone that's not like a friend where I can go for as long as I want. But I do feel like with virtual. Sometimes you have that feeling of like, it's a Zoom meeting.

[A]

Right. It's. It's done at 11:59. Yeah.

[B]

Right. And I feel like the last several interviews I've done, I'm like, like, man, I could talk to you forever. And you're, like, throwing it out there to see if they're also feeling that way, which is hard to know what's. So I think, yeah, it's hard kind of benefit.

[A]

It's hard when you're in the middle of the interview because, like, when. Before I start interviews for. For a lot of people, I asked that question, right. Like, do you have a hard stop so that, you know, but change their mind?

[B]

I did actually. Did have a hard out.

[A]

Yeah. Halfway through the interview, I just did your intro. Yeah. I actually have to be anywhere else but this. In. In person, it tends to be a little more lenient because there's. It's not as strict because they don't really know exactly. You know, they have something due afterwards. But there's typically a little bit more flexibility on the time there. But like I said, it also just makes for a better. I think the conversation is better because you can. You know, as much as Vibes is like a buzzword that everybody uses all the time now, it is a real thing in person that you can kind of pick up on the vibes and get a little bit better energy in the room, a little more creativity, better flow, better questions, better answers. Again, if you talk over each other, it's like normal conversational flow rather than just definitely. Oh, it is.

[B]

It is. It really?

[A]

Is it?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

What? Yeah, like that. Like, you don't want to do that on Zoom, but that's what happens on Zoom. In person is just regular.

[B]

We didn't go to any improv school or anything.

[A]

Zero.

[B]

We just learned that.

[A]

Yes. And.

[B]

And that's crazy.

[A]

Maybe we should have gone to improv school. I got a gun. Yes. In person, always better if you. If it is within your control at all. Which is one of the reasons I moved to Vegas, actually. When I started the show, it was like. Well, it was like six months after I started. But it was just like, there's so many people that come through Las Vegas, so I can catch them when they're in transit rather than being in Lancaster, which is a place that nobody comes through ever.

[B]

That's true.

[A]

Unless you're Aaron Carter or.

[B]

G. Easy.

[A]

Ah. That he didn't do. He did do Film a music video.

[B]

Because I was like, it's not Aaron Carter.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Geez.

[A]

No, Aaron Carter was a much more Sad story. He OD'd at a house in Lancaster.

[B]

All right, Travis.

[A]

Anyway, we'll find you.

[B]

Yeah, no, I. I just wanted to bring that up. It is our first one back together. It was on my heart, you know.

[A]

Virtual on your heart.

[B]

And I gotta ask you, I know we're a little rusty. We haven't done it in person a minute. On a scale of 1 to 10, what do you rate the vibes of this conversation?

[A]

Vibes are solid. Seven? Six, six, six, three. Maybe six.

[B]

Four. Six. Seven.

[A]

Six, seven.

[B]

Damn, that was so.

[A]

Something like that.

[B]

So great. You deserve that. To me. I know. No improv classes.

[A]

Yeah. Wild.

[B]

Okay, well, the vibes just dropped like a four. So let's go ahead and close out.

[A]

Let's wrap this up. That's it for today's episode. Thanks for tuning in. If you are recording content, try to do as much as you can in person. Get yourself a producer, like this guy over here. Give him a little producer chair in the corner. And the darker and dankier the better for the producer chair. But no, I do appreciate that Eric is back here in person. And if you're listening to this, if you're listening to this episode, remember, money only solves your money problems. But it's easier to solve the rest of your problems when you got money in the bank. So let's solve that one first here on the Travis Makes Money podcast. Thanks for tuning in. Catch you next time. Peace.