{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/666caba932663000122c4dbf/68502ef7643970a4229dd446?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"#75 How to build real authority in 2025","description":"<p>In this episode, I sit down with Sam Winsbury, founder of Kurogo, a leading personal branding agency working with founders and CEOs. Sam shares how he built Kurogo from a solo freelancing gig into a 15-person team generating 30–50 inbound leads a month through content.</p><p><br></p><p>We cover:</p><p><br></p><p>• Why personal branding is still underrated in B2B</p><p>• How Sam landed his first clients and scaled his offer</p><p>• What positioning actually means, and why most founders skip it</p><p>• The pricing lessons that took Kurogo from £500 retainers to revenue-share deals</p><p>• Hiring mistakes, growth pains, and why a big team isn’t always better</p><p>• How he manages a fully remote team across 3 continents</p><p>• What’s next for personal branding: podcasts, newsletters, and real authority</p><p>• Behind the scenes of launching his new podcast, Success Clues</p><p><br></p><p>Whether you’re building an agency, growing your personal brand, or thinking about how to stay relevant as content gets more competitive, this episode is packed with practical insights.</p><p><br></p><p><strong>Sam: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><a href=\"https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-g-winsbury/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">LinkedIn</a></p><p><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/@samgwinsbury\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">YouTube</a></p><p><br></p><p><strong>Kurogo: </strong></p><p><br></p><p><a href=\"https://www.kurogo.co.uk/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Website</a></p><p><br></p><p><strong>Follow Me:</strong>&nbsp;</p><p><br></p><p><a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/@AnotherExcusePodcast\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">YouTube</a></p><p><a href=\"https://anotherexcuse.beehiiv.com/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Newsletter&nbsp;</a></p><p><a href=\"https://www.linkedin.com/in/byrongrealy/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">LinkedIn&nbsp;</a></p><p><a href=\"https://www.instagram.com/anotherexcusepod/\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Instagram</a></p><p><a href=\"https://x.com/ByronGrealy\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Twitter</a></p><p><a href=\"https://www.tiktok.com/@another_excuse\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">TikTok</a></p><p><br></p><p>Timestamps</p><p>00:00 – Intro</p><p>01:17 – What Kurogo does</p><p>02:03 – The story behind the name</p><p>03:11 – Why Sam skipped the 9-to-5</p><p>06:16 – From ghostwriting to full-service</p><p>08:38 – How his pricing strategy evolved</p><p>10:04 – When the business started taking off</p><p>11:17 – Early lessons from LinkedIn</p><p>13:37 – ROI from personal branding</p><p>15:13 – Downsizing, AI, and staying lean</p><p>16:40 – Building systems while scaling</p><p>19:13 – Learning from clients</p><p>21:43 – Remote culture &amp; team dynamics</p><p>23:30 – Sam’s current role in the business</p><p>25:12 – Where personal branding is heading</p><p>27:18 – What’s still hard at this stage</p><p>29:28 – Sam’s personal content process</p><p>31:38 – Launching the Success Clues podcast</p><p>34:55 – Why I started my own podcast</p><p>38:02 – Owning your audience</p><p>39:51 – Hardest moment as a founder</p><p>42:25 – Identity shifts and self-belief</p><p>48:38 – What he’s building with Kurogo</p><p>50:01 – What he’d do differently</p><p>51:19 – Why most middle management is useless</p><p>52:14 – Final questions</p>","author_name":"Byron Grealy"}