SUMMARY:

In this deep-dive episode of Homegrown Hustle, host Matt Eichmann sits down with Dr. Mike Porter, Clinical Professor of Marketing at the University of St. Thomas, to unpack the real mechanics of reputation management—beyond buzzwords and surface-level branding.

Drawing from decades of experience in public relations, marketing strategy, and MBA education, Dr. Porter explains why reputation is not what you say—it’s what stakeholders believe, and how businesses of all sizes must strategically manage perceptions across customers, employees, media, competitors, and even regulators.

This episode explores the PESO Model (Paid, Earned, Shared, Owned media), the difference between brand and reputation, how word-of-mouth actually works, why targeting everyone is a losing strategy, and how reputation directly translates into financial goodwill and long-term business value. Essential listening for founders, executives, marketers, and anyone building something that needs trust to scale.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• Reputation is the management of stakeholder perceptions, not marketing slogans

• Brand is what you want people to believe; reputation is what they actually believe

• Every employee influences reputation—not just customer-facing roles

• The PESO Model explains how paid, earned, shared, and owned media must work together

• Word-of-mouth must be earned, engineered, and supported by strategy

• Targeting everyone weakens reputation—focus on high-value stakeholders

• Earned media and third-party credibility outperform self-promotion

• Reputation directly impacts business valuation and goodwill

• Buying a business means inheriting its reputation—good or bad

• Personal reputation compounds over time, especially in tight business ecosystems

CHAPTERS:

00:00 – Welcome to Homegrown Hustle

00:41 – Meet Dr. Mike Porter & His Background

01:22 – What Is Reputation Management?

02:41 – Defining Stakeholders (It’s More Than Customers)

04:12 – The PESO Model Explained (Paid, Earned, Shared, Owned)

06:17 – Employees, Culture, and Internal Reputation

07:02 – Why Word-of-Mouth Is Not a Strategy by Itself

08:16 – Strategy vs. Tactics in Marketing Communication

10:15 – Reputation for New Businesses: You Never Start at Zero

12:24 – Why You Shouldn’t Try to Influence Everyone

13:19 – Traditional PR vs. Influencers and Social Media

15:00 – Credibility, Earned Media, and Third-Party Trust

17:01 – Driving Traffic to Owned Media for Conversion

18:21 – Creating an Environment That Enables Sales

19:52 – Scaling Marketing as Businesses Grow

21:34 – Reputation, Relationships, and Market Dynamics

23:39 – Personal Reputation in Business Communities

25:04 – Buying a Business and Inheriting Reputation

26:15 – Goodwill, Valuation, and Reputation as an Asset

27:19 – Learning From Lost Customers

28:26 – Prioritizing the Stakeholders That Matter Most

29:43 – Brand vs. Reputation (Mic Drop Moment)

30:03 – Closing Thoughts & What’s Next

GUEST RESOURCES:

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-mike-porter-apr-fellow-prsa-he-him-2a033/

Website: https://researchonline.stthomas.edu/esploro/profile/mike_porter/overview