Get to Know Our TWIT.tv Hosts

TWiT.tv is stacked with tech professionals from all varieties of life, offering our audience the most diverse and comprehensive overview of tech news. Our lead hosts, Leo Laporte, Jason Howell, Mikah Sargent, and Ant Pruitt, deliver an incomparable listening experience. In case you aren't already familiar, here's an introduction to how impressive our lead hosts are:

 

Founder and owner of the TWiT.tv Network is our very own Leo Laporte. From 1985 to 1988, Leo operated one of the first Macintosh-only computer bulletin board systems, MacQueue. In January 1991, he created and co-hosted Dvorak On Computers, the most listened-to high-tech talk radio show in the nation, syndicated on over 60 stations and around the world on the Armed Forces Radio Network. Leo was also a longtime host of Laporte on Computers on KSFO and KGO Radio in San Francisco. 

Leo has written four bestselling Technology Almanacs, was a Managing Editor at Ziff-Davis Television, and a Contributing Editor at Access Magazine, and the credentials don't stop there. He created, was a daily contributor to, and ultimately won an Emmy for The Site, an hour-long technology newsmagazine that aired nightly on MSNBC, CNBC International, and NBC Superchannel in Europe and Asia. He also hosted two shows on TechTV (formerly ZDTV), a 24-hour cable channel dedicated to computers and the Internet. Call for Help, and The Screen Savers aired live every weekday from 1998 to 2004. In 2005 he launched TWiT.tv with the first show, This Week in Tech, which he continues to host every Sunday. Leo directs the network, hires staff, originates new shows, and approves all advertising. He hosts other shows on TWiT.tv's network, including MacBreak Weekly, Security Now, This Week in Google, Windows Weekly, and The Tech Guy. 

Jason Howell brings fun and creativity to the topic of technology across all of the shows he touches on our network. Jason co-created and hosts All About Android and shares producer and host duties on Tech News Weekly. He has been producing original video content for the web since 2005, starting with his time at CNET, where he produced the popular daily tech news show Buzz Out Loud, among many others. Since joining TWiT in 2010, Jason has continued to elevate his approach to live video production as Technical Director, Producer, and eventually Host of Tech News Weekly, as well as producing This Week in Tech, This Week in Google, and Security Now. 

Mikah Sargent's empathetic and gentle explanatory style could win over even the grumpiest tech-fumblers. Before joining us at TWiT.Mikah has been a freelance graphic designer, web developer, and cake decorator. Mikah was a contributor and senior editor at Mobile Nations, and before that, a senior editor at Newsy. In the past, Mikah has hosted news and entertainment videos for various media outlets, including covered news and tech for AOL, Mashable, iMore, and Tom's Guide. Currently, you can find Mikah co-hosting on iOS Today, Tech News Weekly, Hands-On Mac, and The Tech Guy. 

Covering Photoshop, Lightroom, Android, Google, and more, Ant Pruitt is a creative force to be reckoned with. A technology-professional-turned-photographer, Ant's expertise lies in photography, videography, and content creation. Ant co-hosts This Week in Google and hosts Hands-On Photography, a fan favorite for game-changing photography tips. Originally from North Carolina, Ant was an enterprise IT professional for over a decade. Ant eventually turned his creativity into a business, providing writing, photography, video, and post-production services. After moving across the country to join us, Ant continues to handle various creative assignments, including portraits, product photography, event photography, social media marketing, and branding content.

Our hosts embody what TWiT.tv is about; enthusiastic, honest delivery and technology news analysis. Email advertise@twit.tv to get a formal introduction and see how our hosts can elevate your brand.  

Advertising on Podcasts - They Work!

 

Let’s set the record straight - podcasts aren’t going anywhere. Podcast listening numbers have globally increased by 42% since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and the numbers continue to rise. Podcasts are the perfect place for advertisers to reach a more informed consumer with premium purchasing power. 

At TWiT.tv, we have a highly qualified and educated, tech-minded audience. Our podcasts are created to honor our audience’s credentials, meaning if we partner with a brand, they must align with our values and benefit our listeners. Our partners have the ongoing opportunity to reach new customers on a very intimate and engaged level via our host-read advertisement structure. And, because our ads are embedded, these customers can be reached anytime, anywhere across the globe for years to come.

Podcast ads are different than any other digital marketing medium out there. Unlike automatic ads interrupting a program, people enjoy listening to their host deliver a programmatic break. It offers an exclusive insight into something that the host and listener could potentially hold in common.

According to the Edison Research Super Listeners 2021 report, podcast ads are the most recalled type of advertisement. This was corroborated by 86% of respondents. Host-read ads like ours create memorable impressions with impactful audiences, which goes further than any dynamic or canned commercial could hope to get. 

Email us at advertise@twit.tv for more information about how we can elevate your business. 

The Proven Entrepreneur Interview

 

Recently I had the opportunity to talk with Don Williams, host of The Proven Entrepreneur. We discussed my beginnings leading up to becoming CEO of TWiT.tv and integral parts of the sales landscape that affect our advertising today.

Take a peek at our conversation: 

“Don: You have this deep, pureblood pedigree in finance, but somehow, you also picked up   what many people will consider being the opposite skill of sales. Tell us how you crossed that bridge. How did that happen?

 

Lisa: I am a lifelong learner, so being unafraid to try things was part of it. I tried a lot of things, but the one thing I applied to this process was integrity. I decided I was not going to overinflate what we can do. I was not going to oversell or over-promise anything. 

What I promised people was that we were going to guarantee these impressions, if not deliver more, because our ads are embedded, so our rate cards were discounted slightly on downloads. I was going to guarantee a qualified audience, so we started to survey the audience to find out more about them.

 

We were also going to guarantee the right impressions and get you in front of our audience. To me, it was all about super-serving our audience. I am only going to sign companies with high integrity that have products and services that will benefit my audience. That became my focus. Did I make a lot of mistakes? Yes, and I learned from them and realized that we treat everybody the same. We do not discount our rate card. We layer in value add, which is bonus ads with our advertisers. We always do a lot for our sponsors.”

I’m not the only person at TWiT.tv that has a background of multiple talents. Our phenomenal hosts come from a wide variety of professional expertise, and that’s what makes our network so unique and successful in so many fields. 

 

Check out Don and my full interview at The Proven Entrepreneur or listen on your podcast player. If you would like to partner with us at TWiT.tv, please reach out at advertise@twit.tv. 

Client Testimonials - ITProTV & TWiT.tv

 

We go the extra mile for our partners because we believe their services/products will ultimately benefit our audience.

Tim Broom, Founder of ITPro.TV has this to say about our partnership: 

"ITPro.TV would not be where it is today without the TWiT Network. We began marketing with them since day one. They were able to target the tech enthusiasts as well as the professionals that allowed us to market directly to consumers as well as people that are in the enterprise space. We've seen success on many different shows like Windows Weekly, MacBreak Weekly, of course Security Now, and This Week in Tech. Many years ago, I really started out as a fan of Leo and the TWiT Network. I always call him like 'the godfather of technology broadcast,' and I've become a consumer of many of the advertisements of the products that he talks about because I know that it comes from a trusted source, and he's always been very accurate in the way that he explains it. I end up buying products! When we started  ITPro.TV, I knew that that's the place that I wanted to go to first. Working with Lisa has really been fantastic. In fact, it spoiled us because we've tried to replicate the success we've had there on other networks, but the service that she gives us on giving us our reporting, helping us with ad copy, giving us advice, I always know she has our best interest in mind, and it's always been very helpful, and it's led to much more success for us. We sincerely thank the TWiT Network, especially Leo and Lisa, that's been very special to us because, without them, we wouldn't be where we are today. This year we will exceed 12 million in sales we have over 70 employees, and we continue to grow each year, and it's because of the TWiT Network. It's our main source of marketing and advertising to get our audience."

Our entire goal at TWiT.tv is to super-serve our audience, which in turn super-serves our partners. Ready to launch your campaign and let us help you grow? Email us at advertise@twit.tv to see which spots we have available for the upcoming broadcast year.

Why Testimonials Matter

 

Testimonials speak for themselves. Who better to prove that a business is legitimate than a satisfied customer? We live in a world where real customer testimonials are the unofficial stamp of approval that other consumers look for. That matters. Customers trust their peers to give unfiltered opinions on whether or not a product or service is worth its salt. 

Reputation is everything in any industry - would you trust a business with no reviews or case studies? Probably not. Positive reviews are one of the most powerful influences to attract your audience. Remember, too, that attention spans are shorter these days. Research shows that customers give roughly 15 seconds of attention before deciding to engage or move on to something else. Promoting a glowing, genuine testimonial can convince them to stick around and find out more. 

Testimonials are free, organic marketing tools that cost your advertising budget nothing. Honest customer reviews build irreplicable credibility for your brand, and credibility builds loyalty. Reviews can also showcase aspects of your business that your website might not highlight, like customer service. At TWiT.tv, we love to create powerful ad reads that spotlight our excellent partners, including customer testimonials when and where we can. 

Positive reviews and testimonials have an incredible impact on building a brand's credibility and reputation. At the end of the day, testimonials humanize your brand. It's much easier to trust something that's been vouched for, and reading a solid review from a fellow human is the next best thing to trying it for yourself.  

Ready to elevate your business and work with the best tech podcast network's highly qualified audience? Reach out to us at advertise@twit.tv today.