Isaac Summers and Adam Husing of Decided Excellence Catholic Media join Joe Coleman to discuss how they built a scalable, mission-driven print media company that mails hyper-local Catholic magazines directly to homes and parish databases. They break down the business model—two magazine tracks, a 1099 commission structure, and a daily three-step sales system—that has allowed independent publishers across the country to build flexible, family-sustaining income.
Main Ideas:
* Decided Excellence runs on a simple daily system—prospect, cold call for one hour, run three meetings—and Adam argues that consistent execution of those three things is sufficient to build a profitable magazine business
* The 1099 structure is a deliberate choice: publishers earn up to 90% commission above the cost of production, with no micromanagement, making it a genuine path to financial and schedule autonomy for entrepreneurs willing to do the hard work
* Cold calling works at scale—roughly one in three decision-makers agrees to a meeting, and the overall close rate lands around 20%—numbers that apply beyond magazine sales to any business built on outbound prospecting
* The most successful publishers aren’t defined by prior industry experience but by whether they want long-term income over a quick base salary and whether they can work without being managed
* Adam traces the business back to Lighthouse Catholic Media and Best Version Media, illustrating how a proven niche-market magazine model was adapted for a Catholic audience—a transferable lesson in spotting and reapplying successful frameworks
Chapters:
* 00:00: Introduction
* 02:12: What Is Decided Excellence Catholic Media?
* 05:59: Inside the Magazine: Format and Content
* 09:00: Why Mail Directly to Homes?
* 12:12: How Recipients Are Identified
* 14:41: Why Print Over Digital?
* 16:26: Two Models: Parish vs. Community Magazines
* 19:11: How Publishers Make Money
* 22:35: The Future of Print Media
* 30:19: Apostolic Obligation and Entrepreneurial Freedom
* 40:15: Who Succeeds as a Publisher?
* 46:26: Daily Habits of Top Performers
Resources Mentioned:
* Decided Excellence Catholic Media
* The Soul of the Apostolate by Dom Jean-Baptiste Chautard
Produced by Saint Kolbe Studios
