'Hey Neighbor' podcast highlights area businesses, economy

A local mortgage broker is bringing the spotlight to Tahlequah’s businesses and economic development through her podcast, “Hey Neighbor” on Spotify.

Lisa Pinnick, of Lisa Does Loans with Great Plains Bank, had been saying for years that she wanted to start a podcast, but she wasn’t sure on what its main focus was on. The podcast was initially geared toward local events.

“I’m very involved with the [Tahlequah Area Chamber of Commerce and Tahlequah Main Street Association] and I kept thinking, ‘Maybe I should do something with events and then a business spotlight,’” Pinnick said.

She quickly learned that people were listening to those earlier episodes on events weeks and months after those were published.

“The event information is not timely, so I just dropped events and spent more time talking to the different businesses and organizations. My interest is business and economic development,” Pinnick said.

Season three of “Hey Neighbor” kicked off Oct. 5 and Lisa Pinnick featured Victoria Bonilla and Shelby Robertson to talk about the city’s newest IT business, Provalus.

“I plan by the quarter. I’ve got episodes scheduled through the middle of December and then there’s a group of people I’m waiting to hear when we can schedule theirs,” she said.

Pinnick plans each episode in advance to give her time to edit and make changes. Episodes are published weekly.

“I had intended on going all year-round and then my son got sick. I stopped in the spring and came back in the fall like it was a school break, and that’s probably how I’ll keep it every year,” she said.

Listeners have given Pinnick feedback and she said she’s open to touch on other topics besides businesses and economic development, if that’s what they want.

“It depends on what the community wants. The feedback that I get, the businesses were the part that the people liked, not the events,” she said.

Every episode of “Hey Neighbor” can be found on Spotify, https://open.spotify.com/show/69JAelC21uHpNtwqYbZcOK.

Get involved

Those interested in being featured on “Hey Neighbor,” can reach out to Pinnick via text or email at 918-316-7237 and podcast@lisadoesloans.com.