7 Things I Learned After Hosting An Interview Podcast For One Year
Things have changed.
In a past life, I co-hosted a fun weekly basketball podcast called The Breakdown with Dave & Audley from 2008 to 2013.
Back then, my co-host, Audley Stephenson and I were using a website called BlogTalkRadio.com to broadcast our episodes and we'd use our landline or cellphones to call-in to our online switchboard.
It definitely wasn't high tech. :)
We didn't have the resources to buy fancy microphones or record in a studio, but we made it work.
In fact, our podcast had nearly 300,000 episode downloads and we interviewed some great guests including NBA All-Stars, Slam Dunk Champions, Basketball Hall of Famers, entertainers, musicians and even an Academy Award winner.
Our show was also mentioned on ESPN.com and SLAMOnline.com, so we did alright for two no-name guys living in Brampton, Ontario, Canada.
After our podcast ended in 2013, I didn't know if I'd ever host another one again.
Then when I launched my podcast guest booking agency side hustle in 2017, I thought having a solo marketing podcast, where I'd interview successful entrepreneurs to help listeners stand out in their industries, would be a good way to make connections, help people and generate sales leads.
So, in October 2018, The Stand Out NOW! podcast debuted.
My show was a bi-weekly one that featured some cool guests like the original voice of Apple's Siri, Susan Bennett, Jeff Cohen (an actor from the beloved kids movie, The Goonies) and even an appearance from Beyonce Knowles (I repurposed an old audio interview I had with her in 2008).
You see, hosting a business show was new territory for me.
I came from a sports and entertainment media background, so diving into marketing, business and entrepreneurship conversations forced me to tap into a different part of my brain which was fine.
It just wasn't content I was super excited about at first, but I wanted to challenge myself and see what opportunities could happen.
I took a swing.
So, I gave myself one year to see how this would play out.
After I completed my 27 episode first season, I decided to pull the plug.
Personally, I felt the show provided some great insight and fun, but ultimately, it was a combination of my lack of passion for the topics, inability to attract enough listeners to check out the show and not securing enough clients to cover the podcast production costs that sunk it.
Don't get me wrong, I loved my guests. They were all great! I appreciated all of the useful information they brought to the show.
The program just didn't have legs in my mind, but I'm definitely open to hosting a future podcast if it's the right fit.
Overall, The Stand Out NOW! experiment taught me many things including the following golden nuggets.
1 - Host An Interview-Based Podcast Because You're Passionate About Your Topic
When you're excited about your show, it makes a BIG difference. You'll go the distance.
Audley and I loved basketball, so we co-hosted the podcast EVERY Sunday night for 5 YEARS!
But, if you're mainly concerned about making contacts and attracting sales leads instead of sharing your passion with the world, whether you get paid or not, it's not worth your time.
You'll tap out early like I did with my latest podcast.
If you're having fun with your topic, there's a better chance you'll persevere through all of the challenges on your podcast journey.
2 - Podcasting Is A LONG Game
Having a podcast is a BEAST that always needs to be fed with new content.
Whether it's a weekly, bi-weekly or monthly show, your listeners will demand you offer fresh episodes. If not, you're toast.
So, before you decide on having a podcast, you must absolutely be sure you want to make this time and financial commitment because it can possibly take years before you see any kind of success.
After one year, I realized I wasn't ready to commit long-term to The Stand Out NOW! podcast, so you should be 100% certain you're ready to buckle up for the epic ride.
3 - Have A Strong Industry Relevant Keyword In Your Podcast Title
So, what does The Stand Out NOW! podcast mean to you?
If you see that title for the first time, what do you think the show is about? You can probably come up with a few answers.
That's not good.
For SEO sake, you want clarity, so the right people can find your show easily.
So, your podcast title should indicate what industry or fanbase you're targeting.
For example, The Successful Bookkeeper podcast is a show for bookkeepers.
Since its debut in 2016, it has nearly 300,000 downloads and over 8,000 members in its official Facebook group.
Bookkeepers love it.
So, if you're a bookkeeping business owner looking for a podcast to check out, it's not hard to find The Successful Bookkeeper podcast.
How do you find the right keyword?
There are some resources that can help you like Google's Keyword Planner.
You can also type sample industry keywords into the search engines of Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Amazon and YouTube to see if there are a lot of mentions and content about them.
You can even type those keywords into a podcast show database like Listen Notes to see if there are other podcasts using them.
If people are using similar keywords then you know have something.
Sure, it's possible to have a popular show without a great keyword in its title, but in my experience, if you're not a celebrity with a massive audience, you'll have a tougher time building an audience if you're not more clear about what your show is about.
So, having a podcast title with a strong keyword can certainly help.
4 - Create An Email List!
Imagine one day that LinkedIn disappears.
All of a sudden all those contacts you've curated over the years on that website are gone.
If you had all of their email addresses (with permission of course!), you wouldn't have to worry about losing them because a website disappeared.
The cool things I realized about having an email list are whenever your podcast is released or you'd like to give away some free goodies or even sell something (after you've built up a ton of trust and rapport with your subscribers), you can contact your list directly.
It's not like social media where you post something and hope someone sees it.
An email list is more effective because it delivers content directly to a person's inbox.
It's powerful especially if you can grow that list to hundreds and thousands of engaged supporters.
In order to build that list, start by reaching out to your warm network (including your contacts on LinkedIn) and those you feel would be interested in what you're doing.
Also, for the new visitors to your website, offer an attractive, free and quickly consumable gift (many people create informative PDFs like 10 Ways To Cook A Delicious Chicken, etc.) in your email opt-in box on your front page to convert people into subscribers.
If you're looking for more tips on how to create an amazing email list, check out Amy Porterfield's work. She's the best of the best!
5 - SAVE Your Time & Get Someone To Edit Your Episodes!
Your time is precious.
Would you rather spend hours of it editing your episodes or have fun and insightful conversations with successful people on your show?
I chose to focus on the latter.
Personally, I couldn't invest the hours it would take to edit my episodes, so I paid a great editor from Fiverr.com to do the job.
His name is Emmanuel and I highly recommend him!
Here's his link - https://www.fiverr.com/emmyk10.
If you're thinking, "But, I can't afford it!" that's fair.
I spent like $40 USD or less per episode which is a bargain.
But, if you're determined to edit your show yourself, go for it.
I just didn't have time to do it, so for me, hiring Emmanuel was a perfect fit.
6 - Be Prepared To Invest Some Cash Into Your Show
If you want your podcast to be top quality and eventually become a possible stream of income, you have to invest some money into it.
I admit it, I totally bootstrapped The Stand Out NOW! podcast.
I knew it was an experiment, so I just wanted to take a digestible risk to see where it could go.
Here's the approximate cost breakdown:
-Episode editing (Emmanuel from Fiverr) - $40 USD or less per episode
-Squarespace podcast website - under $300 USD per year
-Libsyn podcast storage service - under $30 USD per month
-GoDaddy podcast website URL renewal - under $30 USD per year
-Audio-Technica ATR2100 microphone - under $80 USD one-time cost
-Podcast music for the intro, bridges and extros from MelodyLoops.com - under $40 USD one-time cost
-Voiceover woman for my podcast intros and extros - under $40 USD per project (I highly recommend Suzy from Fiverr.com!)
-Skype ECAMM Interview Recording Software for Macs - under $50 USD one-time cost
Before I started my podcast, I already had a MacBook Pro laptop, so that's what I used for my show.
As well, I didn't pay anything for a recording studio because I did all of my audio-only interviews via Skype in my BEDROOM CLOSET.
The sound quality was GREAT!! :)
In terms of marketing my podcast, I didn't pay anything for advertising.
I promoted the episodes on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram plus I used Mailchimp to spread the word to my email list.
Considering I kept the costs low, I'm actually quite proud of the quality of The Stand Out NOW! podcast episodes that were produced.
They sound pretty good and are full of great content.
7 - Do A Weekly Podcast If You Can
Since my show was bi-weekly, it was easy for people to forget about it.
But, if you go weekly and promote it consistently, you'll be more top of mind.
Heck, if you're really bold, you can do it DAILY.
Regardless, if you can afford it, do a weekly show to build up your audience.
Here are some of my favorite weekly interview-based podcasts.
Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard
Well, becoming a first-time solo podcast host definitely had its highs and lows, but overall, it was a terrific experience.
I really enjoyed having chats with successful people and finding out how they achieved their goals.
As I previously mentioned, I'll never shut the door on hosting another show because I love the medium and how it celebrates long-form conversations.
So, if you decide to create your own interview-based podcast, do realize there are TONS of them out there, but who knows, maybe your creation will be THE ONE to force everyone to take notice that you've arrived.
I hope that's the case.
If that's your path, I wish you well and, remember, have fun with it because it's an epic journey that will no doubt offer up some incredible opportunities.
#Podcasting #Entertainment #Business #Celebrities #Interviews