Podcasting is still underrated

I recorded my first podcast episode sometime around January 2018.

The month before, I had talked with my buddy Eric about possibly starting a small investment fund.

...but we'd never done that before.

...and we didn't know how to start.

...and we didn't really have the time.

...so the idea died pretty quickly!

But, long story short, we loved the idea of talking with startup founders and learning what it would be like to invest, so we did the next best thing: we started a podcast.

That podcast is called upside, and it still exists to this day. In fact, we just released our 162nd episode this morning.

Over the course of the last two and a half years running upside, I've built an amazing network of startup founders, investors, and community builders across the country.

I've been flown to cities to speak, I produced a full-length documentary, and I've even earned a fair amount of revenue through sponsorships.

It's gone pretty well! The show has over 130,000 downloads, Fortune called it a "Top Business Podcast" and Business Insider called it "Almost as Good as an MBA."

And upside isn't a huge show. But even smaller shows can change your life.

The real benefits of podcasting

Even though there are more than a million podcasts on the planet, we're still really early. And there are several benefits to podcasting that exist even if you don't have a ton of listeners.

1.) Podcasting is an incredible networking hack

People love to share their opinions. And podcasts are such an easy medium for someone to show up and share their opinions!

As a podcast host, you're asking someone to take a small amount of their time to speak with you while promising to share that conversation with others.

It's so much easier than just asking for a 1-on-1 meeting, because you're actually giving that person the gift of distribution. You're offering to share THEIR ideas with YOUR audience.

And they can do it in the comfort of their pajamas!

Through podcasting, I've been able to meet Seth Godin, James Clear, Vanessa Van Edwards, some incredible venture investors, and a lot more. Not only that, but you never know who may end of listening to and liking your show!

2.) Podcasting forces you to become a better speaker

Getting better at anything is all about practice. So many of us are uncomfortable speaking in public, but we also don't get practice so we don't get better.

Podcasting is like a modern day Toastmasters. Except:

• You can interview anyone from anywhere on your podcast
• You can edit your podcast
• You can listen to the recordings of your podcast
• You can get WAY more reps with your podcast

So it's a phenomenal way to very quickly improve as a speaker. Trust me, nothing makes you get better on the microphone than listening to the recording of yourself on the microphone.

3.) Podcasting helps you create a habit of publishing

If you're interested in making a living as a creator, you'll need to build a habit of publishing consistently. Podcasting is an excellent medium to force you into a habit of publishing over and over again.

And you don't need to make it a weekly show. You could produce episodes every two weeks or even every month. Just be consistent!

4.) Sometimes podcasting goes REALLY well

You've probably seen the headlines from Joe Rogan's massive podcasting deal...his licensing deal with Spotify was worth more $100 million!

You won't be Joe Rogan. I won't be Joe Rogan. But there is plenty of money to be made in podcasting for a lot of other people too.

Every piece of content you make is a little bit like a lottery ticket. You never know when one of them may hit the public and the culture in a way you didn't expect.

And it doesn't take thousands of listeners; the right single listener could change the trajectory of your life forever.

There are infinite, varying levels of "success" you could achieve with your show.

Creative Elements has helped me to build new relationships, it's built my audience, and it even earns me a good amount of revenue.

As of this writing, Creative Elements is just about to break 300,000 downloads. That's more than double the downloads of my first show in just a few months.

It's not too late to get in the game

There are more than 1 million existing podcasts. But there's still a ton of opportunity for fresh voices and fresh perspectives.

But if you're going to do a show, I think you should take it seriously.

That means being thoughtful about your format, creating great artwork, having good music, and putting in some quality production work.

There are a lot of steps, but you can learn them and get up to speed quickly.

You can learn and I can teach you

I've been asked a lot this year how I produce Creative Elements and make it sound so high-quality.

I'm an indie podcaster on a regular-person's budget. But I wanted my show to stand out and be remarkable – so I built a team and a process to make it possible.

And now I'm offering to teach you everything I know.

If you're interested in producing a high-quality, professional-sounding show with a small team or a small budget, I'm launching a new course to help you.

I'll cover everything I know, including:

• Defining your show format
• Recommended gear
• How to get the best quality audio from your interviews
• Hiring an audio engineer and/or VA
• Deep dives on my processes via Airtable, Calendly, Otter, Garageband, and more
• Marketing and distribution strategies
• Sponsorship tactics I've tried
• ...and more

And it's available for presale at half price until November 1.

Click here to learn more or enroll

It's better to do it imperfectly than not at all

You don't need a course to learn this. You can learn it on your own through trial and error, finding other podcasters who have figured it out, or searching the internet.

This course will show you exactly my process and tell you everything I've learned, but you should only invest in a course if you're in a financial position to do so.

That shouldn't slow you down from getting started if you're interested in podcasting. I hope that you see there is still a ton of opportunity and benefits to podcasting, and it's better to get started than to keep waiting!

Cheers,

Jay

PS: Already have a show? Share it in the comments!

This week on Creative Elements

Sahil Lavingia is the founder and CEO of Gumroad. Gumroad is an online platform that facilitates the sale of products by creators directly to consumers.

Sahil left his job at Pinterest to start the company in 2011. Today, Gumroad serves nearly 75,000 creators earn more than $12M every month.

In this episode, we talk about the beginning of Gumroad, how the creator landscape has changed in the last decade, trends in audience building, and how Honesty is key for creators.

Click here to listen

Jay Clouse is the creator of Freelancing School, which provides the training and community to help people make a living freelancing. He is also the founder of Unreal Collective, a community for founders, freelancers, and creators that runs a 12-week accelerator program.

Jay hosts Creative Elements, which interviews high-profile creators who have made their own independent living.

You can connect with Jay on Twitter @jayclouse or sign up for his Sunday newsletter for creatives at jayclouse.com.

And if you REALLY want to say 'thank you,' you can buy me a coffee.