 You spent a lot of time thinking about what gets talked about in your show. You want the best for your listeners. But, when you hit publish and check your stats a day later, you see only 10 people have listened to your latest episode. Sounds depressing, right? All that hard work with nothing to show for it. If you want your podcast to succeed, then you need to grow your podcast audience. Here’s how: Repurpose your podcast content Podcasts may be in audio format, but the ball doesn’t have to stop there. Turn your podcast content into blog posts, infographics, videos, social media graphics, and so much more. Video yourself while recording your podcast Let your followers see you live in action. They’ll appreciate the sneak peek. Best of all, you can reach new audiences on YouTube and wherever else you upload your video. Let your blog subscribers know about your podcast Don’t keep your blog subscribers in the dark. Rather, let them know you’ve got a new episode out and invite them to listen to it when they have time! Post an update on your social media profiles Everyone’s on social media nowadays. Show people your social side and encourage them to listen to your podcast. Interview experts in your niche People love being recognized as experts. So, reach out to them and ask if they’d be willing to be interviewed. They’d be more than happy to promote your show to their followers, too! Guest on more popular podcasts If you position yourself as an ‘expert’ in your niche, you’ll have people reaching out to you to interview you. Don’t turn them down. Take the opportunity to prove your expertise and get people curious enough to follow your own show! Advertise on social media Organic social media traffic is possible, but it usually takes time. If you want to get the ball rolling, consider paying for ads. Facebook and Instagram are relatively cheap and you can easily target the right audience! Create show notes or transcripts of each episode Upload the show notes or transcripts to your blog, and make sure you optimize it for search engines. You just may see an avalanche of search engine traffic soon! If you have any questions, thinking of starting your own podcast, need editing/producing, then please reach out via email or go here to see how we can work together.   There’s a reason why you decided to start a podcast. Whatever that reason may be, you need to make sure your podcast episodes’ call to action (CTA) will help you achieve your goals. You don’t want to just say “thank you for listening” and then call it a day. No, you actually need to tell your audience what you want them to do so you can reach your goals. There are many different kinds of calls to action you can use in your podcast. However, it’s important to note that your CTA can change from episode to episode depending on how far along you are in your podcast journey. For instance, if you’re just starting out and you’re looking to grow your audience, then your CTA can be something like asking your listener to subscribe to your podcast and then help promote your show on social media. When you’ve got a good number of followers, and you’re now looking to monetize your podcast, then you can start promoting your products or your service to your audience. Whatever your call to action may be, make sure you spell it out for your audience. Make sure what you’re asking them to do is relatively easy. Don’t make them jump through hoops. People are less likely to follow through if it requires more than 2 clicks of a mouse. It's a good idea to repeat your CTA a few times during your show (but not to the point of annoying your listeners). For best results, tell them how they’re going to benefit if they follow your CTA. Some of your avid fans will do as you say with no questions asked. However, for the most part, the great majority of your audience will be asking “What’s in it for me? Why should I follow this person’s call to action?” This is especially true for CTA’s involving buying products or subscribing to services. You want to soften the ‘blow,’ so to speak. You don’t want people getting scared of committing to something they’re not ready for yet. Always put your audience’s needs before yours. You’re there to serve them, to help them reach their goals or to address their pain points. Sure, you want to get something out of the relationship too, but if you want to gain something, you need to give a ton of value first. If you need some help brainstorming and implementing your CTAs, I offer personalized one on one consultations. Line xophoto credit: Brett Jordan (Unsplash)
 A good format for a general podcast should be engaging, entertaining and well-structured, based on your target audience. I like to say there's no right or wrong, just best practices. Having said that, here are some essential elements to consider when creating your podcast format: 1. Intro Start with a brief and catchy introduction that introduces the podcast's name, the host(s), and the purpose of the podcast. This sets the tone for the episode and helps new listeners understand what to expect. I suggest to clients that they could use a question at the beginning of an episode to grab attention. 2. Theme and Topics Define the theme or niche of your episode out of the gate. This helps your listeners know what to expect so they'll be excited to listen. 3. Segments If you have a long format podcast you can break the episodes into segments or sections. This gives a structured flow, helps your listeners anticipate what's coming next and most importantly, keeps them engaged so they don't tune out. For example, you could have a news segment, a guest interview, a Q&A session, or a "tip of the week." 4. Guests and Interviews If your podcast includes guest interviews, introduce your guests and highlight a few of their accomplishments/projects from their background at the beginning of the interview. Avoid reading their full bio because your listeners don't care and finish the introduction by saying their name. Prepare thoughtful questions that explore their expertise and provide valuable insights for your audience. Do a little research and see if there's something you can ask that's different from what every other host asks them. Remember that they're there for your audience so what is it they would like to hear or learn from this guest? 5. Engaging Content Keep the content informative, entertaining, and engaging. Use storytelling techniques, real-life examples, and analogies to make complex topics relatable and accessible. 6. Length The ideal length for a podcast varies depending on the content and target audience. Generally, aim for a duration between 20 to 30 and if it's an entertainment podcast you could aim for 60 minutes. Again, no rules. Just what works for your particular audience to maintain interest without overwhelming. I usually say it should be as long as it needs to be to get your message across. 7. Quality Audio You don't need to Invest in high priced recording equipment to begin. You can start with a good USB headset with built-in mic. Poor audio quality can turn off listeners, no matter how great the content is. As long as the audio quality isn't distracting, listeners will be fine with it. 8. Consistency Ok this one is an important one. Stick to a regular publishing schedule. Whether it's weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly, consistency helps build a loyal audience that keeps listeners coming back for more. If you're using it for business, I highly recommend dropping episodes weekly. 9. Calls to Action Encourage audience engagement by including calls to action. This could be asking listeners to subscribe, leave a review, follow you on social media, or participate in a discussion on a specific platform, etc. I recommend one CTA per episode otherwise listeners are overwhelmed and do nothing. Instead, if you have more than one, you can sprinkle them throughout your episode where it makes sense. 10. Outro End each episode with a concise outro that thanks the listeners, summarizes the main points, and provides a teaser for the next episode. 11. Show Notes Provide show notes for each episode, including any important links, resources, or references mentioned during the show. This helps listeners find additional information and improves search engine optimization. You can also include timestamps so listeners can jump to or refer back to certain topics. 12. Promotion Use social media, your website, and other platforms to promote your podcast. Engage with your audience, respond to comments, and take feedback into account for improvement. Screenshot positive comments and reviews to share as promotion. Most importantly, promote more than once a week when new episodes drop so that you always stay in front of your audience. Remember, a good podcast format evolves over time based on listener feedback and what works best for you and your audience. Stay open to making adjustments and improvements as you go along. If you have questions or you're looking for guidance in launching a podcast you can check out how you can work with me HERE or REACH OUT for more info. Linephoto credit: Vika Strawberrika on Unsplash
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Line BrunetPodcast Maven & Personal Power Mentor helping business owners find their voice. Archives
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