what is the key to a successful podcast
In this postal service, I'll share some of the key trends in podcasting correct at present, and highlight some ideas for growing your podcast in 2022 and across. And continue reading for the opportunity to enter our Pitch Your Pod contest past January 16 and a hazard to turn your podcast dream into a reality!
Table of Contents
- Podcasting Industry Growth Means Opportunity
- For Podcasters, Consistency Is (Still) Central
- Growing Your Podcast Audience Takes Active Marketing
- Strategy #1: Getting Exposure on High-Growth Video Channels (Instagram, TikTok, YouTube)
- Strategy #ii: Guesting on Other Podcasts
- Strategy #3: Paid Advertisement and Sponsorships
- How to Reduce Podcasting Overwhelm and Avoid Burnout
- Engage with Your Listeners and Build Podcast Superfans
- Turn Your Podcast Dream into a Reality!
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Podcasting Industry Growth Means Opportunity
According to information from Buzzsprout, the podcast industry has grown significantly—from roughly 60,000 shows in 2014 to more than than two 1000000 today.
But this massive growth doesn't mean prospective podcasters have missed the gunkhole. Far from it. The podcast manufacture is all the same growing.
Plus, a lot of the people who started podcasts in early on COVID accept dropped off. That means a lot of listeners are out there right now, looking for their next testify.
Which means an opportunity for yous, aspiring podcaster—or existing podcaster who wants to up your game and grow your show.
For Podcasters, Consistency Is (Still) Key
The central to taking reward of this podcasting opportunity is consistency.
Every bit i example, Pat went alive on YouTube every day for a twelvemonth with the Income Stream show.
You don't have to do the aforementioned affair with your podcast (and we wouldn't recommend it!).
Only in general, the more than you show up for your audience, the more yous'll become a part of their life and tuning in to your show volition become a addiction for them.
Not to mention, all that practice is going to brand you a lot amend at creating your podcast content.
Then how consistent should you exist, at least at the start of your podcasting journey?
The podcasts that Buzzsprout sees sticking with it are the ones that arrive past the ten-week marker.
"Once they hit that 10-calendar week betoken," says Alban Brooke, "it'due south a game-changer for whether or not they stick with it long term."
That's why he tells people to start past committing to releasing an episode every calendar week for ten weeks. Succeeding with that volition put you lot in a group of roughly 600,000 active podcasts that have produced at least ten episodes.
Oh, and of course, if y'all haven't started your podcast withal, that'due south the start footstep! Click hither to start your podcast using our costless how to podcast guide.
Growing Your Podcast Audition Takes Active Marketing
What if you've pushed through your first x episodes, seen some early growth, and… that growth has slowed, or even stagnated? A lot of podcasters find that an early on growth spurt leads to a frustrating plateau.
Unfortunately, a lot of podcasters—and content creators in general—also take an "If yous build information technology, they will come" arroyo.
Only that won't work today. You have to actively market your show.
Here are some strategies that can help you push button your listenership back on the incline slope.
Strategy #one: Getting Exposure on High-Growth Video Channels (Instagram, TikTok, YouTube)
A number of successful podcast creators accept grown their shows by sharing content on high-growth channels similar TikTok, Instagram Reels, and even YouTube. They're leveraging the algorithms on these channels to get exposure they can redirect to their podcast.
The basic strategy is to create a brusk piece of video content that borrows from your podcast episode, then invite viewers to the podcast to hear the full story.
Once in a while, one of these videos may even become viral. You tin can find case studies about podcasters who accept gained thousands of new listeners based on just one viral TikTok video or Instagram Reel.
And a number of famous podcasters have used YouTube clips to attract listeners and so direct them to their podcast feeds.
The key is that the video content has to be related to the podcast episode you're driving people to. Y'all need to tell a story that'll hook people in to desire to hear the rest of the episode.
Information technology sounds simple, merely you lot'd be surprised how many creators get tripped up by not post-obit this crucial point.
How do you lot pick a high-growth platform to pull off this strategy? Alban always encourages creators to detect the platform they understand and can create great content for.
Strategy #ii: Guesting on Other Podcasts
It helps to remember the large principle behind successfully growing your show, which is finding audiences that don't know you already.
Repurposing your podcast episodes and putting them on your Twitter or Facebook feed is fine, just by and large they're going to be seen by people who already know yous exist.
So how do you get your podcast in front of new ears?
Guesting on other podcasts is a tried-and-true and still very constructive option.
(If you're looking for a fashion to scale your podcast-guesting outreach, we like what Podcast Militarist has to offer.)
Another is including your podcast episodes in blog posts on your site, which helps people detect your testify via Google's search algorithm.
If you lot write a weblog mail almost a topic you lot've already covered on the podcast, link to that episode in the mail service itself.
Similar this!
Strategy #3: Paid Advert and Sponsorships
What nigh paid conquering? Is information technology something podcasters should be thinking nigh?
The curt respond is yes, and in that location are ii main strategies here: paid ads and sponsorships.
Paid ads are definitely a feasible strategy for growing your show. Just know that there's a right way, and a incorrect way to do it.
The wrong way is to put ads direct on Facebook or Google and hope that a cold audience will start clicking and listening.
The experts at Buzzsprout have never seen anybody successfully grow a podcast that manner. There'due south merely too much friction in the way of getting someone from the ad to your show.
As Alban says, they've "only seen people lose a lot of money" this style.
So how do you reduce the friction and practice podcast ads the right mode? The key is to advertise on apps that already accept a captive audience of listeners—apps like Overcast, Pocket Casts, and Podcast Addict.
Y'all could as well wait into sponsoring another podcast—paying a fellow podcaster to requite you lot a shoutout.
Trying this on some of the bigger shows could get expensive, but there are a lot of pocket-size, fast-growing podcasts looking to monetize that might be a better fit.
For a deeper swoop on monetizing your podcast, check out this postal service by Heather Osgood of Truthful Native Media on getting started with podcast ads.
How to Reduce Podcasting Overwhelm and Avoid Burnout
As content creators, consistency is key. Only burnout is as well real.
That's why you need to set a game plan for creating and marketing your show that's sustainable.
A lot of people hear stories of the almost successful content creators—like John Lee Dumas, who started Entrepreneurs on Burn by doing a daily show—and they think I'll do the same thing. But that just doesn't work for most people, specially if you've got a full-time gig or take kids at domicile.
And then observe a content creation cadence that fits your life, and that y'all'll be excited to do. For a lot of people, allocating one day a week to creating your episode is a good choice.
Since "If you build it, they will come" doesn't work, you lot too need to cleave out fourth dimension for marketing. There'due south about always more you can do to market your testify, but beginning with putting merely an hr aside each calendar week for marketing.
If you're on TikTok, maybe that means spending an hour making a video to promote your latest episode and engaging with people on TikTok. If you're on LinkedIn, it'south writing a post that ties into the content in your episode.
Offset small, and stay consequent.
Engage with Your Listeners and Build Podcast Superfans
Podcasting is a long game. The podcasters who stick with it for years are most probable to detect the success (and download numbers) they're looking for.
The average new podcaster, though, is getting roughly thirty-seven plays per episode. That may sound pocket-sized, and it is.
But pocket-sized can be mighty.
That's because each of those thirty-seven people is a real human being. And i of the superpowers you have when you're minor is that you actually can engage with every ane of them.
Ask people to reach out, and then honor information technology when they practise. If someone sends you an e-mail, mention it on the podcast. If yous get a positive review, read it on the air and give thanks the listener. If a fan posts something nigh your podcast on social, like it and thank them for sharing it.
Elevate your superfans. Connect with them and larn more nigh them, so you can ameliorate serve them and concenter more just like them.
Turn Your Podcast Dream into a Reality!
We've all asked the question, "Yous know what would make a swell podcast?" — and about likely naught ever comes of information technology.
What if SPI could assistance plough that question into reality? Your very own podcast!
Introducing Pitch Your Pod: a make new, first-of-its-kind competition where you "pitch" SPI on the amazing podcast you've ever wanted to make, only for whatever reason never have!
The Pitch Your Pod contest is open to anyone who submits an entry by midnight Pacific on Jan sixteen. Enter now!
By the way, a lot of the insights in this mail were taken from Pat Flynn's conversation with Alban Brooke, head of marketing at Buzzsprout, during SPI's first Audience Driven Tiptop in October 2021, our two-day deep-dive into the nigh effective, relevant ways to build an audition today.
Click here to watch the recording of Pat's full conversation with Alban.
Source: https://www.smartpassiveincome.com/blog/keys-podcasting-success-2022/
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