Just One Tip from Your Podcast Performance Coach

Your audience loves you. They just can't get enough. They want more and more content from you.  It's a good problem to have, but make no mistake it can still be a problem.  "Even podcasters that are doing well still need help!" This was the last line of an email I got from Jamie Irvine, host of The Heavy Duty Parts Report .  I shared his podcast journey into the world of super-niching in episode 9...

You record an awesome interview, an enlightened conversation with your co-host, or you nail a solo episode only to discover that you sound like crap. Your mic wasn't on and the computer used the internal mic instead. Or, maybe it wasn't connected. Or the settings slipped back to some old default that sounds terrible. Whatever it was, you sound terrible. You're gutted. And you know you have nobody...

Nobody likes to be duped. It's no fun being let down. Everyone wants to get what they came for. So, are you disappointing your listeners by not living up to your own hype? Have you heard the term catfishing? It's that thing where people use a picture of someone else or them 20 years (and 50 pounds) ago on their dating profile to attract the very best mate. Perhaps they're delusional and think that...

So, you want to be a podcast millionaire. You want a show so popular that advertisers will lob money bags at you non-stop.  You have two choices, keep dreaming or listen up for a reality check.  There are two ways to make money through podcasting. Last episode , I talked about using your podcast as a marketing tool for your business. In other words, using it to help your business make more money....

Here's a newsflash - creating a podcast costs time and often, money. It won't take long before you start thinking, 'I need to make some money here…' If I had a dollar for every time someone asked me how to monetize their podcast (often before they've even started) I'd be rich… and I guess my podcast would be monetized.  Here's the hard truth, monetizing takes time. But, since so many of you have a...

Are you still producing one podcast at a time? Stop the madness! Bulk producing can save you time and make your podcast more consistent.    If you've never heard of bulk producing before, it's simply creating your podcast in groups instead of one at a time. You know, like buying a month's worth of chicken wings at once or getting a month's worth of good-morning kisses in one makeout session. (upda...

Do you 'bang out' your podcasts? Don't be proud of it. It's not a good thing.  Banging out a podcast puts your performance as a podcaster at risk and it does not serve your listener. Remember, your listeners, the whole reason you do this podcast? They don't want your banged out crap!  Scheduling your podcast better is going to improve your podcast. I've heard this first hand with one of my clients...

We'd won gold at the Music Festival but as we listened to the review of our performance, I was mortified. The memory of that moment still mortifies me to this day. (Click play to hear what almost cost me my highschool band-geek card) *Metta Warning: The above story is the anecdote example I promised you last episode .* So, too lazy to listen, eh. Fine, I'll spoil the fun and tell you that the whol...

Are you shoving facts and figures down your listener's throat? Are you blathering on about yourself and failing to make a connection?    Stories to the rescue!    In my last episode I explained why stories are such a powerful way to connect with your listener on a deeper level and worm your way into their memories. If you haven't heard it yet, *spoiler: science.  Getting yourself and your podcast...

Gather round the campfire, podcasters, I have an f-bomb laced story for you.  Be honest, when you read that sentence, did you actually picture a campfire?  Of course you did, you're human. And, that's what we humans do. We use our memories to fill in the gaps that words leave. And, we've been doing it since caveman times. You know, like before we even had podcasts.  Speaking of the times before po...

How did you picture podcastland before you started? Did you dream of being a magical podcaster who never makes any mistakes? Welcome to the real world.  Sure, all new podcasters know that they have a lot to learn (at least they should!) but most think that after a short time they will have learned what they needed and move on to making podcasts with ease with only pimple-sized bumps in the road. ...

Did you ever test your dance moves using a broom? Make out with a pillow? Tryout your pickup lines in the mirror (finger guns and all)? Rehearsing is a natural way to get ready for big steps in your life. So, why do so many newbie podcasters think they can turn on their mics and spew gold the first time.  I'll let you in on a little secret (hold on to your ego) YOU CAN'T. Nobody can.  There are a...

Thanks to the pandemic, the audio-quality bar is lower than a limbo pole in a 1980's frat-house flick. Resist the urge to see how low you can go. A lot of podcasters are having to make adjustments due to the lockdown and new social distancing rules. You might not be able to be in the same room as your co-host, have guests who don't have access to their gear, or be in a household that just doesn't...

I don't want to alarm you, but you might be letting your listeners down. They're not mad...just disappointed. Promises, promises, promises. Your podcast should be built on them. Or, rather on one in particular. And that promise should be repeated like a pledge to your listeners in your intro every episode.  So, what does it take to perfect your promise? In this episode, I help you understand why y...

Your listener loves your show. You love having listeners who love your show. The end.  Is that all you want out of your podcast? A love affair?  If you're podcasting for your business or if you have hopes of your podcast being your business, love isn't going to cut it.  You need ACTION! But if your listeners don't know what that action is, they won't take it.  Image you're leading a hike. Everyone...

I know it's hard NOT to talk about the Coronavirus. I know it may even seem weird to do a podcast during a global pandemic without it being about this crisis.  But, I think we can all agree - there are enough people talking about it. So, that's why in this episode, I explain why you shouldn't talk about Coronavirus or COVID-19 in your podcast.  Stay in your lane. Talk about what your podcast is ac...

100 episodes is a milestone in the world of podcasting. It took me a long time to get here and the road was bumpy. That might seem like a strange thing for a podcast coach to admit but I'm just like you - and I had to learn some lessons the hard way.  In this special episode of Just the Tip, I break from my usual format to reflect a little on the journey so far, the key lessons I learned as a podc...

A lot of entrepreneurs wonder whether podcasting will be worth their time and effort. Does podcasting really have a good ROI?  The answer is yes if you're trying to grow your brand's authority. If you want to increase your reach and have more people know, like, and trust you - then you need a podcast.  In this episode, I share three ways that podcasting will help increase your authority. Scratch t...

Picture a sandbox. A good sized sandbox. Now, bend down and pick up some sand. Now, single out one grain. That's your podcast in the podcast universe and it's getting more and more crowded every day. How will you avoid getting lost? How will you stand out?    This might seem like an insane analogy. It's not. According to Chartable , 294,736 new podcasts jumped into the podcast sandbox last year. Y...

So you've got a podcast or you're planning to create a podcast and you're focusing so much attention on your show that you think maybe, just maybe, you can skip the whole having a website for your podcast thing. EEENGHH! Wrong.    I get these questions all the time. Do I need a website for my podcast? Is my Apple podcast page enough? Can't I just use my social media channels instead of building a...

You've decided to do a podcast. You've recorded a couple of episodes. And then you re-recorded them. And now, they're sitting their collecting digital dust because you don't know if they're good enough. Sound familiar? You've got Podcast Launch Paralysis.  First of all - it's common. At least half of my coaching clients are dealing with this. It might stem from anxiety of it not being perfect, fea...

If you listen to only one tip in the entire history of this podcast filled with tips for podcasts, let it be this one.  Drum roll, please. Be listener-centric.  Oh wow, I could almost hear the disappointment from here. But wait, you may know that this is the most important thing in podcasting (if you don't go and listen to pretty much any of my past episodes).  If you've been listening, you know a...

Everyone wants to know, 'what makes a podcast good?' Ask 10 podcast listeners and you'll get 10 different answers. The truth is, there's one critical thing that every good podcast has. In this episode of Just the tip, I reveal what that is and how it can make your podcast good (even great).  I see this question about podcasts all the time, especially on social media. The answers range from good so...

How niche can you go? How niche should you go? And, how do you pull it off?  Niching scares the crap out of podcasters. I think they're afraid that if they target a smaller audience, they'll have a small success. If you still think this way, check out the case study in my last podcast . Or, maybe it's the only thing they're afraid of is that they won't become pod-stars with millions and millions o...

You want a big audience, right? Big audience means big success, right? What if I told you that you could be way more successful if you focused on a small audience? A niche audience?   In this week's episode of Just the Tip, I share a case study of a podcaster who went from having a general podcast about business (not that many people were listening to) to having a niche podcast that is killing it....