Presenters: Cliff Ravenscraft (Podcast Answer Man), Father Roderick
26 things that will help!
1. There is power when your show has a narrow niche focus. The more focused on a niche you can be, the better. It will actually help you find a larger audience.
2. Only podcast about things for which you are passionate about.
3. Before you record your first episode, you should know why you are podcasting in the first place. Have a mission/purpose for your show. ANd – is a podcast the best medium for your message?
4. Become crystal clear on exactly who your target audience is! Imagine your occupation was that of a bounty hunter.
5. Build it and they will come does not, often, work in podcasting! Creating an amazing show is about 30% of the equation. The other 70% is marketing and relationship building. Go read the book “How to win friends and influence people.” Actually schedule time to promote your podcast, answer emails, etc.
6. You should submit your podcast directories like iTunes, Zune, Blackberry, and Stitcher Radio. Customize and brand those sites if you can. tweetadder.com – Cliff used this to follow 500 people a day that were interested in the topic his podcast focused on. You can do this manually too – just follow people that talk about the same things you are interested in. Cliff has some helpful info/submission tools on his podcast website.
7. Content is king! Create high value content that people can’t live without. It’s an added bonus if your content is so great that they are compelled to share it with others.
8. Entertainment goes a long way. Don’t be boring! Make your enthusiasm show through your voice.
9. Keep it positive. The world is seeking hope and encouragement. Give it to them! Sell hope – this keeps people coming back.
10. Be enthusiastic! Don’t do it more than what is natural for you though.
11. skipped this one
12. Audio quality is queen! Remember that there are times when the queen will trump the king! Many people will not listen to your great content if your audio quality is not that great. Both said don’t use USB mics of any type. Better to get a real mic, a mixer, etc and sound professional.
13. Build relationships with your audience! Learn the first name, last name, and a minimum of at least one other personal fact about as many of the people who download your show as possible. Wow.
14. Include the voice of your audience in your show.
15. Thank members of your community publicly, both in your show and in your online efforts. Give praise! DOn’t just focus on yourself.
16. Establish and build meaningful relationships with other content creators in your niche/industry.
17. Create keyword rich titles, show notes, etc for your podcast. And all that other SEO junk.
18. Make yourself newsworthy! (http://podcastanswerman.com/newsworthy)
19. Interview others in your show.
20 – 26. Went over time, so I didn’t catch these. Either way, these were all great suggestions!