School of Podcasting: Expert Tips for Launching and Growing Your Podcast

in no particular order) 01:25 Exponent - the nuances of tech strategy - Submitted by Max Flight of AirplaneGeeks.com, TheUAVDigest.com, and PaxExPodcast.com 2:48 Up In Your Business - brings in inspiration to help you to create a business - Submitted by Chris Lewis of www.dadspotlight.com 4:33 School of Podcasting - All Things Podcasting - Submitted by Craig from inglespodcast.com and 08:06 Kenn from blackmanwithagun.com 09:53 Ask the Podcast Coach - Your Podcast Questions Answered - Submitted by Dan Lovallo from http://headlinehistory.libsyn.com/podcast 11:18 We Choose Respect - Teaches kids to be respectful - Submitted by Erik K Johnson from www.podcasttalencoach.com 13:35 You Must Remember This - Golden Age of Hollywood - Submitted by Emily and James of www.classylittlepodcast.com 16:40 Canada Land - A deep dive into the media world in Canada - Submitted by Francis McGrogan from www.standcurious.com 19:10 The Mentee - surround yourself with heavy hitting mentors - Submitted by Gretchen from www.alwaysalesson.com 20:10 Learning Leader - focuses on leadership in every field - Submitted by Gretchen (Schultek) Bridgers from www.alwaysalesson.com 20:40 Duncan Trussell Family Hour - have a good laugh every once in a while - Submitted by Harry Duran of www.podcastjunkies.com 21:56 Mat Men - I love wrestling and this network - Jeff Bradburry from www.teachercast.net 22:30 The Morning Stream - a great mix of humor, news, music, pop culture - Submitted by Jeremy Denise of transmissionspodcast.com 23:33 Bowery Boys - New York City history - Submitted by Jessica Bailey of www.funkyfitnessnow.com 24:34 Art of Manliness - Great advice for Men - Submitted by John Overall of Wordpress Plugins A to Z 26:18 Finding Christ in Cinema - tease out the bits of movies that relate to Christ - John Wilkerson of www.thewiredhomeschool.com 28:10 Grit and Hustle - full of interviews with startups who've had overcome all kinds of obstacles - Submitted by John Livesay of www.sellingsecretsforfunding.com 28:47 The Ferderalist Radio Hour - They talk politics. They talk policy. The host is is absolutely brilliant - Submitted by John Tsarpalas of www.commonwealthy.com 30:38 48 Days to the Work You Love - shows tough love to his listeners and doesn't sugar coat things for them - Submitted by Judy Graph of www.farmandranchcountry.com 32:04 Snap Judgement - great stories, music behind it, the history, and other off the wall stuff - Submitted by Ken Kastler -of www.bountifulproductions.com 32:55 Steal the Show - the most unorthodox marketing program - Submitted by Kim Kracji of www.onthetablepodcasts.com 33:53 Mac Power Users - their recommendations have never steered me wrong - Laura McClellan of www.theproductivewoman.com 36:30 Mad at Dad - If you're married and if you have kids, you probably go through the same thing - Chiaki Hinohara of www.metalmoment.com 40:19 $100 MBA - - the perfect combination of book smarts and street smarts - Submitted by Michel Nelson 0f www.byhyu.com 41:35 Art of Likability - educational podcasts that are also entertaining - Submitted by Michel Nelson 0f www.byhyu.com 42:45 Stacking Benjamins - interesting stories around the finances - Submited by Steve Stewart of No Debt, No Credit, No Problems 44:44 Writing Excuses - really gets deep into the craft - Submitted by Maya Good of www.literaryroadhouse.com 45:50 Podcast Talent Coach - amazing information that has really helped me improve my show - Submitted by Steave Stearns of  www.outsidehealthandfitness.com 47:43 Security Now! - information that comes out is very timely and relevant to my day job - Submitted by Rich Warfield of www.loudpipes.net 50:05 Tim Ferris Show -  He interviews top performing people from all different categories - Submitted by Scott Johnson -of Computer Tutor and Ultrafinishers 52:03 99% Invisible - Talks about all the obscure, unique things - Submitted by Sharon Marrel of www.uuperspective.com 53:25 Daily Tech News - excellent technology information that I find extremely interesting - Submitted by Al Holtz of thelastshippodcast.com & learntoselfpub.com 55:01 Thomas Jefferson Hour - life through the eyes of Thomas Jefferson - Submitted by Terry Noorda of discoveringamerica-history.com 56:05 New Media Show - Great Content You Can't Get Anywhere Else - Submitted by Dave Jackson (me) Have a Great 2016 Thanks to everyone for a great 2015. I look forward to watching the growth of podcasting in the future. If you'd like to have episodes of the School of Podcasting show up on your iPhone go to www.schoolofpodcasting.com/itunes and subscribe today. If you're on an Android you can Subscribe on Android. If you'd like to get the show notes delivered to you for free, sign up for our newsletter. Check out Dave's Books More Podcast Money My Favorite Podcast 2014 My Favorite Podcast 2015 Join the School of Podcasting www.theschoolofpodcasting.com

Because of My Podcast the Creator From the Blacklist Gets Interviewed on Podcast Troy produces numerous podcast, but today he is talking about the Blacklist Exposed podcast he had the creator of the hit NBC show contact Troy on twitter and ask to come on the show. While he was on the show he made announcements that were then used in Press Releases that had all the press releases pointing at Ttoy's site theblacklistexposed.com Tory point out that: The Creator of the Show Called THEM. It took three seasons (it didn't happen over night). Make great headlines. Evaluating Your Podcast Year My stats are basically flat from the start of the year to the end of the year. I had a bit of an upswing in the middle of the year, and I'm up a bit from last year (kind of following the trends of podcasting up about 3%). Here are some things you can look at: See what episodes were downloaded the most See what episodes had the most comments See what pages had the most visit (check your Google Analytics) See what got shared the most ( I use Social Warfare for this) Then look at what didn't do well. You want to do more of what seemed to resonate with your audience and less of what didn't. Seems obvious, but without a time to evaluate what is working you could be going deeper into the wrong direction.   Top Ten Episodes of 2015 The Journey of Podcasting Starts with a Single Episode- Profitcast's The Real Brian Taking Phone Calls On Your Podcast What to Do If You Can't Pick a Podcast Topic What Podcasters Can Learn From David Letterman Podcasting's Most Frequently Asked Questions Making a Living Talking about Horses - Glen the Geek is Never Boring Audio Technica BP40 - Electrovoice RE320 - Audio Technica ATR2100 USB Microphone Shootout Jeff Brown Shares 26 Years Of Experience Behind the Microphone 8 Ways a Stranger Can Help You Grow Your Audience   Honorable Mentions The Most Addicting Social Platform Ever What Every Podcaster Should Know About Stalkers Is Soundcloud A Legitimate Option for Podcasting?   New Tools I Started Using this Year Intelliplayer is a great tool that allows you to add calls to action to YouTube Videos, as well as get more stats than you get in Youtube. Convert Kit  - A great email marketing tool that gives great insights into your email subscribers Nimble - This is the tool I use to keep in touch with the members at the School of Podcasting and Consulting Clients Social Warfare - Sharing buttons on steroids for Wordpress. Simple Podcast Press - For me, the best "Advanced Player" out there. The ability to add an email sign up form AND any button I want, makes it a no brainer. Cover Genie Pro - Makes great covers, ebooks, and a whole lot more. *Note some of those links are affiliate links. Tools I Will Stop Using Soundcloud.com It may be cheap, but I'm getting zero return for my money. Lead Pages - Great tool, but the tools I'm using it for (squeeze pages) I can do with Convert Kit. I was going to use their lead digits, but I then realized that I would be marrying myself to the service as my phone number would be in my old episodes. The One Thing Other things I've noticed looking back at this year is a pile of training materials that I never went through. I bought them to "watch later" and then went on my ways doing things in a manner that I'm sure could be more efficient. I've used Asana for years. It's a great free project management tool. I've never really mastered the software and its capabilities. This will be the first thing I work on in 2016. Get organized and then identify the ONE THING that I will do next. I've heard about the book The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results on how you should pick the NEXT thing that you will be working on and do it. Then the next, then the next. All the while making sure yo are only working on ONE THING. Don't Forget to Celebrate the Accomplishments While I could look at the things that didn't work this year (podcasting for free proved -as I thought - to be a bad experiment), don't forget to look at the things you tried that worked (using blab.im for Ask the Podcast Coach has really made that show fun). By focusing on my next meal, I've lost over 20 lbs in the last three months. Check out apps like the Gratitude app, or the Way of Life apps to help keep you focused and engaged. In Between The Stats While we can focus on the download numbers, and the amount of revenue we generate, this week showed me my greatest asset. My audience. After many years of therapy and making each other miserable, my wife and I dissolved our marriage. I wasn't looking for a pitty party when I announced it on Facebook, but the support that flooded in via email, voicemail, etc was baffling. I felt like George Bailey in It's a Wonderful Life." I've had numerous pep talks, and some great conversations. I'm as fine as one can be in this situation. I'm waiting for the dust to settle, but I'm looking forward to a much more quiet future. While I've now been married twice (and for all purposely, my last), I have no children. I have ex-step children who I do miss, but nobody will be carrying my genes. Again, not looking for a pitty party, but just stating the facts. I have always felt like podcasting was a calling. It just fits me like a glove. It allows me to be creative, to teach, to help, and to use technology. It scratches every itch there is to scratch for me. So I look forward to creating deeper connections with my audience in 2016. I look forward to being focused, and finding more effective ways of getting the word out about the School of Podcasting. I look forward to serving you as we move forward. Ready To Launch Your Podcast? Join the School of Podcasting and get instant access to step by step tutorials, a private Facebook group, and "office hours" webinars where you can get your question answered live in addition to email support. If you're not happy within the first 30 days, I'll refund your money. Sign up at www.theschoolofpodcasting.com

Creative Ways to Get Your Advertisers to Promote Your Podcast Glenn made quite a splash when he was on the show earlier this year (it's the most shared episode on the site). 7:02 "Glenn the Geek" is America's Horse Husband and founder of the Horse Radio Network recently had a special holiday program where they streamed live for 12 hours. Here are some stats: 12 Hours Live20+ Hosts30 Scheduled Guests including Charlie Daniels, Robin from Disney World, Monty Roberts and American Pharoah Trainer Bob BaffertCrashed live feed during Bob Baffert, everything else worked all dayOver 100 listener voicemails with songs, poems and holiday greetings.200 calls during the day (Not all got on air)Gave away $3,000 in prizes including $1000 Grand Prize17 Sponsors Strategies For Doing a Radiothon He started planning months in advance when he was face to face with the sponsors. Sponsors who won't sponsor on a weekly basis, may be interested in doing a "one off." (who later turn into a weekly sponsor). Glenn uses Callinstudio.com to take phone calls and streams via mixlr.com He put it in the contract that the sponsors had to publish the radiothon on their Facebook page. He utilized relationships to get great guests. Glen says "It's not who you know, it's who knows YOU." He got his audience involved who sent in songs, poems, shout outs and more (it took 20 hours to edit together). They got Charlie Daniels by using the contact form on their website. They had a title sponsor who was mentioned every hour. Another advertiser sponsored the email section. Other advertisers were tied into give aways. Results of Horse Radio Holiday Radiothon He mad 50% of what he makes in a month in ONE day. It was a lot of work. He picked up new sponsor who decided to sponsor this one day, are now sponsor weekly. Proof You don't have to have huge numbers to sell advertising. You have to have huge numbers to sell to Ford and Chevy. For more information about the Horse Radio Network check out www.horseradionetwork.com Podfest Event 29:55 Podfest is in February at Tampa Florida at podfest.us For the 2nd year in a row, Podfest is the gathering place for long time podcasters, new podcasters and those who are thinking about starting podcasts.  It's a special forum that brings you actionable and strategic education, unique opportunities to connect and collaborate with your fellow podcasters and speakers and access to the best podcasting resources out there! Use the coupon code earlybird before the end of the year and get $100 off. Because of my Podcast: Glenn The Geek 2:10 Glen mentioned a kickstarter program for a product that fit his audience. Glenn mentioned them on his show, and they were able to meet their funding target (with one audience member giving them $1000) and now that product is sponsoring Glenn's show. Brian From Profitcast Brian was asked to moderate a panel and interviewing the actors of his favorite TV show. I'm a Verb! 38:27 On Profitcast Brian has now made my name a Verb. As in "I'm going to Dave Jackson this..." (meaning I'm going to interrupt a voicemail to talk to the person). Streaming Radio Stations Live365 has a new tool for Podcasters to Create a streaming radio station. They are charging $89 but you get unlimited listeners. Their system is easy to use and more complex than a system using the Centova system (I currently use Listen2myradio). I do like the way you can drill down and see where people are coming from, and they have a system in place for you to make money with your stream (at the rate of $2 for every thousand ads that are played on your station). You can also make money with having people sign up to be a VIP. It's interesting, but I'm not sure the average podcaster will chip in $89 for all the bells and whistles when you can $37.50 for 50 listeners. On my live streaming station,  over the last 30 days I've had 66 listeners with the highest number listening at the same time of 10. Mentioned on this Show thepodcastdigest.info Callburner Hindenburg Journalist Software Launch Your Podcast Check out http://schoolofpodcasting.com/become-a-member/

The Podcast That Has More Audience Participation Than Any Podcast I've Heard Rob Walch is the VP of Podcast relations, but he started off 11 years ago as the host of Podcast411. In 2007 he started the then Today in iPhone (later changed to Today in iOs to include the iPad) and Rob has more audience interaction than any podcast I've ever heard. Here are some things I noticed about his show. Rob mentions and ASKS for feedback and provides his email address and phone number many times through the episode. He states it, and moves on. He gets his community involved by asking them to contribute original music and artwork He offers them free apps from developers looking to promote their app to their target audience. He offers objective viewpoints (he's a fan boy, but realizes integrity easy to lose, and hard to come by) about Apple products. He uses his sponsors so he can talk about them first hand. When someone sends in feedback he religiously refers to this person by name. He reminds his audience that he is "going back to the mail bag" to remind them to e-mail in their comments/questions He doesn't pretend to know it all. If he doesn't know it, he throws it out to the audience to answer (and they do). He uses a Google community (with 2500+ members) to community outside the podcast He uses the same segments for each show, and yet every show is different due to news, apps, and upgrades. So you know what to expect, and still have no idea what to expect. Every episode is served with a side of snarkiness. Rob is sarcastic and that is the part that I love about the show. His segment "How wrong were they" is always good for a chuckle. I play a small "behind the scenes" conversation I had with Rob back in January of this year when we were talking "Twitter bombing" 1:10 Because of My Podcast I'm on FM Radio - Mike Dell from Podcast Help Desk Mike Dell from Podcast Help Desk explains how his podcast lead to him getting a job as a regular on a local Radio show. Find Mike at podcasthelpdesk.com

Increasing Your Podcast's Audience Engagement With Better Calls To Action We love our audience, and we want to connect. We want them to take steps to deepen their level of engagement. We want them to take actions. These often include: Subscribe, Rate & Review in iTunes Follow us on Social Media Join our Email List Buy products Shop At Amazon and that's just a few. Determining Your ONE Call To Action Your call to action will be unique to you. We all have different needs, and different motives. There is no one size fits all, but in the end you need to STOP and THINK, WHAT IS THE GOAL OF THIS PODCAST. Them figure out the roadmap to get your audience from point A to point B. If you are in podcasting "Just for fun" you probably still want people to tell their friends. That is a call to action. Now if I was to honest here, I would say I want everyone to join the School of Podcasting. I need to look at this realistically. This may be the first time you've been on my website, or heard my show. That seems a bit forward don't you think? You don't ask someone to marry you on the first date, so you might not want to close the deal on the first contact with you audience. The cool thing is it is YOUR call. You want to ask someone to marry you on the first date, you can do that.  But you might be less intimidating to have them sign up for your email list. From there you have another opportunity to provide value. Notice what I said here, you have an opportunity to serve your audience. Figure out where you want to go, and the figure out how you're going to get there. It sounds easy, but you might find it difficult. The bottom line is you need a plan. Tips For Creating a Call To Action As I said before, you need to figure out what you want your audience to do Be clear and concise Be repetitive if necessary Tell them HOW (sure you know how, but they may not) Make it E A S Y (don't make them hunt for buttons, or type insane website addresses) Eliminate competitive calls to action Explain how they will benefit (not how you will benefit) Explain exactly what will happen Explain why they need to do this now Remove the Fear. Try to avoid words that might seem much of a commitment. BUY NOW vs Add to Cart. Maybe we should be asking people "Get the back catalog" instead of "Subscribe." Explain how they can cancel at any time, and it is free. Place it in two places on your post. One near the top of the page ("above the fold" and once near the bottom). In the end, a call to action should convey value, and provide a sense of urgency. Because of my Podcast - Jeff Steinman Jeff explains that how launching a podcast boosted his book sales, brought him more traffic, and boosted his interview skills. You can find Jeff at howtoquitworking.com How To Quit Working: A Simple Plan to Leave Your Job for a Life of Freedom Podbean's CrowdFunding Platform For the sake of this argument, let's say that the bar is set at Patreon.com They are the first at an ongoing crowdfunding platform. Others have come and gone, and they are still here. Podbean (a media host) recently launched the ability to have crowdfunding. I went over to check it out. Here is what I found. It's easy to setup, but in some cases impossible to edit. With Patreon it's super easy to create a post (think of it like a Facebook Wall) and choose who can and can't see that post. I don't see that option. With Podbean you have a comments section that doesn't seem as robust. When I watched their video on this, I did notice that their example video shows that all the rewards are outside of the crowdfunding area (bonus content, newsletters). I have an email into Podbean for clarification. I noticed on their demo video someone asked the same question (how do I create a piece of content for a certain support level) and it hasn't been answered. Podbean does have some badges (something I wish Patreon would provide) that make it super easy to copy and paste and have them appear on your website. the one feature that Patreon has that Podbean didn't event mention is scarcity. In other words you could setup a reward amount and say "Only 5 people can be VIPs." I didn't see this as an option in Podbean. One of the issues I had with Podbean is not their fault. I was using Feedburner for the Podcast I setup. Feedburner (shocking) had a problem with the artwork. Podbean pulled this artwork (or lack thereof) and uses that in your listing. There is no place in Podbean to change that. With a properly working feed, I wouldn't have had this issues, but I had no way to edit it. After I updated the feed, the image never appeared. Like Most Humans - I Stuck With the Comfortable I have a Patreon account for the School of Podcasting and another one for the Ask the Podcast Coach show and I understand the Patreon platform. They also seem to be working on adding more features to the Patreon platform. Create Clammrs From Just About Anywhere Clammr has been adding features. Clammr is a tool that allows you to share up to 18 seconds of audio and put it on twitter, Facebook, email, etc. Anyone can listen to the whole episode, or like it and receive the details of the audio clip via email. Recently they announced the ability to integrate with the PowerPress player (something I will report on in the future), but they also had it easy to create clammrs by sharing an audio clip and sending it to clammr. In my testing it seemed to work a bit more reliably if Clammr was open already and then you went to your podcast player and clicked the share button. From there you will record your audio and be taken to the clammr app where you can fine tune it before publishing it to your clammr account. For more information go to clamrr.com and to here what people are clammring, check out the clammrcast top 20 countdown. Ready To Start Your Own Podcast?  

I've been talking about your podcast from TOP to Bottom over the last couple of weeks. Sometimes its good to go back to the basics and reexamine our shows. The first week we talked about Headlines (the title of your show notes), and I provided a free guide with tools to help you write better Blog Post Titles. Last week we talk about the importance of your introduction and how it is your first impression. This week we are talking about the meat and potatoes of the meal. Your content. Because of my Podcast Jason Marshall Jason from the We Don't have Cookies podcast  tells a story that has lead him to get a job on radio, as well as appearances on television all because of his podcast. Be Part of Our Last episode of the Year Answer the question, "My favorite podcast is.." and explain WHY leave your answers HERE (deadline 11/31) I've mentioned the book [easyazon_link identifier="0849921902" locale="US" tag="sop2-20"]Secrets of Dynamic Communications: Prepare with Focus, Deliver with Clarity, Speak with Power[/easyazon_link] available at Amazon which is a great book for shaping your content. I've always said that before you press record you should ask yourself, "What about this topic is going impact my listener enough to want them to tell a friend?" If you can't answer that, then maybe you shouldn't press record. Here are some questions to ask yourself: Do I have a crystal clear objective about this topic. How do you get crystal clear about a subject? By knowing your audience and what they need or want to hear. What points do I need to make to obtain my objective? Don't worry about what they think about YOU, instead think about THEM. Get To the Point With Thanksgiving right around the corner when I to my Grandmother's house it was great seeing all my cousins, it was great smelling all the food, it was great eating crackers or whatever little munchies they had out out, but for the most part I wanted the TURKEY and HOME MADE MASHED POTATOES. It was the same at Christmas. My Grandfather would read the Christmas story before we opened presents (a tradition my brother continues). Then we had to sing some Carols. THEN, FINALLY we would open presents. Your audience is here for the presents. What do you have a hard time waiting for?

Last week we talked about the importance of headlines, and I gave you a free resource to help you make better headlines. Now in Podcasting you headline is your "Show Notes" title. You can get the free resources at www.schoolofpodcasting.com/headlines Your Podcast Introduction People are busy. We hear activity like a badge of honor. How are you ding Bob? BUSY! I'm backed up. I don't get to take lunch. I'M SWAMPED! So with this in mind it is my opinion that your intro should get to the point quickly and answer the following questions: Who am I listening to? What is this? Why do I need to listen to this now? Get to the Punch Line? Put Yourself in the Shoes Of Your Listener When they do a search in Google, or iTunes, etc they see your information and they are asking: Should I listen to this podcast. Should I keep listening to this podcast? Will I come back to listen to this podcast Today I play intros from the following Shows The Podcast Report Podcast Producer 5 Minutes in Church History 317 Podcast Your Intro is Important Mark Ramsey said at the new Media Expo that unlike radio, every podcast listener starts at the beginning. Make yours count, hit them hard, hit them quick, and let them know what they are going to get. [clickToTweet tweet="Does your podcast intro move people to push STOP" quote="Does your podcast intro move people to push STOP"] Get Exposure For Your Show 26:45 November is almost over. Each year I ask you to answer one question. What is your favorite podcast and WHY. Be sure to tell us where we can find your podcast (and what it's about). I'm really interested to see WHY. You can record/upload your answer at www.schoolofpodcasting.com/favorite. There may be a prize involved...... Andrew Hellmich Refused to Podcast For Free - And it's Paying Off 27:48 Andrew Hellmich is from the Photo Bizz Exposed podcast (http://photobizx.com/) and does a podcast about boosting your wedding Photography business. Andrew launched a premium version of his show - when he launched. He knew the podcast would take time away from his business, and with a family to feed he couldn't podcast for free. The other thing Andrew does well, is provide value. He knows people will not pay for horrible content. In this interview you will hear: Andrew has hundreds of people paying for his membership He didn't start in the direction where he landed. He didn't wait to get it perfect. He launched and tweaked. His current strategy is to have 5 episodes available for free, and if you want access to the back catalog you need to pay Andrew $20 a month. Passive income is not always passive. Andrew has been podcasting for three years (this didn't happen overnight) You will hear how Andrew is not afraid to try new things. Andrew loves using Hindenburg Software to edit his podcast. Do You Need a Good Podcast Introduction? If you ever wonder where I got the female singers, or who did the intro to Andrew's show check out Music Radio Creative you get the top voices from all over the world, and years of experience. They can help you shape your message (for those who are marketing challenged). It's a great service. Ready To Start Podcasting? Join the school of podcasting and avoid the common pitfalls of podcasting. You will learn How to shape your topic What is the best equipment to choose (Without blowing a fortune) How to build your website (or resources to have someone else do it) How to record your show and get it into directories like Apple iTunes How to promote your show and get exposure You also get access to our private facebook group, and monthly  "office hour" sessions where you can get free consulting. There is a 30 day money back guarantee. If you join and are not satisfied, I will refund your money.

This is an abbreviated list of headline samples from the book "Writing Riches" by one of my favorite authors and podcaster's Ray Edwards. If you buy his book, buy some paper and pencil along with it. This topic starts at 6:35 The How To Headline (how to write headlines that will bring you more downloads) The Testimonial headline (I wish I had found Dave Jackson sooner - I could've save a lot of money) The Give Me headline (Give me 10 days, and I'll get your podcast into iTunes) The Reason Why Headline (The to 3 reasons people fail at launching a podcast - and how to over come them) The Probing Question Headline (Do you know the five things that cause people to unsubscribe podcasts?) The Dominant Emotion (Are you tired of putting out an episode and getting ZERO feedback?) The Command headline (Be the influencer that leads change in the world) The If-Then Headline (If you can upload a picture on Faceboook, then you can upload a media file your hosting). The Warning Headline (Is Soundcloud Going Out of Business?) A headline grabs attention, draws listeners to press play, communicates the big idea, establishes credibility and joins the conversion that is already happening in your audience's head. Common Mistakes That Podcaster's Make With Episode Titles They put the phrase "Episode 123" at the BEGINNING of the headline.  Nobody cares if you're on episode 6, 60, 600, or 6000. What they care about is how you are going to make them laugh, cry, think, groan, educate, or entertain them. If you MUST do this (I understand it makes it easy to search on your website) put it at the end. You can see in the image to the left that you don't get to see what the title is because half of it is EPISODE XXX. The worst offender of this is (unfortunately) the web based version of iTunes. It gives you very little room for your headline. They Put Very Little Thought Into the Podcast Episode Title This is the SECOND/THIRD thing people see when they find your listing (the first being your show artwork/Title of the Show). I know I am super guilty of waiting till I'd done recording the episode, editing, tagging it, listening to it "one more time," and writing the blog post. You're tired, you're excited (maybe), but you are "this close" to being done and you just "throw anything in there" just so you can press publish. If you think about it, from the 1890 to the 1940's they had paperboys who would shout out the headlines to entice people to purchase a paper and get the rest of the story. They weren't scream edition #417! If the podcast title is bad, the podcast will not be heard. Unheard audio impacts no one. (a twist on a John Caples quote). How To Write Good Podcast Episode Titles Typically Headlines do one of the following: Making a promise. Drawing a picture. Stating a fact. Asking a question. Try these steps Start with your audience. Cosmopolitan magazine knows their audience. Write your show notes first. Then write the title. Prime the pump that is your brain. Write several headlines. If you want to read them out loud. Pick the most important benefit and include that benefit in the headlines. Include the product or problem, or guest in the headlines Often email program like Mail Chimp have A/B testing tools so use two headlines and see which one gets more clicks. Automate the Process There are tools such as Headlinr and Freshtitle ($37) are two tools where you enter a subject and they spit out numerous examples of potential headlines/Episode titles. Freshtitle comes with Title Analyzer that rates your headlines and critiques this for you. The Yoast SEO plugin does something similar (and it's free). Headlinr is a browser extension (chrome only), and Fresh Title is software for the Mac or PC. If you're interested in knowing more about Headlines, sign up for my headline resource kit that has videos of these software titles as well as free ebooks and more. Free Headline Guide I've created guide to some of the best resources to help you create great headlines. These include free ebooks, Demos of headline automation tools, and some of the best blog posts by Headline experts (I did all the Google for you). Click here to get the guide. Because of My Podcast: Jim Collison is a Microsoft MVP 2:30 I host Ask the Podcast Coach every Saturday at 10:30 AM with Jim Collison from theaverageguy.tv. It's quite a hoot! We both love to talk  podcasting. Last week Jim shared the story of how he became a Microsoft MVP, and it turns out it's because of his podcast. Do you have something that wouldn't have happened except for your podcast? Share your story and get some added exposure and be heard on this show (I might turn these into a book next year). Contact me. Google Play Discussion Continues This topic begins at 22:50 Steve Stewart chimes in on last week's episode about Google play. He is SUPER HAPPY that the #1 search tool is going to promote his show FOR FREE. As for the terms of service, they are there to cover Google's butt in the event someone gets stupid. Libsyn Launches New Plugin Podcast Rewind This topic begins at 30:05 Ideas for Podcasting Episode 5 Podcastonomics Episode 5 Libsyn Launches new Wordpress Plugin 32:25 If you are someone who has been usingPowerPress for a while, then do NOT switch Ready to Start Podcasting? Jin the school of podcasting and if you're not happy any time within the first 30 days, you can cancel your subcription and get a full refund.

Any time my podcast can get in front of more people I'm happy. From what I've heard on the Feed Podcast where a Google Rep was interviewed here is what is what we think is going to happen.  Google will pull an episode and host it on their servers (but they won't be a media host) The reason for this is they have control and reliability (come some people do stupid things like put their files on a website host instead of a media host). They reserve the right to put ads after your show, and you will get nothing an like it. There will be a directory, you will be able to direct people to a location There is no set date besides "as soon as possible" It is just in the USA for starting. There are specific Google tags (just like iTunes Tags), but you can submit a feed and it will use the iTunes tags. There will be stats. They are not splitting your file into bits. They hope to feature your show when people search for it. They want to give you what you want - when you want it. This is probably why they paid $35 million for Songza (a company that generated custom playlists) back in 2014. Their artwork spec is from small to HUGE, so for now use your 1400X 1400 artwork that you use for iTunes. You can add your podcast at http://g.co/podcastprotal Here are the Terms of Service for Google Play Check out No Agenda Show for more in depth Media Analysis So How Do I Feel About Google Coming Into Podcasting? Anytime my podcast can get in front of more people, I'm very happy. As I've been online for a while, I've seen Google products come and go (Remember Google Buzz?). So while I'm excited, there is nothing for me to hold, touch, smell, and critique. Am I upset that they are going to host my files? No. Do I wish they would just pass through my files from Libsyn? Yes, but I understand why they are not. We all have our fingers crossed that they use better encoding that Stitcher (which makes you sound barely listenable). Am I upset that an advertising company is going to play ads after my show and I get none of that? No. (and I'm not surprised). As long as I can say what I want in my show and use it to direct people back to www.schoolofpodcasting.com I'm fine. Even Google has to pay the bills. So at this point, I'm "Hooray! - um, I think..." Terms of Service For Other Hosting Platforms Blubrry (use the coupon sopfree to get a free month )Content Producers agree that the content in you shows are free from speech that advocates violence or speech that promotes hate. The Company reserves the right to immediately remove any media content from its Websites that in its sole discretion is deemed to violate the restrictions of this paragraph. Libsyn.com (use the coupon sopfree to get a free month) MonetizationAny attempt to directly monetize Your Content via third-party ad networks or other outside business agreements at the expense of Libsyn without written approval from Libsyn is prohibited. If you choose to monetize, Your Content, you agree to utilize Libsyn Service to enable monetization including but not limited to in-content advertising, iPhone applications or sale of Your Content which may include additional requirements for revenue sharing or fees for use depending on the Service.. To request permission to monetize Your Content via third-party ad networks or other outside business agreements at the expense of Libsyn, please email contact@libsyn.com Spreaker (use the coupon code sopfree to get a free month) In connection with your User Submissions, you further agree that you will not: (i) publish misrepresentations that could damage Spreaker or any third party; (ii) submit material that is unlawful, defamatory, libellous, slanderous, threatening, pornographic, obscene, vulgar, harassing, harmful, hateful, abusive, racially or ethnically offensive or is otherwise inappropriate; (iii) post advertisements or solicitations of business; (v) impersonate another person or entity or falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity; or (v) post User Submissions that would be harmful to minors in any manner. In any case of violation of any of the above user submission rules and requirements or as required by law or regulation, Spreaker reserves the right to take court action and/or report users to the relevant authorities, for instance but not limited to when a user submission becomes subject of a copyright infringement note. Podbean (use the coupon code sopfree to get a free month) Podbean service makes it possible to post audios, videos, photos hosted on Podbean.com to outside websites. This use is accepted. However, pages on other websites which embed audios, videos, photos that hosted on podbean.com must provide a link back to Podbean.com from each embeded content to its Post page on Podbean.com. Free Account is intended for personal use ONLY. Professional or corporate users please use one of our paid services. 99% of the time the terms are there for the provider to cover their rear end.  Patreon Best Practices 22:01 Today we are joined by Taryn Arnold the community happiness representative of Patreon.com to take another look at Patreon ( spoke about Patreon in March of 2014 on Episode 399). They are "THE" platform when it comes to reoccurring crowd funding. When Joyride went out of business they directed their customer to Patreon. Patreon is like a virtual tip jar for your audience to support you. Unlike Paypal (which can have issues when your listener's credit card changes or gets updated, and also may not notify you when a donation happens). Patreon is working to add discovery to their already vast set of tools. Patreon is a community building tool - not just a paywall. People who are succeeding at Patreon are treating it as a community tool to interact with their audience (make it two way - not just you putting stuff behind a pay wall). $3.5 Million is being processed a month to creators. There are roughly 25,000 active creators on Patreon.com. Let me do the math for you 3,500,000 / 25,000 - $140 per active user (roughly...) Be sure to add a link to your Patreon account in you email template so you never forget to mention it. Most people are doing a monthly setup (instead of a per post item). If you are doing items less frequently, it may be better to set up your account as a "per post." 39:52 Some people like are putting the content they give away for free in Patreon. This makes a singular place for your community to find your content and interact with you.  Pete Hollans makes 7,767.05 per video It costs zero to start using Patreon.com they take somewhere between 4% - 6% The $5 and $10 pledges are used the most (the average is $7). You might want to make a few posts that anyone can see so that people who are browsing your items can get a free sample of your content. [clickToTweet tweet="Patreon is paying 3.5 million a month to creators" quote="Tweet This: Patreon is paying 3.5 million a month to creators"] My Favorite Podcast Is I am accepting submissions for my annual "My Favorite Podcast Is" episode. This is where you can get extra exposure for your show. Here is what you do: Go to www.schoolofpodcasting.com/favorite (you can upload a recording, you can record your message using the Speakpipe button, or call the toll free number). Let me know the name of your show, where we can find it, and what it's about. Then let me know what your favorite podcast is AND WHY. If you know their website that would be awesome as well. This will be used in the last episode of the year, and turned into a book on Amazon (so more exposure). Castermind Is Now Accepting Applications If you want some personalized podcast coaching, with the benefit of a mastermind/accountability group, submit an application to part of my Castermind podcast group. Ready To Start Podcasting? Join the School of Podcasting risk free for 30 days. If you're not 100% satisfied I will refund your money - no questions asked. Prices will be increasing in 2016. Mentioned in this Show Podcaster's Studio & Podcaster's Roundtable No Agenda Show Congressional Dish

I'm going to be going over podcasting in the next few episodes. So many people think it starts with a microphone (which is a logical start), but it doesn't. It starts with an idea. It might be an idea that is fueled by a need. That need may be to help people. It may be to make them laugh, cry, think, grown, or inspire them. You want to connect with impact. This is where your podcast starts. It starts with an idea. Taking Your Podcast Inventory This topics starts at 14:21 What do you like? What are you good at? What do other people say you're good at? What do you not like? According to the Book Secrets of Dynamic Communication you are either intending to persuade or enable people. Persuading People Everyone _______ should _____  (i.e. Every coach should podcast). Enabling People Every ____ can ______. (i.e. very coach can podcast). Even sports shows are insinuating that everyone can/should cheer for their team. A comedy show might be getting you to think about something in a different (funny) way. Why Would People Listen to Me? This is a common response. After all it's easy to focus on ourselves. We are our favorite subject after all (right?). So instead of focusing on what people will think about you, think about what you are giving them? It's usually not scary to give someone a gift they know they will love, so why should delivering content that will positively impact them be scary. Communication is about the person (singular) who you will be helping, persuading, instructing, entertaining them. So How Do You Know If Your Podcast Will Impact Your Audience? You need to live in your niche. You need to hangout where your audience hangs out. This could be Facebook groups, Google Groups, Linkedin Groups, Meetup.com, etc. You need to go to where they are, and see what they are talking about. You can read books about our subject, and read blogs as well. You can watch movies about your subject. This is one of those "simple but not always easy" kind of things. There are no shortcuts. Once you know who your podcast is for, you know WHAT to talk about. Why Are You Getting Into Podcasting? There are many reasons: Be Seen as an Expert Reach a Global Audience Find Like Minded People Boost Sales of Your Own Products Boost speaking confidence Engage Your Community Make additional income Fun with friends and family. The WHY is the rudder of your podcast boat. It helps direct the content in the direction that will help you achieve your goal. It your message and your goal are out of sync then you will find it harder to achieve success. The Main Hurdles of Podcasting There are many things that stop people from podcasting. Here are what are feel are the top 10 excuses. Nobody will listen to me I hate my voice I just need "one more thing" People might say negative things I'm not a geek I don't have time We all know that speaking in public is the #1 fear among humans. This means at a funeral, you'd rather be the person in the casket then the person delivering the eulogy. A Podcast Is A Recipe My wife makes a kick butt spaghetti sauce. To watch her make it, one might think she has no idea what she is doing. She doesn't measure anything. She has some core ingredients, but at some point she starts adding a little of this, and a little of that. She samples the sauce, and tweaks some more. In the end, it's awesome. It took her years to perfect it. Every now and then, we will be eating at the table and she will announce that it still needs _____. To her it's missing something. Meanwhile the rest of us are on our second helping as we loosen the buttons on our pants. When you aim for perfection and miss, you land on really, really good. If you never serve your sauce until it is perfect, people will starve. In a world of Kardashians and Celebrity Wife Swapping, MY GOD ARE WE STARVING FOR GOOD CONTENT. Don't Fuel The Stupidity Fire Podcasting starts with an idea - not a microphone. If you've not figured out WHAT you are going to podcast about and take the step to purchase equipment, you are fueling the stupidity fire. Why? Because it becomes a reminder that you still haven't launched. It puts pressure on you. Now that you've spent money, you NEED to podcast so you don't look stupid purchasing a microphone. Why you don't want to feed the stupidity fire is you will have enough voices in your head that fuel your lack of self-confidence. This is natural. Unless you have a background in talking in public, you're not going to be confident in your decision to start a podcast - AND THAT'S OK. With this in mind, don't purchase your Podcast Equipment just yet. Write Down Three Ideas For Your Podcast Episodes Do a quick exercise and write down what your first three episodes will be about. Don't worry about the length, format, artwork, etc. What will you talk about. You don't need to script it out, we are just brainstorming. What would your audience like to hear? When you get that done, do it again. Turn off the TV, NetFlix, YouTube and brainstorm potential ideas for your show. Once you get that done. You have planted the seed of a podcast. Choosing a name, a website, etc will be in the future, but you have identified that you have something to say, and can create content. Don't over-think this. You can start a podcast. Other Topics in This Episode 2:23 Learn to Subscribe - Website to send people to learn how to subscribe to your podcast. You can copy the code and put the tutorial on your website. www.learntopodcast.com 3:55 Soundcloud is breaking their customer's podcasts. Thanks to Mike Dell of Podcast Help Desk for chiming in on the Ask the Podcast Coach show. Want to support the show? Become and Awesome Supporter  9:14 New Media Expo apologies for the lack of Virtual Ticket. 36:26 Cleanfeed.net Web based recorder for Google Chrome ( I will be testing this in the future ). I will also go back and look at Squarespace to see what's been updated.. Podbean has crowdfunding. I will be checking this out. (get a free month at Podbean.com using the coupon code sopfree). 40:23 Castermind.com my podcast mastermind group is now accepting applications. If you are looking for an accountability partner, constructive feebdack, then check out castermind.com and fill out an applications (for people who have a podcast). If you are looking for feedback on your show check out the Podcast Review Show 43:08 What is your favorite Podcast and WHY? I do this every year. I want you to tell me about your show, and where I can find it. Then I want you to tell me what your favorite podcast is, where I can find it, and WHY. I will transcribe this and put it into a book (so exposure for you), and then play your message on the last show of the year more exposure for you). If you're interested, go to www.schoolofpodcasting.com/favorite Ready To Start Podcasting?  Start Ricks Free at www.theschoolofpodcasting.com