This is a "feel good" episode about the power of being able to connect with your audience.   Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Podcast Growth Toolkit" to double your podcast audience.

     

The people at Apple Podcasts have decided "follow" is the right term for what we currently call "subscribe." So in the future, if you want people to "subscribe" to your podcast via Apple Podcasts, you may want to use the word "follow" to match their wording.   James Cridland of Podnews has some interesting thoughts on this, which I'll share with you in this episode. I'll also tell you my thoughts both in the episode and in here:   It doesn't matter.   What we call "subscribe" from now on isn't nearly as important as how we explain what that word means. And we still have a lot of work to do if we want podcasting to be at the levels of social media platforms, such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.   Also – why are we trying to win over people who don't listen to podcasts? I get that it would be nice to expand the audience that podcasting has, but it's a better growth strategy to work with the audience you already have and let those people help you grow than worry with people who don't listen to podcasts and may never listen to podcasts, regardless of what you call "subscribe."   Just to be clear – nobody is wrong here. There's no one way to do anything in podcasting. But changing one word isn't likely to be the gamechanger so many people are saying it will be.   Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Podcast Growth Toolkit" to double your podcast audience.

     

Go on any forum for podcasters and you'll likely see people arguing about the best microphone and best headphones.   The best microphone is the one you have. And if you don't have one, assuming you have some experience hosting and can say something worth listening to, get this one.   The best headphones? When I'm doing remote interviews, I like cheap earbuds. Do they sound great? Not really. But I've found them much better that closed-back, fancy headphones since earbuds allow me to better monitor my own speech and, because of this, sound more natural on the mic.   And when I'm not doing a remote interview and simply recording, either by myself or with somebody else in the room, I usually don't wear headphones at all.   Risky? Yes. But live a little, man. And if you're good enough to get this mic, you should be good enough to make "no headphones" work for you.   Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Podcast Growth Toolkit" to double your podcast audience.

     

I've interviewed hundreds of guests over the years. Most have been great experiences, even if the interview didn't always work out the way I wanted.   This is not one of those stories. This guest lied to me, brought me in on his lies, and pissed me off because of it.   On a positive note, it's a great story for Big A Big Podcast and I hope it helps you better handle similar situations when they happen to you.   Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Podcast Growth Toolkit" to double your podcast audience.

     

I think it's important to keep a good relationship with publicists and booking agents, but you need to remember who these people work for – not you.   Their main goal when dealing with you is to get you to cover something or talk to somebody. Because of this, you need to make sure that what you cover and who you book works for you – do not leave it up to somebody else to make a decision like that.   In this episode I talk about a publicist who tried to dump a guest on me, how I tried to work with her, but ultimately, how I had to walk away, because the guest didn't meet my standard and she wasn't able to make the (somewhat) interesting story that would have allowed him to participate as a ride-along work.   Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Podcast Growth Toolkit" to double your podcast audience.

     

If you do enough podcast interviews, you're going to have a bad one. I once had a guy, well-known rock star, stand up in the middle of recording and tell me, "This interview is over! Take me back to my hotel!"   Even Larry King had some bad interviews. But he made it work...at least sometimes.   Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Podcast Growth Toolkit" to double your podcast audience.

     

I saw a video being passed around social media that I found to be very impressive. It was bold and took chances, calling out a well-known “marketing guru” on certain things regarding race that, to some people, including me, came off as tone-deaf and out-of-touch.   I reached out to her.   It didn't go well.   That's what this episode is about. Want to see the conversation with this person? Visit Big Podcast Bulletin.   Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Podcast Growth Toolkit" to double your podcast audience.

     

One of the most common situations we run into as podcasters is guests who give the same canned answers they've given hundreds to hundreds of other people. Closely related to this is guests who have walls up, want to stick to prepared talking points, and don't want to have real discussions about what you're asking them.   How can you get guests to open up to you when doing an interview? I talk about that and more on this episode.   Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Podcast Growth Toolkit" to double your podcast audience.

     

If you want to know the behind-the-scenes elements of a successful radio show (and podcast), listen up. I walk you through the episode creation process from A-to-Z.    Looking to get a job in the podcast business? I talk about that too.   Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Podcast Growth Toolkit" to double your podcast audience.

     

Amazon just released its version of a "Fitbit" called Amazon Halo. One of the main reasons I got it, and the reason I'm talking about it here, is because, unlike a Fitbit, Amazon Halo will analyze your voice.

Here's how Amazon describes this feature: "Analyze qualities of your voice like energy and positivity to help strengthen communication."

Sounds like something that might be helpful to someone who uses his voice to make a living, right?

I talk about my "voice analysis" experience on this episode.

Amazon Halo also measures your sleep and its quality. And tells you how fat you are. And gives you a ton of other date to be obsessive over.

I talk about that too.

It it helpful? Yes. Is it for you? Maybe.

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Podcast Growth Toolkit" to double your podcast audience.