Big Podcast Playbook - Grow Your Podcast. Build Your Audience.

Nobody is actually podcasting with a mask, at least not successfully. Thanks to COVID-19 though, a lot of people are wearing masks right now.

This is a great opportunity for podcasters. More in this episode...

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Audience Attraction Cheat Sheet" to get 25 podcast episode (and segment) templates.

Podcast advertising is changing – have you noticed? For one, there's a lot more advertising for hair dye now that we're in quarantine and people can't get their hair professionally colored.

But this episode isn't about advertising. Or hair dye.

This is an episode about how to make money with podcasting equipment you already own. If that's what you want to do with this idea... You might like it so much that you do it free.

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Audience Attraction Cheat Sheet" to get 25 podcast episode (and segment) templates.

I get that it can feel "weird" to release podcast episodes right now, but we have a big opportunity to use this time to do what we do – help people, form community, and spread important messages.

What are you going to do?

I wrote about The Coronavirus Opportunity on Big Podcast Bulletin. This episode has more thoughts on how to take advantage of it.

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Audience Attraction Cheat Sheet" to get 25 podcast episode (and segment) templates.

The National Association of Broadcasters released a PSA on coronavirus (download it for use on your podcast) this week, so I thought it would be a good idea to talk about the overall concept of Public Service Announcements and how you can use existing PSAs or do something similar on your own to change opinions and create a specific outcome.

Note that the PSA within this episode can be used not only on your podcast but anywhere you release material online. I attached it to a short video about coronavirus on Instagram to double-down on getting accurate information about this situation out to the public.

The PSA is a powerful concept and goes way beyond coronavirus or "advertising." It's easy to do with as little as an extra sentence or two, so I hope you'll consider options for your podcast.

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Audience Attraction Cheat Sheet" to get 25 podcast episode (and segment) templates.

Every March, Podfest Multimedia Expo happens in Orlando. I just returned and have a "review" if you're curious about what happened or are wondering if it's the right event for you and your podcast.

What's inside this episode:

• Flying on Spirit Airlines – What's it really like?
• Who attends Podfest?
• How many people were there this year?
• What kind of people were there this year?
• How boss Chris Krimitsos expanded Podfest this year
• What will happen to podcasting-related events now that COVID-19 is here?

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Audience Attraction Cheat Sheet" to get 25 podcast episode (and segment) templates.

It seems the whole world is on "lockdown" right now due to COVID-19 fears. But on a positive side, podcasters have an opportunity to help this situation.

The CDC site is where to get accurate COVID-19 info. Take memes and other info you get via social media or Donald Trump with skepticism. Listen to people who know – scientists and doctors. 

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Audience Attraction Cheat Sheet" to get 25 podcast episode (and segment) templates.

I finally (!!!) finished recording and editing the audiobook version of Big Podcast – Grow Your Podcast Audience, Build Listener Loyalty, and Get Everybody Talking About Your Show.

Then I ran into an issue...

Because I was punching in and editing some of the pauses, some of the "breathing noise" got chopped. And that sounds weird.

I knew it might be an issue, and it probably wouldn't have been a big deal had this been a book for people with a "normal" understanding of audio. But you're a podcaster and you have a more advanced ear.

So I've got a little bit more work to do on this...

I thought I might be crazy, so I sent a clip to Dave Jackson from School of Podcasting to get his opinion. He sent back the clip after running it through a "debreath" plugin, which did get rid of the breathing sounds, but took a little too much out.

In this episode, I play "before" and "after" clips and let you judge for yourself.

LESSON LEARNED: You can only do so much with your audio once it's on tape, so make sure you get something great on tape. Don't rely on automation of fixing things after the fact, because you may not have what you need to work with.

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Audience Attraction Cheat Sheet" to get 25 podcast episode (and segment) templates.

It's common for podcasters to tell me, "I've been thinking about doing a book."

And that makes sense. As a podcaster, you have a message and a lot of ideas around it.

But writing a book can be a lot of work. I know, because I've done a few of them. The more recent one, a book on podcasting, took about four years. 

Grant Baldwin of The Speaker Lab Podcast just released a book on speaking. His approach was different than mine. On this episode, you'll hear from Grant himself about how this book came together and learn about an option for getting your book out.

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Audience Attraction Cheat Sheet" to get 25 podcast episode (and segment) templates.

Happy holidays!

This episode contains a few thoughts on how to make your podcast (and connection with listeners) better in the upcoming year and decade.

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Audience Attraction Cheat Sheet" to get 25 podcast episode (and segment) templates.

Back in the air chair... I had planned to take a few days off after the 30 episodes from last month, but here we are, three weeks later.

Strangely enough, I've had a few people reach out to me over the last couple of weeks to ask about "how to come back" from a podcast that's on hiatus. That's the focus of this episode.

Don't Let Your Podcast Be Ignored - Download my free "Audience Attraction Cheat Sheet" to get 25 podcast episode (and segment) templates.