One of the questions we hear from new podcast editors all the time is, "How can I find my first client?"

Let's be honest - it can be hard, confusing, daunting, and scary. 

You know what you're doing but you don't know where to find clients. Or more specifically, you might not know where (and how) to find the RIGHT clients.

Should you start editing on Fiverr? Should you work for free to build your portfolio? Should you just pitch every podcaster in a Facebook group? Should you troll the forums and groups looking for the best possible podcast clients? 

Should you focus on building your brand - even if you don't have a body of work to show for it?

These are all tough questions. And trying to find answers can be paralyzing. You might be afraid that making the wrong decision will lock you into something that doesn't work. And even worse, making NO decision will definitely keep you from getting started.

The good news is that there's no ONE right answer.

The bad news is that there's no ONE right answer.

Listen as our four Yetis share the stories of their first clients.

Daniel shares how he got started on (and still gets some clients from) a popular discount platform. He shares how he was WAY underpriced at first, how he's approached getting to rate parity, and how he now uses that platform to screen out the wrong clients.

Carrie shares how she submitted around 100 proposals in a single day that led to her first client using a different platform. She talks about her experience, how that platform has changed, and the incredible administrative overhead that goes with a platform like that.

Bryan shares how a guest on his first podcast helped jumpstart his editing, why he invested in Chris Curran's Podcast Engineering School, and how he's moved from editing pro-bono to professional editing as a side hustle podcast editor.

Jennifer shares how a radio station and an online course led to her first editing clients and how she's transitioned her focus and efforts over the years.

We're not saying that any of these ways are right (or even recommended) but they're our stories. They're how WE got started. And maybe you can learn from both what worked and what didn't work for us.

Our Guest Editor

This episode was edited by Callie Wright. You can find their website at https://www.podcaststhatdontsuck.com/.

Interested in being a guest on the show?

If you're a podcast editor, we'd love to see if you'd be a fit for a future episode. Fill out this form to let us know you're interested and we'll contact you to see if it's a good fit.

Resources:

• Toggl
• Bryan's crazy Google Sheet for workload tracking
• Fiverr
• Upwork
• Podcast Engineering School (qualifying purchases benefit Bryan)

Appearing in this episode:

• Daniel Abendroth: https://rothmedia.audio | @rothmedia_audio
• Jennifer Longworth: https://bourbonbarrelpodcasting.com | @KYPodcasting
• Carrie Caulfield-Arick: https://yayapodcasting.com | @thekeldakitty
• Bryan Entzminger: https://toptieraudio.com | @toptieraudio

This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy