Podcast Pontifications

Podcasting is often touted as a way to reach a younger, hipper demographic. But that ignores the millions of people 55+ who listen to podcasts today, with different habits and content preferences.

We tend to think of podcasters as young and hip. And yes, that’s true. But according to Edison Research, 24 million Americans over 55 listen to podcasts, up from just 4 million a decade ago.

I don’t have access to the complete data set, but I’m confident enough (Dunning-Krueger much?) to make some inferences based on the… oh, let’s go with more mature podcast listening audience.

55+ podcast listeners have more discretionary time. 

55+ is a very wide swath, covering more senior employees with more flexible work schedules, plus many retired and semi-retired people. They aren’t forced to follow the listening patterns of those who work a 9-to-5. 

Lots of variance among 55+ podcast listeners.

My hunch is that if you plotted out the percentage of listeners for each age starting at 55, you’d likely see a standard Power Law develop. The “younger ages” on the left would have the biggest percentages, which gradually taper down as the age itself gets higher.

24 million will look small tomorrow.

When The Infinite Dial 2022 report comes out, people who were 54 in the prior report will now be counted in the 55+ bracket. 

55+ podcast listeners like age-specific content

If someone listens to Alan Alda’s podcast, Clear+Vivid, they also tend to like Katie Couric’s show. She’s 64. And the podcast by Rob Lowe who’s 57. And even WTF by Marc Marin, also 57. 

So yes, old people do listen to podcasts. And they’re going to keep listening to podcasts as we become they of whom we speak. 

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Boostagram Corner! 

Much love to Pat Cheung from PodInbox for the virtual coffees and Kevin Patton from Academic Podcasting for the nice review. Links to both are in the next section.

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Links:

• Advancing Podcasting community -  http://advancingpodcasting.xyz

• Edison Research’s The Infinite Dial 2021 - https://www.edisonresearch.com/the-infinite-dial-2021-2

• Ed Asner (IMDB) - https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000799

• The Mary Tyler Moore Show (Wikipedia) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mary_Tyler_Moore_Show

• Westwood One 2021 Audioscape - https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/ear-brain-heart-1968391

• Power Law - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Power_law

• Other shows people who listen to Alan Alda’s podcast listen to - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/clear-vivid-with-alan-alda/id1400082430?id=1400082430#see-all/listeners-also-subscribed

• Pat Cheung on Twitter - https://twitter.com/patcheungfrom 

• PodInbox - https://www.podinbox.com

• Use AZPOD when you register for She Podcast Live to save $100! - https://www.shepodcasts.com/live/

• Kevin Patton on Twitter - https://twitter.com/DrKevinPatton

• Academic Podcasting - https://academicpodcasting.mn.co

• Leave a review for Podcast Pontifications - https://ratethispodcast.com/podpont

• More new podcast apps - https://podcastindex.org/apps

• Support Evo on Buy Me A Coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/evoterra

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A written-to-be-read article and a full transcript of the audio of this episode can be found at https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/do-old-people-listen-to-podcasts-yes-yes-we-do.

Visit https://twitter.com/evoterra for more podcasting insights from Evo Terra as they come.

Buy him a virtual coffee to show your support at https://BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit https://Simpler.Media to see how Simpler Media Productions can help you reach your business objectives with podcasting.

Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show. Learn more about Allie at http://alliepress.net.

Podcast Pontifications four times a week to provide ideas and ask questions every working podcaster should be thinking about. Subscribe today at https://PodcastPontifications.com.

Photo by Esther Ann on Unsplash

Mentioned in this episode:

Support For Abortion Rights

While Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th.

Following podcasting best practices is always smart, but it doesn’t leave much room for creativity. Sometimes success is serendipitous, and what seems to be pointless may have an unexpected future upside.

Podcasting requires productivity prioritization. There are countless things about and adjacent to podcasting you can waste your time on. And as you have a limited amount of time beyond the actual process of producing your podcast, prioritization is a good survival tactic.

But I'm still a fan of doing pointless things. Or rather, things that seem pointless, that don't lead to an immediate, measurable payoff for your podcast.

For the last seven months or so, I’ve been producing a second daily podcast that I call Minute of Pod Zen. And very, very few people have ever heard it. 

The initial plan for MoPZ was to get broad syndication across other podcasts about podcasting. But with three exceptions—thank you Bryan, James, and Mark—that failed to materialize.

I also thought it might be a nifty way to experiment with Flash Briefing on Amazon Smart speakers. Two of you thought so as well. Yes. Two.

If I were measuring the success of MoPZ by the original goal of wide syndication, then the extra time it takes me to write and produce the truncated version every day—about 30-45 minutes more, I reckon—seems rather pointless. 

Unless you’re reading this. This text is used not only here in the in-app episode details, but also is how I share the podcast across social media, as a Twitter thread and long-form posts on Linkedin and Facebook. And it’s working really, really well!

With one lightbulb moment, MoPZ went from pointless to powerful. So if there’s a crazy idea you always wanted to try with your podcast, do it! You might be surprised how it takes a life of its own.

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Boostagram Corner! 

Much love to Kyrin from the podcast Mere Mortals and Josh Liston for the value for value support!  

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Links:

• Advancing Podcasting community -  http://advancingpodcasting.xyz

• Minute of Pod Zen info - https://podcastpontifications.com/about/syndication-options

• MoPZ is syndicated on episodes of Sounds Profitable - https://soundsprofitable.com

• … and on Friday episodes of Podnews - https://podnews.net

• … and also on select episodes of Ear Brain Heart - https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/ear-brain-heart-1968391

• Example Twitter thread from me - https://twitter.com/evoterra/status/1430938197794693123

• The podcast, Mere Mortals - https://player.whooshkaa.com/shows/mere-mortals

• Josh Liston on Twitter - https://twitter.com/joshuacliston

• Podfried, a value for value enabled podcast listening app - https://www.podfriend.com/

• More new podcast apps - https://podcastindex.org/apps

• Support Evo on Buy Me A Coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/evoterra

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A written-to-be-read article and a full transcript of the audio of this episode can be found at https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/when-pointless-podcasting-processes-pay-off.

Visit https://twitter.com/evoterra for more podcasting insights from Evo Terra as they come.

Buy him a virtual coffee to show your support at https://BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit https://Simpler.Media to see how Simpler Media Productions can help you reach your business objectives with podcasting.

Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show. Learn more about Allie at http://alliepress.net.

Podcast Pontifications four times a week to provide ideas and ask questions every working podcaster should be thinking about. Subscribe today at https://PodcastPontifications.com.

Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash

Mentioned in this episode:

Support For Abortion Rights

While Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th.

It doesn’t matter how long your podcast episodes are, so long as you tell a great story. Great storytellers make all podcasting better, and with some work and dedication, you too can join their ranks.

How do you, the working podcaster, get better at storytelling, arguably one of the most important—if not the most important—aspects of podcasting? I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that, all things remaining equal, the podcaster who is better at the craft of storytelling will out-podcast someone who is not. 

I’m not a teacher of the art of storytelling, so I’m reticent to give “how-to” advice on becoming a great storyteller. But I am a practitioner of the art, so I can at least share with you four things I do that help to continually refine my skills as a storyteller and a podcaster. 

1. I consume great stories from great storytellers. From fiction podcasts to articles written by world-class journalists, I fill my eyes and my ears with great stories as much as I can, soaking in the rhythm and of a quality, well-told story. 

The ability to tell great stories will not spontaneously generate in your brain if you don’t have it. I make it a point to continually surround myself with great stories every day.

2. I outline stories before I tell them. The outlining I learned in school was rubbish. The outlining I was forced to learn writing the first edition of Podcasting for Dummies, showed me the outlining light. My publishers required an extremely detailed outline that formed the scaffolding of each section of each chapter of the book. ( It wasn’t quite a 1:1 ratio of outlined bullet point to chapter, but it wasn't too far off from that.)

With an outline that detailed, the creative parts of my brain flesh out sections in real-time as I follow along.

3. I keep some favorite stories in my back pocket. The next time you run into me at a podcasting event, ask me to tell you a story. I have a few different stories I can quickly pull out, once I read the room for appropriateness, ranging from getting kicked out of a football game (and not arrested), selling everything and traveling abroad for three years, or a non-joke my wife refuses to let me tell in her presence. 

4. I practice my storytelling skills. Four days a week on Podcast Pontifications. With every guest appearance on other podcasts. With every presentation I assemble and deliver. And at local storytelling events. Even when pacing around my living room, orating an idea that’ll be heard by no one other than the cat.

Our human brains have been shaped by hundreds of thousands of years of stories, either created or consumed. We need stories. And, in turn, we need to tell stories. Faced with the choice to either give advice or tell a story, storytelling wins every time. Think about that the next time you sit down to prep for an episode of your podcast. 

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Boostagram Corner! 

Special thanks to Dave Jackson from the School of Podcasting and someone named Nick for sending me boostagrams with messages yesterday. Both get a shoutout from me in the episode.

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Links:

• Advancing Podcasting community -  http://advancingpodcasting.xyz

• My recommendations on great fiction podcasts - https://www.podchaser.com/lists/evo-licious-fiction-podcasts-107ZztJUgQ 

• 1st edition of Podcasting for Dummies - https://www.wiley.com/en-us/Podcasting+For+Dummies-p-9780471748984

• One of my Ignite Phoenix talks - http://www.ignitetalks.io/videos/big-numbers

• Dave Jackson on Twitter - https://twitter.com/davejackson

• School of Podcasting - https://schoolofpodcasting.com 

• Podcasting Hall of Fame - https://academyofpodcasters.pairsite.com/hall-of-fame

• Fountain - https://www.fountain.fm

• More new podcast apps - https://podcastindex.org/apps

• Support Evo on Buy Me A Coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/evoterra

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A written-to-be-read article and a full transcript of the audio of this episode can be found at https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/in-podcasting-stories-beat-advice-every-time.

Visit https://twitter.com/evoterra for more podcasting insights from Evo Terra as they come.

Buy him a virtual coffee to show your support at https://BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit https://Simpler.Media to see how Simpler Media Productions can help you reach your business objectives with podcasting.

Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show. Learn more about Allie at http://alliepress.net.

Podcast Pontifications four times a week to provide ideas and ask questions every working podcaster should be thinking about. Subscribe today at https://PodcastPontifications.com.

Photo by Vitolda Klein on Unsplash

Mentioned in this episode:

Support For Abortion Rights

While Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th.

A lot of podcast marketing advice starts and ends with: build a funnel and keep feeding people into it! And while that can and does work for some, it’ll frustrate a lot of podcasters. Here’s why:

All models are wrong. Some happened to be useful. That an accurate reflection of how I feel about podcast marketing funnels.

The core concept of a podcast marketing funnel is making a lot of people aware of your podcast, then getting some of them to consider listening to your podcast, and then getting an even smaller set to actually listen.

Seems simple, right? Perhaps too simple.

I’ve a few issues with the simplicity marketing funnels describe and the panacea far too many marketers claim them to be. 

To start, I think the metaphor of a funnel itself is wrong. A real funnel’s job is to… well, funnel everything through it and not spill a drop.

But every marketer knows that marketing funnels are leaky and only help the right people progress through the process. But “marketing sieve” doesn’t sound nearly as sexy. 

If you’re using mystery and intrigue on assets you’re making for awareness—stop. You’re not doing yourself or anyone else any favors by hiding exactly who your content is for.

Also, actual funnels have a single entry point: The top. There’s no “side hatch” on my kitchen funnel. But in reality, people are quite likely to first encounter your podcast at any stage of the funnel, not just the top. Do the links you share or the assets you make discoverable work for people who aren’t familiar with you or your show? Or is that why you’re completion rate or engagement metrics in the toilet?

And then there’s the problem of gravity. Every marketing funnel, be it for podcasts or anything else, assumes linear, top-to-bottom refinement and progression from awareness to consideration, to conversion. Nice and neat, And not at all accurate of the chaotic way individuals interact with content.

No, I’m not anti-funnel. Just cautions. Keep in mind that what works for a SaaS company may not work for your podcast. 

Also: ShePodcasts LIVE? It’s happening in mid-October in Scottsdale, which is a suburb of Phoenix (I said that just to trigger the Snotsdale peeps). Since I live here (Phoenix, not Scottsdale, but close enough), I’ll be attending. You should too. Get $100 off your ticket when you use AZPOD at checkout.

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Links:

• Advancing Podcasting community -  http://advancingpodcasting.xyz

• Article on Sounds Profitable Who Wins When IP Addresses Disappear? - https://soundsprofitable.com/update/who-wins-without-ip-addresses 

• Privacy-enhancing technologies - https://about.fb.com/news/2021/08/privacy-enhancing-technologies-and-ads/

• Biggest podcast advertising spenders - https://www.magellan.ai/blog-categories/top-15

• Podfriend - https://www.podfriend.com

• Fountain - https://www.fountain.fm

• Podverse - https://podverse.fm

• Support Evo on Buy Me A Coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/evoterra

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A written-to-be-read article and a full transcript of the audio of this episode can be found at https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/the-problems-with-podcast-marketing-funnels.

Visit https://twitter.com/evoterra for more podcasting insights from Evo Terra as they come.

Buy him a virtual coffee to show your support at https://BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit https://Simpler.Media to see how Simpler Media Productions can help you reach your business objectives with podcasting.

Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show. Learn more about Allie at http://alliepress.net.

Podcast Pontifications four times a week to provide ideas and ask questions every working podcaster should be thinking about. Subscribe today at https://PodcastPontifications.com.

Photo by Ben White on Unsplash

Mentioned in this episode:

Support For Abortion Rights

While Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th.

If reactions to very real privacy concerns remove our one way to track downloads, it’ll wreck the podcast advertising industry. But what about everyday podcasters who don’t rely on impression-based ad sales?

In the not too distant future, we’re probably going to lose our reliance on IP addresses. And while that will have a chilling effect on podcasters and podcast businesses that rely on impression-based advertising revenues… what about the rest of us? You know, the vast majority of podcasters with different goals and objectives?

Well, it may not be as bad as you think.

Keep in mind that podcast media hosting companies can count requests to your media files. They’ll just no longer be able to group, sort, and filter those requests to give you an approximation of how many people are behind those file requests. 

Clearly, there will be much sturm und drang when this happens. Indeed, I predict the fallout will devastating for many podcasts. But I’m confident that podcasting will survive. 

Hobbyist podcasters don't really care how “accurate” their statistics are. They just want to know that someone on the other end is listening. 

Influencers who podcast will be able to spin an engagement story for the brands they work with, and they’ll figure out a way to do this without downloads.

Business podcasters care less about downloads and much more about measurable business outcomes, so expect them to double-down on tracking KPIs that really matter to their business.

As such, I’m cautiously optimistic about what comes after the upheaval. More importantly, I believe podcasting will survive and will come out with better measurements and business models on the other side.

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Links:

• Advancing Podcasting community -  http://advancingpodcasting.xyz

• Article on Sounds Profitable Who Wins When IP Addresses Disappear? - https://soundsprofitable.com/update/who-wins-without-ip-addresses 

• Privacy-enhancing technologies - https://about.fb.com/news/2021/08/privacy-enhancing-technologies-and-ads/

• Biggest podcast advertising spenders - https://www.magellan.ai/blog-categories/top-15

• Podfriend - https://www.podfriend.com

• Fountain - https://www.fountain.fm

• Podverse - https://podverse.fm

• Support Evo on Buy Me A Coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/evoterra

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A written-to-be-read article and a full transcript of the audio of this episode can be found at https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/can-you-podcast-without-reliable-analytics.

Visit https://twitter.com/evoterra for more podcasting insights from Evo Terra as they come.

Buy him a virtual coffee to show your supprt at https://BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

oAnd if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit https://Simpler.Media to see how Simpler Media Productions can help you reach your business objectives with podcasting.

Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show. Learn more about Allie at http://alliepress.net.

Podcast Pontifications four times a week to provide ideas and ask questions every working podcaster should be thinking about. Subscribe today at https://PodcastPontifications.com.

Photo by Privecstasy on Unsplash

Mentioned in this episode:

Support For Abortion Rights

While Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th.

For as DIY-friendly as podcasting is, it’s still a complex web of creation, distribution, and promotion. So it’s no wonder many are looking for shortcuts through the complexity. Only… do they work?

Generally speaking, I'm skeptical of podcasting shortcuts. No, I don’t like wasting my time any more than you like wasting yours. And podcasting offers plenty of places to spin your wheels and waste a lot of time on, I’ll grant you that.

But before you glom onto a peddled podcasting shortcut, ask yourself these three questions:

1st: Do you understand the process this shortcut is bypassing?

The shortcut itself may be a black box, but you need to have a good idea of what the shortcut is doing. Perhaps not exactly, but you need to at least understand the “why” behind the process.

2nd: Is this shortcut really better than nothing?

Because there are so many things you could be doing in podcasting, it’s a safe bet that you’re probably missing a step or two. So many podcasting shortcuts exist with the promise of doing that thing your not, but with minimal effort. The justification? Well… it’s better than nothing.

But is it really? Got any proof of that?

3rd: Does this shortcut seem too good to be true?

If it seems too good to be true, it probably is. The internet is full of people selling things with questionable—if not downright fraudulent—results. 

Just like that $10 sonic mosquito repellent gadget doesn't actually keep the skeeters off you when you put it on your patio, a $10 secret to unlocking podcast riches shortcut probably isn't going to bring the windfall you had hoped.

Boostagram Corner! 

Special thanks to Dave Jones from the Podcast Index and James Cridland from Podnews for sending me boostagrams with messages. Both get a shoutout from me in the episode.

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Links:

• Advancing Podcasting community -  http://advancingpodcasting.xyz

• Arielle N’s method of social sharing - https://twitter.com/arithisandthat/status/1429549172156518406

• Podcast Index - https://podcastindex.org

• James Cridland on Twitter - https://twitter.com/jamescridland?lang=en

• Podnews - https://podnews.net/

• Podfriend - https://www.podfriend.com/

• Fountain - https://www.fountain.fm/

• More new podcast apps - https://podcastindex.org/apps

• Support Evo on Buy Me A Coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/evoterra

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A written-to-be-read article and a full transcript of the audio of this episode can be found at https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/shortcuts-in-podcasting-that-arent-dead-ends.

Visit https://twitter.com/evoterra for more podcasting insights from Evo Terra as they come.

Buy him a virtual coffee to show your support at https://BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit https://Simpler.Media to see how Simpler Media Productions can help you reach your business objectives with podcasting.

Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show. Learn more about Allie at http://alliepress.net.

Podcast Pontifications four times a week to provide ideas and ask questions every working podcaster should be thinking about. Subscribe today at https://PodcastPontifications.com.

Photo by krakenimages on Unsplash

Mentioned in this episode:

Support For Abortion Rights

While Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th.

We know that the podcast listening experience matters. And we know the big podcast apps don’t seem to share that sentiment. It’s time for working podcasters like you to do something intentional about it.

I don’t have to tell you how important it is for your podcast to be distributed everywhere people may choose to listen to podcasts. With very few exceptions, adding one more destination point for your podcast is a one-time action that is a simple form-submit away.

But just because your show is in a big app, you don’t have to listen there. And you certainly don’t have to remind people that your show is there.

You should have a considered opinion on which app you think gives a great listener experience, not which one may (or may not be) the biggest.

It’s weirdly controversial to say the big podcasting apps put their own interests ahead of podcasting. Yet many podcasters continue to pay fealty to big players even as the actual listening experience on those apps is getting demonstrably worse.

So be the change you want to see in the world. Take some time this weekend and play around with a new podcast listening app. Regime change starts at home, and there’s no risk trying out something different.

I recognize I have a big blind spot when it comes to podcast listening apps. Time for me to fix that. I hope you’ll take this opportunity to do so as well. 

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Links:

• Advancing Podcasting community -  http://advancingpodcasting.xyz

• Yes, YouTube - https://www.edisonresearch.com/the-infinite-dial-2021-2/

• Apple Podcast’s ongoing dumpster fire - https://www.theverge.com/2021/8/18/22630517/apple-podcasts-subscriptions-launch-dashboard

• Spotify gonna Spotify podcasting - https://twitter.com/ashleyrcarman/status/1427985802349486087?s=20

• Amazon wants a piece of podcasting’s advertising pie - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-08-16/amazon-amzn-eyes-podcast-advertising-market-with-wondery-smartless-deals

• New Podcast Apps are here - https://podcastindex.org/apps

• Support Evo on Buy Me A Coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/evoterra

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A written-to-be-read article and a full transcript of the audio of this episode can be found at https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/a-podcast-listening-app-you-can-proudly-recommend.

Visit https://twitter.com/evoterra for more podcasting insights from Evo Terra as they come.

Buy him a virtual coffee to show your support at https://BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit https://Simpler.Media to see how Simpler Media Productions can help you reach your business objectives with podcasting.

Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show. Learn more about Allie at http://alliepress.net.

Podcast Pontifications four times a week to provide ideas and ask questions every working podcaster should be thinking about. Subscribe today at https://PodcastPontifications.com.

Photo by Priscilla Du Preez on Unsplash

Mentioned in this episode:

Support For Abortion Rights

While Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th.

Compare podcasting to modern-day animation, where you’re as likely to see hyper-realistic renderings as you are to see cartoons or computer-driven stop-motion, all rendered on a computer. 

But if computers are used in all animation today, why doesn’t the animation created on those systems look similar?

The answer is simple: style.

If you notice a podcast that doesn’t sound as good as another, it’s likely a function of scarcity of time or money. 

That’s not the case with animation styles that appear less perfect. I highly doubt animators are making the choice to not spend the time to make their animation more realistic. They weren’t stuck with a herky-jerky style of motion because they didn’t have the budget to smooth it out.

Nope. It’s 2021, and animation artists are making choices based on a style they are trying to adopt.

Which begs the question: Does your podcast have a style? 

Do you intentionally make design-element choices that make your show unlike most other podcasts, but very much like a few select podcasts that adopt a similar style?

Are you communicating & collaborating with the people behind the podcasts with a similar style as yours? Are you sharing tips and techniques while raising the overall profile of the style of podcasting you and others have affected?

If you're not, now seems a good time to start.  There are listeners out there whose brains are wired to give them a nice shot of endorphins when they consume a particular style of content. Podcasting included.

And they want more of it. So start collaborating and feed ‘em more!

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Links:

• Advancing Podcasting community -  http://advancingpodcasting.xyz

• Love, Death, & Robots - https://www.netflix.com/title/80174608

• Ray Harryhausen - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Harryhausen

• Clips of some of Ray’s creatures over the years - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9kmjW73-v4

• Support Evo on Buy Me A Coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/evoterra

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A written-to-be-read article and a full transcript of the audio of this episode can be found at https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/finding-your-podcasting-style-and-leaning-into-it.

Visit https://twitter.com/evoterra for more podcasting insights from Evo Terra as they come.

Buy him a virtual coffee to show your support at https://BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit https://Simpler.Media to see how Simpler Media Productions can help you reach your business objectives with podcasting.

Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show. Learn more about Allie at http://alliepress.net.

Podcast Pontifications four times a week to provide ideas and ask questions every working podcaster should be thinking about. Subscribe today at https://PodcastPontifications.com.

Photo by Kyle Van Alstyne on Unsplash

Mentioned in this episode:

Support For Abortion Rights

While Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th.

Can spending $5 a day on ads really add 10,000 or more new listeners to your podcast? I highly doubt it. But I am crazy enough to put up the money to see if I’m right or if I have 10,000 new listeners.

I don’t think you should spend a dime on advertising until you’ve nailed the fundamentals AND have a show that your hard-core audience continues to recommend. But if you’ve accomplished those non-trivial tasks, why not spend some money to advertise your show?

Good question. And one I’m about to put to the test, as I’m a fan of eating my own dog food.

Starting today, I’m trying out a system that reports to, by the end of a year, boost the listening audience of Podcast Pontifications to 10,000 listeners. That averages out to around 800 new listeners to Podcast Pontifications every month. Not clicks. Not impressions. Not one-time downloads. Actual podcasters who don’t yet listen to Podcast Pontifications.

And I’m going to get that by spending $5 a day on ads. Or so the theory goes.

I’m skeptical of the efficacy of this initiative. However, any good skeptic should be willing to change their position when evidence is presented. And I want to be a better skeptic. Let’s see what happens.

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Your Questions, Answered

“[I] would love to know how you will use the survey data to improve the show.” 

• Matt Medeiros  - https://twitter.com/mattmedeiros
• from Castos - https://castos.com/

Just like this, Matt! A brand new segment of the show. Woot!

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Links:

• Take the Podcast Pontifications listener survey - https://podcastpontifications.com/survey

• Advancing Podcasting community -  http://advancingpodcasting.xyz

• If you missed the subsequent episodes on “recommendability”, start here - https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/blame-your-podcasts-audience-for-slow-growt

• Podcast Pontifications on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCldrmtlLrlNA8G2vz_Rs_OQ

• Podcast Pontifications In Your Inbox - https://podcastpontifications.com/#subscribe

• Support Evo on Buy Me A Coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/evoterra

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A written-to-be-read article and a full transcript of the audio of this episode can be found at https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/time-for-podcast-advertising-to-put-up-or-shut-up.

Visit https://twitter.com/evoterra for more podcasting insights from Evo Terra as they come.

Buy him a virtual coffee to show your support at https://BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit https://Simpler.Media to see how Simpler Media Productions can help you reach your business objectives with podcasting.

Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show. Learn more about Allie at http://alliepress.net.

Podcast Pontifications four times a week to provide ideas and ask questions every working podcaster should be thinking about. Subscribe today at https://PodcastPontifications.com.

Photo by Jo San Diego on Unsplash

Mentioned in this episode:

Support For Abortion Rights

While Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th.

Not-shockingly, most listeners aren’t keen on recommending podcasts created by hosts who can’t be bothered to master the craft of podcasting. And yes, podcasting is a craft. 

The good news is that can take a class on making better-sounding audio, advanced interview techniques, improving your writing skills, storytelling for audio, and just about any other aspect of podcasting where you may be lacking.

But that still may not be enough to get your existing audience to recommend your show to others. What then? If you can afford it, considering hiring an outside auditor or consultant to examine… well, everything. There may be things you’ve missed because you’re too close to the problem.

Or maybe the audience you have is the audience you have. Is that enough for you?

Can you fix it with marketing? Maybe. I know many successful podcasters who see great success growing their shows with marketing campaigns. But spending money to market, advertise, otherwise promote a podcast that even the most ardent fans can't be bothered to recommend seems rather unproductive to me. 

Thanks again to Tom Webster from Edison Research for his inspiring keynote presentation at Podcast Movement 2021 that teed this up nicely for me. You should be reading or listening to Tom’s weekly newsletter and podcast, I Hear Things. Yes, I’m recommending it!

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Links Mentioned:

• Take the Podcast Pontifications listener survey - https://podcastpontifications.com/survey

• Advancing Podcasting community -  http://advancingpodcasting.xyz

• Tom Webster of Edison Research - https://www.edisonresearch.com/tom-webster-2/

• I Hear Things, Tom’s newsletter and podcast, which I recommend: https://tomwebster.media/

• Support Evo on Buy Me A Coffee - https://www.buymeacoffee.com/evoterra

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A written-to-be-read article and a full transcript of the audio of this episode can be found at https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/mastering-your-way-to-podcast-growth.

Visit https://twitter.com/evoterra for more podcasting insights from Evo Terra as they come.

Buy him a virtual coffee to show your support at https://BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit https://Simpler.Media to see how Simpler Media Productions can help you reach your business objectives with podcasting.

Allie Press assists with the production and transcription of the show. Learn more about Allie at http://alliepress.net.

Podcast Pontifications four times a week to provide ideas and ask questions every working podcaster should be thinking about. Subscribe today at https://PodcastPontifications.com.

Photo by Quino Al on Unsplash

Mentioned in this episode:

Support For Abortion Rights

While Americans overwhelmingly support the right of an individual to make their own decisions about abortion, unfortunately, that right is no longer protected everywhere in the U.S. The Supreme Court overturned Roe v Wade on June 24th.