Podcast Pontifications

Spotify is spending money trying to convert TV watchers to podcast listeners. It’s an interesting ploy that’s going to be an uphill battle, but there are implications for working podcasters like you.

Directionally speaking, TV watchers are gaining more exposure to podcasting, often through podcasts that could work quite well on TV. If fact, some are being produced by television production companies. And many more are being voiced by television actors.

“What TV show are you watching?” is a common conversation centerpiece among friends and co-workers. It’s also happening, albeit on a much smaller scale, with podcasting. But those talked-about shows -- regardless of the medium -- are often shorter, self-contained programs. Sure, talk shows, monologues, and news programming get a lot of viewers. But few parties are made better by an in-depth discussion of NBC Nightly News, for example.

How do we create that kind of content that today’s TV watchers are looking for when they discover podcasting? How do we adjust to the fact that everybody watches TV but not everybody listens to podcasts? If we're going to facilitate the switch away from TV and into podcasts as our friends at Spotify have predicted… what do we have to do? 

Tell me that right here in the comments, or go to Flick.group/podcastpontifications and share with the group.

If you'd like to show your support for this ad-free program, go to BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra and buy me a coffee. 

And if you are in business and in need of someone offering strategic advice as you navigate the podcasting waters, that's what my firm does! Get in touch with me: [email protected] or go to PodcastLaunch.pro to see a list of services we offer clients all around the globe.

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Share this with a friend: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/podcasting-is-better-than-tv-film-at-11

Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.

Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.

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 podcasters are at a disadvantage when it comes to listening apps. We can't control which apps our listeners use to consume our content.

Here’s the big and glaring issue that puzzles me. Around two-ish years ago, Apple released some new “specs” for podcast feeds that would allow Apple to better present content to users of the Apple Podcasts app. Using these new tags, Apple presents episodes to new listeners in a vastly superior way than the “one-size-fits-all” approach taken by all of the rest of the podcast app makers.

And I can’t understand why.

Can you help me figure that out? Better yet, can you help us figure out what we, the working podcasters, should do about this? How do we pressure makers of podcast apps to make their apps better?

Or maybe I'm wrong about that, and you feel that the experience -- especially for new podcast listeners -- is vastly better on a different app. Let's have a conversation. Again, you can comment here or you can use Flick.group/podcastpontifications to join the Podcast Pontifications community.

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Share this with a friend: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/are-podcast-apps-part-of-podcastings-problems

Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.

Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.

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.

Every piece of web content -- and the episodes of your podcast are web content -- needs a title that is descriptive and interesting enough to get someone to want more.

Yes, that’s a lot of work for only a handful of words. Hence the need for this episode. 

If you record your show (perhaps an interview), do all the engineering to make it sound great, and then come up with a title -- your going to have a hard time. Which means you’ll probably just stick with the name of your guest as the title of the episode.

If the most interesting thing about any given episode of your show is the guests name... it's probably not a very interesting episode.

The better way: Come up with your topic, your title, and most importantly YOUR ANGLE before you ever sit down to record.

Episodes with no angle start with the host saying “Please introduce yourself, guest!” or “Tell me where your grew up” and rarely live up to the promise made in the title of the episode. That’s a bad experience that won’t engender new listeners to your program.

That's the message for today: rework how you come up with your titles by spending a little (or a lot) more time on your angles before you sit down to record.  

I'd love to hear how much time you spend on coming up with your angles. You can comment right here or you can go to Flick.group/podcastpontifications to talk to me and a few dozen avid listeners of the program.

If you care to show your appreciation for this and the other episodes I share four times a week, go to BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.

And for those of you in business wondering if your episodes were made with an angle in mind, get in touch with me: [email protected] or go to PodcastLaunch.pro to see a list of the services we offer clients all around the globe. 

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Share this with a friend: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/angling-for-titles-that-are-more-than-just-the-topic

Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.

Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.

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 the culmination of my 10-part future predictions of podcasting that were first made in the inaugural print edition of the Podcast Business Journal, I’m taking on… well, me. And all the people that look like me. Because in the future, old white men will become less relevant in podcasting. And hopefully in just about everything else in the world.

(Catch up on all the prior episodes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8 & 9)

When I give advice, it’s from 15 years -- nearly the entire duration podcasting has existed -- of experience. Therefore my advice must be great! (And it is, I assure you.)

But at some point in time, those experiences and processes are going to start getting in the way of advancing podcasting. Because established processes and best practices are notoriously difficult to change.  

The reality is this: There are a lot -- and I mean a lot -- of people in podcasting with valid voices speaking great ideas and concepts who aren’t old, who aren’t white, and who aren’t men. Podcasting has already matriculated people with amazing skills, some of which have only been doing this for a year, and some who have been doing it for just as long as I have, who don't happen to share the same dangly bits or skin tone as me.

No, that doesn't mean I'm stopping Podcast Pontifications. I still have a voice. It's still a valid one. Yes, I think you should still listen and of course, tell all of your podcasting friends to listen. But I can't be the only voice you or they listen to. I need you to try and find other people who don't look like me and are also saying interesting things about podcasting. 

Three things before I go:

• If you would like to continue the conversation and tell me what non-white, younger, and not-male humans you are listening to, please do that. You can comment right here or you can go to Flick.group/podcastpontifications and chat with the 40-ish people who are participating in this private and free group.
• If you would like to still buy an old white man a coffee, go for it! BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra is one way to show your support. 
• And of course, if you are in business and need help with your firm’s podcasting strategy, that's what I do. Get in touch with me: [email protected] and go to PodcastLaunch.pro for a list of all the services we offer clients.

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Yes, this episode is something you should share. Thank you. Here’s where you can find a re-written in-depth article based on the audio of the episode that’s perfect for sharing: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/less-old-white-men-in-podcastings-future

Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.

Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.

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 episode nine of my 10-part miniseries on the future of podcasting (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, & 8), I ponder the spinoffs that will be a natural offshoot of podcasting.

If there's one thing you can count on once a medium gets popular, its that spinoffs happen. Which means that's going to happen to podcasting. But that doesn’t mean spinoffs will kill podcasting.

The technology we use today in podcasting will probably be the driving factor in what those spinoffs will look like. But as I sit in my dedicated studio space, with my high-end hardware, my professional-grade software, a healthy client-roster, and a good pipeline of prospects, I’m the wrong person to try and predict podcasting’s spinoffs simply because I don't need to look for them.

Whatever these spinoffs are, they aren’t going to kill podcasting as we know it. Change it? Sure. But I don't think the future of podcasting is in danger. 

If there’s a danger, it’s that we’ll choose to poo-poo spinoffs because they don’t threaten podcasting as it exists today. Why is that a danger? Because that interesting spinoff might be a better fit for us -- as individuals -- than what podcasting provides today. 

So I’ll keep trying new things, and I’ll encourage you to try new things as well. One of them is BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra. Hint, hint.

Have you seen a spinoff from podcasting, or do you have your own prediction of what new things we’ll create with all this high-end tech at our disposal? Go to Flick.group/podcastpontifications and tell me about it.

And if you need some help with your business-focused podcasting efforts, drop me a an email at [email protected] or go to PodcastLaunch.pro to see a list of the services we offer clients all around the globe.

Yes, this episode is something you should share. Thank you. Here’s where you can find a re-written in-depth article based on the audio of the episode that’s perfect for sharing: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/podcasting-spins-off-something-brand-new

Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.

Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.

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.

How will automation change podcasting in the future? That’s the topic of this, the 8th edition of my 10 part miniseries on the future of podcasting. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, & 7)

To be a podcaster, you need to be a blend of creative and technical. Podcasting is, by definition, a creative medium. Podcasters create content. But because podcasting is digital from start to finish, podcasters are required to possess technical skills as well. 

It’s that second half that’s most susceptible to the wave of automation.

Imagine what you could accomplish with your show if you didn't have to worry about all the little technical pieces, knowing that reliable and dependable software would take care of things you may only have a tenuous grasp of anyhow.

I’m OK with software eating that aspect of my job. Because I want to spend less time making sure files are encoded properly, with the right LUFS, etc. I’d much rather let my brain focus on much more strategic aspects of helping my clients achieve success with their podcasting.

What gets me even more excited is thinking about how the creative process can be augmented by software. Yes, people are writing software that will make it easier to be creative.

At some point, software might even monitor Google Trends and create episodes based on what people are interested in right now, having an episode available in seconds.

Whether you think that is utopian or dystopian depends on your worldview and resiliency.

Tell me about your automation fears or visions of the bold tomorrow right here in a comment. Or you can go to Flick.group/podcastpontifications to join lots of people (OK, a few dozen people) chatting about these episodes.

And if you feel bad that I’ve predicted my own doom, you can go to BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra and set up a small recurring donation. 

And most importantly, if you are in business and you need a podcasting pro in your back pocket to think through the strategies of how you can leverage the coming automation of your podcast, get in touch with me. [email protected] reaches me, or go to PodcastLaunch.pro to see a list of all the services I offer clients all around the world.

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Yes, this episode is something you should share. Thank you. Here’s where you can find a re-written in-depth article based on the audio of the episode that’s perfect for sharing: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/betting-on-bits-for-better-podcasting

Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.

Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.

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 look advertising square in the face on the 7th edition of this 10-part miniseries on the future of podcasting. (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, & 6)

Digital advertising changed the game of advertising forever. Rather than deal with the largely made-up numbers offered by print, radio, and TV publishers, digital ads came with data. Data not just about who saw/heard/read the ads, but what those people did after that.

And then Cambridge Analytica came and ruined the future.

 Since then, a sort of cold war has developed between consumer advocacy and privacy watchdogs on one side, and innovative ad tech companies still trying to make advertising better and more relevant. 

This is not a winnable cold war, I’m afraid. Of all the 10 predictions I wrote for the Podcast Business Journal’s inaugural print edition, this was the toughest for me. Which is why left it as a never-ending cold war.

While you wait for episodes eight, nine, and ten to wrap this puppy up, I again leave you with three possible next steps:

• If you have your own predictions about the future of podcast advertising, I’d love to read it! Leave a comment right here or join a few other Podcast Pontifications listeners who have downloaded and joined -- for free-- the app at Flick.group/podcastpontifications.
• If you want to show your love and support, BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra.
• If you are in business and need someone strategically thinking about your podcasting efforts now and for the future, please get in touch. [email protected].

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Yes, this episode is something you should share. Thank you. Here’s where you can find a re-written in-depth article based on the audio of the episode that’s perfect for sharing: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/surviving-the-cold-war-of-podcast-advertising

Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.

Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.

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.

The pending popping of the podcast ad bubble is the topic on part six of my 10-part miniseries on the future of podcasting. (1, 2, 3, 4, & 5)

Somewhere around $500 million was spent last year on podcast advertising. Not surprisingly, that number is projected to go up and up over time. But only if advertisers keep feeling good about the ads

The warm, fuzzy feelings advertisers get when they run live, host-read ads on a handful of podcasts quickly diminishes when they try to scale that to hundreds or thousands of shows. Worse, if the challenges facing influencer marketing campaigns spill over to podcasting, we’re in trouble.

Yes, even if you don’t run ads on your show, a popped adverting bubble is bad for you and all of podcasting due to stifled creativity. Sure, indie podcasters will still be creative. But if big production houses find more lucrative ways to make money, they take away their big marketing dollars, which means fewer new listeners coming to podcasting, stifling growth.

In the future, we will see the podcast advertising landscape change. But probably not in a way that’s better for podcast creators.

Advertising is never getting completely out of podcasting. But I don't think advertising will always be the lion's share of podcast-derived revenues. As these new revenue pathways develop, perhaps they’ll be a little less-speculative in nature.

Three things to leave you with:

• Feel free to tell me I’ve crossed the line from skepticism to cynicism. One great place to do that: Flick.group/podcastpontifications. Yes, it’s free.
• Check out BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra to show your love for the show with a quick little donation 
• If you are in business and would like some help making sure your content is ready for discovery, let's chat. [email protected] or go to PodcastLaunch.pro to see a list of the services we offer clients all around the globe.

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Yes, this episode is something you should share. Thank you. Here’s where you can find a re-written in-depth article based on the audio of the episode that’s perfect for sharing: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/a-future-reckoning-for-the-podcast-ad-bubble

Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.

Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.

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.

Podcasting’s perceived “discovery problem” is the topic for part 5 of my future-of-podcasting mini-series. (1, 2, 3, & 4)

I say “perceived” because podcasting per se doesn't have a discovery problem. People who claim podcasting has a discovery problem really mean that they are upset their content isn’t ranking number one for an arbitrary, single search phrase they place a lot of importance on.

Another and likely bigger problem is that discovery doesn't just mean search discovery. How do you ensure that your content is being discovered on Spotify in ways that have nothing to do with search? How do you optimizing a single show to the individual tastes of millions of users?

The problem is not that our content is not being discovered by people. In reality, people aren't discovering your content.  So it's not a problem for the listeners. This is a problem for you.

Just making really great content that people want in their lives and you’ve made a lot of headway. But even then, I'm sorry to say that our discovery issue is never going away.

Three things before I wrap:

• Check out BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra to show your love for the show with a quick little donation 
• There’s a free way to chat with me and other listeners that I think you’ll like. Flick.group/podcastpontifications is where to point your phone.
• If you are in business and would like some help making sure your content is ready for discovery, let's chat. [email protected] or go to PodcastLaunch.pro to see a list of the services we offer clients all around the globe.

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Yes, this episode is something you should share. Thank you. Here’s where you can find a re-written in-depth article based on the audio of the episode that’s perfect for sharing: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/solving-future-podcast-discovery-problems

Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.

Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.

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.

The future of free podcast hosting is part 4 of my future of podcasting miniseries. (Pts 1, 2, & 3)

In the future, free hosting for podcast media files will be a viable option. I base that prediction on one deciding factor: Spotify is going to do it. 

But I don't think everybody will switch to free. This is not meant to be a doom-and-gloom prediction. This is a coming reality that can be adapted to. YouTube’s free model certainly caused many of the other video hosting companies to shut their doors. But not all of them.

Hosting companies will have to adapt their business models to help podcasters make better content. Companies like Auphonic , Alitu, and Auxbus are already doing this today. More will come, making it not just easier to assemble and piece together audio, but to actually improve the quality of the episode. 

With Spotify lowering the barrier to entry even more, it’s going to encourage garbage content creation. We've seen it on YouTube. We see it on Anchor. You see it everywhere it’s dead-simple to post content. So that makes the landscape ripe for services to sift through and cut out all the garbage. Because there’s no need to take all that garbage with you.

It doesn’t take a lot of imagination to see how that one change could cause massive disruption, positive and negative, to our industry. I have no crystal ball, but the idea of podcast media hosting going free seems like a shoo-in. 

Before you go, three quick things:

• If you want to join other people chatting about this episode and all the other episodes of the show, check out Flick.group/podcastpontifications. It’s a free app you might dig. 
• If you want to show your support for the program, go to BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra and buy me a virtual coffee. (You do understand it's not actually sending me coffee, right? Yeah, you probably got that.)
• If you are in business and you’d like someone thinking about what the future of podcasting holds for your business, please get in touch with me. [email protected] or go to PodcastLaunch.pro to see a list of the services we offer clients all around the globe. 

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Yes, this episode is something you should share. Thank you. Here’s where you can find a re-written in-depth article based on the audio of the episode that’s perfect for sharing: https://podcastpontifications.com/episode/exploring-podcastings-cost-free-future

Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the working podcaster. The purpose of this show is to make podcasting better, not just easier.

Follow Evo on Twitter for more podcasting insights as they come.

And if you need a professional in your podcasting corner, please visit PodcastLaunch.pro to see how Simpler Media Productions can help your firm. Podcasting is our only business.

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.