Podcast Pontifications

Spoiler: Paying someone to "SEO" your existing podcast's content isn't the solution to getting more attention from Google.

If you really want Google to pay attention to your podcast's content (which means including your podcast's episodes in relevant searches), you have to change your mindset and involve Google earlier in the process.

This isn't an episode about SEO. Rather, it's an episode to get you think like a person who does SEO strategy. Yes, it is possible for you to create content in a format and style you want that still resonates with Google. But it's very hard to do that -- if not impossible -- after the content has already been created.

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.

Modern medicine makes it easy for many to deal with chronic problems with acute solutions. "Take two of these" really does work in many cases. At least temporarily.

There's a parallel in podcasting, where one of the biggest chronic problems is listener growth. And many of the reported solutions aren't all that lasting.

In this short episode, I'll get into three commonly-used methods of getting more attention to you or your show:

• Getting a big name guest on your show
• Being a guest on a show larger than yours
• Upping your social media/promotional output

Don't get me wrong. All of these are very good tactics to spur audience growth.

But just like paracetamol won't correct the fundamental problems with the musculoskeletal structure of my back, getting lots of clicks on a fundamentally flawed podcast -- quality, content, or site structure -- will only lead to temporary spikes in activity. 

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.

Remember when I said that podcasting would never get any easier? Well... what if I was wrong? 

While I don't think an army of robots will take over podcasting anytime soon, there are lots of ways in which automation is already making podcasting easier. I talk about a few in this episode, like:

• Amazon Alexa's voice assistant that emulates a broadcaster's voice 
• Automated content gathering tools like Paper.li that apparently never die
• Audio processing filters and software that save engineers gobs of time
• Episode distribution was born from automation (and has been extended)
• Why robots are better a placing ads that people don't hate

With those advancements come constraints. It's not easy to cross the uncanny valley, and it's often not a straight line from idea to automation. Check out the episode for my thoughts, and share you feedback with me (or the world!)

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.

While it's smart to have measurable business objectives for your podcast, focusing too much on easily tracked items such as downloads and reviews can cause you to miss out on serendipity.

In this short episode, I briefly touch on a concept called the direction of maximal interestingness, but spend most of the time encouraging you to pay attention to something a little harder to quantify: opportunities.

You won't find them in download numbers. Not in reviews. And you won't be able to act on them if you're working under scarcity conditions.

Best/worst of all? Some opportunities may not be in line with your current show. But they could cause you to make a better podcast. Or just be a better podcaster.

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.

"So... what do you get out of that podcast you do?"

Every podcaster I know hates (or at least hated) this question. You feel the need to justify what you're doing, often to someone who isn't equipped to judge your relative success in achieving what you set out to do.

And that assumes you know what you set out to do. Many podcasters don't.

In this short episode, I'll talk about the need to be specifically selfish about your podcast. Because when you know the specifically selfish reasons you are podcasting, it cuts through the noise and clutter and keeps you focused on the task at hand.

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.