Wanna hear my predictions about where the podcasting industry is headed? You can - on this episode of Podcastification.

As a podcaster, you no doubt have thought about the benefits of podcasts. You wouldn’t be podcasting if you didn’t know at least SOME of them.

This episode I’m highlighting 10 of the benefits I see in podcasting and the reasons people these days are listening and learning from podcasts so much.

Jim Kukral is quick to say that his new service, Book2Pod is not a service that creates audio books. So I’ll say it for him. ;) Because that’s EXACTLY what it is… except for a few differences… It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of traditional audio books, It’s distributed via an automatic feed - RSS - like a…. PODCAST!

What to consider as podcasting best practices in light of Alexa, Google Home, and other smart speakers being used to listen to podcasts.

Whenever we think about audio production software we typically think about programs that allows to record and edit. Those would be things like Adobe Audition, Hindenburg, and Audacity.

But there are other programs out there that enable the new or inexperienced podcaster to get the same quality audio that many who play around with those software programs I mentioned get, without nearly the same amount of headache.

I figure, if I want to learn podcasting tips that can help my show stand apart in the crowded podcastosphere, I might as well go to the people who have made a living from doing audio well. Cal Newport's book "So Good They Can't Ignore You" inspired me to work at becoming the very best I can be in a chosen field. The field I've chosen: Podcasting.

So.... reading a book by the folks at NPR about audio reporting and recording was right up the alley of my learning curve.

https://podcastfasttrack.com/

3 Ways to NOT Kill Your Podcast Growth Curve

Warning - warning - warning. There's a rant ahead!

I have seen this same mistake on podcaster’s websites over and over and over now, so I plead with you… listen to this episode, learn from this episode, and NEVER do this stinkin stupid thing again.

Main Points : 3 Ways NOT to Kill Your Podcast Growth Curve

• [1:26] What I’ve discovered while tooling around the Apple Podcasts website
• [2:15] It’s INSANE to send people to Apple Podcasts (iTunes) to listen to your show
• [3:59] You’ve created tons of goodies. Why send your audience AWAY from them?
• [6:21] There are ways you can tell Google that you have GREAT resources - sending people away from your site is NOT ONE OF THEM!
• [9:09] How you may be telling Google NOT to send people to your website
• [11:02] How you can apply this lesson right now.

 

So I spend a lot of time in the Apple Podcasts directory. You know, that place that used to be called iTunes but now is called Apple Podcasts.

And what am I DOING in the Apple Podcasts directory? Honestly, I’m looking for clients, for people who are producing great content and want a great production partner to take the podcast time suck off their hands so they can do better things with their time.

One of the things I experience while in the directory is that I usually click the little link that says website, right there next to their podcast listing, and I'll go to visit the website. I want to check them out and see their show. Who knows? Maybe there’s a way we can work together.

Here’s the problem - the way people are killing their own podcast growth curve. Ready?

Podcasters often put a really cool looking show notes page up for particular episode. I go there. I scroll up and down, up and down up, and down that page trying to find a stinkin’ web player so I can actually hear what their podcast sounds like.

And do you know what I find?

I find that silly little piece of artwork that says “Listen on Apple Podcasts” and that's the only way they have for me to listen to their show. I have to go OFF their site to listen on somebody else’s platform.

It’s one of the dumbest things I’ve ever seen and in this episode of Podcastification I walk through 3 important reasons you should not be doing that on your show notes pages.

That’s my rant and I’m sticking to it.

#1 REASON: You’re forcing people to listen to your podcast in a way many are unable to listen

Not everybody has an Apple phone. GASP!

It’s true. What’s the point? There are many, many, many people, who will not be able to listen to your podcast at all if you send them to Apple Podcasts to listen. Why? Because they don’t have the Apple app on their phone that you’re trying to send them to.

OK, what if they are on a computer. It could be a very similar issue. If they don’t have the iTunes software installed, they’re going to be sent to a webpage that has NO players on it at all. So they’ll either get frustrated and turn away (most likely) or they’ll get frustrated and turn away.

Hmmmmmm.

In short, people using android phones are not going to be able to listen to your show simply by clicking on that Apple Podcasts logo.

So don’t send them there in the first place!

OK, OK - if you want to include the logo on the page and you want the logo to link to Apple Podcasts, go ahead. But don't make that the only way someone can listen to your show when they come to your shows notes page. It's ridiculous because you're not making it easy for your listener to...

This episode of the show is all about how to properly name your podcast. When I say properly, I don't mean there is some kind of etiquette around podcast naming, what I mean is there are best practices that make your podcast name work for you instead of against you.

Intrigued? You've got to hear what happened in this case study that I didn't intend to be a case study.

Questions about the proper use of podcast intro music and outro music are some of the most common things people ask me about.

Can I use this popular song? What if I only use 20 seconds of it? Doesn't that fall under fair use Doctrine? What if I get somebody to compose music for me, can that work? I decided it was time for me to invite someone on the show who could give us clear answers on these kinds of issues.

Pinterest is fun to look at - I’ve gone there on occasion to get great ideas for DIY projects or workshop and garage renovation tips, but I kind of view it is this food, clothes and fitness kind of a network. But the more I spend time on the platform, the more I’ve thought it has got to be usable for podasting on the promotional side of things.

So I thought I'd reach out to a gal named Kathryn Moorhouse - she's a self-proclaimed marketing lover and an obsessive planner.