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WHAT’S THIS EPISODE ABOUT?
Let’s Chat About Podcast Marketing Questions
If you don’t already know this about me, I love podcasting! But something that I don’t talk about as publicly is how much I love marketing too! I just as much of a marketing nerd as I am a podcast nerd. (Ask my husband who thinks it’s hilarious that I dissect every single billboard we pass when we’re on a road trip!)
So I wanted to bring to you another person who loves marketing but also happens to have a unique perspective on the world of marketing. In my conversation with Alban (Head of Marketing at Buzzsprout), we answered many questions from The Proffitt Podcast Online Community. (Which is totally FREE by the way! If you haven’t joined us, check it out here.) Let’s jump into those questions first.
Questions from the Community
From Dan
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Based on what you’ve seen in marketing to podcasters and talking to them, what is trending and why?
- “From the podcasting side…[comparing podcasting to social media platforms]…the audience is harder to find. But once we connect with our audience, they will be here long term…We need to leverage these other platforms for what’s good about them which is the growth aspect and then bring people back to subscribe to our shows. Because we’re in this for the long game…100 people subscribed to your podcast is much more valuable than 1,000 people on a YouTube channel that can change overnight and you could lose everybody.”
– Alban
- Practical Podcast Marketing Tips:
- Visual Sound Bites and Audiograms are exceptionally good to drive people to your podcast!
- It gives them a taste of your podcast.
- It’s catered to the platform.
- Leverage other platforms to drive traffic back to your podcast because podcasts don’t naturally grow by themselves.
- Visual Sound Bites and Audiograms are exceptionally good to drive people to your podcast!
- “From the podcasting side…[comparing podcasting to social media platforms]…the audience is harder to find. But once we connect with our audience, they will be here long term…We need to leverage these other platforms for what’s good about them which is the growth aspect and then bring people back to subscribe to our shows. Because we’re in this for the long game…100 people subscribed to your podcast is much more valuable than 1,000 people on a YouTube channel that can change overnight and you could lose everybody.”
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How long should our podcast sound bites be?
- When you’re thinking about a consistent podcast marketing strategy, you want to get some kind of hook within the first 15 seconds. And then after that, a good length is between 30-45 seconds because remember…this is just a trailer for your longer episode.
- You want people to establish in the first few seconds either, “This podcast is for me!” or “I’m going to keep scrolling.”
- When you’re thinking about a consistent podcast marketing strategy, you want to get some kind of hook within the first 15 seconds. And then after that, a good length is between 30-45 seconds because remember…this is just a trailer for your longer episode.
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Follow up, what would be their recommendations to truly stand out besides the obvious if not jumping on trends?
- Let’s talk about some of the obvious ways of marketing first and then we’ll circle back around:
- Consistency
- “Being able to actually build a relationship with your audience, that is the whole point of podcasting and it’s what you want to keep doubling down on. The ability to interact with the same listener – week after week for years. That’s the compounding returns that you want.” – Alban
- Word of Mouth (Person to Person)
- “…you really want to make a show that is valuable enough, that’s unique enough, that you listeners are going out of their way to tell people about it.” – Alban
- The More Focused, The Better
- “…it becomes a very clear and discernable audience who will enjoy it.” – Alban
- Consistency
- Let’s talk about some of the less obvious podcast marketing strategies
- Engaging with Communities that Would Enjoy Your Podcast
- Answering people’s questions!
- Example: Go on to Quora and find questions related to your podcast, answer people’s questions and reference back to your podcast. Leave those breadcrumbs around the internet!
- Answering people’s questions!
- Look at Your Podcast Stats
- See the locations that are hotbeds for your listeners and find a way to target those specific areas.
- Put a Link to Your Latest Episode in Your Email Signature
- It’s not as awkward as telling someone mid-email, “Don’t forget to listen to the latest episode of my podcast!”
- Find Other People to Partner With
- Whatever your show is about, you want to reach out to those industry influencers.
- Invite them onto your show so they have some ownership in the show. Then encourage them to share your podcast with their audience.
- Engaging with Communities that Would Enjoy Your Podcast
- Let’s talk about some of the obvious ways of marketing first and then we’ll circle back around:
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From Polly
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How can I reach beyond just my connections on social media? How can I expand outside of my current network?
- Plugging into communities that already care about your podcast topic is a great way to grow!
- Facebook Groups
- New Author’s on Amazon
- Find people who published books in the last 6 months and reach out to them. They’re already excited to talk about your podcast topic, they’d love promotion for their book, and they’ll probably share your interview with their audience.
- Plugging into communities that already care about your podcast topic is a great way to grow!
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Should the same post be shared on all of the social media outlets? Do we need to change up the content each time?
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- Some day, you’ll want to be on all of the platforms. And create unique pieces of content for each one.
- “But what I really don’t want you to do is to start doing a podcast and now you have a part-time job creating social media assets for it. That’s pretty silly. What would be much better would be to pick one… ” -Alban
- And pick the one that you naturally gravitate towards when you’re looking for some time to kill. “Because you already understand that culture, just intuitively…it’s so much better to great on one social media platform than to be just kinda engaged a little bit with all of them.” -Alban
- “But what I really don’t want you to do is to start doing a podcast and now you have a part-time job creating social media assets for it. That’s pretty silly. What would be much better would be to pick one… ” -Alban
- If your audience is on LinkedIn, go there!
- “LinkedIn is so desperate for content as a platform that they will promote good content…LinkedIn is looking for it.” -Alban
- Wherever you feel comfortable is where you want to focus your podcast marketing social media efforts.
- Some day, you’ll want to be on all of the platforms. And create unique pieces of content for each one.
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What Are Your Favorite Podcast Tools?
Alban’s favorite new tool is Descript, which is a totally new way of thinking about editing. They took the audio recording and editing back to the basics. They take the text of the podcast and allow you to edit the transcript – which edits the audio for you!
WHAT?? MIND BLOWN!
And guess what? Descript has a new integration with Buzzsprout. So you can record directly into Descript. Then they’d transcribe the entire conversation. You can then filter out parts of the episode that’s kinda boring or when you say “um” and you wind up with a seamless piece of audio.
You can add intro music or anything else you want to add.
Then publish to Buzzsprout and they’ll receive the transcript and your audio file.
Is There One Specific Directory to Send Listeners?
Alban and I both agreed that my podcast app to join is Goodpods. It’s such a cool place to hang out and listen to podcasts. And from the podcaster’s perspective, you can see the ripple effect of how one podcast episode can really take off.
“If someone is going to Goodpods, they have a specific purpose. It’s that they really care about podcasts and they’re always itching to find a new show…If you’re pulling more of your listeners to Goodpods, then you’re going to be overrepresented in one of the few places that people are going, ‘Hey, how do I find new shows?’ ” -Alban
Our Rapid Fire Questions
- How long is the average podcast episode?
- How many downloads are “good”?
- How often are people publishing new podcast episodes?
- What advice would you give to a brand new podcaster?
- Which podcast would be your dream podcast to guest on?
- Do you consider yourself a perfectionist?
About Alban Brooke
Alban Brooke is the Head of Marketing at Buzzsprout. His podcasting guide has been read over a million times and he co-hosts two podcasts Buzzcast and “How to Start a Podcast.” He lives in Jacksonville Beach, Florida with his wife and daughter.
Ways to Learn More About Buzzsprout
Check out Buzzsprout’s amazing resources here!
Podcasts: Buzzcast & How to Start a Podcast
Links Mentioned in This Episode:
- Buzzsprout YouTube Channel
- Buzzsprout Facebook Group
- Buzzcast Podcast
- Buzzsprout “How to Start a Podcast”
- Learn More About BuzzSprout’s Magic Mastering
- GoodPods
- Buzzcast Interview with JJ from GoodPods
- Buzzsprout’s Podchaser Review & Walkthrough
- Podcast Checklist
- ProffittPodcasting.com
- Proffitt Podcast Online Community Facebook Group
- Podcast YouTube Channel
- Resource Library
- 5-Day Podcast Bootcamp
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