Podcast Creation and Marketing with Podmotion

In this first Podmotion.co episode of 2022, we talked to James Cridland, publisher and editor of Podnews.net.

James explores how the world of podcasting may evolve in this new year. He digs into concerns about the erosion of podcasting ecosystems, programmatic advertising, why the subscription model may not be a big part of podcasting going forward, independent podcasting, and a whole lot more.

You can find James on LinkedIn and at Podnews.net.

If you like this episode, we'd really appreciate it if you leave us a review at Apple Podcasts. Thanks!

When you daily job involves absorbing specialist information that's valuable to clients, and regularly discussing it with colleagues, you could have the makings of a podcast show!

This episode from Podmotion features Rob Finlay, commercial real estate (CRE) owner, operator, and expert. Rob is a thought leader, podcaster, and CEO of Thirty Capital, a provider of services and solutions to commercial real estate firms.

Rob's podcast, Commercial Real Estate Capital Markets Report, launched in April after he talked to a friend about a regular weekly call he has with his team of senior traders. The friend asked Rob if he could listen in to the call, and that's when Rob realized it might be a good idea to turn the weekly roundtable discussion into a podcast show. 

Each roundtable episode discusses treasury rates, short-term rates, and everything related to debt and debt optimization for commercial real estate. Each episode helps CRE professionals determine if it is time to refinance, borrow, or what kind of action they should take to optimize or leverage their debt.

Before the podcast show launched, the weekly call took place and Rob and his team absorbed all the information shared during the roundtable, and shared it with callers if they thought it was relevant or important.

Rob appreciates the diverse opinions that his analysts present in each episode. They are at a senior level, so of course they are opinionated. This discussion makes for a very animated conversation about how the capital markets could evolve in the coming, days, weeks, and months. 

Even though the meeting is now a podcast, it still has a informality about it, and listeners feel that they are right there in the meeting with Rob and his team.  They've been able to find the sweat spot where the informal collegial chat is absent, but it's not super formal.

Rob encourages podcasters to learn and experiment as they go, and to not be afraid of the ever-evolving process. Feedback is crucial, as is room for growth. 

He says the best thing about doing the show is the feedback and suggestions they are receiving from the listener. They are getting questions as well as feedback, and aim to answer them in the show. They questions also play a role in shaping the content of upcoming shows. 

In this episode Rob also discusses:

• Figuring out how to slightly tweak the meeting format so it could be recorded
• Working with a consultant to launch a show
• How the new show has transformed Thirty Capital's lead generation and marketing
• How much his team is enjoying being involved in the show
• Equipment used for the show
• Setting up measurable goals and expectations for a podcast show.

Find Rob on LinkedIn, Twitter, and at Thirty Capital. 

Podmotion.co thanks Rob Finlay, host of the CRE Capital Markets Report roundtable podcast, for sponsoring this episode! Find Rob's show here!

Nick DiBartolomeo and Bruno Pierce are started a new podcast this early this year - then thousands of others started podcasts too!

By being focused on community building, experimentation, and mastering social media, Nick and Bruno have achieved a level of success that eludes many new podcasters.

Their show is called Quit The Build, and it's the voice of their gaming community - Quit The Build. 

Even if you're not a gamer, we recommend you listen to this episode. Nick is our guest and he gives a masterclass in how to start and grow a podcast. He gives an amazing amount of information and actionable tips on how to start a show and see it grow. 

During this conversation Nick and Sheelagh discuss sponsorship techniques and mention a website called Podthreads - this website no longer exists, just in case you decide to Google it!

In this episode Nick shares his number one lesson for new podcasters. Nick and host Sheelagh Caygill explore:

• Take lots of time to plan out your show and it's format - Nick and Bruno spent a month planning before launch
• Don't launch a show with the sole intention of making money
• Have a goal for your show - for Nick and Bruno, it's shoot for the stars!
• Be as professional as your budget will allow with your show's branding
• How to plan out an episode
• Why being friends with your host means you'll have great synergy behind the mic
• How understanding the importance of content creation will help you grow your show
• Why Twitter is essential for podcast growth and engagement
• How to successfully use one clip and share it across platforms as an audiogram
• Learning from other podcasters and watching their tactics; try them out and see if they work for your show
• Being patient with your progress - it takes time to find a rhythm with a show
• Monetization through sponsorship, Patreon, and advertising.

If you have any questions about this episode, or podcasting in general, get in touch with Podmotion at info at podmotion.co.

Thanks for listening and stay safe.

Eli Schwartz released his first book, Product-Led SEO early this year. The release came during the pandemic, so speaking gigs and appearances in book shops were out. Instead, Eli turned to podcasts to promote his book.

 'I've met some really bad podcasters'

Eli's experience is a sharp reminder to podcasters: You really have to up your game if you want to be worthy of a listener's time. 

Eli says it's too easy for people to buy a mic, sit behind it, and make a show. What's missing is the thought, planning, and preparation that needs to go into a new podcast. 

Podcasting is competing with a massive amount of content for people's attention. If you're commuting, running, or or doing stuff at home, you can choose from audio books, radio, or music. And if you're just sitting around, streaming, TV, gaming, and YouTube are options. 

In one example, Eli said a podcaster asked him to spend hours writing a script which the host would then read. 

"That is ridiculous, and I don't understand why anyone would listen to a podcast like that," he says, adding he refused the request. 

"You may have a big name behind it. It may be launched by a big brand, but that low barrier to entry really makes a quality hard to come by."

The Value Trade: A Podcaster Is Getting Something For Free

Eli points out that guests create content, which fulfills the requirement for the podcast host to continually produce content. 

"Maybe the podcast has a sponsor. So now the guest is helping them to produce that content. And as a result, they can now get that podcast sponsored.

"So from a value trade-off standpoint, a podcaster does have to be putting more work into preparation, and into making sure that the flow of the podcast is good, and high-quality for the listener," continues Eli, noting that the exception is if a podcaster is famous, then it's a privilege to be on their show. 

Eli doesn't go onto podcasts expecting that he's going to get a consulting engagement out of it, or sell books. 

"I'm going to do podcasts because I think it's interesting. And I like talking with interesting podcasters.

A guest may or may not get value, but it's not guaranteed.

What Does Good Preparation Look Like?

Every podcaster and guest has their own way of preparing. If you're producing a good show and aiming for top-notch guests, be grateful for their time and make guesting as easy as possible.

Hosts should read about an upcoming guest and their recent activities and achievements. Check out some of their recent blog posts. Listen to any previous podcast show appearances. Make an effort to come up with some really interesting questions that a host hasn't asked before. 

Making an effort to dig a bit deeper can really pay off. Ask why, or what something might mean. Look for insights and actionable tips. If they've written a book, make an effort to read it.

At Podmotion we usually send through questions ahead of an interview, but that doesn't mean the interview has to be scripted. If there is an interesting digression that's relevant to the audience, we go for it.

For a guest, preparation means understanding the focus of the interview, listening to a show's previous episodes. If a host doesn't send any questions in advance, be sure ask what the focus of the interview will be. Send through your bio or a link to one, as well as any links you want in the show notes. 

Find Eli on LinkedIn, at EliSchwartz.co, and ProductLedSEO.com. 

Eli's favourite podcast guest appearance on the The industry expert is Founder and CEO of Listen App, and Director of Product at Trend Capital Holdings. Paul is also founder and CEO of Bloom, a CRM platform for freelancers.
Listen App is a place where podcasters can host podcast events and actually get questions and comments from their audience. This can content can be recorded and used as part of an upcoming episode, if the podcast host wants.
Listen App is also a podcast player app. It is available on Apple, with Android coming very soon.
Listen App means that a host can be interviewing a guest, while allowing an audience to listen in. A host can bring in audience members to ask questions. Listeners will have questions a host may not have considered that will actually bring tons of colour and insights.
"Listen App fosters engagement, where it's not just this monologue that people are listening to, but they feel like the stage is open for engagement and participation, where their voices can be heard. 
"We're creating a platform where podcasters can host events and invite their listeners to join into the conversation like you would on Clubhouse. You'd record those conversations and edit them. Maybe somebody asked the question that you want to share with the rest of the listener group. And on the next episode, you include that interaction in there."
The Difficulty Of Building Podcast Communities
Part of the issue around creating podcasting communities is that it's a different medium from anything else that we've experienced on a mass scale. The only thing in audio that we've done before is radio.
"Even with radio, the most you can have in terms of listener engagement is call-ins, but you wouldn't necessarily have communities built around radio stations," Paul continues. "The thing about audio is that it's tapping into what you might call like the last frontier of human attention available, and it's multitasking attention."
Most audio listeners are disengaged from their devices, and multitasking. They're receiving content in an input mode, where it's non-interactive versus if you're on a website. 
Paul sees podcasting as the frontier of specific and tailored community engagement. "We have to understand all of the pieces of how podcasting is using audio, but also what are the types of content that actually require and would flourish with, you know, a community built around them?"
The Future Of Podcasting
With the power plays between the big tech giants, Paul thinks that many are trying to take advantage of podcasting, because it's under-monetized. A lot of tech companies are seeing opportunities for themselves.
He doesn't know if Facebook's entry into audio will be a good experience for podcast communities or not. With the Apple subscription piece, he notes that Apple still doesn't have an Android app. He advises creators to think twice before using Apple subscriptions. "Unless I knew that 90 percent of my users were Apple-only, because you're cutting off all your Android users from your premium offering that you're putting a lot of time into."

Paul envisions that a year from now the podcasting world will see a lot more exclusive and paid content, along with more monetization models.
"Podcasters need to be compensated for their work, and they need a way to feed their families and fund these projects. Right now, that doesn't exist. Our goal is to facilitate that for podcasters who want to have communities.