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The 5 biggest mistakes I made when I started my first podcast

If you've ever thought about creating a podcast, learn from these mistakes before you start. It can save you a lot of time and money.

By JanePublished 2 years ago 4 min read
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There is a running gag today:

Everyone and their grandma have a podcast.

I don't necessarily see it as a problem.

Personally, I think everyone should have a podcast. It's like a new 10-year social media account. A new way to increase audiences, build communities and make money. It's also really fun.

And just because everyone has a social media account doesn't compromise the ability of others to have a social media account.

Today, anyone can start building their own digital leverage from blogs, podcasts, and videos. Digital leverage can then be redeemed for financial assets. But that's the topic of another article. I'm here to talk about the mistakes I made in creating my first podcast. I will podcast and write forever. The activity may remain the same, although it may be renamed or the platform may evolve.

If you've ever thought about creating a podcast, learn from these mistakes before you start. It can save you a lot of time and money. Mistake # 1: You haven't built the infrastructure to own your audience

The podcast was delivered via Anchor, the Spotify platform.

The anchor is great. It's free to use, makes podcasts available on most podcasting platforms, provides excellent statistics, and can even be monetized through audience subscriptions and advertising.

Distribution is an advantage, but we haven't created any other way to connect directly with our viewers. We had a common podcast email address, but we didn't have the actual infrastructure for viewers to become part of our community. If the platform is free, remember that you are a product. And the audience you build belongs to the platform, not you.

If the anchor account is deleted, say goodbye to the viewer.

There are prominent politicians listening to podcasts, but they haven't taken advantage of that connection at all.

So while listening to the podcast, we couldn't join our brand in any other meaningful way.

What will you do next time:

Use ConvertKit to create a mailing list, get a lead magnet (that is, a product or offer), and encourage people to sign up by email. Create a private Facebook, Slack, or Discord group that listeners can join to build a community. Engage with your audience by holding face-to-face or virtual meetings each month. Take advantage of the momentum generated from virus podcast episodes. You never know when you will get the chance again. Mistake # 2: Sponsor not found immediately

Once you've decided on your podcast's mission and vision, share it with your brand and the organizations that match your brand.

You might think you need an audience first, but you've found that concepts and ideas alone can help you raise money and enter into partnership agreements.

It may not be a lot of money at first, but it gives the momentum and verification for other brands to engage with you.

I was able to raise $ 30,000 in just a few episodes, but I had a strong vision of what I wanted to do. We took advantage of that attention and the podcast was featured in a local newspaper, attracting even more sponsors.

Check out the full text here

Today, many companies are trying to partner with individual brands to target specific demographics. Of course, as young people, our audience is mainly composed of upper grades 16-27 years old.

You can charge a premium for access.

What will you do next time:

Clarify the vision of the target niche. List 5-10 organizations and brands you can contact. Prepare a pager and email template to outline your vision and mission. Please contact many organizations. Tap an existing network. Be prepared for refusal. Mistake #3: Not Revinesting The Money We Got

Money is the lifeblood of any business, including your podcast.

Once we started getting money, we started to pay ourselves. And while it felt great to get paid, it hamstrung the growth of the podcast.

We could have invested the money in getting the podcast professionally edited or getting a video podcast set up. But we didn`t invest enough and the growth of the podcast stagnated. Don't be too enthusiastic about paying for yourself. If you can wait a year or two to mature your business, you will be rewarded for much longer.

What will you do next time:

Reinvest, reinvest, and reinvest. Mistake # 4: Can't get expert help or advice

Good advice is worth the weight in gold.

However, seek advice only from those who have achieved what they want to achieve. When we first started podcasting, everyone and their dogs had opinions on podcast topics and topics.

Asking too many people for advice can lead to conflicting opinions. Ask enough people. That way, all the advice will be zero.

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About the Creator

Jane

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