Essentials
Podcasting Essentials
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Even the most successful podcasters are always thinking about how they can gain even more listeners. While everyone understands the importance of having a large audience, many podcasters realize that growing their audience is easier said than done.
Whether you are struggling to develop consistent listenership, or you feel that you have hit a plateau, there are many things you can do in order to help increase your audience. With a few small steps, you can start to see your numbers grow pretty quickly.
Here are some ways you can grow your podcast audience:
Create the show you want to hear
Time is precious. Before you take steps toward drawing more listeners to your podcast, you need to make sure that your podcast is worthy of their time. Your audience will give you anywhere from 20 minutes to as much as two hours of their time when they listen to one of your episodes. It is important that you create a great experience for your listeners and make sure that your show is relevant and adds value.
If the content of your show is not something that you would feel is worth your time, then it is not worth your audience’s time either. Evaluate the content of your show. You want your audience to find every episode of your podcast compelling and useful enough that they want to listen to another episode or even share it with others.
If you are not providing your audience with a worthwhile experience, your first step is to restructure your podcast. When you make the adjustments necessary for your podcast to provide high-quality content, your listeners will be more likely to watch more episodes and recommend your podcast to others. Create the show you want to hear, and you will see your audience grow in response.
Focus on your existing listeners
In your pursuit to grow your audience, do not neglect your current listeners. Pay attention to their comments and feedback, and remember that your consistent listeners are the ones that are going to help spread the word about your podcast to others. Do not sacrifice content or quality as you try to reach new people, and do not push your “super fans” to the side.
Do you have a few listeners that email you regularly or frequently comment on your feed? Do not take them for granted. Make it easy for these listeners to contact and engage with you and the podcast. Respond to their inquiries and let them know they are appreciated.
Every single listener is important, and it is often these super fans that will eagerly share your podcast to others, thus helping you increase your podcast’s listenership. Keep an eye on your existing listeners and make sure they feel heard and valued.
Make your show accessible
One of the fastest ways to miss out on potential audience growth is to have a show that is inaccessible. When your show is difficult to access, even people who are interested in your content and actively searching for your show might turn away or choose a different podcast instead.
Make sure your podcast is listed in podcast directories so that people do not have trouble finding your show. In that same vein, make sure that the title of your podcast and your episodes are search engine friendly. If your titles are too long, they might not show up on results pages and they will be more difficult for mobile users to access.
Use social media and other channels to market your podcast. You will not be able to grow your audience if podcast listeners do not know that your podcast exists. This will help people know that you have a podcast. Include a link to your podcast on your social media bios as well. That way, people do not need to search hard in order to find your podcast.
Accessibility means more than just making it easy for listeners to find your podcast. You also need to make it as simple as possible for them to start playing your episode. If potential listeners have to download information or click through multiple sites or links in order to listen to your podcast, they are likely to give up and search elsewhere. You want people to be able to play your episode as quickly as possible.
Consider uploading your audio to YouTube so that people who are unfamiliar with different podcast publishing platforms can listen to your podcast as well. The more accessible your podcast is, the more your audience will grow.
Collaborate with others
Find other podcasters to collaborate with that have content that is relevant to your topic. Make a list of podcasts that are about your topic or use many of your keywords. Reach out to those podcasters and ask if you can collaborate on an episode together. This will give your podcast exposure and grow your audience while being mutually beneficial to your collaborator.
Don’t be afraid to work with a competitor. Podcast listeners are unique in that they are not often tied down to one specific podcast. They typically want to be as informed as possible, and they will listen to multiple podcasts about the same topic. Working with a competing podcast gives you the opportunity to attract new listeners that are already interested in your topic.
Include a call to action
While there is value in asking your listeners to leave positive ratings and reviews, it is absolutely vital to include other calls to action if you want to grow your audience. The two most important requests you should ask of your listeners is for them to subscribe to the show and to share the episode.
When people subscribe to your show, they will be reminded when there are new episodes, and they will be more likely to continue to listen to your podcast. This will help you develop audience members that are invested in your podcast and willing to share your episodes with others.
Asking listeners to share your episodes is also helpful. When your listeners share your podcast with people who will find value in your content, your will gain more listeners. Including this call to action on your podcast is a simple way to help increase your listenership.
Promote your show
Make sure to you actively promote your show online. On your social media accounts share blurbs from your show or behind the scenes videos and pictures.
You can also use tools like Recast, a podcast sharing and discovery tool. Recast makes it easy for your listeners to share customized clips from your episodes on social media.
Take advantage of any opportunity you have to market your show. There are plenty of tools at your fingertips that you can use to advertise your show without purchasing a tv or website ad. Find the tools that work best for your podcast and use them regularly.
Looking to grow your show more? Simplecast is built for podcast creator success–drop us a line! You can also read more about getting to one million listens, sourcing episode content, and when to publish your podcast.