Podcasting
Video -How I Optimize my Audio and Convert it to MP3 Using Auphonic http://
[Link]/ AuphonicVideo Lossless files I won’t go into the technical details
here, but trust me on this next tip. This comes from almost a decade of cumulative
experience from both my students and myself. When you create your audio files and
manage them throughout all of the editing process, keep everything in a “lossless”
file format. This usually means a “. WAV” or “. AIFF” file. Why? When you edit
compressed media, it always loses a bit of sound quality in the process. If you
don’t want that problem, you can get around it by editing your files in a lossless
format. Once you’re done, as the FINAL step, convert it into the MP3 file that your
podcasting audience is looking for. If you’re looking for specifics, I like using
128 kbps MP3 files —it will be an option in whatever audio program you are using.
People Come for the Podcast Content, They Stay for the Podcast Voice
Their idea is simple: the power of podcasting does not lie in the quality of the
recording or the technology behind your MP3 file —it’s in the power of the ideas
and thoughts being communicated by the host. To dig a little deeper, it’s not even
really what you say, but how you say it, that keeps people coming back. It’s your
voice that makes your podcast special, so make sure you spend more time on that
than on anything else.
Why You Must Control Your Feed
The web address for your feed is how the world, and the podcast directories (more
on that in the next chapter) know how to find you. If you suddenly have to change
feeds, it’s hard to let the world know you’ve done just that. Although there are
ways to migrate one feed to another, it’s very complicated, time consuming, not
100% effective, and rarely works as planned. Think of your podcast feed in the same
way that you think of your mobile phone number. Just as you should never sign up
with a phone service provider who is vague about what happens to your number if you
ever leave their service, never work with a feed provider who isn’t crystal clear
that you own your feed and can do what you want with it. When you own the phone
number, you can hop from one provider to another without anyone having to know.
Moving your podcast feed, should you ever need to, should be just as simple. Many
hosts give you the chance to use their service and link it with your domain, so
you’d have a feed along the lines of: http:// [Link]/ [Link].
This is the smartest move. Why? Because if you have to move from one host or
service to another, the world doesn’t need to know. Obviously, if you’re using a
tool to create the feed on your own domain, you don’t need to worry about this.
I’ll be blunt: there are some providers who, once they create the feed for your
show, own that feed (and host it on their own domain), which makes it almost
impossible for you to ever leave them. Sometimes they do it on purpose, sometimes
they are just being lazy. Either way it’s a bad move, and you want to stay away
from them. I have an alternative for you later in this chapter (Feedburner), but
stay away from such providers if at all possible.
Podcast art should be square, simply because that’s the format which the industry
expects from albums. At the time of publication, iTunes wants your album art to be
at least 1400 x 1400 pixels. You need to place it online in either the JPG or PNG
format. It really doesn’t matter which one you pick —whatever format your artwork
comes in will be fine.
How Do I Know If my Feed is Working?
Since iTunes is the 800-pound gorilla of podcasting, most of you reading this book
will have a copy installed on your computer. For the few of you who don’t, install
a copy now. You are going to need it to test and submit your feed to iTunes. I’ll
show you how to do this in the next chapter. On occasion, I meet people who don’t
want to install iTunes on their computer for one reason or another. My advice: get
over it. If you are going to play in a field where iTunes is the big player, you
have to make sure your stuff work with iTunes. Now that we got that over with, you
can test your feed to see if it is working in iTunes by selecting the “Subscribe to
Podcast” option and cutting and pasting your feed into the box iTunes provides. If
it works in iTunes, then your feed is fully functional. I’ve made a quick video of
the process at http:// [Link]/ iTunesCheck. If iTunes changes the wording or
the process, I’ll make sure to update the video at that link.
Telling the world about your podcast really comes down to two different steps:
telling the directories that your show exists, and telling your own audience that
you have a podcast they should be listening to.
By the way, don’t just tell your audience that you have a podcast —tell them to
subscribe to your podcast so that they can be informed every time you release a new
episode. If you don’t tell them to subscribe to the podcast, who will? And of
course, once you’ve made fans, tell them to spread the word about your show.
iTunes
iTunes is one of the easiest directories to submit your podcast to. It is a two
minute process maximum, and here is a great video that will walk you through the
procedure: http:// [Link]/ SubmitToItunes
So, first things first: submit your podcast to iTunes, ONCE, and enjoy the benefits
that come from it. Lately, Apple has been indexing podcasts submitted to iTunes in
just a few days.
Stitcher
The most fascinating podcast play outside of iTunes is, in my opinion, Stitcher.
Their integration into millions of car stereo systems, and their position as one of
the top choices for Android users (tablet and otherwise), makes them a directory
that your show needs to be on. The following link will explain how to get your
podcast listed in Stitcher: http:// [Link]/ GetOnStitcher
iHeartRadio
In episode number ten of my show The Podcast Report (http:// [Link]/ TPR10), I
interviewed Dave Jackson from The School Of Podcasting (http:// [Link]/ SOP)
about how he got his show into iHeartRadio. I followed his direction and got The
Podcast Report into iHeartRadio as well (http:// [Link]/ TPRIHR) —so the
process works. If you want your show on iHeartRadio, listen to that episode. There
are a few steps in the process, but I think it’s worth it.
Google Play
New to the Podcast directory world in 2016, finally, is Google. At the time this
was written, the directory was not yet active (nor was impact determined), but
Google has promised a release “soon” and you are able to submit your Podcast right
now. I certainly recommend doing so (and will update this part of the book once
something more is known). [Link]/ SubmitToGoogle Google Play is, for lack of a
better description, “The iTunes For Google Devices.” Almost anyone with an Android
device has access to the store and Google is expected to push it even more once the
Podcast Directory is released. What will the impact of Podcasts in Google Play be?
It is important to note, that although Google holds the highest percentage of
“smart” devices, the significant numbers are largely from low-end devices, not
typically associated with media consumption. As of I now, I doubt the Google Play
directory will have any significant impact on the industry, but the size of
Google’s impact and the massive amounts of Android devices dictate that I put it
here. It is also important to note that although the Kindle Fire devices from
Amazon are, technically, Android devices, they have a different “store,” managed by
Amazon. At this point, no Amazon Podcast Directory (or Client) has been announced.
If you want a quick way to get Google to index your podcast website, write a post
in Google + which links to your site —Google will do the rest.
Start Building Your Audience with the Audience You Already Have
In addition to telling them that you have a podcast, let them know: a) how to
listen, and b) how to subscribe. When you tell them how to subscribe, make sure
they know the benefits they get for doing so. If you don’t know yourself, take a
few minutes to figure that out.
A Facebook page for your show is a great first step. You can see the one we’ve
built for The Podcast Report at http:// [Link]/ TPRFacebook.
An App For Your Podcast?
A new option in Podcast promotion is the production of an individualized app,
specifically for your Podcast. This allows you to promote your show not just to the
world of Podcast listeners, but to the considerably larger world of app users. In
late 2015, I launched an app for The Podcast Report that is free to download. The
impact of the app on my audience is yet to be determined but it is certainly a
trend worth following. http:// [Link]/ TPRapp Once the results for this app
are determined, I’ll be updating everyone who registers their copy of this book
with the results.
IDEA
20-30 minute podcast on Monday, 10 minute podcasts Tuesday-Friday related to the
Monday topic
Record on Monday’s, publish on Tuesdays for following week, if possible.
Podcast player for posting on website? Smart Podcast Player - Pat Flynn
Lead pages
The lead magnet is even easier for podcast listeners to access when I use
LeadPages, an online tool that makes downloads available through text message as
well as directly from the Internet. For example, in Episode #42 of my podcast, I
mentioned midway through the episode that I’d put together a cheat sheet that
listed the pros and cons of five major bulk email providers. I told listeners that
they could download my cheat sheet by going to the URL [Link]/
42download (where they would see an opt-in box) or by texting “42download” to
38470. Both methods send the download directly to my listeners email address …and
also gave me new names and addresses to add to my list. (I use the tool Call Loop
to add the SMS feature to my show.) In addition, I’ve added another layer to my
podcast by adding LeadPages as a sponsor to my show. They are not a traditional
sponsor where they pay me a few thousand dollars to promote them per episode, but
instead I’ve created a mini LeadPages training ([Link]/ newleads)
that I promote on all my shows. The mini-training guides my listeners through the
process of connecting their own lead magnet to an opt-in box, making it easy for
them to build their email list quickly. It’s working exceptionally well!
Now we create a blog post that serves as a teaser for the podcast—it offers the
main talking points of the podcast, along with lots of hints that you can learn so
much more if you listen to the episode in full. It’s incredible valuable as a
standalone post, but more valuable if you listen to the podcast. We also use the
blog post to promote the lead magnet—another place where we use LeadBoxes, a
special feature of LeadsPages. You code the LeadBox into the blog post (super easy
to do) and when readers click on it, it brings up a pop-up prompt to enter their
email address in exchange for the valuable freebie. The final piece of the blog
post is a custom image that we commission from a graphic artist on 99designs. It’s
different every time—a unique, eye-catching piece of typographic art that helps the
title of the blog post really stick. This featured image gives a clean, stylish
finish to the entire project, and it helps with the final step in the process.
Multi casting
Video: I start with The Fastpitch TV Show
1. I upload my video to [Link] to create my podcast, but there are several
options for uploading your podcast episodes, such as [Link] and others
2. When I upload my video to Libsyn, it automatically uploads to iTunes for people
using Apple devices. https:// [Link]/ us/ podcast/ fastpitch-softball-tv-
show/ id274993094? mt = 2& uo = 4& at = 10laQs
3. When I upload my video to Libsyn, it automatically uploads to [Link] for
people using Android devices, but it uploads the audio only. http://
[Link]/ podcast/ fastpitch-chat/ fastpitch-softball-show? refid = stpr
4. I upload my video to [Link] https:// [Link]/ watch? v =
Ibv8dKLTZvw& index = 2& list = PLgXFT8-8dStq00XANDDF9bZVJzZk3nFPe
5. I add my video to my blog http:// [Link]/ jennie-finch-interview
6. I upload my video to Vimeo https:// [Link]/ 114905831
7. I add the video to my online magazine http:// [Link]/ category/ fastpitch-
softball-magazine
8. My video is automatically uploaded to my iPhone and Android App when I upload to
[Link]
https:// [Link]/ us/ app/ fastpitch-softball-tv/ id333245873? mt = 8&
ign-mpt = uo% 3D4
9. I upload my video file to Facebook. I do not mean I add a link to my show. I
actually upload it to Facebook. https:// [Link]/ [Link]? v =
2686662478280& set = vl. 693830830734640& type = 2& theater
Audio: I pull the audio out of my video and create a new version of the show just
for audio listeners. This is The Fastpitch Radio Show
10. I upload my audio to [Link] to create my podcast
11. When I upload my audio to Libsyn, it automatically uploads to iTunes for people
using Apple devices. https:// [Link]/ us/ podcast/ fastpitch-softball-
radio-network/ id273121222? mt = 2& ign-mpt = uo% 3D4
12. When I upload my audio to Libsyn it automatically uploads to [Link] for
people using Android devices http:// [Link]/ podcast/ fastpitch-chat/
fastpitch-radio-show? refid = stpr
13. I add the audio to my blog http:// [Link]/ jennie-finch-interview-2
14. When I upload my audio to Libsyn, it automatically uploads to my iTunes and
Android Apps. https:// [Link]/ us/ app/ fastpitch-radio-show/
id365526757? mt = 8& ign-mpt = uo% 3D4 Text: I transcribe the audio to text
15. I upload on the Fastpitch Blog http:// [Link]/ jennie-finc-questions
16. I make a slide share presentation http:// [Link]/ GaryLeland/
finch-slideshare? qid = c35ce260-07e9-4806-bce3-477f2f408e5d& v = default& b =&
from_search = 1
17. I compile many interviews and create an ebook. http:// [Link]/ publishing
18. I give away a free copy of my ebook to people who subscribe to my newsletter.
http:// [Link]/ newsletter
20. Create a paperback version of your book. https:// [Link]/
21. By using rss feeds, all of my content automatically distributes to my Tumbler
Page http:// [Link]/
22. My RSS feed also distributes to [Link] https:// [Link]/ f-1414789585 This
was just a small sampling of the methods you can use and reuse the same content
over and over.
YouTube
First, the title for your video should include the keyword that people are looking
for. The keyword also needs to be in the description of the video (and the earlier
the better), the tags for the video, and the transcript of the video. Let Google
know, as specifically as you possibly can, what your video is about, so they can
send some traffic your way to see if you deliver.
Action Items
1 -Include the searchable key words in your video’s title, in the description of
the video, in tags for the video, as well as the transcript of your video. This is
referred to as keyword density.
2 -Create content that is relevant and compelling, so that people watch your videos
to the end, rather than leaving after several seconds. You can check YouTube’s
metrics to see how long people engage with your videos; if you notice they aren’t
watching the entire video, adjust your content.
3 -Consider some A/ B testing of your YouTube title and description strategies, as
described in the YouTube Automation chapter.
4 -In addition to your videos, optimize your YouTube Channels and Playlists for
optimum search engine results.
5 -Consider A/ B Testing your YouTube video postings.