17 minute read
Podcasting as a Business
Podcasting As A Business Development Tool
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By Donnie Boivin
Iwasn’t doing well financially. My wife and
I were on the verge of losing our farm and everything that came with it. Why? Because I had gotten a wild hair and decided to start a company from scratch, leaving behind an awesome career. I was in a spot where I was deciding if I was going to go back and get a job or if I was going to end up losing it all. I mean, really, that’s where I was. I had one last speaking engagement that was going to be the deciding factor for my business. It was really going to be that last “hurrah” before I had to give it all up. I left it all on the stage that day and gave it all I had. Little did I know, that engagement was going to change my life for the better. After I walked off the stage I was approached to be a guest on a podcast. When that episode aired, one of the listeners reached out and ended up becoming a client of mine. Who knew that being a guest on a podcast would open doors for new clients and speaking engagements?
What I realized from all this was that I could grow a business by being a guest on other people’s podcasts! That opened a whole new market for me because I LOVE to talk. I’m a podcaster, I’m a speaker, and I’m a sales guy. There were a ton of shows that needed guests, and I went on a rampage. I went on 67 shows over the course of 30 days. It was nuts. If I found out you had a show, I was after it. I was going to do whatever it took to get on it. I was all in. I found podcasting, which taught me how to build my business using processes and procedures, which gave me my business development model. Getting on podcasts is simple if you know what you’re doing- and I do. I’ll walk you step-bystep through every tip and trick I use, and you’ll be amazed by how simple it really is. Don’t let me fool you, though, it takes a lot of discipline and work. There are things you’ll need to do consistently to make this work for you. Ready? I’m not going to mess around. Good, let’s get to work.
LET ME DROP A COUPLE OF STATS ON YOU
: In 2018, there were 200,000 podcasts launched. In the same year, there were 4 million books written. Now, think about libraries- how many libraries exist around the world? Add in Amazon, bookstores, and self-publishers. Between those, how many books do you think have been published worldwide? Billions? Maybe. Possibly even trillions. Including those 200,000 podcasts launched in 2018, there are only a little more than 2,000,000 podcasts total. It’s still such a new
market, and yet so heavily consumed! Listeners come back day after day to listen to their favorite podcasts or their favorite episodes in their favorite podcasts, and they are devouring this information. By appearing on podcasts as a guest expert for an interview, or as a guest co-host or panelist for an episode, you have the opportunity to market yourself and your business to that audience. Through podcasts, you can easily and readily tell your story. I’ve had guys on my show that started leather companies in their basement, making leather satchels, and now run empires of leather companies. “Podcasts are the easiest low-hanging fruit you can get for your business.”
THIS IS THE AGE OF CONTENT AND PODCASTS ARE A GREAT SOURCE OF CONTENT FOR YOUR BUSINESS.
This is especially true if you have a global audience, which almost everyone does now. You can use these podcasts to build an amazing library of evergreen content that is put out there for everyone in such an awesome way. There’s this phenomenon I’ve noticed in people who appear on podcasts or speaking on stage. When you’re in this speaking role, you automatically get this air of expertise about you. I mean, really, if you have a heartbeat and can talk about something for 20 minutes, people tend to see you as an expert even if you’re not truly there yet. I mean, look at the number of bad speakers out there that just have bad ideas and bad content, or no content at all. Maybe they even straight up stole their content and didn’t even try to repackage it. The truth is, anything you’re saying has probably been said by someone else at some point in time, but you can take that, recreate it, repackage it, and make it something that’s truly your own. When you’re on the mic with somebody you have a chance to provide a ton of value to your listeners, which in turn allows you to pick up new business and followers.
Content is important in your show. There are bad podcast hosts out there. In fact, one of the things that really pushed me to start my own show was being on a show that was just really, really bad. I thought, “If this guy can do it, I sure as hell can too.”
If you find a good host, return the favor, double it, and be a GREAT guest. Even if you’re an introvert, even if you aren’t able to articulate your message as well as you may like, you can be a great podcast guest. I get a lot of guests on my show, and I help even the most introverted guests to really get into it by helping them relax, by pulling the story out of them naturally. A good host can do that for just about anyone. Once you get more comfortable, getting booked on podcasts is almost as good as being on stage in front of a bunch of people. And, since you can do more podcasts than speaking gigs, it’s probably going to end up being better for you. When you’re coming up with your content, it’s always so much easier to work backward than forwards.
First, think of the end goal you have for this show. I get it, the end goal, really, is always to make a sale, right? But when you’re thinking of podcasts and social media, your first goal should be to
increase your engagement. There is a constant influx of shows that can change your life and your business. The sooner you take the leap to get into podcasting, the sooner you can reach thousands of potential new relationships and clients.
TEN YEARS AGO I WENT TO THIS PRESENTATION WHERE THIS GUY WAS TEACHING SOCIAL MEDIA FOR BUSINESS.
I’M AN EXTROVERTED PERSON, AND SO ARE MANY PEOPLE WHO GUEST ON PODCASTS.
I went there expecting what you’d usually expect with something like this: a bit of knowledge with a huge sales pitch at the end so he could sell his social media packages. Even knowing that I went so I could gain some knowledge I didn’t have at Extroverts typically have a natural ability to just get up in front of people and talk, and they thrive on it. I had a client recently who came to me wanting to get on more podcasts but couldn’t get past her introverted nature. And honestly, this is a question I get pretty frequently with clients. So, if you really want to get out there more and be heard on podcasts but can’t get past your introverted nature, I’m going to remind you of something we all learned in grade school: Practice makes perfect. Grab a friend who you feel comfortable with and do some mock interviews. Have your friend grill you about your business, your story, where you came from, whatever. But don’t overdo it. A lot of introverts I know tend to spend a lot of time in their head and can make things way more intense than they need to be. And, once again, this is another huge reason I tell people to start small with their podcast search. If you screw up on their the time. When he started speaking, I knew right out the gate that this workshop was different. He started off not bragging about his accolades, but by truly teaching us, walking us through everything he did, step-by-step. I mean he really broke down each social media platform, your profiles, how often to post, and even what content to post. I took so many notes that day. I bet I filled half a notebook, and the whole time I kept waiting for the pitch. Surely there was no way this guy was going to give away all this knowledge that took him years to learn! At the end of his presentation, he said this: “You can do all of this yourselves, you really don’t need me, my team or my company. So, go home and implement everything you have learned and if you have questions, reach out and someone from our team will respond.” Then he posted his cell phone number and his personal email. By your 50th episode as a guest, you’re going to be a natural .... They’re about what you can offer to their audience, what their audience will learn or gain by listening to you. 5th or 6th episode, who’s really going to know? I was blown away. This guy just gave us the secret By your 50th episode as a guest, you’re going to be a natural and be able to roll with whatever they throw at you. They’re about what you can offer to their audience, what their audience will learn or gain by listening to you. Showcase your expertise even if you end up giving a bunch of it away. Because once their audience sees how much work you put into it, you’re going to be their new go-to person. “Remember, those interviews are not about you.” sauce for his business. I remember grinning to myself, thinking, “This guy is going to go broke.” After the presentation, I asked him why he gave us all this information for free. His response was simple. “All this information is already out there on the internet. With a good Google or YouTube search, you could find all of this stuff. I’ve just packaged it up for you in a quickly consumable method.” Then he told me, “I’ll talk to you in a week when you reach out to my team.” I looked at him, confused. He said, “I’ll give you the second
reason when you call later this week.” I smiled and thought this guy was nuts. I mean, who does that? He gave me the secret recipe for social media success, so I’m going to take it and do it myself. At least, that’s what I thought.
I went back to my office and started doing everything this guy said. I upgraded my profiles, built out content calendars, and came up with graphics and articles. By the time I was finished with all of that, I had spent 8 hours working on social media and not on growing my business. I kept telling myself that this would grow my business, so I pushed on. I did the same thing the next day, ending up with 2 days spent on social media and not on growing my business. I had so much to do and didn’t have that kind of time. That’s when I saw the presenter’s business card sitting next to my notes... and guess what I did next? Of course, I called him and talked to him about how much time this was taking, asking if he had any shortcuts. I could hear his genuine smile on the other end of the phone. He asked me, “What if we could do all that for you while you focus on growing your business your way?” Lightbulbs exploded in my head. He knew how much work it was; he knew the odds were in his favor, and he knew I would reach out. He even knew that if I didn’t reach out, he’d gained some karma points by helping someone with their business.
This process forever changed my presentations for my business. This guy came on stage and gave us everything, and he got business from it. So, when you’re on podcasts as a guest, TEACH the audience, don’t preach to them. Talk people through strategies they can implement in their business, life, or hobbies. Give them tips and tricks, inspire them, and give them everything. Remember, there are no secrets; everything is out there already. So just give it all away and watch what happens.
DO’s & DONT’S
1. Set a number of reach-outs you’ll do on a daily basis 2. Understand how many reach-outs you need to land a podcast guest gig 3. Start out by targeting shows with fewer than 10 episodes 4. Know what their show is about
5. Pitch what their audience will get out of the show
6. Relax! It’s just a conversation 7. Be smart about it.
DON’T
1. Go over-the-top with emojis, accolades, and awards
2. Pitch your own show (without permission) 3. Send them an infomercial in lieu of a conversation
4. Send an obviously cut-and-pasted message 5. Leave out details
6. BS your numbers- your followers, clients, connections, etc.
7. Be self-serving
THERE’S ONE BIG THING YOU SHOULD DO TO START WORKING YOUR WAY UP THE PODCAST FOOD CHAIN.
Take baby steps. So many guests start out going to the big shows, the shows in the Top 200 category on iTunes. And that’s great! You’re a badass and you could probably do that, no problem. The problem here is that when you’re just starting out, you don’t really have a brand yet, so it’s really hard to compete with tens of thousands of other guests trying to get onto those same shows. You need to start small and build your brand.
When I first started out in this, the first thing I realized was that if I wanted to get onto the bigger shows, I needed to get more exposure. First, I went out to podcast directories like iTunes, Cast Box, Spotify, Soundcloud, and others. There are a ton of directories- all you need to do is hit up our old friend Google to find them. Each of these platforms has a search feature. Go there “when you’re just starting out, you don’t really have a brand yet, so it’s really hard to compete with tens of thousands of other guests trying to get onto those same shows. You need to start small and build your brand.”
and search for a very specific topic that fits your specific niche- something you feel 1000% comfortable talking about. For me, those topics were business, entrepreneurship, motivation, inspiration, storytelling, sales, marketing, really anything that fit my niche and avatar (the exact description of my perfect client). The goal is to get onto shows that your target avatar listens to. Let’s say I typed in the word “business” to search for podcasts. I’d probably come up with a couple thousand results. And that’s awesome! There are so many levels of podcasts which can help you determine which fit best with your avatar - your target audience. Once you’ve found your list, start building a database and rank these shows using a few simple criteria. This ranking system isn’t necessarily based on the quality of the show, but on how successful you think you can be getting onto it. Rank each episode based on:
1. The number of episodes 2. The number of reviews 3. The number of followers on social media
Let’s say I was looking for a small show with fewer than 10 episodes, and probably don’t have any reviews on iTunes yet. Because of this, they probably don’t have much of a following on their social channels, and those are going to be the ones you hit up first to get your feet wet in podcasting. From running my own podcast and being a guest on a ton of shows, I know that many podcasters start their shows on a whim from a random idea, thinking that they have a lot to say and need a platform on which to say it. At some point, around episode 10, they’re going to get to this tight spot where they’re struggling to come up with new content and are on the verge of starting to bring in guests. These shows are the low hanging fruit.
CREATE YOUR DATABASE, CREATE YOUR TARGETS BY RANKING THE SHOWS IN CERTAIN CATEGORIES.
Start out with the following categories:
• Small - 10 or fewer episodes with no reviews.
• Medium - 20 to 25 episodes with fewer than 10 reviews.
• Large - 50+ episodes with a ton of traction and more than 10 reviews.
• Extra Large - 100+ episodes ranked at the top of the podcast lists.
I promise that if you take a day to really get into your niches and categorize your shows, you can come up with at least 100 targets. Start sending those messages! Taking that initiative can be a game changer for you. And it’s really not that difficult to get on a lot of shows in a very short amount of time.
Then, it’s all about the numbers. “There’s no need to get fancy with your database. A simple Excel spreadsheet will do.”
CONTACT THE SHOW WHEN YOU’VE FOUND YOUR LOW-HANGING FRUIT, YOU NEED TO REACH OUT TO THEM.
Go to their website, find their contact page, and send them an email. Here’s an example I’ve used that’s been successful. Feel free to take it and make it your own. “Hey Jillian, I’m really digging your podcast. I listened to episode x, and these were a few of my takeaways: (Insert 2-3 takeaways) I don’t know if you ever bring guests on your shows, but I think your audience would enjoy my story of 20 years living somebody else’s dream in the sales game, and how I was able to break free and start my own company. (Tell a quick overview of your journey).” Nine out of 10 shows that I reached out to would bring me on.
When you find a show that’s smaller in nature, just starting out, the odds are that you’re the first person to send them a message. To be honest, they’re going to geek the hell out. I remember the first time I got an email for my show. Somebody sent me a message asking to be a guest. I thought, “Oh, shit. This is real.” It really is exciting as a
podcaster when someone reaches out and you realize you’re getting traction. “Even if they’re not actively looking for guests, you’re going to make their day when you ask to be on their show.” Sharing Your Story
FINAL WORDS
“You need to completely understand what the host you’re pitching to is trying to accomplish and how you can add value to it.” When you’re ready to start searching for the perfect podcasts to be a guest for, remember to relax, start small, and deliver value. This is not a pitch, it’s not a life or death situation, it’s a conversation. Show up and be authentic and the audience will embrace your story. That’s why it’s such a good idea to start out with smaller shows. They allow you to get comfortable, get your rhythm down, and know how your processes work. Have fun with it! Dive in, learn a ton, and watch what happens when you start getting a lot of exposure. After the show airs, you need to promote the hell out of it. Send a thank you to your interviewer, leave them a review, and suggest another guest who may be a good fit. When you have links to episodes you’ve guested on, put them everywhere you can. Your website. Your LinkedIn profile. Your Facebook. Hell, even your Pinterest! Post it again 30 days later. Many of the guests on my show that promoted it again 30 days later got double the engagement the second time around. Really, how many times have you heard of something and thought, “Oh, I need to remember to do that”, but get busy and forget about it. Then you hear it again and you finally have that opportunity to get back to it. At the end of the day, remember to have fun.
