E637 - How to Grow Your Podcast Faster by Lifting Other Podcasters and Shows

Okay, we're rolling

Hey, welcome back to the how to podcast series. It's a day with you. Hope you're doing well

We're gonna take a little ride in a boat today. Yep, we're all gonna go in a boat. I

Gotta tell you I didn't want to swim at all

So I'll be the one clutching to the side of the boat with a four-life

Preserveers on I'll be the guy who's like are we can we go back now? That's me cuz I I like fishing

But I like fishing from a dock where I can walk off the dock

But yeah, I'm not a I'm not a swimmer. There you go. Dave's admitting it on a podcast. So if you love swimming

then

What's wrong with you? Yeah, so anyways, but I just can't do it

So let's go for a ride in a boat today. We're gonna go and we're gonna realize something that rising tide lifts all boats

So it's gonna get deep around here and yeah grab your life preserver time jump in the boat. Thanks for being here

Let's go. I do believe at that top that saying is true

Definitely in podcasting that a rising tide lifts all boats

It's true and it's amazing and it's great about podcasting

It's a great community the podcasting community communities awesome

There's a few people that are like yeah, take it or leave it

But for the most part I would say 99% of the podcasting community awesome people like the best people you'll ever meet and

When other podcasters would recommend your show

It can dramatically accelerate your listener and subscriber growth

It's a great way to grow your podcast when other people are talking about your show and the beauty of

Cross promotion is that it's mutually beneficial to the person promoting you and the person being promoted, right? It's just

It's amazing when you lift others you rise together and it's the beautiful thing about podcasting in podcasting community often out performs

Competition there is competition

There are other shows like your show that talk about your topic, but

They can't do your show they can do their show, but they can't do your show

So there is competition, but there's also a lot of collaboration and podcasting which I love and it's easy to view similar shows

as your rival like they're out to get your audience and take them away from your show

But the reality is that most listeners enjoy multiple podcasts even multiple podcasts with the same topic the same subject matter

So one of my questions in my survey, which is available at how to podcast.ca and also in the show notes is what other podcasts about podcasting do you listen to and I'm seeing a

pretty robust list of some of the other podcasts about podcasting which I'm well aware of

and

It's very interesting to see people's tastes and where they're gravitating

to in addition to this show, so I want to know where my listeners are listening to and if they're listening to other shows like mine

What are they?

It helps me to know where I sit in this world of podcasting and

Context creation around podcasting right so many podcasts about podcasting why this show

Why are you here? What are you getting from the show? You're not getting somewhere else and what other shows are you listening to who else are you seeing

Besides this show I need to know so that's part of the survey love to get your thoughts

Go over and click on the survey link on out of podcast.ca. I love to hear from you

We share audiences with other shows it happens

We but we can share audiences through other shows also through collaboration. That's why I bring on other

other podcasts

Podcasters who talk about podcasting

I'm not threatened by that

Because if you resonate with them, then that's a bonus to them. It's a bonus to the listener. It's it's how we do things

Even if you leave this show to go to their show great find the voice that you resonate with and stick with them

One of the things I caution new podcasters is to not have like

35 gurus

Who talk about podcasting because you're gonna get 35 different points of view

You're gonna get lost in the information

There's gonna be contradictions this person said this this person said the opposite this person said do it this way

This person said do it that way and in that you get confused you get confused when you get fused you stop

When you get confused you lose right so

Pick I would say pick one just pick one guru

Maybe some other ones you listen to for entertainment or extra, but pick one voice

Learn everything you can from that person

To the extent of their knowledge and then when you get to the end of their knowledge

Then you can graduate to the next person, but when you have

Multiple voices sending you in different directions you get confused and you might give up

So pick one it could be this show and I'd be thrilled could be someone else's show awesome

Pick a single voice learn which you can learn everything you can from that person and

When you've got to the end of their list of what they know because we only know what we know

Even if you've been doing this for 20 years, you only know what you know and

Sometimes the people that have been in podcasting the longest haven't

Educated themselves on the newer things happening in podcasting and they're stuck in their ways

So it might be good for a fresh new

Approach and a new point of view in podcasting even if that person that's

Giving you information and coaching you is relatively new to podcasting

Don't let the length of time that they've been podcasting to be the

Only reason you work with them whether they've been in forever or they've been in it for a few weeks

Everybody's got a different approach. You need to pick the single voice that works for you

I think that's super important

As podcasters we share audiences with other shows. I share audience members for this show with other podcasts of a podcasting

I know that I see it in the survey results

Is it a focusing on who's getting the biggest slice of the pie?

We as podcasters can work together to make the pie larger

Stop fighting over the size of the slices that are there, but make the pie bigger

I like the idea of

When success comes to you in podcasting or in life

Instead of putting a fence around what you have make a bigger table

A longer table invite more people

To it to what you have in your success instead of putting up a fence to protect people from taking it from you

Stealing your ideas and stealing your audience just make a bigger table

It's a great approach

Here's how we can apply this approach. I think as podcasters and there's a few things for us to think about some practical things

And we can do right now to

Raise

All boats and raise the tide here we go first. We need to cross promote

With related podcasts

Hard to do if somebody else is insecure as a podcaster and they feel threatened by you

Your show might be bigger your show might be in more entertaining. They might be intimidated by your podcast

They might be arrogant. They might be like I don't work with people like you. I'm afraid of losing my audience

There's a multiple reasons why people might not want to work with you

But there are other people who would love to work with you. So

Cross promote with related podcasts with podcasts that talk about your topic

or adjacent to your topic

And exchange mentions in your episodes share each other's trailers or

Talk about the other podcaster and what they talked about on their show

Create co-branded social posts as well when when people see podcasters working together

What a healthy indicator of a great

Atmosphere and a great collaborative

Approach. I think people lean into that because they see and they they feel

That collaboration they see it happening in real time and it stands out as unique and different in a competitive world of social media

YouTube you don't see that there

And I think that's what make podcasting better. We're not like radio radio was so cutthroat

They want to tear down other stations just to build their own station up

podcasters were different breed

We're not radio. Thank goodness

So we can do things differently. We can do things better

So the second one is we need to collaborate

Creatively as well. Gotta be more creative

And how we work together with other people

Consider guest hosting or co-hosting episodes together. I do that here on this show

recording

Interviews together or creating a mini series that spans both shows or maybe a panel discussion

Where we have we both had the same guest on and we can get together and interview that guest at a second time together

Two shows combined into one and then let them have the content for their show as well. Don't just have it on your show

Right that's being creative as we collaborate. Don't

Don't just do the easy thing. Don't just do what everybody else is doing but be creative and collaborate in a creative way

We also we can also use social media to leverage our our social media impact when we

Work together with other podcasters like our like what we talk about tag your fellow podcasters

and and when you make a post and share clips or quotes from their podcast episodes

Amplify their work while you're subtly introducing your audience to theirs

Do a shout out jump on stories

Talk about a podcast episode from somebody else even if they talk about your topic and shout them out

I will listen to so-and-so on episode this number and they were talking about these things

Really got me thinking and I just wanted to say thanks to them

Publicly for that episode. That was really great and everyone you should go listen to this episode

And you're like Dave if I do that my audience might leave me

Yeah, they might and why are they leaving you?

Well

They might like the other person better. Yeah, they might

It's true

Build a bigger table

I think if we can be the type of people who promote others

Not at the expense of our audience. We're not trying to get rid of our audience

We want our audience to grow but our audience can see and sense that we're not

Holding on through audience with both hands

White knuckling it

Hoping and praying that nobody leaves their show

When they see a healthy respect for other podcasters and we model that I think people pick up on that

And they trust us even a little bit more than they wouldn't have if they if we didn't demonstrate

That so I know it seems weird to promote somebody else who talks about what you talk about

But I think the results show for themselves. So consider it think about it

Put it into practice

But definitely leverage social media and tag those other shows

And they'll do it for you too

try it

We can also offer those genuine shoutouts in our podcast. I don't know about you when I was a kid

If I could hear my voice on a radio show

I was like the king of the world

Right call in request a song or call in you know

Fifth caller in you win tickets to the whatever

I was the one trying to call in

And I remember there was a call in thing and it was for something

And I would if you were calling it we're asked you remember call it call number 10 or something

Whatever I was calling number one

And I'm and they're like oh sorry your number one. I'm like come on

Really I got through I'm number one. There's nothing for me. They're like no call it and bye

They hang up like dang it. So

Yeah, but offer genuine shoutouts on your show. I think people love to hear their name

It's like this cool bonus. Especially if they're listening to your show. It's like come on

Those shoutouts are really really important

Authentic recommendations go further than any kind of paid promotion

And it's it's organic. It's natural. It's in the moment. It's real. It's not forced. It's not an ad

It's just genuine appreciation for others in podcasting

Let your audience know what other shows that you listen to and why

And the other part too and this I think we could share our resources

There's no reason why we have to create in a bubble by ourselves

We can share resources we can share ideas we can

We can help each other as podcasters

We can swap with our even with our competition even with people who are in our space

We can swap production tips and guest contacts and if I have a guest on my show

I'm thinking about all the other podcasters. I know that this guest would be a great guest for

And I'm sending them and making up like email introductions between my guest and

A fellow podcaster and just to know that somebody's thinking of you

As a podcaster and sending great guests to you instead of relying on a PR agency or

You know hope and trust and luck that a good podcast guest shows up at your door

When somebody's thinking about you somebody knows you as a fellow podcaster

The I just the idea that they're thinking of you in that moment. She what a great feeling

And even if you're you're the one who initiates it and no one does it for you just keep doing it

Eventually people will catch on be a leader

Without measuring the results just be a leader and create that opportunity

Because everybody wins when we all work together. So share resources

Collaboration. I really think really builds trust

Between you and another podcaster, but also you and your audience

And it often leads to really great long-term partnerships

You're going to find in podcasting there are people that you are drawn to and then there are people that repel you

You're just like I can't even be in the room with that person

It's obvious

Could be their style it could be there since a humor it could be the how they

The language they use how they talked about people behind their back

It's a lot of people in podcasting that I would not

be seeking out at a podcast conference for

Dinner it's just no way

But there's a way more people that I would

That I'd be seeking out in the hallways looking for you because of who you are

And because of the great content you put out there

So when you shift your mindset from

It being completely competitive to more collaborative

I think you unlock a network of creative possibilities as a podcaster

And you attract not only listeners, but also allies who can help you expand your reach in this podcasting world

And success I think compounds upon success

When voices connect I think it's just this beautiful

Thing about podcasting again. It's not radio

Nobody grows alone

In podcasting sure you can build an audience sure you can build a community

Yes, you can get more listens, but to really build something of value

Doesn't happen in a vacuum

treat podcasting and the podcasting community

Like a creative collective of like-minded people

Not a crowded marketplace where you're trying to be heard over the noise

Lift others up first and you'll lift your show right along them

Instead of thinking about how can I grow my show

Start saying how can I grow your show

And I think when you do that changing that mind to your

That's when you unlock an amazing opportunity

To see what podcasting can do

Not only for you, for your audience, but for the community itself

It's time to get in the ship

The tide is rising

And you want to be there when it happens

Instead of growing your own show

What can I do to help you grow yours

It's time to get in the ship get that life preserve run because

If we go over come and help me because I can't swim thanks for being here take care

So I get asked quite often

Usually at the end of a podcast

Like right now

Dave how can we help you like how can we as a listener like support the show

Can we come rake your leaves can we cut the grass shovel the snow

Hmm what's your dog help you move what can we do clean your dishes? Oh, that'd be interesting

Um, well, if you don't if you can't do that because you know

You're in Poland

maybe

You can help us by supporting us with our by me a coffee

It's right there on our website and

You know, it just will help us to

A stay fueled because

You know, we drink a lot of coffee around here

And it helps the show so if you want to help us

It's out of the goodness of your heart

I can tell you they're listening to the podcast to this point

You've already helped us so much

But I do have people saying David. I'd love to uh to give back something small even just in the show

I mean a coffee link is on our website a hatapodcast.ca

And you can support the show that way it would mean a lot

to have you

on our team

supporting what we do here if you find value in the show

Then that's great

share the show

Tell somebody about it

And when somebody says, Dave, I want to start a podcast who should I check out? Oh, you should go check out the hotapodcast series

Because of all the great co-hosts and all the things that happen here the meetups everything

And uh, I would appreciate that and then

Fill our cup

What's in a while if you can

But again, thank you so much for being here. It's supporting the hotapodcast series take care talk soon

So you're still here? Well, that's great because I'm still here and I'm so cleaning up

He's getting ready for the next episode, but hey, let's let's chat for a second before we close off

I do this at the end of the show because I want to connect with you

And give you as much value as possible

We do set the episode people have come they've listened most people were gone

You're still here, so I'm putting a bonus thing at the end

One question that bothered me recently was somebody reached out and said Dave I

I'm just not having fun with my podcast anymore

It's no it's not fun. I'm just I'm not enjoying it the way I did when I first started

So we we chatted about it. We talked through it a little bit and

some of it came down to content some of it came down to

Overwhelmed busyness

Just doing too much

Not balancing out life and podcasting not balancing of family and podcasting

And just a general sense of dread and overwhelm I guess from this specific podcaster and if you're listening

Thank you for reaching out

When when I meet people like this what I like to do with them is kind of go through their week go through their month

And have them kind of

Brain dump what they're doing

There's the mechanics of creating a podcast

There's the mechanics of creating a video podcast

There's the promotion side of it. There's the guesting side of it. There's the

Maintenance it's like a small business. It's like a small town. You're running

You have to get your guests aligned you have to get

Air assets created you got to work on the website you kind of do a blog you got to create yours

All your information you got to post the podcast you got to promote the podcast

You're get the next episode is coming right next and your kids are looking at you like why are you never around

And they're just trying to balance your wife your partner those looks at you like do you ever come up for air like

I haven't seen you in weeks and

And

You just get to the point where you're like why am I doing this?

I've lost the fun in my podcast journey

So once we get like a dump out of all of the things they're doing

We put times to them to see how much time they're spending

And they're spending a lot of time other podcast

So part of it is they're not seeing a return on their investment of time

There's not the audiences and growing to the where they want it to be they're not making a

substantial amount of money life changing money from their show

and

They just feel like they're on a treadmill

They're on that hamster wheel just keeps going around and around and around

And they almost feel like giving up

The most feel like just walking away from this podcast thing

So once we've gone through we've mapped out the time we've mapped up

Kind of this the the flow of their show

Then we start going okay, so what can we either eliminate or reduce?

How can we simplify this?

To the point where you have time

To reinvest in yourself we invest in your family reinvest in your podcast whatever that is

But how can we go from

This many hours per week per day

and reduce it

And simplify it and by doing that we we end up start tossing things out

Like do you need to post on 10 different social platforms for every episode? No

We start pinpointing what are our best

Options where do is there was my audience show up for me Instagram is not the place for the show

Best I'm trying just not

A post to Instagram stories

Gets less than 10 people

Sometimes two people looking at that post

So Instagram that I we're not getting along for the show other podcasts that I do is doing great

So it's not it's not the the platform

Because the other shows are doing awesome with Instagram. It's interesting

Our audiences are different

So you have to find them and if you're spending

10 hours a week on Facebook and it's bringing you zero results

It's time to either reduce or cancel posting to Facebook. I know

You might love Facebook, but your audience doesn't

So don't waste your time

Talking to the wall

Spend an investor time to where your people really are

So as we kind of work through this we scale down the amount of work they're doing we give them back their time

And maybe we even just take a break from our show

Take a just take a rest

Your audience will be fine. They they'll be fine. They they care about you

We reduce the amount of time we focus on on what really matters

And we rebuild the show together

There's been times where

We've come to an agreement between well from the podcaster that it's time to let the show stop

And

I might feel weird to do that

But it might be that this season of their life is over and it's time to move on to something different

They were an author they had an author podcast, but they really want to be a speaker

They're not going to forget about their author journey, but they really want to focus on speaking

So maybe it's time to drop the author podcast and focus on the speaking podcast

That highlights their speaking skills

Maybe that's it

Maybe they were a podcaster and now they want to be a voice over actor

So instead of focusing on podcast about podcasting they want to focus on how to use your voice

It's still a podcast

But the audience is different

The focus is different and it's more and it brings them more joy

So if that's the kind of conversations you want to have and you want to walk through this together

just want to like dump

Mental dump of your podcast. I love to help you

calendars always on my website reach out anytime happy to talk

If I can help you find the joy in podcasting again and not lose you as a podcaster

For the sake of your audience

I love to help you with that. So let me know. Thanks for being here. Take care