Most podcasters dream of having a huge show with thousands of avid listeners, but building that type of following is going to take some time. Luckily, with a solid marketing plan and a little bit of patience, your podcast audience should continue to grow before your eyes.
Focus on Your Social Media Presence
In order for your podcast to expand, you need to treat it like a business, and that means social media marketing is going to be very important. At the very least, you must create accounts for your podcast on all of the leading social media platforms. Whenever you release a new podcast or have any news to share, you will be able to spread the word to all of your fans on those accounts. Video promotion, guest posts, and professional consulting can all help you learn how to leverage your online presence.
Encourage Your Listeners Help Out
When you first start your podcast, you are going to need quite a bit of assistance. While you might be able to do some advertising on your own, getting your listeners to help out will be much more cost-effective. At the start of each podcast, your listeners should be encouraged to like and subscribe to the channel. You can also ask them to review the podcast in the Apple App Store and Google Play.
Network with Other Podcasters
One of the most effective ways to build a successful podcast is to network with other podcasters. Instead of thinking of those individuals as competition, you should consider them an invaluable resource. Many of the top podcasters in the world are constantly making guest appearances on other podcasts, and that helps them reach demographics outside of their usual listeners. Other podcasters can also give you helpful hints, such as when to schedule your releases and what type of equipment to use.
Create Your Own App
Creating your own app might seem like overkill, but countless entrepreneurs are discovering just how powerful mobile apps can be. App development services are more affordable than ever, and having your own platform to release podcasts will give you much more control over your content. It is also going to be much easier to stay in contact with your fans once they have downloaded your personal mobile app.
These few tips are a great start, but you also need to make sure that you are consistently releasing high-quality content. Building a strong following is going to be very difficult if you don’t have a weekly or biweekly schedule that you stick to for quite some time. Once you have a steady stream of content going, consider following some of the tips above to grow your audience.
Brooke Chaplan is a freelance writer and blogger. She lives and works out of her home in Los Lunas, New Mexico. She loves the outdoors and spends most of her time hiking, biking, and gardening. For more information, contact Brooke via Facebook at facebook.com/brooke.chaplan or Twitter @BrookeChaplan
