PodMov Daily: Wednesday, July 21

Episode 466: Your Midweek Update

Grammar Girl’s Best Advice from 15 Years of Podcasting

It’s the 15th anniversary of Mignon Fogarty’s wildly popular Grammar Girl, a bite-sized podcast that relieves the pain of using English. Fogarty reveals to documentary podcaster Doug Fraser (What We Do) how she engages listeners and keeps ideas fresh, plus the best piece of audio advice she's been given.

Grammar Girl has successfully branched out to bestselling books and beyond. Don’t be afraid of repurposing content: “Some people think, ‘Well, maybe I already did this in the podcast or on my blog,’” Fogarty says. “But from my experience, they’re likely not the same people consuming that content on different platforms.”

Audience engagement has always been central to Grammar Girl, and it shows. How? “I feel so lucky to have a job where people regularly tell me, ‘I really like what you do.’ I mean, how many people get that from their work?” Right now Fogarty is collecting listener stories for this Saturday’s live anniversary episode.*

*Full passes for Podbean’s Storytelling Podcast Week are free with code PODMOV at checkout. Enjoy!

PM21: Live Stage Sessions and New Workshops

This week’s announcements cover new sessions on the Spreaker Live Stage, streaming free around the world. John Lee Dumas (Entrepreneurs on Fire) and Sam Parr of The Hustle (My First Million) will discuss how they reached their first months with a million downloads, plus actionable advice on getting there.

New workshops include “The Podcaster Patreon Experience,” presented by Patreon, and “How to Use Email Marketing to Grow Your Podcast and Generate an Income,” presented by AWeber. This one requires advance RSVP, as do 30-minute live recording spots at the Podcast Pavilion pop-up studio. Grab a time slot here.

The ever-popular Podcast Makeover is back, and submissions close on Sunday. How compelling is the opening of your show? Seth Resler of Jacobs Media and a panel of pros will render a verdict in this year’s 30-Second Challenge. Lastly, the PM21 mobile app and virtual event platform will go live next week.

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Podcasting for Beginners and Blogging for Beginners include live support-team Q&As, private online communities, and more. New podcasters will have access to over six hours of video tutorials throughout the course. With monetization wisdom from leaders like PM19 keynote speaker Patrice Washington, education is power.

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Here's what else is going on:

• Sound minds: This Saturday, Afros & Audio will host “Stories All Around Us: BIPOC Mental Health Awareness.” The virtual event runs from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm ET, featuring an audio screening, Q&A discussion, and a clinic called “The Healing Power of Podcasting.” RSVP required.

• Market price: What does a podcast consultant do? For Hot Pod, Skye Pillsbury found out from Jeremy Helton and other experts in the growing scene. Pillsbury says that those she spoke to “endeavor to deliver a high level of service: heavy on personal attention, light on outlandish promises.” 

• Six figures: Substack is funding the launch of a podcast network called Booksmart Studios, reports Sara Fischer of Axios. Consistent with its newsletter subscription model, Substack plans to “take a 10% cut of podcast revenues once its advance payment expires after the first year.”

• Test prep: “Memberships and podcasting are not either/or,” writes Acast+ Product Manager Lauren Tharp. She reviews five insights from the last six months of beta testing, including a “healthy and realistic benchmark” for success. With roughly 3% audience engagement, you’re doing great.