PodMov Daily: Thursday, June 3

Episode 443: Your Thursday Podthoughts

How to Spend Wisely on Podcast Promotion

Jack Rhysider’s first recommendation isn’t to spend money on podcast ads. Launched in 2017, his show Darknet Diaries was downloaded over 15 million times last year alone. His advice? “If you insist on paying to market your show, the very first thing you should spend money on is making your show better.”

This isn’t about equipment, Rhysider says. “I mean take classes, get mentorship, take a workshop, travel to conferences, buy books. Because the more interesting your show is, the more people will listen.” He details all of the above, plus tips for social media, cross-promotions, and ads within podcast players.

Above all, creators should take this to heart: “There absolutely is a convenience fee for people who don't know how to market.” Reading Seth Godin or Eric Nuzum is the smartest up-front investment a podcaster can make. Our second favorite strategy is a DIY classic: “Pass out stickers everywhere.”

The Anatomy of an Effective Host-Read Ad

Why do podcasters struggle to sell themselves? Sounds Profitable editor Bryan Barletta asked an audio ad expert to break down what works. The bottom line: When podcasters promote their premium feeds (or anything, really), “We need to treat that promotion just like the ads we make to sell underwear.”

Stew Redwine is Creative Director at Oxford Road, an agency behind major brands (e.g., Postmates, Quip) on major podcasts like Armchair Expert. He goes through his ad development process using the Sounds Profitable podcast as the product, clearly explaining each section’s form and function.

This framework is about efficient persuasion — it can be used to write an ad, ask for a raise, or propose to someone. We may understand what a value proposition is, for example, but Redwine demonstrates why it succeeds. Podcasters will find time-proven strategies to craft better ads and better episodes.

Dynamic Content: A Powerful New Tool from Buzzsprout

With Buzzsprout, it’s faster than ever to keep your podcast fresh — and your listeners up-to-date. The new Dynamic Content tool lets you easily add and remove short pre-roll (intro) and post-roll (outro) content to your episodes. It's the perfect solution for timely messaging.

Whether you’re promoting a virtual event or giving a special shout-out, Dynamic Content makes it simple to swap, automatically add content to new episodes, or apply it to your existing catalog with a click. Old files are removed and replaced, so there’s no clean-up.

For podcasters, this new tool offers more than flexibility. It benefits your audience in more ways than one: Buzzsprout respects your listeners’ privacy. Unlike most Dynamic Ad Insertion, the Dynamic Content tool includes no tracking or targeting. Ready to make the switch?

Here's what else is going on:

• Record book: Three of Variety’s 10 Storytellers to Watch are podcasters. Congratulations to audio fiction wizard, producer, and PM19 panelist Morgan Givens (Dispatches, Flyest Fables), Walter Thompson-Hernández (California Love, Written Up), and Tau Zaman (Caravan, Rogue Runners).

• Frog sounds: NPR’s 1A Pop Culture Roundup usually focuses on TV, movies, and music. With “The Hit List Podcast Special,” host Jenn White makes an exception. Hot Pod’s Nick Quah highlights Frog of the Week for its “little fun, goofy essays” that capture the independent spirit of audio.

• Gray matter: “Unlisted shows can be a useful middle-ground between private and public podcasts,” explains Dan Misener of Pacific Content. Though unlisted in directories, the feed is conveniently available to anyone you share it with. Think internal communication or an audio portfolio. 

• On purpose: Who gets nominated for the British Podcast Awards? “It’s often the shows that clearly think critically about what they do, that do well,” writes Matt Deegan. “The list is a great mix of shows, small and large, famous and anonymous.” About 130 were chosen from 1,600 entries.