PodMov Daily: Monday, February 8

Episode 367: Your Monday Mix

Podcasters on Patreon: A Valuable Shift in Perspective

“We started Fable and Folly to create a future where audio fiction producers can make a good living telling their stories,” writes co-founder Sean Howard. Patreon is an essential component for many, and so is the “constant struggle” to grow on the platform. For Howard, the solution was a change in perspective.

“Becoming a patron of a successful Patreon creator opened my eyes,” he writes. “They cared about me.” It was a humbling experience that inspired a new attitude of service. The strategy became clear: “To be a $4,000 a month creator, we have to start behaving (and thinking) like a $4,000 a month creator.”

Howard explains the five-step process, made simpler by his free, supplemental Patreon dashboard in Google Sheets. “Our turnaround from a stagnation to growth required more than a mindset change,” he writes. “I needed visibility into what was worth investing our time into.” Check out the entire project here.

Africa Podcast Day: Festival Events This Friday

This Friday, Africa Podfest will host the second Africa Podcast Day, a half-day virtual celebration. According to co-director Melissa Mbugua, “At this year’s edition of Africa Podcast Day, people should expect to make genuine, real connections with the pioneers who are making podcasting in Africa happen.” 

“Africans have not had independent spaces to amplify their voices for a very long time,” says co-director Josephine Karianjahi. “A podcast festival for us by us acknowledges this reality, and allows us to celebrate ourselves, challenge our technical skills and connect with one another in a truly African way.”

Community events will stream live on YouTube preceding the day’s official Africa Podfest programming, which requires free registration. Attendees can expect roundtable discussions, presentations, workshops, expo booths and networking opportunities. The main event begins at 9:00 am WAT, 2:00 am CT.

Cheers to a successful first Black Women Speak! Forum over the weekend.

Here's what else is going on:

• Tune in: Call the President’s weekly radio address “the Fireside Podcast,” says Michael M. Grynbaum of The New York Times. Expect tradition, though aides are “also planning to pair Mr. Biden with everyday Americans and other guests, recreating the informal style of popular podcasts.”

• A toast: The Black & Brown Podcast Collective has announced a new “Podcasters of Color Diversity Grant.” A partnership with Tito’s Vodka, the grant will support positive representation of the experiences of people of color. Applications are now open to U.S.-based members of the Collective.

• Womp womp: Andy Mills, producer and co-host of the discredited podcast Caliphate, has resigned from the New York Times. The institution has faced criticism for its “hands-off treatment” of Mills, whose well-documented bad behavior prompted former employer Radiolab to speak out.

• Greener grass: “Marking the transition from podcasting about eco-friendly goods to creating them in-house is a strong pivot,” writes Natasha Mascarenhas of TechCrunch. Good Together co-hosts Laura Wittig and Liza Moiseeva discuss their fashion podcast and VC-backed shop.