Ep 117. Insight: 3 things stopping you from starting a podcast

Communication Strategy That Works podcast

I was asked 3 times recently if I would help people start their podcast. My answer was yes of course! but what's stopping you?

I realized that one of the biggest questions people have is why should they start a podcast? Is it for fun or for business? The answer varies for everyone, but for me, it was a way to establish myself in my industry and to connect with like-minded individuals.

Today's episode rolls off the back of hitting a top 50 position for Marketing in Apple podcast charts. A highly competitive area to make a mark in with a podcast. so I thought I would reflect and share a bit about my podcast and why you should start one of your own.

Let's dive in!

I knew I was going to launch a podcast for several months before Communication Strategy That Works went live. I was just waiting for the right time. Guess what it never comes!

It fitted into my communications strategy, I knew what it was going to be about and who it was for, but two lockdowns, a puppy, and life in general got in the way. I kept telling myself, “I haven’t got time”.

It got to the point where I actually thought, "I'm going to do this and I'm going to launch it because I am actually now putting more barriers in front of it." And I was ready, I was totally committed to the idea of starting a podcast.

But what is it that draws people to this medium?

For some, it's the desire to share their knowledge and expertise on a particular subject with a wider audience. For others, it's the opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals and build a community around a shared passion.

Maybe you are listening and this sounds like you? You’ve got an idea for a show, or you’re quite a way down the road with the planning, and yet something is holding you back. I'm now 118 episodes in and regularly hitting the top 200 for marketing for my podcast up against some huge competition from the Marketing Meet Up, Amy Porterfield, The Digital Marketing Podcast and many other great podcasts.

I get asked a lot about my podcast, in fact, its the first thing people talk to me about when we meet. Which is great.

But I also get asked how to get started, so here are three common barriers you may come across and how to overcome them:

Barrier 1: Time

People think that it takes a lot longer than it does eventually. I always say to people when you do start a podcast point at the centre of everything, so that it helps you to create content everywhere else in your business. If you're creating a podcast repurpose that content, transcribe it, and use it in lots of different ways. There are lots of ways to make creating a podcast a lot quicker, including batching your episodes.

I’ve followed this advice and found a podcast is very rewarding for time spent. I find it easy to talk about a topic and then I can transcribe each episode and turn it into blog articles or social media posts.

Barrier 2: Content

People worry about, ‘Who's going to listen to me’. It overlaps with mindset. People think, "Well, who's going to listen to me? Who's going to listen to this topic? Who am I to do this? I've not got any good content. How am I going to pull together all of this content?"

People worry about being consistent with that content as well. They're all just stories that we tell ourselves. I work with clients and students all the time on helping them get through this and showing them that they do have a really unique story. They've got a unique message and it's important to get it out there.

And when you flip in your head into being more about the audience than about you, then that anxiety around it tends to ease."

I sympathise with those early nerves. The first time you record a podcast episode it does feel awful and cringy and you feel like you've really put yourself out there. And then it becomes very normal and now I say to people actually the recording and the editing for me is the easiest bit.

I think being in communications as well, for me I felt like there was this pressure to get it perfect.

Barrier 3: Fear of tech

People worry about the tech all the time. It's perfectly natural to feel a bit of anxiety about something that you've not done before but think about things that you've done in your lives that you never thought you'd be able to do and now you can do them with your eyes closed. It's the same with podcasting.

It takes a bit of practice to get started, but once you do and you’re in your flow it's going to become so much easier for you. The tech doesn't have to be that complicated either. You need a few pieces of equipment that don't have to be expensive and it's fairly simple to learn how to create the podcast, how to edit, record it, get it approved by Apple and so on.”

Whenever you are embarking on a new aspect of your communications strategy you are bound to have concerns.

Focus on your goals and how what you are doing is going to count towards them. If you would like to talk through your plans, whether you want to launch a podcast, or are wondering whether audio is a good fit for your business, get in touch with me.

My Podcasting Made Simple is a quick and easy introductory programme could be for you, to find out more check the show notes or go onto my website to find out more and register for the next cohort. You can also download my free beginner's guide to using Audio in your comms strategy too.