1 00:00:01,440 --> 00:00:03,491 Morgan Franklin: I think that there's a really big 2 00:00:03,553 --> 00:00:07,406 misconception in podcasting and personal branding and business 3 00:00:07,468 --> 00:00:11,260 in general, that social media is the only way to grow. If you 4 00:00:11,322 --> 00:00:14,741 don't have a big following or audience on social media, 5 00:00:14,803 --> 00:00:18,718 nothing else is going to work. And this simply is not true when 6 00:00:18,781 --> 00:00:22,821 I look at my own monthly revenue and my clients that pay me every 7 00:00:22,883 --> 00:00:26,426 month and have a standing contract. Do you know how I met 8 00:00:26,488 --> 00:00:30,404 100% of those clients? It wasn't social media. It wasn't a cute 9 00:00:30,466 --> 00:00:33,946 little video that I made on Tiktok. It was in person and 10 00:00:34,009 --> 00:00:37,489 virtual networking. It was talking to people and sending 11 00:00:37,551 --> 00:00:41,218 those follow up messages and introducing myself and getting 12 00:00:41,281 --> 00:00:44,948 out of my comfort zone to tell people what I do. 100% of my 13 00:00:45,010 --> 00:00:48,366 monthly revenue from ongoing clients in 2024 came from 14 00:00:48,428 --> 00:00:52,096 networking of some kind. But what does this have to do with 15 00:00:52,158 --> 00:00:55,514 podcasting, and specifically growing your podcast. I'm 16 00:00:55,576 --> 00:00:59,430 telling you this to remind you that there is more than one way 17 00:00:59,492 --> 00:01:03,408 to skin a cat. If you can grow a business without social media, 18 00:01:03,470 --> 00:01:07,013 you can definitely grow a podcast audience without social 19 00:01:07,075 --> 00:01:11,053 media, and in this episode, I'm gonna tell you exactly how to do 20 00:01:11,115 --> 00:01:14,968 it. Hello and welcome to podcast for profit. My name is Morgan 21 00:01:15,031 --> 00:01:18,014 Franklin. I'm a Podcast Producer, strategist and 22 00:01:18,076 --> 00:01:21,930 educator. This podcast will help you create and grow a podcast 23 00:01:21,992 --> 00:01:25,908 that cuts through the noise of social media and speaks directly 24 00:01:25,970 --> 00:01:29,699 to your target audience. If you're ready to create a podcast 25 00:01:29,761 --> 00:01:33,118 that will align you with the experts in your industry, 26 00:01:33,180 --> 00:01:37,095 position yourself as a trusted leader and create another source 27 00:01:37,158 --> 00:01:41,011 of revenue for your business. You're in the right place. Let's 28 00:01:41,073 --> 00:01:44,803 do an exercise together. I want to take just a moment. We're 29 00:01:44,865 --> 00:01:48,843 gonna breathe in and hold it and breathe out and think about how 30 00:01:48,905 --> 00:01:52,696 you find a podcast. That's it. Let's say that you have a long 31 00:01:52,758 --> 00:01:56,239 road trip, or you're about to start cleaning your entire 32 00:01:56,301 --> 00:01:59,782 house, or, like me, you have about 200 hours of mindless 33 00:01:59,844 --> 00:02:03,387 labor left on your Halloween costume, whatever it is, you 34 00:02:03,449 --> 00:02:07,365 need to find a new podcast. How would you go about finding this 35 00:02:07,427 --> 00:02:11,467 podcast to listen to? Seriously, how would you find this podcast? 36 00:02:11,529 --> 00:02:15,507 Normally, as podcast listeners, we're going through a cycle of a 37 00:02:15,569 --> 00:02:19,361 few different things. The first one being we've asked around, 38 00:02:19,423 --> 00:02:22,966 and whether that's on social media or through our work or 39 00:02:23,028 --> 00:02:26,819 school week, we're asking the people around us, Hey, have you 40 00:02:26,881 --> 00:02:30,673 listened to any good podcasts? And we're writing those titles 41 00:02:30,735 --> 00:02:34,526 down, or we're trying to save them on our nose, or struggling 42 00:02:34,588 --> 00:02:37,883 to remember them later. If you're like me, I'm always 43 00:02:37,945 --> 00:02:41,550 trying to remember what was that podcast that podcast that 44 00:02:41,612 --> 00:02:45,030 somebody told me about? It's either that or we've had a 45 00:02:45,093 --> 00:02:48,449 suggestion forced upon us, right? I am definitely that 46 00:02:48,511 --> 00:02:51,930 friend. I am so annoying I cannot like something just a 47 00:02:51,992 --> 00:02:55,845 normal amount. I'm either 1,000% obsessed over this thing or I 48 00:02:55,907 --> 00:02:59,575 have never heard what you're trying to tell me about. In my 49 00:02:59,637 --> 00:03:03,366 experience, a lot of podcast recommendations, and first time 50 00:03:03,428 --> 00:03:07,033 podcast listeners come from word of mouth from your friend 51 00:03:07,095 --> 00:03:10,887 telling you, hey, you should listen to this podcast. There is 52 00:03:10,949 --> 00:03:14,989 truly no better advertising than a referral, and that is true for 53 00:03:15,051 --> 00:03:18,532 most professional settings, and it's definitely true for 54 00:03:18,594 --> 00:03:21,950 podcasting. I know in this episode specifically, we're 55 00:03:22,012 --> 00:03:25,742 talking about how to market and grow your podcast off social 56 00:03:25,804 --> 00:03:29,409 media. So I'm sorry to bring this up, but I want to remind 57 00:03:29,471 --> 00:03:32,889 you to share your reviews. Anytime anyone says anything 58 00:03:32,952 --> 00:03:36,805 nice about your podcast, put it on full display on your social 59 00:03:36,867 --> 00:03:40,907 media, on your website, wherever you can. We trust consumers more 60 00:03:40,970 --> 00:03:44,761 than we trust the Creator, so make sure you're always showing 61 00:03:44,823 --> 00:03:48,490 off your fans and followers and plus, it makes them feel so 62 00:03:48,552 --> 00:03:52,468 good, like you know how it feels to be recognized by the people 63 00:03:52,530 --> 00:03:56,135 that you love their work. So give your listeners that same 64 00:03:56,197 --> 00:04:00,238 opportunity. Okay, but let's say that you've asked around and you 65 00:04:00,300 --> 00:04:04,215 called your friend that listens to literally every podcast, and 66 00:04:04,278 --> 00:04:08,007 no one has any recommendations for you. The next most common 67 00:04:08,069 --> 00:04:11,985 way, at least, for me, to find a new podcast to listen to is in 68 00:04:12,047 --> 00:04:15,776 app. I open Apple podcasts, I open Spotify, I open good pod, 69 00:04:15,838 --> 00:04:19,381 whatever it may be, and I'm searching for a topic, or I'm 70 00:04:19,443 --> 00:04:23,297 looking around on the charts to see what looks good and what I 71 00:04:23,359 --> 00:04:27,026 might want to listen to. So let's stop right there, because 72 00:04:27,088 --> 00:04:30,507 this is something too many podcasters are just glossing 73 00:04:30,569 --> 00:04:33,987 right over. And if I'm going to be honest, I did in the 74 00:04:34,050 --> 00:04:37,965 beginning too. We think that we can just promote our way out of 75 00:04:38,028 --> 00:04:41,695 being unsearchable on a podcast app. And that simply is not 76 00:04:41,757 --> 00:04:45,735 true, let's say, and this is an easy example for me, because one 77 00:04:45,797 --> 00:04:49,340 of my podcasts is in this category. So I can speak to it. 78 00:04:49,402 --> 00:04:53,255 You have a podcast about nursing homes, long term care, senior 79 00:04:53,318 --> 00:04:56,923 living and how to pay for care over the age of 65 riveting 80 00:04:56,985 --> 00:05:00,652 stuff. I know if that's what your podcast is about, someone 81 00:05:00,714 --> 00:05:04,754 better be able to type in senior living and your. Podcasts pop up 82 00:05:04,816 --> 00:05:08,732 in the first four podcasts, they better be able to type in long 83 00:05:08,794 --> 00:05:12,648 term care, and your podcast is right there. If your podcast is 84 00:05:12,710 --> 00:05:16,439 for quilters, let's say your listener better be able to type 85 00:05:16,501 --> 00:05:20,479 in quilting, and your podcast is the first one to pop up. I have 86 00:05:20,541 --> 00:05:24,208 a whole episode about this, and I'll link it for you in the 87 00:05:24,271 --> 00:05:28,124 episode description, but it is episode 19 of this podcast, and 88 00:05:28,186 --> 00:05:31,791 it's called podcast SEO, your guide to higher rankings. As 89 00:05:31,853 --> 00:05:35,831 some of you might know if you've listened to the podcast before, 90 00:05:35,893 --> 00:05:39,809 I worked in SEO as my first job straight out of college, so I'm 91 00:05:39,871 --> 00:05:43,663 very familiar with it, but you know, over the past year, I've 92 00:05:43,725 --> 00:05:47,703 learned a lot of things that are specifically pertinent to these 93 00:05:47,765 --> 00:05:51,494 apps that you need to know that is not just standard SEO. So 94 00:05:51,556 --> 00:05:55,472 definitely give that episode a listen if you are trying to grow 95 00:05:55,534 --> 00:05:59,264 organically on either Google or in the apps. But since we're 96 00:05:59,326 --> 00:06:02,931 here, here are a few things I'd start on today if I wanted 97 00:06:02,993 --> 00:06:06,971 someone to open Spotify and type in podcasting, for example, and 98 00:06:07,033 --> 00:06:10,949 this show pop up, which, by the way, it does not to brag, but I 99 00:06:11,011 --> 00:06:14,989 do know what I'm talking about. The first thing is, you're gonna 100 00:06:15,051 --> 00:06:18,780 want to look at the title of your podcast. Does this podcast 101 00:06:18,842 --> 00:06:22,758 name have any words in it that anyone would be searching for. I 102 00:06:22,820 --> 00:06:26,736 know I've said this before, and I'll say it again. SEO does not 103 00:06:26,798 --> 00:06:30,590 reward creativity, but God, I wish it did. The next thing is, 104 00:06:30,652 --> 00:06:34,319 do the names of your episodes have anything to do with what 105 00:06:34,381 --> 00:06:38,297 you're talking about? Are there any words in the titles of your 106 00:06:38,359 --> 00:06:42,275 episodes that have anything to do with what your listener might 107 00:06:42,337 --> 00:06:45,444 be typing in that search bar, because you have two 108 00:06:45,507 --> 00:06:49,360 opportunities here. You have the ability to rank for your show 109 00:06:49,422 --> 00:06:53,276 and the name of your show, and then also for your episodes. So 110 00:06:53,338 --> 00:06:57,254 you need to be showing up at one or both of these after that, I 111 00:06:57,316 --> 00:07:00,797 need you to go back and transcribe every single episode, 112 00:07:00,859 --> 00:07:04,588 and I know that this is not going to be fun. It's not fun to 113 00:07:04,650 --> 00:07:08,442 do it every week. It's not fun to do a backlog. And you might 114 00:07:08,504 --> 00:07:12,047 be thinking, well, Morgan Apple podcasts and Spotify will 115 00:07:12,109 --> 00:07:15,652 transcribe my episodes. And while that might be true, the 116 00:07:15,714 --> 00:07:19,319 rest of the hosts are not doing that, and I can speak from 117 00:07:19,381 --> 00:07:23,110 personal experience, when I forget to transcribe an episode, 118 00:07:23,172 --> 00:07:27,212 it will impact the rankings that I have and the searchability for 119 00:07:27,275 --> 00:07:30,942 that episode on both Apple podcasts and Spotify, which both 120 00:07:31,004 --> 00:07:34,174 tell me that they are transcribing my episodes. But 121 00:07:34,236 --> 00:07:38,214 why are the episodes not ranking that I don't transcribe? Riddle 122 00:07:38,276 --> 00:07:42,067 me this. So anyway, I do not trust Apple podcasts or Spotify. 123 00:07:42,129 --> 00:07:45,797 Do your own transcriptions. Lastly, for our purposes, here, 124 00:07:45,859 --> 00:07:49,712 like I said, I have an entire episode about podcast SEO linked 125 00:07:49,775 --> 00:07:53,193 for you in the episode description. But please, please, 126 00:07:53,255 --> 00:07:56,052 please write episode descriptions that are as 127 00:07:56,114 --> 00:08:00,154 detailed and keyword specific as possible. If this episode, let's 128 00:08:00,216 --> 00:08:03,635 say, is for quilters about finding that perfect holiday 129 00:08:03,697 --> 00:08:07,551 fabric, I want every single word that could possibly be about, 130 00:08:07,613 --> 00:08:11,094 that that someone would be searching for in that episode 131 00:08:11,156 --> 00:08:15,071 description. And of course, the episode description is what the 132 00:08:15,134 --> 00:08:18,490 episode is about. That is what you attach when you are 133 00:08:18,552 --> 00:08:22,344 uploading your file and the name of your episode, the episode 134 00:08:22,406 --> 00:08:25,638 description is what is going along with that. Having 135 00:08:25,700 --> 00:08:29,553 visibility on podcasting apps is one of the most critical ways 136 00:08:29,616 --> 00:08:33,283 that any podcaster will grow and build visibility for their 137 00:08:33,345 --> 00:08:37,136 podcast. If you need help with this, please feel free to send 138 00:08:37,198 --> 00:08:40,866 me an email or send me a message on my website. My email is 139 00:08:40,928 --> 00:08:44,595 Morgan at morganfranklin dot media, or my website is in the 140 00:08:44,657 --> 00:08:48,386 episode description. I have hourly coaching options. I would 141 00:08:48,448 --> 00:08:52,053 love to help you out with this. All right, so let's say we 142 00:08:52,116 --> 00:08:55,223 called our friend who loves podcasts. They have no 143 00:08:55,285 --> 00:08:58,704 recommendations for us. They can't tell us anything. We 144 00:08:58,766 --> 00:09:02,122 search Spotify and Apple podcasts, we have nothing. So 145 00:09:02,185 --> 00:09:05,852 what's next? For me, it is searching on Google. It's seeing 146 00:09:05,914 --> 00:09:09,084 what other people have to say or what other kind of 147 00:09:09,146 --> 00:09:13,062 recommendations are out there. Now, could this lead us into the 148 00:09:13,124 --> 00:09:17,040 social media space? Absolutely, it could. But honestly, for me, 149 00:09:17,102 --> 00:09:21,080 most of the time I'm looking at articles. I'm looking at list of 150 00:09:21,142 --> 00:09:25,120 podcast recommendations online. I want to know what other people 151 00:09:25,182 --> 00:09:28,538 have to say and what their rankings on these different 152 00:09:28,600 --> 00:09:32,516 podcasts, and what their full, complete thought is. But how can 153 00:09:32,578 --> 00:09:36,183 you take advantage of this, especially as a new podcaster, 154 00:09:36,245 --> 00:09:40,161 especially as a podcaster that might not have a lot of clout on 155 00:09:40,223 --> 00:09:43,953 social media or anywhere else like you're probably not going 156 00:09:44,015 --> 00:09:47,806 to be featured in any blogs. So how can you take advantage of 157 00:09:47,868 --> 00:09:51,598 this? Send an email. Send a message on LinkedIn or Instagram 158 00:09:51,660 --> 00:09:55,575 or wherever you have to do it. Get scrappy with it. You have no 159 00:09:55,638 --> 00:09:59,118 idea how many blogs and different news sources, and I'll 160 00:09:59,180 --> 00:10:02,848 say news sources and quotes. I've sent a message to saying, 161 00:10:02,910 --> 00:10:06,453 hey. Hey, I saw you haven't updated your list of podcasts 162 00:10:06,515 --> 00:10:09,995 for podcasters Since 2021 My name is Morgan. I'm Podcast 163 00:10:10,057 --> 00:10:13,725 Producer. This is why you should feature my podcast on your 164 00:10:13,787 --> 00:10:17,578 revised list or updated list. Does it work every time? No, of 165 00:10:17,640 --> 00:10:21,432 course not. But has it worked? Yes, yes. It has. Reaching out 166 00:10:21,494 --> 00:10:25,472 and having that connection with someone is so powerful. Then the 167 00:10:25,534 --> 00:10:29,201 next time they need a source, who are they calling? They're 168 00:10:29,263 --> 00:10:32,620 calling you in the same vein as joining a website like 169 00:10:32,682 --> 00:10:36,722 connectively, which was formerly Help a Reporter Out or harrow or 170 00:10:36,784 --> 00:10:40,575 quoted and make sure that you fill out all of the information 171 00:10:40,638 --> 00:10:44,491 to become a contributor for news and websites. Let me tell you 172 00:10:44,553 --> 00:10:48,531 how this works. We'll stick with the quilting example. But let's 173 00:10:48,593 --> 00:10:52,447 say that cosmopolitan is looking for someone that can speak to 174 00:10:52,509 --> 00:10:56,176 quilting in 2025 they are most likely going to go to one of 175 00:10:56,238 --> 00:11:00,154 those two websites to put out an open call to contributors with 176 00:11:00,216 --> 00:11:03,821 their list of questions. And that is when you are going to 177 00:11:03,883 --> 00:11:07,675 come in and make your pitch and say, Hey, I'm Morgan from Sir 178 00:11:07,737 --> 00:11:11,466 quilts, a lot podcast, blah, blah, blah, and make sure it is 179 00:11:11,528 --> 00:11:15,196 featured in the article. So your podcast is featured in the 180 00:11:15,258 --> 00:11:19,173 article. So when someone sees, oh, they're talking about quilts 181 00:11:19,236 --> 00:11:22,716 and cosmopolitan, that's so cool, they'll see, oh, oh my 182 00:11:22,778 --> 00:11:26,508 gosh. She also has a podcast about quilting. That's awesome. 183 00:11:26,570 --> 00:11:30,299 I'm going to follow her. I'm going to listen to her podcast. 184 00:11:30,361 --> 00:11:34,277 So yes, promoting your podcast on social media is important for 185 00:11:34,339 --> 00:11:38,131 visibility and social proof, of course, but in my experience, 186 00:11:38,193 --> 00:11:42,046 meeting people and getting to know them and telling them about 187 00:11:42,108 --> 00:11:46,024 my podcast has been one of the most consistently effective ways 188 00:11:46,086 --> 00:11:49,505 to grow my audience. Get business cards made, have your 189 00:11:49,567 --> 00:11:53,358 podcast information and your information on one side and a QR 190 00:11:53,421 --> 00:11:57,212 code for them to scan on the other side that goes directly to 191 00:11:57,274 --> 00:12:01,190 your podcast. And make sure that you listen to episode eight of 192 00:12:01,252 --> 00:12:04,795 this podcast. Again, I will have it linked in the episode 193 00:12:04,857 --> 00:12:08,773 description. How to pitch your podcast to anyone in 30 seconds. 194 00:12:08,835 --> 00:12:12,751 This is a major hurdle for a lot of podcasters. When they start 195 00:12:12,813 --> 00:12:16,729 talking about their podcast face to face, they just can't quite 196 00:12:16,791 --> 00:12:20,396 communicate the podcast well enough to convert that person 197 00:12:20,458 --> 00:12:23,441 that they've just had a conversation with into a 198 00:12:23,503 --> 00:12:27,108 listener. And that is totally understandable, so make sure 199 00:12:27,171 --> 00:12:30,900 that you have mastered the art of quickly being able to tell 200 00:12:30,962 --> 00:12:34,567 someone Hey. This is what my podcast is about. This is why 201 00:12:34,629 --> 00:12:38,172 you should listen. This is where you can listen. And most 202 00:12:38,234 --> 00:12:42,212 importantly, if you're trying to meet people face to face, be in 203 00:12:42,274 --> 00:12:46,128 the places where you can meet the people who would actually be 204 00:12:46,190 --> 00:12:49,919 interested in your podcast. Let's say I have a podcast about 205 00:12:49,981 --> 00:12:53,773 Dungeons and Dragons. It's not gonna do me a ton of good if I 206 00:12:53,835 --> 00:12:57,316 go to a store about book scrapping, for example, and I'm 207 00:12:57,378 --> 00:13:00,920 passing out my cards. I'm talking about my podcast. While 208 00:13:00,983 --> 00:13:04,712 there might be a little bit of overlap in these two kinds of 209 00:13:04,774 --> 00:13:08,566 consumers, what would be great is if I went to a gaming store 210 00:13:08,628 --> 00:13:12,419 and started talking about my podcast, that would be much more 211 00:13:12,481 --> 00:13:16,024 effective and much more aligned to my target audience. So 212 00:13:16,086 --> 00:13:19,753 remember, put yourself in the situation with the people who 213 00:13:19,816 --> 00:13:23,110 are the most likely to be listening to this podcast I 214 00:13:23,172 --> 00:13:26,715 produce anywhere from four to six interview style podcast 215 00:13:26,777 --> 00:13:30,444 episodes per month, and I've met hundreds of people through 216 00:13:30,506 --> 00:13:34,422 interviewing and getting to know people through podcasts. Never 217 00:13:34,484 --> 00:13:37,965 underestimate the power of growing your podcasts through 218 00:13:38,027 --> 00:13:41,445 your guests and through the community that both you are 219 00:13:41,507 --> 00:13:45,361 surrounded with and your guests are surrounded by. Your guests 220 00:13:45,423 --> 00:13:49,090 should have such an amazing experience on your podcast that 221 00:13:49,152 --> 00:13:53,130 they want to tell their audience about you, about your show and, 222 00:13:53,193 --> 00:13:56,549 of course, about the episode that they did with you as 223 00:13:56,611 --> 00:14:00,527 podcasters. I know we're busy. I know it is so hard just to put 224 00:14:00,589 --> 00:14:04,318 out an episode a week, and we forget to message people or to 225 00:14:04,380 --> 00:14:08,047 follow up, but this really should be a top priority, making 226 00:14:08,110 --> 00:14:11,777 that guest experience something that they will want to talk 227 00:14:11,839 --> 00:14:15,009 about. Make sure that you're giving them customized 228 00:14:15,071 --> 00:14:18,987 promotional material, and you're supporting their business, and 229 00:14:19,049 --> 00:14:23,027 you're making them feel welcome and seen. This is everything for 230 00:14:23,089 --> 00:14:27,005 the majority of us. I think that we do somewhat become aware of 231 00:14:27,067 --> 00:14:30,920 podcasts through social media, but it's one of those scenarios 232 00:14:30,983 --> 00:14:34,898 that I explained in this episode that will actually bring us to 233 00:14:34,960 --> 00:14:38,441 subscribe and listen to the podcast and become a fan. So 234 00:14:38,503 --> 00:14:41,922 don't put all your eggs in the social media basket, and 235 00:14:41,984 --> 00:14:45,837 definitely don't let having a small social media presence hold 236 00:14:45,900 --> 00:14:49,132 you back from creating a podcast, because that's not 237 00:14:49,194 --> 00:14:53,110 usually how people will find the podcast. Anyways, I'll tag all 238 00:14:53,172 --> 00:14:56,777 of the episodes that I talked about during this episode in 239 00:14:56,839 --> 00:15:00,630 the. Episode description. Wow, that is a lot of episodes. You 240 00:15:00,692 --> 00:15:04,173 can shop my podcast template store for a beautiful guest 241 00:15:04,235 --> 00:15:07,965 questionnaire. If you want to really uplevel that experience 242 00:15:08,027 --> 00:15:11,259 of sending guests their questions with a beautifully 243 00:15:11,321 --> 00:15:15,237 crafted PDF that's customizable in Canva. I'll have that linked 244 00:15:15,299 --> 00:15:19,215 for you. And as always, I can't wait to listen to your podcast. 245 00:15:19,277 --> 00:15:22,819 Hey, thank you so much for joining me on this episode. If 246 00:15:22,882 --> 00:15:26,611 you enjoyed the podcast and you'd like to hear more episodes 247 00:15:26,673 --> 00:15:30,029 like this one, go ahead and subscribe to the show. New 248 00:15:30,092 --> 00:15:33,572 episodes air every Monday morning. And if you found this 249 00:15:33,634 --> 00:15:37,550 episode valuable and you want to help other business owners and 250 00:15:37,612 --> 00:15:41,466 podcasters, will you leave me a five star review. It helps the 251 00:15:41,528 --> 00:15:45,257 show rank higher in the charts and brings more entrepreneurs 252 00:15:45,319 --> 00:15:49,360 the information they need to start making money on their podcast.