Marketing podcast with John Lee Dumas

Podcasts are back in fashion again, but my view of why you should be creating interview style audio content hasn’t changed since I started podcasting back in 2005 or so.

Whether you ever plan to view your podcast as a show or publication or just another way to create a highly portable form of content, a podcast can open doors.

I’ve interviewed hundreds of interesting, influential and downright famous folks on my show over the years and many of these guests had no idea who I was when I asked to interview them – but they were drawn to the age-old media request of an interview.

I’ll be the first to admit that many of the guests I approached were people in my industry, authors, speakers and consultants, who I wanted to get to know. Instead of sending them a request to “pick their brain” sometime, I asked to interview them so I could promote their next big project or book.

The net effect of this approach is that I became a journalist in their eyes rather than someone simply seeking their time. Don’t get me wrong; many influential people will give you their time, but why not start these relationships by giving them something they crave – exposure.

I’ve written four books now and every single “big name” person I’ve convinced to write a blurb for my book jackets appeared on my podcast at some point.

It doesn’t matter what industry you are in or what your long-term objective are, you can benefit by way of interviewing your customers, industry leaders and even prospects as a way to create better content while you gain access to those you want to be part of your network.

My guest for this week’s episode of the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast is John Lee Dumas. John is a wealth of information on the subject of podcasting and in this episode he shares the tips, tricks and tools he’s used to not only create a wildly popular podcast, but make a living doing so and teaching others how to do so.

If you’re thinking about getting your podcast game on, below are some of the major elements you’ll need to consider. First and foremost you have to decide why you are doing your show. Is it to gain access, grow and audience, get exposure, build authority or make money as a podcaster? The answers to these questions should dictate how you proceed.

For more in depth coverage of each of these topics check out John’s course on podcasting.

Editorial

• Theme – What will your show be about? What will the overarching objective of the show be?
• Style – Will your show be interview style, 2 host banter style or simply a roundup of ideas from around the web?
• Content – Will you have regular segments, guest appearances, or free flowing ideas and conversation?

Program

• Format – How long? Co-hosted? Will you have music and advertising?
• Frequency – How often will you publish a show? Daily, weekly, monthly?
• Segments – What segments will appear over and over again?

Production

• Microphone – Get a high quality microphone like the Blue Yetti USB Mic
• Recording Software – I use Skype for my interviews and Call Recorder Mac Plugin to record (Pamela on PC)
• Editing Software – Garage Band on Mac, Audacity on PC or Adobe Audition (I also use a free service called Auphonic for post production)

Publication

• Hosting – You may end up needing lost of bandwidth. I use Libsyn to host my files
• Display – I run my podcast as you can on my existing WordPress blog as a category
• Podcast Plugin – I use the Blubrry Power Press plugin to handle some of the podcast specific details (PowerPress getting started guide has some useful information as well)

Distribution

• iTunes – The Blubrry Press plugin will submit your show to iTunes, which is a must (How to from Apple)
• Sticher – Submit your show to other directories like Sticher
• Network – Don’t forget to tell lots of people about your show and network with other podcasters