The Audacity to Podcast

Christmas, New Year's Day, and many more holidays affect people differently. Learn whether you should keep podcasting or take a break during a holiday.

There are a lot of myths and misconceptions about podcast SEO. I have this information in my SEO for Podcasters course, and I want you to have these core understanding for what SEO stuff actually does and doesn't matter in podcasting.

Reference or habit? These two approaches to your podcast could make a huge difference in engaging with your community and growing your audience.

Internet security and privacy are deeply connected and important to your safety. Here are 17 tips to help you stay safe and secure in podcasting.

Your privacy is important and you could be compromising it with your podcast! Here are eight ways to protect your personal and professional privacy.

Here are several ways to accomplish the flexibility of multitrack recording with different podcasting hardware and software.

Multitrack recording keeps audio source separate. Here are some reason why you may and may not want to record your podcast in multiple tracks.

Whether you're podcasting for business or pleasure, promoting affiliate products and services can be a great way to monetize your podcast. Here are 10 tips to help you use affiliate marketing effectively.

Hanging out with other podcasters can be inspiring and profitable! Here are five tips to help you find and connect with other podcasters in your area.

Podcasters tend to ask too much of their audience and often too soon. Here's why that could be hurting your podcast and how to overcome it.

International Podcast Day is September 30. Here's how to celebrate podcasting, whether you're a podcaster or a podcast fan! Learn more at http://InternationalPodcastDay.com

Podcasters are often guilty of obsessive compulsive personality disorder (OCPD). It's okay to intently focus on important things, but here are ten podcasting things not worth the obsession.

Learn about 301 and 307 redirects: what they are, which ones to use, how to make them, and how to use them effectively.

Podcasting connects with people in more personal—even more intimate—way than blogging, radio, video, and more. Here are 8 things that make podcasts different. 1. Being authentic There's a realness to podcasting that you don't get anywhere else. Writing is often edited. Video has a lot of production to it. Radio is very rigid. And similar issues exist with many other media. You may watch every episode of your favorite TV show, but do you feel like you truly know the people you see on screen? Probably not, because what you see is an act. Most of what people share in podcasting is their authentic selves. “Authenticity” is about being real, not about being fully transparent (especially not overly transparent). 2. Speaking directly to individuals Most TV and movie content doesn't speak directly to the audience. Radio gets close, but since radio is live, the hosts often speak to a mass audience with terms like “all of you.” Plus, you probably never hear an audience member named unless they call in at that time. Podcasts are different. They are almost always consumed via download within a short time after they were recorded and published. Even if a podcast has millions of listeners, most people listen by themselves, not surrounded with fellow fans. Thus, speaking to the listener as an individual makes it feel more intimate. 3. Building relationships Good relationships are built on trust, and authenticity creates that. Not only will your audience feel like they know you, but they will often get to know you personally through various levels of engagement—social-network conversations, in-person events, direct correspondence, and such. When your talk directly to your audience, and they're listening by themselves, it's easy for a small personal connection to mature into a relationship at varying levels. 4. Publishing consistently You may hear bad husband joke, “I told my wife I loved her when I married her, so if anything changes, I'll let her know.” But I'm sure you know the importance of consistently reinforcing your love and commitment for each other. (In fact, here's a fun test. Ask your wife if she would rather have a dozen roses today, or one rose per week for the next twelve months. What about saying, “I love you,” seven times today versus saying it every day this week?) Consistency is key to any form of “intimacy.” Friends who don't stay connected with each other often drift apart. Spouses who don't spend consistent quality time with each other usually feel neglected. Because of the time-shifted nature of podcasts, it's easy for people to structure aspects of their lives around a podcast's release schedule, or to form regular patterns to their week. For example, I see and listen to episodes of School of Podcasting, She Podcasts, or Libsyn's The Feed every Monday morning. If they weren't consistent, my Mondays wouldn't feel the same. Likewise, one of my all-time favorite podcasts (That Story Show) is on hiatus, and now my lawn-mowing is not as enjoyable. These daily or weekly routines start to establish a deeper connection with each new episode. 5. Taking content everywhere Because podcasts are consumed primarily via download, most people can take those episodes with them everywhere,

Concluding the series on fixing common podcasting problems, here are ways others have creatively solved problems they faced with their podcasts.