Tag: cashflowpodcasting.com

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649- Choices for Podcast Production companies

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In this episode of The Podcast Reporter show, we deliver an interesting discussion of what a podcast production company may be like, and if it may be of benefit for you and your show. This comes from an article that is authored by Ben Krueger of cashflowpodcasting.com.

Ben Krueger

As I have mentioned in earlier posts of this show, I have known Ben since 2014, when he and I shared a booth at the very first Podcast Movement conference in Dallas, Texas. I do recommend him for his value that he delivers in his posts — many times, there are free resources with good documentation that are very helpful.

In this article, Ben lays out the format of information he delivers to the reader with the value that can be derived:
“Podcasting has exploded into mainstream media and choosing the right production company to help you create your podcast can be a daunting task…That’s why we’ve done the research and compiled our top 15 picks for podcast production companies in 2023. We’ve evaluated each company based on their reputation, experience, and the quality of their work….”

And Ben divides the discussion into these topics:

Is the Company Specialized in a Specific Content Niche or Industry

Top Business-to-Business (B2B) Podcast Production Companies

1. Content Allies
2. Fame
3. Beacon Digital
4. Sweet Fish Media

Top Narrative Podcast Production Companies

5. Lower Street
6. Quill
7. The Podcast Haven
8. Resonate Recordings

Top Podcast Production Companies For Businesses and Brands

9. Cashflow Podcasting
10. Castos Productions
11. Podfly
12. We Edit Podcasts
13. Freedom Podcasting Company
14. Podcast Fast Track
15. Pacific Content
In conclusion…
… and Ben discusses each theme with some details that can give you an idea of the topic, as well as an example or two as clarification proof points.

You have to ask yourself if the company that interests you is specialized in a specific content niche or industry that you find yourself and your show: “When selecting a podcast production company, it’s important to consider their area of expertise, whether it’s in a specific content niche or an industry.”

And you can gather from the firms that we listed for you the nature and the type of production company that may interest you. The list is a good starting point for the newer or aspiring podcaster, as it may help to understand what a production company is, what it does, what the strengths are of each firm, what the marketing hype may or may be, and how it can turn out to be a good introduction to a topic drowning in a lot of sales talk.

I highly recommend that you consume this article in detail and select one or several companies listed so that you can be thoroughly acquainted with these type of firms and the value that they promise for the podcaster. And since Ben has already limited the landscape of these firms for you, there is a good chance that your interest will be satisfied, and that you may find a good resource to help your show.

The end of the article delivers a “conclusion” that I feel is well stated for the podcaster. He says: “By partnering with an experienced podcast production company, you can be confident that you’re getting a team of professionals who will take care of everything from recording and editing to marketing and distribution. This allows you to focus on what you do best – creating high-quality content and engaging with your audience…Are you not seeing the results you were hoping for when you started your podcast? We encourage you to look for a podcast production company that offers strategy support or podcast coaching. With the right partner, your podcast has the potential to reach new heights and attract a wider audience than ever before.” 

So I hope that you can determine if you need the services of a podcast production company, and that you can find one that will help you to make your show a success.

Thank you for your attention.

Copyright (c) 2023, Matrix Solutions Corporation and michaelandmike.com and Ben Krueger of cashflowpodcasting.com. All rights reserved.

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643- Suggestions for Optimizing podcast audio

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In this episode of The Podcast Reporter show, we deliver a summary of the suggested publication by Ben Krueger called “How to Optimize Your Podcast Audio Quality” in 2023.

Ben Krueger

From his previous podcast shows and episodes — as well as his written posts with free pdfs and suggestions that actually brought value in the form of suggested theories and tasks — Ben delivers some steps and general practices that could, indeed, help your podcast audio quality improve and be more attractive to the listener.

Most of these are free or can be done very cheaply using a DIY approach.

Key suggestion: One major point to note if you want to improve the audio quality of your podcast is the importance of “taking a bit of time (about an hour or two) to test these things out and experiment to find what works best for you to optimize your podcast audio quality.”

After reading and implementing the tips, Ben recommends that you review and “tweak things if it isn’t sounding quite right and then record another test to listen back on and critique.”

Obviously, the important item to remember is to record your audio in the highest quality (e.g., bit rate, less ambient sounds and noise, etc.). And Ben reminds of this before he begins his survey of audio quality.

Ben then deals with the topics of:

  • equipment  — reminders to wear earbuds or headphones for analyzing sound quality at the time of recording;
  • avoiding the use of speakers;
  • use of microphones — including the use of pop filters and mic stands with the list of suggested mics;
  • setting the mic input levels in your DAW (i.e., digital audio workstation);
  • then setting up the environment — whether you may be in a studio or use your closet or your home rooms as your “studio” to cancel any noise and have a silent area for you to record:
  • minimizing background sounds and noises;
  • And TECHNIQUES of audio recording — including placement and care during your recording;
  • And he gives some general suggestions for audio settings for Zoom calls on separate audio tracks:
ZOOM SETTINGS FOR RECORDING SEPARATE AUDIO TRACKS

Zoom Settings for Optimizing Your Podcast Audio Quality

  • And he also recommends some “pro tips” for those who may run into the land-mine areas of novice mistakes (e.g., keeping the temporary recording files), including TESTING the mics beforehand and BONUS Zoom tips;
Ben Krueger

 

So, we hope that the new and aspiring podcasters can get a few tips from Ben in his quest to help out the newbies to avoid common mistakes and improve the audio quality of their podcast recording.

We thank you for listening, and we are grateful for your attention.

Copyright (c) 2023, Matrix Solutions Corporation and michaelandmike.com and Ben Krueger. All rights reserved.

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632- Podcasting show notes — creating them for engaging content

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In this episode of The Podcast Reporter show, we discuss some suggestions from podcaster Ben Krueger on how to write show notes. This is taken from his website called cashflowpodcasting.com in a post recently.

Ben Krueger

So, although many posts have been published from different podcast consultants, you may want to review this brief set of ideas from Ben. And as you know, I have known Ben from 2014 at the first Podcast Movement conference in Dallas, where he and I shared a table in the expo hall for that event.

The title of this post was “Podcast Shownotes: How to write engaging content — EP: 22.”

In addition to the topic at hand, Ben starts off with the theme of “What’s the point of show notes?” and then continues into the main theme of the post of how to create the engaging content. In fact, he summarizes the content like this:

“It all starts with having a compelling episode title.

Something that showcases what the episode is about and has a keyword that potential new listeners may be searching for.

Next, you will need one or two paragraphs summarizing what is discussed in the episode.

After this, we like to add bullet points that elude to what your listeners will learn.

Finally, you will have the resources that will link to everything you spoke about in the show such as books, people, or websites.

If you want something more substantial to go along with your episode, you can write a full blog post instead.

This will increase SEO even more and potentially provide your listeners with an in-depth look at the topic you’ll be discussing.”

And then he summarizes the theme of using the show notes for marketing content.

As for this podcaster, I have been writing show notes for 17 years, and I find his suggestions very obvious. However, not every new podcaster plans to write outlines or gives a thought to show notes (if he even would have a written set). And even some podcasters use a transcript and publish them as show notes.

I myself have done both ways, and I even get to the point of including images and photos when relevant. I do not favor one way or the other, as it depends on the topic and the planning that I have done to give relevance to the topic at hand and to make my show notes as a “gift” to those who go to consume them.

However, you can determine which style you give to your show notes in creating them and making them engaging for your audience. We wish you the best and hope that your readers will appreciate them.

Thank you for your attention.

Copyright (c) 2022, Matrix Solutions Corporation and michaelandmike.com and Ben Krueger and cashflowpodcasting.com. All rights reserved.

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626- Using POC tactic for podcast consulting success

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In this episode of The Podcast Reporter Show, we deliver to you a real-life example of a strategy and tactic that may bring success to you in your role as a podcast consultant — and that includes other business areas such as editing, billing, promotion, sales and a lead to other parts of your consulting business (e.g., video). This strategy and tactic is from my own experiences, and it is called the PROOF OF CONCEPT method and strategy.

This comes from the age-old tactic from a vendor who wanted to prove that he could successfully create a deliverable and successfully have it approved and satisfy a potential customer or prospect.

The age-old formula probably started initially as servitude. In other words, a craftsman or a skilled prospect would make a deal (or contract) with a master or principal. He would offer to work for a specific time period (e.g., a week or month) — or his offer would be to deliver a specific piece of work in a specific time span. If the principal (in this case, his potential customer) was completely satisfied, the agreement was that the prospect would then be upgraded to a formal laborer of the principal — or that the specific piece of work or deliverable that met the requirements would be the proof that the concept of his employment would be honored for continuing such deliverables to the customer (or master or principal — call the end receiver of the VALUE what you will) and be recognized as a true craftsman or valued employee for a period of time. And in some cases, the free time worked by the prospect would be recognized as time worked for pay, and he would receive the back wages, as well. In the case of deliverables, the agreed upon price for creating and finishing the said deliverables would also be paid, in addition to the terms of another agreement. For the deliverables, this would be a contract for creating and delivering some more final pieces — and  usually they would include back-pay for the proof of concept, as well (only this was flexible in the terms of the “contract” for the proof of concept.

So what was my experience in the world of podcasting with this tactic known as “proof of concept”?

Well, a prospect approached me after receiving my business card that mentioned my skills in podcasting. He wanted to know more about what I could offer him.

Instead of spouting a litany of sales-oriented offers, I wanted to know what he wanted and what he felt he needed in his business.

I saw that he wanted a full soup-to-nuts service of creating the podcast show and infrastructure, as well as the editing and production of episodes for professional polish. He called it “productizing” the episodes. Well, I declined on the large scale project and referred him to the consultant who had helped me to jump-start my podcast shows. The reference were the podcast shows I had done.

So he contacted the reference that I gave to him, but then he wanted to see what I could do with the several interviews which he had done and recorded — although some of them had very, very poor audio quality.

Now, he said that he wanted to start off with an interview show and he had recorded on his own these several audio interviews.

I told him to send me the audio files of a couple of interviews. I also looked at his web site, and I gave him a timetable for its completion and that he would receive the finished or “golden” mp3 files.

However, I gave him an amount that seemed reasonable and competitive for creating each final or golden mp3 audio interview, so that he could determine if his needs were met.

And I decided to exceed his expectations.

I took the mp3 files and listened to the poor quality of the interviews. I then cleaned up the audio, and then I added intro and outro music from quality musicians (for which I had obtained licenses to use in podcast episodes). I also added the voiceover intro with the intent of getting the listener interested enough to want to listen to the content of the interview. And I finally did the research of the interviewee and the program or situation being discussed. I also got a photo head shot of the interviewee from the public info center libraries. And then I created the SHOW NOTES, with the content and images included that would have the professional qualities that I would expect in that podcast episode.

And finally, I delivered both edited and “productized” episodes before the deadline.

The prospect was delighted, and I produced a written contract for him to sign. The contract, however, was not for the work done, but included the provision that I would receive a future minimum of episodes as content for future work to be “productized.”

Thus, the basic amount was for 10 additional episodes, as well as payment for the 2 episodes that I had delivered to him with his satisfaction and approval.

The deal was done by using the tactic of the proof of concept.

And so, the prospect then became my CUSTOMER and I would receive his interview files, which then I delivered to him in return as golden mp3 files, along with the added value of the show notes, the intro voiceover, the musical intros and outros, and any photo or images in the show notes content.

Well, he delivered to me over 25 episodes in the year. And they were ALL done with the same quality and delivered to him on time.

But then, after the 25th episode, he went silent and I did not hear from him for a month or so.

Why?

I never asked why, but only saw that after the brief absence, he contacted me in a email note and began to send me more interviews again. My suspicion was that another “podcast consultant” came to him with a lower price. However, the VALUE received of the services and deliverables probably did not meet his expectations. And so he returned to me for an additional 20 episodes. In fact, he asked me to create a video that promoted his offerings and his programs to his targeted audience. And I did deliver 2 videos — one as a proof of concept that was for no charge, and the other to meet his deadline. And when he wanted me to continue with the videos, I did decline, because I did not want to go into that business, as the return for my business was not really worth the time, effort, money, work and costly equipment and requirements. So I removed myself from the video world for him.

So that is the story of the tactic known as the proof-of-concept which was used in a real-life scenario in the podosphere by yours truly.

Perhaps this tactic may be one that you could use, or that you could take and improve on the method with your own style and delivery for potential customers.

But you have to be careful. You have to KNOW that your skills are very high, and that your pricing is competitive, and that your financial planning has proven that you can work within the structure of your proof-of-concept to make your tactic profitable for your business. And you can see what others are doing who use a variation of this tactic — and the name of Ben Krueger from cashflowpodcasting.com comes to mind. I have seen his offers and I have taken him up on purchasing a deliverable when he used the POC method. And I was pleasantly surprised with the quality, value and final deliverable from him within the time frame specified. And Ben would be a good example to see some of his offers using the poc tactic. In addition, Dave Jackson from The School of Podcasting also had offered several deliverables using a variation of this tactic.

So if you do decide to use the proof-of-concept for your podcast consulting business, we wish you the best in generating a great revenue stream for your business by having a successful podcast business.

Thank you for your attention.

Copyright (c) 2022, Matrix Solutions Corporation and michaelandmike.com. All rights reserved.

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624 – Tips to avoid Podcast planning mistakes

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In this episode of The Podcast Reporter show, we discuss some tips concerning some of the top podcast planning mistakes, as given to us in a post by Ben Krueger of Cashflowpodcasting.com.

Ben Krueger

In the podcast episode and post titled “The Top 3 Podcast Planning Mistakes,” Ben delivers a summary of what he considers are the top mistakes in planning your podcast shows:

  • Thinking that it is all about YOU;
  • “Build it and they will come”;
  • Not providing a clear call to action.

While certainly, these 3 are key mistakes when planning your show, I venture to say that there are others — and the gravity is a matter of opinion. In fact, Dave Jackson of The School of Podcasting show has covered in many episodes of the past other key mistakes that he feels are catalysts when a podcaster determines that he has failed and that it is time to podfade a show.

I, myself, feel that other key mistakes were NOT to understand what your objectives are in starting your podcast, as well as not knowing who your audience is and what kind of VALUE is that you need to deliver to them.

And there are others that can be classified as either smaller mistakes of less offensiveness or those that focus on the business and the personal areas.

But, in looking and listening to the podcast episode by Ben Krueger, let us not forget that Ben also delivers his own personal call-to-action for the reader or listener to be aware of his free and fee resources — both his book and his roadmap. I have seen these and they do, indeed, provide good suggestions for the new or aspiring podcaster. And this is true in the area of PLANNING your show.

Also, Adam Curry (i.e., the podfather) also gives us one mistake that beginner podcasters make is that they do not create a podcast show that is really considered “an outsanding product.” Yes, the quality of the show is reflected by the followers or subscribers, the downloads and the responses to calls-to-action of the show itself. His case in point is his show called No Agenda, where he implemented the “value-for-value” model of contributions (either “time, talent or treasure”). I mention this because many think that their show may deserve the merit of being great — when in reality, no feedback or proof (other than social proof from only reviews) can back up that thought.

When I met with Adam the last time we had lunch together and with him during his meetups in Austin over the years, the idea that came through loud and clear was the proof that many hours of preparation and thought and planning went into each episode of his show. It was not the scenario of a couple of “dudes” sitting around a microphone and ad-libbing any sort of babble with expletives, just because they were having fun.

In my situation, I also started a podcast show several years ago whose main objective was just to have fun and really just play around with the audio infrastructure of podcasting with a co-host. This was the show called Grumpy Old Bears — but we really had no plan for success nor any means of feedback of proof. It was just a fun “hobby” for us, whereas the other podcasts I do have in operation now (such as this one) provide feedback to me on the content, the downloads, the acceptance and social proof, etc., to prove and demonstrate the VALUE they provide to their intended audiences.

So, again, I would advise the aspiring and new podcasters to give a quick listen to the 8-minute episode from Ben to learn about how one can disillusion one’s self when it comes to podcasting, and how this type of mindset can lead to creating and implementing some of what Ben Krueger considers the top 3 mistakes in podcasting. And hopefully, you can correct those and put yourself on the correct road to success in your podcasting.

Thank you for your attention.

Copyright (c) 2022, Matrix Solutions Corporation and Ben Krueger of cashflowpodcasting and michaelandmike.com. All rights reserved.

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623- Step by step guide to editing and producing Podcasts

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In this episode of The Podcast Reporter show, we disclose information about a post by Ben Krueger that describes “a step by step guide to podcast editing and production.”

As you may know, Ben is the podcaster with his site called Cashflowpodcasting.com. He has delivered many resources (many of them free as pdfs) to those who are mainly new or aspiring podcasters. I have valued his deliveries of advice and resources since I met him personally in 2014 where I shared a booth with him in the expo hall during the very first Podcast Movement conference.

Ben Krueger

Ben first goes into the do-it-yourself approach to creating a podcast show and recording and editing its episodes. He refers to free software, such as audacity and others like auphonic to help podcasters in the editing of audio for podcasting. In fact, I, myself, have used various versions of the free software, Audacity, since my beginning in the podosphere. And with the help of good microphones, other devices and good software, I still continue using it today to record and edit my podcast episodes.

He then explores the idea of hiring a team to do your podcast editing, thus freeing you up to pursue content creation and marketing and sales and other talents. As we said in our last episode, you could hire a studio or an agency or get a podcast consultant to which you can “farm this out.”

But he ends this summary of the article with the suggestions for the do-it-yourself podcast editing — and he emphasizes why you should not be afraid of learning the tools and getting a good workflow down for editing the audio files yourself.

When I started my trip into the podosphere in 2005, there were no tools or training for being a podcaster and creating a workflow to do editing. It was not until I had read the book by Evo Terra and Tee Morris called Podcasting for Dummies that I learned the elements of a podcast and its creation. And it was not until 2006 that I was able to view and follow the audio and video training by Jason Van Orden to learn how to podcast. And in a little over one day, I had my first podcast episode created, edited and published on a public platform. And after that, I started discovering the podcasters who were podcast  consultants that offered to help you create and publish your podcast shows and episodes — and I chose Dave Jackson from The School of Podcasting as my podcast consultant. With his advice and his tutoring, I quickly learned a good workflow about podcasting, and I started creating more shows and publishing more episodes in the podosphere.

And I have never looked back after some 16 years.

Now, although today, you have a myriad of choices from agencies to consultants from which to choose,  you can select the best source and alternatives for you (in terms of quality, offerings, cost and results) to begin your career (be it part-time or full-time) into podcasting. And then you can also progress to the next step of setting up your podcasting as a tactic for your business — or you may even set up your own entrepreneurship as a podcasting business, as the tools and education and training for this are also available in many places and from many sources. As stated by Adam Schaeuble of the podcast show called the Podcasting Business School, you can treat your podcasting endeavor like a business, but enjoy it like a hobby.

And take it from someone like myself that has been a podcast consultant for over 10 years, there is a lot of room in the podosphere for those who want to use their creativity to improve the way podcast editing is done and the workflow for podcast production today.

One final note — Ben also has a call-to-action at the end of the post for you to download his free book, as well as know about his roadmap. I would suggest that you scan the article in the post by Ben to see if your world of podcasting can improve with the help of others — either as consultants, agencies or professionals — or with books or tutorials that can help you learn new materials, new ways, new tools and become more successful in publishing your podcast episodes.

Thank you for your attention.

Copyright (c) 2022, Matrix Solutions Corporation and michaelandmike.com and Ben Krueger of cashflowpodcasting.com and audacity and auphonic and Dave Jackson of schoolofpodcasting.com, and Tee Morris and Evo Terra. All rights reserved.

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622- Podcast Services may be a smart option

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In this episode of The Podcast Reporter, we discuss the post made by podcaster Ben Krueger of cashflowpodcasting.com in which he describes his ideas for the BEST podcasting services.

Ben Krueger

The link to this post that describes the BEST PODCAST SERVICES for 2022 is in this content.

In this post, Ben starts with describing some of the criteria for services that gives them strong quality — such as saving time for the podcaster. Then he promotes his idea of the three OPTIONS for podcast services:

In a nutshell, there are three options out there to help you get your podcast up and running and keep your episodes on track:

  1. “Do-It-Yourself (DIY) Solutions. With budget-friendly do-it-yourself options, you’ll get SOME help from outside sources, but you’re essentially making your podcast happen on your own. These include things like software, courses, and coaches that allow you to handle the heavy lifting but offer guidance to make sure you’re on the right track.
  2. Done-For-You (DFY) Services. As the name implies, these services have developed done-for-you systems to handle podcast setup, audio editing, show notes writing, publishing services, etc. Of course, how many tasks they take on will vary with pricing and the organization.
  3. Podcast Managers. A podcast manager is in charge of planning, running, managing, and implementing your show. Essentially, this is someone (or multiple people) you hire as the point person for making your podcast happen and ensuring everything runs smoothly for your releases.”

Then Ben goes into the category of DYI SOLUTIONS, including the software, as well as training courses and coaching scenarios.

Then Ben goes into DFY SOLUTIONS, which could be “done for you” by a professional podcast consultant or other resource such as a podcast production service. And here, Ben examines the financial decision elements in selecting the best solution for you — including the cost-effective, mid-range and high-end options to suit your budget.

All of these take into account the relationship with the PODCAST AGENCY. And after that, he spends more time in describing the PODCAST MANAGER. And here, he spends a bit of time recommending the important elements of both contractors and team members — and he gives you this tip:  “Pro Tip: Whatever solution you decide is right for you, we strongly recommend that you make sure there’s a quality review process of some kind to review your completed show and episodes before they publish. “

And finally, in reviewing other value-added services, he adds some comments on BOOKING SERVICES (to have you as a GUEST on another podcast or securing GUEST INTERVIEWEES for your podcast). He mentions Interview Valet as a service with Tom Schwab (whom we have interviewed on this podcast since 2015) with these final suggestions:  “This can go two different ways. Either you want to get booked as an expert on a series of other podcasts, or you want a systematic way of having interview guests booked for your own show. “

And, of course, Ben finishes his post by promoting his own services for podcasting (see cashflowpodcasting.com) and how he can help podcasters improve their show for success.

Note: I have known Ben since 2014, when we shared a booth at the first Podcast Movement conference in Dallas. I have followed him and do recommend him for his detailed resources — and you may want to investigate him and his offerings to help you and your podcast show. Also, I, myself have been a podcast consultant during the last 16 years and have offered, promoted and delivered podcast services for others who did not want to learn the details of podcasting, but preferred to subcontract this out to others — and I always had my proof-of-concept that always succeeded in gaining the trust and commitment of clients. What I usually did was offer to get an interview they conducted (if they wanted to have an interview show, for example) and then do the editing and audio improvement on the file, as well as adding the title, the music and the INTRO and OUTRO for a suggested final mp3. And then I would send it back to the client under a contract that specified the minimum number of episodes and each one at a single price for the final deliverables.

So, at this time, I would strongly suggest that you review your options for improving your podcast shows by examining whether or not you should consider the use of podcast services. In many areas, you may find that your time is your most valuable resource that can be put to use more effectively than spending time and effort in completing the tasks for workflow in creating the podcast final audio episode.

Thank you for your attention.

Copyright (c) 2022, Matrix Solutions Corporation and michaelandmike.com and Ben Krueger of cashflowpodcasting.com. All rights reserved.

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621- Tips on conducting a Podcast interview

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In this episode of The Podcast Reporter show, we discuss a post from podcaster Ben Krueger on conducting a podcast interview. This content came from a July, 2022, post from his blog and site called cashflowpodcasting.com.

Now, I have known Ben since 2014, when he and I shared a booth at the very first Podcast Movement conference in Dallas, Texas. Since then, I have listened to his episodes and advice, as well as having ordered some of his offerings and downloaded and reviewed some of his helpful FREE PDFs for podcasters.

Ben Krueger

In his July, 2022, post, Ben titles the content with “How to conduct a great interview.” He then elaborates on the requirements for a good podcast interview, but also gives his value in how to conduct the interview to deliver the best VALUE to your listeners. He tries to boil it down to the simple status in his statement:  “Fundamentally, there are two things that really matter when you’re interviewing people:

1. You are having a natural, connecting conversation with another human being.

2. You are responsible for finding the answers to the questions that your audience has.”

In fact, the main topics of his post are the following:

  • Focus on stories and emotions;
  • Suggestions and examples on “How to interview someone for a podcast;”
  • He refers to details in a post about O. Winfrey titled “How to Interview Someone For A Podcast.” And that is, as he states, “because she goes into the emotion and the stories.”

Ben, of course, offers both his FREE BOOK and his membership site of cashflowpodcasting.com where you can get his roadmap. He is always good about reminding his viewers, listeners and readers about his services and offers and offerings to help them improve — and many of them free.

Thus, if you are interested in reviewing your strategies and procedures and workflow in the area of interviewing others for podcast episodes, then I would highly encourage you to see what Ben has to offer in the way of friendly advice — especially when he has been labeled as a good resource for podcast interviews. Since Ben is specialized in the area of business podcasting, this may be a feather in your cap to help you succeed more in the area of interviewing key guests to help your podcast shows grow and become more successful.

Thank you for your attention.

Copyright (c) 2022, Matrix Solutions Corporation and michaelandmike.com and Ben Krueger of cashflowpodcasting. All rights reserved.

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599- Tips on how to structure a Podcast

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In this episode of The Podcast Reporter Show, we review the topic of structuring your podcast and episodes. This theme was discussed in December of 2021 by Ben Krueger, a podcaster and consultant with his show, Cashflowpodcasting.com in his email content with the title “How to structure a podcast.”

Now, as you may know, the REAL objective of a podcast show and its episodes is to provide value to your listeners and audience. As Ben Krueger states in this post, “you should aim to cram as much value in the shortest possible time.”

Ben Krueger

In addition to ending the podcast episode at a shorter time (which may be the right time), one key areas of discussion by Ben deals with the preparation required for quality content (in addition to good audio). As Ben states:  “If you’re eager to record a new podcast episode, it can be tempting to just get behind the microphone and start. This is one of the easiest ways to hamper an episode’s potential. Structuring your podcast episodes can increase the value of your content and help listeners to find what they’re looking for. Before you begin recording, a little bit of preparation can make all the difference.”

Now, after this mention, Ben goes into detail into the following areas of tips for structuring your podcast:

  • “Why is it important to structure a podcast?
  • How do you write a script for a podcast?
  • What are the key components of a podcast?
  • How do you create an outline for a podcast?
  • How do you structure a podcast interview?”

As is stated, scripting your podcast and creating key components by writing an outline can be great ingredients for preparing VALUE for your listeners and customers.

We hope that you, as a podcaster, can improve the quality and value of your show by structuring your podcast better — and we hope that you can get some value from this post from Ben Krueger.

Thank you for your attention.

Copyright (c) 2022, Matrix Solutions Corporation and michaelandmike.com and Ben Krueger. All rights reserved.

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594- Ben Krueger on Podcast Procrastination

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In this episode of The Podcast Reporter, we consider an article by Ben Krueger (podcaster and creator of cashflowpodcasting.com) in which he ponders the reasons why potential podcasters delay in getting started — in fact, he titles it “The One thing stopping you from starting your podcast.”

Now, you could consider this a type of procrastination from getting your feet wet in the podosphere as an aspiring podcaster.

And as we delve more deeply into this article, there is food for thought that someone who would like to podcast should really know what he may be missing out on by not starting. And we would ask ourselves the same question — what is the one big reason why anyone who wants to podcast would hesitate?

In the article, Ben describes the dilemma and the lost potential of communicating with a good audience and telling your own story and delivering your own message:

“The biggest thing that gets in the way of podcasting dreams is the desire to do it right. And it’s not surprising if you think about it. Industry advocates and leaders have become successful because when they decide to do something, they make sure they do it well.

They make the effort to create high-quality work, use a strategy that gets results, and make the most of their time so they can focus on what they’re best at. This drive to do it right is key to their success in other things, and podcasting is no different.

The problem is that because they are so focused on this, their podcast becomes the project they think about for months—if not years—before they’re ready to commit. In my experience, this is usually due to three main issues that must be addressed before these would-be podcasters feel ready.”

And so Ben describes these main issues for aspiring podcasters and their procrastination:

  • Issue number 1:  the excuse or reason is “I don’t have the time.”
  • Issue number 2:  Being intimidated by the tech in podcasting;
  • Issue number 3:  The desire for success (and the resulting fear of failure to meet expectations).

Now, in my past, I have taught Personal Productivity (aka “time management”) courses to professionals. There is always some proven method to be able to be more productive (about 25 per cent for many people) with their time. In fact, when I taught the course, the objective was “to accomplish more in less time with better quality and to reduce stress.”

As Ben addresses in the article, getting help with software, or with virtual assistants, can free up time for you to be able to engage in the podosphere and get some good results. Obviously, his call to action is to hire a professional who can assist in helping you get started (like himself). And I have no problem with this, as I myself did hire Dave Jackson of The School of Podcasting to help me get my podcasts launched (even after I had taken self-study courses in starting a podcast show and creating and publishing an episode).

And, of course, if you have the money and want to get a pro to do it all for you, the hiring of help is the ideal way — even though most of the aspiring podcasters cannot afford it:  “The third and best option is to hire a full-service podcast production agency that takes care of the strategy, as well as all the time-consuming and technical stuff so that all you have to do is show up and hit record.”

I highly recommend that you, as an aspiring podcaster, should review the contents of this article so that you can really get past the excuses of “no time” or “no tech savvy” to get yourself into the podosphere — especially since most of us cannot go with the third alternative, which is to hire a full-blown studio to do it all for you. And although this is one alternative that can be provided by Ben Krueger, your budgets may have a warning for you from proceeding down the full-blown studio setup.

Yes, it may take some time and some self education, as well as a minor investment in training materials, as well as the tech devices and software. But once you get past the learning curve, you will find out how satisfying it can be to prepare, produce, publish and promote your own show and episodes.

As Ben summarizes, the HELP you need is something which you must explore, investigate, analyze and plan for stepping into the podosphere: “The moral of the story? Get help at whatever level is appropriate so that your time and effort are maximized for success…Instead of trying to figure out all the tech on your own, there’s a much simpler and more effective way: Ask for recommendations, and keep it simple…Starting a podcast can be time-efficient, simple and rewarding — if you let it.”

In fact, Ben recommends one of his resources to start with, as it is a free key piece of advice:  “(A great place to start is to download our free book, which breaks down our proven 5-step process for starting and managing a podcast…)”

In his book, Die Empty, Todd Henry (a podcaster and author) also mentions that a graveyard is the biggest container of lost ideas and valuable projects that never got started. Thus, Ben, in a similar manner, suggests that you NOT let procrastination of getting into the podosphere be one of your tragedies that were never realized in life.

Thus, we hope that you will find the time and get the training and education and put together a realistic plan to engage in the podosphere and have a successful podcast.

Thank you for your attention.

Copyright (c) 2021, Matrix Solutions Corporation and michaelandmike.com and Ben Kreuger and Todd Henry. All rights reserved.