Should You Be Podcasting?

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Podcasting is on the rise. Nowadays, it seems as if everybody wants to be a podcaster.

If you’re an entrepreneur, asking yourself Should I Be Podcasting? is certainly a fair question.

But why being a podcaster? And why starting today?

Well, some say that 2015 is going to be the year of the podcast, so I guess that if you want to get started, there wouldn’t be any better moment than today.

According to Edison Research, the time people spend listening to podcasts is almost the same as that spent listening to radio. Check out the image below for more details on the breakdown:

Podcast Listeners

So, why are podcasts on the rise?

For starters, they are so easy to consume on the go, whether it’s with a smartphone or a tablet.

Then there’s Apple’s CarPlay.

CarPlay allows you to take the things you want from your iPhone and puts them right into your car’s built-in display. I’m talking about the ability to make phone call and send texts using Siri, use Maps, listen to music and… podcasts!

If you look at the list of partners that will be installing CarPlay in their cars – from popular brands such as Renault, Ford, Opel, Peugeot and Toyota to high-end cars like Jaguar and Ferrari – you can see what that means. In a couple of years, almost every car will probably have the CarPlay option, just like it happened with cassette and CD players before.

For podcasters, this means that, potentially, we’ll have access to millions of people through CarPlay.

This is a prediction on what is probably going to happen in the podcasting world – and what that would mean for us podcasters.

Now, let’s look more specifically at what starting a podcast can do for you.

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Podcast: A New Platform for Spreading Your Message & Build Relationships

Perhaps you’re a blogger, an avid social media user and are looking for a new platform to use to spread your message and grow your community.

A good example of this is Pat Flynn.

SPI Podcast

Pat started the Smart Passive Income blog back in October 2008 after being let go from his regular job.

He had been blogging for a couple of years, before he launched the Smart Passive Income podcast (in the summer of 2010). As of today, the show has been downloaded over 11 million times (it’s probably going to be more by the time you’re reading this post!) and was featured as top-ranking business podcast in both iTunes and the New York Times.

In addition to the SPI podcast, Pat now also hosts his 5-day a week show Ask Pat, where he answers a different question asked by member of his community each episode, and 1-Day Business Breakthrough along with co-host Chris Ducker.

So for Pat, launching a podcast has helped him build authority, interview a bunch of high-profile thought leaders and build relationships.

But if you listen to the SPI podcast, you can hear Pat explaining how, when he attends conferences, more and more people approach him by talking about his show. The first thing they talk about it the podcast.

Not the SPI blog.

Nor Pat’s book Let Go.

His podcast.

If we look at Pat’s story, we see how his podcast initially served as an additional platform for him to spread his message. But launching a podcast has also allowed Pat to:

grow his community (for the fact that many people don’t necessarily spend 30-45 minutes reading a blog, but they definitely spend that time – or even more! – listening to a podcast)

strengthen his authority

connect with other thought leaders

monetize

Click the player below to listen to my interview with Pat Flynn!

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I know what some of you may be thinking right now: But Yann, Pat already had an audience and an established blog by the time he launched his podcast!

And that’s a fair point.

But hold on!

Let me introduce you to someone who has built an entire business around a podcast without having been a blogger.

Entrepreneur on Fire: From Zero (Listeners) to iTunes’ Best Podcast

If you have heard someone talking about entrepreneurial podcasts of have been reading blog posts about the topic, than I’m pretty sure you have heard the name John Lee Dumas.

John was working a regular 9 to 5 job when he came up with the idea of creating a 7-day a week podcast. He quit his job and started working on the concept, despite his mentors’ advice against pursuing that.

On September 20th 2012 the very first episode of Entrepreneur on Fire went live. Now, the show is approaching the 1,000th episode mark!

EOF Podcast

And what a journey it has been for John.

The podcast has been downloaded millions of times, has been named Best of iTunes and has helped John establish himself as one of the top podcasters in the world.

Ah, and did I mention that, with his podcast, John has generated a 6-figure income?

If you ask John, he’ll certainly tell you how launching a podcast has changed his life.

Since then, he has been featured on prominent websites such as Forbes and Entrepreneur, he has become one of the most-sought guests for other high-profile podcasts and has been discussing (and teaching) podcasting at some of the world’s top marketing conferences.

Looking at where John is today, it’s unbelievable to think that he started out without an audience nor a blog.

The launch of the podcast, that’s when it all started.

And today, John has built a business around podcasting and teaches others how to launch, grow and monetize their podcast.

So, for John, launching Entrepreneur on Fire has helped him:

build an audience

position himself as an authority

monetize

build businesses around his podcast

Click the player below to listen to the interview with John!

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Reality Check Time!

Now it’s time for a reality check!

There’s plenty of great, successful podcasts out there – so getting inspired is not a problem. I mentioned Pat’s and John’s examples, to help you understand that you can launch a podcast whether you already have an online presence or you don’t.

But let’s be real, building authority and growing a podcast take time.

Let’s not even think about the monetization aspect of it (because to score sponsorships for a podcast, we first need to have a large audience, who tunes in episode after episode).

I’m NOT here to discourage you, but to motivate you. But at the same time, I want to be honest with you.

Launching and managing a podcast is a marathon, not a sprint.

Honestly.

It takes time, effort and dedication. If you believe in yourself and are willing to put in the effort, starting a podcast will definitely help you in many ways.

So, should you be podcasting?

My answer is YES, but only if you are motivated and willing to spend time building and growing your show.

Want to know what is the #1 mistake podcasters make? Giving up. If you take a quick look on iTunes, you’ll see that there are some podcasts that, for some reason or another, have not published any new episode after the host’s initial excitement and the first 5-10 episodes.

Consistency is the key. Have faith, be consistent and great things will follow.

[bctt tweet=”Have faith, be consistent and great things will follow.”]

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