This transcript was generated from the episode audio and may contain minor errors.
A listener is taking the plunge and starting his own podcast. Congratulations. We've actually had a number of listeners over the years start their own podcast. In our fifth season here, I remain a big fan of this medium. It's something that really crept up on me. You might happen to be an early adopter of podcasts
and have been listening 15 years, you know, before Side Hustle School ever came around. If so, I salute you because I was a little bit late to the party. But nevertheless, I remain a big fan of this medium, this format. I'm so grateful for you being part of it. So if you're out there and you like the idea of starting a podcast, or even if you don't, you're just wondering like, if someone's going to do that, what are the right questions to ask, which is always an important thing to consider. You can then apply this logic to lots of different
topics. Well, what might those be? This listener is asking for my top three tips, the main things to know when starting a podcast. So we'll hear from him. His name is Matt. Then I'll give you
my answer right after this quick message from our sponsor. Hi, Chris, this is Matt from Cape May, New Jersey. And I started listening to the show last year. I'd like to start a podcast on birdwatching. Over the past few weeks, I've been absorbing lessons and learning how to record to my computer. But you know,
there's a lot of info to take in. What are the most important things? Let's say the top three to know when starting a podcast. I don't have advertisers, but I'm not worried about that yet. My thought is if I build the audience, advertisers will come. But I know I need
to actively build the audience. So looking forward to hearing your advice. Matt, thank you so much for listening. Congratulations on the upcoming podcast. I guess I shouldn't say congratulations till it's out. But good idea. Sounds fun.
I know that birdwatchers can be some pretty committed people. I read several books on the birdwatching world a few years back when I was writing a different book of my own, not about birdwatching. So let's talk about this. And let's assume that Matt and anybody else who's interested in this topic, let's assume that they have figured out some parts of the recording process. Like he says, he's been doing a lot of reading, there is a lot of info out there.
But the actual like recording process that could be its own episode or more than its own episode. Okay. So it sounds like Matt's already got a decent microphone. He's figured out some of the software. Let's talk about the bigger picture behind the podcast rather than just the tool.
So number one, he asked for my top three. Number one, what is your most important message? What is your elevator pitch? Let's say what is, you know, how can you describe your business idea or the idea of the show, your overall message, what you hope people will go away with in one sentence? I think that is so, so important. For this podcast, I often say something like,
status law school is all about helping people create freedom through the form of a money making project without quitting their job. So I'm trying to say like, what it's about, who it's for, what the benefit is. So what does that look like for Matt show or for anybody else? Like how are you going to change the world, or at least how are you going to change your audience, your intended audience with your message? Number two, how will you reach that audience? How will you reach those
listeners? I like what Matt says about how he's not worried about advertisers. If he has the audience, he can get the advertisers, which is true, but it's no small thing to get the audience. So how will you do that? Once you know what your message is, that's the number one thing I would focus on, you know, how are you actually going to find those listeners? Because without listeners,
you're not going to get very far. So in this case, you know, what is the birdwatching world look like? Matt knows that better than me. You probably know your topic, your area, your industry, your expertise, whatever it is. Like where do those people hang out? You know, how, where do
they congregate? How can you reach them with your message and then encourage them to subscribe and such? Number three, can you sustain the format you've chosen? And here I encourage you to commit to a certain point, like make an actual commitment to say, I'm going to make this podcast for x number of episodes, 12 episodes, let's say, or you could do it for a certain period of time. Like when I first started this show, I said, I'm going to do it every single day for a year, which was a pretty big commitment. At least to me, it felt pretty big at the time. And now here we are now, you know,
more than 1500 days later, still going. But the point is to make a commitment to a certain point, then you don't just have an endless commitment. Like you have a clear goal, which listeners like, listeners like having consistency. But it's also good for you, like you as the podcaster, you also have no pressure after you've completed that commitment. You can then take a break, you can regroup, you can change up some things, you can move on, whatever it is. So think about
whatever format you're going to work with and ask yourself, can you really sustain it? And if you're not sure, I would recommend pulling back a little bit to make a commitment that you can sustain, because it's so much better to like come to the end of the commitment and still feel motivated and excited to renew or do something more than it is to feel like you're just kind of, you know, trudging along. So what's your most important message? How are you going to reach listeners? And can you sustain a format? Those are my top three tips. I'm sure there's some others out
there as well. Listeners, if you've got a question or contribution, come to sidehustleschool.com/questions. We'll continue to feature them as listeners launch podcasts and all kinds of other fun stuff. Be sure you're subscribed wherever you get your podcasts. My name is Chris Guillebeau, this is Side Hustle School.
From the Onward Project.
