Have you ever wondered, "What's the secret sauce to podcasting success?" Get ready to uncover the magic behind structuring podcast seasons and effectively communicating with your audience—especially when taking those much-needed breathers.
In a revealing session with our Proffitt Podcasting students, we share invaluable wisdom from the trenches of content creation, guiding you through the decision-making puzzles of podcast continuity—be it a single, ongoing narrative or neatly packaged seasons. We dissect the questions that keep podcasters awake at night, providing answers that illuminate the path to longevity in podcasting and enhance the listener experience, ensuring your voice remains resonant episode after episode.
As a content creator, striking a balance between life's demands and your podcast's rhythm can be a high-wire act. Yet, the art of transparently looping in your audience during those intervals away from the mic maintains the bond you've built. This episode highlights the nuances of communicating about a hiatus, outlining strategies to keep your podcast in orbit around your listeners' lives even when silence falls.
We also discuss the strengths of private versus public podcast platforms, specifically Hello Audio and Kajabi, and how they can be woven into your online presence to reinforce audience engagement. Join us as we navigate these waters, always keeping our finger on the pulse of what keeps a podcast thriving in the bustling audio landscape.
Do you love behind the scenes as much as I do? Because there comes a time whenever I go over into this, like super nerdville about behind the scenes. I love to watch like the commentary, like once we finish a show and it's like the end of an episode and it's like all the behind the scenes, like all the cool features and the shots and the conversations with the director. My husband's pretty much like okay, can we just go on to the next episode. But if it's a series I'm really into, I'm like I want to see how this was made, I want to see all the details, and so in today's episode I thought it would be fun to share a clip from a coaching call that we had for our profit podcasting students, and it was one of those that really stuck with me. I mean, it stuck with me so much that right after we ended that conversation I put it in my content calendar you actually hear me reference it while I'm doing it in the episode but I was like we have to have this conversation, like we need to keep talking about this, because what I have found with this audience is there are specific things that come up time and time again and it's not really cyclical, necessarily to like the year, like I can't tell you, oh, in March you're going to see this happen and then in August this will happen again. It's more or less the cycle of a podcaster's life.
Speaker 1:
So, depending on where you are in your podcasting journey, you may have already come across these questions, maybe you're considering them again. Or, if you're brand new to content creation and you never thought about any of these, you're going to say, oh, thank you so much, because now I know that I need to think about these. But in today's coaching call, we talk about specifically private and public podcast, but also seasons and limited series. So those are really the hot topics that you're going to hear us cover in this conversation today. And if you want to learn more about our profit podcasting calls, like, we do these once a month and this is where you get your questions answered, so let me know if you're interested, but I want you to check out today's conversation.
Speaker 1:
Let's get right to it. Welcome to the profit podcast, where we teach you how to start, launch and market your content with confidence. I'm your host, crystal Prophet, and I'm so excited that you're here. Thanks for hanging out with me today, because if you've been trying to figure out the world of content creation. This is the show that will help be your time saving shortcut, so let's get right to it, shall we?
Speaker 2:
I wanted to ask you a question because I have been listening to your podcast Long time fan, long time caller. I listened to the one with the girls that you just released this week, right?
Speaker 2:
And you had talked about they had been talking about and to add clarification for people that are watching the recording it was that they had a limited edition, so many episodes, and you had brought up in that, talking about seasons, and in my mind I was like, oh, I'm in season one because in Buzzsprouts you put in your season and your episode and that in a new year you might change to be a different season. But then I was thinking, oh, does that then change the numbers and start you again? And so there's probably, unless I would have a reason to have it be by years, which I don't really is it best to leave it just be season one all the way through.
Speaker 1:
Yeah. So this is such a good question and I don't think it's one we've talked a lot about. I am in season one and I'm on episode 400, something of the Profit podcast. So I never changed seasons.
Speaker 1:
But what I see people do is typically they have a time frame in mind where they're like, I think of it like a TV show, like something that's running on TV and you know, you know, grey's Anatomy is going to start in August and it's going to, you know, have a midseason break in December, but then they're going to come back in January and then they're only going to run until April or May.
Speaker 1:
So that is still what I would consider a full season, and then, when that cuts off, it starts the new season and the next you know, summer run. So I have seen people do that. Where it's, they commit and it's either a time of year that they're going to do so many episodes or it's just we're doing 10 episodes of this and we're going to launch it and see what happens and then we'll decide are we coming back for a second season or, you know, they give themselves this break. So I mean, you can absolutely do that, but it's not from a standpoint of how your show is operating today. Yeah, so new year, you don't have to start a new season, okay.
Speaker 2:
Okay, keep it going.
Speaker 1:
Yeah.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, yeah, yeah, that makes sense. And I do remember when you were talking about like. I do remember you having conversations about, you know, thinking about it that way as far as like and I can see where story. You know, some of the like different ones would be about a topic all the way through and then, yeah, start the new season with another one. But now where I'm doing every week and the topics kind of shift but they're going to be continuous. And that was my main question. Just to make sure, I was thinking I was going to do it only because it was there when I upload, yeah, I was like, oh, I guess season two will be and then I'll be able to say two seasons, but I don't need to.
Speaker 1:
I'm adding that into my content calendar right now to talk about seasons again, because it's a good question and it's one that I mean. I've covered it a few times here and there, but I think that it's one of those that I see more and more limited series pop up, like what you know is if you're in Kirstie like they're incredible.
Speaker 2:
Like I would love for them to have an ongoing pot.
Speaker 1:
It's like, why don't you have an ongoing podcast? But I have to also understand that some people's capacity for creating is very different than mine. Like my entire business is around content creation. Most people with businesses aren't around content creation. It's just a piece of their business. So, I love the idea of doing limited series podcast, and another point on that is whether you want it to be private or public. This is another question that I'm getting a lot more is well I want to launch something and I want it to do this.
Speaker 1:
Four part limited series, like how do I set this up? So I'm seeing these questions a lot more. Yeah, if y'all have any questions about that too, I'm happy to go in that direction.
Speaker 2:
Well, I guess like in the private part, what I'm seeing is people using podcasts more as a lead generator or an actual resource they're selling, and usually in conjunction with something else, because I still think you have to show. Why would I want to this, as opposed to all the free content on a podcast? Right, exactly, that's how most people I'm seeing it, but, yeah, that is interesting to think about and would be good to know the kind of and I believe you probably do some of that in the course, but it's been so long since I've looked at it from that point of view of like sharing how to access those ones when you're doing a private one, and it would be kind of like how you do a course, I would guess. Right, so you have, you're hosting the podcast, but then how are they getting the link? How are they getting entrance?
Speaker 1:
Well, they always have access, so yeah, it just depends on which platform you use, on how you can set up your workflow. So if you go with Hello Audio which is what I always recommend for people if they don't have Kujabi because people will say, well, I send it for Kujabi just to do podcasts and I'm like that is way too expensive for you just to do podcasting. It's way too like. Unless you're already using Kujabi, then you can use the private podcast feature. But if you're not, go with Hello Audio and the way that they have it set up. So let me do Kujabi first, because it's one I'm most familiar with and one I've done a lot more than Hello Audio. But with Kujabi you set it up just like any other offer. And if you're using Kujabi as part of your email, like you're doing your email marketing through there, then you can set up your forms through there and the automation where you want people to go, the sequences, and you can have the link in there Like, okay, you go here, you do this. You could even link to a Kujabi how-to video, like how to access this on your phone or have the podcast on the go. But Kujabi is great for those types of resources.
Speaker 1:
But I have to say I think Hello Audio has a great setup too for just private podcasts. So being able to this is just a private podcast. You're using it as a lead magnet, and I haven't checked in a while, but I would imagine that their resources have gotten even better, because I remember you would get an email, like once you subscribed to a show. I want to say you would put in your name and your email and once you subscribed, I think Hello Audio would send something that was like here's how to access it, like it was a templated email that would go to your listeners or your subscribers and it would very easily tell them here's how to add the RSS on Apple podcast or whatever player you were using to do it. So they both are complimentary to how easy they are to set up. It's just a matter of which one do you have currently. If you're using Kujabi, definitely just use Kujabi product to do it, and then Hello Audio is easy to do if you're not using Kujabi.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, yeah, I'll have to look into that. That's not something that I had thought about, except for I am working on a membership now that will be leading into the course. Yeah, it's coming. I'm putting it now. It's going to be January. We're going into it, we're doing it right, carrie, we're doing it, we are, we're doing it and it's going to be what it is in January and it will evolve and it's been a long time coming and it's just a matter of, yeah, getting it all done. But the fact that I love doing the podcast and what a great way to kind of add to little tidbits almost I'm seeing it, even like I'm thinking about you with the potty report being very intentional about the content to the people that were looking for the little tidbits, I can see something like that being really good to and be in an addition while I'm sitting down and doing my bigger podcast. To then do a few little bites for each week would be yeah.
Speaker 1:
And any. These were such great questions. Thank you again, melissa and Carrie. They were hanging out with me and we had so many other conversations about content and podcasting and this one specifically came out. We did this coaching call around the end of the year. So Carrie and I talked about how to plan a year in review episode. We had other conversations about their specific experience and we really dove deep into their topics and this is something that we do once a month. So if you're a profit podcasting student, this is part of the deal. You get group coaching. So make sure that if you get those emails from me that say, hey, this is when our next one is, you join us because you can get some one-on-one assistance and really take your show to the next level. So if you're interested in profit podcasting, go to crystalprofitcom forward slash course to learn all about the program and what it can help you do with your podcast. But I wanted to keep kind of the conversation going because after I talked to Carrie and Melissa and Melissa is the one that had the questions that we aired here today in this episode but limited series, podcast, private podcast, taking breaks like seasons, all of these things, these questions come up all the time and I wanted to really hone in on.
Speaker 1:
The question that I get is if you are going to take a break, what do I do? Is there a protocol? Is there a specific way that I should take a break for my content? And I believe that there is, and it's really simple. It's letting people know that you are leaving, you're going to be out for a little bit. It's kind of like putting your out of office up. That's how I like to look at it. If you have a job where you've got to put up, this is what I'm going to be gone and this is what I'm going to be returning.
Speaker 1:
I think that this is the part where a lot of people kind of fall short of taking a successful break and coming back and having their audience still be there when they come back, because a lot of people hit burnout, which I get it. I'm not going to ask you and you don't have to explain. Let's make this really clear. You do not have to explain to your audience while you are taking a break. You really don't. If you want to, awesome. If you want to say, hey, I just need to take a break. Or if you're like, hey, I just want to sit and tell with my family. I just want to hang out with my friends, I want to travel and not have to worry about bulky equipment and the logistics of uploading. Your audience will get it, they will understand, but you don't have to explain anything. I just want to make that super, super clear. But they will appreciate if you let them know, give them a heads up. Hey, we're going to take a break, we're going to take an extended sabbatical.
Speaker 1:
However you want to call it right, you could just say we're ending this season and you're going to leave on one day. When are you coming back? Is it two weeks from now? Is it six weeks from now? Is it six months from now? I don't care when it is. Your audience won't care when it is either. They just want to know when to know to come back. Because if you don't tell them when they need to come back, how are they going to know? How are they gonna know?
Speaker 1:
People get so frustrated and they come to me and they say I took a break from my content. Now my audience isn't there and I'm like well, did you tell them? Did you tell them that you were leaving? Well, no, I just you know, I published an episode and I haven't published any in the last six weeks. Okay, well, they don't know when you're coming back. So, yeah, you can go ahead and start telling them now, immediately, like, if you've done this, like I'm not shaming anybody here, I'm just letting you know, like this is what will happen. This is what will happen, because people are like wait, I didn't, I didn't know, like did you quit altogether? Did you rebrand your show? And I missed something?
Speaker 1:
Like audiences, especially podcast listeners and I've talked about this several times is there are podcast listeners that they schedule their entire week around their shows. I know this may sound a little bonkers, but if you sit back, if you're an avid podcast listener, you probably do the same thing. Right, I listen to specific shows. Whenever I'm going on my Monday morning walk, then I listen to a different show. When I'm going on my Wednesday morning walk, then I listen to a different show when I'm going on my Friday morning walk, like it's part of my routine, and then in between there, I'll listen to one when I'm, you know, making my lunch or walking the dog. Like there are specific habits that I have centered around my podcast listening. And if those shows do not show up, I'm filling them with something else, whether it's an audiobook, it's a different podcast. Like, I'm going to fill in that placeholder. It's not like, oh, that show isn't there anymore, shoot, I guess I just won't listen to anything. Like, no, I'm, I'm a podcast listener. I'm going to fill in that time. I'm going to fill that in because I'm going to keep listening.
Speaker 1:
So make sure that you have a placeholder date of when you want to come back. Now, whether you hit it or not, you know that is going to depend on your circumstance. Maybe you just need to take the summer off, right? I've seen so many people that are like, I just want to spend time with my kids, I want to mess with this podcast, and I'm like that's great. Tell them you'll be back in September. Right, you're leaving in May, you will be back in September. And people just find so much relief in that, like a podcast host, they're just like I see their shoulders go. Oh, thank you. Thank you for giving me permission to take a break, or you know, permission to leave and come back. But really the secret here is to have that date very clear with your audience so that they know that you're coming back and they know that you are coming back you know better than ever, or with fresh content, or you know whatever it is, but have that date of when you're going to leave and when you're going to come back.
Speaker 1:
Now, the other thing that we talked about really briefly was private and public podcast, and I talked about Hello Audio. I talked about Kajabi. Those are still definitely the ones that I recommend for a private or a public show. Right, if you want to have a lead magnet for your podcast and you're trying to figure out like, well, what do I use, I still stand by. I don't think that Kajabi alone is worth the investment to just have a private podcast. But if it is something that you're using for your online business or your courses, then, yeah, it could be a fantastic resource for you to house a private podcast because it allows you to do everything kind of in-house. And if you already have your email marketing setup in Kajabi, then that's even better, right, like it's all kind of packaged all in one place.
Speaker 1:
But Hello Audio is fantastic for people that don't use Kajabi and they want to have something that's like a really simple tool. I think Hello Audio is a little bit simpler to use and you could have a public facing podcast as well. You could do it with either one with Hello Audio or Kajabi. But Hello Audio has a great interface and it allows you to use Wave MP4s or MP3s when you upload.
Speaker 1:
I haven't checked Kajabi in a while, but last time I tried to do or I did a private podcast, it only took MP3s and I thought I was going to scream because I only use I'm going to sound like such an audio snob for a second I only download in WAV files, like every single one of my files. It's all WAV files because they're a little bit higher quality and it's just what I use, and I have a ton of video content and if I wanted to use videos and upload them into Kajabi, I couldn't do that previously, so I could be wrong. Maybe you could do this today. But MP3s oh my gosh, it's not the only audio file out there.
Speaker 1:
Okay, getting off my soapbox on that for now, but I think that these audio lead magnets are fantastic ways for you to grow your audience. It's not something that I've done a few of these but it's not something that I had a ton of success with, and I think it's simply because I already have so much audio content people that listen to these. They can find so much content. Like I have the potty report, I have the profit podcast, I have thousands of episodes. So I don't think that I previously positioned my private podcast as well as I could today. If I were doing a brand new one, I think I'd have a different strategy around it. But I think that what makes a private podcast work really well is one it doesn't need to be the same content that someone could listen to just on your podcast.
Speaker 1:
How can you differentiate it to be slightly different or how can you make it more exclusive? So maybe it is something that you've talked about on your podcast, but you can share things on there that you haven't shared before. Like I did one of these for last year's Digital Course Academy launch and I shared my numbers. Like I usually don't share all of my numbers, like how much money I make and how many downloads I get, and I'm just not super public with all of that. I will share it from time to time, but I don't talk about it all the time. But I did share that in that specific series and I heard back from people as like oh, thank you for sharing this content. So that was how I made it exclusive, because I was able to give that audience a new piece of information without it just being like, oh, I could have listened to her podcast or oh, I've heard this on the YouTube before, so it's really not brand new information.
Speaker 1:
So think about how can you make that private series more interesting or something that's more exclusive than people could get in your regular content, and that is how you will get people to really be interested in downloading it, listening to it and continuing to share it with other people, cause that's really the key with those is like, how can you get people to listen and say, oh my gosh, you gotta go check this out or you gotta go listen to this, this was fantastic. And actually, if you're listening to this, I would love for you to send me a DM. Are there things that you want me to share that I haven't shared before, because I think that I'm pretty open on here. I've shared a lot of information over the years about my podcast, about my show, about my business, but I would love to know what other questions do you have? Send me an Instagram DM or send me an email. Reply to any of my emails if you're on my email list and let me know all questions you have.
Speaker 1:
Maybe that will be our next limited series is creating something where I'm sharing really behind the scenes on any of the questions that you have from a creator standpoint. And, yeah, I would just love to know your thoughts. But that's all I have for you today. I hope you enjoyed listening to today's coaching call and, like I said, if you're a current profit podcasting student, join us in these calls. They are so powerful whenever you can get your questions answered directly and you can hear the other people's questions, because a lot of you are going through the same thing. You all have some of the same questions and I wanna help you get answers to those. So go to crystalprofitcom forward slash course. If you're not a profit podcasting student and you want to be, so go check out the program and join us and you could be in one of our next coaching sessions. But that's all I have for you today. So make sure you hit that follow or subscribe button wherever you are listening and, as always remember, keep it up. We all have to start somewhere.