Stepp 1: Upload to the internet
I cannot stress enough how important it is to upload your podcast to the internet. If you fail to follow this step it leaves you with only one alternative which is to burn your podcast onto a CD and hand it out to people on the street. DO NOT DO THIS. If you want your podcast to reach a fresh new age audience it will need to be uploaded onto some sort of website.
Steph 2: What sort of website?
I like Mixcloud. it doesn't cost a lot. It helps if you're part of some podcasting network if you align yourself with a successful production company like a WBEZ Chicago or ultimately you become a sister podcast of This American life. Get yourself a flashy new blog and post it there. This will give your dazzling new audience a platform in which to listen to your ostentatious audio content.
Stem 3: Jazz it up some
When uploading your poidcast think about whether your extravagant new podcast needs to be visually appealing aswell as audibly stunning. Think about your artwork and a synopsis for each episode. Still thinking about creating the next successful episodic investigative murder podcast? Why not post an image of the victim when they were younger and make said victim the next Laura Palmer? Black and White or Sepia tone effects will add to your content tenfold.
Make sure you describe each episode in great and epic detail too, so each episode doesn't get lost in the shuffle and for god sake number each episode. Many of us brash young hipsters don't have TIME to listen to each episode one by one and find it hard to avoid spoilers, so let your cunning new audience skip to the end to reveal who the killer really was.
Strep 4: Post it on social media
How many followers do you have? IT DOESN'T MATTER HOW MANY FOLLOWERS YOU HAVE! To elaborate further, even if you have a 5 star producer, a 5 star production suite and a 5 star podcast it will count for nothing if you don't have social media presence. It doesn't matter if you don't have many followers because there are ways to attract the right attention in promoting your podcast on social media. For example why not tweet directly towards celebrities in the hope that they will retweet your content to millions of their followers? Ricky Gervais had a podcast once, so why wouldn't he take two seconds out of his day to help a fellow podcastation establish them self?
Stop 5: New and Noteworth on iTunes
So, you've followed me this far on this journey to publishing your brand spanking new podcast and it is online for the world to see. The next logical step is to get that podcast on the iTunes and there are only a handful of ways to do so. For one you can ask your producer to do it for you, what are you paying them for? You could also try contacting iTunes directly and asking them to do it for you? I did that for my own podcast back in 2011 and I sent them a fruit basket. Or finally, something to do with an RSS feed. Boring I know.
Establishing a base on iTunes is important because it is the granddaddy of streaming and downloading podcasts. It is your best bet to delivering your content to your grandiose new audience from the hashtag social media age. For example, Serial has been on the iTunes top 100 since November in 2014 and that is no happy accident. This is because it is definitively the best, greatest and most influential podcast in the world besides none. That is until your podcast comes along.
The next stop on our journey is how to monetize your podcast and make some sweet sweet bank. Do not miss it.
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