Creating Shareable Content
As a podcaster, you have a lot on your plate—planning, research, scheduling, editing, post-production, etc.
And if you want your podcast to reach people, you also have to think about marketing.
If I could snap my fingers and have one marketing technique that would always work, it would be word of mouth. “People telling people” is the most effective thing we’ve got to growing an audience and get attention for our podcasts.
Unfortunately, getting people to talk about your podcast and share your message with others isn’t as easy as snapping your fingers. But there are some things you can put in place to make it easier for listeners to share what you’re doing with others.
1. Craft Interesting Stories
Humans are naturally drawn to stories. For podcasters, leveraging the power of storytelling can transform a simple discussion within an episode into an engaging experience that listeners feel compelled to share.
Key Strategies:
Start with a Hook: Your episode should start with a hook that immediately grabs attention. This could be an intriguing question, a surprising fact, or a brief preview of a captivating story you’ll tell.
Structure Your Content: Organize your episode around a clear beginning, middle, and end. This structure helps listeners follow along and stay engaged. Bring in elements of conflict, suspense, or unexpected twists to keep the narrative interesting.
Personalize Stories: Include personal anecdotes or guest stories. Personal stories build emotional connections with your audience, making the content more relatable and shareable.
2. Focus on Quality and Uniqueness
With millions of podcasts available, listeners have endless choices at their fingertips. But most podcasts are not high quality nor are they unique. Focusing on these two things can help what you do to stand out and be memorable.
Key Strategies:
Find Your Niche: Identify a specific niche or angle that sets your podcast apart from others. This could be, and often is, the unique “combination” of skills and experiences that you bring to your topic. Focusing on these unique traits will make your content stand out.
Invest in Good Production: Sound quality matters. Poor audio quality can distract from even the most fascinating content and discourage listeners from sharing.
Be Consistent: People are more likely to share your content if you’re consistent with quality and frequency of release—they want to know they can count on your to be there with what they need, when they need it.
3. Encourage Engagement and Make Sharing Easy
Creating shareable content goes beyond just the content itself; it's also about fostering an environment that encourages sharing.
Key Strategies:
Call to Action: At the end of each episode, remind listeners to share your podcast if they find the content valuable. A simple call to action can significantly increase sharing rates.
Shareable Snippets: Create short, shareable snippets or quotes from your episodes. These do not have to be just audio. Anything that can be easily distributed on social media platforms, making it more convenient for listeners to share with their networks, will work.
Engage on Social Media: Maintain an active presence on social media platforms where your audience hangs out. Be interesting. Share behind-the-scenes content, engage with listeners' comments, and repost when listeners share your episodes. This not only encourages more sharing but also helps build a community around your podcast.
By incorporating these strategies into your podcasting, you can increase the likelihood that your content will be shared.