Influential Voices of Authority

What Your Brand Can Learn From Prince – Episode 137 We are making a quick change this week. On the last episode, I told you we were going to get into interviewing. We will do that next week. When I heard Prince had passed away, I started getting fascinated by the way people were reacting to the loss of one of the greatest musical artists of our time. I had to jump back in the studio and cut a new episode for this week. We’ll pick up the interviewing episodes next week. Why did the death of Prince affect so many so deeply? Prince created a brand that epitomizes the Cult Brand that we talk so much about. I was talking with a friend this week. He was deeply touched by Prince’s death. He said it bothered him much more than Michael Jackson or Whitney Houston or Merle Haggard and he couldn’t figure out why. Prince has been on my mind quite a bit lately. I am a fan of most of what he created. There are musicians. Then, there are artists. Everything Prince touched was some form or art, pushing the boundaries. In his movie “Under The Cherry Moon”, he included a bit that almost predicted his death. At the end of the movie, Prince’s character Christopher Tracy dies and early death. The scene is set to a song by Prince called “Sometimes It Snows In April”. It is very coincidental that Prince was taken from us early, in April, almost 30 years to the date of the release of “Under The Cherry Moon”, which came out July 4th, 1986. The death of Prince hurts many more than a typical celebrity death due to our association with the brand Prince created. We talk a lot about the Cult Brand. It was defined in the book “The Power Of Cult Branding” by BJ Bueno. If you look at Prince’s brand, you will see all 7 attributes of a Cult Brand. These are characteristics you do not find with Michael Jackson or Whitney Houston or Merle Haggard. We came to expect those 3 to be in trouble. They weren’t one of us. Prince seemed like a guy we could hang out with. He had a bit of cool about him. CULT BRAND Let’s review the 7 attributes of a Cult Brand. We will see how they relate to Prince. Then, we can see how they can be used with your Podcast brand. SOCIAL GROUPS Let them be different together. Those people who didn’t quite fit in due to their style found solace in the music and style of Prince. His concerts and nightclub allowed those fans to gather and be different together. Oddly enough, Prince’s music is not found on YouTube. Prince wanted to keep his community special. You could choose to be involved. However, you needed to be involved his way. He controlled the message. Find ways for your audience to be different together. What does your podcast offer that is unique to you? This needs to be something that is different than any other podcast and done in a way that only you can do it. Once you create the difference, allow your audience to come together to share that difference. COURAGE Prince stood by his beliefs. He insisted on owning his publishing. He even went as far as changing his name to a symbol when his fight with Warner Brothers Records got crazy. The musical styles of Prince fused rock guitar solos with funk and rhythm and blues. He threw in some dance moves of James Brown to his unique style of dress. He had the courage to be different and stand out. Being different and standing out from the crowd takes courage. Be daring this week. Find something that will put your podcast on the map. It may be scary and outside of your comfort zone. That is ok. Give it a try. People will take notice. PROMOTE A LIFESTYLE - FUN In the 1980s, Prince created a style of dress that was unique to him. It was copied by many. It was self-expression and fun. Prince promoted a lifestyle. Love, fun and style. Even his guitars were fun and unique. After his musical success, Prince created other ways to spread his brand of fun. He created a few movies. Some of these were huge successes. Some barely broke even. Prince created his own nightclub. He fostered the careers of other artists. Fun was a primary attribute of his brand. Something we all wanted to be part of. With your podcast, don’t be so serious all the time. Have fun. Be crazy. Let your inner child out to play every now and then. Life is too short to be so serious all the time. LISTEN TO YOUR CUSTOMERS - HUMAN NEEDS Humans have a need to come together. Music is a big part of that need. Prince gave it to his fans. In the 1980s when the economy was tough, Prince was singing about love and a carefree life. He delivered what his fans needed to escape their everyday life. What does your podcast audience need? Find that need and fulfill it regularly. If you don’t know what that need is, ask your listeners. Find their Facebook pages and look for the need. It will be there. SUPPORT COMMUNITIES – START A CULT Prince didn’t always need to spotlight. He would make some headlines, release an album or movie, then lay low for a while. This allowed his fans to embrace and spread the message. He also turned many fledgling Minneapolis musical acts into stars. Being part of the Revolution or New Power Generation was as easy as joining the movement. Even the biggest hits of Prince featured vocals of other members in his band. In “1999”, Prince is the 3rd voice. In his movie Purple Rain, it is portrayed that the title song was actually written by Wendy and Lisa, members of the band. Prince included everyone and shared the attention and credit. With your podcast, share the credit. Give. Make others the star. The more you shine your spotlight on others, the more it will come back to you. Simply focus on helping others. Bring your fans together. Introduce your listeners to each other. Spread the love. When you do that, your message will begin to spread on the wings of others. OPENESS – INCLUSIVE, INVITING Anyone could be part of the Prince movement. Dress like him. Move like him. He promoted love and being part of a movement. People could relate to that. Be inviting with your podcast. Allow your listeners to direct a bit of your content. Give them some ownership in the content you create. You also need to make it easy to join your tribe. Eliminate a lot of the hoops and just get them into the party. PROMOTE PERSONAL FREEDOM Prince used his style to promote his own personal freedom. Then, he encouraged others to do the same. He always insisted that he have complete creative control over everything he did. We all have an enemy. When you find the common enemy, your brand can help your listener fight the common bad. Create the freedom. Do you think it is a coincidence that listeners on the Dave Ramsey show become debt free? Their debt free scream is followed by a loud yell of “freedom”. All of the listeners are fighting the common enemy. That is personal freedom. We can learn a lot from the brand of Prince. Add these 7 attributes of a cult brand into your podcast. You will begin to create a powerful tribe that will drive your brand to new heights. Next week, we begin the series on interviewing. Have you ever conducted that interview that went nowhere? The one you felt like deleting right after it was over? We can help. Next week, we will answer a couple listener questions about getting the most out of your interview guest. Do you need help with your podcast? E-mail me any time at Coach@PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's see what we can do. You can find my podcast and other tools to help you create great content at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's turn your information into engaging entertainment.

How To Make Best Use Of Both Podcast Co-Hosts – Episode 136 Today, we will open the Podcast Talent Coach mail bag and answer a few content questions I have received. The first questions is about making effective use of a co-host. The second is about consistently helping your listeners with your content. I would love to hear an episode on involving a highly effective style with a cohost. – Rick Sizemore – VR Workforce Studio CO-HOST BASICS Different point of view Distinct styles and perspectives Different voices One needs to be the leader I was listening to a business podcast the other day. It is a show that is hosted by two marketing gurus. They typically offer business advice to listeners who write or call the show. The hosts had received a question regarding unique ways to market a product. The listener had included a few methods he had used. Host number one rattled off his critique of the methods used and offered a couple of his own. Host number two basically said, “I agree with your assessment and really have nothing further to add.” When a second host (or guest for that matter) isn't offering any new information or differing opinion, the second host is unnecessary. If your podcast involves more than one person on the show, you need to have a justifiable reason for each of you to exist on the show. When there are multiple voices on a show, each voice needs a role. One of the hosts is unnecessary if two voices are offering the same information, with the same opinion persona. There are many podcasts hosted by two co-hosts. Many of those are successful, such as “On The Media” with Brooke Gladstone and Bob Garfield, “Manic Mommies” with Erin and Kristin, and “Mike & Mike in the Morning” with Mike Golic and Mike Greenberg. Not all two-person podcasts are structured quite as well as these. It seems two friends who have similar interests get together and start a podcast without much planning. The similar interests of the hosts seem to spawn similar opinions and positions on topics. If you and I are hosting a show, and we are both saying roughly the same thing, one of us isn't necessary. A great example of two hosts that compliment each other well is “Mike & Mike in the Morning”. Mike Golic and Mike Greenberg host “Mike & Mike in the Morning”. You can find the show broadcast on ESPN television and radio as well as their “best of” podcast online. The show recently celebrated its 10-year anniversary. Both Mikes have an interest in sports. That is the commonality that brought them together. A general interest in the topic is necessary for the subject matter and foundation of the show. The differing opinions create the magic within the show. Mike and Mike come from very different background. Their different experiences have developed differing opinions, attitudes and approaches to various sports topics. These differences make the show compelling. Mike Greenberg was born to a Jewish family. He grew up in New York City. Greenberg went on to study journalism. He worked his entire career in broadcasting, beginning in Chicago, the third largest city in the United States. Mike Golic was born in suburb of Cleveland, Ohio. He played American football in College while studying finance and management at Catholic university Notre Dame in Indiana. Golic played professionally in the NFL. He then began his broadcasting career after his playing career ended. Where Greenberg approaches topics from the researcher/journalist perspective, Golic tackles those topics from the real life experience angle. Greenberg comes from the big city. Golic comes from the suburbs. Greenberg worked big-time radio in the nation's largest cities. Golic made big-time hits on one of professional sports' biggest stages. There are multiple approaches you can take on a show with multiple hosts. Good cop/bad cop is a common show structure. This is approach would position one host as the nice guy. He is there to help. Always encouraging and supporting the listener. The second host would be a bit of a jerk. He might have a big ego. This host would be in your face and telling you like it is. He wouldn't necessarily be mean. However, he would be the antagonist in the show. There is a three-person version of this called “The Dog, The Doll and The Dork”. This show involves the bad guy (the dog), the good guy (the dork) and the sweet girl to round it out (the doll). The female typically plays mediator between the two guys. This show is heard quite often on radio morning shows. You can also see “The Dog, The Doll and The Dork” in America's original version of “American Idol”. Simon Cowell was “The Dog”. He was the bad guy with the big ego. Simon was the guy everyone loves to hate. Paula Abdul played the role of “The Doll”. She was sweet while often siding with one of the two guys. She was very likeable. Paula was almost the antidote to Simon. Randy Jackson was “The Dork”. He would often play the nice guy, even while providing tough criticism. You would hear Randy say something like, “You know you're my dog, but that just wasn't good.” Randy could be seen considering the feelings of the contestants. "American Idol” is currently not as strong, because they've lost the role identity of each judge. When you watch the show, you really don't know what to expect from each judge. Is Randy going to be the nice guy or suddenly play the part of “the Dog”? Roles are inconsistent from show to show. There are many other varieties of show roles. You could use nerd/jock where one host has “studied it” and one host has “done it”. Liberal/conservative is an option if you can find a co-host with the opposing point of view. Corporation/entrepreneur could offer diverse points of view on business. Male/female is pretty clear. You simply need to select the differences that work for you. Think of some of the best duos in history. What makes them different (and therefore valuable)? McCartney & Lennon. Abbott & Costello. Siskel & Ebert. Bert & Ernie. Sonny & Cher. Milli Vanilli. Ok, maybe not that one. Each member in those great partnerships offered something different than their teammate. Often, that difference was the opposite of their counterpart. Sometimes, it was simply a different approach. Find those differences that make each of you unique. The goal of your show is to entertain your audience. Listeners have come to your show to learn something, laugh at something, or be amazed by something. Your job is to create compelling content. Debates and differing opinions are a great way to stir up emotion with your audience. It doesn't always need to be an argument. Multiple hosts simply need to offer different information. If both hosts are offering the same content, one of you are just wasting the time of your audience. You are repeating yourself when you could be dishing up new content. If you host a show with multiple people, find each individual voice and use those differences to entertain your audience. HELP OTHERS How can I help others with every show. I am so grateful for your show, keep up the good work, I point all my podcasting friends your way! You have a devoted fan on Oahu, if you need any ideas for family adventures on Oahu.... I'm your Man! - Dave Tupper - Kids Adventures Hawaii Podcast Start with the goal of your show. What is it that you want people to take from this particular episode? How will your content help them? I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “what’s in it for me?” Your audience will be asking this very question every time they tune into your podcast. Your introduction better tell your listener exactly how your topic will affect them. You need to hook them right at the beginning with an intriguing introduction. If you don’t hook them early, they will be gone in search of something more captivating. When your audience knows what is in it for them, they begin to care. Making your listener care is the only way to get them to listen and more importantly come back again. As I was listening to a podcast recently, it suddenly hit me. How does this apply to me, and what am I getting out of this podcast? I was having a tough time answering those two questions. It was an entrepreneural podcast. The host and guest were recounting the launch and growth of the guest's company. It was a decent story. There were a few highlights about growing out of a basement and finding industry partners. The most interesting part of the story was the fast growth of the company. After twenty minutes of the show, it hit me. I really have nothing in common with this tech company. The stories being told were very specific to the guest's company. Most of all, neither the guest nor the host were making the connection between the tale of the company and lessons that could be gleaned by the listener. They were not incorporating the audience into the show at all. To truly engage your audience, you need to make the listener the star. Nobody wants to watch your home movies unless they are in them. Your listener doesn't need to be part of the show to be the star. The content could give them hope, help them envision the future, or relate to their situation. You need to help them make that connection. The key question is “what's in it for me?” Your listener isn't attracted to your podcast by your content. They listen to your podcast because of what your information can do for them. They don't buy products. They buy benefits. If your podcast is only focused on you, your product, or your guest without making a connection to the listener, the size of your audience will shrink. Engaging content must be listener focused. Keep your audience engaged by making your listener the star. Connection, put them in the show, one-on-one communication and teaching without being condescending. This week, check out the free video I have on PodcastTalentCoach.com about one-on-one communication. We discuss how to make your listener feel like they are part of the show and that your content is specifically for them. Next week, we will start a series on interviewing. How do you make the most of the time with your interview guest? What is more effective at attracting traffic, interviewing others or being interviewed? In the next few episodes, we will cover that, along with interview terms, and tips to help create powerful interviews. You can find my podcast and other tools to help you create great content at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's turn your information into engaging entertainment.

How To Organize Your Podcast Content - Episode 135 When you organize your content, you allow yourself to be more creative during recording. You actually allow for more spontaneity and creativity. Many podcasters believe that planning all of their content removes the opportunity for things to happen. Does planning remove the fun from your show? Not at all. When you spend less time trying to think of the next piece of content, you can spend more time thinking about how to make the next piece of content amazing. Organizing your content is the key to allowing your content to become entertainment. THE CLOCK The one tool most radio hosts use to organize their show is a show clock. This is basically a schedule of what is to happen on the show and when those pieces of content occur. The show clock becomes even more important when you have a co-host. The clock puts all members of the show on the same page. Each host knows exactly what is coming up and when it is supposed to happen. You can download the PTC Show Clock template in the worksheet section online at PodcastTalentCoach.com. There are two versions of a clock. One is a circular clock face. The other is a list. Both versions list the title of the segment, a description of the content, when that content is due to happen on the show and how long is it supposed to last. For example, the show open will be first. It might be the 60-second recorded theme. That would be followed by a 4-minute introduction. This would include the tease of the content coming up in the show along with guest information. As you complete the clock, you continue to fill it out in this manner. Now that you have the schedule for the show, you can use your brain power to make each piece of content amazing. Be creative. Add details and stories to the notes. Know exactly how you will make it engaging. Get that call-to-action in there. Your clock will be similar in every episode. Most start with the show theme and intro. Most end with the closing. The meat in between might change. The clock allows you to be creative. SPONTANEITY Many people refuse to rehearse any part of their podcast, because they feel it will remove all spontaneity from the show. Think about a speech you have given. When you have only rehearsed the speech a couple times, anxiety sets in right before you go onstage. On the other hand, when you have rehearsed the speech many, many times, you eventually know it by heart. The anxiety level of presenting the material isn't as high. When you begin, you feel much more confident. The worry about making mistakes or forgetting parts isn't present. You relax. This is when the spontaneity kicks in. Spontaneity in your speech happens most when you aren't worried about the mechanics of the presentation. Your mind is allowed to move naturally through the material. This helps you become truly engaged with the audience and material. Wonderful, creative, spontaneous things happen when you reach this point. The same can be said for your podcast. When you know the material, have defined a specific goal for the show, and have mapped out a plan to achieve that goal, your podcast will be filled with many “oh wow” moments. The show clock allows you to rehearse and organize the content before you hit record. It will put you at ease and allow you to be creative. Try it this week. Download the show clock and organize your content for your next episode. You can download the PTC Show Clock template in the worksheet section online at PodcastTalentCoach.com. Next week, you'll learn how to make the best use of your co-host to create compelling content and engage your listeners. You can find my podcast and other tools to help you create great content at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's turn your information into engaging entertainment.

An Inside Look At My Podcast Creation Process – Episode 134 Do you struggle to find time to create your podcast each week? I think it is a challenge we all face at some point in time. I have a few tips that can help you streamline your process while still creating great content. This week, I want to walk you through the process I use when creating my podcast every week. This is part of a content creation series. Last week, we discussed reviewing your show to improve your content. Determining your goal for the episode and evaluating your progress is a critical step for improvement. Over the next couple weeks, we will talk about organizing your content and making the best use of your co-host. This podcast started nearly 3 years ago. I knew I could use the knowledge I've gained over the past 25 years in radio to help podcasters improve their shows. When I began recording the show, the process would take me hours every week. It felt like I would get one show posted and promoted only to begin creating the next episode. Over time, I learned that I needed to spend more time promoting my show than I was spending to create the content. The content needed to be great. But it wouldn't have any effect if nobody knew about it. The key is spending 25% of your time creating great content and 75% of your time promoting that content. To free up time to promote your podcast, you need to streamline the content creation process. Find the areas that can be combined, removed or refined in order to shorten the time it takes to create your podcast. (SEE MY RESOURCES HERE.) 60-second Content Creation Worksheet I use the 60-second blog content planner from Ryan Deiss to lay out my show content for months at a time. The planner helps me group content and episodes with similar topics. The plan is fluid. The topics change if listener feedback or topics of the day warrant a move. The planner simply gives me a basic framework. The planner includes episode date, post type, category and headline. I also include call-to-action, offer and marketing info in the plan. It is flexible. You can customize it in a way that fits you best. I took a few hours one Saturday and completed the planner. Topic Development Worksheet This helps me flush out the focus of the episode. Download it for free at PodcastTalentcoach.com. Why is the topic relevant? How will you make the audience care? What emotion do you hope to stir? Where will you take the topic? There are 11 total questions on the worksheet to help you focus and make the content as powerful as possible. I use the topic from the planner to complete the worksheet. On a Saturday morning, I will usually complete 2 or 3 worksheets for upcoming episodes. These 3 worksheets take me about an hour to complete. Show Outline After I complete the worksheet, I create a show outline. These are the big points I want to hit during the episode. This will serve as the framework as I record. After the outline is complete, I add any details that need to be included. This would include names, web addresses, examples, stories or anything else that will support my topic. Each outline will take me about an hour to complete. So, it takes about 3 hours to complete all three outlines. Overall, worksheets and outlines take me about four hours on a Saturday morning. Now I am ready to record. Batch Recording In order to avoid feeling like all of my time is eaten by the content creation process, I batch my recording whenever possible. After creating my outlines, I am ready to record three episodes. This usually takes place on Sunday mornings for me. I head to the studio and knock out a batch of episodes. To record my 30-minute podcast, it usually takes me about an hour. This includes recording, editing, processing and saving. Knocking out all three episodes usually takes me about three hours. All in, writing, recording and editing three shows will take me about 7 hours of time. However, because I have batched the process, I am now set for three weeks. If you average it out, the time is just over two hours a week. The batch process frees up a lot of time to promote the show. Post and Promote Podcast Talent Coach podcast is posted late Wednesday night. I upload the show to Libsyn. Then, I post the Libsyn link, show notes, all website links and a graphic on my website. This will typically take me about an hour. After the show is posted, I create my e-mail to all of the members on my list. I find ways to help them in addition to the content. Making this e-mail free and valuable is critical. I want to be able to provide my members information they can put to work immediately. This includes tips, resources, links and free downloads. The promotion of the episode is not the sole intent of the e-mail, though it is an important part. To further promote the episode, I post the graphic I created for the post on Twitter and Facebook. The promotion of the show requires another hour or so. That is two hours of posting a promoting each Wednesday night. Now, I have given myself the rest of the week to engage on social media and comment on other shows. I can use the time to post to forums and appear on other podcasts. My coaching work with other podcasters also takes up time during the week. Overall, my podcasting endeavors requires about ten hours a week on average. I keep the work concentrated, focused and batched where possible. This allows me more time to work on my business rather than in it. (see "The E-Myth Revisited".) This week, take time to assess your entire process. Where can you batch your process? How can you streamline your content creation? Download the Podcast Talent Coach Topic Development Worksheet for free online at PodcastTalent Coach.com. Let that help you structure your episode. Find the link to Ryan Deiss' tool HERE. Begin to tighten your process to allow you more time to promote your show. FIND ALL OF MY RESOURCES HERE. If you would like a Podcast Talent Coach workbook that will walk you through the entire batch of worksheets step-by-step, it is available in paperback or Kindle versions online at PodcastTalentCoach.com. Next week, you'll learn how to organize your podcast content to create focus with powerful, impactful content. You can find my podcast and other tools to help you create great content at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's turn your information into engaging entertainment.

Do It Yourself Podcast Critique – Episode 133 Do you fear sounding like a beginner? Do you have a desire to have stronger content? On this episode, I want to help you learn to review and critique your own podcast in order to make your content stronger. Reviewing your content on a regular basis is critical to your improvement. Learning how to critique yourself will help you sound more prepared, more organized and more like a true, professional broadcaster. When I was beginning my broadcasting career, I feared people would see me as someone simply trying to play the part of a professional. I didn't have any idea what I was doing, let alone how to get better. I wanted to have more credibility. How could I get there? Over 20 years, I learned to review and critique my own show through coaches, consultants, articles, conferences and mentors. My broadcasting career began while I was in college studying for my architecture degree. What started as something fun to make college money suddenly turned into a career. Here I was, a college kid studying architecture, trying to pretend I was a professional broadcaster. I had no idea what I was doing. It was all trial and error. Now, 25 years later, I am trying to help podcasters avoid the growing pains I suffered learning by diving head first into the deep end and quickly figuring out how to swim. Over the years, the mistakes I made were plenty. In radio, on-air talent learn to be better through a process called the aircheck session. These are some of the most painful meetings you could have if the coach doesn't have a teacher's heart. My aircheck sessions were typically run by my Program Director of the radio station. I would bring a recording of my show. We would listen to the show together. Then, my Program Director would tell me everything I'm doing wrong. Over the next week, I would try to improve. We would go through the entire process the following week. Once I was able to find a Program Director who had my interests at heart, we began working on my strengths. We would find the area that were strong and try to do more of that. This became a much more enjoyable process. Over the years, I learned to recognize those strengths myself. My show continuously got stronger. I was then able to critique myself on a regular basis. By sharing my scars and battle wounds, along with the processes, tips and skills I have learned over the years, I can help you fast track the road to great podcasting. Over the past 20 years, I have been coaching radio talent with their shows. I have helped many radio shows reach the top of the ratings. My show has also been at the top for years. This success is built on a quality review and critique of each show. When you learn to recognize the powerful parts of your episode, the will naturally become part of your content over time. I have developed a Show Review Worksheet to help you review your show. You can download the worksheet for free. This tool is one of nine worksheets included in the Podcast Talent Coach Workbook. The book includes complete explanations and instructions for each worksheet. You can get the workbook in a paperback or Kindle version. Here are the questions included on the Podcast Talent Coach Show Review Worksheet. These questions will help you review and refine your show. QUESTIONS What did you hope to accomplish on this show? Did you succeed? Part of your show prep should have included a goal and focus for the episode. We walked through that in the episode about show prep. Did you accomplish that goal? To create more engagement with your listeners, your show needs to take the next step. Where do you take your content from here? How do you continue the conversation? Did you succeed? How did you make the audience care? Engagement is created when you stir emotion. Why is much more powerful than how. How did you make them care during this episode? Where were the “oh wow” moments? You do not need to make your entire show amazing. You simply need a few memorable spots. Create a couple moments to make your listener say “oh wow”. This is how you get your listeners to share your content. Find the “oh wow” moments in your episode. Where were the surprises? Surprise and delight. That will keep listeners returning week after week. Surprise will bring a smile to your listener's face. This is where your information becomes entertainment. Where were your surprises? What were the powerful words you used? Words are powerful when you make the right choice. Selecting smart words help draw pictures in the mind of your listener. Thick and lush evoke two different emotions. Sad and devastated spark two different visions. Find the words in your episode that jump out of the speakers. What did you like about the show? When you are interested, you are interesting. What parts impressed you? What was memorable about the show? Find the one thing that people will remember. Your listener will not remember the entire show. What is your one thing? What worked? Did you try something new in this episode? Did it work? Push yourself to create new content in every episode. Then evaluate that content to see if it was a success. What could have been better? This is the other end of the previous questions. Where can you improve? How did you position the story from the listener's point of view? We often talk about “what's in it for me”. Did you position your content from your listener's point of view? How did you include the listener, making them part of the story? Great marketing is more like a mirror. Reflect the life of your listener. Make them forget they are listening to a podcast by putting them in the story. Where did you include your listener? At what points did you introduce and reset the show/topic? Resetting the show topic is important to maintain the flow of the show. If the theme of the show is improvement, and you have a few different topics that support that theme, reset before each topic. Help support the overall concept by reintroducing the theme that ties it all together. Where was that apparent in the show? How did it appear you were prepared for every element? Keep your notes close as you record your content. We discussed this in the episode about show prep. Did you sound prepared with every piece of information you presented? What did you reveal about yourself to help foster the relationship with the audience? We talk about doing business with those we know, like and trust. Where did you reveal things to allow your listeners to begin to know you? What stories did you tell? Stories are the best way to allow listeners to get to know you. When you tell stories, you reveal your thoughts, beliefs and values. Find the stories in your episode. Learn to recognize when stories can be included. What details did you use that were spectacular and visual? Details help stories come to life. Specifics make the story more believable. This is similar to powerful language. Where did you use vivid details? Where did you use active language? (walking instead of walked, eating, not ate) Listeners can see active language. You can see “walking”. It is difficult to see “walked”. If you want your content to come to life in the theater of the mind, use active language. Find some in your episode. What crutches do you use that need to be removed? Crutches are words you use too often to fill time. These are typically phrases you use when you cannot think of anything else to say. Where do you hear crutches in your episode? What is your plan to make tomorrow better? Find three things in the 19 questions that you can work on this week. Do you find yourself struggling to find time to create your podcast every week? Next week, I am going to walk you through step-by-step on how I create my content. I would love to help you with your podcast. E-mail me any time at Coach@PodcastTalentCoach.com. You can find my podcast and other tools to help you create great content at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's turn your information into engaging entertainment.

How To Get Podcast Listeners To Return Next Week – Episode 132 When you want your listeners to stick around and listen to what you have to say, you need to give them a compelling reason. Your listener needs to anticipate what is to come later in the show. You need to excite them. You need to tease them. Anticipation is a key feature to storytelling. Your story should build just like a good plot builds in a movie. You need to make your audience anticipate the content that is on the way. Your story is similar to a vacation you are planning to take. The fantastic anticipation for the trip is almost as pleasurable as the trip itself. You can't wait for the trip to arrive. You want your listener to feel the same way about your story. When your listener can't wait for the story to arrive, you have created some great content with a powerful tease. Your listeners will get more enjoyment from your show when they get the tease payoff more often. The pleasure of the “oh wow” factor will be increased. The joy of anticipation will keep your audience coming back for more. There are three steps to creating an effective tease. #1 - Intrigue Me When you promote content that is coming up later in the show, you must give your audience an intriguing reason to stick around. It isn't enough to simply say, “A great story about this weekend is coming up.” Few will stick around for the payoff. The tease lacks stickiness. It doesn't hook the listener. #2 - Give Them 80% To create an effective tease, give your listener 80% of the story while leaving out the most important 20%. It is similar to giving the setup for a joke without providing the punch line. Lead your listener right up to the line, but make them wait to step over. #3 - Make Your Tease Unsearchable Make it impossible to search online. You want your listener to keep listening for the payoff to your set up. If I can simply search on Google for the answer to your tease, there is no reason to keep listening. I can just look it up and be done with it. The three steps to powerful teases will help you begin to engage your audience on the way to building powerful relationships. Use the three steps in your show recap to entice people to listen to the episode. Then, use them again during the introduction of the show to get listeners to enjoy the entire recording. You've worked hard to create your content. A lot of effort has been exerted on your part while writing and recording your show. Make your content intriguing by using these three steps in the art of the tease. When you use the art of the tease, your listeners will spend more time with your show. The increased frequency of the tease payoffs will help your audience enjoy your content more. When your show is more entertaining, it becomes more engaging. When you truly engage your audience with your content, you can begin building powerful relationships. That's where trust and influence with your listener begins. Next week, I will teach you how to critique your podcast on your own. You will learn how to find areas to improve and steps to take to make your show stronger. I would love to help you with your podcast. E-mail me any time at Coach@PodcastTalentCoach.com. You can find my podcast and other tools to help you create great content at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's turn your information into engaging entertainment.

Using Theater of the Mind to Create Powerful Podcast Engagement - Episode 131 CREATE THEATER OF THE MIND The use of active language will stir the imagination of your listener and help you connect to your audience. Put the listener in the moment. Make the listener see the action you are describing. "I'm walking in the bustling restaurant and shaking off the cold without even watching where I'm walking.” That is active language. In your mind, you can see me walking in. Sure, your restaurant may be different from my restaurant. That difference is what makes theater of the mind great. You see it the way you think it fits best for you. Your scene doesn't need to match my scene in order for the story to make sense. It is your theater. Active language connects each listener to the story in his or her own way. It will create strong audience engagement. Active language during storytelling is a powerful tool you can use while you're building your podcast. Create a great podcast brand. Create theater of the mind. Here is the way to create amazing images in the theater of the mind of your listener. MAKE THEM FORGET There is a primary reason most people seek entertainment. They want to escape reality. Help your listener make their escape by making them forget they are listening to a recording. People want to forget about their troubles of the day. To get away, they watch movies, go to concerts, watch television, listen to radio and spend time with your podcast. People get wrapped up in another time, place and story. This makes them forget about their reality, even if it is only for a short time. Take them to another place with your podcast by using stories. Make your storytelling so strong that their imaginations put your listener in another time and place. That's what great storytelling is all about. That's what great relationships are all about. It is engagement. So, how do you make them forget? How do you engage and entertain to the point where your listener is so engrossed with your content that they forget about everything else? What are the steps to create a great story? Take a few tips from movies and television. Tell compelling stories just like the movies. Here are the five things you need to remember in order create great tales for your podcast. HAVE GREAT CHARACTERS Every story has great characters. You may love them. You may hate them. Either way, you remember them, because they stir emotions within you. The characters are well-defined. You feel like you know them. During the story, you find yourself either rooting for them or against them. Podcasts create these characters in various ways. It may be the host that is the character. The host may tell stories about others. The people defined in the e-mail questions answered during the show could be the characters of the stories. You could take phone calls or voicemail questions from people. Their voice alone helps define their character. Live guests with colorful backgrounds are also a source for great characters. "Billie Jo, single mother of two who works as a waitress in Tuscaloosa, Alabama to make ends meet” is somebody you can begin to envision in your imagination. “She uses her kids to shoplift” completely changes your perception of her. Great characters get your audience wrapped up in the story, so they forget they are listening to a recording. CREATE SOME TENSION All good stories have a plot. As we learned in composition class, great drama and tension create a solid plot. The protagonist must overcome the dilemma. Your listener begins to wonder what will happen next. Podcasts that answer listener questions create some tension. The listener typically has a problem they need solved. This typically isn't an Earth-shattering problem. However, it is a form of tension. Great guests have usually overcome some obstacle to achieve their success. These obstacles create great tension in the story. Help your guests define that tension. Tension in the story gets your audience wondering what will happen next. Once your listener gets focused on your story, they begin to forget about their reality. That's what great stories are all about. UNIQUE, VIVID, MENTAL IMAGES When someone tells a story, on the radio or in a podcast, it is theater of the mind. When you hear the old time radio show describe the dim light on in the servant's quarters, the scenery is playing out in your mind in a unique way unlike the way anyone else could envision it. No other person is imagining the clothing of the characters the exact same way you are imagining them. That mental theater is unique to you. You are listening and imagining by yourself. Podcasts make the one-on-one approach even more important. Podcasts are often enjoyed through headphones. Your audience is truly listening by themselves. The headphones block out all other sounds and distractions. You have multiple “one person” audiences at the same time. Yet, it is still one person. Connect with your “one person” audience by creating a great theater. The theater will be different for each listener, because they are using their individual imagination. Create a movie and put the listener in it. Make the story an individual experience for the listener. Engage the listener with vivid details and a fantastic storyline. Make them forget they are listening to a podcast. Create great theater of the mind. Create unique, vivid, mental images. USE GREAT DETAILS Details make stories come to life. When you use vivid details, your listener can smell the air. They see the colors. They can hear the sounds. Your details put the listener in the moment. You can tell a story in one of two ways. The first way would have no details. I stopped at a diner to grab some dinner. That line does very little to stir the imagination and transport you to another time and place. The second way incorporates vivid details. Dinner would be the first meal I would have that day. I stepped into the roadside diner and shook off the snowy, December cold. The beat of the jukebox and bubbly chatter of the locals began to warm me even before I could take a seat on a barstool at the counter to order my biscuits and gravy. The detailed story begins to stir your imagination. You can feel the cold. You can hear the jukebox and crowd. You can almost smell the diner food. When those senses are activated, you begin to forget you're listening to a recording. HAVE A RESOLUTION The resolution is the payoff to every great story. It is the climax to the movie plot. It is the “happily ever after”. The resolution puts the bow on the whole package. Your resolution comes when you follow through with whatever you were hoping to make your audience feel. It could be the answer to the question. It could be the breakthrough success of your guest. You could wrap up the story with the punchline to the funny tale. Your resolution is where you solve the conflict and tension. ME, NOT US Talk to your audience one-on-one. Make your podcast personal by treating every listener as an individual. The more personal you get, the more engaged your listener will become. Notice the tone of this writing. I'm talking directly to you. I'm helping you with your podcast. I'm not addressing “you guys”. I'm not talking to “all of you”. Sure, I'm writing for many. But when you read this, I'm writing for you and only you. If I'm talking to you, you will in turn feel responsible to listen. If I'm talking to “all of you”, it becomes easier to assume somebody else will listen if you want to stay focused on something else. Engage by speaking one-on-one. When you record your podcast, you need to create that wonderful theater of the mind. It doesn’t matter if you’re reading fiction or talking about gardening, put your audience in the moment. Transport them to another time and place. Make your podcast entertaining by creating great stories using the five elements. Great stories have great characters. Engage your audience with some tension. Spark the imagination of your audience with vivid details. Wrap the story up with the resolution. Finally, speak to your listener with a one-on-one tone. Stories help your listener forget about their troubles of the day. Try to incorporate stories in every podcast. Stories will help them escape reality. Make your listener forget they are listening to a recording. Next week, we will cover how to get listeners to return to your show week after week. You can find my podcast and other tools to help you create great content at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's turn your information into engaging entertainment.

Can You Tell Stories Like Walt Disney? – Episode 130 Walt Disney was one of the greatest storytellers of our time. When you examine his work, you realize he wasn't a great story writer. He was a fantastic story teller. Snow White, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, Bambi, Cinderella, Peter Pan, Jungle Book. All are stories written by someone else. Disney just turned them into great stories that sometimes didn't follow the original exactly. Snow White – "Snow White" is a German fairy tale known across much of Europe and is today one of the most famous fairy tales worldwide. The Brothers Grimm published it in 1812 in the first edition of their collection Grimm's Fairy Tales. Pinocchio - The Adventures of Pinocchio is a novel for children by Italian author Carlo Collodi, written in Florence. The first half was originally a serial in 1881 and 1882, and then later completed as a book for children in February 1883. Fantasia – The movie was developed around the Sorcerer's Apprentice, a German poem written in 1797 by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Bambi - Bambi, a Life in the Woods, was originally published in Austria in 1923 and written by Felix Salten. Cinderella – This movie started as a European folk tale. The first written European version of the story was published in Naples, by Giambattista Basile, in 1634. Peter Pan - Peter Pan is a character created by Scottish novelist and playwright J. M. Barrie in 1902. Peter Pan, or The Boy Who Wouldn't Grow Up, premiered on 27 December 1904 in London. Jungle Book - The Jungle Book (1894) is a collection of stories by English author Rudyard Kipling. The stories were first published in magazines in 1893–94. Even recent, successful movies created by the Disney company after Walt Disney's death were based on stories written by others. Hercules – Greek myth Mulan – Chinese legend Tarzan – 1914 book by Edgar Rice Burroughs Tangled – Base on Rapunzel published in 1812 Brothers Grimm THE DISNEY FILTER Walt Disney's upbringing shaped his view on life and influenced how he told stories. According to the book “Walt Disney – Hollywood's Dark Prince” by Marc Eliot, Disney's life on his boyhood Missouri farm was harsh. Walt was unsure of his father, because he had no birth certificate. He grew up in a very strict household where his father often used corporal punishment. Walt's mother usually did very little to tame the strick hand of the senior Disney. Growing up on the farm, Walt and his brother Roy were required to do chores to earn their keep. They would attend school during the day while working on the farm at night. There was no time for friends. Walt's friends were the various animals around the farm. The life Disney experienced on the farm influenced his films. If you study the films created by Disney while he was alive, you see the evidence. Most of Disney's feature-length films contain a protagonist with no father figure. The main character is typically a lonely outcast who has made friends with various animals. Think of your favorite Disney character. Does that individual fit that description? Cinderella. Snow White. Mowgli in the Jungle Book. Peter Pan. It is all right there. Disney didn't write great stories. He told great stories as seen through his filter. ELEMENTS OF GREAT STORIES There are four elements to a great story. Those elements include a reason to care, revealing the details, a powerful resolution and asking “what else?”. THE REASON Give your listener a reason to care. Begin with an engaging introduction. “Tell me if I’m gonna go to Hell for this…” That is a hook. What do you want the audience to feel? This is what your engaging introduction should answer. Make your introduction human. Stir emotion. Make it humorous, compelling or tragic. My radio coach Bill McMahon often asked what I would like to make the audience laugh at, marvel at or better understand. Find great emotions. They could include joy, sympathy, empathy, anger, tragedy, tenderness, humor, rage, patriotism or various other emotions. Your introduction should pull your listener into the story. Give them a roadmap. REVEAL THE DETAILS Details are more believable than generalities. Details reveal specifics about your thoughts, beliefs and character. This is how listeners get to know, like and trust you and your business. Use all 5 senses when telling your stories. We are creating visions in the theater of the mind of your listener. POWERFUL RESOLUTION Your powerful resolution is a strong reframing of introduction. This resolution puts a nice bow on the story. WHAT ELSE? Asking “What Else” will transform your show. This takes your story to a whole new level. This transforms your story from a nice piece of entertainment into an incredible piece of engaging content. When you ask “what else”, you let your story lead to something bigger. This might mean continuing the conversation on your Facebook page. You may solicit questions or thoughts from your listeners. The story might lead into a bigger discussion or interview or skit. The options are endless. Your “what else” step will also make your content unique and powerful. HOW YOU CAN BE A STORYTELLER You can become a powerful storyteller by funneling your content through your filter. Then, ask the four storytelling questions. What is the engaging set up? How will it be revealed in the story? What is the resolution? What else can you do with it? Try a few stories in your episode this week. Let me know how it goes. If you would like a Podcast Talent Coach worksheet to help you develop your stories, CLICK HERE. Next week, how your stories activate the theater of the mind for your listeners. Plus, how to use theater of the mind to create more engagement. You can find my podcast and other tools to help you create great content at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's turn your information into engaging entertainment.

Essential Elements of Powerful Storytelling – Episode 129 WHY STORYTELLING Have you noticed a lot of interview podcasts in your niche sound the same? We are hearing the same guests answer the same questions time and time again. How do you become unique in this sea of sameness? Storytelling can transform your podcast. THE POWER Stories let your audience get to know, like and trust you. These are critical elements in any business relationship. Out of stories come knowledge and friendship. Great storytellers create fans. Your stories help define you, your character and your personality. Stories also touch many more people. The appeal of stories is nearly universal. When you reveal things about yourself through stories, you begin to connect with, motivate and inspire your listeners. Don't fit in, stand out. Personal experiences are the only way to make the content your own. No other podcaster can recreate your stories the way you can. Your stories are unique to you. STORYTELLERS ARE EVERYWHERE There are examples of great storytellers throughout everyday life. You find great storytellers in songwriters. Movie makers are usually great storytellers rather than story writers. Many great movies are based on books written by someone else. These include movies such as Harry Potter, the Hunger Games, The Help, the Notebook, the DaVinci Code, and any of the John Grisham books. Great teachers and speakers are usually great storytellers. You can see examples of this in the bible and in fables that have been passed down through generations. Storytelling is also used by great speakers such as Zig Ziglar. ENGAGEMENT In podcasting, you cannot afford to be boring. Interest in your story never remains constant. When you tell a story, interest is either rising or falling. Your information can only become entertainment when interest is rising. A great story continues to develop the plot and raise the interest. Have you ever sat through a long, monotonous story that never seems to end? Interest is definitely falling with these stories. Keep your plot moving. CREATE TRUST Date your listeners. The privilege of talking to people who want to be talked to and selling things to people who want to be sold to is earned over time. Work to build friendships. After consistently building the friendship, you will earn the privilege to talk to your audience. Practice becoming a great storyteller. You will soon be developing friendships. BECOME A GREAT STORYTELLER To become a great storyteller, listen to yourself. Hear your thoughts. Have courage to record your personal connections. Once you have recorded your thoughts, reveal those thoughts through great stories. Think of your podcast as a friendship. Ask yourself, “Would I enjoy taking a one-hour car ride with this person every week?” Your listener is asking the same thing. They are deciding to spend quality time with you just like they do with friends. Stories allow others to live vicariously through you. They can experience the highs without putting in the work. Listeners can experience the lows without suffering the pain. Friendships develop over time. They create trust. Friendship comes from self revelation. This is where your stories become powerful. Next week, we will cover the elements of great stories and what you can learn from Walt Disney, one of the greatest storytellers of our time. Do you need help with your podcast? E-mail me any time at Coach@PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's see what we can do. You can find my podcast and other tools to help you create great content at www.PodcastTalentCoach.com. Let's turn your information into engaging entertainment.

Stronger Content With Better Podcast Prep (Free: Show Prep Cheat Sheet) – Episode 128 Do you wish your content was stronger. When you add stories and proper preparation to your podcast, your show will create more engagement. Your episode could have more momentum and your presentation more spontaneity if you used these podcast preparation steps before you begin to record. WHY DO WE PREPARE? All great performers prepare. Athletes. Speakers. Actors. Attorneys. Preparation is the key to success. Great radio performers typically spend one hour of preparation for every hour of show time. Before you begin to record your podcast, you should spend just as much time preparing for the show. Your preparation is very similar to mapping out a trip. You not only need to know where you are going, you need to know how to get there. As you develop your podcast episode, you first decide which topics you want to cover. Most podcasters figure that is enough prep. The topic is only half the battle. You must then plan what you hope to do with each topic. What emotions do you hope to elicit with the content? What approach will you take to get there? Before you open the mic, plan out your show. Jot down some notes. Find the facts you need to support your story. Write down the few important points you need to mention as you're answering questions or making your case. Then, make sure you stick to your plan. Dan Miller does a wonderful job of this in his podcast “48 Days to The Work You Love”. He knows exactly which questions he wants to answer in his show. By planning and preparing, you give your show more momentum and energy. Your content will continue to move forward. When you fail to prepare, your podcast will hit lulls as you search for your next thought, transition or direction. KILLING SPONTANEITY Many people refuse to rehearse any part of their podcast, because they feel it will remove all spontaneity from the show. Think about a speech you have given. When you have only rehearsed a couple times, anxiety sets in. You get butterflies when you anticipate blowing it. Thinking about making a mistake makes you nervous. You start to worry you may forget. This all happens, because you are not prepared. On the other hand, when you have rehearsed the speech many, many times, you eventually know it by heart. Comfort with the material makes you feel much more confident. The worry isn't as present. The preparation has helped you relax. Now that you are relaxed, spontaneity has the opportunity to kick in. Spontaneity in your speech happens most when you aren't worried about the mechanics of the presentation. Your mind is allowed to move naturally through the material. Your spontaneity helps you become truly engaged with the audience and material. Wonderful, creative, spontaneous things happen when you reach this point. The same can be said for your podcast. When you know the material, have defined a specific goal for the show, and have mapped out a plan to achieve that goal, your podcast will be filled with many “oh wow” moments. When you worry about content during the show, you have no brain power left for spontaneous things to happen. Plan and prepare. Are you too busy thinking about the next question and blocking out the spontaneity? Your preparation will help you create unique content. I have developed a Podcast Talent Coach worksheet that will help you prepare for each episode. This worksheet contains 5 steps to help you plan your show and shape your content. WORKSHEET 1. What are the interesting topics you hope to address on this particular episode? 2. What do you hope to accomplish? This includes both the topic and the show overall. What is the goal of the show. What do you hope to make your audience feel? 3. How will you treat each specific topic you hope to address? What will you do with the content? This could include answering the question, demonstrating the answer, playing some audio, interviewing a guest, showing charts to support your answer, or various other tactics. Begin to develop your fantastic stories at this step. 4. Create an outline for the flow of the show topics. This is important for the show introduction as you set up the show. Your outline will also keep you organized as you move through the content. 5. What supporting information will you need for the show? Organize and highlight the information for easy access during the show. This is how the spontaneity will develop during your episode. Now, you are ready to record. Put in the time to properly prepare. Your content will be much stronger. Your episode will have more momentum. Your presentation will have more spontaneity Find the FREE Podcast Talent Coach Show Prep Cheat Sheet HERE. To order the full PODCAST TALENT COACH WORKBOOK that will help you implement this worksheet with full explanations, visit www.PodcastTalentCoach.com. If you would like me to personally coach you through the process, CLICK HERE. Let's turn your information into engaging entertainment.