On Air: How Podcasts Grew My Brand
By: Christina Nicholson
In our digital age, it’s easy to get lost in the shuffle of world news, stock market updates, and even celebrity drama while trying to gain brand recognition using traditional media placements. While brainstorming ways to engage with my target audience, it sprung on me: pitching my story to podcasts.
In my experience, I’ve found that being featured on and starting my own podcast effectively grew my thought leadership and converted listeners to paying customers.
Here’s how I tapped into the potential of podcasts, from the biggest mistakes people make when they pitch and how to become a regular guest on podcasts that your targeted audience engages with frequently.
Hooked at First Listen
I started listening to podcasts when I left my job as a TV reporter and anchor. My goal was to learn about SEO and blogging to grow my new lifestyle blog, Christina All Day.
One episode led to another, then another. Six months later, I was leaving my job at a PR agency to start my own business. I was unhappy there, and the knowledge I was getting from my headphones incited something in me. If all these podcast hosts and podcast guests could start their own businesses, then why couldn’t I? I didn’t need any capital to get started. I provided a service, public relations, so the barrier to entry was low.
My intention for listening to podcasts started to morph. Instead of listening to learn how to grow my hobby, I started focusing on how I could start a business and gain clients. After working in the media industry my entire career, I had the servicing part down. But when it came to sales, I was more than uncomfortable. How do you even start to get clients anyway?
It didn’t take long to look at my behavior to help me answer that question. I needed to get on podcasts to talk about my expertise. If people liked what they heard, they’d find me online and take the next steps to work together. It sounds too good to be true, but I quickly learned it worked.
Being a Guest
My favorite podcast was (and still is) “Smart Passive Income” with Pat Flynn. It’s the first podcast I started listening to in 2015. So, when I thought of pitching myself as a guest to talk about my expertise, this was the first one that came to mind. Plus, I know the audience was comprised of small business owners like me.
Getting on one of the most popular podcasts in the world isn’t easy. At the time, Pat received hundreds of pitches daily from people wanting to share their expertise with his listeners. Standing out in his inbox was no easy feat. So, instead of sending an email pitch like everyone else, I recorded a two-minute video sharing who I was and why I’d be a great guest on his podcast.
Then … crickets. I didn’t hear back. Thanks to analytics, I noticed Pat didn’t watch the video pitch I sent. So, I followed up.
Jackpot! After that follow-up email, Pat’s lovely assistant Jessica replied, and we scheduled a day and time to record an episode.
That one podcast appearance led to a significant spike in subscribers to my email list, resulting in new clients willing to invest their hard-earned money in my services. Then, one of those new subscribers ended up purchasing my online course. Two years later, Pat chose me to join his exclusive mastermind group. I was on his podcast a second time, and he asked me to speak on stage with him at Podcast Movement, an annual conference for the podcasting industry.
Here are three tips if you want to pitch a podcast to be a guest:
- Make your pitch unique. You want the podcast producer or host to say, “Wow! I’ve never received a pitch like this before.”
- Be specific. Instead of pitching something like, “Ways to grow your business using Instagram,” go deeper and pitch, “three things I did to close five sales each month in my Instagram DMs.”
- Follow up. This tip sounds very cliche, but most of what you land will be on the follow-up. Use my experience as an example. If I didn’t follow up with Pat Flynn, I never would have been on his podcast, and everything that followed would not have happened.
Becoming the Host
I built my business by being a guest on podcasts. After a few years, people started asking me why I didn’t have my own. It was one of those things on my to-do list for “when I had time.” A friend and fellow podcaster, Dana Malstaff from the “Boss Mom” podcast, told me to make time for it. So, I did.
“Become a Media Maven” launched in the fall of 2018. I’ve hosted episodes by myself and brought on amazing guests who have become friends and taught me valuable lessons. Each week, more people find the podcast and learn media strategies, business tips, marketing tricks, and tools for operations to help them build their small businesses.
Since starting my podcast, I’ve turned to social media for promotion. By turning on the camera to capture footage for YouTube and other social media platforms, I’ve captured new clients and audiences through longer and shorter format videos that get them excited about listening to the full clip.
Whatever tickles your fancy—whether work-related or not—there is a podcast for you. The next time you find yourself in the car, doing laundry, washing the dishes, or on a walk, open your podcast app and find something you’re interested in or want to know more about. Who knows? It might change your life.
Facet Wealth, Inc. (“Facet”) is an SEC registered investment adviser headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. This is not an offer to sell securities or the solicitation of an offer to purchase securities. This is not investment, financial, legal, or tax advice. Past performance is not a guarantee of future performance. The promoter/influencer of this endorsement was compensated by Facet Wealth, Inc. and that compensation may have included free or discounted planning services. The endorsement does not guarantee the same or similar experience.