I haven’t released any episodes for three weeks, but I haven’t really missed it. And I also haven’t been inspired to go and get behind the microphone. It’s not that I’ve fallen out of love with podcasting. It’s that I’ve been in off-work mode and I haven’t listened to any podcasts myself.
And not listening to podcasts means I don’t get that “Ooo, ooo, I want to do it now!” It’s interesting how listening to them drives my own need to podcast.
My first 2 recordings this year have been with co-hosts, which is great, so today’s episode is about that.
But first, some updates from the industry and myself:
01.35 Spotify has introduced ratings.
Of course, they’re trying to get more listeners there, by increasing the opportunity for engagement and promotion.
This blog post by Anchor explains how it works and has some suggestions of how to make the best of it. Podcast ratings on Spotify: An easy way to make a good first impression—and draw in new listeners
Remember that some platforms say that if you mention one, you need to mention them too! Something to be mindful of.
By the way, I haven’t been able to find how to rate a podcast on my Spotify app…
07.20
If your show has an Instagram account you might want to fill in this form to be promoted on Amazon Music’s Instagram account https://form.jotform.com/212855057995065
Samsung podcasts looks promising from a download point of view, for Adventures, but I don’t think gastronostalgia is on – there Apple, then Spotify
10.51
On Adventures in Podcasting news, I’m tweaking how I get myself out there. I’ve come to the conclusion that my interest in podcasting comes from it being a medium to get your voice out there, not just content marketing, creating your space to express yourself
I’ve also done a couple of voiceover gigs in studios recently – I talk a little bit about that too.
16.03
Adventures in Co-Hosting
My first 2 recordings have been with co-hosts, which is great, because there’s a non-negotiable time to start reading (with some flexibility of course) and you’ve got to be on top form. Plus, it’s fun to talk.
I recorded one episode of My Pocket Psych and one for Gastronostalgia.
There’s no way of working with someone else. MPP is heavily structured; with Gastro, we have a few notes.
For Gastro, we recorded 3 episodes, negotiating who kicks off which as we go along. I had even forgotten our staple welcome!
(I mention Notion and Trello.)
Their aims are also different: With Gastro, almost anything goes, whereas with MPP, the business’ reputation, and ours as professionals are at stake.
The relationship with the two co-hosts is also interesting.
With Richard, a friendship has emerged from a professional relationship, with Tomas its the other way around.
The dynamics of the relationship are part of the content and affect the listener’s experience
Finding a co-host is not easy. I’ve been very lucky and it’s worked out well – you don’t have to have a relationship beforehand, but you need to have complete interest + curiosity about your topic, regardless of why you are doing it.
Your experience as podcaster is also a consideration. You both don’t need to be experienced, but at least have experience of content creation or being in front of an audience in some shape or form. For example, Tomas is a journalist and did one interview podcast. But he’s done loads of content and totally gets the concept of creating a community .
Richard and I actually worked on a previous show. We got to know each other through it.
Something to look out for when you’re working with a co-host:
Be clear about who drives the content. With Richard, it’s very clear, its his show and he keeps me updated. Also, it’s all online for me to see.
With Tomas, we drop ideas and then decide what we’re recording. One thing we’re not currently doing is deciding who dries the episode ie who moves on the content and starts wrapping up, but organically were finding it.
I hope this helps you to start working with a co-host – remember this is one of the services I offer.
If you find the podcast useful, and are looking for media hosting and web hosting, consider using my affiliate links to Buzzsprout and Bluehost.