On September 4th, I was interviewed by RadioInk Magazine and contributed my thoughts on how radio broadcasters can become better podcasters. If you are interested in reading the article in full you can click here.

As I reviewed the article, I realized the advice that I was giving to radio broadcasters applies to just about anyone who has a podcast or is starting a podcast.  

The content below will have a little bit of inside baseball lingo, but it doesn't detract to the overall idea of creating a successful podcast.  In fact, radio broadcasters are content creators just like anyone else.  The only difference is that they have access to better equipment and more ability to create valuable content.  

Please take this into account when you're reading this Q & A and enjoy!

Radio Ink: If podcasting were a nine-inning game, where is radio in that game right now?

Shannon: First, I’m going to exclude public radio from this section...

Today we're talking all about plagiarism and whether or not your podcast is in threat of being accused of plagiarizing someone else's content.

The reason why I bring up today's topic is because as of recently there was an article that was posted about a particular set of podcasters who supposedly lifted some content from a journalist--and that journalist accused those podcasters of taking his content and using it as their own.

What ended up happening was that those particular podcasters ended up deleting a number of episodes because they feared as though maybe they were plagiarizing some other piece of content.

Is this the right course of action that those podcasters could have taken? I don't know.

I don't think that it's wise to necessarily delete episodes, but maybe that's what needed to happen anyway. Secondly, it all comes down to the process of when you're creating content and when you're researching.  Are you citing the correct sources. Let's examine what you need to do...

"Should I use Soundcloud for my podcast? " With so many audio hosting services available to podcasters, it can be difficult to choose the best one for your needs. Perhaps Soundcloud is the platform for you? Maybe it isn't.  Let's do a brief examination of the platform.

I Don't Use Soundcloud Anymore

Let's make this short and tell you that I'm not particularly a fan of Soundcloud.

When I first started my own podcast "Be The Experience," I first went with Soundcloud. When I went with this service, everyone kept telling me to use Libsyn or Blubrry because the services provided much more for a similar price.

Although I had used Blubrry in the past, I thought, "You know what? I'm going to try Soundcloud so that I can see whether the service is worthy of being used."

At the time when I signed up for Soundcloud, I received an email a week later--from Soundcloud--that the service was the verge of shutting down. At the time, Soundcloud hadn't figured out a way to monetize to the point...

Can you listen to podcasts in a Google Search? Is it important for podcasters?

Quick answer: YES, this is VERY relevant for you and your podcast.

Google recently posted an article on their website about podcasts now showing up in search results. For example, if you put in "crossfit podcasts" in the search bar on Google, you're going to be served a certain number of results along with webpages, new stories, videos, and now podcast that all relate back to crossfit.

This is something I think is important for you as a podcaster--whether you're a comedy podcast, a business podcast, true crime podcast, etc.

How Does This Feature Work From The Search Query End and How Will It Work For Podcasters?

Full disclosure, I am NOT an SEO mega-expert, so I'm just sharing with you my assumptions of how these results are showing up in a Google Search.

If I had to guess, this is what is happening:  Google is pulling keywords from the title of the podcast episode and as well as the keywords in...

Is there a way you can stream your podcast live without using Facebook Live or YouTube Live?

I know there are YouTubers creating live videos as podcasts and I think this is a wonderful way to get your podcast out there in another format. I do realize people are listening to podcasts on YouTube, but there are still people who do listen to podcasts on their smart device

It's important to understand that live streaming software can really help when it comes down to acquiring a new audience--especially an audience that is in real time.

I want to talk about a new "software" that came out just a few weeks ago through Castbox. If you're not familiar with what Castbox is, it's a podcatcher where you can listen to podcasts through their application on your iPhone or your Android device.

It's very similar to Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, etc. Basically, Castbox pulls RSS feeds into their application so you can search for podcasts..

As of a few weeks ago, they released a new...

 Today we're talking all about whether or not you should have your podcast inside of Spotify.

When I put my podcast up for the first time--whether I got my hosting service through Libsyn, Spreaker or Blubrry, Anchor (yes, I said Anchor--even though that a platform that I don't recommend that you use)--you can get your podcasts listed inside of Spotify.

There was some recent news that had come out and it's actually some recent news that came out a while back.  As of this blog post we are talking about a Spotify now positioning themselves as a syndication platform officially.

You can now submit your RSS feed into their platform's website.

So this means that Spotify is just like Apple Podcasts. It's also like submitting an RSS feed to Google podcasts, Stitcher, and all the other syndication platforms.

The only difference with Spotify compared to the other platforms is that Spotify is now stepping up their game in terms of the analytics. And now I want to go over some of the...

Podcasting can be an incredibly fun and rewarding activity if you aren’t completely lost when you start the process.  Whether you’ve you’ve started a podcast or have dipped your toes into the podcast waters--but haven’t gone “all-in” on this journey--I want to share some of my top tips that can help you create a better podcast.

As a 19-year radio personality, I dove into podcasting nearly 10 years ago as a consumer--a highly-critical ONE who had an edge on most podcasters that were in the audio market.   

Radio awarded me the experience to create similar types of programs from a technical aspect without having to use a professional recording studio that costed thousands of dollars.  But it wasn’t the equipment that made me better. It was the delivery and presentation that I have been able to hone over the course of the years. This has given me a better edge in a market that is still new to a lot of people.   

...

Should you put your podcast in a crowded (saturated) market that's filled with similar podcasts?

I think it's important I answer this question because there's a lot of self-doubt podcasters have about putting a similiar-style podcast into the marketplace.

Overcoming Your Self-Doubt

First, let's start from the very beginning when you've decided what you want to podcast about. We come up with that particular topic and we say, "Okay, but can I make an impact inside of that particular market?"

When I'm talking about a "market" I'm talking about a category that you see on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, etc.

One thing podcasters have a problem with is the fear that the market is just way too saturated. Then they have another fear being less authoritative, less of an expert or less funny than a top podcast.

I'm here to tell you to not worry about that at all because everyone has to start from ground zero.

As an established radio personality, I didn't have a massive audience when I...

Can my podcast have two different types of formats? First I think we need to define what a "format" is and then determine whether or not it will be beneficial for you, your podcast listeners and your podcast.

This particular question comes from a recent tweet. This is how it was asked:

"Hey, Shannon, I've been binge-watching your YouTube videos all this week and have a question. How advisable-- or not--is it to have two different kinds of formats of content in a single podcast,? For example, a solo talking [podcast] interview uploaded in alternate weeks to the same channel?"

Defining "Format" In Podcasting

When I think of "format" for podcast purposes only, I'm thinking of "style". You might have a solo podcast where you're talking just alone and you're sharing your thoughts and your ideas out.

Then you have the "interview style" format, which would be you and a guest.  This can also be a podcast where it's you and a co-host interviewing a guest.

Or maybe you have the...