Podcasting Goals That Actually Matter for Your Business with Alesia Galati

Join us for a conversation that will inspire you to approach your podcasting efforts with renewed focus and enthusiasm. In this episode, Julie sits down with Alesia Galati, a podcasting strategist and production agency owner, to explore the transformative power of sharing our stories through audio.

We dive deep into the strategic side of podcasting, discussing how to align your show with your business goals and the importance of being intentional with your content. Alesia shares her four-pillar approach to podcast strategy, focusing on conversion, impact, growth, and engagement. To hear Alesia speak, join us at the Women's Podcaster Party Networking Events.

Key Insights from Our Conversation:

• How to set realistic expectations for your podcast's growth and impact
• Strategies for integrating your business offerings naturally into your content
• Innovative ways to engage with your audience and gather content ideas

Whether you're a seasoned podcaster looking to refine your strategy or a curious entrepreneur considering dipping your toes into the audio world, this episode provides valuable insights to help you navigate your podcasting journey with purpose and clarity. Remember, your voice matters, and there's someone out there who needs to hear your story. 

Episode Highlights:

00:03:45 - Alesia's unexpected path to podcasting
00:15:20 - The power of podcasts in processing grief and building community
00:28:10 - Four key goals for podcast strategy
00:39:55 - Balancing authenticity with business objectives in podcasting
00:52:30 - Practical steps for aspiring podcasters

Alesia Galati is a podcast strategist and the founder of Galati Media, a full-service podcast management agency. Driven by her passion for audio storytelling, Alesia has helped numerous coaches, thought leaders, and businesses launch and grow their podcasts. She believes everyone has a story to tell and is dedicated to empowering others to share their voices with the world. Check out her podcast Podcasting Unlocked & follow her on Instagram.

Connect with your host, Dr. Julie Marty-Pearson –
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Contact your host via Email: julie@podcastyourstorynow.com

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Listen to The Story of My Pet Podcast- Website - Instagram - YouTube

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome & Episode Focus
• 1:24 Meet Alicia Galati
• 2:26 Alicia’s Origin Story in Podcasting
• 5:18 Community, Healing, and Story Power
• 9:45 Purpose Before Production
• 12:49 The Four Core Podcast Goals
• 17:40 Capacity, Seasons, and Realistic Growth
• 22:55 Saying No, Values, and Fit
• 27:40 Money, Myths, and Gurus Debunked
• 33:20 Sales Without Sleaze: Clear CTAs
• 38:18 Formats, Tools, and Listener Engagement

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:04

Are you getting ready to launch your brand new podcast? Do you have a podcast and you're looking to grow it? Are you trying to find new ways to monetize your podcast? If you said yes to any of those questions, then you found the right episode to listen to. Hi, I'm Dr. Julie Marty Pearson, and welcome to Podcast Your Story. This podcast is all about supporting more women and non-binary people to share their story through podcasting as awesome guests and as hosts of their own shows. This episode, we're going to talk a lot about setting goals as a podcaster. And my guest, Alicia Galati, is going to share some of her insights as she works with podcasters every day as a podcast production agency owner and a podcaster herself with two podcasts that she is consistently sharing with the world. If you're ready to get some great tips and really dig into how best to set goals for you as a podcaster and learn how best to set up yourself for success in your podcast, here is my interview with Alicia. I know you're gonna enjoy it. Hello, my friend. Welcome back to a brand new episode of Podcast Your Story. I'm your host, Julie Marty Pearson, and I am very excited to welcome a new guest and friend of the podcast, Alicia Galati. Welcome.

SPEAKER_01: 1:43

Thank you. I'm so excited to be on here. And anytime that I get a chance to talk podcasting, I am there. So thank you for having me.

SPEAKER_00: 1:52

I always say you get two podcasters in a Zoom room, and you know, we could go for hours. And you never know where it might take us. So true. We realized before we hit record that we are both Virgos. So I have a feeling why we're both in podcasting and do what we do in podcasting. So Alicia, you are a podcasting strategist and have a production agency. So we will get into all of that, but I always like to start my guests off so the listeners can get to know you a little bit better. Tell us how you got into podcasting to begin with.

SPEAKER_01: 2:25

Oh man. Okay. So I started listening to podcasts in 2015, and I was driving back and forth, dropping my kid off with a family friend, and it was maybe an hour between taking him to the babysitter and then driving to work. And I realized the radio kept playing the same three songs, which was really annoying. And I didn't realize it so much before because before my commute was maybe 15 minutes, if that. So it was a very quick commute. But now that I was going out of my way, I was in the car a lot longer. And this is back when Google had its own Google Play music and it had some podcasts on there. And the very first podcast I listened to was Stuff You Should Know. And I worked in manufacturing and supply chain. I got to work and meaning like tons of guys, like 150 guys to five women, and was like, oh my goodness, I discovered podcasts. I'm learning so much. And I'm a lifelong learner. Like I just I love learning. And so I found podcasts as such an incredible way to learn on the go instead of having to hear the same three songs. Fast forward to 2016, 17, and I started thinking about okay, I'm capped with my career on what I actually can make for my family. And I come from a single parent home where my mom did not have her high school diploma. She got her GED at 29 and then went on to become a registered nurse. But for most of my life, when I was living in the house, she did not have a steady means of income. So I started doing the side hustle thing, which it's really strange that it's been so long that I've been doing that. So 2016-ish. And I was doing discussions around postpartum depression because I struggled really bad after having my first kid and guested on a few podcasts, sharing my story, sharing some resources that were working for me. And then as that was going on, I was also getting my degree in marketing. It was like, actually, I think I could do marketing as my side hustle. Did some podcast guesting about marketing. And then in 2018, it was like, look, I'm gonna see if I can launch my own podcast because I feel like it can't be that hard. It was hard, okay? Especially when you think like now we have so many resources to help us launch and manage and produce podcasts. We did not in 2018 at all. And so launched my first podcast. It was called The Honest Product Bench, where I talked to small e-commerce businesses about their marketing, about their inventory, realized very quickly that I did not like talking about what I did in my day job as like for funsies. And so podfaded that. And then in 2019, the end of 2019, I launched a podcast with my sister called Two Sisters and a Cult. And we created that podcast as a way to process the grief of losing our mom, which she passed away in early 2019. Process that and asking the question of why did we grow up in a cult? Because we did. So, like trying to understand that. And I think that podcast was the turning point for me where I realized the community that you can create with a podcast. And we would get DMs from people who were like, Oh my goodness, me too. I grew up in a cult as well, or I was in a very cult-like situation, and I can't thank you so much for sharing your story. And I feel so less alone because you shared your story, and like I'm I've got children. Like just thinking back to the messages that we got, it was just so incredible. And was like, this is what it's about. This right here. 2020 happened. We don't need to go into that. Everybody was there. I don't know. I happened. Upside down world. Yes. I got let go from my job, and at the beginning of that year, I'd already said, you know what? I think I could produce podcasts for other people. I want to see if I could do this. Well, that was kind of the universe, being like, nudge, right off the ledge. You can fly, you're fine. And I'm the sole financial provider for my family. I have two boys. My husband is a stay-at-home dad and he homeschools our kids. And so it was important that I make money while also trying to not get sick because I have asthma, and I knew that if I got COVID, it would be a lot worse and just didn't want to have to deal with it. Reached out to the network that I had amassed over the course of my time in the online space and said, Here's what happened. Is there anybody who wants to launch a podcast that is has been thinking about it? Here's the price. This is what I'm what I'm thinking I can do for you. The person who said yes to that offer is still with me today. We are working on episode 274 this week, which goes live next week. But yeah, so that's a bit about my podcasting journey. At this point, I have launched and produced over 50 shows, five being my own. So I currently have two active shows, podcasting unlocked, very similar to yours, where podcasters talking about podcasting, which is so fun. And we read Smut as a very fun hobby podcast because I like to read Smut, but also going deeper than just, oh, it's smut. Let's talk about representation in here. Let's talk about consent. Let's talk about all of these different things within what we can find in romance, and then highlighting some authors that are diverse that I really, really enjoy reading. So that is me.

SPEAKER_00: 8:46

I love that because what I love about it shows all the different ways people can be involved in podcasting, like within your own journey. And that's, you know, I always tell people, it's like I hear a lot of people say there's too many podcasts. So why would anyone listen to mine? It's like, well, that's the point. You figure out what there isn't and what you're passionate about and what you could talk about without any notes at any time. And those are the things you dive into, and that's how I felt with my pet podcast. Like, yeah, tell when we talk about pets, where and when. Just tell me. I can do this. Let's go. And I feel like I could do that with podcasting. Sure, let's talk podcasting. Where do I need to be? And what I find is we all end up in podcasting for some big reason. Some things happen in our lives, some things change. Like you mentioned, the passing of your mom and how you and your sister were processing it. And for me in 2018, my dad passed away, and then other things happened that at 2020, I had no job, I was out of work, I had just come off of disability from a surgery, and then COVID hit, and it's like I couldn't get a job. What the heck am I gonna do with my life? And so, even though a lot of us, I think around COVID it happened, there had already been a loss or a change in our lives. And the thing about podcasting is it draws you in because of that connection, that connectedness to other people. Oh, other people have gone through this, like you said with your one about cults. Like that's transformational for someone who has been traumatized and lived through whatever they lived through as a child, and then they hear someone like you and your sister talking about it, and it's like, oh, I'm not crazy. This was bad and it's okay and all these things, right? That must have been really powerful for you.

SPEAKER_01: 10:28

Yeah, honestly, it was absolutely incredible. And I always like to share that story because I think that it really showcases the power of what we can do as podcasters and the impact that we can make, even if it is just one person saying, I feel less alone. Like that is powerful.

SPEAKER_00: 10:54

Yep. And I I always say with women I work with, is like, there's someone that needs to hear your story. There's someone struggling, there's someone about to go through someone that needs to hear it. And I've found those stories in myself that I probably some of the stories I've shared, I never would have thought I'd ever talk about them publicly, let alone somewhere where anyone could listen to it at any time, right? Especially as Virgos, we like to be perfect.

SPEAKER_01: 11:16

Yep. Yeah, I have to say that was an interesting effect as well of people who were there at the cult as well, but as adults, and it's since dissolved, right? It's not there anymore. And so they might have followed me on Facebook or something like that, and that's how we stayed connected-ish. And they would see that I had this new podcast, and I had a few of them reach out and say, I had no idea it was like that for you kids. Because our experience, especially as children, in a place where your voice doesn't matter, what you have like your opinion doesn't matter, privacy doesn't matter, like none of these things matter, and everything is a sin. Right. Like that is how it was and how we grew up. And so to have other people say, instead of saying like what you went through isn't valid, that wasn't my experience, right? It was more like I had no idea it was like that for you. I'm so sorry that I was part of the problem for that, which I thought was really beautiful to have that reconnection in that way.

SPEAKER_00: 12:37

That's powerful too. I think that is something we gosh, our world lacks a lot of empathy. We are very quick to criticize, very, very slow to give grace or empathy to people. I think that sometimes we have to realize is we're all experiencing things from different points of view. And even sometimes my own family, my sister will say something, and I'm like, what are you talking about? And like we have very different memories of certain experiences, but because we're two very different people. Yes, we grew up in the same house and have the same parents, but we are very different personality-wise, all the things. And sometimes we have to step back and realize well, even though if that's how I felt, maybe someone else felt different. And a lot of us get told our feelings are invalid, our stories aren't true. Then podcasting is a very powerful tool for that. So it sounds like you felt it and then realized you can help other people do the same thing.

SPEAKER_01: 13:31

Yeah, and that was really the goal with my production agency. And being a strategist is like, okay, how can I? One, I don't want to be the face of like big movements, not interested, no thank you. What I instead wanted to do was kind of be the platform, be the jumping off point, be the person holding the other person up so that they could get their message out, so that they could get their voice out. And I found that one, it's extremely fulfilling and is a great reminder of why I do what I do. Our tagline is messages that make a difference. And that is just the driving force is okay, how can we use our voices to make a difference in the world, make a positive impact, and really goes back to making people feel less alone through their experiences. And I think think that a lot of our podcasts have been ones that are really trying to make a difference in the world or bring some peace to people.

SPEAKER_00: 14:39

And I think that is what a lot of us are searching for and we find in podcasting, and we're able to find it in 10 different ways with 10 different shows. Like I have my pop culture one, I have my true crime ones, I have my like how to podcast ones, how to market ones, but they're all giving us something different. And sometimes I stop myself and think, I should be being more, this is what I do, and this is how I help you. But I really love the story behind it, behind people's journey, behind people's business, why they're podcasting, because that really is the connection, right? Is yeah, someone sharing their experience and you pulling something from it that you feel connected to. It's such a powerful tool. But we also want to, for the most part, make some money at podcasting too, right? So there's this balance that is hard, I find. Because I could talk to people like this all the time, but what am I actually doing to help my business, right? So, as a strategist, when you have someone come to you that wants to do a podcast, like where do you start with them before you even get into the technical part of it?

SPEAKER_01: 15:45

Yeah. So the first thing I do is why do you want to launch a podcast? And I think the getting that ask why four times. Well, why? Okay, why that part? Okay, why that? Getting to the bottom of what is the purpose of your show? What are you trying to really create with it? And that allows us to have a better understanding of does this need to be a limited series? Does this need to be 52 episodes, like a year-long show? What's the does it need to be seasonal? What does your life look like? What does your capacity look like? Right? Like kind of putting all the puzzle pieces together to create a plan that actually makes sense for this person. But one thing I actually, when I'm working with like business owners specifically, and even people who are just trying to make a difference in the world, if this is a new concept or a new idea, I tell them to go guest on podcasts first so that they can get clear on their message before they launch their podcast. And like I've had people who are like, here, take my credit card. I'm ready to launch my podcast with you. And I'm like, I actually don't think that it's the right thing to do for you. I think that this I you can't clearly articulate to me what it is that you're trying to achieve or what it is that you do. And maybe what you do might be a little esoteric, which is okay. Like there's nothing wrong with it. But you have to get clearer of what that message is in order to have a podcast that's going to achieve whatever you want it to achieve.

SPEAKER_00: 17:15

And I have to say, yes, I always say I am not gonna push a podcast on anyone because I want to get to know you and your business and say, okay, maybe that's not right for you. Maybe it's not right now, maybe it's not ever gonna be right for you, right? And so a lot for me as a coach is helping people I work with figure out where they should be in podcasting and where they should start if they haven't. And oh my God, please, everyone listening, don't start a podcast if you've never been a guest, because you gotta guess to see if you even like what podcasting is. Because I know people that have done it say, I hate it. I'm like, great, don't do it. If you don't enjoy doing it and you feel like it's a job, you're never gonna get anywhere with it. People have to be guesting and have to be active in some way before they can put all of their time and effort and money into an area of a business that they don't even know what they're doing with.

SPEAKER_01: 18:06

Yeah, and that's where it goes next, right? Is what are you doing with it? What is the goal of the show? I found that over the course of just working with the amount of people that I have, that there tends to be four goals. I have them on my wall. So the first is conversion, and that is increasing the revenue of your business. The next one is impact, which is about creating brand visibility. The third one is growth, meaning you want to increase your downloads. And then the fourth one is engagement, meaning you want to build a community around your podcast. Now you might think, okay, well, I want all of them. Cool. That's great. Pick one to focus on for six months. And by having that focus, it allows us to create a better strategy and actually get the results that you want with your show. And so that result might be I want to increase my downloads. Cool. What are your current downloads? None, because we haven't launched yet. Okay. Here's what a realistic increase of downloads will look like with someone in your with your current subscribers, with your current social media following, and with a specific strategy in place to promote the episode, right? One, be realistic. But then deciding on that really helps us get clear. Like, here are the strategies that we're going to focus on. If your goal is to increase your number of downloads, then do we really care so much if you are making money from your podcast? Maybe that's your goal for the next six months afterwards. And so you can cycle through them however you want, and you might achieve little bits of wins in each of the other goals as you're going, because that's just the nature of it. But when you have one to focus on, it'll allow you to get those results a lot better and a lot quicker.

SPEAKER_00: 20:01

Oh, I love that. Because in my head, I'm like, that's why I'm all scattered, because I'm not focusing on one lane. And I hear this so much. No, you don't have to have all your ducks in a row, but you also can't do all of it all at once. You have to pick your starting point. And for a lot of people, it's where they already are. Maybe they're already on YouTube, so they start with the video version and then expand, or maybe someone doesn't have that, so they start with the traditional RSS feed. I always say, people, you got to start where you are. There's no way that I can do a podcast, a video podcast, be on Substack, be on LinkedIn, be on like there, and that's why I'm not always consistent because sometimes like it's this constant struggle. But I really like the way you broke those four down because yes, I think every podcaster wants to do all four of them. Right. But we all know we can't do it all at once. And if you focus on one, some of the other ones are just gonna naturally happen. So if I'm focusing on impact, that doesn't mean I'm not gonna start to have growth or conversion or engagement. But I know right now that's my focus. So that re- I love the way you explain that.

SPEAKER_01: 21:07

Yeah. And I think that what you're saying of like, well, I need to be in all the places, I need to do all the things. That's why agencies like mine exist, right? And the services that you offer, where people are able to come to us and say, I just want to record and someone else do the rest. I don't want to just be an agency that says, all right, hand me your work and then I'm gonna hand it back. I want it to be strategic. I want it to make the impact that the person wants it to make. And so that's where like strategy was a really important part going into creating this of like, how can I integrate both so that way I feel like I'm making a positive impact with my clients as well. So all around. Good impact.

SPEAKER_00: 21:53

Yeah, no, I love that because you know, I've seen and met people in different types of podcast agencies, and it's different depending on what the purpose of the podcast is. Larger corporation or business is gonna need something different than a business running by a person with a small team and also what you do. Is it a product base? Is it service-based? What type of service? Like all of those things matter. And what I've learned myself as a coach is I don't want to be the person that does all the production for people. I don't enjoy that side of it. I will say, here, go to Alicia and she will do that for you because I can help people get started and learn how to do the simple things themselves, but I don't enjoy that side. I enjoy the strategy and the coaching and especially with guesting, is helping people really be thoughtful and strategic because I think a lot of women, especially in business, say yes. They don't want to say no, even if it's not the right place for them. So, do you run into that sometimes with podcasting? Do you feel like people are creating it in a certain way or want to because that's what other people do, or they think that's the right way to do it?

SPEAKER_01: 22:56

Yeah. So I want to say it was maybe two summers ago. A very big online guru, which, if you look into online gurus, some of the businesses, online business coaches and stuff, course creators, it's very culty the way that they behave. So everyone be careful and be aware. If anyone says, I know something you don't know, run, please.

SPEAKER_00: 23:21

Or if someone says this is the only way to do it, yep, run very fast. Oh.

SPEAKER_01: 23:28

So there was a guru who was like, if you have a business, you should have a podcast. For like three months straight, I said, so and so said that if you have a business, you should have a podcast, and here's why I disagree. And I rode then because I was like, No, I don't think that just because this person says this, that everyone should do it. And I think that it's disingenuous for big leaders who have full freaking teams, money to afford these teams, to tell small business owners who are trying to make money that they need a podcast. A podcast is not going to get you rich, it is not going to bring income in at least in the first three months. It is highly unlikely that it is going to do that, unless you already have an established audience and they need more content from you, ASAP. Right. I think that kind of setting that expectation helps people be like, oh, maybe I don't need a podcast. Maybe I need to guest on some podcasts and have some conversations with people and make some money first. And then maybe I start a hobby podcast and it's every other week or once a month, and I see if I like it and talk about a topic that I could talk about literally forever. Maybe it's not my business. Maybe I just blog instead or I just create social stuff. But having conversations to make money in your business first. Otherwise, it's a hobby. I've been in the online space for so long that I'm so sick of seeing women especially undervalue themselves, not make money in their business. Yes, one of my values is making an impact in the world. That's like third on my list. My first is making a living wage for myself and my family. That is my value. Number one, your values can be financial. My second, my team needs to be making a living wage. Three, we make an impact in the world. Because if I'm not making the money that I need to be able to sustain my family, if my team's not making the money they need to make to sustain their families, we can't do the third one. And so I think that it's such an important conversation around podcasting. It's like this is not gonna get you rich quick. 95% of podcasters never see a dime, or if they do, it's maybe a dime. And I see it. Literal, this is the dime I made. Yes, the literal dime. And so, yeah, I feel I have clearly have very strong feelings.

SPEAKER_00: 26:08

But but it's so true. And one I always say to people podcasting is a marathon, not a sprint. Do not start it. I mean, you said it earlier, realistic. You have to have realistic expectations in business, period. But when podcasting, people see people making money and they don't see the 20 people working behind the scenes to get then that. Like, and I will say the first podcasting course I took back in 2020 was with one of those gurus who still exists. And me and several other people I met through that big group course were very disappointed in what we got for the value, right? Many of us started anyway, but we ended up finding other communities that truly supported us. And for me, I was career coaching, and so I was told, Well, you have a podcast about your business, and it never went anywhere because like getting up and talking about resumes every day did not do it for me, did not like inspire me. And so that's why I did pets, which really is a side passion project. But now it's my evidence I know how to podcast and I know how to keep it going and build community and impact. Like you said, that really is the purpose of that podcast. But it's also taught me a lot by getting in there and just doing it and learning through the process and learning what I like, what I don't like, and what I want my podcast to be. And we talked about saying no earlier, and I've also learned as a podcaster that I can say no to anyone just because they're a great person and would be a great guest. If I don't feel they're right for my podcast or even right now, it's okay to say no. And this is your baby, this is your business, this is your podcast. You get to own it and make those decisions.

SPEAKER_01: 27:46

Yeah, I had that recently where I was gonna be a guest on someone's show, and they have a very big following. They are talking to my ideal people, but the language that this individual was using rubbed me the wrong way. And she did use words like, I know something about this that you don't, tried to coach me on my business model. And I'm like, first of all, I didn't consent to that at all. So not cool, first of all. If you had said, Hey, can I give you some advice? I probably would have said yes because I say yes, right, and we're already here and now it's awkward because you're asking, right? But at least ask. Ask, please. Got to the end, and she was like, Well, I'll talk to my team. And like, I was trying to guide the conversation back to like, hey, I'm trying to be a guest on your show. It was a prep call, right? So it wasn't like the actual interview. And I left it feeling like, wow, that was really gross. Is this worth it? No, I'm gonna reach back out to the team and say, I'm no longer interested in being a guest on the show. And like it didn't feel good to do it because one, I don't want to disappoint anyone, and I don't want to close the door on what could be opportunities, right? And but I have to remember me being on this person's podcast is not a good reflection of me and what my values are because our values are clearly not aligned in how we approach business. And so by me being on this person's show, I don't know that it would make sense for what I want to present to the world. And so, okay, where are some other places that I can maybe go? Which is why in the community we're in, I was like, hey, I'm looking for speaking opportunities because clearly this one is a no-go, right? And then like three landed in my lap, and I was like, okay, cool.

SPEAKER_00: 29:40

Yeah, and sometimes the no experience gets us to the right one. Yes, and one of the things I have had to learn is I can say no without explanation. Yes, and I think that's hard, especially for women and in business. We're like, if we say no, we're gonna lose money, but if it's not right, we're not actually losing money because we're gonna go. Go to the place that's gonna make us the right money, but it is this balance of you don't want to say no and offend, and then you have a bad reputation somewhere in the world, but you also have to like, yeah, I can say no. We only have this many hours in a day, I know only have this amount of funds to support my business. I have to make the right decisions, and it can be hard, but that's also an important power to hold on to as a woman and as a business owner.

SPEAKER_01: 30:27

Yeah, a hundred percent. I could not agree more. I think that it really is an invaluable lesson. And going back to the no, why did you say no? Right. And I see this a lot with like going a little deeper when it's a business owner who has a podcast and they're like, maybe they have a group coaching program that they're trying to sell out, and they maybe spend two weeks promoting it, and they're like, Well, that was a failure. I was in there. Was it a failure, or did you not give it enough effort because you expected to fail?

SPEAKER_00: 31:07

Oh, I just had this spot from my no one's gonna buy it, but I'll put it out anyway.

SPEAKER_01: 31:12

Yes, exactly. And so with the opportunities too, right? Like, am I saying no because I don't think I'm good enough? Am I not putting my name in the hat for that because I don't think that I deserve it?

SPEAKER_00: 31:26

We're scared of what it means to put ourselves out there for whatever reason.

SPEAKER_01: 31:30

What if I scale too fast? Then what am I gonna do? I'm not gonna be able to f like so many stories that we tell ourselves that hold us back from achieving the things we want to achieve. And that is one reason why when we're launching a podcast, we'd spend two months launching it because I'm like, look, if we launch it tomorrow, and that might be people's personality, right? I've interviewed people where they're like, I launched it in 24 hours to my email list, and this is how it went. Cool. So glad that worked for you. It's giving me hives, but I've worked for you.

SPEAKER_00: 32:06

And then the other spectrum is I have friends that were in that community I was in five years ago and still haven't launched. So, you know, there's extremes, but you do want to be thoughtful and strategic and really think about it. You don't want to sometimes I think in business we put stuff out just to see what people respond, and that's okay. And that is a big lesson I've had to learn in business is it's not necessarily success or failure, it's learning. And that was very hard for me. But now I take the researcher mind. Well, I'm gonna put this out and see what people think and then tweak it and do it this way. Like that's I've had to take that perspective, but you still have to put effort in and spend time being thoughtful about it, whatever you're doing, but especially podcasting.

SPEAKER_01: 32:52

Yeah, and then the amount of effort you put in is that reflected in the result that you're getting again, going back to what is that goal that you want to achieve? If your goal is that you want to make money from your podcast, when was the last time you told your listeners how they could spend money with you? That's always my first question. Is like, when is the last time you said, hey, this is how you can work with me? And it could be, all right, yeah, I've got my dynamic ad in there, but like we said before, skippers be skipping before we start recording. And so the people might skip through. But that's why it's important to naturally integrate that into the conversation of here's what I do with our clients, here's an example of what that looks like. Here's a way that you can work with me that's not an ad, right? And so, like, when was the last time you did that? Or if your goal is to turn your guests into clients, cool. What does that follow-up process look like? Let's talk about it. There's so many different ways you could go about it, but the amount of effort that you're putting into that strategy, your result should be similar, but you have to put in the effort and you have to like not hold yourself back.

SPEAKER_00: 34:01

Yeah, I can say I've put out these episodes and nothing's happened, but what was the effort in putting them out? Just saying my episodes out isn't an effort. It's just saying, yeah, I think that's so true. And I think people think that if they talk and talk about their business, it's just magic and people want to work with them. But you have to sometimes be very obvious. Like, you know, my client had this issue, and this is how I helped her, and I would love to help you with the same thing. That is not salesy, that is literally an easy way of saying, This is what I do, this is how I help. Do you need this help?

SPEAKER_01: 34:33

Yeah, that's something I've been having a lot of discussions around lately. And I think you and I talked about this on my show, where we almost infantilize our potential clients, like they can't make decisions for themselves. Like we're forcing them to do something. And maybe that's what bro marketing does, right? It makes them feel bad. It makes them feel like all these different things, and they're like, Yes, I have to do this, or I'm not going to be this person. But the vast majority of us, especially women, are not going to approach sales that way. And so why do we treat our potential clients like they can't make a choice for themselves? All we have to do is say, here's an invitation. It's an open door you can walk through or not. And I wish you luck either way. And people who are going to resonate with that are going to be really excited to do work with you if you're approaching it that way. Instead of just saying, Well, like I guess you can if you want. Open the door. Here's how you can work with me. This is what it looks like. I want to help you as well.

SPEAKER_00: 35:37

Yeah, I think we feel like we're being pushy, but it's okay to be blunt. Hi, this is my podcast about my business. This is what my business does. What do you need help with that? Yeah, it feels weird, maybe, but that's like the point. That's what we do. That's what podcasting is for. And there are also a lot of other ways. Like I've seen people who say, Hey, what are your questions? DM me, and then they spend a whole episode answering people's questions. Or they ask somebody, if you have an issue with this, you want to come on and I'll coach you and people can learn. Like, I'm seeing podcasting has evolved so much, even in just the four years I've been doing it. There's so many more opportunities to engage in a way that is still selling what you do in your business. Do you see that as a good thing, or do you see it like there's too many options? Or does it make it easier? Because then you can make it fit to the person's business model better.

SPEAKER_01: 36:28

I think that it works really well, and I'm excited to see, especially with all the tools that we're seeing, all the tools, not AI, that we're seeing. And not that I have anything against AI, just to preface that. But like we have now where people can send voice notes that we can then integrate into episodes. I did a whole 52 series on a separate podcast that was like, I want to test this out and see how it works. 10 minutes or less answering podcasting questions and just like really focusing on what are the questions I'm getting. And maybe some of them I'm just making up because I didn't get questions that week. But what it's allowed is people to by opening the door and saying, send me a DM if you have questions. I get questions in my DMs. It's not a lot, it's not often. But when I do, one, I always send a voice note back thanking them because I find that voice notes, especially if I can, like if my kids are being loud in the background and I really need to respond to this, then I won't. But that initial one, I always try to send a voice note. Hey, thank you so much for sending me this question. I'm so excited that you're on your podcasting journey. This is so incredible. Here are some things that I would recommend you do based on the information you've given me. And I don't need to sell to them. I'm literally just answering their question. If it gets to be a little more extensive, which it has not at this point, people, I think, are at a point where we're like, all right, we know how to be respectful in someone's DMs and we're not trying to like get too much information. No, you need to book a strategies call, please, and thank you. So we haven't had that. But if it did get to that point, I would say, look, I've loved being able to help you and support you. I don't have the capacity to answer more questions at this time. But if you want to book an hour-long session, we can chat deeper, further. I can look at more things on the back end of your podcast to give you some better answers on how I think you should proceed with whatever the question is. And that's okay. That's just setting up a boundary and saying, here's the boundary, please don't cross it. But we can still collaborate and I still want to work with you. And you can still listen to the podcast because I'm gonna be answering questions anyway over there. So maybe your question will be answered. Yeah, there's so many ways to do it, and I'm finding that with all the tools that are available, it makes it pretty easy. And as long as you are clear on where you want them to go, it doesn't get too overwhelming.

SPEAKER_00: 38:52

Right. Well, I think we could probably talk for another couple hours. I know. But we should probably wrap it up because we also know our listeners' time span is only so long. So in closing up our discussion, if someone out there is listening, they've been thinking about a podcast, they know it makes sense, but they're also kind of a little confused as to like what's the starting path, what would you say to them?

SPEAKER_01: 39:22

First and foremost, I would say guest on some shows and see if it's gonna be the right fit for you. Next, if you enjoy it, then write out a list of 10 episodes that you could do. What are 10 topics that you could talk about that feel really comfortable and really good? Because even with 10 episodes, you could do a limited series, right? It does not have to be that you have to podcast for years and years. Just create the plan. And from there, what is your goal? Is it con conversion, impact, growth, or engagement? What are you trying to achieve with it? And then that should set you up so for some pretty decent success right out the gate by having that kind of outlined in your brain or even on paper, that's gonna help set you up well.

SPEAKER_00: 40:07

Boom, mic drop. There you go, guys. No, I think I like how you keep things simple and don't overcomplicate it. It's like starting points. And I think we all love to overcomplicate things, yeah. Especially when you throw in the tech and all the things. And also, like you said, you know, when I started four years ago, it took me hours to edit audio. Now I like put it into script, push a couple buttons, fix a couple things, and like boom, I'm let's go. So the evolution has also made it, and that's why there's so many more people in the space, because it is easier. But if you're not strategic and start with that, why the easy doesn't matter because then you're just kind of wasting your time and effort.

SPEAKER_01: 40:47

Yeah, and I think that's why, yes, while there are more podcasts, only 13% of them are active regularly because it takes a lot of effort, it takes a lot of work, and people have these expectations of podcasting that are unrealistic, quite frankly. And they are like, wow, this is a lot of work and I'm not getting any results. Okay, bye.

SPEAKER_00: 41:09

Right.

SPEAKER_01: 41:10

But yeah, I think if you're just strategic about it, keep it simple, then you'll be able to get some results, which is what we all want, right? With the content we're trying to produce.

SPEAKER_00: 41:19

Absolutely. Thank you, Alicia, so much for coming and sharing your wisdom. I learned things, I took notes, and like, okay, let's go. So I always love learning from my guests, and I know the listeners are gonna learn from you too. And if you're listening to this, we always love to keep it evergreen, but Alicia is coming to my women's podcaster party networking community in October. She's our featured speaker and is gonna help us with some of that goal setting and that thinking through the end of the year and into the next for podcasting and guesting. So please come join us. As always, the links are in the show notes. So thank you for your time and sharing your expertise with us. I so appreciate it.

SPEAKER_01: 42:01

Yeah, thank you for having me, Julie. I appreciate you.