And get your first 100,000 downloads
You can 100% start a successful podcast with no audience. How do I know? Because I did it.
My wife and I started Generally Spooky History with no listeners and have built it up to over 100,000 downloads.
We made many mistakes, but I am confident that if we started another secret podcast, we’d grow our audience again. So now I’m sharing all I’ve learned so you can confidently create your podcast.
This article has three main sections: first, the actual setting up of your podcast. The second is growing your audience. Third is mistakes to avoid and common questions.
Let’s dive in.
You can start a podcast about whatever you damn well please.
But I’ll level with you. It’s much easier if you know who it will be for. And if you are an everything podcast, that’s a tricky question. Start with a niche in mind; remember, you can branch out later.
My podcast is about the spooky side of Scottish history, but we fully intend to take that into world history.
If you don’t have a topic in mind for your podcast, here’s my 5×5 method for podcast ideas:
The premise is simple. I give you five prompts, and you list five answers to each. I’d do it in a notebook or a note app on your phone.
- Five hobbies I enjoy:
- Five topics I love reading about:
- Five jobs I’ve had:
- Five unique experiences I’ve had:
- Five interests and curiosities I have:
Now, from your answers, select five you’d LOVE to talk about. Pick your absolute favorite from those five, and you have a podcast topic, my friend.
Your podcast name feels like it will be set in stone forever. But it isn’t. If you go with Transistor as your podcast host, you can change the name anytime, so the pressure’s…
