Podcircle Podcast

Can you imagine if your podcast ran like a well oiled machine? Ugh. Just sit there like, oh, I know everything's gonna happen. I know it's gonna go out on time. I know everybody's gonna do their job, and they're gonna follow it through.

And it's not a weekly crisis. It's not like a it's like, oh, I have to do gosh. I I gotta get around to doing my podcast this week. No. I get to do my podcast because I know what I'm talking about this week, and I know all the stuff's gonna get done on the back end, all the post production, and I know this is gonna go out on time.

And you don't have to babysit it. Welcome to the Podcircle podcast where we bring practical tips and insights for every podcaster.

Whether you're just getting started or you're already a seasoned podcast pro, these conversations dive into all the topics that matter most to you. So today, we're finishing out our series on outsourcing your weaknesses by building out your podcast team. And we started this series by introducing the importance of outsourcing your weaknesses, which just simply means delegating, hiring, or abandoning the things that you aren't good at, or the things that just simply aren't worth your time, so that you can spend your time and energy on the things that only you can do best. So, today, we're talking about outsourcing your weaknesses by adding a podcast producer to your team. In the second, Mickenzie's gonna tell us what a podcast kind of read a bit of a job description of what a podcast producer is.

But first, I wanna kind of talk little bit about clarifying some of the confusion over what a podcast producer does. So, for instance, a podcast producer is oftentimes confused with a podcast editor. And while the podcast producer sometimes edits the podcast, that's not always the case. I want to get that out there first and foremost, because I think that can be a kind of confusing distinction that people use podcast producer, podcast editor interchangeably when they're not always doing the same thing. So, Mickenzie, what is a podcast producer?

What does a podcast producer do? What are they responsible for?

Well, a podcast producer makes your life easier. So a podcast producer is gonna facilitate regular planning sessions to brainstorm upcoming episode topics, potential guests and ad campaigns. We actually suggest and do with some of our clients quarterly sessions. And so we all get on a zoom call, we all talk through it. We're really strategic in let's plan out the next quarter.

And that right there just in itself, I think takes away so much of the pressure and the angst around putting out a show that's consistent. And often we do this for people who have weekly shows. So we're like, let's talk about everything we're gonna talk about for the next quarter.

It just makes the show better. It makes it more fun. It's laid out.

Yes.

Yes. You can go in and like, oh, I wanna slot in this topic here. You can always change it, tweak it or whatever, but it just it takes a mountain and it reduces it to a molehill, if that makes sense. Yes. I don't know if I'm mixing metaphors there, but it's what it feels like to me.

And I think really, honestly, what it does is it creates more flexibility for you. We did an episode all about creativity, and you can be more creative when you have a plan. When you say like, hey, this is this is what we think will happen. And if the creative geniuses don't come down on me in a timely manner, I've got something that I can sit down and record. So Yep.

Second, a podcast producer is gonna research topics that will be discussed on upcoming episodes and deliver this as a one sheet to host prior to recording day. Literally just created one yesterday for one of our clients. Mhmm. And just get strategic if it's a interview or if they're doing a solo episode or, sometimes we do, like, testimonials with, clients of our clients. And so, producer can build that out for you.

They're gonna kinda help you sit down and have all the information you need in one place rather than having all the things in your head. They'll just boil it down for you to the most important.

It's a roadmap.

They'll create a roadmap. Third, they're gonna document upcoming episodes on a shared content calendar. We often use Google Sheets. It's just really great because everyone has access to it. And then this will include like a working episode title as well, recording dates and release dates and just keep everybody on schedule.

So what maybe you're gathering right now is there is like part project manager in this. Like, the producer is just kind of keeping everybody in all the pieces moving and going forward so that you can get a show out. Yep. And then they're gonna schedule recording dates with hosts and guests, arrange audio and video personnel if you need that, Schedule studio time if necessary, if you're a podcast that's in a studio. Yep.

And just really keep all the aspects of production on schedule as well. They're gonna be a point of contact for your guest. And they're gonna provide important information like recording invite links. If you're doing Riverside or other remote platforms, they're gonna provide best practices prior to interviewing. For an in person interview, they might even send, recording dates, their own contact information, the time, the date where they need to be.

They'll just keep everybody on track. And lastly, after everything is all done, and they've you've done the recording, they're gonna be the person who is communicating with that editor. Especially the way that we do it at pod circle is that we're gonna send all those files to the experts, the people that have the ten thousand hours around editing, and they'll create that content into audio and video podcasts, social clips. And last episode, we talked about outsourcing your marketing and content needs, which is also something that the pod circle team can do for you and write episode show notes, blogs, create an email newsletter, anything like that that needs to happen from a copy or marketing standpoint as well.

That's a big job description. Is that is that ever a job that, that you thought you would have when you graduated from college?

No. Podcast producer was, never a title I imagined that I'd have. But honestly, when I was dreaming of what I wanted to be when I grew up, podcasts weren't a thing. They honestly weren't. I think the first podcast launched in 02/2003, which I would have been 12, but they really have gained popularity kinda starting in 2014.

And so it's just proof of what I tell young people all the time. Young people, like, I'm not young. Guys, I just turned 33. So

Oh, you're a man.

Not feeling very young.

Oh, remember.

But I often tell people what you're meant to do with your life may not be invented or have a need yet. And so I just really encourage people to be willing to learn and grow. And this is an area where I have learned and grow and got curious and Googled and put my ten thousand hours in and really gotten strategic around that. So here I am a podcast producer for more than one podcast.

That is true. Just like Mickenzie story, when you're starting out, you are probably most likely the producer of your own podcast. You're overseeing all the aspects of your show. You're coming up with ideas. You're booking your own guests.

You're directing your own content and strategy. You might even be editing your own podcast, which I don't suggest that you do for long. You're just doing you're doing it all. You're wearing all the hats. And remember what we say all the time that only 20% of podcasters make it to year two of their podcasts, especially when they're trying to do it all themselves.

So, in this episode, we're going to talk about three things that you can gain from outsourcing your weaknesses and hiring an experienced podcast producer. The very first thing is just peace of mind. There are so many details that have to happen in order to produce a single podcast episode, let alone to maintain a consistent weekly or biweekly or even monthly show for a year at a There's just a lot that goes into it. And most podcasters who are starting out, this is probably kind of like a side thing. They're not gaining a full time income from this, or maybe they're just using this as a wing of their marketing in their business.

So if you're a business owner, you're an entrepreneur, and you want to start a podcast, you're already juggling all the things in your business. This doesn't need to be one of them. So a podcast producer can bring you the peace of mind that someone has your back, that you have a partner, you don't have to do it all yourself. Again, I just I mean, I'm thinking as a business owner myself, I'm just like, I couldn't do this podcast without Mickenzie. It's just it wouldn't happen.

This podcast goes out on a weekly basis because there's a team of people that understand the why understand the how, put all the pieces together so that we can package this thing up for you and get it out to you on a weekly basis.

It's a team effort for sure.

Team effort. No doubt about it.

Yeah. And I think the second thing that you can gain from hiring an experienced podcast producer is this strategy. I think this is one of my all time favorite things to do as a podcast producer so much so that I've started doing it for other podcasts outside of my own. I just love the idea of how do we take something that's really good and make it even better. A couple of years ago, I went through an exercise where I found like my core competency.

And the word that I kept coming back to you, take all these words that you're good at, and then you just keep boiling it down, boiling it down, boiling it down, boiling it down. And what is that core competency that has both a shadow side and a light side? And mine was optimization. I love to help people and things and processes be optimized. I'm always looking for that.

Now there is a shadow side to that, but we won't talk about it. A podcast producer can wear those two hats. Right? They can have this 10,000 foot view and the five foot view. Yes.

I love getting above the day to day. It's an important part of producing. In getting to the high level strategy looking at like, how do we reach more people? How do we get our message out? How do we have consistent themes and a cohesive narrative throughout our entire episode, whether we're doing a series or whether we're just doing it on a monthly basis.

Like, how do we just really get above it and think outside of the day to day because there is so much day to day to focus on. But looking holistically at the story, we're telling the overall themes and messages. I like bringing order to the chaos of a brainstorm, and really thinking about our listeners and everything we do. So love that, love that. And then the other part of that is just like getting down to it and having consistency and processes.

So that's number three, When you outsource and bring in an expert podcast producer, you're going to have more consistency, you're going to create processes. And you're going to have that peace of mind that we talked about. Can you imagine if your podcast ran like a well oiled machine?

That's like my love language right there.

Oh, it used to be like, just sit there and like, oh, I know everything's gonna happen. I know what's gonna go out on time. I know everybody's gonna do their job and they're gonna follow it through.

And it's not a weekly crisis. It's not like a, it's like, oh, I have to do, gosh, I, I gotta get around to doing my podcast this week. No, no, no. It's like, oh, I get, I'm excited. I get to do my podcast because I know what I'm talking about this week.

Yep. We have handles to this thing, and I know all the stuff's gonna get done on the back end, all the post production, and I know that it's gonna go out on time.

And you don't have to babysit it. You don't have the mental load of it. Like, I think that's a that's a buzzword for me right now as a mother and as a partner and just a working professional, the mental load. If I could take something off of my mental load, I would pay a lot of money to do that. So part project manager, part ninja, a producer's job is to ensure that the show gets out consistently.

They're responsible for the quality of the show, and they manage the process and the people that it takes to get the show out. So as a podcast producer, I oversee all the tasks. And I've created a sustainable process for the shows that I produce. Over time, I've learned things that work and that don't. But from ideation to interview prep, the production and the actual interview, to a first listen and edit sent to my incredible editor, Kyle, social asset creation and more, it's my job to make it look seamless, and then do it again for the next episode.

And like I said, they're managing the process and the people. So depending on the size and scope of your podcast, that might just mean they're managing their own tasks and keeping you on track. Or maybe you have built out this podcast team of contractors and full time employees and people that are all invested in making your podcast work, they're going to manage that as well. So that's going to continue to take things off of your plate. Plate.

So I think you should have podcast producer.

I, as we ran out this episode, this isn't on our notes here, but we've talked about three main areas that you can outsource your weaknesses in this, in this process, hiring out your editing, hiring out your marketing for your podcast, and this one, a podcast producer. I think it would be interesting if we, you know, the listener who's like, you know what, I know that there's going to be money involved, of course, in hiring out these weaknesses, delegating these tasks and things. I would love to just prioritize those three things and break them down. And here would be just kind of my priority list. Like, what's going to take the most amount of time away from you right away?

Like, what's gonna remove the friction to where you get those episodes out on a weekly basis? The first thing I'll do is hire out your editing. The very first thing that I would do, is hire a quality, experienced editor who knows you, knows your show, and is very, very good. The next thing I would probably hire out would be the marketing piece. Because I think that from a financial standpoint, you're going get the most ROI on that.

It's just going to get the most eyes and ears on your show. And the third thing would be when you can to hire that podcast producercontent manager, that partner, that true partner in your show from a financial investment standpoint, that's probably going to be the biggest of all it's definitely going be the biggest of all three, to hire someone really good. So I would kind of do it in that way. Hire an editor first, hire out your marketing, and then find that podcast partner, that podcast producer, to join your team.

I agree 100%. That's the order I would do it in. And I think that's why we strategically designed it the way we did. As you continue to have more margin, as you find more space and resources, I think that's the best way to go about it.

So rounding this episode out, if you're tired of doing it all, like we've talked about, we've got you covered here at Podcircle. We do all of these things for clients day in, day out. At Podcircle, we want you to do less of what is not in your expertise so that you can get back to doing what you do best. Enjoy your show, get your time back. So I would invite you to schedule a free consultation with me.

You can email me directly at kyle@podcircle.com. We offer a whole suite of services, including show notes writings, pulling social media clips, the audio video editing, all the things, the editing, the marketing, the producing that we talked about today. We have tailored services for all of those things. We can provide custom quotes based on your needs, based on your budget. We do it every day.

So reach out, kylepodsicle dot com. We also have links in the show notes. We've got links if you just want to go ahead and set up a Calendly call with me. My call scheduling link is listed right there. Anything else, Mickenzie?

I would just say, as a reminder, if you want to see our beautiful faces while you listen, you can head over to YouTube and subscribe to our channel and watch all our episodes. And while you're there, give us a like, leave a comment, tell us what you wanna hear more of. And if you're just saying, I need to figure out how to make my podcast work for me, I would love to have a strategy session with you. So you can email me at Mickenzie, m I c k e n z I e, at Pod Circle dot com. Or if that's too hard, email Kyle, k y l e, and it'll get to me.

Or email hello@podcircle.com. That will get to us too.

Oh my gosh. All the emails.

You probably didn't even know that email existed, Mickenzie.

I didn't even know. I better go see you. But if you need someone to help you get clear, then get above your show and offer some expert outside opinion, I would love to chat with you.

It's what she does. In this episode, producing things, they're also strategy. Producing and strategy, that's what Mickenzie does as a podcast producer. So if you want to hire someone that has that strategy brain that can help you just get in the weeds of your podcast, email my girl here.

Email my girl here. So thank you for joining us for this series. I think this is the longest series we've done, but I think it's really important. And you can return back to this in different seasons when you find some more capacity, or if you reach a breaking point, come back and say like, now what could help me with this again? How do I get my tongue back again?

I'm really excited about next week because we are gonna be diving into some changes that Apple Podcast has been putting out into the world and maybe impacting what it looks like on your analytics page. If you've been seeing your downloads going down, we're gonna talk about why that happened and why it's not actually a crisis.

Yeah. And how you're actually probably not getting less downloads. It just looks like you And so it's, I think it's confusing a lot of podcasters. Been some recent news come out about it, so we're going to dive into it and hopefully put your mind at ease a little bit.

Absolutely. We'll see you next week, friends.