Getting Your First 10,000 Downloads

Hey Podfam! What’s up!

I hope you’re having an amazing week!

We’re going to switch stuff up here a bit today.. (I know, you’re probably saying AGAIN!)

But that’s the beauty of podcasting and being a creator is that you have the ability to try new things.

And if you really hate today’s edition, let me know.

But today’s edition is inspired by three things.

First - I’ve been talking a lot on here about what I know, but I’ve been interviewing brilliant people on my podcast for the last two years and I want to highlight some of their podcasting genius here.

Second - I just launched my YouTube channel. Well “launched” is the word I used to say that my YouTube channel is now live. C

Content will be dripping out as often as I can. Right now there’s no schedule that’s set in stone. But eventually we’ll be putting out daily videos on how to grow your podcast.

So that is coming!

The third thing that inspired today’s edition is that a new show we launched in November hit its first 1000 downloads after only 2 months.

We did very limited promotion and only released 10 episodes. But because of some of the things we talk about on today’s edition, the show was able to grow their initial audience and they’re already getting recognized at industry events because of the show. So people are taking notice.

Perhaps we’ll do a deep dive case study on that in the future if it interests anyone. But I thought it was important to celebrate them because that first 1000 downloads is often the hardest to get.

So let’s talk about a few milestones that you should be looking forward to.

• 100 Downloads
• 1000 Downloads
• 10,000 Downloads

The Key to Getting Your First 100 Downloads

Many podcasts don't make it past episode 7 and it's likely that they didn't reach the 100 download mark. To some, this initial milestone was achieved on their first day. To others, it can be a challenging place to get to. But once you reach it, it can give you the confidence to reach the next milestones. The key for this milestone is content. When you're first starting, don't pay too much attention to the numbers. Focus on learning about yourself and your audience to keep them coming back to your show week after week.

Fiona Fraser recently mentioned on my show that it's important to note that building trust with your audience is key in the early stages of a podcast. It's hard to fake authenticity and listeners will be able to tell if you're not being true to yourself. Finding your "voice" and being comfortable with the topics, guests, and perspectives you present on your show is crucial in building that initial trust. Your passion and enthusiasm should come through in your early episodes, as this will help listeners connect with your content and tune in for more.

The Key to Getting Your First 1000 Downloads

At this stage, you should start to focus on building and growing your audience by engaging with them more frequently and understanding their needs and preferences.

You can create content that is tailored to your specific audience and actively seek feedback on what they want to hear. It’s also helpful to start tracking and analyzing your metrics to better understand your audience's behavior and preferences.

Many people start podcasts because they have something they want to share. However, not enough podcasters think about who they want to share it with. It is important to consider who would be excited about listening to your podcast. Because the key to getting to your first 1000 downloads is about creating something that people WANT to listen to.

It is important to note that getting to this milestone does not require a huge audience. Even if only 50 people listened every week, you would only have to put out 20 episodes to reach this milestone. The goal is to get people to come back and listen every week. The way to do that is by creating content that they are already interested in. Yes, you can create a community around your personality and your interests. But there are also many examples of people who built their community around a certain topic or idea, or even better yet, they built it for a certain type of person. This way, the community can build, support, and sustain itself.

Ashley Morris 🎙️ recently mentioned on my show that when starting a podcast, it's important to think about who the listener is that you want to tune in. This not only helps you increase downloads, but it also helps with the ability to monetize your show

The Key to Getting Your First 10,000 Downloads

This last step is all about promotion. Once you've created a great show, it's time to get people to listen. Many podcasters believe that "if we publish it, they will come," but this mindset doesn't work. The good news is that some big platforms are starting to look for ways to promote your show. However, for the time being, you're responsible for getting people to tune in. Don't rely on algorithms alone to bring listeners to your show.

If you want a quick win, go and guest on other podcasts. Or if you’re in a niche that doesn’t do guesting, find a way to collaborate or swap with another show.

Lauren Passell and Shreya Sharma recently mentioned that your job as a podcaster isn’t to convince people to listen to podcasts, but your job is actually to convince other podcast listeners to listen to your show.

Because there’s already a growing number of people getting into podcasts every day and many are constantly looking for new shows to fill up their feed. Although we podcasters may have our shows that we frequent, many people are looking for their “go-to’s” and there are plenty of others that just like to constantly have their shows on rotation.

So don’t think that there’s “too many” podcasts out there. The radio and television industry is proof that there is always room for more content for people to enjoy.

Dustin Riechmann 🔥 , a guest on my show, recently shared his insight on the key to successfully getting on other podcasts. He emphasized the importance of making it a win-win situation for both parties. Podcast creators are always looking for ways to add value to their audience. If you can clearly show them how you can do that from the start, it makes it easy for them to say yes to having you on their show. Don't expect them to do all the work for you, present them with how you can be a valuable and beneficial addition to their show.

That’s all for today folks!

If you’ve got specific questions or topics for next week’s edition, please send them my way!

And if you want help growing a successful podcast, go and visit www.AmplafyMedia.com

See you next week fam!

• Hector Santiesteban