Navigating the twists and turns of a broadcasting and speaking career has never been a straightforward path, but it's one I've walked with passion and dedication. As I've transitioned from the airwaves to the podcasting agency helm, I've garnered a treasure trove of insights that have shaped not just my career, but also the direction of this very podcast. In today's episode, I open up about this personal and professional evolution, revealing how the worlds of podcasting and speaking blend harmoniously, and what this means for our community of listeners.
You may not know this, I have two podcasts! You'll find out about a powerful merger that's about to happen as Speaking of Speaking meets Podcast Solutions Made Simple!
Embrace the transformation as we merge the power of the spoken word with the dynamic realm of podcasting, reflecting a journey many of you are familiar with—growth through change. We'll examine the current podcasting landscape that's expanding at a breathtaking pace, and I'll share my story of adapting to these shifts, from being behind the mic to guiding others in finding their podcasting success. No guests join us today; instead, it's a raw and candid look at the realities of embracing change, and how it's led to the exciting new phase of Podcast Solutions Made Simple.
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Got a question about something you heard today? Have a great suggestion for a topic or know someone who should be a guest? Reach out to us: askcarl@carlspeaks.ca
If you're ready to take the plunge and join the over 3 million people who have joined the podcast space, we'd love to hear your idea and help you get started! Book your Podcast Strategy Session today: https://podcastsolutionsmadesimple.com/get-started/
Welcome to Podcast Solutions Made Simple. It's the podcast. That's all about podcasting. I'm your host, carl Richards. You know, in my 25 plus years in the broadcast and speaking world, I've noticed a lot of overwhelm when it comes to podcasting, and I'm here to tell you it doesn't have to be that way. If you're a coach, consultant or other subject matter expert and the thought of starting a podcast seems too technical, too confusing, too time consuming or just way out of your reach, then this is the podcast for you. On this show, we give you the tools, tips and techniques to run a kick-ass show and share stories from people who have been there, done that and are enjoying massive success with their own shows. Oh, and, if you're an existing podcaster, this show is also for you.
Speaker 1:
The mics are up, so let's dive into today's episode, so thrilled to have you along on the journey today. There's so many things that I really want to cover today, as we do a deep dive, and it's sort of a bittersweet moment, but also a very exciting time, not only in the world of speaking, but also in the world of podcasting and in the world, shall we say, of this podcast, because this podcast has evolved a lot. It's not going away. It is just evolving, and I just want to give you a little bit of framework for where we are going with this podcast because of the fact that, as my business has evolved and my career itself has evolved from being a broadcaster to now being full-time in business running a podcasting agency the other thing that has to evolve is this podcast. So, to give you a little bit of a backstory, in 2020, somewhere around the summertime of 2020, we really started to make some decisions about what we were going to do here, because I was on my way out of the door, being a broadcaster for the last 25 years, and I didn't know what I was going to do, but I did know that it probably wasn't going to be in the world of radio, probably wasn't going to be there, but it was definitely going to be somewhere in business.
Speaker 1:
For myself here's the thing as a part-time speaker, trainer, and then, with the full intention, it would always evolve into a full-time gig and it never did, because my broadcast career presented many opportunities that I didn't expect, and when opportunity knocks you, of course you answer. You don't have to, but I did. So that meant really putting that dream, shall we say, on hold of being in business full-time. For myself, it just never really took a deep dive into it. And then COVID-19 hit and that's when things really started to change. So my broadcast career ended and I appreciate all the opportunities that I had along the way, but then what happened was I had this speaker training business.
Speaker 1:
That was part-time and, if you remember back to 2020, nobody was getting out on physical stages. Everything was shuttered, everything was closed up, so there were no live stages. It was a lot of people embracing the virtual stage, virtual platforms, and that's when I knew that we were going to be taking steps into the podcasting space and I know there have been some episodes on this podcast about that, and there have been a lot of episodes on my other podcast, which is called podcast solutions made simple, about my speaking journey. But safe to say that that part of my business has gone very well, been very successful in the last three and a half years, and we are very thrilled to be able to merge that podcast and this one together. Now with this merge, we don't know what this is going to look like, because we do have a lot of people who have joined us on this journey.
Speaker 1:
That's been all about speaking and now, all of a sudden, to do a complete 180 and just talk about podcasting. I'm not quite sure if it's going to work, but we're going to try. And here's what I'm thinking, because the podcasting world and the speaking world, shall we say, collide or run in parallel together. Quite nicely, I don't think it'll be that difficult to transition. But here's why we really want to focus on this, because the podcast space is changing immensely. It really is. When I got into this space in 2019, podcast there were probably oh, I don't know there was something like 700,000 podcasts worldwide. There are over 5 million podcasts now, so that's a big upswing in the last five years.
Speaker 1:
The other thing that's happened is as far as the success with the medium itself. It's surpassing radio listenership. It's kicking it when it comes to advertising dollars A lot of people investing their ad space and podcasts versus conventional mediums like radio and television and print media, even pushing digital mediums out of the way too, things like push notifications and social media ads. It's even dominating over those ones. So that's why I think we're going to really focus on speaking on virtual stages, specifically the podcasting space. That's not to say that we still won't have people who are in the speaking space from time to time make their way to this podcast, but I think for the most part, we're going to transition and this podcast will merge with the podcast solutions made simple.
Speaker 1:
The other thing that I wanted to share with you is the plan for 2024. Now here's the thing 2024 if you're listening to this, and it's way beyond that, then you can tell whether or not we actually follow through with this. But there's so much information now being put out there, not only about podcasting but about speaking in general, because the world has changed a lot Since I got into the speaking world. It's changed a lot with different medias, as I've just mentioned. Some medias are going the way of the dodo. Other medias, like podcasting, are expanding.
Speaker 1:
So one of the things that we'll be doing in business is providing more training, more opportunities for things like boot camps and in depth programs, eight week programs. That's something I did when I was a speaker trainer and really focused on that. It's also something that I've done as a podcast trainer and running a podcast agency. So more boot camps for beginners, more boot camps for advanced podcasters, more launch programs you know, eight week launch programs, things like that but then, to go along with that, we had built a community through the podcasting and the podcasting business and we were running. It started out running weekly events and then that moved to biweekly events and then the last few months we were running monthly events. Well, those events aren't going away. We're just going to structure them a little differently so that they can pop up and appear on your feeds and certainly in this podcasting space they will appear on probably on a quarterly basis, right. But to go along with that, there'll be other meetups, whether they be in virtual or in person. We'll also be focusing some energies into the Facebook page. I have two Facebook pages actually, a Facebook group and a Facebook page, so this page might evolve a little bit. The speaking of speaking page, but then also the podcast launch made simple group, will also evolve. So a lot of evolution.
Speaker 1:
As we look ahead to the new year and excited for some of the events that we're going to be conceptualizing, we have a couple of boot camps already planned. We have one that's actually taking place later this month. So if you're listening to this in early January of 2024, we'll put the link in the show notes that you can check out the podcast jumpstart boot camp, which is a great beginner boot camp. So for anyone who is brand new to the podcasting space, who wants to get launched in, say, the first quarter of 2024, then this is a great event for that. But even for those who are, you know, advanced podcasters, it's a great event, or a great opportunity to maybe even reimagine your podcaster. If you're thinking of doing a reboot or a rebrand, it'll be a great boot camp for that too. So I'll post the links in the show notes for that. We have an advanced boot camp coming up, a boot camp for advanced podcasters. It's on marketing and monetization. That's slated for February.
Speaker 1:
So, as I said, so many exciting things that are going to happen, and when you hear of these things happening not only in the podcasting space, but you're following me on social media or if you're on the email list, you're going to want to check out some of the things we're doing. I already mentioned about the alliance that the alliance will be moving to a quarterly event and we're going to have guest speakers there. So if you are a speaker and if you also have your own podcast, there'll be an opportunity, maybe even for a speaking opportunity, or maybe even a chance to just come and check it out. So a lot of things happening in the podcasting space, and I think this is a testament to where we are, because we live in the virtual world, even for those who are speakers. There are a lot of people who I know who are in the speaking space and I'm a member of a speaking organization here in Canada and there are a number of those members who have podcasts or they are getting on podcasts or they are. You know, they're guesting on podcasts or they're looking at podcasting as a way to get the word out about what it is that they do. So there is an evolution for speakers.
Speaker 1:
We're embracing live events, just like other speakers are as well. So that's why there will be some information about the difference between, say, the live stage and the virtual stage, and how does that look for you and your business. You know how do you take your message that's maybe used to being on a live stage and put it on a virtual stage, or how do you take your virtual presentation and put that on a live stage, something that I've done recently, actually, and was very interested to and very excited to see how that process all came together. So a lot of exciting things happening as we do step into a new year, kind of like a new year new, you kind of feel in the podcasting space. So this podcast is actually going to go on my other podcasting channel as well, with a few edits.
Speaker 1:
So if you are listening, it doesn't matter what podcast you're listening to know that the channel is probably going to move. It might stay the same in the same place, or it might be in a slightly different place than what you're used to finding it. Either way, the content that you've come to know and love is going to be there. It's going to be just as exciting and I welcome you along on this journey. If you ever have a question, you know how to get a hold of me. It's still askcarl at Carlsbeaksca for the time being. You can also follow me on my social media channels. All of those links are in the show notes and, again, don't hesitate to click on the links for any of the events that we are conceptualizing for the next calendar year. All right, get out there and own the platform, whether it be a virtual platform or a live platform. It is the place to be and it's the place where we will continue to serve you in the next calendar year. Bye for now, and thank you for joining us today.
Speaker 1:
Special thanks to our producer, aidan Burrows, our production lead, kieran Doherty, our music guru, nathan Simon, and the person who works the arms all of our arms, actually my trusty assistant, stephanie Gefort. If you like what you heard today, leave us a comment and a review and be sure to share it with your friends. If you don't like what you heard, please share it with your enemies. Oh, and if you have a suggestion of someone who you think would make an amazing guest on the show, let us know about it. Drop us an email. Askcarl at carlspeaksca. Don't forget to follow us on LinkedIn and Twitter as well. You'll find all those links in the show notes, and if you're ready to take the plunge and join the over 3 million people who have said yes to podcasting, let's have a conversation. We'll show you the simplest way to get into the podcasting space because, after all your podcast solutions made simple, we'll catch you next time.