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There is something that happens when you get in a room with the right people that just cannot be replicated by a course, a podcast, or a live stream. The energy shifts, the excuses fall away, and you leave with a level of clarity and momentum that you couldn't create on your own. The Think Media Mastermind is that room. It's a live, in person, two day event in Las Vegas. It's small by design, intensive, and by application only because we make sure the room is stacked with incredible creators and business owners. If you're serious about using YouTube to build your business or grow your side income, stop waiting and go apply right now@thinkmediamastermind.com all right, let's dive into today's podcast. Podcast.
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If you're thinking about starting a podcast, maybe you've already got one, but it's not really growing or making money.
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This episode could save you years.
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Sean Cannell has published over 500 episodes, generated over 50 million views on YouTube, and driven millions in revenue from this style of content.
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Consistency is the cheat code. Don't be complaining that your podcast failed when you tried it for four weeks or even four months. Narrow down your podcast to something you could sustain for at least 100 episodes. That's a real benchmark. And am I going to be just as curious and passionate about this today as I am right now in three years? But if you want to start with, like, the greatest chance of absolutely cutting through the noise, crushing it, making money, whatever, having this point dialed in is a massive edge.
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So in this episode, I'm asking Sean to break down the 12 lessons he's learned the hard way that he wishes he knew before starting so that your podcast can avoid mistakes, grow faster, and become profitable. Sean, I'm pumped for this conversation. After podcasting for five years now, what is the first lesson you'd pass to someone who's thinking about starting?
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Yeah, I'd say start with passion and curiosity. Don't start a podcast just for the money. And so when I think back to now, doing this for five years, been on YouTube for a couple decades, but specifically a podcast and a video podcast that started in 2020. And I started certainly understanding the business upside. Our business was already established, so it was an extension of the main channel. Think Media started what's called the Think Media podcast, this very channel. But I would say that knowing it could make money, I think it's an important mentality to go in that it's like, I'm going into this for the message, I'm going into this for the mission. I'm going into this because I'm a YouTube geek, and I love talking about YouTube and interviewing other people. I am truly passionate about this, truly curious about this, and I'm shocked that I've been actually actively creating YouTube content since 2007, when I started for a small local church in an hour north of Seattle that we're coming up on. Almost 20 years of YouTube itself, and I'm actually still curious about it. I'm still geeking out over analytics. I'm still. So I. The horse I picked, I'm glad I did because I want to keep riding it. And so I would encourage listeners if they're thinking about starting a podcast. You know, do you have a message, a burning curiosity, a topic that'll keep you genuinely interested in and that you want to explore? If you do a topic that's like, oh, this is a trend, and I might be able to get some quick cash from this, I just think you're not going to stick with it. And the cool thing is that money could be a byproduct, but you want to start your podcast with something that you're passionate about, and you. You never know if your interests are going to change. But I would ask yourself, am I going to be just as curious and passionate about this today as I am right now in three years? Like, can I commit to this through three years? Is this the type of books I like to read if I go to a bookstore? Is this what I research online? Is this the type of Instagram accounts I follow? Like, I'm obsessed with this topic. That's just a huge advantage. Because, by the way, podcasting is fun, unless you're not doing it around something that. That you're passionate about. Podcasting is. It's fun to research the things you care about, and now you have an outlet and something like, I don't know. That's a great engine, and that's why it's my number one.
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I had, you know, I did martial arts for a little bit, Sean, and my master told me a lot of people when they do a martial art, they get to black belt, then they stop. And I remember my master telling me that he realized he actually stayed in the same discipline, he stayed in the same martial art and didn't go try another one once he got his black belt because he realized black belt's just the beginning. Like, there's actually a whole lot more to learn. And so I love that phrasing of like, okay, but am I doing this in 10 years potentially? Right? And sure, things could change or whatever. But to be starting from that place of that it's that deep of a passion level.
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Yes.
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That it's like, even at black belt, I'm still going to keep training. Even at what proficiency. This thing goes really well. I'm still going to be pumped about it. Yep, it's really strong. What's the second thing?
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So then secondly, I'd say get ruthlessly clear on your why and then stack your reasons. So why do you want to do a podcast? And then how many reasons can you write out while doing it? So if you're listening to this on audio and driving, you know, maybe come back to this later. If you though, are at a place where you could start typing on your phone or pull out a piece of paper, like, write this down, because if it's not written, it's not real. Why do you want to start a podcast? Why? And then what are additional reasons? I've learned that reasons come first, results come second. So if you have more reasons than somebody else, then you have a less likelihood of quitting. Like, you know, why do I want to start a podcast? Because I think it'll be fun or be a hobby. What's your reason? I don't know. I want to make money one day. Whereas if somebody else's list was and you could jot down, how many reasons can you come up with? I want to build my network and connect with interesting people that I could interview. I want to grow my own skills and be able to study the topic so I'm better at, at communicating about it. I want to have a chance of making extra money. I want to explore new ideas, I want to document something, create, you know, and all of a sudden you're like, man, my reasons, like, why are you even doing that? Well, let me tell you 13 things. I love it. Reasons come first, results come second. You don't need that many things, but get ruthlessly clear on your why and then stack your reasons. And so why could be a business reason. Why could be a community building reason. Why could be because you feel a calling from God, because that you've got fire burning in your bones, that you've got a message to share, something to say you're passionate about apologetics, you're passionate about politics, you're passionate about. And so you want to contribute to that conversation. You, you want to, you know, and then there could be additional reasons. So you have a core why. And so I, I would actually say the core why of the Think Media podcast was a business vehicle. I am passionate and curious about it. But I saw, okay, the pot, you know, the potential of doing video podcasting and I was betting on video podcasting in 2020. I'm more convicted on it today. When you look at YouTube going all in on actual podcasting infrastructure with distribution to YouTube Music Podcasting, the Spotify's apples and Netflix podcasting is just getting started. So it's like I looked at it as yes, an engine of the core mission of our company which was already to help 1 million purpose driven individuals create a full time living doing what they love while making a difference in the world. We with YouTube. So the, the why was there. But then when you have reasons. Because I like interviewing really interesting people that I can learn from. Like, you know, a while back I interviewed an AI expert and the conversation like so fundamentally got me thinking different, got me excited, re lit my fire, got me Sean, how do you stay so motivated? How do you stay so, you know, passionate by the way, having conversations with high level people who like fuel my fire, like so there's so many ancillary benefits. The reasons behind, and I don't want to go into all of them, why I love doing the Think Media podcast is I could probably come up with 30 if I really worked hard. And here we are at episode 500 and still going. So get ruthlessly clear on your why and then stack your reasons.
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Start with passion, get clear on your why. What's the third lesson you'd pass on?
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We can hit this quick and actually have some case studies I wrote down as I was preparing these notes is choose a niche you can go deep on for years. So we've kind of already mentioned that. What's your why? Or can you be curious about this? Excuse me for years, but when you choose a niche, you know, what are you passionate about? What are you proficient at? What's profitable? That's the three P's. What are you passionate about? Yes, but also what are you proficient at? You've got some skills, some experience. And what could be profitable if you want to make money? Brainstorm those topics. Narrow down one you could sustain for at least a hundred episodes. Interesting.
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Yeah.
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Narrow down your podcast to something you could sustain for at least 100 episodes. That's the real benchmark. But let's talk about some of our video ranking academy students. So Kimberlya has a true crime podcast. She shared a picture in our group recently of Joe Rogan, number one on Spotify in her podcast True Crime podcast number two at that time. Crazy so. And by the way, like true crime I don't care about it. I don't listen to it. I'm not interested in it. It doesn't hold me. She does. And what's interesting is we know that the demand of the audience is huge. People love. It doesn't matter that there's competition. Sure there is. But like lots of people love these true crime podcasts. Yeah. So there's a big market. She's interested in it. So if she's interested in actually researching it and the stories and uncovering maybe like one that nobody else has talked about. Oh, this crazy story in history with the serial killer, you know, like, who knows? So she finds that story. Okay. And then she has, of course, been able to monetize it as it's grown. So it's interesting. That's a really good niche. Michael Zuber, he's been interviewed a couple times on the Think Media podcast. He runs the daily financial news. That's a niche he can go deep for years on. And it's actually, you think about how consistent that is. He does it five days a week. And it was an extension of his lifestyle where he is actually legitimately passionate and curious about the daily financial news. He would study it for himself before he ever made content. He'd get up, make a pot of coffee and start reading about the daily financial news for an hour. So then he's like, what if I turn that into a show? And so that became his video podcast and has turned into a multi six figure income. The Think Media Podcast, tips for starting and growing a profitable YouTube channel. It was a niche that. Here we are. You can go deep on it for years. Five years later, we're still talking about it. I bet we're still talking about it five years from now. And so another one was Medow Devore podcast. That's her name, if I'm pronouncing it right. But her niche is learn to recognize narcissistic manipulation, see it clearly as it's happening, and respond in ways that shut it down. She does those as a solo round. She's not interviewing anybody. But it's a niche she can go deep on. On years. You could ask her. You could do like a pressure test. Will people still be dealing with high conflict people or narcissistic relationships and dating and in marriage three to five to ten years from now? Yeah, they will. Will people still want the newest financial news? For sure. Will people still want to grow a YouTube channel? Yeah, YouTube's king. It's even bigger. Well, you know, so the strategy of thinking ahead and Finding the alignment of that. I think we got to speed up for the episode probably on how deep we're going. But yeah, choose a niche you can go deep on for years is a big lesson I learned now after posting 500 episodes.
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When it's helpful, that framework of what do I even do? How do I even start? What's at the intersection of passion, proficiency and profit? I think it's really helpful to think through. Okay, so let's say you've got your niche down. What advice do you have from there? You know, like, where do you go from there?
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Okay, so number four is define the promise of your show. And so think media podcast promise, tips for starting and growing a profitable YouTube channel. Pretty simple. We've tried to spice that up. I don't even think you know the phrase. I don't think our team knows. I wrote it once, never told anybody. But you try to come up with a tagline. It was like unfiltered tips for starting a profitable YouTube channel. That's what I came up with. Unfiltered was slightly a unique word, like we're going to be raw tips, just to be clear. Core Promise YouTube channel and then the keyword profitable. Because one of the reasons to be subscribed to this podcast is we are unapologetically passionate about helping people really build a sustainable business around their YouTube efforts and their video podcasting efforts. So there was my sentence. It's like, define the promise of the show. If you can articulate it, that's good because you could tell listeners what to expect. But I've found that most people haven't done this work. They haven't synthesized the core idea of what their show is about and then considered that even if you've done that, is it good? Is there any way for it to be unique? We're not the only YouTube tips podcast, but I do think the way we've emphasized, of course, building a real business leaning, heavy entrepreneurship as well as creators, whatever. So bottom line, number four, define the promise of your show. And I think sometimes people think about the Lego, the logo, they think about colors. Yeah, Branding and all that stuff I think is really cool. But honestly, the promise of the show is much more important. The core value people are going to get. People aren't out here like, wow, I really watched your podcast because the logo, there's got to be that experiential value. What do they walk away with? And at this point too, you might define the format. I looked ahead and was like, all I want to do is what we Just said unfiltered tips for building a profitable YouTube channel. That actually gave me flexibility in the format. I do solo rounds. I interview people. I've had a different co host in the past. You're now the co host. Now you do solo rounds. We have Think Media coaches. We interview VRA students, we interview top 1% creators, we interview business owners. But then the filter is, you know, tips for YouTube. We drift a little. If it's something that's ancillary that YouTube creators should also do. Those episodes usually don't perform as well. But like, why you should build a website or an email list or something. Sure. It's not really, really the promise of the show, but what's your core? And you might start thinking about the format. Sometimes the format itself can be the value if it is always an interview show. But I wasn't. The format was flexible. The promise is the anchor.
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Yeah.
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And then the key is everything orbits around that. And I think, especially if you want to build momentum. Now I get it, you're listening to this. You might be like, that's very constricting because I'm at episode zero. I haven't even started. And I kind of want to experiment. I think there's a place for that. Consider I started a video podcast in 2020 after already building a multi million subscriber YouTube channel.
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Yeah.
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I actually would say that the Think Media podcast was one of the most informed. I think it's the best thing I've ever started. Why? Because of, in a way, the mistakes I made building a multi million subscriber channel.
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Yeah.
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Think Media's weakness, in a way, even though I believe it's very focused, is it's so variety. We've done whole series on a specific video editing software that's gained subscribers, which means people click to learn about DaVinci Resolve. They click subscribe. And they might not care about 70% of the other stuff we post on the channel that can happen here. But I would say the Think Media podcast has been the most focused digital asset that I've launched in my career. And I think what helped me do that was the 10 years previous. So as far as, you know, trying to add massive value to listeners, this isn't just five years of experience. It's 15 to 20 years of experience that just says, you know, a, if you experiment and even launch other shows and channels, that's also okay. Like, those can be the learning curve. One of the guys I just interviewed recently on Think Media podcast said it was channel number five that he finally reached success on YouTube. He had four failed channels. Yeah. Before number five, when it clicked. It depends on what season you're in. But if you want to start with like the greatest chance of absolutely cutting through the noise, crushing it, making money, whatever, having this point dialed in define the promise of your show is a massive edge.
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The number one thing that I see kill new creators is not lack of effort. It's just you're using a process that's too complicated to repeat. And that's why I want to tell you about Riverside, who is the partner of today's episode. If you've been thinking about starting a podcast, doing interviews, or even just recording content with a guest, Riverside makes the
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whole process super simple.
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And I'm not just saying that we use it first, the recording quality. You can record up to 4K video with separate audio and video tracks for each person, and Riverside records locally on each person's device. So that just means if the wifi takes a dip mid recording, you didn't lose the session.
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That alone is worth it.
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But here's the part that ties in so well with what we're talking about today. Riverside actually has this AI powered editor that lets you edit your video by editing the text. You don't need to learn a complicated timeline. It removes the filler words, cuts out the pauses and generates captions. And their magic clips feature automatically puts your best moments into shorts. TikToks radio reels automatically. And for podcasters, Riverside actually hosts and distributes your show to Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube, all from one dashboard. So if you're someone that wants to create content, but you get hung up on the whole, how do I produce this part? This is the answer to keeping things simple. Use Code Think Media at checkout for one month, free of Riverside's pro plan. Again, that's Code Think Media at checkout.
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Link is in the description and show notes below. Well, I mean, and we're four lessons into this conversation and none of these have to do with recording anything. That actually, I mean, that says a lot, right? So you would say based on what you know right now, you know and I know that Think Media, like we have often championed, don't overthink things. Punch fear in the face, press record. But if you're advising someone, I know, like, if you want the strongest start, it's going to involve actually, it has nothing to do with equipment yet. It's like you with a notepad, with your thoughts, with a computer, getting all of this out and trying to maybe brainstorm with AI or Something. Okay, so number five here, the fifth lesson. You called this Find your uniqueness, don't copy create. What is. What does that mean for you?
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So personal brand is the last true differentiator in a world full of AI and information overload. We did this thing called the our emergency web class and did a free report, and it had many shifts in it. One of the shifts is personal brand is the only differentiator left. Personal brand is the only way to be unique in a world where information and content and YouTube channels and podcasts are more abundant than ever before. But what cannot actually be copied is your unique DNA. Truth is, God gave you a unique fingerprint that nobody else has in the world. AI. And a ChatGPT script can start sounding very the same as everybody else's. I was actually just watching about the absolute crisis colleges are facing with how much AI students are using and not even well, as I was watching it, as I was watching it, I was thinking, like, if only these kids knew how to prompt well, then these, these articles wouldn't be getting picked up because they might just go like, write me a 2,000 page article. It's just the requirements on World War II. And that's the whole prompt for my, you know, whatever, AP class. If you're an ap, would you really be using AI? Probably extra smart. And so like, ultimately you put that in, it spits it out. And so personal brand as well as also not letting your brand descend into AI slopping garbage and laziness and keeping the excellence high is is it's your uniqueness. So, okay, what would I encourage people sit down and there's a lot of brainstorming you can do along with this episode. What is unique about you? Sit down and study a few other shows. What about other podcast hosts do you admire? What are you noticing about what other shows do? The vibe, the energy, the atmospheres, the pace. Even in your own niche. It's actually really good to study podcasts generally, I think, like, just what's happening in general, because when you act, you get into issues. If you're like, you just study your competitors, you should be studying the best. You should be studying different formats, different models. But also if you look at your competitors, you're like, okay, what are they doing? Maybe their episodes are always long winded and not super edited. You go shorter, maybe there is something shorter. You go deeper, maybe you go more case studies. You're really thinking analytically here. And then write down your personality. What's unique about your personality? Your lens, your voice, you know, it's interesting to have a conversation with somebody else you trust or some trusted voices or a mentor or a conversation with even somebody on our team. Feedback is priceless. And so you want to pull out those elements. And what's interesting is, like, some people might say it's just about being authentic, but I have found that a lot of us haven't necessarily done a ton of self awareness and self discovery. And maybe if you eventually identify that unique thing about you, it's not like a surprise because you do know yourself. But until you write it down and make those your brand elements and you're like, oh, this is what I lean into. Like, it's important that I show up because I am kind of sarcastic and cynical and sometimes funny, and that's part of my. So that, like, that's an element of the show. Like, if I miss that, then I'm missing a piece of my uniqueness. Or maybe I'm more stoic, or maybe it's more serious, or maybe I'm more so. Bottom line is, is to really find your uniqueness. Of course it feels crowded, and it is. I think it's also a myth that things are super crowded. A lot of people quit podcasting. This is part of a series. And so check out the playlist link in the show notes where we cover some of the stats and the data. But most people never get past episode, you know, three or 20. And not only that, though, there was this massive wave of over a million podcasts started back at the pandemic, but now it's dropped to about a quarter million a year. That still feels intense, but it's not as bad as you think when you really look at the math. So all you're asking is how do you stand out in the sea of sameness? And it doesn't need to be super radical. You're not looking for some radical thing.
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Yes.
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You're just amplifying your strengths and weaving those into your show.
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Well, you know, all of this sounds, you know, awfully similar, Sean. Just like to be transparent to, like an onboarding call with someone. Like, when I'm doing, like a YouTube coaching call, we're starting to strategize. Like, this is no different than this is the foundation. This is the starting ground of, like, what we go through in our entire process. And so I'd love to encourage you. Hey, if you're listening, thinking about getting into podcasting, specifically video podcasting, Tapping into the power of YouTube. Right now, you can actually apply for a free call with our team @vyral video coach.com and I really encourage you to apply. It's not for everyone, but if you're able to talk with someone on our team, I think it would just help, right? Like be able to flesh out all of these things and just have someone who knows what they're talking about. Actually look at you. If you already have a channel or if you already have an idea, set up and help you strategize your next steps. And that's totally free, by the way. So you're welcome to apply at Viral Video Coach. Com. Sean, number six I'm excited about, because this is actually where I think a lot of people start naming your show and nailing down the format. What have you learned about names for podcasts?
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Well, I've learned that actually. I mean, this show is kind of funny. I think I missed the name at the start. So. Fun fact about the history of this podcast, which is currently called the Think Media Podcast. It started as the Think Marketing Podcast. The name of the show, day one in 2020, January 1st, was the think Marketing Podcast. And what I thought was I thought that was like tangential to Think Media. I thought it was kind of clever. I wanted to focus it on. It was on, like the business side. So it was YouTube growth, but it was like email list building and whatever. What was funny was I maybe did like 100 episodes or something. And not that that was bad and it kind of worked. But there was this day when I think I brought it up, and at the time, a friend of mine, Tony Arreola, was a part of the team. I think Kyle was saying something too. And they were like, why is it even called the Think Marketing Podcast? Like, why wouldn't we call it our own brand name, like the Think Media Podcast? Like, Think Media is already the company name. And I was like, yeah, I mean, I don't know. That's a good point. Okay. And then it was like, do we change it? I think that reveals a couple things, you know, was that a bad name? No, but what are you thinking about brand consistency and etc. I'd also say Think Media is in a way meaningless. Besides the meaning it's come to take on from people who understand what it is. So you also could say, I have often thought, you know, if it had YouTube in the name, usually you want that as a subhead, not the main name just because of copyright stuff, but, like, it might, you know, like for us, the Think Media Podcast. Unfiltered tips for building a profitable YouTube. YouTube is a descriptor of like what we help people do. But if it even had the word video in it. Here's. These are just the things I think about. Do you want to be searchable? Do you want it to be findable? Do you already have a brand name? Is it going to be named after your first and last name? The Sean Cannell Show? Is it going to be named a hybrid of something where you know real estate tips with Sean Cannell? Is it going to be named and so you could overthink this. I think the cool thing is you should think about it. The second thing is you clearly can change it. We did. And you just kept building. I mean, you know what, there's some old names or old playlists out there, maybe a few images, but you can pivot. It's not ideal if you've built some momentum, but you can. We did.
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Was it tough to change the name in terms of like just logistics technically?
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Do you remember like, I mean it's always frustrating. Yeah, just like how many think places is it written? How many places? You know, so when it's. It's never fun. It's like you just rip the band aid off.
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You just do it.
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Just go, it's the right thing to do. And like so. And then when I say number six, name the show and nail the format from the start. I do think that it's not. In a way I'd say it's not something we did. We didn't say it was only interviews. What do I mean by format? Is it solo rounds? Is it interviews? Is it co host debates? Is it reaction commentary? Is it flexible? Well, ours is a flexible mission mix for this show. But I would argue that in a way the format is pretty set. And what I mean by format would be like the structure. Like we already teach the 3A formula.
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Yes.
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Teach off numbered points have a particular way of doing things that finds its way even into interviews. And I believe our community resonates with that because we don't want to waste listeners time value per minute. So that's a lot of nuance zooming out for the person who's like, help me and I think we could go lighting round for these final five points. But yeah, what eventually you do have to make this decision, you know, from some of our coaching clients and people that do one on one coaching with me, this is the main thing they want to brainstorm, they really want to process. Do I go this direction or that direction? And having a. It's not necessarily a short conversation. That conversation can go on where do you want to be in a couple years where what do you see this turning into? Do you want it to scale? Do you want it. If it's not the Sean Cannell show, could a co host come on it someday named, you know, Nathan S. Wine? You know, just interesting questions to think about. And that actually brings us to number seven, which you can drop that point.
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Yeah, a hundred percent. I mean, speaking of co hosts, like, how. What have you learned about co hosts? If you want to do a podcast where it's not just yourself every time,
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you know, So I do have some experience with this. Heather was our co host here. In the past, I've co hosted a show with Benji Travis on Video Influencers. Now I'm co hosting a show with you. I've hosted things in my church, media and pastoral career, so I've done a lot of different things. Really quick on this. Don't force this. If you have nobody, you don't need to sit around and wait for somebody. So good point. So it's like that's. Is there even somebody around? But do they add a genuine dynamic? These are good reflection questions. Are you partnering out of insecurity? Are you only getting a co host because you saw other people do it? Is it necessary? Like, do they add. Yeah, a genuine dynamic. Do they pull better content out? You. The pro of more than one person on a podcast is, I think the conversation is there, healthy disagreement. I think disagreement powers up a podcast. And like, let's look at somebody that listeners might know about. His name's Patrick Bet David. He has a show called the PBD podcast and he has built. It hasn't always even been the four people that are typically on there. I think it's three or four people. He's got Vinnie and he's got, yeah, three to four co hosts. And I've watched them craft the show. They, like, want disagreement, they want pushback, polarization on the ideas. So solo rounds can lack that because it's hard to. You might be able to speak to both perspectives, but it helps you, like, process the ideas. But at the same time, you know, a weak co host might not actually add to the content and that could create a dynamic, you know, so you really want to think this one through. But probably for most of us, you're going to do solo rounds or you're going to be the interviewer. So you're constantly going to be the one who's fighting for the listeners to make it valuable. But a good co host can help you scale by really dividing and Conquering. Maybe you delegate different opportunities and stuff. Let us know by the way, if you have any questions thus far for a follow up episode. Even on this episode, you'd have to be on the YouTube version of this to comment. And we would love to go deeper in any of these details because what this also might look like is a partnership. Are they doing it for free? Are you hiring them? Are you actually partnered like Benji and I partnered on Video Influencers and we both wrote the book YouTube Secrets and so it was almost by default that we would co host episodes. So this is a lot of stuff I'm processing is like over the years I wasn't thinking this strategically. I was just, you know, going with the flow each month and year. Now I'm looking back, hoping to add value to listeners, to think through at a whole different level than they maybe normally would have of building out their podcast.
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Well, we can't talk about building out a podcast without running into tech, right? So the eighth lesson here, I'd love to hear your reflection on tech and what's required. How fancy do you go? What systems do you need to do a podcast?
- [30:52]
A
So for speed here, let's just hit video podcast guide dot com. So we, because we have this podcasting series and we've actually Already covered this, VideoPodcastGuide.com is a free resource we created. It's totally free. You're going to get a checklist, you're going to get access to a couple different videos that'll walk you through different setups. Whether you want to keep it dead simple, record at your computer with a webcam and like Riverside, or whether you want to be in person with multi camera setups. I would say this, the one big idea is complexity is the enemy of execution.
- [31:29]
B
Okay?
- [31:30]
A
The more complex your workflow gets, lights to turn on, microphones again, whether you have help or not, then it's the more angles of footage you captured and then how is that getting edited? And then it's how big are those file sizes and how big so, so you never, and especially if you haven't been down this road, you don't even know the second order consequences of complexity. Even the complexity of like how many shows do you want to do a week? Well, how much editing is that? How many thumbnails is that? How much upload is that? Complexity is the enemy of execution. So that's why number eight is keep your tech simple and then build systems because you want the minimum viable product to get things published, to get things started. That's what I would Say if you're starting and then level up as you go. We're sitting in Las Vegas at Anderson Studios with an outrageous amount of, like, gear and stuff behind us and a level of complexity. But that this also was not even how we shot. Even with the level thing, we were already a multimillion dollar media company. And even at that level, when it was episode one, January 1, 2020, it was, it was much simpler. And I don't know if even Anderson Studios existed at the time. So it's like, keep it simple, build it up as it goes. But if you want to go down that tech rabbit hole and be resourced at a really high level with the coolest thing I think we've almost is just entirely free. Videopodcastguide.com if you go to that URL or click the link in the show notes. We're happy to send you over such great resources around tech and starting and launching your video podcast.
- [33:00]
B
Can you explain the difference between a podcast and a video podcast? Because your ninth lesson learned here is actually to embrace the video side of podcasting. So what's the difference?
- [33:11]
A
Yeah, so what's fascinating is I understand there's a lot of confusion here. And this would just be on the assumption that if you're clicking on this video, thinking about starting a podcast, audio only, I would beg and plead with you to embrace video, because the roi, the return on investment, is worth the challenge. So I think this is best understood not to get, like, really isolated in gender, gender, you know, and differences and whatnot. But friends of mine that are content creators, I have heard that are female have said that have had audio podcasts, have been like, I don't want to do video. It's a whole thing now. It's a complexity of the tech, but it's also instead of just like getting up and just talking into my microphone in my pajama pants, no makeup, they're like, now filming a video podcast is like a hair day, a makeup day, a lighting thing of tech. It just added a level of complexity. And what did we just say? We just said complexity is the enemy of execution. So there's no doubt about it that the lift of an audio podcast, if it's excellent, is still heavy. Video isn't just like twice as hard. It's. It's much more complex. Camera presence, lighting, set design. But the opportunity of posting specifically on YouTube makes it worth it. The challenge is real, but the return on investment is worth it. So lean into the learning curve. Don't let the friction talk you out of it figure out systems for all of the above. So it's like, if you're getting ready, don't just shoot one episode batch, produce multiple episodes and just. And bite the bullet. And again, I mean that might depend for. And even some, you know, dudes out there, no makeup, no shower, dude doesn't shower, you know, whatever. Like, like, still, it's, it's the complexity of. Is it multi angle? What's the workflow, what's the editing? Video adds a lot more complexity. Big headline. The ROI is worth the challenge. And again, watch a few of the previous episodes of like, why now is a great time to start a podcast. We look at all the data. We're not going to hit all that here. Video is worth the challenge. YouTube podcasting is exploding. And when you do so, you're gonna be happier for it because it's also not even just the fact you've uploaded. What's the difference between an audio podcast and a video podcast? An audio podcast is audio only. A video podcast, I would say, is content that is still consumable and that can have a good experience. Content that can have a good experience in the audio format. But you've just turned the camera on. You know, when I watch Joe Rogan interview people, I don't see him make eye contact with the camera ever. Yeah, he sits down and has an audio conversation with his guest. What do they do though? They turn the camera on. What does that mean? It means not only can then they upload videos and now video on Apple and on Spotify because they're going hard on video podcasts on those platforms, but then you also can cut clips out of it. You could do everything else with it. I would call that the return on investment. When the assets done, it becomes the most valuable asset in your business is the fact you have that audio asset you can cut up and do some things with. I'm just saying it's worth getting camera ready. It's worth figuring out the complexity. Keep it simple. That's what I would say.
- [36:23]
B
Where would you recommend to post this video now?
- [36:27]
C
Right.
- [36:27]
B
Because if you already know what to do with the audio version, you're uploading that. But where would you post the video?
- [36:33]
A
Yeah, so you're going to upload that video native to YouTube. You're going to upload it directly to
- [36:36]
B
YouTube and YouTube's the best platform for that.
- [36:38]
A
Yeah. But then in that case, it's only going to be on YouTube in video format. And then when you create a playlist and check the box to call it a podcast, then YouTube understands any video you move over into that playlist will go out on YouTube music and will be labeled as a podcast.
- [36:58]
C
Got it.
- [36:58]
A
So the way to associate that video also as an audio experience and a video experience of what is called a podcast. And then that's where you get a podcast tab on your YouTube channel. It'll say videos, shorts, posts, live podcasts. That podcast tab is anything that gets added to that playlist. But then you have the opportunity to use something like buzzsprout, which is what we use to distribute our audio podcasts. And you can use free tools that basically just get you an RSS feed and it'll start going to Apple and Google and Audible and all these places. But buzzsprout makes it really easy. And it just adds features like dynamic ads and data and all kinds of things that it's a big advantage. It's really worth it. And so we'll link to buzzsprout. It's also part of the tools we'll recommend to you. Totally worth it. So then the question is, and I'm actually, I'd have to do my research. As places like Spotify are evolving and Apple, it is a question of do you have to do that manually or can you. I'd imagine you just upload the video version at some point in your workflow, separating a video file, probably an MP4 MOV MP4 file that has video and audio that's uploaded to YouTube and is uploaded and distributed to Apple and Spotify. And the experiences on these platforms is becoming more user friendly. Like on Spotify, it's like the same meaning. You see the post, there is a video version, there's an audio version, and it's like their whole user interface will figure that out. But basically Spotify can't play your video if you don't give them the video. So this is in a way kind of a moving target. Or you just want to stay current with trends and the unique platforms. You could go so deep on any one of these platforms. Spotify has its own interface tools, analytics. They have a whole new monetization thing where the bar is like pretty low if you've done like three episodes and you have a certain number of listen hours, so. And then paying good RPMs. It's like the world of video podcasting is very vast. And so we're kind of in the weeds here. But yeah, that would absolutely it also that actually again, listeners might be like, shoot, you're talking me out of it. Because there's real complexity to like multiple Versions, multiple formats. Yeah, let's zoom out again. I'm not saying these results are typical. We're all in different niches. But when we talk about five years, 500 episodes, we're also talking about multiple seven figures have been generated for from this podcast. Multiple millions of dollars on the long tail. Would you want to build an asset that you can work from home that earns you 50k a year as a hobby? Would you want to build an asset that you could work from home and do on the go and create a format and do something you love and you're passionate about? Tip number one takeaway number one, that earns you six figures a year, would you want to start? How long does that take? A couple years usually to build the momentum. But that's the roi. On the other, would you want continuous, high qualified leads coming into your business? Keeping those things in mind is why you're embracing the complexity.
- [40:06]
B
So your tenth lesson has to do with YouTube. And you said that YouTube is the primary platform. Easy to say, right? You were the YouTube guy who then started a podcast. So obviously video podcast is happening on YouTube. But why is this your primary platform? Why are you so bullish on video podcasts dropping on YouTube?
- [40:21]
A
Yeah, we kind of covered this in the previous point. Just because when you do so, you know, get that video file done, upload it to YouTube. But a couple reasons. Number one, YouTube is actually the number one platform for podcasts. It's bigger than Spotify and Apple. So it'd be funny if you said, I'm a serious podcaster. You go, okay, cool, so you're like on YouTube? Well, no, I just do audio. You'd be like, well, you're not that serious. Now I understand that's not to invalidate audio, only podcasts. But if it's like literally the biggest place, why are you not posting there? Well, the reason you wouldn't be posting there is because you didn't turn the camera on. So the problem to solve is turning the camera on a. Okay, but here's. There's other reasons YouTube is the number one place people discover new podcasts. Why? Because YouTube's a better place to discover things in general. It's better search, it's better algorithm. The only place on audio that I've noticed, I know Spotify has some kind of recommendations. You get different things shown to you on your home. Feedback, they're always updating that. But in like Apple, if you don't search it out or go to the charts and you don't make it on the Charts underneath an episode is like listeners also listen to.
- [41:30]
B
Yes.
- [41:30]
A
So there's like very minimal discoverability. It's not that it's non existent. Maybe people search on Google itself and find your podcast. Unlikely.
- [41:38]
B
Yeah.
- [41:39]
A
But YouTube is algorithmically driving content to individuals. Plus it's the second largest search engine in the world. So basically podcast episodes can rank and YouTube's the number one podcast platform. And again, if you've done video there, you can do it everywhere else.
- [41:56]
B
Yeah.
- [41:57]
A
So YouTube is king. Treat it that way and then also embrace video and distribute everywhere.
- [42:05]
B
So lesson number 11 here is learning the unique skill stack for each platform. What does this mean? What is skill stack?
- [42:13]
A
Okay, so if we've embraced the challenge, we're talking about lessons to know after 500 uploads. And if you're going to embrace video, you're adding more complex complexity. And if you do so, you have to realize that video podcasting, audio podcasting are not the same product. Maybe another way to put it is when you upload a video to YouTube, it has a skill stack. What is. You're. You're filling out the file, you're filling out the title, you're filling out the description, you're filling out the tags, you're uploading a thumbnail. There is no thumbnail on audio podcasting. So it's interesting also to consider that there's some of the best YouTube titles are only a good title when you have a thumbnail. Because they work together.
- [42:54]
B
Yeah.
- [42:55]
A
Whereas if you actually uploaded that same final asset. I know this sounds like, dang it, it's a lot of work. I'm already trying to title one thing. And for most, you don't have to have differences, but it's just knowing that a really good title thumbnail combination on the video version of your podcast might be terrible on the audio version. And so there's actually times on the Think Media podcast where they're entirely different because the experience, we're like, okay, well, someone's gonna see the thumbnail, they're gonna see the title. That's one experience. All they see on audio is just the text.
- [43:26]
C
Yeah.
- [43:26]
A
So that's. They're not the same product. So that just requires different thinking. And, and this is figureoutable. I mean, I'm. You're kind of being overloaded with insight for information. You really don't need day one as a beginner. But we're just taking to an advanced level that where this thing would evolve to at scale could be just mastering. Oh, is there unique optimization on Apple? Is there Anything different on Spotify? And I just, I touched on that a second ago. These platforms in and of themselves have their own homepages, algorithms, you know, ways of suggesting things, ways of optimizing things. Sometimes additional clips, like you can upload. Upload additional clips on Spotify, like supporting video clips. That's almost like the vertical. And so they're adding these different features. Let me encourage individuals, don't stress out about that. Like, you could almost skip this one at the start, but if you're taking it to advanced level, five years later, we're talking about this. Like, that's what advanced would look like.
- [44:24]
B
So give me the stress free path because we've covered a lot. We're 11 lessons deep. We have one more. What's the stress free path?
- [44:32]
A
Are you saying one of two options? Yeah, stress. Stress free path number one is punch fear in the face. Start before you're ready and define your experience though, as, as practice, maybe it blows up, but I'm going to actually start my first thing. That's way more about experimenting, practicing, developing my voice and man, if it turns into something cool. But I actually, I've defined my why I'm so early in the game. I just need to stop sitting on the sidelines listening to the Think Media podcast and I need to actually just get in the game because that's where I'm at. I'm not even really sure what I'm doing. I don't have an existing business, I don't have an existing offer, and I need to start. I should have started a long time ago, but the second best day to start is right now. And I know, like, I think the fear is. Yeah, but I still want to, like, get everything perfect because if I'm going to build, you just don't understand, like, how valuable it is to have a year under your belt of anything. Yeah, like, it could be lame and boring of you just talking to your friends, but, like, you're going to learn so much in a year of, let's say, podcasting. But that's path A. Path B is if you're a little ways down the journey. If you have an existing product or you have an existing offer or you have an existing business, then the most logical thing is to reverse engineer a podcast show that would support the existing thing you want to do. If you have an existing church, maybe the point is to grow deeper with your congregation or if you have a church but you want to help other pastors because you've reached. You want to talk about leadership or something. It just means you're already doing the thing. Those are. One of the two paths is like, keep it super simple, start in practice, or start with a level of clarity. But still start before you feel ready. Because if you're on episode 001, then don't stress out about micro optimizing Spotify. What I would say is we've covered this in a previous episode, but the simple stack. Keep your tech stack simple. Personally, I would start virtual because you could sit at a home office or your other office webcam or nice camera, usb, mic light, Riverside Buzzsprout. That's it, done. And go to, you know, video podcast guide.com and we talk through some other, you know, we just have. We'll walk you through the whole thing, but that's it. And start simple. And then maybe someday you build a studio and someday you do some other stuff. But start as quick as possible with the clarity of the thing you're already doing, using the podcast as a way to amplify it.
- [47:01]
B
So this final lesson has to do with consistency, has to do with publishing cadence. And after over 500 episodes, I think you have full clearance to walk us through this. But what have you learned about consistency when it comes to podcasting specifically?
- [47:14]
A
Yeah, I mean, I actually would almost go a little bit recently. I've talked a lot about, like, who cares if you even post weekly? Yeah, because the YouTube algorithm doesn't necessarily. They just want, you know, videos are being judged on their individual merits. But honestly, on podcasting, I think that weekly is the proven rhythm. And consider that audio, you know, is going to get some distribution from people who click, subscribe, or followed you, but they're not. It's not as much of an algorithm. Right. So if you want to stay top of mind and tip of tongue, if you want to stay top of mind, you need to keep showing up. And also the fact that it's going to work on you. And that's why I would be asking you to create a simple workflow, something simple, something sustainable. Again, if you're like going to record some video podcast interviews at home from your home office setup with Riverside, you, a lot of people will batch those, some will batch them all in one day.
- [48:15]
B
Wow.
- [48:16]
A
You know, there's stories in our community that will do one upload a week, but they'll shoot four interviews in one day and get themselves a month of content.
- [48:23]
B
There we go.
- [48:24]
A
And then you still need to prepare for those, but, like, if it happens to work with everybody's schedule, but you're just scheduling, like you know, and it's assuming you take a day off or it's your one day off a month or something and you shoot it 9, 11, 1 and 3 and then you take a break and you got them all in the can like one, whatever. Consistency is the cheat code. And what I've learned too is it's also just some episodes I thought were gonna blow up, they fell flat. Some that I didn't think were that good are now still getting views years later. Cause they rank in search and suggested by the YouTube algorithm. But consistency is the cheat code. It's like, it's like the, it levels things out. There's highs, there's lows. Our channel got hacked. We had 12 days when literally our channel, the podcast channel, got hacked and got. The name was changed. Thank God they didn't delete the videos. I don't know what would have happened if they did. They just made them unlisted. They tried to run a Tesla livestreaming scam where they like play this Elon Musk footage and get you to transfer crypto. You know, YouTube kicked it back to us massive channels. Someone on the Think Media team probably clicked like an email or a Google install thing and it got like cookie hijacked.
- [49:30]
B
Oh my goodness.
- [49:32]
A
Scary. And so you know, get your two factor authentication on and lock stuff down. But here's my point. It's like from hacks, yes. To good to, to different se, to seasons where like I would say it was kind of in still a level of quality but maintenance mode where like I was just much more busy but you know, just checking the box, getting solid interviews in shooting a few things. We happen to do two episodes a week. Sometimes you drop down to one. The baseline is more now than, than. Well, it's more than one a week on average for sure, over five years. But the baseline was one a week. So like sometimes it was two, but it wasn't always two. That's what I was like. Commit to the long haul. Consistency is the cheat code. There is so many ancillary benefits of just. You keep showing up, you stay on schedule. And again, some of the stats are where the podcasts that make money. The podcasts that break through 99% don't. It's the ones that get over a hundred episodes that are still in it at least six months later. And things get really interesting on month 18 through month 24, about that two year mark. Consistency is the cheat code. Don't be complaining that your podcast failed when you tried it for four weeks or even four months. Consistency is the cheat code. Consistent quality consistent brand consistent message consistent posting. That's what I'd recommend.
- [50:48]
B
Sean, thanks so much for sharing your experience here today. Podcast when is your first episode dropping? What's the name of it?
- [50:55]
C
What is the insight that you took
- [50:56]
B
away from these 12 lessons that Sean has shared? We'd love to hear and engage with you. Please like rate, share review wherever you're watching or listening.
- [51:05]
C
This is the Think Media podcast.
- [51:07]
B
I'm Nathan Eswine and I can't wait to connect with you in a future episode.