The Silent Podcast Problem: How to Avoid a Dead-Launch Disaster | #250

Know what many new podcast hosts neglect?

It’s the same thing guests could help with…

Got a guess?

The full answer is inside this episode!

You'll walk away with intel on how to successfully launch or relaunch your show.  

Listen, releasing episodes and posting audiograms that compel absolutely no one to leave the social platform they are on - it won’t work.

You must:

↳ build a team
↳ promote your launch
↳ have episodes in the hopper
↳ generate reviews of your show 

There’s a STRATEGY behind successful podcast launches

Here are some things we'll cover...

➤how soon do you build your team?
➤how will you invite people?
➤will you do a giveaway?
➤will you ask for reviews?
➤how will you keep your team informed?
➤how far in advance do you announce your launch date?

Ready? Let's launch! 🚀🚀🚀

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Transcript

Time To Simplify Podcasting
Jen Rogers | Creator of the 90-Day Sprint | Certified Coach | Keynote Speaker

I teach experienced Christian entrepreneurs how to leverage podcasting so they can grow their impact, influence + income.

If you’re a successful business owner and you haven’t launched a show, it’s time to talk about how to put your voice and proven offers to work for you!

The Silent Podcast Problem: How to Avoid a Dead-Launch Disaster | #250

[00:00:00] Jen Rogers: What do the following have in common? The supreme ruler of Mount Olympus, Zeus in Greek mythology, the king of Sparta, and the titans who terrorized ancient Greece. Your answer is likely the feature film Hercules. I'll share an alternative answer in one hot second. Let's move on to another question I have for you.

[00:00:24] Jen Rogers: What would you say many new podcast hosts neglect most often? It's the very thing you could help them with if you're interested in guesting on upcoming shows. What's your guess? Are you thinking it's a bad audio or a guest interview gone south? Perhaps your guess is that the host drones on and on for far too long.

[00:00:51] Jen Rogers: Or maybe you're thinking the guest doesn't seem to have anything to do with what the host audience craves or needs. You would be right. Yes, and none of those are the answer to what many new podcast hosts neglect most often. Listen, if you're going to put in the hard work required to produce a show, you must do this one thing for the success and longevity of your podcast.

[00:01:19] Jen Rogers: Without it, your show will take off like a sputtering snail. Your show likely won't reach your intended audience. Dreadfully low downloads will disappoint you. And worst of all, you might end up planning your podcast's funeral. If you want to go deeper on that topic, be sure you check out episode number 249.

[00:01:41] Jen Rogers: Now, about Zeus, the Titans, and the King of Sparta. You see, there's a big production coming up this weekend featuring all of them. And if I were attending, I'd invite you to join me and cheer three of my grandkiddos on as they star in this production. We would support James being cast as Zeus, Jonathan portraying the King of Sparta, and Joey cast as a Titan.

[00:02:05] Jen Rogers: In episode number 250 of Time to Simplify Podcasting, You'll learn how building your own cheering section when you launch or relaunch your podcast is critical to the trajectory of your show. And this is the very thing new podcast hosts neglect most often. During the podcast monetization boot camp we recently completed together, I made sure I had a wingman.

[00:02:33] Jen Rogers: I also made sure I had a team to bounce things off so my ducks would be quacking in a sweet chorus. So when the boot camp went live, I was ready. If you're about to launch or relaunch your show, join the select few podcast hosts who create a launch team. If you want to be a favored guest and get referrals for other shows, join You'll join a podcast launch [00:03:00] team.

[00:03:01] Jen Rogers: I know you see some hosts asking for help for a launch inside all of those Facebook groups, and I bet you see even more announcements on the socials of people who share they are about to launch. When you read these posts or listen to those reels, you will stand out if you offer to be considered for their launch team.

[00:03:20] Jen Rogers: I highly recommend you do this for shows aligning with your areas of expertise. Here on Time to Simplify, we do that very thing. We simplify launching, relaunching, guesting, monetization, and more. Each episode is designed to give you insights and clarity on how to up level, grow, and monetize every episode on either side of the microphone.

[00:03:45] Jen Rogers: Hey there, I'm Jen Rogers. I believe you can monetize every episode. In 2025, I am on a mission to serve 100 Christian entrepreneurs. Each month to monetize their microphones. Are you one of them? I sure hope so, because I believe your passion for podcast hosting and guesting is directly related to your mission, to your calling, to your purpose.

[00:04:13] Jen Rogers: I also know, as proven by every monthly podcasting report I peruse, there are far too many podcast hosts who launch and leave. They give up after just a few episodes. My mission is to save you from the very thing I shared in episode number 249 when I asked the question, Are you planning to kill your podcast?

[00:04:39] Jen Rogers: You see, if you don't plan to keep your podcast alive and growing by giving it a foundational kickstart when you build your launch team, you very well may be digging that six foot grave for your podcast. Ouch. Let's not do that. You've worked too hard and you've come too far to launch your show with one foot about to step into the grave.

[00:05:05] Jen Rogers: Just like I'd invite you to come cheer my grands on, as they star in a Hercules production, you must invite people onto your launch team. Do you know where you can find incredibly gifted launch support? Inside the virtual podcast school. Head on over to CoachJenRogers. com forward slash community to join us there.

[00:05:29] Jen Rogers: I've got some Herculean exciting things planned as we move towards the next month. You don't want to miss them. Let's Build together. Head on over to CoachJenRogers. com forward slash community now. All right, snag your notepads or laptops to take notes about who your who's are and what your what's are to be mindful of.

[00:05:51] Jen Rogers: Be sure you stick around because there's a little nugget tucked inside this very episode. All right, let's [00:06:00] dive in. Here are four things you must do. One, build a team for your launch. Two, promote your launch. Three, have episodes in the hopper. I'll tell you what makes that important shortly. And four, generate reviews of your show.

[00:06:24] Jen Rogers: Listen, there is a strategy behind launching. In this episode, we'll cover a few things for you to think about. Here are several questions we are going to ask so you can build a great team, so you have confidence when you promote your launch, so you know that one episode is not enough. You must have episodes in the hopper.

[00:06:47] Jen Rogers: I recommend three, including your trailer. Why three? Well, think about how you listen to podcasts. I often wondered, well, who listens to a bunch of episodes all at one time? And then I realized, well, I do. I do the very same thing. When I find a show I like, I want more of it and your goal is to have more of it ready for your new audience.

[00:07:13] Jen Rogers: Three episodes in the hopper and your trailer. Okay, that's the importance of having episodes in the hopper, which means you must have planned in advance. To have that content created, that the audio is crisp, that your descriptions are clear, that your titles are hooky, that you are ready to go to serve your audience so that when you release your next episode, episode number four, they are waiting with bated breath to hear from you again.

[00:07:46] Jen Rogers: And when they listen. They will want to leave a review for your show, especially when your launch team has already done some of the legwork. Okay, here are some things we'll cover in today's episode. And that golden nugget that I promised you, I'm starting lives inside the virtual podcast school. That is our community where podcast hosts and podcast guests learn how to monetize every single.

[00:08:17] Jen Rogers: It's because we have a strategy, just like we're creating a strategy to launch or relaunch a new show. Some of the things that we will be talking about live, I'll do a Q and A live inside the group. You'll learn the most when you join us inside the virtual podcast school. Now, if you're thinking school has a high tuition, well, let me assure you that this is our community for growth.

[00:08:45] Jen Rogers: This is the community where we do the bootcamps. This is the community where we assemble, launch. Teams. This is also the community where I'm hosting several live Q& A's inside of the group. I've got [00:09:00] three on the books right now. February 4th, February 11th, and February 18th. Do you know what is especially great about the virtual podcast school?

[00:09:11] Jen Rogers: There is no tuition. Come join us inside the community. We kick off at 12. 30 Eastern. Listen, I believe in the Toastmasters philosophy that you start on time. We kick off right at 12. 30 Eastern. And I mean, we are starting. I recommend you join us five minutes early so you can get comfy, say hello to a couple of people so we can move fast and go deeper into the importance and the how of building your launch team.

[00:09:46] Jen Rogers: Knowing the how is critical to your success. Be sure you join me inside the virtual podcast school community. The link as you know, will be in the show notes, or you can head on over to coachjenrogers. com And you will find the link to join us and get inside the virtual podcast school. On February 4th, we're going to go deeper into the things that we're sharing today on the show.

[00:10:14] Jen Rogers: So here are some things we're going to touch upon and go deeper on February 4th. How soon do you build your team? How will you invite people? How will you keep track of them? Where will you assemble them? Will you do a giveaway? Will you ask for reviews? How far in advance do you begin to announce your launch date to your community on your socials and your emails, etc.?

[00:10:44] Jen Rogers: You may have additional questions about launching your show and building a team, and this is why we come together. All right, let's back up the bus and talk about how soon do you build your team, sooner rather than later. The very first step to a successful launch is identifying your launch date. Your launch date helps you determine how far in advance you have to create those three episodes and your trailer and the related content for your podcast descriptions and your podcast titles.

[00:11:20] Jen Rogers: Your podcast link, so you can share your links, knowing your launch date is the first step. So how soon do you build your team? A month before your launch date. I recommend a month before your launch date that you begin to build your team. How are you going to invite them? Well, you might just ask on your socials to say, Hey, I'm looking for a launch team.

[00:11:45] Jen Rogers: Go into the groups where you know, there are people. Who offer value and that you have offered value in those groups as well to invite them to come on your launch team. Now, we know that there's many things vying for our attention, and that's why [00:12:00] I recommend doing a giveaway. A common thing is the Amazon gift card.

[00:12:05] Jen Rogers: I have a love hate relationship with those things. There are many different gifts that you can give and we can get creative inside the Q& A on February 4th at 12 30 Eastern. For now, think about do you want to do a giveaway? What kind of incentive? How much do you want to invest in the giveaway? 25 bucks?

[00:12:26] Jen Rogers: 10 bucks? 50 bucks? I mean, how sweet do you want to make this pot? That's for you to decide the business purpose Of doing a giveaway, does it align with the values that you have in your business? Does it align with you wanting to grow your show? Will you ask for reviews? Okay. This is a no brainer question.

[00:12:49] Jen Rogers: Yes. Yes. You will ask for reviews. And I have a strategy for you to get a few reviews on the books before you release all the episodes to the rest of the world. And we will talk about that. Guess when? You got it. February 4th at 12 30 p. m. Eastern. Head on over to CoachJenRogers. com forward slash community to join us inside the tuition free virtual podcast school.

[00:13:18] Jen Rogers: Next item to consider. How far in advance do you begin to announce your launch date to your communities, to your socials, and on your emails? I believe that's a personal decision for you, that the sooner you announce it at some level, the more accountability that you have. You also want to avoid drawing it out.

[00:13:40] Jen Rogers: A 30 day timeframe is a pretty good timeframe. You could even do it within a couple of weeks before you release. This will depend on your strategy. Are you mostly in email? Are you doing email marketing? Are you doing email marketing and socials? Are you able to announce this on other people's podcasts?

[00:14:00] Jen Rogers: Which, by the way, you could announce it, but the likelihood of the timing lining up is slim, slim to none. When you guest on a show, It takes time before that episode is fully edited, produced, and aired. And as we talked about in January's Boot Camp, there are plenty of times where you can do a great interview, appear on a show, and everything seems perfect.

[00:14:28] Jen Rogers: And then the host They pull the plug on their show, and your episode never gets aired. So remember, your urgency to get your message out when you're guesting on shows does not equal an emergency. For the host to accommodate the timeliness of your request. So announcing that your podcast is coming on someone else's show is not the recommended option.

[00:14:54] Jen Rogers: There are other things that you can do. And again, we are going to talk about this. And [00:15:00] more inside the Q and A in the virtual podcast school. I'd love to hear what your questions are about launching your show and building your team. Remember, the first thing to do is to identify what is your launch date.

[00:15:16] Jen Rogers: And then you can determine how much time you have to complete all of the mechanics of podcasting. Whether it is identifying your host, I highly recommend Buzzsprout. Whether it's your need for Descript, the number one recording, editing, all clip making paraphernalia tool. Highly recommend that. And the non technical yet highly creative pieces where you work on your podcast name, your podcast art, your overall podcast description.

[00:15:49] Jen Rogers: Where you set up an email sequence when people opt in to your show. There are many things that happen behind the scenes before someone. ever hits play on your episode before you ever upload it to a hosting platform, there's work that goes on in advance. These are exactly the types of things that we cover in the virtual podcast school.

[00:16:13] Jen Rogers: A very quick recap of the four things you must do. You must build a team. You must promote your launch. You must have episodes in the hopper. You remember how many? Three plus your trailer. And you must generate reviews of your show. There is strategy behind each one of these steps. I hope this is enough to encourage you and give you an overview of how to prepare for a successful launch.

[00:16:43] Jen Rogers: Hey, if your show is not doing as well as you want it to, if you're thinking of preparing your show's funeral, I want to let you know there is hope for you and there is hope for your show. Don't kill it yet. Join us February 4th. For the Q& A inside the virtual podcast school, head on over to CoachJenRogers.

[00:17:06] Jen Rogers: com forward slash community, and you'll get the information that you need so you can join us inside of the school. Listen, what I shared earlier regarding the reason for podcasting, it's a part of your overall mission. It's a part of the dream that God has entrusted to you. Don't let the dream die. Listen, podcasting, it's definitely not for the faint of heart.

[00:17:32] Jen Rogers: Again, I go back to the stats. When you look at the monthly reports, it is a killer field. Let me just say that, that very few survive. If you know that you are in it to win it, you want to up level your podcasting skills on either side of the microphone, and you believe, even though you may not know the how, you know the who, that's me, I'm your who, you believe there is a way to monetize every episode, join us inside our [00:18:00] community.

[00:18:00] Jen Rogers: And a quick heads up, we're going to have another boot camp. If you did not attend the January boot camp, don't worry, I've got you. I've got you covered. We're going to have another exciting boot camp coming up. In between now and then, we're doing these Q& As, Tuesdays, 12 30 Eastern. Put this time on your calendar to join us.

[00:18:25] Jen Rogers: And to build out your community of people who are like you, that they are committed to monetizing every single episode on either side of the microphone. Hey, if all of this has you stoked, or maybe feeling a little bit overwhelmed. I've got you. If you know you're ready to get started launching your show, let's connect.

[00:18:51] Jen Rogers: Let's have a conversation. Head on over to coachjenrodgers. com forward slash VIP coach. You'll find out how you and I could make beautiful podcasting together. All right. Thanks so much for joining me on this episode of time to simplify podcasting. You've got this. Keep going. Do not give up. This is a beautiful medium.

[00:19:16] Jen Rogers: And as you know, 2025 is the year of podcasting. Don't let this opportunity sail by you. You can get in. It really is like getting in on the ground floor. I know podcasting has been around for a while. Here's the thing. Good podcasting has not. Let's change that, shall we? Head on over to CoachJennaRogers.

[00:19:40] Jen Rogers: com forward slash VIP Coach so you can book a call with me and we can have a conversation about how to get your show launched in your private 90 day sprint with me. You know, one of the things I enjoy doing is flipping things on their heads. We have certain ideas about how things work, and yet when we step back and assess, it could very well be the thing we thought is not so.

[00:20:11] Jen Rogers: Let me share with you what I mean. I want to share this clip from Michelle, a quick testimonial about the power of replays. Now we did this on the fly as a follow up. To her experience inside the podcast monetization bootcamp. I want to share this with you for a couple of reasons. One, I'm curious to know what you think about this topic that you'll soon hear about.

[00:20:34] Jen Rogers: And. Two, these are exactly the kind of things we practice on the fly inside of the virtual podcast school. This is how we get better when we practice. And do you know how more people find out that we're getting better? When you share a glowing review on your favorite podcasting platform, an even [00:21:00] better way?

[00:21:01] Jen Rogers: It's to tell a friend to share an episode with a friend. So if you know someone who is even thinking about podcasting. Let's set them up on a firm foundation. Let's do that together. Share this episode with them so they can begin to get an idea of what it's going to take to launch a show successfully.

[00:21:25] Jen Rogers: And then, I am confident they will want to join the virtual podcast school. Okay, let's listen to this clip from Michelle, and then I'm going to wrap it up. So, you know when you feel like you're missing out on something? But it's like you have a second chance that you get to jump right back in. Well, I mean, this all ties into that hashtag replays.

[00:21:48] Jen Rogers: Replays are a real thing. We know they're a real thing because let's face it, we are doing life as podcasters. We know that there are other things and commitments that come into play that may prevent us from attending something live. And while I'm always going to invite you to attend live. I want to share with you the value of the hashtag replay.

[00:22:09] Jen Rogers: Let's make replays cool again. Michelle, you are a hashtag replay boot camper. What was your experience watching the replays? 

[00:22:18] Michelle Brown: Well, Jen, I will tell you they were, I was bound and determined. I was going to get all five. Of those day sessions in and so I spent three hours on Thursday night and two hours on Friday night after I got off work making sure I got all these done before you took them down and not, I'll be honest, not everything you said was new, but everything you said was either affirmation of something I had already heard or already knew, or you said it in a way that it just struck me.

[00:22:51] Michelle Brown: That I got it. I am the type who I'm very straightforward. I like it blunt. I don't like to be told no. I don't like to be told I can't do something. I'll say watch me. I will do it. And it just, it works for me. So some of the ways that you taught. I was like, okay, girlfriend, I gotcha. So I'm very thankful for the replays because I do have a regular full full time day job that I commit to.

[00:23:19] Michelle Brown: So I could not attend the live sessions, but the replays were absolutely valuable and made me wish that I could have attended the lives because I'm like, Oh, well, I could say this or Oh, I wish she had asked me that question. So it was really cool. And I do appreciate that you made those available for the time that you did.

[00:23:38] Jen Rogers: Oh, that's wonderful. What about the workbooks? How did the workbooks impact the boot camp experience for you? 

[00:23:44] Michelle Brown: Um, I printed them out, but I, I have not wrote on the worksheets yet, but I did take notes. I have six pages of notes that I took and I do have everything in a folder that I'm [00:24:00] going to go back through.

[00:24:01] Michelle Brown: And compare the notes that I took with the workbooks. I am a still a paper and pen gal, even though technology is here. I love to take notes. I will refer back to paper more than I will a computer screen. 

[00:24:14] Jen Rogers: Oh, that's that's excellent. Well, thank you for sharing your boot camp experience. I look forward to working with you in the future and seeing you inside the Facebook group.

[00:24:23] Jen Rogers: So thanks so much for coming on. 

[00:24:25] Michelle Brown: Thanks, Jen. You have a blessed day. 

[00:24:27] Jen Rogers: You know how I felt originally about replays? That they were just one of those things that you had to do. And here we are with Michelle flipping that on its head. I love it. I absolutely love it. Hey, I pray today's episode blessed you and encouraged you and got you thinking about your own launch plan a little bit differently.

[00:24:54] Jen Rogers: Join us inside the virtual podcast school. Remember that Q& A, it's coming up February 4th at 1230 Eastern. Head on over to coachjenrogers. com forward slash community so you can join us inside the virtual podcast school. All right, I will catch you in the next episode.