Grow Your Podcast with These Easy Podcast Swap Ideas

Links

• Pinterest Magic for Podcasters⁠
• ⁠Tink Media’s Podcast Friends List⁠
• ⁠The Podcast Space with Ana Xavier⁠
• ⁠Follow me on Instagram⁠
• ⁠Visit my website

Unedited transcript of the episode:

I’m trying something new and I’m gonna hold the microphone instead of having in a stand, Because Anna Xavier tried it and I wanna try it now. Shout out to Anna being a trendsetter.

Hi, I’m Andy Smiley, your friendly podcast guide and the podcast coach. For women who want to grow a podcast without burning out, I share practical podcast tips, stories from my own journey and wisdom from some of the smartest podcasters out there. You already know I’m all about marketing your podcast without living on social media.

Pinterest is my go-to, but there’s another underrated way to grow your show that barely anyone talks about, and that is podcast swaps and if that feels a little bit overwhelming, don’t worry. At the end of this episode, I’ll share just one simple step. You can start with so you don’t feel overwhelmed. But first, a quick story. This summer I had a big aha moment around podcast marketing. I realized I could go completely Instagram optional just by leaning into Pinterest, and it was a total game changer. I wasn’t stressed about posting and new listeners were still finding my show. One Pin has more than 6,000 views and it’s still sending new listeners my way every week. That realization led me to create Pinterest magic for podcasters. It’s my course that teaches the same system I use to go Instagram optional. My Pinterest magic method is simple, takes less than an hour a week and actually works. If you’re ready to trade stressful daily posts for a simple proven strategy that runs in the background, click the link in the show notes.

Your future listeners are already on Pinterest looking for you. Let’s make sure they find you. Okay. Now let’s dive into podcast swaps but first, what is a podcast swap? A podcast swap is when you collaborate with another podcaster to promote each other’s shows. The most common one that people think about is guesting, but there are other ways to do it that aren’t being a guest. There’s feed drops, trailer swaps, and prerecorded intros. Let’s break them down one by one.

First podcast guesting. This one is the most obvious, but it’s worth talking about. Guesting means you go on another person’s show to share your expertise and mention your podcast. At the end, you, get in front of a new audience, and the host gets great content that’s a win-win.

Just make sure the show is a good fit. If your audiences don’t overlap, it’s not worth your time, but when they do, the results can be amazing. One guest bot I did brought in more than 100 new email subscribers in just a week because my topic aligned perfectly with the hosts audience.

The next podcast swap is a feed drop, and that is when you share a full episode from your podcast in someone else’s feed and they share one of theirs in yours. It’s less work than guesting, but still super effective if your audiences match. This works especially well for seasonal shows if you’re on a break, but wanna keep your feed.

Quote, unquote warm swap episodes with another podcaster Your listeners would love. Just record a short intro before their episode so your audience knows what’s happening. Trailer swaps are very similar to feed Drops, but instead of a full episode, you share your podcast trailers. It’s an easy way to help your audience discover new shows and get discovered yourself.

Podcast industry expert, Lauren Passel talked about this at Podcast Movement. When someone asked about swapping with a bigger show, she had the best advice. She said, come up with a solution that benefits everyone. Maybe that’s that the bigger show can take down your episode after a month while you keep theirs up indefinitely.

That way it feels fair and balanced for both of you. And speaking of Lauren Passel, her company, tink Media, has a podcast friends list where you can find podcasters with similar audiences to collaborate with. I’ll put a link to the list in the show notes. It’s so awesome and I think you should really take advantage of it.

okay. Last, but certainly not least, prerecorded intros are one of my favorite ways to do a podcast swap because hardly anyone ever does them. A prerecorded intro is when you record a quick intro for someone else’s episode. Here’s an example of one I could do on my friend Anna’s show called the Podcast Space.

Hi, podcast Space listeners, this is Andy Smiley, host of the Friendly Podcast Guide. I recently did an episode about a simple podcast, SEO strategy that you can start using today. Anna, put the link in the show notes for you, add it to your queue after you listen to this one.

I know you’ll love it. Okay, now back to my friend and your host, Anna Xavier, and today’s episode. It’s such a fun way to show connections between hosts, share value, and introduce your show to a new audience with barely any extra work. Okay, here’s a quick recap.

There are four main ways to use podcast swaps to market your podcast. Podcast, guesting, feed drops, trailer swaps, and prerecorded intros.

And because I know it can feel a little daunting to pitch a podcast, swap to another podcaster. Here’s a quick tip for reaching out. Lead with generosity. Don’t just say, wanna do a podcast swap. Explain why your shows are a good fit and how it benefits their audience too.

You can even include a line like our audiences have a lot in common. I think your listeners would love this episode about fill in the blank, and I’d love to share one of yours that compliments it when you make it easy and mutually beneficial.

Most podcasters will be thrilled to say yes. If this feels like a lot, start small. Spend 10 minutes researching podcasts with audiences similar to yours. When you’re ready, reach out and suggest one of these swaps. It’s such an easy, organic way to grow your show. If you thought of a podcast friend while listening, send them this episode. It’s your not so subtle hint that you’re ready to collaborate and grow together. Next week I’m chatting with my friend Anna Xavier. I told you she was my friend about our biggest takeaways from podcast Movement. She is brilliant and full of insights you won’t wanna miss.

Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you next week. I. and get discovered your shelf, your shelf, and get discovered yourself.