Don’t Just Be a Guest, Be a Podcast Host

The emPowered Author Podcast

Many authors look to podcasting as a part of their visibility strategy. 

Getting on other podcasts as a guest offers an opportunity to reach more people through trusted platforms that they are engaging with. But what if you are that trusted source, and what if you have a podcast that drives your target readers to learn more about your book, your offerings and you? Podcast guesting is a visibility strategy; podcast hosting is a business strategy. While I definitely agree that being a guest on other people’s podcasts is a smart marketing tactic as it gets you the opportunity to reach new people through new platforms regularly, another smart tactic may very well be hosting your own podcast, too! 

Have you wanted to host a podcast? Are you terrified of what that may mean? How in the world can a podcast align with your book and book marketing goals? Hosting a podcast is a big undertaking, but when you lead with strategy, it could be a very effective tool for your book, your business and your message.

Here are some of my favorite highlights from this episode:

  • Learn how Betsy Wallace of Capsule Podcast identified the need to help others, like authors, create Capsule Podcasts, too. As a podcast host herself, she identified a trend in the business space for mini-series and saw the need for a solution for others. (6:40)
  • Uncover the types of investment that authors are asking of readers and authors are asking of their podcast listeners, too. This is a time investment and a financial investment. (9:39)
  • Learn how to test out podcast tactics by leveraging a unique perspective to podcasting. A capsule podcast allows you to test the waters and see if it has traction for your readers and/or clients and identify if you enjoy the content sharing platform. (12:01)
  • Understanding the difference between strategies and tactics, and how your podcast can play a meaningful role in your business strategy as a tactic to your overarching business strategies. (13:10 and 20:02)
  • How six podcasts gives you enough time to get some depth into a podcast and allows people to get to know you but in a way that listeners and readers have capacity to absorb. Hear insights on why this is meaningful for authors specifically. (14:46)
  • Should every author have a podcast? Probably not! At least not without a strategy. If you want to host a podcast, uncover your why and how it aligns. (16:27)

If you are a nonfiction author who is interested in utilizing a capsule podcast as a tactic to support a meaningful marketing strategy for your book or your business, the emPower PR Group can help. Visit our website to learn more about our podcasting for authors solution and download our Author’s Guide to Podcasting resource. Starting a podcast should be strategic, and we are prepped and ready to help you link it to your overarching strategies and ensure that the end result is something that will help differentiate you to your target audience!

Resources highlighted in the episode include the following.

Check out the other episodes in this season of The emPowered Author Podcast.

Listen on your favorite podcast platform.

Watch on YouTube

You don’t want to be producing a podcast over here and the rest of your marketing plans over there. You want to make these six episodes so that they are used with precision, super strategically across all of your marketing.

Stephanie and Betsy share why they believe that podcast hosting may be a sound strategy for authors to consider in addition to guesting on other podcasts. Watch episode 1.1 of The emPowered Author Podcast on YouTube.

Memorable Quotes from the Episode

The emPowered Author Podcast
The emPowered Author Podcast
The emPowered Author Podcast

Not sure how a capsule podcast could support your overarching marketing goals and strategies?!

No worries … we’ve pulled out some of the innovative ideas that are shared throughout season one of the podcast and are excited to share those with you — and share how they have a direct correlation to your overarching marketing strategies.

Click here to learn more about our podcasting solutions and download the Author’s Guide to Podcasting.

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Meet the Podcast Host and Guest

Stephanie Feger BTP

Stephanie Feger

emPower PR Group

Stephanie Feger is passionate about helping authors make their author emPact. As the host of The emPowered Author Podcast, she has merged her love for reading books, writing books and marketing books to help authors be successful by sharing emPactful marketing strategies and tactics through the podcast. As an author herself and a seasoned book marketing expert, her goal is to ensure that authors are strategic and focused when it comes to book marketing. 

Betsy Wallace

Betsy Wallace

Capsule Podcast

Betsy Wallace loves to listen to a good podcast and loves creating them! Having co-hosted, produced and edited over 300+ podcasts, she has learned first-hand how to take a powerful message and package it into a meaningful experience for listeners. While her business works with individuals from a wide range of industries, she has seen the power of the capsule podcast for authors in building visibility, creating ongoing engagement, and selling books.


[00:00:00.330] – Betsy Wallace
You want to make these six episodes so that they are used with precision, super strategically across all of your marketing.

[00:00:10.490] – Stephanie Feger
You have hit the nail on the head. And that is something I have realized specifically in the author industry. It's easy to get excited about the shiny new thing… believe me, I have a problem with that myself. I'm a chronic shiny, new thing follower. I love it. I get very excited about it, and it's okay to do that when it makes sense with your overall marketing strategy. The unfortunate reality is most things don't.

[00:00:43.850] – Stephanie Feger
Hey, I'm Stephanie Feger, and emPower is my middle name. Well, not really, but it should be. I believe that emPowered people emPower people, and I'm obsessed with emPowering you, the nonfiction author, with impactful marketing strategies to help you take your important message and share it with those who desperately need it, want it, and will buy it. I'm a gal whose life was changed by a dream, literally. And that dream pushed me to write my first book, the book that changed everything. For me, that dream was the catalyst to help me capture a message I was passionate about. And in turn, it gifted me with the opportunity to merge my two loves: my skillset for marketing and public relations and communications and my love for books, both writing them and marketing them. As the owner and chief strategist of the emPower PR Group, I help nonfiction authors with laser focused strategy and tactics to help them write books that sell, promote their books to those who need and want them most, and build a meaningful business from a message that is empowering. Think of this as your one stop shop for marketing insights from an author who has been there, done that, and understands exactly where you are. So grab a warm beverage and a comfy blanket, get your pens ready, because I am ready to emPower you. This is The emPowered Author Podcast.

[00:02:22.990] – Stephanie Feger
Welcome to Season 1 of The emPowered Author Podcast, and I can't think of a better topic for the season than, well, podcasts. As an author, you likely know how important getting on the podcast circuit is to keeping your book and your business front and center. Podcasts give you a great opportunity to reach new people in new ways. But this season isn't about being a guest on podcasts. It's about being the host instead. You may have the dream of starting a podcast one day, but before you do, give this season of The emPowered Author Podcast a listen. Hosting a podcast is a big undertaking, but when you lead with strategy, it could be a very effective tool for your book, your business, and your message. I am excited to have Betsy Wallace of Capsule Podcast as my guest this season, and together we're talking all things podcasts. Capsule Podcasts, that is.

[00:03:26.530] – Stephanie Feger
Betsy, it is awesome to have you on The emPowered Author Podcast. Thanks so much for joining.

[00:03:34.070] – Betsy Wallace
I am excited to be here. I'm thrilled to talk about podcasts on your podcast.

[00:03:40.150] – Stephanie Feger
Right. Like, I can't think of a better way to kick off The emPowered Author Podcast than to have a whole season focused on podcasts. Right. A podcast about podcasts for nonfiction authors. I'm really pumped to have that. I'm also a firm believer that absolutely nothing in life happens by chance. I think it all happens for purpose, on purpose, with purpose. Our connection and how we met is total proof of that. I will never forget. I was sitting down watching Netflix one evening when I get a LinkedIn popup asking if we could connect, you and I, and that was the beginning of something much bigger.

[00:04:19.670] – Betsy Wallace
Yeah, it was funny because I also am not a big LinkedIn person. And I was like, oh, Stephanie, she looks like someone who we might have some good energy here and some good ways to collaborate. I wonder if she would be willing to connect. And you did and immediately messaged me. And I had this Capsule Podcast sort of idea on how it might work, and you had all of the gaps filled on how it would work perfectly for your authors. And we just can't stop talking about it since.

[00:04:50.570] – Stephanie Feger
I know. I mean, ever since we connected, I feel like every day we're like, what about this? And I think that's a beautiful experience or an example for people that you should always step outside of your comfort zone and do something that some days you might not consider doing. Because typically, especially author to author, to the listeners listening in today, typically it can turn out to be something even bigger, even better, even more exciting and empowering than you had ever dreamed. That's what I think we're doing. And that's what I think that the Capsule Podcast concept has the power to absolutely do. The crazy thing too, Betsy, is once we connected, we realized that our lives have actually been connected before. What are the odds? So that's crazy.

[00:05:38.670] – Betsy Wallace
Yeah, it was crazy. We both worked for the same nonprofit, sort of in different eras, overlapping a little bit, but that was a while ago. For me, that was over a decade ago. But it did; it felt like just similar paths leading to this same place and the same energy and the same want to help people and serve people, and it all just kind of aligned. And I'm so excited to be working with you on this.

[00:06:04.450] – Stephanie Feger
It's also proof, in my opinion, that every experience in life layers to where you're supposed to be. If I hadn't worked at that specific nonprofit for a decade, then I would not have the experience today to be able to collaborate with you, to create a beautiful opportunity for other people and to inspire and emPower individuals to think about podcasting a bit different than how they probably ever would have thought about that. And I think that is how the Capsule Podcast concept has come to be, correct? You're a podcaster, so tell us about that journey.

[00:06:40.910] – Betsy Wallace
I will. I am a podcaster. So my podcasting journey began, I guess, a couple of years ago, three-ish years ago with my sister. We co-host a podcast together about cooking dinner. Yeah, and we've done that every week. It's super fun. We try new recipes and then talk about it. So, we've done this every week for three years and we have, you know, 12,000 to 13,000 people a month listing, which is amazing. And they're making all these dishes and it's super fun. And as I've been in the podcasting space and looking around to see what other people are doing, what's going on, I mean, I just fell really deeply in love with podcasting as a medium, as a format for getting your message out. And one thing I noticed was that we were all making these same weekly shows kind of like every week, consistent. This was the one message that people were talking about or the one way to do it. But if you looked at brands and if you looked at corporate and different things, a lot of corporate company kind of podcasts were these mini-series that they were launching for product launches.

So like Reebok put a new shoe out and they did a three episode launch podcast or you had Prudential Insurance, and they were launching a new product and they put a six episode podcast out for that. And as I was sort of like taking in all of this, I thought, why don't more people use this stand alone mini-series, this launch podcast or this promotional podcast format, instead of always going to the weekly show? Because as a person who hosts a weekly show, it is a lot of work. It just is. And you hear that all of the time. And the solutions we hear are to make it less work for yourself. So, like, hire a producer, hire this out, figure out how to make that big commitment less work. And my whole kind of idea with capsule podcast was, how do we use this model that we see clearly successful in corporate and used with brands so that we flip it on its head, we're saying, let's throw all of that out. Let's not just try to make this less work, let's do it differently. So a capsule podcast is a six episode, stand alone mini-series. Each episode is 15-20 minutes long and it integrates with your marketing strategy.

So this is something that you and I connected on immediately because our conversation was mostly about the fact that people make podcasts that aren't connected with all of the other assets and parts of their marketing strategies. So you don't want to be producing a podcast over here and the rest of your marketing plans over here. You want to make these six episodes so that they are used with precision, super strategically across all of your marketing.

[00:09:39.110] – Stephanie Feger
You have hit the nail on the head. And that is something I have realized specifically in the author industry. It's really easy to get excited about the shiny new thing. Believe me, I have a problem with that myself. I'm a chronic shiny new thing follower. I love it. I get very excited about it. And it's okay to do that when it makes sense with your overall marketing strategy. And the unfortunate reality is, most things don't. So many times you will go down a path where you're very excited about something and you've done it and you've seen other people do it with success, and yet you can't understand, well, you just did it, why did it not achieve the same level of success that someone else did? And a lot of that comes down to the fact that you saw it through the wrong lens. Now, before we go into too much more depth on strategy versus tactics, something you said triggered something in me and it was around this investment concept in podcasting. And I think I want to talk on this a little bit more and I think about this. Quite frankly, in anything you touch, there is some sort of an investment, whether or not that's financial or not.

So when you're looking at podcasting and like you have with your cooking show, which I think is amazing because you're building and deepening your relationship with your sister in addition to filling your belly and inspiring other people, what a win win on so many levels. But what you needed to keep in mind, and what I think authors need to keep in mind, is really two key investment components. One is a time investment and two is your financial investment. And many authors will say, oh my gosh, I have a great message, I'm going to do a weekly podcast. Great, maybe that's the right solution for you. But you do need to consider the time that it takes to execute and plan and strategize for it. Because remember, it's a tactic to a strategy, not a strategy. But then you also need to think about, do you have the funds to invest financially to make it a credible podcast? Betsy, you know, I have seen many podcasts that have been done very organically that are done beautifully and many that have been done organically that have failed miserably. And as a marketer, it pains me to see people try something but not give it both the time and financial investment that it really deserves.

Would you agree? Have you seen stuff like that?

[00:12:01.590] – Betsy Wallace
Yeah, I have. I think most people, if you've listened to a podcast and you are on your radio dial in the car and you're turning it up and turning it down because you can't get the volume right and it's all over the place and it turns you off. First of all, it leaves a bad taste in your mouth. And then the other thing is if you're investing your time and your money into a piece of your marketing strategy, you just need to be really smart about it. If you do it in a way that isn't aligned with everything else, it's just a waste of time and money and resources and none of us are wanting to do that, right? Like no one wants to just make something that sort of sits there and collects digital dust, as they say. But at the same point, I think I really do want people to be able to experiment with a podcast format because it's fresh, it's new, so let's experiment with it in a way that reduces the overall risk to you in terms of a time and money investment.

[00:13:10.260] – Stephanie Feger
I love that. I love that. And I think being smart and wise and how you consider your financial and time investment is the way to go, especially on the side of being an author and an entrepreneur. So let's talk a little bit more about strategy versus tactic. I think that gets very confusing for people at times because what will happen is they will dive into something, and they feel like that's their strategy. But really their strategy is something completely different or should be something completely different. That's actually a specific tactic. And I think many authors turned podcasters typically look at the podcast as a strategy for something instead of a tactic. And because they're looking at it as a strategy, they're approaching it through a different lens. That's why they're thinking, I've got to do one a week or two a week. And they create this unrealistic approach that quite frankly can burn them out and might not ever see a return on investment in their time and their financial components there. So what I really fell in love with on the Capsule Podcast concept, and I'm going to say Capsule Podcast as a concept with kind of air quotes because not only is that the name of your business, but to me that is the name of a product, a unique way to look at podcasting is through this capsule podcast lens. So let's talk a little bit about that and about why do you feel like six episodes makes a really beautiful kind of capsulated experience. What is it about that?

[00:14:46.090] – Betsy Wallace
So six podcasts is going to give you enough time to get a little depth, have people get to know you, but in a way that is consumable for our audience too. We want to think about people's lives and how they're consuming content, right? And if they are thinking about a new book they might want to read or, in our case, like cookbook authors or hear from someone in that space, I would love to hear six episodes from that person that are kind of short, that I can listen to in between other things, some behind the scenes about you as an author and your journey, some kind of insider information to kind of really deepen that connection. I don't necessarily need to hear from you every single week for the rest of my life. I am really interested in this book that I heard about and about you right now. So let's talk about this book and let's talk about you right now. And I would love that information as I am deciding whether or not I want to buy that book or as I'm deciding whether or not I want to come see you at an event or do something like that.

Give me those six episodes so that I can listen to exactly what you want me to hear versus me going into a back catalog of 300 episodes and then you're putting something new out every week and I'm just like, I don't even know where to start with this. You can give me exactly what you think that I should hear that's aligned with your marketing strategy that will make me, as a reader, want to come with you on this book journey or to this live event in a really super specific, targeted way.

[00:16:27.050] – Stephanie Feger
I love that. And I love not only that perspective and strategic approach, but I love how a Capsule Podcast also can be most cost effective. So if making a financial investment in something that you get a tad nervous about, it's okay. Because in the way that a capsule podcast is done, it's not a long-term investment. It's a very focused investment. So before we go any further, I just want to make it really clear and I feel like I need to pause and be honest about podcasts in general. Do I think every author should have a podcast? I don't know. Probably not - without a strategy at least. So my opinion or my thoughts are if you're considering a podcast, even a capsule podcast, I'm going to challenge you to pause and ask yourself, why do you want to do this? What would be the point? Why have a podcast at all? And how does that align with your business, your overarching strategies? How are you going to make the time investment to make your podcast worth it? I'll be honest, I have wanted to do a podcast for years. It's been a part of my bucket list for quite some time.

And it wasn't until you and I met that I had the AHA moment and then decided, oh my goodness, this Capsule Podcast concept is perfect for my business as well, my entrepreneur business. And it's really been a great time investment and financial investment solution to help me ensure that my podcast meets my needs, my wants, as well as those of the people that I'm trying to reach.

Oh, my gosh, Betsy, we have talked about some really cool stuff, and we have a lot of stuff left in queue for the rest of the season. I am really, really pumped to dive into all things capsule podcast from internal launch, external launch, entrepreneur tools, opt ins, and lead magnets. We might even uncover words that people don't even know they need in their vocabulary and how a capsule podcast can actually help make that happen. So no matter why you want to choose to launch a podcast, even though I just said I don't think everybody should have one, if it's something you've considered or if something in this podcast series, I don't know, makes you pause and think, now might be a really good time, and here's why.

So Buzzsprout, which is a platform that helps people turn their podcasts into reality, have some really interesting statistics. Podcasts are the number one way to genuinely connect with your audience, because here's why. They hear you. They feel your emotion. They can become loyal. They listen. They want to know more. But this is the other statistic I think is quite staggering. And so the podcast industry has a lot of unexplored space. Buzzsprout noted specifically in a recent article that there are at least 600 million blogs, 23 million YouTube channels, but only 800,000 podcasts and Apple podcasts. So what that means is for every podcast, there are 750 blogs and 29 YouTube channels. So let that sink in. Your reach through a podcast has much more potential.

All right, Betsy, we have a lot coming up. Thank you so much for joining us on this episode. We have five more to go, so much more to cover, and I can't wait for us to dive in and talk specifics about the various tactical ways that a capsule podcast can really play a meaningful part in any author's marketing strategy.

[00:20:02.430] – Stephanie Feger
We've just begun our chat on how a capsule podcast can be used as a part of your book and your business marketing plan. And boy, did we cover a lot. Before listening to today's episode, you may have considered adding a podcast to your ongoing list of opportunities, but now you know the importance of utilizing it as a tactic, not the strategy. Before registering your podcast and beginning to interview guests, reflect on how a podcast can help you accomplish a specific strategy. Are you looking to sell more books? To build a loyal following? To increase revenue around a derivative offering within your book business? To build an email list? Do you even know quite yet?

You may not, but I encourage you to reflect on that. Or reach out and let us help you reflect before you take action and find yourself feeling like you are swimming against the current with your head barely above the water. The podcast industry is filled with opportunity, but use it to help you reach your goals for your book, your message, and your business. Have you wanted to start a podcast but wasn't sure how to? Or better question, why to? A capsule podcast may be the perfect solution to help you accomplish your specific and measurable goals. I am not a fan of movement without strategy, so I caution you to be deliberate about how a podcast can help you take your important message and share it with those who desperately need it, want it, and will buy it. Be sure to listen to the rest of this season's episodes as they are chock full of innovative ways that a capsule podcast can emPower you. The next two podcasts within this season will touch on how a capsule podcast can help you launch your book both through an internal and an external launch. I bet you didn't even consider how this could be a part of your overall book launch strategy.

If you are a nonfiction author who is interested in utilizing a capsule podcast as a tactic to support a meaningful marketing strategy for your book or your business, the emPower PR Group can help. I invite you to visit www.empowerprgroup.com/capsulepodcast for more information on how Betsy and myself can help you. From the strategy to concepts to podcasts, we are ready to emPower you in the creation of your capsule podcast. And remember, emPowered people emPower people. I've emPowered you. It's your turn to emPower others.


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