Launch Day... and getting there...
One of the biggest challenges to launching your show or audio product is seeking perfection.
So many times in business in other areas of our lives we look to get things absolutely perfect.
Remember done is better than perfect.
This was no better exemplified than by a LinkedIn friend of mine who recently launched her own show,... with a little help from Westport Studios, of course.
She was adamant that her show be perfect when it launched and spent almost two months not launching her show because she was trying to get things to a point where she felt they were perfect.
There's nothing wrong with wanting a good product especially for your first outing.
However, one of the biggest things that anybody in the audio space needs to recognize and realize is that your first efforts are going to pale in comparison compared to the ones you make at ten, 50 or even 100 episodes down the road.
Learning by doing is one of the biggest things you can embrace for your audio product, whether it's a podcast, an audiobook, or an advertisement.
Record that first piece of content.
It might be amazing and you will probably think it's amazing at that time. GOOD!
That's an excellent start.
The reality is though, that your first efforts are going to be janky, clunky things that down the road you're going to cringe at.
And you know what?
That's fine.
The goal of creating audio content is to always make sure that you have more to give to your listener. Sometimes that more comes in the form of production values and of course a better made product.
Unless you're a major podcasting endeavor, like Joe Rogan, Michelle Obama, or any one of those big names celebrities; you likely don't have the experience or the resources to make a truly professional podcast off the bat.
This is okay because not only can you shore up that shortcoming with rate with great consulting, like you find from us here at Westport Studios, but you will also learn more about creating your audio product by simply doing it. The trick is you have to get in the habit of going back and listening to it at a later date to find out what is not working and what sounds cringe-worthy or just plain awful.
Back to my LinkedIn friend she spent more than 8 weeks trying to get her first episode just perfect when she brought in additional help from Westport Studios.
We were able to get her podcast on the air by coaching her effectively in editing, helping her find new tools, and giving her actual strategies to launch a podcast in just under a week and a half -- complete with four episodes.
Now are those episodes all going to be award-winning?
No because she just started and she's in charge of her editing and what content goes in her show. Westport Studios will never promise you that the content they make is the best in the world, because that's different for every market.
Her content is good, really good in fact.
However, it's not amazing... yet.
Part of that is on her to control what her show is about and create a compelling narrative for her listeners. That's something that can be consulted on but is a story best told by the podcast creator. I am confident she will do this.
What she can measure and improve regardless of her story telling ability are the mechanical and technical sides of the show. Things like music fades, cut edits, intros and outros; all of those pieces are there.
They're there and could be improved upon every single time she records a new episode.
The same thing goes for YOUR audio product.
You need to start before you can be good.
We have that article from Zig Ziglar a few weeks ago to thank for that.
Getting over a perfection barricade like my LinkedIn friend did is a major achievement and I definitely don't want to sell her short by critiquing any of the methods that she's used to get as far as she has.
I'm incredibly happy she launched and of course I'm very proud that Westport Studios was able to help her with the launch.
She took advantage of some of our Consulting and this is something that you can get for your business as well!
We even start it at no charge if you're interested in learning more about how to launch your podcast to help your brand.
Book some time with us below and we'll be happy to help you as best we can in this new environment for audio is the new reading and help you make audio for everyone
And be sure to check out that podcast I mentioned -- Employment Straight Talk