How To Draw Live Participants To Your Talkshoe Radio Show

My Top 11½ Tips for Drawing Live Participants, by Dave Nelson, CEO of Talkshoe


TalkShoe is built for live interactive podcasting. Many podcasters find that it's more fun, fulfilling, and profitable than regular podcasting! Hosts often ask about the best ways to increase the number of live participants in their Talkcasts. This is definitely one of the key challenges when you’re first starting out. My best advice is:


11) Schedule your Talkcast on a consistent day and time so that your audience knows when to join you.

10) Choose an interesting and descriptive Talkcast name so that people who might be interested will “get it” just from the title. For example, “Grey’s Anatomy Live Fan Podcast” says it all if you’re a fan of the TV show.


9) Always have at least two future episodes scheduled so that when one show finishes, your listeners know when to join you again.


8) Publicize the regular day + time + time-zone of your live show everywhere possible. Put it in your blog, in your email signature, on message boards and forums, on your MySpace page, etc., and have your friends do the same.


7) Build an email list of friends and participants to invite to every episode. Click “Invite Guests” on your Talkcast Profile page and add to your list frequently. Send invitations about 48-hours in advance and again 30-minutes before your live show.


6) Remember that about 95% of listeners will hear your recorded podcast before they discover your live show. During your Talkcast, tell those "off-line" listeners when your show is live (e.g., “Join us live on Wednesdays at 9:00 PM Eastern Time.”) and highlight the benefits of joining live (e.g., “You can text chat with other listeners.”).


5) During your live show, say your email address frequently. When people email you with questions or compliments, add their email addresses to your TalkShoe “Invite Guests” notification engine (see #7).


4) Recruit interesting guests and have live contests and giveaways – give your listeners a reason to join live and to interact!


3) Remind people to subscribe to your show. That way, they’ll get every episode, and as they come to “know” you, they’ll want to join live.


2) Keep in mind that participating can be intimidating. Encourage people to move from listening off-line, to listening live, to chatting, to talking. It may take time.


1) Have fun and be entertaining! People will want to join you again and again. For the host, and forlisteners, it’s fun to connect with people that you like; people who share your interests.



½) No matter what, always remember _______________________________.

Please share with me your best ideas for this last item. Thanks!

I've been utilizing these tips to grow my own radio show, called ARRiiVE: Innovations In Business. I've been broadcasting Wednesdays at 2PM PST. Make sure to visit TalkShoe, and type in show i.d. 37798 or ARRiiVE.

Come visit the show when I'm on and interact with me - it makes it way more fun. Or, if you're interested in getting more exposure for your Bid Idea, sent me an email at info [at] arriive {dot] com with a show theme idea. If I like the idea, you're on! You'll need a bio, break plug, and 10 questions for me to ask you about your show theme idea. This is key to my show being a success and helping me make you look like a star. The other thing I request is you promote the show to your own following (list) one week prior and the day of the show, to maximize attendance.

Out of all the points above, I think Dave's point on (a) consistency, (b) inviting guests to make the show more interactive, and (c) promoting the show regularly are all part of why my ARRiiVE: Innovations In Business show is starting to really take off.

Hope to see you at talk shoe for my next show.
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Post by Scott Andrews, CEO of ARRiiVE Business Solutions.

ARRiiVE Business Solutions helps executives improve sales, launch products and services, and build dynamic, cross-functional collaborative teams. For more information, contact info (at)ARRiiVE (dot) com or call us at 1 (805) 459-6939.

Copyright © 2007 by ARRiiVE Business Solutions. All Rights Reserved. Article posted with copyright permission by Dave Nelson, CEO of Talkshoe. You may republish this article only if you publish in WHOLE with the COPYRIGHT and ALL ACTIVE LINKS intact.

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