I hear so many podcasts that do interviews and they start their podcast by pulling a clip from the interview. Today we talk about why this may not be the best strategy.

  • The interview snippet should build anticipation
  • Piques the curiosity and makes them want to know more
  • Some people pull clips that make people go WHAT WAS THAT?

Many times these clips are long (I wouldn't make then any long than 10-15 seconds if not shorter) and just leave the listener confused.

ROLL THE CLIP

If you think about it movies use trailers to motivate people to come and see the movie. They also send the starts on talks shows who often have a clip of the show. When the hosts ask, “Does this need set up?” the answer is almost always yes. Some back story is needed to have the clip make sense. In some cases podcasters are creating a clip, placing it at the very beginning of the episode and there is no “setup” and the clip leads to confusion.

Feedback is the Opportunity to Improve

I'm working on launching a new show that will be another test, but also I want to interview other people who have developed HUGE communities. I created a trailer, and ask from friends for their feedback. This is what I heard:

  • One clip had a weird sentence where the guest kind of switch thoughts mid-sentence
  • The music was pretty mellow – and wasn't the typical Dave Jackson vibe.

With just that small amount of feedback, I was to boost the engagement, and anticipation of the new podcast. I didn't get an attitude. I stayed open to suggestions. As the suggestions didn't have me moving the show into a completely different focus, I played around with the project. In doing so I had one “mistake” that I really loved (and kept in the trailer, and then implement the same “mistake” later in the trailer).

Your podcast is yours to mold and form into whatever you want. It all starts with knowing what your audience wants. In this case, I am my target audience.

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Mentioned In This Episode

Start your podcast worry-free at www.schoolofpodcasting.com/start

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About the Author
Owner of the School of Podcasting. Also produces the "Ask the Podcast Coach." He is also the author of the book "More Podcast Money" and is a regular speaker at podcasting and media conventions.
1 comment on “Interview Clips At the Start of Your Show
  1. LoL I just come from finishing up my latest podcast episode, where I put those interview snippets right at the beginning. I should have listen to your episode before… But ok, I’m not perfect. I will follow your advice for my future episodes… Thanks for sharing your experience with us. Cheers Daniel

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