A few years ago, I ran a football (American) blog. I had a blast and probably made $100 total. Maybe.
We talked about football in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, where I lived at the time.
One of my writers, I had a couple, asked me if I wanted us to do a podcast. I thought, “why not?”
So, using Blog Talk Radio, we launched a live hosted podcast more like a sports radio show. We had people call in, and sometimes they were pre-invited.
For example, before she was a global sensation, we managed to talk digital marketing expert Shama Hyder into calling into the show to talk about social media.
She was located in Dallas, understood social media marketing better than anyone, and I was one of her early tribe members. She called in, and we had a fantastic talk.
Unfortunately, we burned out. It was a weekly show, and sometimes we went for two hours. I would have loved to do that if someone was paying me lots of money, but they weren’t, and life had to move on.
Podcasts can be very helpful, though. The traffic, the awareness, and the positioning yourself as an authority is a pretty sizable difference.
When it comes to business, we are all looking for an advantage. We are all looking for something that can give us an edge. Podcasting is one thing that can help, and so is having a Google My Business Page.
Today we are going to talk about resources to help you get started with a podcast and to set up and optimize a Google My Business page.
So you wanna start a podcast?
Davinder Singh Kainth launched his podcast Smart Web Creators a little over a year ago. In that time, he has over 15K listens or watches, and it has cemented him as an authority in the web creator space.
Before that, Davinder had been guest on other podcasts, and after he became more comfortable being on-air, he launched his own.
Can you launch a podcast? You bet you can. There many directions you can take. You can interview others as Davinder does or you can do solo podcasts where you talk about things that your audiences need to know more about.
Launching a podcast is easier today than it ever has been.
John Lee Dumas is one of the most recognizable podcasters and runs the popular podcast Entrepreneurs on Fire. He also has a free course. Naturally, the podcast course is a lead magnet to join his Podcaster’s Paradise, but it includes at least 9 modules that should get you started.
Of course, if you dive all the way in with a podcast, you might want to think about joining Podcaster’s Paradise for ongoing support.
Pat Lynn is another famous online marketer and podcaster, and he has a free podcast tutorial, but he also has a paid course.
This is another place to start learning about the world of podcasting. His podcasting course has a competitive price.
Two WordPress entrepreneurs also have podcasting resources. Veterans Matt Medeiros and Joe Casabona.
Medeiros and Casabona sell the Podcast Starters Kit for $24. The two have several years of experience podcasting, so you are getting double the expertise.
If you want to go further and participate in a course, Casabona has one.
Casabona is redoing is course right now and will be launching soon. You can learn more about Podcast Liftoff here.
Optimize your Google My Business Page
A couple of years ago, Sara Dunn put out an article about how to post on your Google My Business Page. Recently it was shared in a Facebook Group I’m in.
I checked it out. I had recently recovered an old Google My Business Page and changed the branding to Copyflight. I figured I might as well give it a try.
So, I posted a recent article following Dunn’s advice. It was pretty easy.
According to an article on Hubspot, the old Google Places for Business was retired in 2014 and replaced with Google My Business Pages.
Google Plus, of course, has also retired.
So, you don’t need a Google + page or a Google Places page, but now everything is centered on the Google My Business Page (GMB).
It appears that Google is putting some attention on businesses using a GMB. Google’s attention makes it essential for local SEO value.
“To achieve digital marketing success by leveraging a location-based strategy, most seasoned SEO professionals start at the same place: creating a Google My Business listing.”
Source: Search Engine Journal
Sam Hollingsworth at Search Engin Journal shows how you can set up and optimize your listing.
Aja Frost also does a great job of showing how you can get started and maximize your GMB page at the Hubspot blog.
Do you or your clients utilize a Google My Business page?
Wrapping it up
Finding an advantage can be the difference in a short-lived business and one that lasts long term.
Using something like a podcast which can help you generate authority and a Google My Business, which can help with local SEO will help establish your long-term sustainability.
What kind of advantages do you have in your business?
