How to Coordinate a Podcast Feed Drop to Grow Your Audience
This article is being reprinted with permission of the author, Joni Deutsch. It was originally published on Podglomerate.com and you can view the original article here.
Podcast marketing can include a wide variety of tactics, from ad swaps to guest interview pitches and beyond. If you’re looking to grow your audience in a significant way, one of the best strategies is to coordinate a podcast feed drop (or feed swap), wherein two podcasters agree to place episodes from each other’s shows on their respective platforms. For example, Slate’s What Next TBD shares an episode from NPR’s Up First, in exchange for NPR’s Up First sharing an episode of Slate’s What Next TBD. Feed drops are a simple yet powerful way to reach target audiences who are already interested in that sort of content.
So how do you coordinate a podcast feed swap? What materials are involved with a feed drop? And how can you measure success? Don’t worry! The Podglomerate is here with a step-by-step guide to help explain what a feed drop is and why you should incorporate it into your podcast audience growth plan:
THE ADVANTAGES OF FEED SWAPS
Feed swaps present a unique win-win situation. By exchanging episodes of their shows, both podcasters gain exposure to a new set of listeners, potentially boosting their listenership numbers. Since the recommendation comes from a trusted source (the host!) and provide a bigger taste of your podcast with a full episode (as compared to a short :30 promotional spot), feed drops carry more weight than a typical advertisement. At The Podglomerate we’ve seen feed drops perform much better than a standard cross promo, sometimes driving anywhere from 10-40x the conversions.
Moreover, feed drops can help with podcast content scheduling! If you’re a podcaster looking to take a “break” from recording and releasing new episodes, then arranging for a feed swap can provide you with content for your podcast feed (so you can buy back some time and energy), all while growing your show in the process.
Create a shortlist of target shows and episodes (and find out who to get in touch with)
To execute a successful feed swap, start by identifying podcasts that share a similar target audience or content type as yours. Likewise, make a note if there are specific episodes of theirs that you would like to have dropped into your own podcast feed.
Likewise, determine which episode from your own podcast would be a suitable fit for a feed drop in those external feeds. Remember: this will likely be the first “introduction” of your podcast to many new listeners, so be sure to select a gateway episode that is relevant, interesting, and a great example of your show.
Once you have this shortlist of both podcasts and episode ideas, it’s time to find the best contacts for those podcasts. Podchaser, Rocket Reach, Muckrack, and Google Search are great resources for uncovering the names and email addresses of producers and even podcast hosts that you should be getting in touch with.
Pitch your feed drop idea
Now it’s time to draft a quick pitch to introduce yourself and contextualize why you’re reaching out (specifically, your idea for a feed drop and how your show/episode aligns with the audience and content of the other podcast). The information you choose to include here can vary based on what you think the target show’s team will find most impressive and relevant to their show/audience, but here are some questions to unlock some ideas:
Do you host a chart-topping or award-winning show?
What episode from your podcast feed do you have in mind for this feed swap (and does it contain notable guests, interesting insights, etc.)?
Do you have an episode in mind from the external podcast that you’d like to place into your feed?
How does your show/episode overlap with the external podcast’s show/episode given content and/or audience?
Need some more inspiration for your pitch? An email template is available in the original article.
Coordinate feed drop details
If the external podcast expresses interest in your feed swap idea, then it’s time to iron out the details. Here are some questions to ask and items to consider when coordinating a feed drop swap:
What is their podcast’s average episode downloads within a 30-day period? It’s good to compare audience size between shows to make sure an equitable trade takes place. For instance, if the external podcast receives more downloads than your show, consider what else you can bring to the table to make it a fair trade; perhaps you could offer additional promotional support such as a social media shout-out or a feature in your email newsletter. You might also propose that their episode stays in your feed indefinitely, while your episode remains in their feed for a limited period (30, 60, or 90 days.) Some podcasters prefer a tidy feed and might appreciate the option to remove your episode eventually.
If their show receives and/or accepts pixels (and, if they are on Chartable, what is their Chartable Publisher name)? Like with any marketing strategy, it’s important to track the results of your campaign, including feed swaps. If your shows utilize Chartable or pixel tracking, then you can receive data and monitor the success of your feed drop swap.
Is there an ideal date for the feed drop to occur in their feed (and in your feed)? You aren’t required to drop your episodes simultaneously. You might decide to run their episode later in your season (when your podcast needs to “take a break” during the holidays or is “in-between seasons,” for example). It’s also good to know the date of the feed drop so that you can send/receive materials in advance, as we’ll discuss further in the next section.
DRAFTING AND SENDING DELIVERABLES FOR THE FEED DROP
Once you’ve ironed out the ideal date for the feed drop (and, in doing so, the deadline to send/receive feed drop materials), you should prepare the following items for the swap:
An .mp3 of the episode audio (without ads)
An intro script that the respective host can record that provides an overview of the show/episode and why the audience will like it. Be sure to include pronunciations and include clarification whether an item should be read verbatim (as-is) or if it can be edited or adjusted as needed by the host to read. At the end of the day, you want the host to sound authentic in how they read the script and what they say to their audience, as that will be the most impactful way for them to encourage their audience to listen to your show.
Episode copy that can be placed in the external show’s “episode description” section for that feed drop. This copy should briefly describe the podcast and the specific episode, in addition to including a link back to your podcast (we recommend a trackable link, like a Chartable SmartLink or a Bitly link so you can gauge clicks and audience conversion).
WANT SOME INSPIRATION FOR WHAT A FEED DROP LOOKS (AND SOUNDS) LIKE? CHECK OUT THESE EXAMPLES FROM THE PODGLOMERATE’S CLIENTS WHAT COULD GO RIGHT AND WUNC’S THE BROADSIDE.
MONITORING THE IMPACT
Like with any marketing strategy, it’s important to track the results of your feed swaps. By using Chartable or pixel tracking, you can monitor your analytics to see if there’s an increase in downloads or new subscribers after the feed swap.
It’s normal to see conversion rates for feed drops that are 10x that of standard :30 or :60 cross-promo exchanges. If your feed drop results in a conversion rate of 1% or above (as you can see in the Chartable screenshot example below), you may have found strong audience alignment, and you should consider looking to other comparable shows for more feed drops.
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Joni Deutsch is an award-winning audio professional and NPR veteran with 13+ years of outstanding experience as a producer/host, content manager, and marketer/audience growth specialist. Deutsch is currently VP of Marketing and Audience Development at The Podglomerate, where she leads audience strategy for high-profile podcast clients including Freakonomics Radio and NHPR's “Bear Brook” (praised as one of the "best true crime podcasts" by Stephen King), as well as PBS, Harvard, Stanford, and NPR stations, among many others. She has spoken at national conferences (Podcast Movement, WNYC’s Werk It, PRPD, PMDMC) and been featured by NPR, Bloomberg, The Verge’s Hot Pod, Harvard’s Nieman Journalism Lab, Poynter, CPB, and beyond. Her work has been recognized by the Murrow Awards, Gracie Awards, and Webby Awards, in addition to the ONA's Women's Leadership Accelerator, Axios' "30 under 30,” and Duke University TiP’s Early Achievement Award.