The Podcaster's Guide to a Visible Voice
How do you, as a podcaster, make an emotional connection with your listeners to create a place where they feel like they belong? This podcast about podcasting for underrepresented podcasters doing good in the world, who want to build a community of belonging. You'll discover what it takes to be a powerful podcaster and support your listeners to feel like they belong. Go on your podcasting journey to reclaim and redefine what a successful podcast means to you, by thriving on your own terms, with Mary Chan as your host. As a Voice-Over Artist and former radio producer for almost 20 years, she'll share with you what she's learned from creating, recording, and editing, hundreds of thousands of voices; from newbie clients who had to read their very first script to seasoned professionals voicing the very same commercials you hear on the radio and TV. They all have one thing in common with you – they made an emotional connection to a listener, not by the words they use, but by how they use their voice. Now as a Podcast Strategist and founder of Organized Sound Productions, you'll gain the insights to keep you podcasting and have fun while you're at it! How do you want your listener to feel? Learn all the secrets at http://www.visiblevoicepodcast.com and to work with Mary, check out https://www.organizedsound.ca.
Episodes
When's the last time you replayed your old episodes and really listened? It's the end of another year of podcasting, and that means looking back on how far you've come and planning the next steps. Whether you're taking some time off for the holiday or plugging away between the eggnog and the family time, Mary has one non-negotiable for you: you need to start listening back to your old episodes—and not just at 2X speed.
...What assumptions are holding you back from creating a more accessible show? If you knew more about your listener's accessibility needs, how would that change your show? Podcasting borrows so much of its policy and practice from more traditional forms of media, and while that's given us a great place to start, it's also slowed down innovation in this unique medium.
Meg Wilcox is a journalist and professor a...
How can a solid structure make your podcast process easier? Your podcast starts with a great idea—a topic that fires you up, that you can passionately go on about at length. That's a great place to begin a show, but without some structure, producing episode after episode can become tedious and stressful. That's why Mary advocates for building a show map. Think of it as Google Maps directions that help guide both you an...
How do you find the perfect podcast host to share airtime with? If a podcast is your passion project but you don't have a technical background, an audio-savvy partner could help make your dream a reality. That's what Darren Dukes, a Vancouver Island physiotherapist and running enthusiast, discovered when he convinced fellow runner and former radio broadcaster Jamie Weiss to be his co-host. Darren's vision and Jamie's r...
What's the worst piece of feedback you've received about your podcast? We all have one—that cringe-inducing review or comment that fires up our impostor syndrome. The one that makes us question our hosting skills, our topic selection, and our whole show. And yet, feedback, even the negative kind, doesn't have to get you down.
In this episode, Mary takes on trolls and seasoned listeners alike to suggest a v...
What are you afraid of when you're recording your podcast? Training your voice doesn't start with what comes out of your mouth—it starts with what's going on in your head. Mary learned this 25 years ago from her radio school instructors, Kat Stewart and Kevin Ribble. In this episode, her former teachers take the mic to talk about finding your charisma and confidence as a podcaster and the vocal impact of fear and judgm...
How do you make your personality shine through as soon as you hit record? The podcast world is always evolving—that's what happens when a baby industry grows up! For better or worse, audio-first media is changing constantly, and the latest shift involves Amazon's decision to shut down the Wondery podcast studio. This kicks off a move away from those shows heavy on the music, sound effects, and research, toward more personality-driv...
How can reflecting on your podcast journey spark delight in your success? The process of podcasting is serious business. You have to be laser-focused on all the pieces of the spiral—from brainstorming topics to marketing the published episode to starting the next one—and sometimes the subject matter gets dark, especially in the daunting uncertainty of our modern world. But at the end of the day, if you don't enjoy what you're creat...
What differentiates Canadian podcasters from their American counterparts, eh? If you think about the first podcast that comes to mind, there's a pretty good chance it's American. That's because podcasting tends to feel—and in many ways actually is—pretty U.S.-centric. But that certainly doesn't mean there aren't a ton of fantastic, groundbreaking Canadian podcasters in the industry.
From the struggle to identify Canada-specific res...
What kinds of questions do you ask your podcast guests? The most engaging podcast episodes—the ones that make for the best conversations and the best listening—are the ones that contain great stories. As the host, you're always aiming to draw all those details and deep disclosures from your guest. So why does getting the full picture sometimes feel like pulling teeth?
Mary recently taught her nine-year-old daughter how asking more ...
How can curiosity and commitment to your listener drive your show's growth? From guest selection to generating advertising revenue, the process of running your own podcast is always challenging and fascinating, and it often calls on you to take big chances.
That's exactly what Chidinma Azubuike discovered when she started "But What Do I Know?" back in 2020. Her willingness to keep trying new tactics has paid off—all while working t...
What does coming back strong from a podcast hiatus look like? In the day-to-day chaos of our lives—balancing work, family, personal time, household upkeep, etc, etc—it's perfectly understandable if it feels like a bit much to plan, record, publish, and market a podcast on top of that. If you're thinking about pressing pause on your show, or you already have, rest assured, you can take that step without derailing your past progress.
...How are you using or avoiding artificial intelligence in your podcast? AI is a shiny new offering with loads of possibilities, but a lot of people are also understandably threatened by its wide-reaching and ever-growing abilities. On today's episode, Mary connects with Amanda Cupido, an adjunct professor, TEDx speaker, podcast producer, and author of the book "Let's Talk Podcasting."
Amanda has her finger firmly on the pulse of all...
How can you take your guest episodes beyond a basic Q&A? When you think of a podcast, what comes to mind? If "a mic and two people talking" is your first thought, you're in good company, but in this episode, Mary encourages you to expand that definition. Your show is about so much more than the interview. That one-time guest isn't the person who keeps listeners coming back week after week—that's you! So, how can you us...
What's the right way to go about being a guest on other podcasts? When's the last time you went on another show as a guest? As a podcast host, it's easy to get bogged down in the day-to-day requirements of running a podcast. After all, you're expected to find guests, record episodes, edit episodes, post everything online, and find fresh ways to get the word out.
Here's the good news: being a guest on other podcasts is an excellent ...
Video has taken podcasting by storm, but how do you know if it's right for your show?
As a podcaster, how are you interacting with and utilizing video? More and more, we're hearing about creators tacking on this visual element, and platforms like YouTube and Spotify are eagerly showcasing all the success stories of podcasters giving their audience a fresh way to consume content.
Sure, it's relatively easy and inexpensive to get you...
How do you know if social media is really worth it? Social media inundates almost every aspect of our lives these days, from communicating with friends to deciding what to listen to, watch, or buy—all the way down the line to actually listening to, watching, and buying it. So, of course, many podcast creators worry that leaving social media behind is an enormous marketing faux pas.
But what if it isn't? Amanda Laird is the marketin...
What shifts in podcasting have you noticed in the last few months? In the first episode of 2025, Mary dives right into the changes we've seen in podcasting just since last fall. More and more hosts are leaning into partisan politics and using their shows to share their thoughts and concerns with a huge audience. This has further legitimized the industry, similar to when celebrities started to don the mantle of podcast host several ...
How are your values guiding your voice, schedule, and future plans for your show? The holiday season is upon us, and that makes this the final 2024 episode of The Podcaster's Guide to the Visible Voice! Throughout the year, Mary fields tons of questions about all things recording, speaking, and producing. So, here's a round-up of some of the impossible-to-Google questions most podcast creators ask at some point.
From embracing the ...
How can you make your podcast more accessible to people who are deaf and hard of hearing? It goes without saying that we don't know what we don't know. When it comes to how people with auditory differences—such as those who are deaf and hard of hearing—interact with our podcasts, the only way to learn how to do better and make those episodes more accessible is to ask. And that's exactly what this episode does.
Kellina Powell is an ...
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