The Rise of a Top 5 Podcast, with Erica Hall

The FinTalking podcast demonstrated how meaningful content, delivered with enthusiasm and depth, backed by energetic promotional activity can achieve success. Six months after launch, FinTalking had already been featured in the coveted Apple Podcasts "New & Noteworthy" spot and entered the Top 5 Finance podcast charts in Australia.

Show host, Erica Hall talks about how the trio fine-tuned their formula, focused on covering all the bases with promotion and leveraged their existing audiences. We also covered more guerilla recording techniques and tips for kick-starting podcasts.

After only 10 episodes, the FinTalking podcast folded at the end of 2020. Erica's new podcast "Moneycraft" is due to launch in Summer 2021.

Links

Erica Hall (LinkedIn) FinTalking website FinTalking on Apple Podcasts Chartable

Transcription

Martin Franklin 0:22 Welcome back to Metapod with me, Martin Franklin. This is Episode Two of our series of podcaster profiles, where we talk to successful podcasters and find out how they do what they do. This episode, I'm speaking to Erica Hall, Eric is a finance professional. And along with two colleagues, she started the fin talking podcast. Within six months, they were in the top five of finance podcasts in Australia. We talked about preparation for a podcast, to script or to improvise on the topic. Erica gives an absolute masterclass in how to promote awareness and conversation around the topics of each episode, including her approach to Facebook ads, LinkedIn, and YouTube. So let's hear about the rise and fall of a popular podcast with Erica Hall. You're the only show that I produce where there are three, three co hosts. And when you're starting from zero, that that kind of journey of finding what the roles are and what what roles need to be fulfilled in I must be quite interesting. Have you got any reflections on that?

Erica Hall 1:42 First of all, it was really well, who who are we talking to? And I think that that was a real disconnect. Initially, we didn't sort of realize until we sat down or got together to do our first recording. And, and it was clear that, you know, we had probably different perspectives. And so I think, really no, to answer your question. As we've gone along, those roles have become more defined. And we've become much more cohesive as a group in terms of where I think we are now very well aligned with what we're doing, why we're doing it, who we're talking to. And even then I think whilst we're probably talking to what I would say, sort of the end investor in our jobs, we tend to talk to the intermediaries or sort of the institutions. I think that Yeah, initially, there was a thought that we were talking to institutions, and we're looking to sort of add our voice at that sort of more professional, not professional, it's probably not the right word, but a really educated investor. And so there was a real disconnect in terms of the way the conversations were going as a result, and we started to sort of set things up was more like a panel discussion at a conference, because that's something we're used to doing, or more like a formal presentation. And so it took a bit of trial and error and a little bit of guidance from you actually, as well, Martin, just to get that natural conversation going, rather than being barely really stilted. And being really, almost over prepared and delivering a monologue, like a presentation.

Martin Franklin 3:20 That point about the preparation is, you know, that's something I find very interesting how to adequately prepare so that you're not at a loss for how to tackle your subject, but not entirely sounding like you'

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