Alright. Gonna do something a little bit different here on the show today. We are chatting with Kristen Chadwick. She's a podcast consultant and coach to seasoned podcast industry expert, and she's been doing this since 2016 with a focus on Christian influencers worldwide. Kristen, thank you so much for joining us here today. Thank you. Matthew, this is
awesome to be here. Oh, it's great to have you. And and I should stress, it's podcast coaching for Kingdom Entrepreneurs is the name of the company, and we'll get into the, you know, exact meaning of that title. But first, you know, going back, what got you started in the podcasting space? And then what took you from, you know, maybe curiosity to expertise and and, you know, professionalism?
This is a a fun, origin story. So my dad was a cameraman at heart way back in the, I don't know, late sixties, early seventies. And, as I grew up in the eighties, I would tag along in the broadcast rooms with him at Turner Broadcasting Systems and which turned into CNN, and he pretty much went from cameraman to top level, in in that broadcasting zone. So
I grew up in broadcast. I I always say that as, like, I I remember going into trailers at Atlanta Braves games and seeing all the people editing, and, it's just part of my background. Never in a 1000000 years did I think that I would have anything to do with a mic and headphones and being a voice behind a mic. I actually thought I was gonna go into counseling, which was more my mom's thing. And just the last minute of, I got accepted at a master's program and just felt a little check-in my
spirit of nope. This is not your lane. And a couple days later, I had a very good friend of mine who happened to be, leaving radio to start his own podcast. That was in 2016, and he said, Kristen, I know you don't actively you're not actively in broadcasting or podcasting, but I think you're you're gonna make an amazing producer, and we would love to have you. And in 2016, I was like, what what are you talking about? What is a podcast producer?
And he pretty much threw me in the deep end at that point, and we grew it almost overnight to a top 25 podcast in kids and family. And I worked with them for about 4 years. And so just doing the back background things behind the scenes, scheduling guests, creating the content, making sure that the show is going where they wanted it to go. And, in 2020 decided to, start my own business and open up to more
more opportunities of producing other people's podcast. And at that time, it was like, do you wanna write show notes? And I was like, sure. I love to write. So little by little, my business began to grow and, had continuous conversations, especially on social media of, like, Kristen, how do you start a podcast? How do you get guests? How do you and so then the little light bulb went on
of, you know what? This is like a whole podcasting consulting business because people keep asking me how to do it and had just seen success over and over again. So, yeah. So that's that's how I got started. So one thing I love about that story is that you worked on a show for 4 years before you decided to, you know, hang your own shingle and and go out there and and be a coach and consultant. So often these days, I think lots of people, you know, they record 1 podcast
episode, and then they turn around and they say, I'm a podcast coach consultant. And and, you know, they're trying to, you know, sell expertise where they they haven't really earned it yet. And, you know, I love the fact that you really took your time and realized that it was there once people started to to approach you. I'm curious because you had spent so much time, you know, looking at the broadcasting world. I think so many people like to say, you know, podcasting isn't radio. Podcasting
isn't, you know, major media. But I have to imagine that there are a lot of things that you learn from observing your dad and being around him and being around those institutions that you bring with you to the table that are useful for yourself and your clients. Is that true? Absolutely. I one of my so my dad actually passed away right when I got asked to be a producer. Oh, I'm sorry to hear that.
And, yeah, it was it was rough. And I think one of the most beautiful things that he taught me in all of those years of either walking into a studio or him in the more leadership type roles, and in life is there was this through line of everybody has a story. And no matter if he was traveling, and picking up his suitcases off the carousel, he would make friends with the with the airline people or, he's like, oh, did you know that so and so at the ticket counter
has 4 kids and blah blah blah blah. So that was one of the things that he instilled in me, whether it was watching him interact with people at work or in everyday life or, you know, listening to he was avid NPR listener. And so just learning that over and over and over again of the power of story and really that everybody has a voice and everybody has a story that's going to impact somebody else. Yeah. I mean, it's true. Good podcast. The best podcasters are great
storytellers. Even if they're not doing a narrative podcast, even if they're interviewing somebody else, even if they're just trying to be funny, they they tend to connect best with their audience when they are helping to tell a story or when the content they are presenting itself is presented in the story or the beginning, middle, and an end and, you know, takes the listener
on on the sort of journey, through that. So going back, you know, we said, at the very beginning that the name of your company is and, of course, I say that, and now I can't find my notes. Right? Like, that's what always happens as you're in the middle of chatting. It's the podcast coaching for kingdom entrepreneurs. And in this case, when you talk about kingdom,
you're referring to, Christian podcasters. What led you into this sort of, you know, specific niche, and what have you found, you know, interesting about podcasters in this space compared to maybe, you know, some of the other common podcast groupings that are out there? Yeah.
So I think what really led me into this specific niche is, a, this is the type of people that were asking me questions, and, b, really, I couldn't separate my own faith journey and my own really understanding how to use my voice by understanding who I was as a Christian or as a, follower of Jesus. And so, I I couldn't undo those things. And not that I don't work with people who do not believe in what I believe, but that is, like, my my main framework is it's very much rooted in,
in a kingdom identity is what I say. So, kingdom in the sense of a Christian, like a heavenly perspective and a purpose filled perspective. And so I think that's really where I love is to dive into, like, what are those strengths? What is the story? What is, the impact that you can make that is not only in today, but also as a legacy you're leaving behind just like my dad left
behind as well. And, yeah, that's that's pretty much why I'm in that genre is mainly because that's that's the language I speak and that's what I believe. But, again, like I said, I think everyone has a story. It's so interesting that that's the reason why you found yourself working in that space. I I essentially found myself working with podcast clients for the exact same reason, having worked at, you know, major financial
media company. Many of my early clients who found it were like, well, I used to work at an institution for business reporting, so you'll understand business podcasters better. And then, right, it was just, you know, once you get a few, then the referrals and connections and, right, you you tend to just kinda, you know, create a community of people often in the same niche who are trying to work with you, and so
that makes total sense. So I'm wondering today, what are some of the, you know, the newer pieces of advice or or what are some of the newer strategies that you are finding that are working best for podcasters to help them grow and and more just grow their numbers, but really just help them to be successful? Mhmm. Yeah. Okay. So I love this question because I feel like it's such a popular question
with podcasters is how do I grow my show? And I have one of my members in my community came to me one day and she was like, but why? Like, why do I want to grow my show? And it was a great question because it actually uncovered a whole depth of conversation that we weren't having, which was what's the purpose. So, yes, you can grow your show, but where are they going after that? So is it just to create a story that they're connecting with and they can put in their
AirPods and you can say, yep. Me too. Or, yep. This is one way that you could break through whatever scenario. And is it a place of where are you sending them next? So if they wanna work with you on a deeper level, because a lot of my my people are coaches or they're leaders in the ministry. So how do you once you grow your show, where is the next stop? Is it do you want to do group coaching? Do you want to lead something with them? Do you
want to walk side by side with them? So I try to go, like, one layer deeper because of that conversation of, like, yeah, it's great to grow your show. And what are you doing with this honor that you have, I don't know, a 100 people per episode listening or a 1000 or a 100000 people listening. So what are you doing with these people that can create an impact on a deeper level? So that's kind of where I go as far
as, like, alright. What's the why behind that? And then the other thing that I have seen that is working is, really understanding your keywords of who would be searching for your podcast. So, like, opening up your app and searching for a financial coach or a fitness coach or menopause coach. That's a very popular one right now. And making sure that that's actually in your title instead of, like, you know, mom for life with a number 4 or
whatever. So making sure that we are very specific, clear, and strategic on our titles, whether that's our podcast title, our cover art, our show description, making sure all of those keywords are really going to be for the person that's searching for your podcast.
You know, that reminds me, I I remember taking a class in college about public speaking, and one of the first lessons and, you know, something that a lot of people say is, like, the perfect introduction for any presentation is you tell the audience what you're about to tell them. You tell them the thing, and then you go back and you tell them what you just told them about. And and that's almost what you were talking about here with keywords, with artwork, with SEO.
It's right. It's like, if you want people if you want a specific type of person to find you, well, you better explain to those people who you're looking for, talk about the things that they will be looking for, and then, of course, follow-up by
presenting those things on your show that they are looking for. So, you know, podcast SEO really being a a key strategy, is there are there specific tools that you use to come up with a good SEO strategy or come up with those right keywords for the shows that you're working on? Yeah. So what I like to do, I like to use multiple avenues. So number 1, find out what's working. So asking your people, how did you find me? If they were if they are one of those that are, you know, like the ring
the bell, we got them to come and listen to our show. They went into Apple search bar and they searched for our podcast and that's how they found us. We want to know how did they type in whatever word they found or typed in there and then how did they find us in that way. Number 2, I love things like answer the public or, the other keyword finders. I'm totally drawing a blank on the other one right now.
But, and then also if you simply just go look in your charts of Apple or, like, Podchaser has charts now or Chartable, rest in peace, and finding those top podcasts that are in your genre and seeing what keywords are they using. Because, obviously, they're nailing nailing it on the head. So you wanna go and find those people, look at what their titles of their episodes are. You're not stealing their titles. You're just grabbing those keywords
and saying, oh, interesting. I can see that, this menopause coach is talking about cycle, motherhood, empty nest, like looking at all of those keywords and making sure you're having a running list. Every quarter, go in and check to see what is new, what is different, what's popping up in Google search, and just continuing to have that feedback over and over again. Once again, just to let everybody know, we are chatting with Kristen
Chadwick. She is from Podcast Coaching for Kingdom Entrepreneurs. You can find her at Kristenfield chadwick.com. Obviously, we will put a link here in the show notes so that you can easily find her as well as a link to all of her social media. Before we let you go, Kristen, a few questions that we'd like to ask everybody who comes on the show.
So one is, is there a place in the podcasting ecosphere, whether it's listening, creation, distribution, or, like, anything that you would love to see improved in podcasting overall? I think my number one wish, which I know 2.0 is trying to hit on, is that we could interact with our listeners kind like YouTube, but with our audio. So I know there's some apps out there that you can leave comments, under episodes,
but that would be more mainstream. So, like, Apple adopting that or Spotify, in their their platforms and making sure that you could easily comment in real time as they're listening, and it would be underneath their episodes. That's a good one. I think that has come up a few times from previous guests looking for better engagement tools to to interact directly with
listeners. Right? The best we can do is, right, we ask for ratings and reviews or we ask for feedback, but most of that doesn't actually happen on the platform where they're listening. So it's hard to tell who's a real listener and who's just maybe some troll trying to, you know, get under your skin or or,
you know, make a name for themselves. What about technology? Is there anything on your wish list, whether it's something that already exists that you've wanted to get your hands on, or something maybe that you're hoping would be created? And by the way, it looks like you're using a Shure SM 58 microphone? Yep. You nailed it. Oh, okay. Yep. So it's a pretty good microphone anyway. But, yeah, is there something on your, equipment or technology wish list, even piece of
software? Oh, you know, I do have a wish list of the Shure m b 7, or I I don't know. I've been eyeing the new Rodecaster mic too. So I don't know. I I I'm content with what I have, and I feel like what I have right now is working. So I don't know. You're you're not as compulsive and drawn to the new shiny things like some of us are who No. Would, you know, try and buy everything and then realize, I didn't really do that. That's very responsible podcasting, so good on
you. And then is there a podcast that you listen to today or maybe a few shows that you're subscribed to that when they come out, you are going to listen whether you stop what you're doing or it's just you're not just gonna let that download sit in your your playlist forever? Oh, you mean, like, other than yours, of course. Of course. I am. You know, I love anything from Dave Jackson. He's just I love him. Dave's good people. I know. I know. And I love the feed with Elsie and Rob, from
Libsyn. Those are my top 2, specifically for podcasting. Outside of that mind pump, media, which is like a workout, very well balanced, podcast where it's 3 guys plus their producer on the mic. And I just love listening to them banter back and forth about fatherhood, about recent fitness studies. It's just great, like, background listening while I'm working out. So You know, I I appreciate that because I've always heard people say I listen
to podcasts when I'm working out, and I'm always like, I I can. Right? It's either too focused on the workout to hear what they're saying on the podcast or so focused on on, you know, what they're saying that it's losing steam or, right, it's not the same as, like, really good motivating music. So that might be one that, myself and maybe some others will check out. And, you mentioned the feed for just a quick disclosure. I do now work at Libsyn and have recently appeared on the
feed, and we'll probably do some in the future. Kristen was not paid to say that. So just just so we are clear on that. That was not a ploy or, you know, something that was planted ahead of time. Well, Kristin Chadwick of podcast coaching for Kingdom Entrepreneurs, thank you so much for joining us today. Thank you so much for having me, Matthew.