Should You Attend a Podcast Conference?

episode 72

Listen to this episode to learn why I wasn’t into podcast conferences when I first started podcasting and what changed my mind, my experience attending my first podcast conference (Podcast Movement), four benefits of attending, and a behind-the-scenes look at how I landed a speaking session.

In this episode…

I spoke at Podcast Movement’s National Conference in Dallas, and it was such a great experience. However, I was a bit skeptical about podcasting conferences at first. Initially when I saw pictures from the conferences and how they were promoted, it looked like a lot of white dudes going to a conference and talking to each other. And that is not my vibe. These are all assumptions, of course and were based on things that I saw online and just kind of a gut feeling.

I think a few things have happened since the early days of podcast conferences. I think that the podcast community within the span of just three years has grown tremendously and become way more inclusive and diverse. I could sense that when I applied that things had shifted when I applied to the conference in April. It felt like that landscape had changed. I wasn't wrong. When I went to the conference, there was such an effort made to be inclusive from speakers to panelists to the type of topics.

The way I found out about the opportunity was through a newsletter called BIPOC Podcast Creators. Now, if you haven't signed up for this newsletter, I encourage you to do so. It's fantastic. They give you podcasting tips, tell you about the latest goings on in the podcasting world, give suggestions of podcasts to listen to, let you know about job offers within the podcasting space, and bring in experts to do webinars. The last one I attended was fantastic. There is a small fee of $35, but that $35 from what I got from the webinar, I would gladly pay. In April, they held a session where they reviewed pitches and gave you feedback. That was really amazing, and I think that’s why I was successful in landing that speaking opportunity.

So let’s dive into the 4 reasons you should attend a podcast conference:

Exposure

If you can speak at a podcasting conference, it’s really great exposure.. At least for someone like me who helps people with their podcasts. It's great for building legitimacy and helping me be seen as a player in the podcasting world and someone who knows what they're talking about.

I had people come up to me after my session and ask me questions. I met someone who invited me on the spot to be on their podcast because of what I just shared in my session. We recorded that podcast the very next day and so I got another opportunity to reach new audiences right there at the conference.

Networking

There are so many opportunities to meet people at conferences. There's parties, time in-between sessions and people are really just looking to talk to other people who love podcasts as much as they do. I met some great people. As an introvert, it's always about quality or quantity, so I didn't meet a ton of people, but the people I did meet, I absolutely loved.

Learning

If you have a podcast or you're thinking about starting a podcast, and want tips about any aspect of podcasting, there are over 100 sessions you can attend.

They had some great sessions and panelists speakers. There are big names, like National Geographic, Spotify, Amazon Music, NPR. So, you really get to learn from the best of the best.

I felt like the panels, the speakers that were chosen and the topics were inclusive. It didn’t feel like tokenism or something to check the inclusivity box. There were so many different perspectives presented to me that it felt like a genuine goal and mission when they were choosing guests and the topics.

Community

Being around a bunch of people who love podcasts, was a lot of fun. I left feeling like I was more a part of the podcast community than when I arrived. It gave me extra fuel to continue podcasting and now I know I have resources and people I can reach out to for advice, support, and guidance.

 

So if you're thinking about going to a podcast conference, I would recommend going at least once so that you can potentially get some exposure, do some networking, learn something and be in community with other podcasters.

Kristin Quiroz Bayonapodcast, conference, tipsComment