I have a lengthy commute, and I normally listen to podcasts on varying topics (business, psychology, philosophy, self-improvement, etc.) to stay mentally engaged during that time. Many of the podcasts I listen to regularly bring authors onto their shows to talk about their works and some of the major underlying concepts therein. Podcasts have become my primary (and sometimes, only) source of new book recommendations, since as a Millennial man, very few of my peers are avid readers. I attempted to crack onto the nonfiction podcast circuit, in hopes of getting my book (and hence, my message) into the ears of potential readers.
So, I started with generating a short list of podcasters that I routinely listen to and comparing my book’s subject matter against their typical show segments. I felt this was crucial, because the benefit to me, an unknown author with zero books and no following to his name, the benefit was obvious. The real perspective to keep in mind was how do I benefit them. I’ve kept this attitude in mind in other endeavors in life; jobs I’ve applied for, grants I applied to in college, networking events I went to in my 20’s, LinkedIn requests I’ve sent, internal transfers I’ve applied for, and so on. I crafted each of my outreach e-mails (and in one case, a physical letter since one of my favorite podcasters is very analog) with how my message aligns with specific (there’s the key word!) episodes they’ve done in the past and how their fanbase would be receptive to my book.
The bait was set. I fire off the e-mails and drop the physical letter in the mail. Eventually, the analog podcaster writes me back (on some fine cardstock I might add, which I still have) and asks for a copy of my book! My book. I spent the rest of that day on Cloud 9! As soon as an advance copy of my book was available from my publisher, I immediately send him a copy; a hardcover copy. After all, you only get one chance at a first impression. One podcaster’s website has an online submission form to fill out, I dutifully oblige and to my absolute surprise he replies to me the same day. He asks me what my favorite episodes of his were, I reply with a few of his more recent ones and a few older episodes to show that I’ve been a listener of his for awhile. Again, I gave specific reasons as to why those specific episodes resonated so much with me. Herein lies another concept that helped me in the past; be specific. No company wants to read a cover letter that says Dear Employer, I really want to work at your company because it’s a world-class organization when it’s a hole-in-the-wall with 50 people. Crumple, shoot, 3 points.
He replied later that day, he approved of my taste in his episodes (“good faves” was a direct quote from his e-mail). He followed up with stating he’d be interested. Interested! I just stamped my passport to Cloud 9 for a second time! I walked around feeling like I was 6’6 and had “Unlimited Swagger” mode turned on. I agreed to send him a copy; a hardcover copy. After all, first impressions are all about presentation.
There was only one issue; he preferred audiobooks only, as he mentioned in a following e-mail. Not to be deterred, I reached out to my publisher regarding on the chances of an audio release. Unfortunately, in the publishing world audiobooks come after a book’s successful release. So there I was, caught between a rock and a hard place; I can’t get the audiobook because I’m currently an unknown, but needed the audiobook to help me get known (spoiler alert, I’m still an unknown). This podcaster stated after my reply that he’d only accept audiobooks; he just didn’t have the time for the hardcover book. In fairness, his output as a podcaster absolutely supports that rebuttal. The customs agent at the terminal of Cloud 9 had revoked my visa.
He managed to word his response in such a way where I wasn’t hurt about the rejection. Tact goes a long way; case-in-point, I still listen to most of the episodes that he releases. He mentioned in a recent episode that 90% of people who reach out to him looking for an appearance can’t list an intelligible response to what their favorite episodes were or why. He admitted to using it as a tripwire to weed out the lesser-prepared. This gave me an ego boost; I had at least passed the patented Bullshit Filter. I was taken seriously and that was big step forward. This didn’t put me on Cloud 9 but did result in some serious head-bobbing as I finished my drive to work that day.
The analog podcaster never wrote me back after I sent him a copy of my book, so that’s a rejection. Cloud 9 had deported me once more. However, I haven’t taken it personally; I still listen to his episodes frequently too. In fact, I now write more frequently than I did when my book was coming out. Putting aside the love of the game, there is an element to honing my craft, even if nobody reads these articles. SEO, social media, visual artistry, and marketing can all be learned or outsourced. However, only I am capable of writing the thoughts inside my head, and nobody can walk the path of audience-building based on my written content for me.
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