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Engagement is the key to building a meaningful relationship with your podcast audience, and Buzzsprout's Fan Mail feature makes connection simple and effective. In this episode, we break down the Fan Mail feature, how to use it on your podcast, and strategies for engaging with your listeners.
Welcome to Podcasting Q&A brought to you by the people at Buzzsprout . I'm your host , cara Passetti , and I'm bringing you the best tips and strategies to keep you podcasting with confidence . This week we are focusing on engagement . We see podcasters reach out to the support inbox all the time asking how do I engage with my audience ? And it's a fair question , because it's very difficult to record on a microphone , staring maybe at yourself on your computer and then publishing this episode that you've recorded on the directories , only to maybe hear crickets and see download numbers . And while download numbers are super reassuring because it means that people are listening to your content , hearing back from them sure would be nice . Ratings and reviews are wonderful tools , again to just get some feedback , but we're talking about really connecting with your audience . So the cool thing about podcasting is that you're actually always engaging with your audience , so you are communicating with them . Every time you release a new episode , they are hearing
you , but how do they respond ? And I want to put the total highlight on a Buzzsprout feature called fan mail . This is the easiest way for your listeners to engage with you as the podcaster .
Speaker 1
So first let's start . What is fan mail ? Fan mail was created out of our own pain point on an existing Buzzsprout podcast . Maybe you've heard of it Buzzcast Albin , kevin and Jordan talk about . They were always searching for engagement . They tried things like boostagrams and Twitter and email and so many options for having their listeners reach out to them , and some of them were successful . But some of them took a lot of work to check , and so Albin , I think , initiated a text option and so he put it out there on an episode and it took off . Listeners were engaging with the podcast , they were responding and it just was very natural to grab your phone that you were already listening to your podcast on and send a quick text to your favorite podcaster . And so fan mail has been a great hit . We've seen a lot of podcasters using it in Buzzsprout .
Speaker 1
It uses an SMS to give listeners the ability to text your show directly . Fan mail will automatically add a text link in your show notes when you enable it inside of your Buzzsprout account , and listeners will see that no matter what directory they are listening on , and they can click that link and send a text message to you as the host and that will show in your Buzzsprout account If you
don't want to send us a text link at the top of your episode show notes . You can always choose to drop it down to the end of your show notes . It'll show just at the end of your description and right before your episode footer if you have anything added there . You can also customize what the text link says . So the default and the most widely used version of this is send us a text . That makes it really simple for your listeners to know exactly what they're doing . So when they click that link , they're not surprised when their messaging app appears and they are prompted to send a text . It keeps it really simple and very straightforward on what to expect . With that said , there is an option to add some customization here . So I've seen a couple of podcasters change the wording to their link , including Buzzsprout Weekly . We have an Ask Megan section of our newsletter , so Megan went ahead and changed her link to send us a question for Ask Megan and that way listeners can send in their text message , ask their question and then Megan can answer it in the next episode . Now you can always keep the standard send us a text link . That works just fine , but just know you have options
So what are the best uses for fan mail . One of the most popular ways of using fan mail is for a call to action at the end of your episode . So you can use fan mail to solicit questions , so you can ask your listeners to send in the questions that they want to see answered on the next episode Hint , hint , like on podcasting Q&A , or you can solicit answers , and so if you have a question and you want to know maybe it's even for episode ideas what do you guys want to hear from me ? Or did that episode really resonate with you ? What did you learn from that episode that I released last week ? You can put that out in your fan mail call to action and your listeners can respond . And so , again , it's so rewarding to get that fan mail and that's a great way to connect with your listeners .
Speaker 1
Another awesome way is just to share the love . We even have the option of sharing those messages on your Buzzsprout website . So there's a way to post them . You can share your fan mail and it will be populated right there on your Buzzsprout website for your listeners to see . I know , as a listener , if I send a message into my favorite podcaster and then they highlight that message , that is a win . That's very exciting and will definitely encourage me to write back again .
Speaker 1
If you are listening to this and you have a favorite podcast and you happen to see that , send us a text link in their show notes . Please send them a text . Let them know how much you appreciate and love the podcast . I know it encourages podcasters and so they would love to hear
from you . So if you have questions about fan mail or any questions for the Podcaster Success Team , you can reach out to us at any time at support at buzzsproutcom . Now , I bet you saw this coming , but if you have a question that you want answered on a podcasting Q&A episode , please click the send us a text link in the show notes . I'd love to hear from you and I would love to answer any questions you have . Podcasting Q&A is available in your favorite podcast app , so be sure to join us every Monday to kickstart your week . Thanks for listening . Have a great week and , as always , keep podcasting .
