An etymology podcast for word nerds

I had been teaching English as a Second Language for about half a decade when I decided one day to create an online resource for learners which very quickly turned into a podcast called The English Sessions, which I still record episodes for once in a while. I started a series on The English Sessions called Get the Word! which I quickly realized needed to be its own podcast, as it wasn't really geared toward English learners. So, Get the Word! was officially launched this year and is for any word nerd who loves etymology and learning in general.
 

I love podcasts, and I love audio editing and recording, so it made perfect sense for me to go this route. I'm motivated of course by my desire to spread knowledge all over the place, but also I love engaging in discussions with folks around the topics I cover and also just the satisfaction once a rough episode is polished off after some elbow grease. It's a very satisfying feeling.

We launched just earlier this month, but we're releasing one episode a week so we have three out so far under the official Get the Word! podcast. However, if any word nerds out there would like to seek out more content, you can go back and listen to the Get the Word! episodes released as bonus episodes of The English Sessions ( www.englishsessionswithmike.com and on podcast players ).
 

I record and release one episode per week, so it's been pretty manageable. If you have a passion to do something, you find the time to do it.

Part of my 'day job' is doing the podcasting. I've carved out time during my work days. The podcast is funded almost entirely by me. For a while I had a Patreon running but felt bad that I wasn't releasing enough content for it so I suspended it for a while. If anyone out there is hankering for some bonus Get the Word! let me know... I can create a Patreon for it.
 

Right now we are definitely looking for sponsors. Our podcast host generates a bit of dough for us since we promote it on the podcast, but that's about all the money coming in right now.

Since we just launched we're still building up our listenership and fan base. It's not been even an entire month yet so I'd have to get back to you on downloads per month.

Podcasting benefits me in many ways. The sense of accomplishment I mentioned before... the listener engagement... and with time I hope it does become my full time career.
 

Right now we're working with 2 Samson dual XLR/USB mics that you can pick up for under $100 each. Editing is done through Audacity, which is a fantastic free audio editor that can make a podcast sound great if you know what you're doing. We're using Anchor as our podcast host, which is one of the companies that is making is super easy to release a podcast into the world. Even just a few years ago it seemed like it was so much more of a hassle.

I prepare each episode of Get the Word! by compiling many sources of information for research, and then I do the damn research, which can be very time consuming. It's important for me, though, to get the facts straight. I believe it shows.

I then create what will become the audio transcript of the episode. It's something I started on The English Sessions because, well, that podcast was set up to help English learners. I kept the tradition going because it can still help any learners who are listening to Get the Word! and it also creates a text version for anyone to access anytime. All of the transcripts are being uploaded to englishsessionswithmike.com.

Then comes the recording and editing. Don't forget your pop filter. You don't want those popping p's. Find a quiet, padded space. Here's a trick I thought of as a test to see how much room noise you're picking up (which you typically won't want in a podcast!): cup your ears as if you're doing your best dumbo impression and then do your 'check check, 1-2-3, check'. That extra ear meat that you're not used to is gonna help you to hear some of the room noise that you normally wouldn't pick up from your tiny normal human ears. You don't want that room noise... you want that sound to die off quickly. Put some pillows in front of you and notice how much sound they absorb.
 

Anchor offers some pretty good analytic data. Right now, 51% of our listeners are listening through Spotify; 37% is listening straight from the Anchor podcast player; the rest says 10% 'web browser' and 2% other.

77% of our audience is in the USA, while 8% is in Poland, 6% in Brazil, 3% in France, and then 1% each in India, Netherlands and South Korea.

While I'm not a big social media person, I do believe it can be very helpful for promoting a podcast. My marketing friends keep telling me I need to get my face out there more often. People want to engage with individuals on social media; they want to get to know somebody. If you can master that, and have a nice smile, you'll be killin' it with the social media marketing.
 

My main advice is just to wait until you know you can create something that you'll be proud of. Otherwise you'll run out of steam pretty quickly.

Here's a bunch of links for ya! Thanks again for the interview opportunity.
www.englishsessionswithmike.com
https://www.facebook.com/theenglishsessions
https://twitter.com/TheESessions
https://www.instagram.com/englishsessionswithmike/
https://www.tiktok.com/@gettheword
If you want to directly support the podcast, you can donate at this link here: https://anchor.fm/theenglishsessions/support