Start Strong with a Purposeful Intro – Episode 110

[MUSIC IN – GHOSTHOOD FEATURING SARA AZRIEL “LET’S GO” BEGINS]

MARY: When you’re listening to podcasts, how often do you hit play on an episode and the intro just seems to go on and on forever? You think, when will the show ever begin? Let’s get to the point. I remember there was this one time a friend of mine said that he wanted to be a guest on a show, but he wanted me to listen to the podcast first because he’s like, I don’t know. I’m not sure if I’m gonna be a good fit. Listen to this, see what you think. 

So I hit play, but at the 1 minute and 16 second mark, and that’s a long time in the audio world, I actually gave up because at this point, the host was still on her intro, giving the bio of the upcoming guest. It was a long resume. I felt like I was reading a PhD thesis. I don’t know. I didn’t go to university. [LAUGHTER] I went to radio school. But it felt like a long list of their credentials. And a minute and 16 seconds in, I gave up. I was out. Because in an audio world, we need to have a purposeful intro because of, um, attention span. 

I also had a good debate recently with a new client who was looking to launch their show. So we were talking about what they want to do with their intro. They mentioned that they hear so many shows where, again, it just goes on and on, so they just wanted to get to the good stuff. And I totally get that. As a podcast listener, you just want to get to the good stuff, right? And yet, what if we could create an intentional intro so that the listener, when you’re listening to a show, is already getting to the good stuff right when they hit play at the very start? No boring intros that sound like that long resume or so much detail about your show that it actually sounds like a trailer. 

So today we’re figuring out how you can create a compelling and purposeful intro. We’re talking a show intro, an episode intro. Which one do you use? Well, in this case, you could use both. There is a difference. So what sort of intros are common these days? And more importantly, which one will work for your show? 

This is episode 110 on the Podcaster’s Guide to a Visible Voice.

<< WOMAN SINGS: So so so so let’s go >>

So let’s just get right to the point, right? That’s what you’re here for. 

[INTRO MUSIC FADES AND ENDS]

So just like many other podcast listeners, you are here to get to the good stuff. And when you hit play, I want you to think about, you know, how you got to this episode, why you decided to listen to this particular one. Do you already follow the show. And so if you do, you know, it’s just part of your cue. And side note, if you do do that, I so, so, so appreciate you. Thank you for following the show. 

If you don’t follow the show, maybe you did a search. What was that keyword that you typed in? And then what did you read? And you were like, ooh, this is the one I want to hit play on. Was it maybe a recommendation from a friend? Or you landed here because you wanted to know something about podcasting or you’ve sort of heard about my work and so you’ve hit play. You might not know me, but you’re here for the info mainly, right? You’re here to learn about podcasting. 

[FUNKY SNAPPING AND BASS MUSIC STARTS]

So in my case, I make sure in my intros that you heard right at the very top. I make sure that when you press play and land here with me in this space, you are getting exactly what you expected. That knowledge, expertise, and the ideas that can help with your show or expand your ideas of creating your own show. Podcast listeners are, like I said, they want to get to the point sometimes, especially when they want to just learn things, right? They don’t want an intro where you might drone on about who you are. 

And again, if you don’t know me, you probably don’t care about who I am at this very point when you hit play, right? You don’t want to hear about all my experience and credentials and me, me, me, me, me, all about me. No, you don’t really care about that. That’s not the problem that you want some insight on. You also don’t want an intro where it just goes on and on, explaining what the show is about. Because if you actually like this show and you come back every single time as a frequent listener, it just gets a little repetitive. 

And like that client I was talking about, they don’t want an intro that goes on for too long. And yet here I’ll also add a caveat. There is a difference between a show intro and an episode intro. We’re talking about how you actually start the episode. When someone hits play, what do they hear? So I want to show you that there is more than one way to start an episode. And it doesn’t have to include your show intro or your episode intro either. 

[MUSIC ENDS]

So let’s start with some quick differences. Your show intro versus an episode intro. I hear that a lot. They’re like, oh, what’s the difference? It’s just the beginning, right? Well, your show intro, this is your high level introduction, doesn’t mean that you need to explain everything at this point, right? I’ve heard shows where the intro goes on for like way over two minutes. And this is just talking about what your show is about. We haven’t even got to the specifics of what the episode is going to be on. So that’s a lot of time. 

And in this case, that is actually what I would call a trailer. If you’ve written something and you’re like, this is what I want to put as my intro, start thinking about how you can repurpose that and actually use it for a trailer. Places like Spotify, they actually highlight your trailer. Or you can actually make it so that when someone’s new, you can have a start here and the trailer is something that you want them to start listening to first, just, just to get a feel for what your show is going to be about, right? So a trailer is not your show intro. 

Show level intros can be quick and to the point. This is where people are like, I just want to get to the good stuff, okay? You can add to your show level intro your name and maybe a one line of who you are in relation to the podcast listener. I’m not talking about your job title or, you know, your resume, right? This is just how you’re connected to the podcast listener. If you care to. Some people just say, and I’m your host, Mary Chan, right? You can just leave it at that. You definitely want to have your podcast name the name of your entire show. So in my case, the Podcaster’s Guide to a Visible Voice. 

Another thing that you want to have in there. And this is like, if you’ve got the time for it, maybe a quick line about what the show is about or who it’s for. If the title of the show is a bit more generic, this is kind of like a subhead in writing. So I’m not really talking about a slogan or a tagline, but a more short, memorable phrase that is underneath the main title, your podcast show name. So you see this in books a lot. So for example, Simon Sinek, popular business thought leader, personal development space, he has a book called Start With Why. That is the title, much like your podcast showname. The subhead of Start With Why is, How Great Leaders Inspire Action. Great leaders is who the book is for. So who your podcast is for, right? And Inspire action is what you’ll get out of the book so you can create your own How Great Leaders Inspire Action. Sort of a subhead for your podcast show name. 

Another thing that you can do with your show level intro is to make sure that it’s generic enough because you’re going to use this intro each and every episode, whether that is something you’ve pre-produced, that you create and you just drop into the intro, or it’s something that you say each and every time, like I do with my show. Ideally, your show level intro will also be 30 seconds or less. 

Planet Money from NPR actually does this very well. It starts with a coin spinning. It’s a little sound effect that they have and then the announcer saying, this is Planet Money from NPR. And then a quick musical hit and it ends with the coin spinning and stopping. This all encompasses 5 seconds and it doesn’t even have like, a long intro theme music. This is just five seconds telling you what the show is, the name of the show, and then the show starts. 

[INTRO FOR PLANET MONEY START – COIN SPINNING SOUND AND WOMEN’S VOICE SAYS: “This is Planet Money From NPR”. QUICK MUSIC HIT AND COIN SPINNING SOUNDS STOPS.]

So, all of these points that I’ve just listed, your podcast name, the name of the host, the quick line with the subhead being generic enough, being less than 30 seconds, these items, it doesn’t mean you have to use them all or even start your show like Planet Money does, but these are items that you can add to your show level intro. 

[THOUGHTFUL THINKING MARIMBA MUSIC STARTS]

Episode intros are very specific to that particular episode. So like for my show that’s what I use. I have a very episode specific intro. Before I do the show level intro, which is just me saying this is episode 110 on the podcaster’s Guide to a Visible Voice. That is essentially my show level intro that I repeat every time on my show. This is what the listener will expect. It’s nice to have some rhythm in their time of listening to the podcast so that they’ll know they’ll expect this each and every time they listen to your show. It creates listener expectation and it’s very, very intentional about the topic that you’re actually going to be talking about today. 

So an episode specific intro is important for the listener because these types of intros are placed at the front and are great for shows that want to be like a thought leader or authority in their industry. It’s about sharing your thoughts as a host in relation to the problem or challenge or theme that you’re going to be solving or having in this particular episode. And like I said in the beginning, if you landed here from a podcast search, you’re mainly looking for knowledge for your podcast, right? That’s why you’re going to listen to my show. You’re not going to come here because you want to be entertained, I mean, I try to entertain you too, [SOFT CHUCKLE] but that’s not the whole point. That’s not the whole goal, right? The number one thing is that I know a podcast listener will land on my show because they want to learn about podcasting and how to create a show or to make their show better. 

So these episode intros make my overall intro a little longer. And that was a bit of the caveat that I had in the beginning. They are a little longer, but I try to keep them between two and five minutes. Five minutes usually being the max. They are usually round two. I think that’s my plan at least. And this is part of the show mapping and this is something that I’ve mentioned before in episode 105. So go listen to that one if you need a primer on show mapping and what kind of format that you want to place for your show. 

[MUSIC ENDS]

Okay, so I mentioned how episode specific intros can be at the start of your episode, which is great for thought leader type shows, authority in your space, things like that. But what if your podcast isn’t for that, right? Like, how do you choose what to do for your intro? Most people just think, okay, I’m just gonna create something that has music starts, I say the name of the show, my name, music fades, show begins. That can work. That totally can too. But just because everybody else does it doesn’t mean you have to do it that way. 

So first off, you want to know what is the goal of your podcast? If you’re looking to grow your network, you might want to do something like a chatcast where you just interview people. All interview, no big intro, just start with the guest. If you’re looking to entertain, then perhaps a conversational or a funny clip needs to be at the start to grab attention. But again, you want to entertain, so you really have to be specific about the clip that you choose. If you’re wanting to build connections with your audience, maybe you want to add a listener question off the top, or maybe this is where you plant some offerings about things that you can grab some freebies as a listener or what have you. 

So start with your goal in mind and then layer in your ideal listener. This is the next step. Again, I talk about your ideal listener in depth, episode 15. So go back and listen to that one if you haven’t yet. What kind of show do you want to create for your ideal listener? You might ask yourself, how do they want to start with you each and every episode? So you gotta imagine your ideal listener is with you. They are going to hit play, they are already listening to your show. They don’t need to hear a whole explanation each and every time, right? 

But then if you also think about new listeners, how they can eventually become a superfan, they probably already liked something about your show and they’ve already made the very conscious decision to press play. Like, there’s a lot of layers of friction before someone ever presses play on your episode. So give them what they want already at this point, right? 

So now that I’ve given you all these elements, start thinking about how you want to start your show and how your listener will be there with you in that space. What elements work for your podcasting goals and how does it work with your ideal listener? What do you want to change? If you already have an existing show, what are the things that you might want to tweak? And if you are a new podcaster, what do you want to do and try and just start with something, right? You know what? For any podcaster, remember, it is your show, so you can change things down the road. It’s a great testing ground. Each episode is an experiment and it gives you a chance to play with ideas and see what works for you and your listeners. 

So let this be a little playing field for you. Test things out and let me know if you are on this path for a new or improved podcast intro. What’s working for you? What would you like to adjust? You can always drop me a line. Voice notes are always welcome. You can record one on my website, VisibleVoicePodcast.com, there is a purple send voicemail button there, or email is handy as well. VisibleVoicePodcast@gmail.com.

[ENERGETIC RHYTHMIC MUSIC STARTS]

On the next episode, I want you to be thinking more about this production of your show, like how to produce a show. Creating intros is just one part of that. So I want to expand more on this idea of producing your show. So next time I’m gonna have a conversation with Emma Krebs. Emma is a podcast producer whose work spans the creator economy. So she’s very passionate about helping others build sustainable, behind the scenes careers in the podcast industry. 

So with this conversation, you’re really going to get to understand behind the scenes part of creating that show and actually what it takes to create a show for that content creator economy. You know, what does a producer actually do? What does that actually mean? A producer can elicit so many different thoughts. So, we’ll talk about that. And what is it that a producer can help with your show? So I’ll talk to you then on the next episode.

[ENERGETIC RHYTHMIC MUSIC ENDS // OUTRO MUSIC IN – SHOW CLOSE]

<< GHOSTHOOD FEATURING SARA AZRIEL “LET’S GO” BEGINS >>

MARY: Thank you so much for listening to the Podcaster’s Guide to a Visible Voice. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d love it if you shared it with a podcasting friend. And to reveal more voicing and podcasting tips, click on over to visiblevoicepodcast.com.

<< WOMAN SINGS: Let’s go >>

[MUSIC ENDS]