After all the time and effort you put into your podcast, it’s understandable that you’d love to see all of the positive reviews from our listeners. You can’t deny that reading these reviews helps a lot when it comes to planning and creating future episodes.
Reviews are also a great way to market your podcast and show other potential listeners what they’re missing out on! Most people read the reviews and use it to help them determine whether or not they will listen to your podcast. So, how can you persuade more listeners to leave a review? Let’s dive into a few key strategies to help you up your review game, stat!
Ask Listeners
Your listeners are truly your biggest fan base and the most captivated audience that you have at hand. Asking them for help is nothing short of asking them to help share something that they already love and want others to enjoy as well. However, most often people need that call to action to actually go out and do something. That’s why it is absolutely critical to ask your listeners during your episodes, or even at the end, to leave a review.
Sometimes your listeners just need a reminder that they are welcome to leave a review. There’s no need for a long conversation; it can be a short message during or at the end, where you thank them for their support and ask that they review the episode so you can improve their listening experience. You can also just ask that they might share your podcast with their friends and family. These simple steps can help strengthen your podcast and beef up your review base.
Run a Giveaway
Running a giveaway can be a great way to increase engagement and specifically get your listeners to take the step to leave a review. This especially helpful to boost the number of reviews in a short period of time. With the giveaway, it is important to offer a prize that appeals to your specific listener. Something that is enticing, and just too good to pass up! This way they are sure to follow the steps to enter, which obviously includes writing a meaningful review.
Announcing the giveaway is easy: you simply tell your listeners during your podcast episode (and on social media) that you are launching a giveaway to get one or a few lucky winners a wonderful prize! All they have to do to be entered in the giveaway is to leave a review on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or whichever service they use. Then, select the best reviews to receive the prize! Remember to give your listeners a few days to enter the giveaway, adding in a timeframe to help create a sense of urgency for them to enter. By the end of the giveaway, your listeners will have had some fun, and your reviews are sure to have seen a big boost!
Newsletter
If you currently have a newsletter that goes out to your podcast listeners, this is a great place to add another call to action. Since you already have the attention of these listeners, give them a quick reminder to please leave a review if they haven’t done so yet. This consistent reminder can help ensure that you don’t miss any new subscribers and that you remind long-time listeners if they have not yet gotten around to popping in a review.
Another great way to encourage listeners to leave a review is to add in a small area in your newsletter specifically dedicated to highlighting the best reviews of that week or month. There’s no need to make an entire article about the reviews, but showing your listeners that you do read and appreciate their thoughts will help them to feel more involved and part of the community.
Give a Shoutout
Shoutouts on your podcast are a great way to give those listeners some recognition for going the extra mile and leaving a review for your show on either Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or Stitcher. This could be a small section in your episode, devoted to the reading and replying to the reviews of the past week or month. In this segment, you can then add in another call to action to encourage other listeners to hop over and leave a review as well.
Remember, naming each and every listener by name and giving them a personal thank you from you is such an incredible way to build an even better connection with your audience. How often you add this section into your episodes is completely up to you. if you have a weekly posting schedule then it won’t be that hard adding a short section at the end of each week’s episode to the best reviews of the past week.
Add a Direct Link
Often times, the easier you make it for people the more likely they are to take the call to action. After each episode when you’re adding the show notes you should remember to add a link that will take your listeners directly to the area where they can leave a review for your podcast. remember to give them all of the options because listeners today have tons of different preferences, such as Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and more!
Adding a direct link goes for every piece of content that you put out. This includes your blog posts or show notes and any social media posts that you publish. Again, this makes it even easier for your listeners to click directly on the link and be taken to the exact place where they can leave their review.
Ask Guests
When it comes to getting things done for your podcast, the one resource you should never overlook is your podcast guest. Each and every guest that comes on the show also comes with their own listener base. A simple ask for them to remind their audience to check out the show AND leave a review for the podcast after they’ve listened is a great way to boost those reviews and get your podcast noticed.
Not only should you tap into their audience, but also ask them for their personal review as well. After all, the more reviews and listeners your page receives, the more listeners and exposure your guest will receive in return. You can return the favor by leaving a review on their podcast as well. No one succeeds alone, so support each other on this podcasting journey and we will all go further!
Featured Image Credit: Norbert Levajsics
