I’m convinced that most podcasters are picturing Bob Ross in their head as they plan out their own live podcasting event. But no one wants that.

First, you’re not Bob Ross. And second, the final painting isn’t what was interesting about The Joy of Painting. It was the process of painting.

If the process of making an episode of your podcast is more fascinating than the actual produced episode… well then.

We shouldn’t draw too much from the live taping of TV shows. Why? Because people are watching the taping of a program designed to be consumed live or as if it were live. People who watch at home have almost the exact same experience as someone who's watching live. Sure, the live audience gets to see the set breakdowns and such during the commercial breaks, but beyond that, it’s largely the same experience from the audience perspective. 

Recently, I attended a live local podcast event put on by Kanu, the host of Real Love Real Stories. And I’ve just returned from SiglerFest 2K19, an event put on by long-time podcaster Scott Sigler. Both events were fantastic. And they were so much more than just a live taping of a podcast episode. Later on this month, BSP: Believer Skeptic Podcast is doing another live event right here in Phoenix, and I'm hopeful they do the exact same thing. In a few months, Helen Zaltzman will be here with a live event for her podcast, The Allusionist. Prior to that, I’m really considering driving over to L.A. to watch the Skeptical Extravaganza by Skeptics Guide To The Universe and George Hrab. 

It’s critical to understand that these events work because they are something more than just a live taping of a podcast. That's boring. That's really boring, and I apologize for all the times I’ve done that in the past. No wonder so few people (if any) ever showed up. 

The best way to put on a live event for your podcast is to capitalize on what you’ve built with the podcast and then build out an amazing event around that.

So all of this week, I'll be talking about things you can do with your podcast that are not podcasts or just the lazy repurposing of your content or your processes. Instead, these ideas will be of value to your current listeners and might actually bring in new people.

Have you put on or attended a great live podcasting event? Tell me about it in the comments here. Or you can go to Flick.group/podcastpontifications and start the conversation over there.

If you wish to keep the show going (because you notice we don't want ads in this program) go to BuyMeACoffee.com/evoterra and sign up to buy me a coffee, either once or every month.

And if you are in business and you need people on your side who can help you think through your strategic podcasting challenges, that's what we do at Simpler Media Productions. Please get in touch: evo@podcastlaunch.pro. 

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Podcast Pontifications is published by Evo Terra four times a week and is aimed at the...