Ciara James: 5 Things You Need To Know To Create A Very Successful Podcast

Know your target audience and how to reach them. Creating and distributing your podcast is just the first step. The goal is to have as many listeners that will also subscribe to your podcast and if you don’t know who your target audience is, it will make it very difficult to for your podcast to be seen and get the necessary downloads.

As part of my series of interviews about “5 things you need to know to create a very successful podcast”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Ciara James.Ciara James is the host and producer of Taboo: The Stories of Caribbean Women. Ciara has been podcasting for a few years and uses her platform as a podcaster to engage, empower and educate her listeners by sharing stories of purpose, passion, and struggle.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would love to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit of your “personal backstory? What is your background and what eventually brought you to this particular career path?

I am the founder and CEO of an educational business that provides virtual, interactive, personalised one-on-one tutoring to students of all ages. When people think of education they most often think of formal education, i.e. sitting in a class and receiving instruction from a teacher or a tutor. The fact is that there are different types of education. A few years ago, I was getting divorced and there was no educational outlet, or group from people who looked like or sounded like me, to help me navigate through that difficult time. As an educator I wanted to help solve that problem by providing that type of education, informal education, where specifically Caribbean women could learn through the experiences of other Caribbean women. This is the reason that I started my podcast Taboo: The Stories of Caribbean Women.

Can you share a story about the most interesting thing that has happened to you since you started podcasting?

The most interesting thing that has happened to me since I started the podcast was when a stranger randomly came up to me, told me that she heard my story via my podcast, and how much it changed her life. I was blown away that someone’s life was actually positively affected by me sharing such a personal story about my life experience. It definitely gave me the validation I needed that my podcast was important and that it was serving its purpose.

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

I was so excited to record my first episode that I did not test the volume on my mic. The levels were extremely unbalanced and it resulted in me having to re-record that entire episode. Now I always ensure that I do a mic check before hitting the record button.

How long have you been podcasting and how many shows have you aired?

To date, Taboo is currently in its 3rd season. We’ve aired two successful seasons, each with 8 episodes, since February 2022.

What are the main takeaways, lessons or messages that you want your listeners to walk away with after listening to your show?

I want my listeners to feel that: they are seen, they’re not alone in whatever obstacles they may currently be facing in life and, just like our guests who have been in similar situations they too can get through it. Most importantly I want my listeners to know that it’s okay to speak up about difficult situations instead of choosing to suffer in silence and that a safe, non-judgemental space can be found in Taboo: The Stories of Caribbean Women.

In your opinion what makes your podcast binge-listenable? What do you think makes your podcast unique from the others in your category? What do you think is special about you as a host, your guests, or your content?

In the Caribbean, women tend not to speak publicly about their life experiences, especially when they’re not so positive. It is very taboo to speak about things like divorce, death, infidelity, infertility, cancer, being queer, practicing polygamy just to name a few. I wanted to provide a space where Caribbean women could speak freely and publicly, in the hopes that doing so will help other Caribbean women who may be in a similar situation. This podcast is the first of its kind and the stories shared are authentic, vulnerable and relatable; that’s what makes it binge-listenable.

Doing something on a consistent basis is not easy. Podcasting every work-day, or even every week can be monotonous. What would you recommend to others about how to maintain discipline and consistency? What would you recommend to others about how to avoid burnout?

Being the CEO of an educational business is very time consuming, so adding a podcast into the mix requires a lot of planning and time management skills. I knew that consistency and authenticity were my top priorities, and decided that having 3 seasons per year, with an average of 8 episodes per season is best for me. All episodes are pre-recorded usually within 2 weeks, so that recording isn’t monotonous or a chore. As a host I really want to be immersed in my guests’ stories and that means ensuring that recording is scheduled during a period when it is less hectic and I can really connect with my guests mentally and emotionally. Working in this way is best for me and avoids burnout.

What resources do you get your inspiration for materials from?

I get my inspiration from life, a bit of social media and sometimes even tv shows or movies. For example, a few months ago I was watching a TV show about people practicing polygamy, which piqued my interest in finding a Caribbean woman, practicing the same, who would be willing to share their story on my podcast…and then I made it happen.

Ok fantastic. Let’s now shift to the main questions of our discussion. Is there someone in the podcasting world who you think is a great model for how to run a really fantastic podcast? What are the ingredients that make that podcast so successful?

I believe that authenticity and relatability are key elements that help make some of the best podcasts. In terms of someone who is a great model to run a fantastic podcast, I think that is subjective. Based on my preferences for podcasts, Armchair Expert with Dax Sheppard and Dead Ass by Khadeen & Devale Ellis would be examples of successful, entertaining and binge-listenable podcasts that are both authentic and relatable.

You are a very successful podcaster yourself. Can you share with our readers the five things you need to know to create an extremely successful podcast? (Please share a story or example for each, if you can.)

Five things that you need to do to create a successful podcast, in my opinion are to:

1. Invest in a good microphone because sound quality is very important for a podcast. If you can only afford one professional type of equipment, make sure it’s your microphone

2. Do your research. This may be daunting but it is a necessary step. For example, what platform are you going to choose to host and distribute your podcast? Does this platform have all the features you require? Is the price within your budget? Is this platform the best for your type of podcast? Will you be using this platform to monetise your podcast?

3. Identify, in advance, the average number of episodes you plan to have per season, how often these episodes will be released and how many seasons you plan to have per year.

4. Know your target audience and how to reach them. Creating and distributing your podcast is just the first step. The goal is to have as many listeners that will also subscribe to your podcast and if you don’t know who your target audience is, it will make it very difficult to for your podcast to be seen and get the necessary downloads.

5. Advertise. There are so many podcasts that are available. Advertising helps you to drive your target audience to your podcast.

Can you share some insight from your experience about the best ways to: 1) book great guests; 2) increase listeners; 3) produce it in a professional way; 4) encourage engagement; and 5) the best way to monetize it? (Please share a story or example for each, if you can.)

The best way to:

• Book great guests is to just ask them, either via direct message, phone, or email depending on the relationship that you may already have. The worst case scenario is that they say no, and then you just repeat the process. Increase listeners is to promote and advertise your podcast via social media or other channels. Additionally, having a call to action button that drives potential listeners to your podcast is a great tool.

• Produce a very professional podcast is subjective in my opinion. Personally, I currently use the platform Riverside.fm to record my episodes and then I send my recordings to my editor, who is my cousin, to fine tune the episode, putting in my intro and outro. Platforms like Riverside.fm do give you the option to do all of those things on their website, but I prefer to use an editor. Once again, I will always endorse investing in a microphone for great sound quality.

• Encourage engagement is to know your target audience and what they’re interested in hearing. Once again, advertising along with a call to action button also helps to increase engagement.

• Monetise your platform is to reach out to companies or influencers, who are not only aligned with the purpose of your podcast but also regularly engage with your target audience. In exchange you can agree to play advertisements supporting their company or brand either at the beginning, middle or end of your podcast.

For someone looking to start their own podcast, which equipment would you recommend that they start with?

If you’re ready to create your own podcast, start with a pair of headphones, a laptop and invest in a great microphone. Do not underestimate how important sound quality is for a podcast.

Ok. We are almost done. :-) Because of your position and work, you are a person of enormous influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the greatest amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

The Respect Our Women movement, need I say more.

How can our readers follow you online?

Readers can follow me @storiesofcaribbeanwomen

Thank you so much for sharing your time and your excellent insights! We wish you continued success.