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Don’t Be Caged By Your Age: Why Podcasting Is Powerful After 50 (and Beyond) · Abbey the Podcast Lady

0:05
Hello, and welcome to another episode of Abby
0:08
the Podcast Lady. I'm so excited that you're
0:10
joining me today. We have another special guest
0:12
courtesy of the Podmatch service, and this is
0:15
one I have had on the calendar for a few weeks
0:18
now, and I've really been looking forward to.
0:20
Please welcome to the show, Andi Lyons. Oh my
0:23
gosh, Abby. I am so delighted to be here, and
0:26
I'm waving madly to all the listeners from Boston.
0:31
My husband went there last summer or summer before
0:34
with... his cousin for a work trip, and he had
0:37
the time of his life out there. We're wicked
0:40
fun out here. I love when the Boston accent just
0:43
sneaks in there. Well, Andy, I am super excited
0:45
to have you on the show and chat more about podcasting
0:48
in your later years of life, because this isn't
0:51
just a young person's game. It doesn't have to
0:54
be just for the 20 -year -old bros on a couch
0:56
in a garage. Podcasting is for everyone at every
1:00
age, and I love that you shine a spotlight on
1:02
that. So give me a little bit of your background
1:04
and how you got into podcasting. Oh my gosh.
1:07
Well, first of all, thank you so much for having
1:09
me on your podcast. And I am a huge fan of podcasting.
1:13
I think it's one of the best ways to connect
1:15
and learn more at any age. So I am a four times
1:19
founder. I've been unemployable since 92. And
1:22
so one of my businesses in 2012, I decided to
1:27
support it, create more of a brand awareness
1:30
with this thing called podcasting. And so how
1:33
old was I then? Maybe 56, 57, 58, I think. Anyway,
1:37
50s, right? And so I figured out how to have
1:41
my first podcast. And I'll be honest with you.
1:44
I had a producer. I was so nervous. And that's
1:47
probably just because I came from the generation
1:49
where, you know, you did anything, you were worried
1:53
about how everything was perceived. Today, there's
1:55
so much more flexibility. You get so much. more
1:58
casual, more improv, right? But in those days,
2:01
perfection was still ruling the day. So for the
2:05
first 52 weeks, and I had two guests on per show.
2:08
So we had to bring on board one and then another.
2:11
Wow. In the hour long. But by the end of that
2:14
52 weeks, I was like, I'm good. And I went on
2:17
to blog talk radio. Then where I am today with
2:21
Don't Be Caged By Your Age, that was six podcasts
2:24
ago. So I've always used it as I transitioned
2:28
into different areas. So when I became a startup
2:32
founder mentor and started coaching startup founders
2:35
from around the world, I launched Startup Life
2:38
initially as a podcast. And again, I did it because
2:41
the fastest way to build a new brand awareness,
2:45
to enter a new industry, is to interview people
2:48
who are experts in that industry, right? And
2:51
then the podcast allows you not only to connect
2:54
with really cool people and have great conversations,
2:57
but it's social proof. And I say all of that,
3:00
Abby, because when people think about podcasts,
3:03
they often think about how many downloads, how
3:05
many listeners, how many... No, it has nothing
3:08
to do with that. It has everything to do with
3:11
that human voice to human ear. It has everything
3:15
to do with what you're going to learn. So let's
3:17
say you decide to become a consultant in a new
3:20
industry or enter a new industry. You start quickly
3:22
interviewing those experts who will always say
3:24
yes for an interview on a podcast, right? And
3:28
then you are getting what we call just -in -time
3:31
learning. So you take what they say. So as I
3:34
was interviewing all these amazing tech founders,
3:36
right, I was upping my game so I could help my
3:38
clients with all of their things. That's been
3:41
my journey. And here I am 69 and feeling mighty
3:45
fine on my sixth podcast. But more importantly,
3:48
I see it for folks who are coming in to the idea
3:51
of podcasting as really a way to enrich their
3:55
life, to connect with people they may not have
3:58
ever connected with before. And it's a creative
4:01
outlet that is so important. For some people,
4:04
we might use the H word, hobby, but it's so much
4:08
more than that. It's if you were to take up watercolor
4:10
and create art and hang it in a gallery. It's
4:13
that level of endeavor, but it suits so many
4:17
different needs. And hobby can be taken as, lately,
4:21
I spend a lot of time on the internet and I'm
4:22
in different corners of it all the time, but
4:24
hobby is sometimes used with like a negative
4:26
connotation. And I don't think that there's anything
4:29
negative about having a hobby if it's building
4:32
connection, if it's enriching your life. on this
4:36
planet. Have that hobby, make those friends,
4:38
do that thing that sets your soul on fire because
4:41
that's what life is meant for. It really is.
4:44
And it's a way to be fully expressed. And you
4:47
were mentioning the fear that folks can have
4:50
in launching, right? Yes. And it's like anything,
4:53
you have to give yourself so much grace when
4:55
you start. Just tell yourself, look, I'm going
4:58
to do 10 episodes, no matter what, I'm going
5:01
to do 10. And just be the observer. okay, what
5:04
did I learn about everything in my first episode?
5:07
How do, oh, I blew that in an interview. I'd
5:10
like to do that better. Or, oh my God, I managed
5:12
the technology poorly there. And instead of beating
5:15
yourself up, go, oh, I'm learning to walk. That's
5:18
all it is. I'm just learning. Yeah, that's a
5:20
beautiful way to look at it. I have a couple
5:22
of clients that I do production work for that
5:24
are coming up on their one year anniversary of
5:27
their shows. They launched within a week of each
5:29
other and that's coming up here in early February.
5:32
I just had a recording session with both of them
5:34
this week. It was so fun because we were looking
5:37
back on how far everyone has come in a year.
5:40
They're like, we can't go back and listen to
5:41
those first episodes because we just cringe.
5:44
I'm like, I'm so glad you're saying that because
5:46
I want you to cringe listening to those first
5:48
episodes because that shows how much you've grown
5:50
as a podcaster, how much your skills have come
5:53
such a long way. I love that you're having that
5:56
growth and we can look back but not have to listen
5:59
back. And it's so important. So you have to be
6:01
very gentle with yourself and remember that you
6:03
are a student grasshopper. Yes, for sure. So
6:08
your niche right now is people later in life,
6:11
podcasting and just the aging process in general
6:14
and just not letting your age stop you from doing
6:18
cool things and having new experiences. How did
6:21
you decide to go all in on that with your own
6:23
show? Thank you for asking. So I had been a startup
6:26
mentor for many years. I even had a monthly pitch
6:28
event here in Boston for founders. And I just
6:32
came to a completion with that. But what really
6:35
drove me to start Don't Be Caged By Your Age
6:38
was that I'm in with all these wonderful tech
6:42
founders, startup founders of all walks of life.
6:44
And I knew. I could be their grandmother. I mean,
6:48
really, I was early 60s at that point. And I
6:50
would hear well -meaning advice telling folks,
6:53
explain your business as if you were telling
6:56
your grandmother. And I would jump up or try
6:59
to not jump up, but inside I would jump to my
7:02
feet. What do you mean? And I felt that. My generation
7:06
was being dumbed down when, in fact, we are not
7:09
tech challenged. We're tech legends. We are part
7:13
of founding the entire tech industry in the 70s.
7:17
People went from slide rulers to calculators,
7:20
from manual typewriters to computers, from vinyl
7:23
to live streaming. And we had to teach everybody
7:26
along the way how to do all of these things.
7:28
So we have learned more about technology and
7:31
can understand it better than any other generation
7:33
because of how fluid we've had. to be. I mean,
7:36
printers for crying out loud and copiers. We
7:39
went from not knowing that even being invented
7:42
yet to learning them and teaching them and growing
7:44
with them. So that was my first thing. Second
7:47
was, I did get a little upset that it was always
7:49
grandma and not grandpa. I know. Why were we
7:51
leaving grandpa out in this conversation? Gendered
7:54
ageism. But then I realized I had this real fear
7:56
inside of me to not let people know how old I
8:00
was because would they respect me? knowing I
8:03
was that old. And so I finally, when I turned
8:05
66, I got the US Route 66 sign, and I held it
8:10
up in front of myself, took a photo, and I wrote
8:12
a post on LinkedIn called Don't Be Caged by Your
8:15
Age. And I talked about ageism in the startup
8:17
ecosystem, gendered ageism, especially in the
8:21
tech industry, and a lot of other factors, especially
8:24
for women about... being afraid to say their
8:27
age out loud and proud and all the decades of
8:31
lived experiences that we bring at this age.
8:34
And the post went viral. And I learned so much
8:38
from all the comments. People who were just...
8:41
so discouraged by how hard it was to get a job
8:43
to folks who had figured out some amazing things
8:46
and were thriving after 65. And Abby, I really
8:49
had to check my own bias when a 91 year old said,
8:51
yeah, I just started this business and it's my
8:54
sixth and I'm doing this. And I'm thinking, what
8:56
the heck are you doing on LinkedIn at 91? I mean,
8:59
I had to hit myself upside the age. And so I
9:03
saw a need and I thought I would love to be part
9:06
of this pro -aging community where I put it right
9:09
out there. all the time, 69 Feeling Mighty Fine,
9:12
where I interview folks who are over 65, who
9:15
are visible, viable, connected, engaged, and
9:20
their wisdom is being sprinkled out in ways that
9:24
are meaningful for them. But more importantly,
9:27
by taking this representation through these interviews,
9:31
being able to show others. how to fuel their
9:34
passion, their purpose, and their pocketbook
9:37
at this age and stage. We've been so indoctrinated
9:41
that when the clock strikes midnight at 65, we're
9:46
done with you. And a lot of corporations are
9:49
really thinking 55, as if ambition and purpose
9:52
die at that age. And that's society indoctrination.
9:57
That is Hollywood. I just saw, I watched something
10:00
the other day, and they said this guy who died
10:02
was 54. He looked 75. I'm sure he was 75, but
10:07
they gave him 54. You have that constant skewing
10:10
of anybody being older than 50 being permafrost
10:14
and not necessary. Yeah, that is something that
10:17
I didn't realize was a thing. I'm only 30. I
10:20
still think I'm 16 sometimes. But one of my best
10:23
friends is in her 50s and we were kind of job
10:26
searching at the same time and applying to things.
10:29
And she's like, well, you're going to get so
10:31
many more interviews than I will because I'm
10:34
in my 50s and they don't want me anymore. And
10:36
I'm like, but you have 20 more years of experience.
10:38
You're the expert at this. You're so good. At
10:41
all these skills that we have, you're a master
10:44
of everything you touch. Why would they not want
10:46
you? And they're like, because I'm 50. I'm like,
10:48
that's the dumbest thing I've ever heard. Here's
10:51
what corporations are quickly learning is that
10:55
the experiences you've had by the time you're
10:58
55, 60, 65, you've been through several down
11:02
markets. You've learned how to onboard customers
11:05
in the worst economic conditions, wars, everything.
11:09
You've been through it. You know crisis management.
11:12
The 30s and 40 -year -olds are going through
11:14
it for the first time. They have no one there
11:16
to help regulate their nervous system and just
11:19
say, take a deep breath. Here's how we're going
11:21
to get through this. And when you have intergenerational
11:25
employees, it is proven again and again by the
11:28
data that you're a more profitable company, not
11:32
just a revenue, profitable because you've got
11:36
the experience of folks who understand systems
11:39
and procedures. You just have to watch the movie,
11:41
The Intern with Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway
11:44
to see what I'm talking about. This is what I
11:47
get very excited about is the intergenerational
11:50
experience, Abby. Those of us who are older have
11:55
to be okay being the oldest person in the room,
11:57
walking in with that confidence. And as more
12:00
younger generations see us viable, et cetera,
12:04
I'll tell you, The most common feedback I get
12:06
from my podcast are from younger folks going,
12:09
I had no idea the 60s, 70s, and 80s could be
12:12
so vibrant, viable. Everybody says how happy
12:15
they are. I am so excited. It's a whole different
12:18
frame up. For podcasting, Abby, I want your listeners
12:22
to know I entered the pro -aging field. I knew
12:24
nothing. I knew nobody. I didn't know who any
12:26
of the players were. So I specifically set about
12:29
in the first six months of the podcast to make
12:32
sure I interviewed well -known folks in the industries
12:36
who've written books, who write for Forbes or...
12:40
for larger magazines who are known as thought
12:44
leaders. Nine months into the podcast, I was
12:48
grouped in with four of the top thought leaders.
12:52
That's amazing. And that's how podcasting can
12:55
work for you. You might want to pick up a phone
12:57
to talk to somebody you're not going to get through.
13:00
But if you let people know you're going to be
13:02
interviewing them, they're going to say, okay,
13:04
this is going to help with my visibility. Say
13:06
yes. Yeah. You get all the knowledge and all
13:09
the wisdom they have to share. They get the added
13:11
value of getting something that they can share
13:13
when this goes live. Like it's a beautiful relationship
13:16
that happens in podcasting and I see it. day
13:19
in and day out. And I live for it. This is just
13:22
one of my favorite things. So to answer your
13:24
question, the funny about why don't be caged
13:26
by your age, the bottom line is a lot of people
13:29
are addressing the workforce issues, right? And
13:31
others are addressing society's ageism issue.
13:34
I want to just specifically showcase and spotlight
13:37
folks who have figured it out. That's my lane.
13:40
And that's another thing we need to do as podcasters
13:43
is to really understand what lane do we want
13:45
to be in. You're in podcasting for newbies, especially.
13:49
It's a beautiful lane to be in. And so that makes
13:52
it a lot of fun. Yeah, it does. I want to circle
13:55
back to something you had mentioned a few minutes
13:57
ago, and that is people being confident in the
14:00
age that they are. I feel like this isn't just
14:03
a problem for the older generation, but I feel
14:05
like my generation sometimes struggles with that
14:07
too. have been seeing so many, especially with
14:10
the turn of the new year posts about like 1996
14:12
babies, it's your turn to turn 30. And everyone's
14:15
like running from the fire. And it's like, but
14:17
maybe we should be proud that we're moving into
14:19
a new decade. Like what if we reframe it that
14:21
way? So what advice would you have for people
14:23
who are maybe a little self -conscious about
14:26
their age that they are? What can they do to
14:28
boost that confidence and just really own it?
14:30
Oh my gosh, it gets so much better as you get
14:32
older. It really does. Wait till you hit 40.
14:36
That is when you have a big realization. Wait,
14:39
last 20 years, I've been playing this game by
14:41
other people's rules. That's not, I'm not doing
14:44
that going forward. I mean, seriously, you get
14:46
more confident. You get more that feeling of
14:50
self -esteem and worthiness. You have shed a
14:53
lot of society's expectation. It just gets better
14:57
and better. And because it's not about how you
15:01
look, it's about how you be in the world. It
15:04
just becomes. a better experience. And I was
15:07
out to dinner a year ago with a group of folks
15:10
that I'd met at a conference. And a gentleman
15:13
was going around the room asking us all about
15:15
where we're from, what we're doing, blah, blah,
15:17
blah. And he turned to my friend to the right
15:19
of me and said, okay, young lady, how about you?
15:22
And I went, I have to put a pause here, everybody.
15:26
I know that was well -meaning, John, but here's
15:29
the scoop. Julie is 55. She has decades of lived
15:33
experiences, hard earned life education, as well
15:38
as professional education and academic education.
15:41
Young Lady is reserved for 15 year olds to 25,
15:46
28 year olds. You can call her goddess, queen,
15:50
Julie, your highness, but Young Lady, no. And
15:53
I know you're well -meaning, but it belittles
15:56
and devalues. who she is when we use that language.
16:00
And especially if you like flip it around and
16:02
if it was a man of the same age, you wouldn't
16:04
go, well, young man, what have you been up to
16:06
lately? But yeah, so I encourage everybody to
16:09
understand and truly know this. The 20s are really
16:13
hard. 30s, you know, you're still exploring who
16:16
you are. You're still figuring things out. So
16:19
each decade, it honestly gets easier. Yes, you're
16:22
adulting more, right? And you're taking on more
16:24
responsibilities, but you've gone through more
16:28
and more things that have built up your resistance,
16:31
your ability to navigate situations, your understanding
16:35
of life. It just gets better. I am here to help
16:40
the younger generations embrace their aging instead
16:43
of trying to deny or defy or anti their aging.
16:49
I love that. I'm pulling that as a clip and we're
16:51
posting that all over the internet. That is fantastic.
16:55
So I would love to do kind of like a little case
16:57
study. Like I mentioned, I was talking to someone
17:00
just this morning in his 70s wanting to start
17:02
a podcast. He runs a coaching consulting business
17:05
and he's been kind of on the fence about it.
17:07
We've been chit -chatting about it for the past
17:09
couple of weeks and he's like, I'm really leaning
17:10
towards yes, but I still am just not sure. So
17:14
I guess if you were to give this man advice on
17:16
how to even get started in it, what's kind of
17:19
best practice, like what mindset he should have
17:21
going into it, I would love to hear your thoughts
17:23
on that. Well, first of all, I would ask, have
17:25
you been guesting on podcasts? So one of the
17:28
best ways to get warmed up to how this all works
17:31
is to be a guest. So I would encourage you, if
17:34
you haven't done this already, get on about 10
17:37
podcasts as a guest just to get. your understanding
17:42
as an observer, how this whole thing works. Watch
17:45
the host. Then start thinking about how do you
17:49
want to do a podcast? Do you want to do a solo
17:51
with those 10 -minute sessions where you're providing
17:54
your pearls of wisdom? But more importantly,
17:57
you're a businessman. You know that. When you
18:01
launch anything new, you have to have your why.
18:03
Why do you want to do this? Because it can get
18:06
hard and you're going to need that inspiration
18:08
of your why and the impact that you want to make.
18:11
So if you're a coach, who do you want to be coaching
18:15
to? Who are the listeners? So you do everything
18:18
you would do if you were launching a business.
18:20
First, your why, and then proving your value
18:22
proposition. Who am I going to be providing,
18:26
solving a problem, adding value to that is willing
18:29
to listen. And then also set your expectations
18:34
correctly. Don't be thinking about the downloads
18:37
ever. Thinking about the ripple effect you're
18:41
going to have. Think about how this is going
18:43
to expand and grow you as a human, right? But
18:46
more importantly, if you're going to be doing
18:47
guests, think about these conversations you're
18:50
going to have and the impact they're going to
18:53
have on someone's life. If you got 20 downloads,
18:55
you'd be in a room with 20 people. You know what
18:57
that looks like and what that feels like. But
19:00
finally, know yourself enough to know if you
19:03
can manage the technology around it. Are you
19:07
willing to, like Riverside makes it so easy.
19:09
And oh my gosh, Abby, since 2012, this is like.
19:13
breeze type of producing a podcast. 100%. So
19:18
there's plenty of people like Abby, you can hire
19:20
who will do everything for you and produce and
19:23
make your life so much easier. So then you're
19:26
going to go to the next step and say, okay, what
19:29
kind of conversations do I want to have? What
19:31
journey do I want to have on each episode? Think
19:33
about your story arc. right? On the journey,
19:36
even if it's just you for 10 minutes, or you're
19:39
going to interview someone 35, 40 minutes, what
19:42
journey do you want to take your listeners on?
19:44
So you're always thinking about your listeners,
19:46
but at the age of 70 plus. I want you to also
19:50
remember this is going to fulfill you. It's going
19:52
to fuel a passion and purpose that may also fuel
19:56
your pocketbook because many podcasters have
20:00
businesses and it's a wonderful funnel. It's
20:03
a wonderful marketing tool. It's a trifold. That's
20:07
from our day. That would come in the mail. Remember
20:09
that little flyer in the mail? That's what your
20:11
podcast does. It adds to social proof. everywhere
20:15
you glow, that you are viable, connected, out
20:20
there, making things happen, helping people.
20:23
And it reminds them so that when you do put out
20:25
an episode and you're sharing it, let's say on
20:28
LinkedIn, people go, look what he's doing. Oh
20:30
my gosh, I didn't know. And oh, look at who we
20:32
just interviewed. Or wow, that's great wisdom.
20:35
The onesies and twosies that you touch, the impact
20:38
is huge. And I bet you're going to. touch a guest
20:41
and make their life better. And maybe that guest
20:43
will go and share the episode and boom, someone
20:46
else's life is touched that you'll never know
20:48
about. How's that, Abby? That is amazing. We'll
20:51
cut that out. I'll just email that to him directly.
20:53
It'll be fine. And honestly, it's a lot of what...
20:56
I told him when we had a sit down conversation
20:58
before Christmas, I'm like, this is going to
21:01
impact people way beyond just whatever downloads
21:04
you get. Like, let's not worry about that. Let's
21:07
worry about how this positions you as an expert
21:09
because you are an expert. You've been doing
21:11
what you've been doing for years. You know what
21:13
you're doing. Let's get that knowledge out there
21:15
and share it with the world because you obviously
21:17
want to or you wouldn't be doing what you're
21:19
doing. So let's find a way to spread the word.
21:22
You can turn your podcast after so many episodes.
21:25
into a nice ebook. And there's so many ways to
21:28
monetize a podcast. But what I want to also share
21:31
with your listeners is this is the lowest overhead
21:33
creative output. you could ever have. We have
21:37
Riverside. I pay 25 bucks a month for Riverside.
21:41
I can do all my editing here, zhuzhs up the audio.
21:44
It doesn't matter how bad you and your guests
21:46
sound. They got that magic audio thing and boom,
21:48
we're at NPR level. Then you have Buzzsprout.
21:52
So depending how many hours a month, it can be
21:54
maybe $12 a month. One -time investment for your
21:57
mic. So do a good one, anywhere from 60 to $250.
22:00
But thinking about the monthly costs. So you've
22:03
got 25. For something like Riverside, you've
22:06
got another 12. For Buzzsprout, that's your hosting
22:10
platform that gets it out. And then Podpage,
22:12
I mean, you can set up a website in 10 minutes.
22:15
I actually want to talk to you about Podpage.
22:17
Love it. And so that is 15 bucks a month. I mean,
22:24
it's ridiculous. So for under 50 bucks, which
22:27
is what you're going to spend to go out and get
22:28
pizza and something, you have an ability to have
22:32
a creative outlet and an impact. Okay, I would
22:34
throw $9 a month for Canva if you don't want
22:37
to do the free version. But that's really nothing.
22:40
It costs more to go do a round of golf, I imagine.
22:43
100%. I'm also a golfer. I know it costs way
22:45
more. So, you know, I'm telling folks, this is
22:48
the most budget friendly thing you could do.
22:50
Okay. Maybe you have to do a one -time investment
22:52
in your camera as well, but a webcam, but all
22:55
of that, and the return on your investment is
22:58
so huge. So that if you're saying, okay, for
23:01
$600 a year, I'm getting this kind of lift. And
23:04
if you're using it as a tool to increase brand
23:07
awareness, that is so inexpensive. for a marketing
23:11
budget. It can be as low entry as just starting
23:14
with your cell phone, which I love. I love because
23:16
everyone's got a smartphone. They don't even
23:18
support flip phones anymore. My dad knows because
23:20
he tried to keep his flip phone. They won't let
23:21
him. So you can start with just your cell phone.
23:24
It's great. Yeah. And you've got these great
23:26
little mics. I use them all the time that are
23:28
magnet right onto your shirt. You start talking,
23:30
you sound like a million bucks. Again, you're
23:33
off and running. The tools, trust me, are so
23:36
much easier 13 years later or 14 now. Oh my gosh.
23:40
Yeah. It's crazy. Because I went to college to
23:43
be a radio DJ. So that was like my career path.
23:46
I was a radio DJ for almost a decade before I
23:49
got into podcasting full time. And yeah, what
23:52
I learned in radio school of how to edit audio
23:55
and video, they don't even teach that anymore
23:57
because that's outdated. That's old news. Riverside
24:01
is a fabulous tool, especially for beginners.
24:03
I cannot recommend this service enough. To edit,
24:07
I've never seen anything like it. You just highlight
24:09
what you're taking out just like you would in
24:11
a Word document and it takes it out of the audio.
24:14
Okay, pod page before I forget because I was
24:16
poking around your website. I'm like, this is
24:18
a beautiful website. It is so well done. It is
24:21
so well organized. It is easy to navigate. I
24:25
love the details for all of your show notes and
24:27
it just looks and operates so well. And I scrolled
24:30
to the bottom of it and it said powered by pod
24:32
page. And I'm like, I have heard about that company
24:35
before, but I've never seen. it in action. So
24:37
tell me everything about pod page for my little
24:39
nerdy podcast brain. My gosh. So you sign up
24:43
with pod page, you get the URL for your podcast.
24:46
So it's don't be caged by your age .com. All
24:49
right. So you're not piggybacking on a pod page
24:53
.com backslash something. No, it's your URL.
24:55
And I pay, I think it's 18. Well, I can't remember
24:59
what I paid, but I think it might be the $18
25:00
a month version so that I can put in YouTube,
25:03
you know, a little extra judgy things. There's
25:06
several things that I love about it. You have
25:07
a guest intake form. And in that guest intake
25:10
form, there is a terms and conditions, which
25:13
you, they can just click off or they can click
25:15
on it and see what your terms and conditions
25:17
are. And these are very important if you have
25:19
guests. Because you will be using their face,
25:21
their likeness if you're doing video, their voice,
25:24
et cetera, around the world. And you need their
25:26
permission to do that. And so that's built in.
25:29
You can add questions, clarifying questions if
25:32
you want for the conversations. It makes it so
25:34
easy so that when you have a guest, they can
25:37
fill that form out. Everything's there so you
25:39
can build out your episode. Secondly, they have
25:43
reviews. So they can pull in reviews from Apple
25:45
or folks can do a review right there. on the
25:50
website. And here's a pro tip. When you thank
25:53
your guest with the final email that gives them
25:58
the links for the show and where they can share
26:00
the show, et cetera, ask them two things. One,
26:03
would they be willing to help expand the reach,
26:06
et cetera, of the podcast by providing a review,
26:10
either using on the website or somewhere else?
26:13
And I always ask them for a LinkedIn recommendation.
26:16
And I always give my guests, a LinkedIn recommendation.
26:20
I like that. That's a tip I've not yet heard
26:23
in all of my time podcasting. It's a great idea.
26:25
It's reciprocity. They carved out time to be
26:28
on your show. It's lovely to be able to give
26:30
them a lift. But also what I do is I don't just
26:33
ask them if they would be willing to give me
26:35
a LinkedIn recommendation. I say, tap this link
26:38
to see what others have said. so that they can
26:40
quickly see, well, what have others said? And
26:42
I'll just add this, right? Make it as easy as
26:45
possible for them. But PodPage, you get back
26:47
to PodPage, makes it very easy for them. Tap
26:49
the link, hit the five star, leave a comment,
26:52
they're done. They don't have to go on Apple,
26:54
Spotify, nowhere. The other thing I like about
26:57
it is how they showcase the guests. You can just
27:00
scroll down immediately. I had someone who came
27:03
on the show and he said, the reason I said yes
27:05
is I went through the guest list. I was like,
27:07
wow, she's had some of the heavy hitters. So
27:10
that's another, again, social proof. But the
27:13
best part is when I said it takes 10 to 15 minutes,
27:16
honestly, you choose like bringing either your
27:19
brand colors, you choose how you want your page
27:22
to look. They have several templates to choose
27:24
from. things just start populating and you just
27:27
put in your RSS feed, which is your hosting platforms
27:30
link for your podcast. It automatically imports
27:33
the episode for you and it makes it all look
27:37
gorgeous. You can go in and add SEO detail if
27:40
you want afterwards and make sure the guest is
27:43
tagged so that when people go through your show
27:45
notes, boom, they'll see a whole write -up about
27:47
the guests that the guest filled out, their bio.
27:50
their links, their contact info. I saw all that
27:53
guest information. I'm like, because this was
27:55
before I figured out it was like on Podpage.
27:56
I'm like, how much time does Andy have in the
27:59
day? Does she have 13 people working for her
28:02
to make this happen? Because this is an insane
28:04
amount of work if she's just hammering this out
28:06
herself. But Podpage does that for you. Yes,
28:09
it does. And as someone who's had so many websites
28:12
for her podcasts, all six of them, when I learned
28:15
about Podpage, I just went crazy. I thought,
28:19
oh my gosh, my life is so much easier now. Well,
28:22
and it's so affordable because when I saw it,
28:24
I'm like, well, I'm going to poke around and
28:26
see what pricing is for something like this because
28:27
this is like an elite service. Like I said, I'm
28:30
floored by how it looks, how it operates. Fantastic.
28:33
I'm like, it's got to be, it's going to be up
28:35
there in price. It's not. I think the premier
28:38
package is like less than 20 bucks a month. Right.
28:42
I spent more on that on coffee this morning.
28:45
Oh my gosh. It really, I just adore it. And I'm
28:49
sure people could hear me from miles away when
28:52
I let out my Yahoo. And I'm always on the hunt
28:58
for like ways I can level up my service for my
29:00
clients. And like, how can I help them expand
29:02
their brand, expand their podcast? Now I'm thinking
29:05
in my head, like, well, could I manage their
29:07
pod pages for them? So then they do have that
29:09
dedicated website. Oh my gosh, so easy. And be
29:12
sure to get an affiliate link. Yeah. Oh, I'll
29:14
be sending emails after we're done here. That's
29:18
great. I would love to just also share with folks
29:22
an initiative as an older adult that I took on
29:25
two years ago when I launched Don't Be Caged
29:27
by Your Age in March of 2024. I also launched
29:30
the New England Podcasters Group. And I want
29:32
to talk about this because, you know, especially
29:34
for your older audiences and listeners, that
29:37
finding community as you age gets much harder.
29:41
You don't have all the built -in systems. as
29:44
you did as a younger person. Also, time is your
29:47
most valuable asset. So you become super discerning
29:50
of where you're going to spend your time. So
29:53
there's lots of ways to meet people. There's
29:55
Meetup and Eventbrite. You can find different
29:57
things that might help you out. In my case, and
30:01
especially having been a founder, starting things
30:03
was easy for me. I wanted to hang out. in an
30:06
intergenerational community with indie podcasters,
30:09
because as you can hear Abby right here, y 'all
30:12
are so fascinating. We are all so fascinated,
30:16
interesting, quirky, passionate. I mean, they're
30:19
just so much fun to be with. And I thought, I
30:22
want to take what I learned from PodFest, which
30:25
is our annual conference for independent podcasters
30:28
and create something that was monthly. And because
30:32
I'd had a monthly pitch event, I knew how to
30:33
set that up. It was still hard. You always say,
30:36
what happens if I throw a party and nobody shows
30:38
up? But you get a few key players. I got a featured
30:41
speaker, someone I knew. And boom, the first
30:45
event. We had 15 people and it's been growing
30:48
ever since. And then I created a membership a
30:50
year ago because anytime you do something that
30:53
you want to have longevity or sustainability,
30:55
you do need to fund it. Yeah. These things don't
31:00
put themselves on for free. But we have had a
31:03
blast. Every second Saturday of the month at
31:06
12 noon, a wonderful local cable access TV facility
31:10
hosts us. So we actually gather in a TV studio.
31:14
We have TV cameras that are following us around.
31:17
We're able to bring folks in virtually so that
31:20
now, yes, it's New England and people drive two
31:23
and a half, three hours to come to this event.
31:26
That's how amazing it is. And I'm not saying
31:28
it's amazing because of me. I'm saying it's amazing
31:30
because of the people. who show up and we started
31:32
a podcast. We're doing all sorts of fun things.
31:35
And now. We have a virtual capability as well.
31:38
People can certainly tune in and have a good
31:40
experience watching the virtual. In -person is
31:43
always great. But then I created a community
31:45
pod garden using circle .so, that platform. And
31:50
now people can come from around the world and
31:52
join us there. For that uplifting, supportive,
31:55
we're not trying to sell you anything. We're
31:57
not trying to do anything. We're just trying
31:58
to make your podcasting experience feel less
32:01
isolated. So I just wanted to share that because
32:04
anybody can start a community locally. And especially
32:07
in the age of AI, when you're really wondering,
32:09
is that real? Being able to hug people in real
32:12
life, or as I call it, hurl, is a wonderful thing.
32:15
I love that. I definitely wanted to touch on
32:18
that during this interview because I am in so
32:21
many different podcasting groups on Facebook
32:23
and I'm always seeing things about the New England
32:25
Podcaster group. You guys are active and you're
32:28
always popping into different places. I swear
32:31
I see something from you guys once a week. So
32:33
getting to hear the backstory of it and what
32:35
it is now compared to what it was when you started,
32:37
I'm so... Is it weird to say I'm proud of you?
32:41
I'm proud of you. I'm a live event person as
32:43
well. I DJ and I host music bingo and I'm always
32:47
helping with like charity events. And it takes
32:49
a lot of work to put these things on. And you
32:51
do sit there and you go, what if no one shows
32:53
up? I know. It really does. And also to start
32:57
charging, right? And I started charging as well
33:01
back. So I started the membership. I had founding
33:05
members who if they came in at this time and
33:07
at this price, they would always be at that price
33:09
for forever. And I started charging $15 at an
33:12
event because it was getting so that you want
33:14
people who have skin in the game to show up,
33:17
who really want to be there. You're right. There's
33:20
so many parts and pieces to running a monthly
33:22
in -person live event. At the same time, it never
33:25
feels like work. I get so darn excited. And we
33:28
got a food sponsor right away. Mopod came in
33:31
as the food sponsor within a month or two. And
33:35
then Jenny joined our group and she's been designing
33:38
websites since 98. She said, can I build you
33:40
a website? Please knock yourself out. Thank you.
33:43
No, don't. I'll list you as a sponsor. Here you
33:46
go. So it's just the beauty of community. I'm
33:50
not a teacher. I'm not a classroom head. I'm
33:52
a, hey, I've created the space and place. Knock
33:55
yourselves out. You all have agency. Have fun.
33:58
That's amazing. I am, speaking of community,
34:00
so excited for PodFest, which is happening in
34:03
Orlando next week. By the time this episode's
34:05
out, PodFest will be done and over with, unfortunately.
34:08
It is my favorite week of the year. I went for
34:11
the first time last year. And there is just something
34:13
so special about being surrounded by 2 ,000 other
34:17
people who are like -minded and want to see each
34:20
other succeed and share stories and share experiences
34:22
and learn from each other. It's just an electric
34:25
space to be in. They do such a great job, Abby.
34:28
First of all, I'm very fussy about events. If
34:31
you're not running, if you're sloppy, I am no.
34:35
I want something that's a beginning, a middle,
34:36
an end that people manage well. And every session,
34:40
they manage beautifully. They have a room monitor,
34:42
all of that. But the culture they've set up is
34:45
that if you're having a great conversation in
34:47
the hallway, stay with that conversation. You
34:50
can always get the replay of the session because
34:53
we're here to help you build relationships and
34:57
connections and collaborations. Yeah. It's going
35:00
to be a great week in Orlando, Florida. I'm so
35:02
excited. I'm speaking this year, which I'm insanely
35:05
excited about. What's your topic? It's the podcast
35:09
remix strategy because I'm also a DJ. So it's
35:12
all about remixing your content, your audio or
35:15
video podcast into every other part of your marketing.
35:18
I am going to hop on Hoover Hoover, whatever
35:20
you call it, and sign up for that. Put that on
35:22
my schedule. 10 o 'clock on Thursday. Andy, this
35:24
has been so much fun. I'm so excited to meet
35:27
you in person. It's so cool that we're doing
35:29
this now and then a week from now we'll be in
35:31
the same place. I get to see you in just a few
35:31
days. Yeah. So thank you so much. Before we go,
35:35
I have a couple of quick questions for you. First
35:37
one is, what podcast have you been listening
35:39
to lately that you've been loving that isn't
35:41
your own? Such a good question. I have to filter
35:45
through so many when I think about what I'm tuning
35:48
into. Marianne DeMellosmith has a Message in
35:52
the Middle podcast, which I love. She's one of
35:55
the best interviewers I know. She, her voice,
35:59
she should be doing meditation tapes too. I mean,
36:01
I just calmed down just hearing her and real
36:05
men feel with Andy Grant. I always love tuning
36:08
into that because we need to be reminded of the
36:12
toxic masculinity situation out there. And as
36:16
a mom of two sons and my beloved husband, I love
36:19
to see men represented. in a way that is healthy.
36:23
And Andy Grant is a phenomenal interviewer as
36:26
well. And his guests just really show a beautiful
36:30
side to men. So those are the ones I'm listening
36:33
to. I tend to not listen to famous ones, but,
36:36
and I'm not going to go into the political ones
36:37
I've listened to, but I'm going to On Air Fest
36:41
in Brooklyn at the end of February. And I'm excited
36:46
to see the bigger. podcast folks. So my favorite
36:51
podcast to listen to is We Can Do Hard Things
36:53
with Glennon Doyle. Ooh, that's a great pick.
36:58
It's a reminder because a lot of times it's so
37:01
easy to want to just curl up. Instead, they interview
37:04
some great folks who help you stay strong during
37:08
really difficult times in life because we can
37:11
do hard things. I say that to myself almost every
37:13
day. Like, I can do hard things. I can do hard
37:15
things. Andy, this has been so much fun. I have
37:18
been looking forward to this for a very long
37:20
time. So I'm so glad that we got to do it. Before
37:22
I totally let you go here, where can people find
37:24
you? Where can they find your podcast? Please
37:26
connect with me on LinkedIn, Andy, A -N -D -E,
37:29
Lyons, L -Y -O -N -S. Visit don'tbecagedbyyourage
37:33
.com to get the inspiration you need to thrive
37:37
after 65. Check out the New England Podcasters
37:41
by going to newenglandpodcasters .group and follow
37:44
us for all the fun on Instagram at New England
37:47
Podcasters Group.