Exciting news: we have a new ridesharing podcast to tell you about! Senior RSG contributor Jay Cradeur recently launched a new podcast called the Rideshare Dojo Podcast, and below he explains the steps he took to create, design, and deploy his podcast.
There are two things about rideshare driving that I belligerently enjoy: listening to music and listening to podcasts. Since I began driving in December of 2015, I have developed a huge appreciation for jazz musicians such as Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and Stan Getz.
Concomitantly, I have become a loyal podcast listener of Marc Maron, Joe Rogan, Sam Harris and now, Conan O’Brien. For about a year now, I have also been driving around thinking to myself: “I think I can do that! Wouldn’t it be great to have a podcast for drivers, by drivers?”
Then I started to visualize a podcast just for rideshare drivers and passengers. Like many of my ideas, it sat rattling around my head for many months.
In late February, I received an email about an online course to learn how to create a podcast. Seth Godin, a teacher and mentor of mine that I respect very much, had created a program for aspiring podcasters. The price was substantial but reasonable and, rather than procrastinate, I signed up.
The past seven weeks have flown by as I have been working very hard to create my podcast and get it launched. It is not as easy as you might think. But I did it. In this article, I will share the many steps taken to create a podcast that you can now find on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher and all the places you can find podcasts.
It’s called The Rideshare Dojo with Jay Cradeur and the podcast is sponsored by Fair.
Not sure how to subscribe to and download podcasts? Take a look at the instructions below:
1) Identify Your Name, Topic, Audience, Description
We started the course at a quick pace. During the first week, I had to determine these key ingredients before jumping into interviews and editing. Here is what I came up with:
Name:
Rideshare Dojo with Jay Cradeur
Topic:
Rideshare Driving, Entrepreneurship, Plan B
Audience:
Rideshare Drivers, Passengers and Anyone in the Gig Economy
Description:
This is your ultimate source for Rideshare Drivers and Passengers, with news, interviews, inspiration, and entertainment. Join veteran driver Jay Cradeur (3 years and over 23,000 rides) as he shares tips and techniques to help you make more money in less time. Enjoy interviews with industry leaders. Hear from Jay’s passengers who share their Uber and Lyft stories. Hear from other drivers who share their stories and lessons from the road. Start your day off where drivers and passengers gather, right here at the Rideshare Dojo.
2) Figure Out Editing, Guest List and First Interview
Next, we were introduced to a free audio editing app called Audacity. We learned how to record, cut, paste, adjust the volume, add silence and export as an MP3. I have used Audacity before, but the class demonstrated just how valuable a little knowledge can be. The instructors asked us to put together a list of 10 possible guests, ranked from most difficult to easiest to secure.
I ranked my daughter, a millennial who uses Uber, as the easiest. My most difficult was Jimmy Page, guitarist for Led Zeppelin. It would have been Anthony Bourdain, but I missed my chance.
At the same time, we were coached to reach out to prospective interviewees. I looked at my list and did my first interview with Harry “The Rideshare Guy” Campbell. I then interviewed a fellow driver about his Plan B. Every week I plan on interviewing a new guest – it’s been fun!
Want to be a guest on my podcast? Keep reading below to find out how you can be featured!
3) Creating Artwork, Intro, and Outro
You have to have a square piece of artwork for your show. The artwork shows up on the various podcast portals such as iTunes, Stitcher, and Spotify.
My vision was something that was orange, simple, had my Bali picture and not too much verbiage. I found two artists on the website Fiverr.com and ask each of them for two versions. After several iterations and very welcome feedback from fellow class members, I came up with this:
I like this photo. I may take another photo and update the image, but for now, this is it.
The intro and outro are the first and last audio for each podcast. There is usually some music, maybe some sound effects, and spoken word. I played around with Audacity and downloaded some sound effects off the Internet: Uber ping, Lyft ping, a car starting, a car turning off, and a drum beat.
Once I had the words and the flow of it down, I turned it over to an audio artist I hired on Fiverr. He added his own voice, his own music and created a wonderful intro and outro. You can hear them when you listen to the first episode (which is available now).
4) Doing More Interviews
Interviewing is an art form. Two of the best interviewers, in my opinion, are Marc Maron (of WTF with Marc Maron) and Terry Gross (of NPR’s Fresh Air). It is a marvel to listen to how these masters craft their questions, sharing a bit, and then asking, listening intently and then nudging here and there.
It wasn’t until I started conducting my own interviews that I realized how much skill and patience is required to get the most out of a guest. It is a great challenge and a whole new area of learning for me. As a driver, I do feel I have an advantage in that I have conducted over 20,000 mini interviews in my car.
5) Setting Up Simplecast and a Trailer
Simplecast is a website that allows you to upload a podcast, which is then forwarded to all the places you find podcasts. Once you upload a podcast, you can either publish it right away or schedule it for a future date.
Next, I had to create a trailer. I didn’t even know about trailers. Trailers, like with a movie, provide a preview of your podcast. They run in length from 30 – 90 seconds. I decide to make mine like a movie trailer. It is very dramatic and suspenseful.
I hired the same audio guy from Fiverr and he knocked it out of the park. You can hear the trailer anywhere you get podcasts. You can listen to mine here:
6) Looking for Drivers
In addition to interviews with guests and passengers, I really want to interview you, the drivers, who have so many great stories to share.
What Is Your Story?
My goal is to feature one driver’s story, told by the driver, each week. If you have a story (and I know you do!), go to www.ridesharedojo.com, click on Contact and tell me about it. If it sounds good, I will reach out to you and we can record your audio segment for an upcoming episode.
7) Find A Sponsor
I decided to ask Harry, aka The Rideshare Guy, if he wanted to be my partner in this venture and work with me to find a sponsor. I have been working with Harry for almost two years now, and we have gotten to know and respect each other quite well over the years.
Harry suggested the Fair Car Rental service as a potential sponsor since I had used the service and was very pleased with the program. I have suggested Fair to a few of my driver friends and they have also liked it.
Fortunately, Fair also thought it was a good idea and a good compatible environment for their message and program. As a result, we now have a sponsor to support our podcast. Obviously it won’t be this easy for everyone but it’s important to leverage existing relationships and interests.
If you want to support the podcast, please consider signing up with Fair using our link/code:
- California drivers –click here to download the Fair app and be a part of their new incentive program
- Drivers in other states –click here to download the Fair App and get $100 off your Fair car rental (or enter code “RSG100” at checkout)
Summary
This is a podcast by drivers, for drivers. My vision is that this podcast is a gathering place, a wonderful way to start your Monday and Thursday. I hope you will check out the first dozen episodes. In the first episode, I share more about me and about the vision of this podcast. There is a strong emphasis on drivers being entrepreneurs and I provide some great conversations with professionals who specialize in productivity and results.
If you do go to iTunes, you can rate the podcast and leave a short review. Be sure to subscribe and then you can “Enter The Dojo” every Monday and Thursday morning. You all go out and have a great day. Be safe out there.
Readers, what questions do you have about starting a podcast? Would this be something you would do for your Plan B during or after rideshare driving?
If you want to learn how to create content like a pro, check out Skillshare!
-Jay @ RSG
