#6 | 5 Intro & Outro Mistakes Killing Your Podcast Growth & REPELLING Potential Clients (Fix These Today)

0:00In this episode, we're covering five growth murdering mistakes online coaches make with their intros and outros, and what to do instead. Welcome to How to Grow a Podcast that attracts high-ticket online coaching clients. The show helping coaches, consultants, and experts turn your slow-growth podcast into a profitable client attraction system. At the end of this episode, I'll share a little more about who I am and what we do at my company, GetMoreListeners.com. It might even shock you, but for now, let's dive into the episode. In this episode, you'll discover why starting your podcast episodes with ads and guest bios repels new listeners.

0:44Five intro and outro mistakes that cause slower growth and how to fix them. And a simple tweak you can start making today to get your listeners finally taking your calls to action. The first two minutes of your podcast episode are absolutely critical for retention. Here's why. As soon as someone clicks on your episode, they're looking for a quick answer to one question. What's in this for me? They need to be rewarded immediately. You have to communicate, you're in the right place. This episode is for you. We do this by having an exceptionally strong hook. But most online coaches with podcasts, their intros are completely all over the place.

1:29If someone isn't hooked within the first 30 seconds to 2 minutes, they'll lose interest. And if you don't believe me, here's proof. Log in to Apple Podcasts Connect or Spotify for Podcasters and check your retention time. What you'll see time and time again is around a 40 % drop-off within the first 2-3 minutes. That means 40 % of people who click on your episode leave before hearing your main content, your insights, or your call to action. We can almost guarantee you'll see at least a 20 % drop-off in the first couple of minutes. And often, it's much higher than that. If that's you, this episode is absolutely for you.

2:14Mistake number one. Not clarifying who the show is for or why they should listen. The problem with most podcast intros is they don't clarify two critical things. Who the show is for, why they should listen to this particular episode. A lot of podcasters just dive into the content without telling listeners what they're going to get out of it. But here's the reality. If a listener is a stranger, they're not going to gamble an hour of their time without knowing if it's going to be worth it. The fix. At the start of every episode, list the three main benefits listeners will gain by sticking around.

2:53Here's how to do this. For interviews, record the interview first. Then, while it's still fresh in your head, write down the key takeaways. Pick the best three. Add them to the intro in post-production. For solo episodes, you already know what you're going to cover, so the three benefits should be clear before you even hit record. We always go with three because it's an easy number for people to absorb. Not too much, not too little. By doing this, you guarantee that within the first two minutes, people know why they want to keep listening. You're opening a loop that listeners are compelled to close by staying till the end.

3:35Also, add a simple sentence at the start of your intro that explains exactly who your podcast serves. For example, a podcast helping coaches, consultants, and business owners turn their show into a client attraction system. If you do these two things, list three benefits, and clarify who the show is for, you shift your podcast from a risk, is this hour worth my time, to a no-brainer, yes, I'm in the right place, I can't wait to learn these three things. Mistake number two. If you're using ads or sponsorships, congratulations, that's amazing. But here's the problem. A lot of podcasters bombard listeners with ad placements right at the start.

4:23And here's the question you need to ask yourself. How much money are you making from these ads compared to the damage they're doing to your retention time? Most online coaches with podcasts aren't making loads of money from sponsorships, yet they're overloading their intros with ads which frustrates listeners, especially new ones who are still deciding whether to stick around. Think about your own experience as a listener. When you click on an episode and the first thing you hear is a two-minute ad, what do you do? You either switch off or skip ahead. Your goal is to provide value up front. Hook listeners first.

5:04Tell them who the show is for and what they're going to gain. Then you can mention your ads or sponsorships. After people are already incentivized to keep listening, you have more leeway to mention your own services or sponsorships, because they're already bought in. Now, the caveat. If you put ads only at the very end, not everyone will hear them, because some people drop off before the outro. So don't put them right at the start, and don't put them right at the end. Put them after the hook point. This third mistake might sound counterintuitive, but hear me out. A lot of podcasters spend way too much time in their intro talking about their guest's credentials, backstory, and accomplishments.

5:51Or, if it's a solo show, they spend too much time talking about themselves. Now, I know what you're thinking. But I have a guest who's going to provide value. I need to introduce them, especially if they're a stranger to my audience. You're right. You should introduce your guest. But here's the thing. If you spend one to two minutes of your intro talking all about the guest's credentials and backstory, most listeners are thinking, what's in this for me? Do they really care about the guest's MBA? Do they care that they've written best-selling books? Maybe, but only if you explain why that matters to them.

6:28The fix. Make the guest bio listener-focused. Here's an example of how to introduce a guest the right way. Today I'm speaking with Sarah, a business coach who's helped over 500 entrepreneurs sign their first$10 ,000 client. She's going to share the exact framework she uses to turn cold leads into paying clients in under 30 days. See the difference? We mentioned Sarah's credentials, but we immediately tied it back to what the listener will gain. That's what makes them care. Any credential or backstory you mention should be related back to the listener. Why does it matter to them? What's in it for them?

7:12And remember, the guest is going to introduce themselves during the episode anyway, so keep the intro brief. Give the headline statement of who they are, what they've accomplished, and how it's going to help the listener. That's it. Mistake number four, having too many calls to action. This is the most common mistake we see with outros. Recently, I audited a podcast and counted eight calls to action in 20 seconds. Eight. I nearly had a stroke. The host said, follow me on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, TikTok, subscribe on YouTube, join my email list, check out my website, and download my free guide.

7:57That's overwhelming. And here's what happens. When you give listeners too many options, they don't know which one to take, so they take none of them. There are two types of listeners. Active listeners, rare, who are paying close attention and still get overwhelmed by too many options. Passive listeners, most people, who are walking the dog or at the gym and aren't listening with enough attention to process eight different CTAs. Either way, too many calls to action kill conversion. The fix. One singular incentive-based CTA. Focus on one call to action. That's it. And make it incentive-based, meaning you give listeners a clear reason why they should take that next step.

8:46Bad CTA. Follow me on Instagram. Good CTA. If you want the exact three-step framework I use to turn podcast listeners into$15 ,000 clients, head to the show notes and grab your free client conversion blueprint. It's a step-by-step guide you can implement today. See the difference? You're telling them what they'll gain by taking action. Ask yourself, where do I want to send my listeners? Email list? Social media? Lead magnet? Which platform is my powerhouse? Don't send them everywhere. Pick one. What will they gain by taking this step? When you make your CTAs singular and incentive-based, people actually take it.

9:37And that's how you extend the relationship beyond the podcast. That's how you eventually convert listeners into clients. A caveat I want to touch on. The flip side of having too many CTAs is having none at all. When you don't give a call to action, you leave a ton of value on the table. You're not extending the relationship with your listeners. You're not inviting them deeper into your world. If you're trying to grow your business, attract clients, and monetize your podcast, you need attention. You need your listeners highly engaged, not just in the podcast, but outside of it, too. If you can influence your listeners to take that next step, that's incredible value.

10:23That's what sponsors look for. And if you have your own coaching program, course, or service, you need to be able to get listeners to take action. No CTA equals no monetization. So, to recap. For your intro, clarify who the show is for within the first two minutes. Give three main benefits of the episode, even if you add it in, post-production. Move ad placements after the hook point, not before listeners know why they should keep listening. Keep guest bios short and listener-focused. Headline statement only, tied back to listener value. For your outro, give one singular, incentive-based call to action.

11:12Tell listeners what they'll gain by taking that next step. Don't overwhelm them with multiple options. Your intro and outro are critical for retention and conversion. Get them right, and you'll see your engagements skyrocket. Get them wrong, and you'll lose listeners in the first two minutes and miss opportunities to turn them into clients. Fix these five mistakes, and you'll transform your podcast into a client attraction machine. So, in this episode, we covered Why starting your podcast episodes with ads and guest bios repels new listeners. Five intro and outro mistakes that cause slower growth and how to fix them.

11:56And a simple tweak you can start making today to get your listeners finally taking your calls to action. Thank you for listening all the way to the end. At the start of this episode, I said I'd tell you a little bit about me. So I'm about to share a secret with you. One that might mean you hate me, completely quit listening to this podcast, and think I'm a total scam. However, I want to be transparent. Are you ready? Well, my name is Tony. No, of course that's not the secret. The secret is that I'm actually a robot. My creators are Tighe and Anthony, hence my name, Tony. The sick bastards. Anyway, they are the founders of GetMoreListeners.com.

12:45In the last five years, they've coached and interviewed over 400 podcasters and generated multiple six figures from their own show. They gave me access to everything they know, and I'm here to share it with you. So while I don't understand why you humans are so obsessed with coffee, I do understand how to grow a podcast that actually brings you new clients regularly. So here's my offer to you. If you want to finally understand why your podcast isn't growing and get a personalized roadmap to fix it, in less than 30 seconds, you can go to getmorelisteners.com slash onlinecoachaudit. Enter your show name and we'll send you back a free mini podcast audit.

13:26It's completely customized to you and your show. That's getmorelisteners.com slash onlinecoachaudit. The link is also in the show notes of this episode.