208. 5 Ways to Never Run Out of Episode Ideas | Podcasting Tips and Strategies

Struggling to come up with podcast episode ideas? You’re not alone, and the solution isn’t what you think. In this episode, I’m breaking down the biggest myth about podcast content creation and sharing 5 practical strategies you can use to never run out of episode ideas again.

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Transcript

If coming up with podcast episode ideas feels like pulling teeth, you are not alone. And you're definitely not the problem. Because most podcasters are trying to constantly come up with something new, and that's exactly why they get stuck. Maybe you've thought, ugh, I've already talked about this. I'm being repetitive. What else is there to say? I have no idea what I'm going to talk about next week. Or maybe you haven't even started your podcast yet because you're worried that you'll run out of episode ideas. That's actually a top concern among aspiring podcasters.

If any of that resonates, then this episode is for you, in case we're meeting for the first time. Hi, I'm Julia Levine, AKA the Podcast teacher. You're listening to Podcasting for Solopreneurs, the show that helps online business owners grow their podcast to get more listeners, leads, and sales. Here's the content creation secret that no one tells you. The best podcasts repeat the same content over and over and over and over again. Yes, really. And I know that might feel a little uncomfortable to hear, because as creators, we're trying constantly to be original. We don't want to sound repetitive.

We don't want people to think we're just recycling messages. But the reality is that your audience is not consuming your content the way that you are. You are there for every step of the process. Brainstorming, outlining, scripting, recording, editing, promoting, repurposing, and so on. But that one episode was probably just a blip on the radar for your audience. So what feels like repetition to you barely even registers for them. And more importantly, they're not coming for constant novelty. They are coming for a specific result.

To meet a specific information need to work toward a specific transformation. Which means that repeating your core ideas is actually strategic. It's not a mistake. So now that you know that, let's. Let's talk about how you actually come up with episode ideas in a way that feels easier and a lot more sustainable. And this is exactly where so many podcasters get stuck, even when they already have plenty to say about their topic. Because logically, what I just said about repetition makes sense, but it can still feel a little off. It can feel like, wait, shouldn't I be coming up with something new and exciting? Isn't it cheating to cover the same things over and over? But I promise you that it's not.

As much as they may love you, your audience is not going to remember every single wisdomist word that comes out of your Mouth, they might not even remember that you talked about that same topic six weeks ago, let alone every detail that you shared. And even if they remember that you talked about the topic, period, that's actually a good thing. I bet that you are not sitting out there thinking, oh, man, there Julia goes again, giving me tips and strategies for planning my podcast. You're not complaining about that, right? Because that's what you're kind of here for. You're probably actually thinking something more along the lines of, oh, good, this is what I need. I've been struggling with this. So that repetition of ideas is what helps things click. It's what helps people actually understand, apply, and get results from the things that you're teaching.

So instead of asking yourself, what new thing can I talk about? A much better question is, what is something important that my audience needs to hear? Again, just explained in a different way that one shift will make coming up with content feel so much easier. All right, now that we have reframed that, let's get into some practical ways to actually generate those ideas consistently without feeling like you are starting from scratch every single time. I have five strategies for you today that will help you generate content in a way that feels easy and sustainable. Because, yes, you are repeating topics, but you still need a steady flow of different angles and ideas. So let's start with the first strategy, and this one is super simple, but it's also the one most people don't take seriously enough, and that is to always keep a running list of ideas. Have one central place where all, all of your ideas live. This place could be your phone, your computer, a physical notebook, whatever it is that works for you, as long as the ideas live in some place outside of your brain. Because here's the thing, your best ideas are almost never going to come to you when you sit down and try to come up with them.

They show up at the most inconvenient times, like when you're in the shower or driving or right as you're about to fall asleep. And so if you don't capture them in that moment, they are gone. You might think, oh, yeah, I'll definitely remember that later. But if you're anything like me, you won't. And then you'll be sad and frustrated. So make it as easy as possible to capture ideas when they come. Keep sticky notes by your bed, have a note on your phone, or even buy a waterproof notepad for the shower. Yes, they really do sell those.

Now, the second strategy is to stop trying to come up with ideas in isolation and start listening to your own audience. Go and hang out where your people hang out. Facebook groups, Reddit threads, comment sections of YouTube videos, etc. Just be a fly on the wall and pay attention to the conversations that are already happening. Take note of what questions keep coming up. What are people confused about? What are they struggling with? What are they wanting? Every single one of those conversations has the potential to be a piece of content. Also, don't forget about the questions that your students or clients ask you. Add those to your list as they come in so that you don't forget about them.

That is literally how I came up with the idea for this episode. So instead of trying to be endlessly creative, just start paying attention because your audience is already telling you exactly what they need. All right, strategy number three is where things start to get really strategic. Instead of always trying to come up with brand new ideas, start paying attention to what's already working. If you've been publishing for a little while, go into your podcast hosting platform and look at your episodes. Most platforms will let you sort by popularity or number of downloads, and also by release date and what you're looking for. Here are patterns. Which topics consistently perform better than others? Now it is important to note that older episodes have had more time time to accumulate downloads.

So don't just look at the top of the list and call it a day. You want to look for the outliers episodes that are clearly outperforming others. Even when you factor in how long they've been live, those topics are what your audience wants more of. And this is where a lot of podcasters miss a huge opportunity. They'll have one episode that does really well and then they move on instead of asking, hmm, how can I expand on this? So for example, one of my clients is a weight loss coach and every time she does an episode on GLP1 weight loss medications, it gets way, way more downloads than her other episodes. And so she was like cool, great, that episode did well. But I bet you can guess what my advice to her was do more episodes about these medications, but not the same exact episode over again. I encouraged her to expand it so she could talk about the best ways to prevent side effects, who is a good candidate for these medications? Mindset around whether using them is cheating, how to make lifestyle changes to optimize the results.

So that's a bunch of different episodes from just one core topic. Now I will say that you do need to be mindful that your podcast doesn't suddenly become all about one single thing in her case, we wouldn't want her general weight loss podcast to turn into a GLP1 medication only podcast. So you do want to space those episodes out when you are covering topics again. Maybe do one a month while still incorporating your other core themes. That way you're giving your audience more of what they clearly want without losing the bigger picture of your whole content. All right, strategy number four, and this one might surprise you a little bit. Instead of focusing on your best performing episodes, go back and look at your lowest performing episodes too. Just like before, you do need to factor in timing.

Older episodes will naturally have more downloads and newer episodes will have less. So you're once again looking for outliers, episodes that underperformed compared to others from a similar time period. Most people look at these and they immediately assume, oh, okay, my audience just isn't interested in this topic. But you can't make that call based on just one episode. Sometimes it's not the topic that missed the mark, sometimes it's the circumstances surrounding it. So maybe the title wasn't compelling, it was published over a holiday and people missed it, or maybe the angle just didn't quite land. So instead of abandoning the topic altogether, revisit it. Give it a second chance and even a third chance.

Come at it from a different angle. Explain it more clearly, or position it in a way that better connects with what your audience actually cares about. And if you've tested it a few times and it consistently underperforms, then absolutely take it out of your regular rotation. But just make sure that you've given it a fair shot first. Now, strategy number five is to use AI. You had to know that was in there somewhere, right? But the trick here is to use it strategically. Strategically, because yes, you absolutely can ask tools like ChatGPT or Quad or whatever your choice is for general topic ideas, questions in your niche, or even help planning your first 50 episodes if you're just getting started. But where this gets really powerful is when you make it specific to your podcast.

So you want to give the AI bot some context. Tell it what your podcast is about as a whole, what your core content is that you cover, who your audience is, what your offers are that you're trying to drive traffic towards, and then give it a list of your past episodes and ask it to identify content gaps. Ask it what you've missed or or what you haven't talked about enough. You can even give it your download data too. Just make sure to tell it to account for the fact that some episodes have been live longer than others. Because comparing an episode from two years ago with 200 downloads with an episode from last week with 20 downloads is not an apples to apples comparison. Once it has all of that context, you can ask it to analyze what's working and generate more ideas like that. So instead of guessing, you're making data informed decisions about your content.

If you take nothing else away from this episode, remember that you do not need to constantly come up with new ideas and in order to have a successful podcast. In fact, trying to do that is exactly what's making this feel so hard. The real strategy is to identify your core topics and then come back to them again and again and again from different angles, with more clarity and with better context for where your audience is right now. And when you combine that with capturing ideas as they come to you, paying attention to your audience, doubling down on what's already working, and using your data and AI strategically, you are never going to run out of content. You're just going to get better and better at creating it. So if you've been sitting there feeling stuck, overthinking your next episode, or wondering what you're going to talk about next, take a breath. You probably already have more ideas than you think you do. You just need a better way to use them.

And if you want help starting or growing your podcast, that is exactly what I do. You can schedule a consultation@thepodcastteacher.com consult to find out how I can help. Until next time, Happy podcasting.