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 I talked to Lisa along with Leo Laporte, the husband-and-wife team behind podcasting empire TWiT and how they can create the kind of community that is so enthused by your business that they would like to listen to your commercials.

"When we started, it was for only a small group of real technology enthusiasts. Now we're like, "Where's the technology? !" smiles Lisa Laporte the CEO of TWiT. "It's completely evolved." The social aspect of podcasting was the reason the industry felt like a "logical extension" of Chief TWiT's life mission and was one of the reasons Lisa was captivated by the new medium.

The couple had been building their empire of podcasts for the past sixteen years before the pandemic hit in 2020. "Those few years were isolated," Lisa explains. "We were all stuck in tiny Zoom boxes. But we've got a large technical audience that loves and wants the community." TWiT needed to discover a means of connecting with its fans during this time of solitude.

Lisa talked to one of TWiT's sponsors the tech-training platform ITPro.TV on how they could offer something back to TWiT's fans. "Simply enough, ITPro.TV permitted its customers to come in and chat online for up to an an hour at night. Sometimes they would play games. Other times, they'd just chat," Lisa continues. "I was thinking to myself, 'That's what I want to achieve.' I wanted to allow our fans to have a place to come and relax.

Lisa confirms that the ability to include the Discord server into the membership offerings officially was "a better experience" that just establishing the first online community. "It was time to provide our community that little extra something; people had grown tired of locking themselves in their homes." Club TWiT was all set to launch.

From content to cruising The arrival of Club TWiT

Lisa clarifies that she explains that TWiT team members are encouraged to participate in the organization as much as possible. They ask for show feedback; they host regularly scheduled Ask Me Anything (AMA) sessions; they host spaces where the members can come to meet up. This is especially crucial when it came to online communities during the pandemic but is translating well to real-world experiences.

"We are hosting a photography exhibit which is why I believe it'd be fun to announce, 'Hey we're coming to be at this event. We invite you to join us on a photography stroll!'" continues Lisa. The group is planning to do numerous more events in person; indeed, TWiT is hosting a cruise for 100 of its members. Leo and Lisa have agreed that, nearly contrary to popular belief, it's events in person such as this are the "fundamental heart of what podcasting is about" and also what differentiates it from other media.

Lisa and Leo also use Club TWiT to premiere and evaluate new content. If shows begin to get noticed and is popular, it could be included in their premium Club TWiT offering or become an advertisement-supported series. If this occurs, Lisa will approach the show's host and encourage the hosts to practice ads, then include the show in their arsenal to get started with advertisers. Each ad must be read by the host of the show so that it appears as an integral and natural component of the program.

Your sponsors can sell you better than they sell themselves

The creation of an approach to advertising that benefits both sponsors and people who listen to it is crucial to its achievement: "Our advertising works because the community trusts our brand. We are able to recommend the products and services they need and they are willing to help us so they buy them. We sign up advertisers when we do, we heavily vet the company they represent as well as check their reviews," Lisa says. Lisa.

The woman explains: "We do such a excellent job with our ads-supported part that Club members are constantly saying, 'Hey, you need to add advertisements. Actually, we have a Discord channel just for the advertisements on our shows!" She adds that their audience asks for them to post an advertisement once a month from every single show, because they would like to know where to buy the advertised products: "They trust us so they say, 'You need to provide us with a feed so that we can listen to ads once in a while.'"

In the moment, I have to double-check my perception of what I'm hearing. Lisa confirms: members actually write into the shows for the TWiT's advertisements to be linked. "Isn't that hysterical? !" she smiles. She continues: "Our Club TWiT members get the shows for free However, they email us to tell us that we're not getting the ads, we'd love to hear the ads!' Therefore, we often include us courtesy ads for sponsors who are active or when we have an exciting new partner. They're so compelling."

"Our sponsors ask, 'Can you send us a complimentary commercial with every ad read? We make our sales trainees watch them because you sell our brand better than half of our junior staff I thought that was quite adorable."

Start small is essential.

So how do you create a membership business that people like and trust so much they want to listen to your ads? "Really take a look at the competition and think about what everyone else is doing," Lisa suggests. "Look at people like you, and look at what they're up to before you leap into it. Engage in conversations with me or contact anyone who's done it before."

She advises "just taking your time" to consider different approaches and structures. "Don't chew more than you're able to chew. If you plan to accomplish 50 things, you'll find that you're not able to do them effectively. Start with a small amount, just as we did. We began by introducing AMAs."

Leo and Lisa explain that the TWiT team has slowly but surely figured how to solve the problem as they continue down the road. Now that they're getting grips with it all, they're starting to add to their offering with bonus information. "I do not want to make promises that are too big but then not deliver," Lisa continues.

Lisa encourages podcasters to take a look closely at all their services that are included in their membership packages. "See the features that are relevant in the context of what you're trying accomplish and then shop around to find the right product: because we are audio and video, we have a few quirks that are unusual as a podcasting network."

Supporting the community

"If you're interested in the field of technology, check out our network. We have a show for everyone!" she smiles. "We include shows that are accessible, such as The Tech Guy; we have iOS Today, which is entertaining if you've got the iPad or iPhone and want to know how to utilize these devices. We also have geeky shows such as Security Now if you're into security. If you're interested in the show, you can join Club TWiT and download the podcast! We must remember to support each other in this community."

Being a part of the community that supports podcasts and the incredibly inclusive nature of it is something that has always been an important aspect for the TWiT team "We will continue to provide the content for free, but it's a nice opportunity to provide this additional benefit for the superfans. I love having both options because everyone with internet access can download our shows, and don't need to shell out money for them. It's democratic." Lisa says. Lisa.

She concludes: "We have fans in third-world countries who've written in to say that they heard your podcast. I used to hang out at the local electronics store to listen to your podcast and get some skills. And now I have the opportunity to work in technology!'"

Perhaps Lisa, Leo, and the team at TWiT are not the only ones to witness tech's evolution from a subject only for the ardent enthusiast to an ubiquitous issue today. Perhaps they've been helping to propel the transformation.