TPU42 – The Secret Tip to Podcasting Consistency with Anurag from Namastey India

Episode-42

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[00:00:00] Hubhopper: Hubhopper Originals

[00:00:06] Anurag: For every creator out there. If you are doing current affairs, if you are doing something, which is a viral right now, how do you ensure that the viral content that you see right now can actually give you good mileage in the future? That is what you need to think as a content creator. If you can brainstorm and bridge your evergreen content with the viral content that you're doing.

[00:00:29] I think with any niche you can create long lasting content.

[00:00:35] Dilip: Welcome to the podcasting university, looking for help on starting your own podcast. Then this is the place to be. We will help you with everything from selecting your topic to promoting and monetizing your podcast in the simplest language possible.

[00:00:52] Listen to other podcasters who've been through the grind and learn from them. As we interview them every week, you can find more [00:01:00] details on the podcasting university.com.

[00:01:09] Hello, and welcome to episode 42 of the podcasting university. And in today's episode, we have a guest who I call the rock star of podcasting, but before we get into it, let me ask your question. What does it take to create 365 episodes in a year? That's right. One episode. And this isn't some one minute episode that I'm talking about.

[00:01:36] Instead it is a whole 15 to 20 minute episodes. Today's guest on the show is somebody who's not only done it for a year, but is doing it since the last two years consistently. He's an award-winning podcaster and content creator with over 600 episodes and 1 million plus listenership. He's also a [00:02:00] brand identity and strategy expert certified by the IE business school, Spain. With an extensive corporate career of over seven years as a business consultant.

[00:02:10] He became a full-time podcaster and content creator in 2020 with the launch of his new venture, Socially Desi. Started during the pandemic Socially Desi is a homegrown digital platform that offers articles curated by experts and featured authors along with in-house podcast shows and with an IMDP rating of 9.2

[00:02:33] the Socially Desi show discusses tips and strategies with guest speakers on how to tackle problems related to aspects like personal growth, mental health, relationships, business, and entrepreneurship, and health and fitness. His second podcast Namastey India is an unapologetic, raw and unbiased daily podcast, which is the first ever independent Indian podcast to have a streak of [00:03:00] 580 plus days of daily uploads and still counting.

[00:03:05] Let us welcome a Anurag Sharma to the Podcasting University. Hi, and welcome to the Podcasting University. And thanks for joining us on the show.

[00:03:13] Anurag: Hey, Dilip thank you so much for having me. And I've been an avid listener to your show. Really loved the kind of conversations you guys are doing. My favorite I would like to state my favorite is the one that you did with Smriti a few months back.

[00:03:28] So that's the one I really liked the conversation. So happy to be here and share some insights.

[00:03:35] Dilip: Thanks, and I'm sure our listeners will get a lot of insights on podcasting because I think you are probably the only one that I've come across. After sometime back, I used to listen to John Lee Dumas and he was the only one that I've seen doing a daily show.

[00:03:50] After that you are the only one that I've come across specifically from India who is doing a daily show. So before we get into all of that Anurag, so first I would like to know [00:04:00] more about Anurag, how did you get into podcasting? What is it that you do in addition to podcasting and what has your journey been?

[00:04:08] Anurag: Wow, there's so many questions. So I started off with a very, I come from a very typical military middle-class family and, did the typical BTech MBA route that we all do in India. And from there worked in a couple of consulting firms had a really great time, but in 2017, was when the entrepreneurial bug really bit me and I thought I'm already working for other organizations, consulting them on strategy and businesses.

[00:04:37] Why not consult myself on the same thing? And I had a couple of ideas back then in 2017. So I left my cushy corporate job and I said, Ok, Let's take the plunge and get into entrepreneurship. Full-time left my job 2017, worked on a couple of startups didn't really work out, but I think I found my peace and kind of a homecoming with Socially

[00:04:59] [00:05:00] Desi. The idea started back in 2009. And fun fact, Socially Desi the whole network was never supposed to, like the idea was not for it to be an audio show. The idea was that I would have a talk show, but it would be something like a coffee with Karan, kind of a talk show where I'll fly my guests in, we'll have a studio and we'll have a good day together.

[00:05:24] And in the meantime, we'll record a couple of videos, put it up. And the idea was to reach out to OTT platforms and see if they would be interested to host my show on their network. So that was how it was envisioned back in 2019. But yeah, 2020, when the whole world shutdown, I thought, I won't let this opportunity go to waste.

[00:05:44] I will not wait for things to get better. And I started with podcasting because I used to listen to a few podcasts, but mostly those were Western podcasts. So I knew what podcasts was. I was an avid listener. So I thought, why not [00:06:00] start off with audio and then see how we grow and how we can take this to the video platforms.

[00:06:05] So that's how Socially Desi really started, but I love it. I love it. I took that decision and I've been in love with audio ever since.

[00:06:15] Dilip: So Socially Desi is also a blog, right? So what came first? The blog or the podcast?

[00:06:20] Anurag: Ah, you got that right? So the blog came first, and from there the Socially Desi show was born.

[00:06:27] So April 24th was when I launched my first episode on the Socially Desi show, but the website was getting built during the March time. And if you remember, the early March, 2020 was when everybody had that gut feeling that somewhere in March or April, there's going to be a lockdown in India.

[00:06:44] So we had that feeling. So I thought let's get my website up in March so that I can put out some of the blog content that I had in mind. And then in April I launched the Socially Desi show, soon after in may we launched Namastey India. Okay.

[00:06:58] Dilip: So Namastey India came [00:07:00] after Socially Desi.

[00:07:01] Anurag: Yep. Yep.

[00:07:01] Dilip: Okay. So coming to Namastey India, you had started Socially Desi and there was a complete plan that you had.

[00:07:09] In terms of what Socially Desi would look like though it changed from, the, the original plan to an alternative plan, which became a podcast. How did Namastey India start?.

[00:07:19] Anurag: So interesting story with Namastey India when I was doing the Socially Desi show, it was a weekly show. And if you look at Socially Desi show, it's kind of a, it's a very strategic podcast.

[00:07:31] I have to do a lot of research. I have to get in touch with the right kind of guests for my podcast and curate the whole show. It takes a lot of time and I was able to release only one episode a week because that was the kind of energy that it required. Right. So I had the entire week with me and I thought.

[00:07:50] That there has to be something else that I can really push, into the podcasting world. And that's how, when I was reading a lot of [00:08:00] newspapers and I was reading a lot of, current affairs news on the TV that's when I realized that, there is a gap, when it comes to the current socio-economic or political landscape in India, where you have those traditional media houses.

[00:08:16] who are talking about news politics, right? Social causes or topics that relate to you and I, but they have a very different agenda. I wanted something in the digital space, which can be unbiased, which can be raw and which can be opinionated because, we on our show when, me and Shivam my co-host, when we talk about these topics, first, the way we talk about is that that particular current affair news or anything, anything that we discuss that has to impact you and I on a daily basis, if it doesn't impact Dilip on a daily basis, I will not cover that news.

[00:08:50] So we are not a general news broadcast, kind of a podcast. We don't do that. We pick up a particular topic that we feel impacts the larger, [00:09:00] Indian society. And we take that topic and we discuss about it. We give our raw opinions and we also talk, unapologetically. So I think that is where the Namastey India was envisioned.

[00:09:12] And of course I couldn't do it alone because it's a daily show. So for that, luckily my friend Shivam Garg, he's a DevOps engineer, in a MNC and I reached out to him. He's a fellow gamer, we used to play counter strike together. I met him online. In fact, yeah. I met him online and he did some RJing back in his college days.

[00:09:33] So we were just discussing one day and I told him that, Hey Shivam, this is what I have in mind. Does this sound interesting to you? And he said, wow. Anurag, this is lovely. And even I had something similar in mind, let's do it. And I said, boss, then if we are doing this, then we have to commit to one thing, one thing only, and the commitment that we made to each other was "Kuch

[00:09:55] bhi ho jaaye". Anything happens. We have to release one episode a day. [00:10:00] That was the commitment that we made to each other. And thankfully after 580 days, we are still going on.

[00:10:06] Dilip: Nice. Great. So there are some things that I want to understand about Namastey India, which I'll come to it later. But before that I had two questions that I wanted to check with you.

[00:10:16] First one is that you are a musician, you're a singer and an awesome singer. So.

[00:10:23] Anurag: Thank you,

[00:10:24] Dilip: From singing. I'm not sure if that's something that you, that you're doing, as a side hobby from being a singer and with such a good voice you've ventured into podcasting, entrepreneurship. How did that switch happen?

[00:10:39] Why isn't it that you tried to become a full-time singer considering you have that skill and that ability to hold audience with your voice.

[00:10:48] Anurag: Very, very interesting question Dilip in fact, I started my journey and just after my college, I finished my college in 2012 and just after my [00:11:00] college, I left for Bombay.

[00:11:02] And my friend, a very, very close friend, my dear friend Karan, he and I, we started a duo, which was called Soul Bridge. And the idea was to release our album. So 2012, we shifted to Bombay because we got a call from Yash Raj. We got a meeting call from Yash Raj and they were like, okay, you want to record something with us?

[00:11:21] You come down, let's have a meeting and you know how Yash Raj works. It takes months and months for just to get an appointment with these guys and. Luckily, we got it. And we had to take a decision. Are we staying in Delhi or are we going to Bombay? So for me it was let's go. And, we went to Bombay 2012, worked for six months on our songs that we wanted to record.

[00:11:44] We had a few already scratch tapes made. And we showed it to Yash Raj and Shantanu Hudilkar, the great Shantanu Hudilkar recorded us. He recorded our album at Yash Raj in early, 2013. Okay. And, our first single actually came [00:12:00] out in 2013. We got covered by Rolling Stone, India. And so we did a few gigs at Hard Rock Cafe, but yes, to answer your question, the switch really happened because of two reasons.

[00:12:12] I feel that the, the first reason was that there was a huge shift in the, the consumer style or the kind of listening that they were doing with respect to music in India. So we were a hardcore, rock band. Okay. Okay. So It was a Western English rock band set up that we had, and that was we were already in the minority when it comes to music in India.

[00:12:37] We were already in the minority and that too being a, not even a pop band, we were a rock band. So we had a very few avenues to play at and slowly and steadily, even the, people who are listening to us, if they are, avid music, listeners and followers, they would know that. The scene of music in India really changed from 2013, 14 onwards.

[00:12:59] A lot of hip [00:13:00] hop and rap music came into the being a lot of techno and ADM came into the scene. So rock actually took a backstage, right, with the whole music scene. And that was when, life happened for us. Also, we were working full-time jobs. And, we were not getting that much of opportunities.

[00:13:16] So we thought, we said, you know what? Let's, let's keep our music with us. Or we didn't release the entire album. We released a couple of songs, but then we said, okay, let's see how it goes. Maybe. We don't want to go that route right now. We don't want to go all in right now. So that's how, the whole switch happened from being a full, like the idea was to be a full-time musician, do tours and everything else.

[00:13:41] But then we said, okay, we'll do a shows on the side, but we got to eat. Right. We got to make money. So we did our jobs as well. So jobs became a full-time thing and the music became like a weekend thing.

[00:13:52] Dilip: Right. I can understand. Okay. I think this is something that happens with a lot of [00:14:00] people, because there are a lot of people who are extremely talented.

[00:14:04] While You still were able to at least get that call from Yash Raj films, but I know that there are a lot of people who don't even reach that far. And, at the end of the day, it is like what you said. It's a choice between earning, putting food on your plate, or, following a hard core passion where

[00:14:21] you don't even know, how it is going to be in some time, so I can understand that, that aspect. So coming to the second thing that I wanted to check with you on Anurag and this, I think is a question that a lot of people ask and some of the youngsters that I talked to, this is a question that they too ask.

[00:14:39] You said you quit your job in 2017, right? Yup. And then you, you got full-time into your entrepreneurship, looking at some of the startups and all of those things. So that decision to quit your job and get started with something on your own, what thought process went [00:15:00] into taking

[00:15:00] that decision?

[00:15:01] Anurag: Okay. So I think, a couple of things that happened with me in 2017, one was like I said, in the start of the episode that I was already consulting a lot of brands and a lot of companies with respect to their strategies and their businesses. I was also tinkering while in 2016 and 17, I was tinkering with a couple of ideas that I had in mind, so that the one decision, one of the factors which made me take the leap of faith was that I already had a couple of ideas.

[00:15:31] I had researched on those ideas. I was already making some MVP for that idea. So that I can go to market immediately after I leave my job. So that was one of the aspects. The second aspect was, and I say this to everybody, you should have good money in the bank. And you should at least have a runway of 12 months with you.

[00:15:50] If not 12 months, at least nine months with you. If you are comfortable that for the next nine to 12 months, you will not get that paycheck. You will not get that notification on [00:16:00] your app, that the money has been credited. If you're okay with that, if you can make ends meet for the next nine to 12 months.

[00:16:07] With your MVP already in place. I think these were the major two factors for me to quit my full-time job. I mean, passion is one thing. Purpose is another. So you need to have a clear understanding where you are in your journey. And if, if those things meet for you, at least I think that one of the ways that you can start off, there are a number of different ways that people will tell you, but this is what I feel.

[00:16:32] And this is what made the jump for me easier.

[00:16:36] Dilip: Okay. So sustenance for at least nine to 12 months. Yeah, that is something that you should ideally have planned because otherwise it will become very difficult if you don't have that plan in place. Yeah. Yeah. Right. So, coming to the podcast Anurag, so Namastey India.

[00:16:52] You said it's a daily show and you said you're doing it, along with your friend, but in most of the episodes I've seen the two of you are there [00:17:00] together. So it's not an alternate episode where you are doing one episode and Shivam is doing the other. And, most of these episodes, I saw that the average duration of each of those episodes is around 20 minutes. Creating episode for 20 minutes.

[00:17:16] Even if it is a weekly show, itself is difficult. And a lot of people find it very difficult to run that show, even if it is just one episode in a week. So how are you doing it on a daily basis? And I'm sure after this, after producing the episode there are a set of post-processing, work that is in editing all of those things.

[00:17:38] So, how are you managing it and ensuring that you're able to deliver this episode every

[00:17:42] day?

[00:17:42] Anurag: So, we follow a proper structure. We have a system in place that we have designed over the years. We try to do these shows together almost daily. Sometimes what happens is, if I have some meetings or if I have some other recordings or I'm busy somewhere, [00:18:00] then Shivam will take over.

[00:18:01] And if Shivam is busy somewhere, he has to go somewhere. I takeover. So, but the way I said before, the promise was that every day there has to be an episode which gets released on Namastey india doesn't matter if Anurag is there or not, doesn't matter if Shivam is there or not. So we make sure that we release that.

[00:18:19] So couple of things that we do, one is that we have a set period of time that we spend every day on our podcast. So what we will do is, throughout the day, we will keep WhatsApping each other, regarding the kind of discussions which are happening online with respect to the current affairs news and anything else.

[00:18:38] So we'll WhatsApp each other we'll just brainstorm. So that doesn't take much of your time. So maybe throughout the day, it will take hardly half an hour or one hour of your time to finalize on a particular topic. So that is what we do. We, we then do our independent researches. I'll do my own.

[00:18:55] He'll do his own as per what time permits and in the evening, [00:19:00] somewhere around seven to 9, 9 30, those two hours is what we keep for recording. Finalizing the content or editing the content and releasing it on a hub hopper. So that is how we do it. So we start off with researching. We start off with brainstorming the ideas.

[00:19:18] Then we do our independent researches. Then we fix the time seven to nine. So if in case seven to nine, Anurag is not available. Simply Shivam will take over. And if Shivam is not available Anurag will take over. So we make sure that seven to nine out of both of us, there has to be one person available.

[00:19:35] Yeah. Yeah. So that's how we do it. And for editing for post-processing, I think we have made templates. I use a wonderful software called studio one by PreSonus. I love their software have been using it since 2014. I love the software. We have made templates. We have our plugins set up. I have invested on a few good plugins that really helped me to, speed up the whole [00:20:00] process of post editing.

[00:20:01] So that's how we, ensure that every day there's a episode coming. Okay.

[00:20:07] Dilip: And, so because your show is primarily focused on current affairs, now in a day, there could be a hundred different things that are happening. So how do you decide on what topic to pick and talk about?

[00:20:18] Anurag: So we put ourselves in the shoes of a common man in India, the common general public.

[00:20:23] And we figure out what is that one news that will really impact you and I, on a daily basis. So if that news fits into that bucket, We will put that news, in our priority list. And that's how we do it. We make a list. So let's say, Shivam and I, we brainstorm, we figured out three important topics that happened throughout the day.

[00:20:47] And then in the evening when we sit down, from 7 till 9, that is when we will chop out the rest of the two and we will fix on one. And that's how, sometimes we do a lot of research. We look at articles, we [00:21:00] see how it's being talked about on social media. We also see how it's impacting our nation's economy, our, rapport with respect to the whole world.

[00:21:10] So there are different topics. We analyze them differently. It's very difficult to make a single set of rules for these. So sometimes, we play it by the ear, and we see how things are happening throughout the day and which, particular news or topics. Needs to be addressed, on that day itself.

[00:21:30] Otherwise we take it on the next day.

[00:21:32] Dilip: Okay. And like what I said, when we have to produce one episode in a week, that itself is a lot of pressure with all of the activities that are involved. So doing it every day. How pressured do you feel, how does it impact you from an overall scheduling perspective and how does your mind cope up with it?

[00:21:52] Anurag: God, the initial days were tough. Okay. When we were starting this off, because we were new to podcasting and [00:22:00] the Socially Desi show had a very different style of. Preparing content, right. And we tried to emulate the same thing in Namastey India. And we soon realized that this is not going to work. We cannot put down show notes for each episode everyday.

[00:22:16] Right. That's going to be difficult. So we did that. We initially did that for the first hundred episodes. We actually made scripts every day, right? Not, yeah, we didn't go word by word. We did put out bullet points. We did put out, okay, now I'll say this, you will say that, when will Anurag go, when will, Shivam go first.

[00:22:37] All of those things we tried to manage because we were still new and you got to know that this is all happening virtual, like the way we are recording right now. Right? So we are not sitting next to each other and looking at each other's expressions and understanding who is going to stop now, and who's going to start. So we didn't know.

[00:22:54] At that time. So initially it was really challenging. Like it used to take at least three [00:23:00] hours for us to release an episode every day, three hours. It took us that much amount of time. But, as we kept on releasing, as we kept on talking to each other, I think, between the two of us, there was a nice, like the way we could compliment each other.

[00:23:18] It became very smooth. The transitions became very smooth. I could like, when we are talking right now me and Shivam, I can figure out when he is going to end his sentence and I have to pick it up and he knows when Anurag is going to stop and I have to pick it up. So now we are so much in tune that we don't take more than two hours to release an episode, but yeah, earlier it was more than three hours and it was really taxing on our health, in fact, Some days, we used to feel that, oh God, how, how will we make it through now?

[00:23:49] It's like too much of content. And we have to still release the episode. There has been days, like there has been days when we say that we're going to release it at 10:30, all our episodes, we say,[00:24:00] we'll release it at 10 30 at night. There are days when we have released just at 11 30, 11 45 at night because we got stuck somewhere.

[00:24:08] Or we were not able to finish the episode on time, but we always ensured that, we release it on the same day. So yeah, it was tough, but now we have a good understanding of each other. We don't do scripting anymore. We don't, we just do brainstorming. We pick out the topics that we want to discuss bullet points.

[00:24:27] We make it on our own, keep it with ourselves. And we just talk about the topics. So that's how we go about now, because now after doing 580 episodes, I think we understand each other well, so that's the power of consistency. I believe, the more you invest your time in the art, I think your craft will really, really come out well.

[00:24:49] Yeah. Yep.

[00:24:51] Dilip: So widely, right. We're on the topic of consistency. So if I am to ask you Anurag as to what is that one thingthat you think is [00:25:00] the most important thing in order to ensure that you are consistently producing episodes and you're consistent with whatever it is that you're doing. And considering you are doing it on a daily basis, what is that one thing that, you think according to you is the most important thing to be consistent.

[00:25:17] Anurag: For me as a content creator

[00:25:21] I think the way I do it and I suggest everybody should do it. Is make a calendar and you stick to your calendar. I always believe in note-taking. I always believe in having your to-do list in front of you. So every day I have my to-do list, I have my calendar set and I always go by my calendar. If something is not on my calendar, I will not do it.

[00:25:46] I will not prioritize it. They'll always be days where you'll have to do some ad hoc work. You'll have to put in something in between, but as long as you can maintain your calendar. You can have a to-do list in front of you trust me,[00:26:00] all the, hassle around your content creation, all the challenges, they will fade out.

[00:26:06] And I've realized this in the last couple of years, and we have released over 10,000 minutes of content. And after releasing that content. I can really tell you this, that if you have a to-do list and your calendar set, trust me, your mind your mental space will be so de-cluttered that, you will automatically be consistent with your content because you will know exactly when, what is happening in your day.

[00:26:33] So I think for me, the number one thing that has worked for me is, making a calendar, sticking to a calendar, making a to-do list. Everything has to be written. Everything has to be on there in front of me on an app or on a screen so that I know exactly how my day's going. And of course, you always have those contingency plans, and that you can fit in, but that doesn't really change much.

[00:26:57] That's like what? 10%? 15% of the day. [00:27:00] But the rest of your day is actually in your control. So that is what I would suggest everybody to really look at when it comes to being consistent with your content

[00:27:12] Dilip: Staying organized. Okay.

[00:27:13] Anurag: Yeah, yeah 100%..

[00:27:15] Dilip: And are there any specific apps that you use to kind of stay organized?

[00:27:22] Anything that you follow? How do you kind of stay organized

[00:27:26] Anurag: Oh! For sure, I use, this free app called Anydo. It's what do you say, platform agnostic app. So any platform that you use, Anydo app will work on it, Android, iOS, Mac, whatever it is. I use that for all my note taking, all my tasks, it syncs it across all my devices. So that I know And I'm on top of things. Apart from that, I use, the simple Google calendar, for all the meetings. I haven't really started using Calendly. A lot of people told me to use Calendly for a lot of meetings and all of that, but I don't know. [00:28:00] Do you use Calendly? Have you used it?

[00:28:02] Dilip: No. I use a different app, which is very similar to that of Calendly.

[00:28:07] This is called as TidyCal.

[00:28:09] Anurag: So I've heard about it. Yeah. That

[00:28:12] Dilip: that was available on AppSumo. There was a lifetime deal. So I had gone in there till that time I was using Calendly, but then I switched over to Tidy Cal because it was very simple to use and it was a lifetime subscription that I got there.

[00:28:25] So I switched over.

[00:28:27] Anurag: Yeah. So I think, I think, these are some of the tools that I use on a, on a daily basis. Apart from that, what I've done is, for all my scripting, for all the content calendars I've made Excel sheets, I've made the Google docs and all of that. So it's just a one time job that you have to do.

[00:28:46] And then everything else is just plug and play. So these are a couple of things that I use on a daily. Yeah, I think these are more than enough. It's just about figuring out what works. You can always use, there are [00:29:00] management tools like Asana or Clickup. I've used them. I've tried them out, but I feel that if you're not working in a big team, if you are just, an independent content creator, you don't really need to go that route.

[00:29:15] You can just be happy with the Google spreadsheet and docs and everything else. But yeah, I mean, these other tools are great when you start collaborating, when your team gets bigger, that is when these other tools really help.

[00:29:28] Dilip: Yeah. So coming back to the content now, in some of the discussions that I've had with a few people who wanted to get started with podcasting, and they were specifically looking to start something that is similar to a news broadcast every day.

[00:29:42] So. There were a couple of questions that came up and I think for your content also for your podcast Namastey India, also, these aspects would be relevant. That's why I thought I'll check with you on that. So the shelf life of content as such is decreasing. And, people are now focused on [00:30:00] generating evergreen content because that stays for long, and that is relevant even if it is maybe, one year from now or two years from now, But for something like that, or for show that talks about current affairs, like, for example, Namastey India.

[00:30:15] Yeah. So this is something that is relevant to today and maybe 10 days from now, or 15 days from now, after which the content, that content has died. So with so much of content that you are generating, have you ever thought about, the shelf life of your content or all of the efforts that you're putting in maybe one year or two years from now, some of those episodes might just not even be relevant.

[00:30:37] So have you thought about it and felt that asked yourself if this is the right thing that you should be doing?

[00:30:42] Anurag: I think it's a very valid question Dilip. The shelf life of content is actually decreasing. That's a fact, but I think what's happening is as an when the whole audio 2.0, the whole SEO of audio will get more deeply integrated into the [00:31:00] search engines.

[00:31:00] Your content will start to resurface. So if you look at NamasteyIndia, we cover a lot of current affairs. Yes, we do a lot of, topics that I know will not be relevant. One month down the line or 10 days down the line, but we also cover lots of episodes, which will actually live there for at least one year.

[00:31:22] I know it, but it's just that right now the integration, the deep integration of audio has not been done on the search engines. That's why it's taking a bit of time. Now, to your other question. Yes. We have thought about it a lot that, we are working on our podcast episodes every day.

[00:31:42] We are spending so much time on it. So much of energy efforts on marketing it, releasing it. And we know that some of this will not stay there forever, but what we are doing is we are generating a good loyal fan base. We are generating a good loyal listener base who knows that [00:32:00] if they want to have some bite-sized information on a daily basis regarding news, current affairs or anything that impacts them on a daily basis, all they need to do is

[00:32:10] switch to Namastey India and we'll take care of it. So we don't expect people to binge listen to all our episodes. We don't do that. We know that anybody who's going to listen to our episode is might listen to one or two episodes in one go. They will not go beyond that. We know that.

[00:32:25] And our analytics also show that, but interestingly, you won't believe. There are a few episodes like this one episode which we did in the start of this year, that episode still gets us views. You won't believe that. It's crazy. Okay. Yeah. I mean, this is really crazy. We did one on, so I'll tell you exactly what that episode was.

[00:32:46] Just give me a second. That episode was on, This was on air pollution and the episode is called "Saans mein teri saans mili to". So we named it. Yeah. So we named it very funnily, and we named it.[00:33:00] And, it was on air pollution episode number 182 or something, 182, 183. That episode, because we talk about air pollution.

[00:33:09] We talk about the weather in Delhi, how it's degrading, it's still getting views, till date. And it's a year old episode. We've launched it in the start of 2021. So I think yes, what we do, with Namastey India, a lot of the content people will not hear it again, but there's always these kinds of episodes that we know with more deep integration of audio into the SEO and, search spaces.

[00:33:38] We will get the returns later.

[00:33:40] Dilip: So if I put it this way, your show, you creating episodes on current affairs at the same time, you're also picking some topics, which is not only relevant for today, but could be relevant for maybe two or four years from now, which could be a social topic, which is in discussion today.

[00:33:59] So you're [00:34:00] picking those kinds of topics, which are acting as the evergreen content for your show. So if I put it that way, will I be right?,

[00:34:06] Anurag: Absolutely bang on. That's how we do it, because we also know that if let's say during Diwali generally the pollution levels go higher. Right. We know that. So if we take the current affair, which is, why it's happening.

[00:34:23] And we build on top of it and we create an evergreen content. Why not? So I think for every creator out there, if you are doing current affairs, if you are doing something, which is a viral right now, how do you ensure that the viral content that you see right now can actually give you good mileage in the future?

[00:34:42] That is what you need to think as a content creator. If you can brainstorm and bridge your evergreen content with the viral content that you're doing. I think with any niche you can create long lasting content.

[00:34:56] Dilip: Right? Excellent. That's a very good strategy. And I think for a [00:35:00] lot of people who are looking at creating news-based podcasts, I think this is something that.

[00:35:05] They can implement it because that way, the content stays there is a longer shelf life for the content. And still you're able to build that audience that bring in that virality to the content because of the trends that you're picking up on a daily basis.

[00:35:19] Anurag: Yeah. Yeah. And you don't have to do it daily.

[00:35:22] Like see, we are doing it daily because we are two of us and we have gotten used to it. And out of the two, I am a full-time content creator. Okay. So I can give that much of time. And sometimes for others, it may not be the case. So I think people listening, you don't have to be a daily podcaster and release episodes on a daily basis, but whatever you are releasing.

[00:35:47] It has to be relevant. It has to be something captivating and that can live on the platforms for a longer period of time. So even if it's weekly, make sure that, you follow some of these strategies and do your [00:36:00] own thing. I think the idea is that, create your own concoction of the formula and release it.

[00:36:04] Dilip: Okay, wonderful. So now coming back to your other show which is Socially Desi, and I think you are the only one who's hosting it. So, and there are guests from a variety of different topics, different, fields that are coming onto the show. So how do you pick your guests? How do you decide on what to do, which episode to do and what is that entire process like?

[00:36:28] Anurag: With Socially Desi. The strategies is very different from the Namastey India. So like I said, with the Socially Desi show, I have to reach out to my guests. I have to prepare a show flow. I have to decide on topics. And then we have to record do the initial introductory call and all of that. So it takes a lot of time in generally it takes around a month.

[00:36:52] For me to release one episode with one guest, and then I'm doing that parallely with multiple guests. So on a daily [00:37:00] basis, I'm talking to somebody or the other. So that is what is happening with the Socially Desi show. For that particular show, the way we start is I don't generally have a prefixed idea in my mind.

[00:37:12] So to answer your question, I don't really, do a content calendar for the topics that I would like to cover. What I do instead is, I have six major Pillars for the Socially Desi show, which are your personal development, relationships, business, and entrepreneurship, health, and fitness and mental health.

[00:37:32] These are the six major pillars. What I do is when I'm searching for a guest, when I'm researching on a particular thought leader or somebody who is a founder of a startup who is doing something in that space out of the six pillars. I will try to then figure out what kind of topics are relevant in today's time and how can that particular guest compliment that particular theme that I have.[00:38:00]

[00:38:00] So if the two matches, then of course, I reach out to them. I get them on the show. We talk about a couple of ideas and we zero down on one. And then, the whole process of recording and releasing happens. So it's a lengthy process. It takes a bit of time, but at the end of the day, I try to, that's my mantra for the Socially Desi show that, the guest is not the center of stage on my show.

[00:38:25] The topic is, and the guest and the host need to compliment that topic.

[00:38:29] Dilip: And these podcasts are completely different from the blog posts that are there on Socially Desi. I was reading through some of the blog posts as well. So who is responsible for all of the written content on Socially Desi

[00:38:40] Anurag: Socially Desi, we have two different formats.

[00:38:43] One is the featured guests. So a lot of, featured guests, people who are thought leaders or writers or authors. We reach out to them and we tell them that, these are our six pillars. And would you be interested in writing anything under these? And [00:39:00] some of them, have happily contributed.

[00:39:02] So these are all contributed blog posts. The other category that we have is mostly written by me. Some of them were written by my team, some of them, were helped by other content creators. So we have all sorts of content, but at the end of the day, there are so many other platforms who release a user generated content.

[00:39:21] But for us, the USP is that we take, responsibility of the content, which is there on our website when we release it. Even if it's an author who is releasing the content, we read it through, we ask them to make changes if you don't feel like it. And then at the end, The end product is what is tested and reviewed by us.

[00:39:41] That is what goes on the website. So that's how it is. But yeah, the six major pillars they remain the same. So the whole Socially Desi universe revolves around those six pillars, be it the podcasts or the written content.

[00:39:55] Dilip: Okay. So if I'm to ask you Anurag, how much time do you put in [00:40:00] every day on, the blog, these Socially Desi podcasts, Namastey India so how, how does that day look like?

[00:40:08] How many hours do you put in every day?

[00:40:10] Anurag: Oh, God, I seriously don't count, but I think from morning, till late night is what I'm dedicated on Socially Desi, because if you look at the blogs, we have reduced the, the frequency of the blogs. Earlier it was almost every day. And, from there it shifted to weekly.

[00:40:30] Now it's monthly. We do one or two blogs in a month. That is how we go about it, because a lot of our energy is going into the Socially Desi show and Namastey India. But yeah, my day generally starts off with, I go to the gym, if I can in the morning then yeah, once I'm back. I look again, I look at my calendar, what all meetings are there.

[00:40:49] I attend those meetings. We create the show flows. If there are any recordings we do that. I also consult a lot of brands and startup founders, with respect to their [00:41:00] branding, with respect to their social media and all of that. So I helped them out as well. So I have a few clients who work with me on the side.

[00:41:07] So that's kind of a thing which is happening as well. So that takes up a few chunks of my day. And then again, during the evening you have Namastey India. And again, if there are anything left for Socially Desi, that also goes on. So for me, Socially Desi is the universe. That is where everything happens.

[00:41:26] And, and I try to. Yeah. I try to manage my life around Socially Desi.

[00:41:32] Dilip: Socially Desi, is a very thought provoking podcast as well. There are a lot of those topics that, when I listened to some of these topics, it makes you think so that way, I think it's a very interesting podcast to listen to.

[00:41:45] And at the same time, very thought provoking as well. So yeah, I can understand the energy that you're putting in there.

[00:41:51] Anurag: Well, thank you so much. I'm glad, you liked the episode and that's the idea. We want people to listen to conversations that are [00:42:00] not at 30,000 feet. We don't want conversations at 30,000 feet.

[00:42:04] We want conversations that are in the ground level. And people can take something out of those conversations because at the end of the day, as a podcaster, I have to respect your time, also. If you are giving me your 30 minutes or 40 minutes, which is a huge ask in today's time. If I'm asking you your time, I have to deliver some value to you.

[00:42:28] So if I can do that in the whole process, then that makes me happy. So, yeah. Like it.

[00:42:34] Dilip: Okay. So, coming to the final question that I have on your podcast. So what are your promotional methods? How do you promote both of these shows.

[00:42:46] Anurag: Generally? With promotions, See we are not very huge on social media, we use our social handles just for announcements.

[00:42:56] So if you look at Socially Desi, Namastey India, we have very few followings [00:43:00] on social media because we are just putting out releases. We are putting out some collaborations, we're putting out some campaigns. So that is one. So with promotions, most of our promotions happen on Facebook groups, on WhatsApp groups.

[00:43:16] We talk to the community manager of these, podcast streaming platforms, right? If there is any important, podcast, which is coming out, we reach out to them. And we ask them that, Hey, I'm doing this X, Y, Z episode with X, Y, Z. And, would you, can you help us out with a banner space or can you help us out with a, with an email notification or an app push notification, something like that?

[00:43:41] That is how we do it because that's, that's more organic, but that's how you reach out to the real listeners. And this is one thing that through your podcast, I would like to tell all the content creators out there. Don't feel shy in asking people for promotions. I [00:44:00] see this, people feel shy that, oh, why should I reach out to that community manager?

[00:44:04] What will she think? I'm a small podcaster. It doesn't really happen. I've reached out to community managers for help when I had 10 listens in total. So it doesn't really matter. Yeah. It doesn't matter because if your content is good and if you can show them value, why should your banner be there in front of their app.

[00:44:26] If you can show that value to them, trust me, they will not ask you. Who are you or how many followers you have or how many listens you have on your podcast. So I think that's one thing you have to put yourself out, and these are our major promotional activities that we do we reach out to community managers, we reach out to these platforms.

[00:44:47] And we also, I have a small email list that I sent out to all my subscribers. So I send them all the new details, all the new episodes, which are coming out. So, but yeah, but we're not, not very high on social [00:45:00] media. Social media is just a communication platform for us.

[00:45:03] Dilip: Finally, if I'm to ask you to give

[00:45:07] two tips to the listeners who are looking to get started with the podcast. What will those two be?

[00:45:13] Anurag: If you are starting with your podcast, the number one tip that I can give you right now is you need to understand why are you making your podcast? What is that one thing that you want to showcase? Right. So if let's say, for example, if I'm passionate about cricket, right.

[00:45:36] Then if I can translate the passion that I have about cricket into an audio show, and I can bring in people who are also passionate about cricket and give them the similar experience of enjoying a cricket match, or maybe enjoying a cricket commentary. That is where your strength lies in making that content.

[00:45:59] So, [00:46:00] number one tip is why you want to make that podcast. What is your why? If you can figure that out. Do some research. Not, not, it's not that just because I like wearing clothes doesn't mean I have to make a podcast about fashion. It's not like that. So you have to think a bit deeper because if you don't think it through, what's going to happen is let's say, okay, I love wearing clothes, winter clothes.

[00:46:24] I make a podcast on fashion. One month down the line after releasing four or five episodes, I will somewhere lose my focus. I will lose my motivation. And then pod-fading will start. Right? So starting a podcast is easy, but maintaining and seeing it through is difficult. So that is the number one tip you need to figure out what's your why.

[00:46:50] If you can figure that out. And you can talk to anybody. You can talk to me, you can talk to Dilip guys. You can talk to anybody, just ask them that. How can [00:47:00] you get started? I think that is number one. What is that one thing you want to talk about? So that is tip number one. Tip number two for sure, is what we discussed earlier.

[00:47:11] You have to manage your time. You have to get organized and there has to be a set calendar, content calendar, make a content calendar so that you don't feel like a you don't go to the next week feeling that I don't have a content, right. And that is another major factor of people leaving their podcasts, not making and releasing their episodes.

[00:47:35] Because initial four or five days. They have a lot of energy. They'll make a few podcast episodes and then they'll go onto the next week and they'll have nothing. It will be dry. And they'll feel like I don't have anything for this week. What should I do? And that's where the whole demotivational thoughts come into your mind and you stop making podcasts.

[00:47:54] So I think you need to have a content calendar in place at least a month [00:48:00] calendar. Make a month calendar in advance. And so that you can always modify it. It's okay to modify your calendar, but at least have something in front of you so that, at the back of your mind, your subconscious mind is feeling okay that you have something in front of you.

[00:48:14] So I think these will be my two immediate tips for anybody who has just started or who is planning to start.

[00:48:21] Dilip: I think, some of the basics, staying organized, having a purpose. I think these are some of the basics, but at the same time, some of the most important things in order to ensure that you're consistently there generating content.

[00:48:35] So, yeah. So out of curiosity, one question that I had your Instagram handle is a Anurag foxtail. What's foxtail?

[00:48:44] Anurag: Foxtail was my first venture, in 2017. It was a bridge to luxury, accesories brand. Okay. I had started, we made a leather bags and accessories for men and women. Yeah. Unisex, bags and all of that.

[00:48:59] So [00:49:00] that's how the name was foxtail, because if you look at a Fox, the most beautiful part of a Fox is the tail. Yeah. So, for me, my brand foxtail was that , this is going to be the most beautiful part of your body that you take around. Right. So generally a bag and all is hanging, right?

[00:49:19] So like the tail of a Fox, right? So that's how the whole name foxtail came. And it has stuck even though that company is closed, but the name has stood there.

[00:49:31] Dilip: Okay. Nice, very interesting conversation and a lot of insightful tips Anurag, thanks a lot for joining me on the Podcasting University and talking to us about your podcasting journey and giving all of these tips.

[00:49:46] Thank you.

[00:49:47] Anurag: Thank you. Dilip and thank you to all the audiences who have listened to us for more than 50 minutes now. Thank you so much. If you have made it so far. I'm really obliged. And thank you Dilip, again for having me as a [00:50:00] guest and I look forward. Thank you.

[00:50:02] Dilip: Thanks Anurag. You have a wonderful day.

[00:50:04] Anurag: You too. Take care.

[00:50:06] Dilip: Bye. I hope you enjoyed this conversation with Anurag. If you did and I'm sure you will enjoy some of the previous conversations that I've had with some of the best in the podcasting industry. So do tune into the earlier episodes of the Podcasting University and give it a listen.

[00:50:22] If you're new to this show, then don't forget to subscribe to The Podcasting University on your favorite podcasting platform, because that way you will stay updated with the latest episodes that I come out with. We are available on pretty much all podcasting platforms, including apple podcasts, Google podcasts, Stitcher radio, TuneIn Radio, Hubhopper,Spotify, Jio Saavn.

[00:50:42] And now we are also available on Amazon prime music as well. Do visit the podcasting university.com for all the show notes and downloadable transcript. You will also be able to download a free checklist, a free checklist that will give you theframework and the step-by-step process to getting started [00:51:00] with your own podcast.

[00:51:02] That is all that I have for this episode. Keep listening to the podcasting university. I'll be back again in a couple of weeks with another interesting conversation until then you all have a wonderful rest of the [00:52:00] week.

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