The Podcast is on Pandora
Why this was so important to me
I had the dream about Hearts of Gold, my podcast where I showcase Gold Award Girl Scouts, for a very long time. Although the show may expand awareness of the Girl Scout Gold Award, the main reason was to have Girl Scouts that have earned the Gold Award share their stories in order to encourage other Girl Scouts to work towards their Gold Award.
Since the girls are my focus for the show, I wanted to make sure it would be valuable to them. One thing I did as preparation in deciding the format of the show and how to present it was to talk to Girl Scouts at the Girl Scout convention in Columbus in 2017. I received a lot of great feedback and is why it is on both YouTube as an actual video recording as well as a podcast.
However, what I was surprised about – and why it is so important to talk to the end users of whatever you are creating – is the show should be on Pandora. I heard this from more than one Girl Scout, so it really struck me as important.
At the time, Pandora wasn’t hosting podcasts, so I wasn’t sure how to get the show to become available. Instead, I focused on the pieces that I could work on. Knowing my audience is mostly high school age – and that I am not that age – I wanted to make sure I was working with someone that would have a better feel for what that age group looks for when choosing their audio and visual entertainment.
I tried reaching out to high school girls that had an interest in editing. I connected with Guidance Counselors and Technology teachers in local high schools, posted on Facebook, and posted on the job boards at the state technical schools. Believe it or not, I was not able to drum up any interest. I was willing to pay for the service and understood editing may be a new experience and still wasn’t successful. I reached out to a podcast I listen to when they talked about their high school aged son having an interest in video and again wasn’t successful.
I did a test video and tried editing it and realized that although I can edit audio, video is a different beast and I needed help. About six months after I started the search, another podcast I listen to talked about their son who had started an editing business. Walter and I were able to come to an agreement for services and he has been amazing to work with. I am so thankful for his willingness to work with me and help me create a program I am proud to share into the world.
Back to Pandora. In November 2018, Pandora and Libsyn (my podcast host – a service I am also very thankful for) announced the launch of a partnership to have podcasts on Pandora. I applied but did not make the beta testing for this partnership. Then, at the end of April, I received word my podcasts (I have two – the other is my more personal sharing regarding life Sensory Strides) had been accepted by Pandora. I completed the next required steps and then waited again. I had been told it could be a few weeks before the show would appear in search on Pandora. Then last week, as I was making one more check to see if it was listed before I emailed to get a status update from support at Libsyn, THERE IT WAS! I was so excited as I felt I had filled a request from the audience.
Even as we age, some of the same skills Gold Award Girl Scouts strengthen – perseverance, using different connections or resources to get to a solution, and patience – are still important.