How to market a podcast

I got asked to give a high-level answer to this question on Quora. 

My response is quite generic – the process applies to any marketing project – the detail of the methodology in each step is where each will differ.
The questioner was asking about a “new music podcast”.

Who is your podcast audience?

• What type of music, where do people find and listen to this music already e.g. live gigs, Pandora / Spotify, radio shows. Find named bands who represent this genre; find discussion forums (Reddit, Facebook, Quora) where people discuss this genre.
• Create a persona for your ideal listener – age, type of music liked, why they listen, how they listen, when they listen.
• Research media you can use for advertising (paid); content sharing on social (earned) and media you create like a blog or newsletter (owned).
  
• Draw up a list of collaborators and joint venture partners.
• Create a media pack for your podcast; download media packs from other media you want to use.
• Plan your pre-launch; launch and ongoing marketing tactics so that you get your podcast name, branding, content in front of your ideal persona listener at a price point you can afford.
• Measure what you do and the return on investment of your marketing.

In summary, you have a choice to either work it out for yourself as you go along or to buy advice from a marketing expert who understands podcasts is going to shortcut your learning; improve your outcomes and save you money in the long term.

If you scope the engagement well, you can collaborate with an advisor on the understanding that knowledge transfer is part of the project – you are being taught how to do the marketing yourself.