Smash Notes
How I Made $8,000 per Month Podcasting, and Why You Probably Don’t Want To

Disrupting Japan: Startups and Innovation in Japan

How I Made $8,000 per Month Podcasting, and Why You Probably Don’t Want To

This is a rather personal episode. We have no guests this time. It’s just you and me. New listeners might not know that for about one year, Disrupting Japan was sponsored and was my primary source of income. So today, rather than diving deep into a specific aspect of startups in Japan, I thought I would share the history of Disrupting Japan itself, about…

Notes

  1. How Many Listeners Can I Expect for My Podcast at 1:15

    As of this writing in May 2019, Disrupting Japan podcast gets 10,000 listeners in 116 countries. That is after doing 147 episodes over multiple years. Full answer

  2. What Does Tim Romero Say Podcasting Is Like in Japan? at 2:14

    Japan is a hard place to launch an independent show. Full answer

  3. What Is the Disrupting Japan Podcast All About at 2:28

    It was supposed to be Tim Romero talking with his founder friends, talking about what it is like to be an innovator in a culture that prizes conformity. Full answer

  4. Why Trade Podcast Polish for Honest Talks? at 4:21

    Sacrifice production quality and "professionalism" if that means you could get honest and personal conversations that will resonate with your listeners. Full answer

  5. How Can I Grow Listener Numbers for My Podcast at 7:29

    The most effective way to grow is via interactions - find a handful of LinkedIn and Facebook groups and connect with people yearning for your content. Full answer

  6. How Do You Find Sponsors for Your Podcast at 10:16

    Figure out who your audience is and then really understand who are the companies that would like to connect with this audience. Full answer

  7. What Do Podcast Sponsors Really Pay Money for at 11:17

    Clicks and listens are great, but they are a commodity product which makes it a perfectly competitive market for you, and does not differentiate your… Full answer

  8. Should a Podcaster Do Live Events, According to Tim Romero? at 12:15

    Yes, if you can give them the hours. Full answer

  9. What Advice Do You Have for Aspiring Podcasters at 12:47

    Be prepared to spend as much time on your advertisers as you do on the podcast itself. Full answer

  10. Should I Hire an Agency to Find Podcast Advertisers for Me at 13:13

    It is tempting to let someone bring sponsors to you, but at the end, your sponsorship and ad rates are proportional to how much effort you are willing to put… Full answer

  11. How Is a Podcaster Different From a Podcast Creator? at 19:48

    Podcasters are professionals for whom the medium is the message. Full answer

  12. What Are the Benefits of Podcasting at 20:35

    Podcasting lets you tell stories that cannot be told in any other medium. Full answer

  13. How Can I Have a Meaningful Conversation With People at 21:21

    It is hard to get people to go off script, particularly if they are not speaking in their native language, or trained to speak in front of a microphone. Full answer

  14. Why Does Tim Romero Say Honest Stories Work Better Than a Polished Interview? at 24:17

    Because people open up only after you go first. On Disrupting Japan, Tim Romero says guests froze when he rented a studio and put a microphone in their faces. Full answer

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