Ana Patricia Bourgeois has always wanted to be in the world of television and radio, but she didn’t know how to make that happen. Equipped with passion and desire to get into the industry, Ana found her way to podcasting.
Ana Patricia Bourgeois is a certified business coach for ambitious women who desire to have it all and the host of The Powerful Female Leaders Podcast. A podcast for all female entrepreneurs who are ready to up-level, generate consistent wealth, increase their confidence, attract dream clients, create an impact, and master their mindset.
In this episode, Ana shares her journey and how she found her place in empowering women through podcasting. Her mission is to empower women from all walks of life to gain clarity & confidence in their purpose so that they can start profitable online businesses from a place of alignment & passion.
How And Why Ana Patricia Started A Podcast
Anne: I’m so excited to talk about podcasting! You have more than 150 episodes in, so you have been podcasting for a while. Can you take us back? How and why did you start a podcast?
Ana: That’s such a great question! I think it goes back to my university days when I want to be in the world of media. I wanted to be on the radio or television, but I didn’t know how to make it happen. I was passionate about communications and that’s what I graduated in.
At the end of my degree, I did an internship in a digital marketing agency. And that’s when I learned about social media and the online world. And I realized that a lot of people had podcasts and I kept that in the back of my mind. I thought maybe I should come back to this when I’m ready to do it.
Then, I had my agency and that didn’t work. I pivoted into coaching instead and got certified. I switched niches a few times to find what my calling was and found out it was business coaching, social media, helping women and empowering women, and being financially free. I then had my brand, my own Facebook group. I was becoming well-established I was growing my audience. It was then that I realized I wanted to pursue podcasting.
With some doubts in my mind, I still gave it a try and it honestly blew my mind. I had many requests every single day, people wanting to collaborate, people wanting to be on the show. I didn’t do any outreaches but people came to me. It was all organic and I’ve met so many incredible women. I learned so many things, and I’ve become a better coach, and a better human because of the podcast. It truly changed my life.
Anne: Awesome! I think it’s also very relatable that you felt you needed to get clear on your message before you started your podcast. Would you say it changed since you started?
Ana: Not really, because I feel like the mission is still the same. It’s still about giving women a platform to share their stories, share how they grew into the women they are today, how they overcame their challenges, and the things that you do to create their freedom and their abundance.
And it’s just incredibly inspiring. It’s also about the collaborative and connection side too. I’ve grown my network. People have been referring me and I’ve gotten clients. I feel like the mission is still the same, but every single interview is different in a way.
Anne: Yes. And I also heard you say this as well. For me, they were unexpected opportunities because I got clients and I expected that to be a result.
I got some clients, but for me, it was different. It was another step that people take. Not like the whole top of the funnel, but a nurturing, lead, and a good podcast. And like you mentioned, networking. I think that’s also a really good outcome of podcasts.
Ana: Yes. And another good outcome from this too is I realized a lot of other women were asking questions like, how to start their podcast? How did I do it? Or what are the steps to take? It was so confusing and overwhelming for them and that gave me the idea to start my mini-course, to show women how to do it.
Many things happen from just starting a podcast. If this is on your mind, if this is one of your goals, go and do it, and you won’t regret it.
What Changed Since She Started The Podcast?
Anne: What changed since the start of the podcast? You mentioned the mission and format have been working well for you. But did you also make smaller improvements or maybe big improvements as you went through releasing more than 150 episodes?
Ana: I think the change for me was more personal. I feel like my interview style and my questions have gotten better. And that’s the feedback that I always get. Personally, I grew so much for sure.
Ana’s Tips For New Podcasters
Anne: What would you say to other podcasters or maybe newer podcasters? Could you give them a tip?
Ana: There’s so many things. Like I created a course for it but I think the biggest thing is to realize that it’s not going to be perfect the first time you do it. Your first episode, won’t be perfect. Your first guest interview, won’t be perfect. We have this image in our head that we need to be a hundred percent ready, a hundred percent like knowing exactly what we’re going to do, what it’s going to look like and we have these expectations.
But going and doing it, is completely different. So if you can release those expectations, release the pressure to be perfect, and just focus on doing the best you can. And realizing that by doing what you’re doing now will impact so many lives and you’re going to help so many people.
That’s what you have to focus on. The impact you’re making, rather than saying the perfect thing, looking the perfect way, having the perfect cover, and the perfect intro. All these little things you can tweak along the way. So don’t stress so much about it.
What Is Your Advice To Business Owners?
Anne: In your business coaching, do you advise business owners to always start a podcast, or do you say like maybe it’s not for everyone?
Ana: That’s a really good question. I think it truly depends on what your goals are. And what your vision is and what your mission is. Everyone is different, everyone has different goals, different visions. And if this resonates, if podcasting is something you’ve always been curious about, if you love talking, if you love meeting people, then yes, there’s a way to integrate it in your strategy for sure.
If you like doing a webinar, doing challenges, writing a blog, whatever you’re passionate about. Do that because your energy will be different. Your intentions will be different and people can feel it when you’re not a hundred percent passionate or a hundred percent committed.
And podcasting is a long-term game. It’s going to take a lot of commitment, a lot of focus, and dedication. So if you’re not passionate, to begin with, I wouldn’t recommend you go into it.
Anne: Right. Having a few episodes and having a podcast is pretty cool. But think the real magic happens when you just keep doing it. If you’re one year, two years, three years in, I think then you really have that compounding effect.
How To Grow Your Audience
Anne: Is it a goal for you to also grow your audience?
Ana: Of course, because the more people that listen the better, it can create the more impact. And that’s always been the mission. And I think that the easiest way to do that is to do a podcast website. We’re going into other people’s audiences and sharing values. I think that’s the easiest and funniest way to do it.
I also have a few other lead magnets and things that I do. Ultimately it’s about connections and collaborations that truly grow an audience.
Anne: You mentioned lead magnets. Does that mean that in a lead magnet, you also refer to your podcast, or how does that work?
Ana: Yes, exactly. In every call to action, I do add my group, my podcast, my Instagram page, and all my links. So when people join my group, for example, I asked them questions like, where did you hear about this group? And they tell me your podcasts. Right. So I know exactly where my people are coming from. And I know the podcast is a huge part of it.
Anne: And you also mentioned that you never really reach out to guests anymore, they reach out to you. How can other podcasters also achieve this?
Ana: I think this is one of the reasons why I waited until I started the podcast. When I started the podcast, I think I already had about 5,000 followers on Instagram. I already had an audience base and I told myself if I do this, I’ll put the intention in the universe that people are going to reach out to me. I won’t have to stress about finding guests and that’s exactly what happened.
I feel like you have to decide what you want it to look like. What’s going to happen from there and trust that it will happen like that, and that’s exactly what happened. If you have the chance to build an audience first on social media, do that, and it’s going to be easier to grow your podcast.
Truly build an audience first, before even starting a podcast. But I think the other thing is I talk a lot about it too I talk about my podcasts every day and my stories on my feed. I have an Instagram page just for the podcast and I post on that page every single day. I think that also creates awareness and makes people want to be on there too.
If you’re passionate about it, if you love what you do, you’re going to not shut up about it. You’re going to talk about it every single day.
How To Convert Instagram Followers To Podcast Listeners
Ana: I think part of the reason why it works so well is that my target is women in business. And women in business are always driven by personal development. Driven by how they can be better, how they can improve their mindset, how they can make more money, and how they can find more clients. And if you give them these on a silver platter, this podcast that teaches them how to do it, mistakes to avoid, you are giving them all this value.
And I think that’s what we have to remember when we’re podcasting is that there’s people on the other side who are listening. They should be able to resonate with you. That’s going to help them move forward in their day-to-day lives and get the results that they want to get.
I feel like it’s so important to know who your audience is and to reach out to them and tell them, look, I know what you’re going through, here’s my podcast. I’ll teach you how to do this. It’s about being intentional about who we’re reaching what we’re sharing and the value we’re giving. It makes all of the difference.
Anne: That makes total sense. So your audience is on Instagram and they can find your podcast there. But maybe someone else’s audience is not necessarily on Instagram, they could be on Twitter or maybe they’re not on social media at all, and you have to find different ways to reach these people.
Anne: I’m everywhere.
How To Repurpose Your Podcast
Anne: Being everywhere can be a lot of work, but can also mean that you repurpose your podcast really well.
Ana: I’m the queen of repurposing. Every single piece of content I write, every single live stream, every single podcast episode. Whatever it is, I always make sure that I repurpose that in five different formats, five different platforms. I don’t reinvent the wheel every single day.
I also repost old posts that did really well, that performed really well. I don’t spend too much time worrying about what am I going to post because I have so much content that I can just repurpose. and I think that’s the most valuable thing to listen to right now. If you have old posts that you haven’t posted in a while, repost them.
Anne: That is interesting. I already thought that you would repurpose your content and it’s really something that keeps coming up in these interviews. But it’s true, you just got to make your life easy but only if you do this because otherwise, it is a full-time job on its own to create all that content.
The Connections That You Make Might Be The Most Important Thing
Anne: You mentioned that the connections that you make with guests might be the most important thing.
Ana: Yes, it’s everything. The sooner you can get to know the person really well and grow that relationship, the sooner you’re planting all those seeds and they’re going to sprout. Maybe it’s not going to be tomorrow or next month, you’ll never know when that connection is going to flourish. And they’re going to send you referrals, or they’re going to invite you on other interviews or they’re gonna introduce you to someone else who can help or there’s so many things that could go. You need to get out of your head and meet new people every single day.
I encourage you to go out today, reach out to someone, start a conversation, and get to know people, and it’s going to be more organic. And you’re going to notice a difference too, in your engagement and your growth.
What To Expect
Anne: Ana what can we expect out of the podcast? Is anything exciting coming up that we should definitely check?
Ana: I like that! I think we’re going to go to season three, maybe not now, but in the near future. We’re in season two right now, and it’s honestly doing and performing way better than season one. So it keeps growing and growing and growing. With each and every season, it’s going to be another explosion.
I’m just really excited for the future and what’s coming. All of the amazing guests, I’m booked out three months in advance right now. It’s just crazy, but I love it.
Anne: Why do you think that there is a change between season one and season two? Is there anything that you do differently or is there a big launch?
Ana: What I did differently is I actually took a break in December. I was pumping out two episodes every week and I felt like I needed a break. And when I came back, it was like this renewed energy and passion.
And I feel like the intention and focus and energy were different. So the results are different. So taking that break truly gave me that new breath of fresh air, but it’s also the hype and excitement. A combination of two things.
Where To Find Ana
Anne: Cool! Can you share where people can find the podcast? Also if they want to know more about you and about what you do as a business coach, share all the links, please.
Ana: You can find the podcast on all major platforms. I’m on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Google, and every major platform you listen to podcasts on I’m on there, The Powerful Female Leaders Podcast.
You can also find me on Instagram, and my Facebook group, The Powerful Female Coaches And Leaders Community. I go live in there every week and answer any questions. I give free coaching and you can meet amazing women.
Join us during the party. I would love to have you and thank you so much for doing this and for having me on your show. It was great!
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