Episode 258 | Insider Secrets to a Top 100 Podcast | Courtney Elmer

 

1:10 - Why Listener Psychology Is Your Secret Weapon for Turning Listeners into Clients
6:05 - The Key to Positioning Yourself as the Go-To Expert for Your Audience
9:18 - How to Skillfully Challenge Beliefs and Inspire Action
12:34 - Three Language Patterns that Drive Podcast Conversions
17:45 - Applying These Techniques Beyond Podcasting

3 Language Patterns that Turn Listeners Into Clients

Want to get more of your listeners asking, “How can I work with you?!” (Duh Courtney. Did you even have to ask?) Well, I’ve got great news for you: we're about to dive deep into your listener psychology with three powerful language patterns that'll change the way you communicate as a podcast host so you can drive more listener-to-lead conversions. Master these, and you'll have listeners hitting replay and practically camping out for every new episode.

And the best part? These language patterns aren't just for your podcast — they’ll work anywhere you need to help someone overcome an objection to move them to action: think sales calls, webinars, emails, live events, and more. If you’re ready to learn how to use them, like, “OKAY ALREADY tell me what they are!!!” Read on.

But First: A 24-Second Crash Course on Listener Psychology

At its core, podcasting is about humans connecting with humans. (But you knew that already, so moving on.) What most podcast hosts don’t realize? It’s not what you say, but the way you say it that inspires action, sparks curiosity, and builds trust. So as a podcast host, it’s not your job to create more content or share information — it’s your job to reshape your listeners’ perspectives, help them see new possibilities, and help them take action in ways they hadn’t been able to before.

BUT (a big but), if you want to communicate more effectively and persuasively, first you need two things:

1. Understand how your listener thinks
2. Position yourself as the expert who can solve your listeners' problems (which you do by showing that you understand how your listener thinks. → Anyone else sensing the full-circle moment here?)

Before diving into these language patterns, it's crucial that you’re CLEAR AS CRYSTAL on the specific problems your podcast solves for people. (If you haven't nailed this down yet, check out this episode). Because EVERY podcast solves a problem for people — yep, especially if it’s a community-focused or entertainment-style show. Knowing this is going to help you use the three language patterns below more effectively so you can turn casual listeners into loyal fans (and eventually, clients.)

How to Use These Language Patterns

Originally developed by Robert Dilts, these language patterns are three of the sixteen original Sleight of Mouth patterns rooted in psychology and neuro-linguistic programming. In English: these will allow you to break through the barriers that your listener’s unconscious mind might put up as a protection mechanism, so you can get past any objections or unconscious “walls” that might be preventing listeners from fully trusting you. The result? Increased conversions not just from your podcast, but also from your workshops, sales calls, DM exchanges, email campaigns, ad campaigns, and so much more.

First, Identify the Belief (or Industry Norm)

To use these language patterns, you first need to identify a false belief or industry norm that your listeners might be buying into. For example, many of our ideal listeners believe that "high-quality audio and consistency are the keys to a successful podcast." WE know there are plenty of podcasts out there with great audio and consistent publishing schedules that still aren’t hitting the Top 100. (And if a belief isn’t true 100% of the time, it’s a false belief).

Once you’ve identified the false belief or industry norm your ideal listener is buying into, now it’s time to discredit it and shift their perspective to see a new path. You can discredit a belief using any of the sixteen Sleight of Mouth patterns, and you can even stack these patterns when you get really good at this. But for our purposes here today, here are three of the language patterns I use most often in my content:

Pattern 1: Chunking Up

The "chunking up" pattern involves exaggerating a belief to reveal its flaws. (Whether he knows it or not, Gary Vee is a master at this one).

Here’s an example:

• Belief: "High-quality audio and consistency is the key to a successful podcast."
• Prompt: If X belief were true, then it would be true for every person.
• Example: If high quality audio and releasing an episode every week was all it took to have a top podcast, then everyone who did that would have a top podcast — and we both know that’s not the case.

By exaggerating the belief with this specific pattern, we can show why the belief isn't true 100% of the time. Once the false belief is removed, guess what? Listeners will lean into what you have to say next. Now that old belief is out of the way, they’ll be ready for you to show them a new or better way to go about getting the results they want.

Pattern 2: Redefine

The "redefine" pattern is about changing the meaning of a belief to show a different perspective.

Here’s an example:

• Belief: "Valuable content is the key to keeping listeners engaged."
• Prompt: “It's not about X, it's about Y”
• Example: It's not just about how valuable your content is inside your episodes that drives engagement. It's about how good you are as the host at selling the content inside your episodes to get a listener to click play in the first place.

This shift helps your audience realize that engagement starts even before they hit play, giving them a new perspective that they weren’t able to see before because the old belief was in the way.

Pattern 3: Counterexample

The "counterexample" pattern inverts a belief to show why it isn’t true 100% of the time.

Here’s an example:

• Belief: "You have to (A) work hard to (B) be successful."
• Prompt: “Has there ever been a time when (B) = (A)?”
• Example: How many people are there in this world who are more successful than you, but work less than you? Or, Has there ever been a time when you didn't have to work hard and you were still successful? Maybe you didn't study for a test and you still aced it.

Counterexamples can be a powerful way to demonstrate why the belief isn't always true, helping to dismantle it and open up new ways of thinking (while positioning yourself as a trusted expert who can guide them to the results they really want.)

Applying These Patterns

These patterns can make it easier to shift your audience's mindset and help them see things in a whole new light. They'll make you stand out from other podcasters who aren’t doing this, helping you build deeper trust with your listeners and making you the go-to expert they can count on. Ready to dive even deeper? Join our next live workshop where we'll break these down further and show you how to make them work for your podcast. Or, if you're like, "I need this NOW," book a strategy call to chat with my team and let’s find out if you’re a fit for PodLaunch.

And if you’re ready to start creating more content that actually converts, make sure you’re following Insider Secrets to a Top Podcast on your favorite podcast app to learn more ways you can turn your show into a top podcast listeners rave about.

Next up: We’re diving into the nitty-gritty of podcast ads — should you run them, which ones work best, and how to avoid the ones that could waste your money. Don’t miss it; your wallet will thank you!