Broadcasting on the Internet for Free, Part II

Registering
When you get to Blogtalkradio.com, click the Register link at the top of the page. The registration area appears at the top. It's a pretty easy form, as registrations go. Check the options for hosting your own show and agreeing to the user agreement.

To reduce spam accounts, BlogTalkRadio sends an e-mail message to the account you used for registration. When you receive the e-mail, follow the instructions. When you follow the link, enter the information required and your account is created! (Note: You must include a profile page description.)

What do I put in my show?
As soon as the registration process is complete, you can host a show. However, before you do, you should think about what you want to do.

What is your show going to be about?

Do you want to have a guest? (Having a guest is easy. You give them the number and they call in and you talk, as if you're having a phone conversation. The difference is, anyone who goes to the page where your show is can listen.)

What will you talk about with your guest?

Do you want to take callers?

If you already have a readership, you can probably get away with taking calls from readers and answering their questions. If not, you might want to have guests. This format could work especially well for you if you write non-fiction. If your website has traffic, you can publicize the show and create a link to it, and you'll have a built-in listenership. And it costs you and your listeners nothing.

About Your List of Questions
If you decide to have a guest, you should send them a list of questions ahead of time. That gives your guest--who may be a little uncomfortable with the whole idea--a chance to prepare and figure out what to say.

You aren't limited to your questions. If you're interviewing someone and a follow-up occurs to you that you hadn't thought of, feel free to ask it. Remember, at its base, this is a marketing tool. You're marking your work or expertise, and if you have a guest, you're marketing them as well. If they look good, you look good.

Once you've figured out what you want to do, you need to schedule the show. We'll show you how to do that next time.