Help me keep User Defenders: Podcast on the air
…and help yourself to some amazing, exclusive perks!
On June 6, 2015, I set out to create a UX podcast like no other that would dive deep into the minds, attitudes, behaviors and habits of the design superheroes who are shaping (and/or have shaped) the medium as we know it, in order to inspire and equip you to fight on in creating great experiences for your users and business.
Knowing the potential impact this content and the powerful medium of podcasting could have in serving you the listener, I wanted to go all-in. This meant coming up with a strong name, brand identity, well thought-out questions/format, and through-the-roof production quality.
And as if that weren’t enough, I also wanted to go the extra mile by offering my guests their own custom superhero art. A concept that really lent itself well to the show’s unique superhero theme.
I spent nearly four months in the planning phase alone before ever hitting publish on iTunes.
In a very short time, the show picked up some incredible guests and amazing momentum, and continues to (Seth Godin was a superguest!).
Most importantly, it’s earned powerful support from awesome Defenders like you through your faithful listenership, and generosity in telling other designers about the show (I’ve yet to pay for one ad!).
Fighting the Nemesis of Funding
As Marvel movies have so well indoctrinated us, every superhero has a nemesis…User Defenders podcast is no exception.
The biggest nemesis has been funding all of this.
There was a time just before Season 4 where my Ant-Man sized UD bank account nearly ran out bringing me super-close to having to close the doors on this entire effort.
Thankfully, and just in the nick of time (like a superhero), Adobe XD saved the day and sponsored that season (and another!).
However, going forward, in order to avoid the potential pitfalls of relying too much on the uncertainty/scarcity of sponsor dollars, I want to depend more on the people who I do this for–the superheroes who also help keep me inspired and fighting on in this labor of love…you! :)
The Avengers have Tony Stark.
The Justice League has Bruce Wayne.
User Defenders needs you.
Why I Need a Hero Like You, Now More Than Ever…
There’s a ton that goes into keeping this show running in order to bring you this amazing, high-quality content on a consistent basis.
It’s been said, if your dream doesn’t require a team, your dream’s not big enough.
I guess my dream is big enough because I’ve had to assemble my own Justice League of mediocrity Avengers such as an astonishing artist, extraordinary editor, and tireless transcriptionist for the show notes, so our hearing-impaired Defender friends can also be served (check out this email I received from a hearing-impaired Defender!).
I also desperately need to hire an assistant (or two!), which I’ll be able to do once we’ve reached 500 patrons. This will help free me up with a lot of production efforts that currently I handle all of, in order to focus more on capturing even more inspiring, well-researched interviews and content for you…as well as stay married to my harder working than me, stay-at-home/home-schooling wife, and see my six kids more often! 😜
Believe it or not (I’m walking on air), each episode costs me $200–300 to produce. This is apart from all the recurring monthly costs that include:
Software for:
- Scheduling
- Social media automation
- Research/process notes
- Wordpress plug-ins
- UD Community platform
Also:
- Cloud storage for media
- Web development
- Website maintenance and hosting
- Podcast media file hosting/serving (CDN)
- …and much more that I won’t bore you with
I also don’t merely want to just pay the bills and keep the show where it’s been (“What got you here won’t get you there”), I want to grow it, and keep making it (and us!) better. And just like in personal growth, if we’re not growing, we’re dying.
I don’t make this podcast to make money, I make money to make this podcast…and desire to continue making it even better in every way!
What Your Support Will Give You
That’s why I’m asking you (no pressure at all) to commit to whatever you’re able to handle on a recurring monthly basis.
This show, our connection, our impact will only continue to deepen, and become more powerful as you exercise your superpower of support!
In exchange, I’ll give you some pretty marvelous/exclusive things in return such as:
- A personal thank you mention from me on a future episode
- Access to the exclusive patron-only feed
- Early ad-free access to future podcast episodes including an exclusive RSS feed
- Invite to membership at the exclusive (and thriving) UD Community
- Exclusive UD logo and symbol stickers mailed to you
- 20% off coupon code to the store for UD merch
- Monthly group live streams and/or one on one video chats with me
After you commit to a monthly pledge, consider yourself a valued member of this exclusive club!
Check out the various levels of support on my Patreon page, and choose the one that best fits what you’re able to contribute.
I want to wrap up by saying thank you so much in advance for your faithful and enthusiastic support throughout this journey, Defender.
I especially just want to say, as always…fight on my friend!
Jason Ogle
Your host & friend
If you can’t afford to give right now, I totally understand and would appreciate any 👏 of this article and/or social shares of this URL → userdefenders.com/support
I appreciate any support very much! Thanks for being my hero! 🙏
