How to Build a Tagline or TSO Statement on a Podcast

Hey Friend!

Welcome behind-the-scenes of some coaching I did with my students inside our amazing student community. I helped them get unstuck when writing their podcast title and tagline or TSO Statement. TSO stands for Tactical Specific Outcome Statement.  Let’s dive deeper into these two components of your podcast so that your ideal listener pushes play, binge-listens to your podcast, and becomes a raving fan.

Every podcast needs a title and a tagline or a Tactical Specific Outcome Statement (TSO Statement). Your podcast title, tagline or TSO Statement, and podcast cover art is top-of-funnel when attracting new podcast listeners. You have seconds for a new listener to decide if they will listen or not.

The title of your podcast should tell who your podcast is for and what it is about in 3-5 words. Use keywords in your podcast title to make it Search Engine Optimization (SEO) friendly. These will bring your podcast to the top of the list when searched making it easy for your ideal listener to find.

Understanding the Tactical Specific Outcome Statement (TSO Statement)

The tagline or Tactical Specific Outcome Statement (TSO Statement) is a short phrase used on your podcast art and on your website to describe your show and tell your listeners what they will get out of your show.

Here are a few important rules around writing a great TSO Statement that attracts new listeners.

• Keep your TSO Statement to 10 words or less. 
• Don’t repeat any words that are already in your podcast title. Find a different way to say it or provide the how in the TSO Statement.
• A TSO Statement should clearly answer for your listener, “What does this podcast have to do with me? What will I get out of listening?”
• Write your TSO Statement in a punchy, problem-driven way because your listener is focusing on their problem and it will resonate with their pain point.
• Remove any ands or filler words. Avoid stacking filler words on top of each other such as “struggling, overwhelmed, busy.”
• Remember that your TSO Statement will change as you have your podcast live and gain more data from your audience.

Clarifying Tasha’s Podcast Name and TSO Statement

Tasha helps Christian women treat digestive issues in a natural, sustainable, simple way. However, her ideal client does not necessarily know that her digestive system is unbalanced. She worries about how she has constipation, bloating, heartburn and cravings. What she wants is to lose weight and heal leaky gut, IBS, or other disorders. She wants a holistic, sustainable lifestyle, and to balance her body. She is a Christian. Tasha is thinking of naming her podcast Natural Digestive Solutions with a TSO Statement of “Sustainable Roadmap for Christian Women.”

Stef’s Answer for Tasha

A boring, to-the-point podcast title is a good title. Boring is not bad. It makes dollar bills. Call your podcast what it is. Tasha should keep Natural Digestive Solutions as her podcast title.

As for the TSO Statement of “Sustainable Roadmap for Christian Women,” this is a good try at encompassing all of the listener’s symptoms into one phrase, but the problem is no one knows what a “sustainable roadmap” means and that it refers to an unbalanced digestive system. A TSO Statement such as “Symptom-Free Digestion for Christian Women” or “Symptom-Free Digestion to Feel Better for Christian Women” may be clearer and to the point.  Now the listener knows what the podcast is about when they push play.

One more thing: Tasha mentioned that her podcast listener has hormonal imbalances, digestive issues, weight management concerns, lack of peace, mood swings, brain fog, periodic depression, hot flashes, and insomnia. Each of these shares a pain point the listener has and can be discussed in a podcast episode. These topics can be Tasha’s next 9 episodes. For example, if Tasha said, “Feel like you’re always pooping? Here are three ways to know if you have IBS or leaky gut.” Tasha’s ideal podcast listener will find her episode by searching the keywords IBS and leaky gut. She likes what she hears, feels helped and encouraged, and binge-listens to 5 more episodes. She is hooked. This is how you bring new listeners into your podcast.

Adding “Christian” to Your Tagline or TSO Statement

As you clarify your TSO Statement, you get to specify if you are teaching something biblically from a Christian viewpoint or leave that out. It’s your podcast and if one of your content pillars is teaching from a biblical perspective, feel free to label it for Christian Women or for Christians. If you are a Christian and choose not to include Christian in your tagline, that’s fine. The for who doesn’t have to be in your TSO Statement. People will hear your Christian viewpoint come through because that’s who you are.

Helping Sarah Refine Her Tagline or TSO Statement

Sarah empowers Christian women to be transformed and live abundantly by improving their gut health, balancing hormones, and discovering their identity in Christ. She wonders if a better TSO Statement would be, “Faith-Focused Wellness Solutions to Improve Your Energy, Cravings, Mood, and Digestion.”

Stef’s Answer for Sarah

Identity in Christ and gut health and balancing hormones are separate topics. Identity in Christ may be an outcome of understanding biblically how to treat the body like a temple. Most likely Sarah’s ideal person is unaware that she needs a new outlook on her identity in Christ. She’s looking for ways to improve her health issues such as gut health, balancing hormones and mood, and improving digestion. Call out their problems and what holds them back each day. Build your brand around keywords and content that speak to their pain or struggles, and then let the solutions be shared inside your episodes. Perhaps a better tagline for Sarah is, “Simple Digestion Solutions for Christian Women.”

Helping Jessica Write a New Tagline or TSO Statement

Jessica has a podcast called Habit Stacking Mom. This is a clear, simple, punchy, fabulous podcast title. Jessica is playing with “Mom Life Management Techniques that Crush Bad Habits,” “Techniques that Crush Bad Mom Life Habits,” or “Routine Techniques that Crush Bad Habits.” She feels her current TSO Statement is leaning too much toward home organization which is not the brand focus. She wants to help moms overcome their bad habits by stacking their daily routines to be more efficient and effective.

Stef’s Answer for Jessica

Your TSO Statement is found in how you describe your podcast or explain its purpose. Jessica’s tagline is found in how she wants to help moms. She said I help moms re-stack their daily routines to be more efficient and effective and get over their bad habits. That’s a mouthful, but it can be made shorter. Take out any filler words and get right to the point. Say, “Overcome Bad Habits by Re-Stacking Your Daily Routines.”

Defining Chrissy’s Podcast Title and TSO Statement

Chrissy’s podcast is called Faith Fueled Fitness. The number one pain point of the women in Chrissy’s audience is using fitness to find their worth and value which leaves them discouraged and frustrated. They need to find their value and worth in God first and then use their fitness to glorify Him.

Stef’s Answer for Chrissy

Understand that a person’s identity in Christ and the Word of God is the answer to every single problem they have. However, your person doesn’t know that yet, and she’s probably not searching for that. All she is focused on is the thing that is broken whether that be her marriage, health, no results from her workouts, addiction, a messy house, or frustration in parenting. Did you know at the start of your problem that it was rooted in a misunderstanding of your identity in Christ? Probably not. You probably came to realize that.

While TSO stands for Tactical Specific Outcome, teach from where you were not where you are at now.  Teach them how to get to the tactical, specific outcome they desperately want. Step out of solution-based thinking and get into pain-point, problem-focused thinking.

For Chrissy’s person, their biggest need is that they feel discouraged and discontent about their bodies. So, a TSO Statement such as, “Overcome Body Discouragement and Discontentment” or “Simple Solutions to Find Contentment in Your Body” works best.

Changing Your Podcast Name and TSO Statement or Starting a Brand-New Podcast

Didi wonders if she should change the podcast name and tagline of her existing show or if she should start a brand-new podcast. Didi had the podcast called Untarnished Moments since November 2022. Now she has a podcast called Arise, Living My Purpose with Confidence which has 51 episodes and 1300 downloads. Now she wants to rebrand again with the title Attracting Coaching Clients.

Stef’s Answer for Didi

Rebranding your podcast will happen. Welcome to life as an entrepreneur! You cannot be afraid to roll up your sleeves, get to work, and change things as your business and podcast grows. It doesn’t have to be perfect when you start, but it does have to get done. Start and you can adjust it down the road. 

Since Didi has been podcasting for a while, the best question is “Will this rebrand align and be consistent with what my prior podcasts were about? If her old podcasts focused on living life with purpose and confidence, and she now plans to gear that same thought toward coaching and attracting coaching clients who want to live life with purpose and confidence, keep the podcast and rebrand it. Most podcasters get clear on their podcast niche and purpose so they can keep their show and all that is required is refining the podcast name and TSO Statement. 

Why Shelby Started a Brand-New Podcast

Starting a brand-new podcast should be done when the old and the new are completely unrelated with zero overlap. Shelby, a Podcast to Profit Mastermind student, is an example of when to start a completely different podcast. Shelby had a podcast about coming out of Mormonism and moving into Christianity. Now she’s pivoting into permanent makeup artistry. These are two unrelated topics with zero overlap so it makes sense for Shelby to start a completely different podcast.

Was this behind-the-scenes live coaching helpful?

If you’re ready to be part of the Stef Gass community and get coaching like this every single month, join Clarify Your Calling and Podcast Pro University where you can get clear on your niche so that you can grow a business that feels aligned with your purpose and makes money online to provide for you and your family and the kingdom of God.

If you already have a podcast and want to monetize it, build a course, have a clear marketing funnel, repurpose your content on Pinterest or a blog, and scale your show to be income-producing, then apply for Podcast to Profit Mastermind.

Xo,

Stef

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