Hey Besties! This episode is such a treat because I had the chance to chat with Aakshi Sinha, a Podcast Marketing Specialist from Tink Media, all the way from India. Connecting with people around the world is one of the many reasons I love podcasting!Prepare to be inspired as we delve into Aakshi's podcasting origin story — exploring her gateway podcast, her desire to be a part of the podcasting community, and how she landed her job in the podcast industry. She also shares her love for creating curated playlists (Podcast Bestie playlist to come soon!), along with expert advice from her time at Tink, especially the importance of finding joy in podcast marketing for long-term sustainability and how to set up effective podcast collaborations, including promo swaps, guest swaps, and feed swaps.Aakshi highlights the value of collaborating with smaller shows that have a niche audience, rather than solely focusing on larger shows with higher numbers. And I preach my cardinal rule for indie podcasters trying to engineer organic growth: recurring collaborations. Plus, the likely necessity of making strategic investments to propel podcast growth before achieving meaningful monetization.So grab your headphones, Besties, and treat yourself to this fun and informative podcasting pep talk!* Connect with Aakshi @aaklovesaudio on Twitter.Here’s a link to the TRANSCRIPT.If you missed the last episode, check out Podcast Marketing Is About Finding Your Podcast Besties with Lauren Passell of Tink Media + How to Get Featured on Apple Podcasts.Sign up for the Podcast Bestie newsletter here: https://podcastbestie.substack.com/welcomeThanks to Michael Castañeda for mixing and mastering this episode. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @plasticaudio.A big thanks to our BFFs for sponsoring this episode:* mowPod is an effective, targeted way to promote your show. It's already trusted by industry giants like Conde Nast, iHeartMedia, and HubSpot Podcast Network, and that's because it works. But mowPod isn’t just for the big guys — mowPod Boost is perfect for indie podcasters. It’s actually been my favorite paid advertising experiment to date, and you can try it for just $100. Plus, if you are a Bestie, you get 10% off with this link: https://boost.mowpod.com/?referrer=podcastbestie. Try it, and let me know what you think!* To all the women podcasters: Submit your news to Podcasting by the Moon & subscribe for FREE! You’ll join 1,000+ readers keeping up with women in podcasting news & recs each full moon (& more!). * Podcast strategist Eric Nuzum describes Skye Pillsbury’s The Squeeze as “an utterly fantastic addition to the journalism looking at podcasting.” Don’t miss a single issue; subscribe for free here.* Having many passions doesn't have to be overwhelming. Join Multi-Passionate Mastery for actionable tips on how to prioritize, focus, and succeed as a multi-passionate creative. Find Multi-Passionate Master