Binge Factor Media

How to Create a Bingeable Podcast through Empathy and Humor with Yue Xu and Julie Krafchick of the Dateable Podcast

As part of my series of interviews about “5 things you need to know to create a very bingeable podcast”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Yue Xu and Julie Krafchick, hosts of the Dateable podcast — one of the top podcasts about dating, love, and sex.

They’ve interviewed thousands of daters and world-renowned love experts to understand why people date the way they do and how modern dating will forever change relationships. They’ve discussed everything from sex parties to sex droughts, date fails to diaper fetishes, and first moves to first loves. Through the podcast, they answer the big questions like ‘Is Monogamy Dead?’ ‘How will dating change from COVID-19’ and ‘Do Millennials even want to find love?’ By hearing others’ stories and perspectives, Dateable empowers listeners to throw out the rules and challenge the way they date in a world that continues to change every day.

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Can you tell us a story about why you got started as a podcaster?

Yue: I started off as a dating coach in NYC, and worked with clients all over the world. After moving to San Francisco, she realized that her advice about “winning” over dates and traditional gender roles did not hold true in the modern age. Julie, on the other hand, had spent her entire adult life in San Francisco with her share of hookups and heartbreak along the way. After feeling frustrated by the apps, she used her technology and research background to create the app 500 Brunches, which facilitated meeting people IRL.

Fun fact: Julie and I initially met at a 500 Brunches event and became fast friends. I was single in a new city and Julie was getting out of an on-again-off-again serious relationship. We often found themselves talking about relationships and questioning why we date the way we do. So one night, after a couple of glasses of wine, we decided that we would start a podcast to document all the craziness of modern dating and try to figure out what the f*ck was going on…

Can you share a story about the most interesting thing that has happened to you since you started podcasting?

Julie: The most eye-opening has been when we have podcast episodes that feature one of our own past dates. Yue went on a couple of blind dates in earlier seasons when she was single and I recently did an episode with a guy where she was his first date in 12 years.

We’ve also done these he said / she said episodes with guests too including an ‘Exit Interview’ where we called one brave man’s past 5 first-dates to find out why none of them progressed into more.

Through these experiences, we have learned a lot about how people interpret dates and actions differently — and how we were perceived by the opposite sex. Yue completely changed the way she dated, throwing gender roles out the window and bringing more authenticity and vulnerability to her relationships.

I have gained a lot more empathy for others, often trying to see their perspective before making the assumptions we often do while dating. We’ve also learned all the new dating terms like zombie-ing and fluffering and about every configuration of a relationship such as “triads” and being “the unicorn” — that’s been interesting, to say the least!

Can you share a story about the biggest or funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

Julie: We used to offer our guests wine or some sort of alcohol during recordings. It seemed like a good idea to get comfortable. Well…more, several of our earlier guests drank a little too much and either started either slurring their words, went on long tangents, or wouldn’t leave Yue’s apt (where we first recorded). So needless to say, we no longer offer alcoholic beverages of any kind to our guests until AFTER the recording is over.

Check out the full interview in Tracy Hazzard’s Authority Magazine article about Yue Xu and Julie Krafchick!

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Yue Xu and Julie Krafchick of the Dateable Podcast share the best way to:

1) Book Great Guests. If you’re just starting out, tap into your own network. Just send a simple “ask” on your FB or IG and you’d be surprised how many people are thrilled to tell their stories or share their expertise.

2) Increase Listeners. Be on other podcasts for similar audiences. We definitely see a noticeable jump in listens as soon as we go on another podcast. Don’t see other similar podcasts as competition. We’ve found that people who tend to listen to our podcast will also binge on similar ones! There’s a lot of love to go around!

3) Produce in a Professional Way. Invest in some professional marketing assets. Lucky for us Julie is a graphic designer. Having a professionally designed website, logo, cover art really makes a difference. Learn how to professionally edit a podcast or enlist in help. Also, have somewhat of a format for your show. The more it feels like a “show” the more professional it feels.

4) Encourage Engagement. Ask for it. We’ve been very surprised at how engaged listeners become when we ask them to do so. In recent episodes we tried some CTAs that included: give us a rating, tell a friend, and join our FB group. Immediately, people took action and did exactly all 3! It has been a phenomenal response. Remember that your listeners want to see you succeed.

5) Monetize. We’ve reached out to our own personal network to see who has businesses/services that would be suitable for our audience. We’ve also worked with an agency with host-read ads. Try merch too. We’ve tried brand partnerships for an entire episode. You name it, we’ve tried it!

In your opinion what makes your podcast binge-listenable? What do you think makes your podcast unique from the others in your category? What do you think is special about you as a host, your guests, or your content?

Check out the full interview in Tracy Hazzard’s Authority Magazine article about Yue Xu and Julie Krafchick!