This sounds painfully obvious but can you honestly say that all of your friends and family have left your podcast a review? If not, drop them a quick message saying how much it would help you out.

Another seemingly obvious step that a lot of podcasters don't utilise. The outro is a perfect place to ask for a review. If your current outro doesn't ask for a review then message me and we can create a new one.

Don't expect people to jump through hoops to review your show. A simple URL such as "mypodcastreview.com" that redirects to your review page makes it a lot easier for listeners to do you a favour.

Message a previous guest telling them how well their episode was received by your audience. Maybe even give them some stats on the number of downloads it got if you can. Then take the opportunity to ask for a quick review.

Reading out your listener reviews shows genuine engagement and gratitude for them. The intro is an ideal place for this. Reading out one review each episode is a simple way to incentivise more of them.

From time to time listeners may contact you with a question from a show, or maybe a thank you for producing it. These are lovely to receive but don't forget to ask them to reciprocate the gesture with a podcast review.

Tell your listeners how many reviews you want to reach. This gives listeners a tangible understanding of how their review has helped you, rather than just adding to an anonymous list.

Run a competition which listeners can enter by leaving a review. The winner could receive a physical gift, a free consultation, or maybe even a chance to appear on the show! Let your imagination run wild.

Encourage listeners to ask questions by leaving a review and then answer those questions on the show. An extremely simple and effective way to create engagement and generate reviews.