Podcast Pontifications

Compare podcasting to modern-day animation, where you’re as likely to see hyper-realistic renderings as you are to see cartoons or computer-driven stop-motion, all rendered on a computer. 

But if computers are used in all animation today, why doesn’t the animation created on those systems look similar?

The answer is simple: style.

If you notice a podcast that doesn’t sound as good as another, it’s likely a function of scarcity of time or money...

We know that the podcast listening experience matters. And we know the big podcast apps don’t seem to share that sentiment. It’s time for working podcasters like you to do something intentional about it.

I don’t have to tell you how important it is for your podcast to be distributed everywhere people may choose to listen to podcasts. With very few exceptions, adding one more destination point for your podcast is a one-time action that is a simple form-submit away...

For as DIY-friendly as podcasting is, it’s still a complex web of creation, distribution, and promotion. So it’s no wonder many are looking for shortcuts through the complexity. Only… do they work?

Generally speaking, I'm skeptical of podcasting shortcuts. No, I don’t like wasting my time any more than you like wasting yours. And podcasting offers plenty of places to spin your wheels and waste a lot of time on, I’ll grant you that...

If reactions to very real privacy concerns remove our one way to track downloads, it’ll wreck the podcast advertising industry. But what about everyday podcasters who don’t rely on impression-based ad sales?

In the not too distant future, we’re probably going to lose our reliance on IP addresses...

A lot of podcast marketing advice starts and ends with: build a funnel and keep feeding people into it! And while that can and does work for some, it’ll frustrate a lot of podcasters. Here’s why:

All models are wrong. Some happened to be useful. That an accurate reflection of how I feel about podcast marketing funnels...

It doesn’t matter how long your podcast episodes are, so long as you tell a great story. Great storytellers make all podcasting better, and with some work and dedication, you too can join their ranks...

Following podcasting best practices is always smart, but it doesn’t leave much room for creativity. Sometimes success is serendipitous, and what seems to be pointless may have an unexpected future upside.

Podcasting requires productivity prioritization. There are countless things about and adjacent to podcasting you can waste your time on. And as you have a limited amount of time beyond the actual process of producing your podcast, prioritization is a good survival tactic...

Podcasting is often touted as a way to reach a younger, hipper demographic. But that ignores the millions of people 55+ who listen to podcasts today, with different habits and content preferences.

We tend to think of podcasters as young and hip. And yes, that’s true. But according to Edison Research, 24 million Americans over 55 listen to podcasts, up from just 4 million a decade ago...

Glowing podcast reviews feel really, really good. Getting any benefits from them beyond a warm, fuzzy feeling is questionable. Unless you have a plan for celebrating reviews for your podcast, that is. 

If you think getting reviews of your podcast somehow influences podcast ranking algorithms, you’ve been sorely misinformed...

Many podcasters sacrifice the majority of their free time so they can podcast. Some of them seem to love that, while others wonder if they’re missing out on what life has to offer. Which are you?

You may have seen the news from China on the growing pushback against the “996” way of doing business, where workers to are expected (or required) be productive from 9:00 AM until 9:00 PM six days a week...