Podcast Marketing Trends Explained: Data-Driven Podcast Growth Strategies

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The Hard Truth About Growing A Podcast Today (& How You Can Beat the Odds)

Podcast Marketing Trends Explained: Data-Driven Podcast Growth Strategies

02/13/24 • 44 min

Look closely at the data behind almost anything—from podcast growth, to Google search results, to Amazon product sales, and more—and you'll notice a trend.

In almost every case, the bulk of the rewards (downloads, clicks, sales) go to just a tiny percentage of the available options.

This pattern shows up everywhere, and it's known as the Power Law.

In this episode, we're breaking down the math behind the power curve as it relates to podcasting, whether you should actually be aiming to be at the peak of the curve, and how to set realistic and achievable goals related to your show.

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Topics Covered

00:00 Introduction
05:10 Understanding the Power Law Curve and it's impact on podcasting
14:25 Why you shouldn't settle for creating an "average" podcast... and strategies for stand-out
26:40 Unpacking the download data in the Podcast Marketing Trends 2023 Report
37:15 Aligning expectations and setting realistic goals

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Resources

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The 10k Timeline: How Long It Takes to Reach 10k dl/ep (& How to Accelerate the Process)

Podcast Marketing Trends Explained: Data-Driven Podcast Growth Strategies

04/02/24 • 63 min

We all know success doesn’t happen overnight. But what does the data say about how long it takes to reach 1k... or 10k downloads per episode?

Podcasting is inherently a slow-growth medium.

Without a central discovery system offering the potential for virality, growing a podcast is a long game of slow, steady, incremental growth that compounds over time.

But while you might expect growth to be somewhat slow when you start out, how long should it take before it speeds up?

In this episode, we’re breaking down what the data says about how long it takes the typical show to reach the 1k and 10k milestones, the factors that influence those timelines, and what you can do to accelerate the process.

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Topics Covered

00:00 Intro
00:59 Podcast growth lessons from Warren Buffett
05:00 When typical shows hit the 1k & 10k dl/ep milestones
10:36 How experience affects a show’s growth rate
15:21 What everyone gets wrong about consistency in podcasting
26:16 The powerful compounding of relationships
31:33 Stacking micro-improvements to your show with every episode
35:26 Strategies for navigating (and avoiding) creative burnout
38:28 Building your transferable skill set
44:22 Our personal stories of creative compounding that have got us here
56:12 The impact of mentorship and constructive critique

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Resource

Mike Birbiglia’s Podcast, *Working It Out*
Build and Launch, Past Project by Justin Jackson
Mega Maker, Project by Justin Jackson

Check out the Podcast Marketing Trends 2023 Report

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✍️ Leave your feedback for the show: http://podcastmarketingtrends.com/feedback

Complete the 2025 Podcast Marketing Trends survey and enter to win from one of 30 podcast marketing trainings worth a total of almost $16k.

How We'd Spend $500/$2,500/$10,000 to Grow Our Podcast (& the Lessons You Can Apply to Any Budget)

Podcast Marketing Trends Explained: Data-Driven Podcast Growth Strategies

03/12/24 • 65 min

How to get the best ROI on your podcast production and marketing budget to maximize growth... whether it’s $100 or $10,000 per month.

You’re probably pretty confident that if you had more money to spend on your podcast, you’d be able to grow it faster.

But have you ever stopped to think about how you would spend it to get the greatest ROI?

Should you buy ads? Invest in better gear? Hire an editor or assistant?

In this episode, we break down our takes on where your podcast budget is best spent in order to grow the fastest.

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Topics Covered

00:00 Could we grow faster if we had more budget?
02:47 How much the average podcast spends on production & marketing
06:41 How much high-growth shows allocate to marketing
08:11 How we’d spend $500/month to grow
15:23 How we’d spend $2,500/mo to grow
27:23 How to figure out what brought people to your show
31:00 How we’d spend $10,000/mo to grow
38:03 Understanding your brand
50:24 Running retargeting ads to your podcast
52:33 How we’d grow our podcast with zero budget

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Resources

Descript
ConvertKit
Cast Magic
Calendly
Zapier
Chartable
Linkfire
Figma
Canva Pro

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Stupid Mistakes, Happy Accidents & Surprising Insights From Making & Marketing Our First 20 Episodes

Podcast Marketing Trends Explained: Data-Driven Podcast Growth Strategies

04/23/24 • 61 min

Plus, we need your help to decide what to make next.

We spend the majority of our time thinking about podcast marketing & growth. But that doesn’t mean we have it all figured out.

In this final episode of Season 1 of Podcast Marketing Trends Explained, we break down our stats from the season along with our mistakes and missed opportunities, lessons learned... and the surprising insights we’ve gained along the way.

Plus, we brainstorm three new show concept ideas to keep us busy between seasons... and ask your feedback on which one we should pursue.

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Topics Covered
00:00 Intro
00:49 How many downloads we expected to get going into this season
02:35 Breaking down our Season 1 stats
03:22 Is YouTube worthwhile for the average podcaster?
08:34 Engagement time and consumption rates
12:44 The metric we care about more than analytics
20:26 Assessing Season 1: What we did well
23:02 How experimentation led us to find our structure
28:21 A big mistake we made with Season 1
32:05 Mistakes and missed opportunities in Season 1
36:18 Help us decide which show we should create next
40:57 Concept idea 1: “Make it Big”
45:03 Concept idea 2: “Why It Works”
49:48 Concept idea 3: “Podcast Riffs”
54:35 Listener feedback and what to expect from Season 2

⭐️ Get a free podcast marketing audit with personalized recommendations to help you grow: https://podcastmarketingacademy.com/audit ⭐️

Resource

Jay Clouse from Creator Science
Josh Spector
Bumper articles on measuring listen time
Growth In Reverse
Arvid Kahl
LinkFire
Chartable
The Futur
Unthinkable w/ Jay Acunzo

Listen & Subscribe to Sound Judgment

✍️ Leave your feedback for the show: http://podcastmarketingtrends.com/feedback

Complete the 2025 Podcast Marketing Trends survey and enter to win from one of 30 podcast marketing trainings worth a total of almost $16k.

Inside the Growth Strategies of Two of The Smartest Podcasters Alive

Podcast Marketing Trends Explained: Data-Driven Podcast Growth Strategies

04/30/24 • 88 min

Michael Jordan, Simone Biles, Wayne Gretzky. Every so often, someone comes along who is playing the game at a whole different level. And when it comes to podcasting, we've got two of them.

Jay Clouse and Chris Hutchins each host hugely successful shows. And this special episode, we're getting inside the minds of these two creators to understand the thought process, experiments, and personalities behind the downloads (not to mention some serious revenue).

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Resource

Creator Science PodcastCreator ScienceAll the Hacks PodcastTim Ferriss Episode w/ Chris Hutchins

Subscribe to Podcast Marketing Trends Explained

Check out the Podcast Marketing Trends 2023 Report

Subscribe to the Scrappy Podcasting Newsletter

Try Transistor.fm for free for 14 days

✍️ Leave your feedback for the show: http://podcastmarketingtrends.com/feedback

Complete the 2025 Podcast Marketing Trends survey and enter to win from one of 30 podcast marketing trainings worth a total of almost $16k.

3 (Non-Social) Marketing Channels High-Growth Shows Use to 2x Their Audience

Podcast Marketing Trends Explained: Data-Driven Podcast Growth Strategies

03/05/24 • 62 min

Everyone loves to talk about podcasting's so-called "Discoverability Problem". But does it actually exist?

And if not, what are the marketing channels you as a creator can tap into to get your show in front of more of your ideal listeners?

In this episode, we break down three types of listener acquisition channels and how you can leverage them to grow your show... without social media and without a discovery algorithm.

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Topics Covered

00:54 Does the Podcast Discoverability Problem actually exist?
04:49 What the data shows about the effectiveness of various marketing channels
08:37 Writing is often a strong indicator of success in podcasting
11:18 How to pick the right marketing channel for you
12:06 The three types of marketing channels at your disposal
15:36 Owned media: The low-hanging fruit for many creators
24:14 What most podcasters get wrong about growth through collaborations
37:01 When is the right time to start paid listener acquisition?
46:34 How to kickstart word-of-mouth growth?
52:47 Your homework for this episode

⭐️ Get a free podcast marketing audit with personalized recommendations to help you grow: https://podcastmarketingacademy.com/audit ⭐️

Resources

Famous & Gravy
Podcast Allies
Answer The Public
PodRoll

Connect with Jeremy on Twitter | LinkedIn
Connect with Justin on Twitter | LinkedIn

✍️ Leave your feedback for the show: http://podcastmarketingtrends.com/feedback

Complete the 2025 Podcast Marketing Trends survey and enter to win from one of 30 podcast marketing trainings worth a total of almost $16k.

🔥 Roasting A Fitness Podcast (Brand Coinages, Evocative Titles, Episode Naming Conventions)

Podcast Marketing Trends Explained: Data-Driven Podcast Growth Strategies

02/16/24 • 26 min

In this episode of Podcast Marketing Trends Explained, we roast Wits & Weights' podcast packaging to break down what's working, what's not, and what you can learn to improve your podcast cover art, title, show description, SEO, and episode titles.

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Topics Covered

00:00 Introduction
01:14 First Impressions of the Podcast Packaging
04:18 Analyzing the Podcast Name
06:43 Analyzing the Podcast Cover Art
12:47 Analyzing the Show's Description
18:05 Analyzing the Episode Titles
22:19 Comparing the Artwork to Other Competing Shows
25:37 Optimizing the Show for SEO Discovery
30:27 How to Submit Your Show for an Audit

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Resources

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🔥 Roasting A #1 Christian Parenting Podcast (The Perils of Bold Claims, Keyword Stuffing, and Giving the Impression of Sleazy Marketing)

Podcast Marketing Trends Explained: Data-Driven Podcast Growth Strategies

03/01/24 • 35 min

In this episode of Podcast Marketing Trends Explained, we roast The Empowered Stepmom's podcast's packaging.

We break down what's working, what's not, and what you can learn to improve your podcast cover art, title, show description, SEO, and episode titles to improve your podcast discoverability and get more listeners.

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Topics Covered

0:00 Intro
00:43 First impressions of the cover art
08:48 Assessing the show's title
13:42 Breaking down the show description
19:23 The importance of listener-orienting your copy
26:11 How to best use the author byline
27:13 Assessing the episode titles and descriptions
30:59 Live adjustments to the show's packaging
34:41 How to submit your show for a roast

⭐️ Get a free podcast marketing audit with personalized recommendations to help you grow: https://podcastmarketingacademy.com/audit ⭐️

Resources