🥜The Demise of Modern Podcasts

Remember when podcasts were awesome? Yeah, me too. Not too long ago, when you listened to a podcast, you left feeling like you heard something exclusive and highly valuable.

Now, the same guests go on all the big shows and say nearly the same thing. Then, the next week, another expert gives literally the complete opposite advice from the previous guest, but it’s also “backed by science.” Podcasting has become stale, frustrating and confusing. And people are noticing.

But how did we get here? What does it mean for podcasting? & What does it mean for you as a podcaster? We cover it all today.

In Today’s Email (5 Minute Read)

• The Demise of Modern Podcasts

• HIT & MISS of the Week

The Demise of Modern Podcasts

It’s dramatic, but you feel it, too. Podcasts have changed. And I wouldn’t say it’s for the better. Misinformation is at an all-time high, and shows will sacrifice anything to get their next viral episode.

This leaves consumers stressed & scratching their heads, wondering what to listen to.

Let’s start with how we got here.

Path to Misinformation

When podcasts started, they were far from mainstream. But they did bring awareness to people and issues that would never have garnered traction on other traditional media (think TV, radio, etc.).

This was amazing. It gave us access to unique and fascinating people and topics. This made podcasts grow rapidly in popularity and turned successful shows into obnoxiously successful businesses (relative to the team size). People noticed, and everyone started a podcast. This reached its peak during COVID.

But like most things, the majority quit, leaving us with our current market situation. The top 1% of shows collect nearly all podcast downloads and have become massive media businesses.

Big money is now very involved in podcasting, which has fundamentally changed what podcasts are. Podcasts were created to avoid censorship or influence of any kind. They gave creators full freedom to cover who and what they wanted. They had no boss enforcing rules. That is no longer the case. These big shows are now reliant on sponsors, often creating an obligation to hit certain download numbers and stick within certain guidelines for content.

This has created an environment where shows chase virality at any cost. It has turned into a system that ultimately hurts podcast listeners.

Broken Business Model

Here’s how it usually goes.

1. One big show has a viral episode with a newcomer to the podcast scene.

2. That guest then goes on every other major podcast in the circuit (saying the same things).

3. Those perspectives become mainstream knowledge after being consumed by tens of millions of people.

4. The opposite opinions are now seen as controversial, so another figure is found that says the opposite, and the cycle repeats.

5. You are left saying WTF?! Do I take that supplement or will it kill me? Do I do this workout or that workout? Should I be cold plunging or are these guys all just weirdos? You are left with more questions than answers from content that used to give you clarity.

When you become reliant on something, it now owns you. That is the case for the vast majority of large podcasts. It’s why they all copy each other. Copying something proven is a safe approach to being rewarded financially. The shows win, the guests win, but the consumers suffer. What gets a lot of views isn’t necessarily good for the listener, in fact it rarely is. But in a game completely owned by the desire for virality, most of the big shows really don’t care.

What’s Next?

There is a massive need and demand for fresh perspectives in podcasts. People are tired of everything blurring together and seeming inauthentic. This is evident through the emergence of less edited and polished content, which is crushing it on YouTube now.

Consumers are hungry for change, and the market is ripe for it. New & smaller podcasters have a significant opportunity to leverage this to build businesses and brands on their terms.

But this won’t happen through becoming a water downed version of your favorite show.

If you look at the true outliers in every space, it’s the people who created their own Blue Ocean. The most accessible examples in podcasting are Joe Rogan and Alex Cooper of Call Her Daddy. They both broke all the rules, and this very thing allowed them to break through and build cult-like audiences.

Have the conviction to follow your curiosities exactly how you feel they should be covered. The path to growth will be slower, but the ceiling for the brand and business you can build will be way higher.

This is a great time to run a podcast, so keep at it. Also, keep reading/watching Podcast Nut 😉 we will help you breakthrough.

HIT & MISS of the Week

HIT

Why it HIT

• This is a great example of leveraging borrowed attention. The guest’s name isn’t well known, but framing him as “the Indian Warren Buffet” leverages the massive influence of Warren Buffet and also captures the interest of the massive Indian market interested in this content

• Many believe there are “secrets” to wealth, and Warren Buffet is one of the people who has them. The thumbnail copy “Ok… I’ll tell you everything” suggests this information is exclusive and creates an urgency to click

• The title is well structured. Turning $1M into $1B+ is easy to conceptualize but highly rare and desirable. Powerful click triggers

This video was packaged well from top to bottom. It’s a great episode concept, a strong title and a great use of attention-grabbing imagery and copy within the thumbnail. This is their strongest performing episode in months and all of these are major reasons for it’s success.

MISS

Why it MISSED

• This was a colossal miss. Dave Portnoy & the host of this show have a ton of viral history together. This episode should have easily pulled 1M+ views.

• The design of this thumb is off in many ways

  1. The host’s face can’t even be seen; she is taking up half of the thumbnail for no benefit

  2. There is no visible emotion on Dave’s face

  3. Unless you really look at this thumbnail, you can’t even tell who is in it

  4. The copy on the thumbnail doesn’t relate well to the title

• This exact video with a better title and thumbnail would have 10x the views. They could have even kept the same thumbnail concept, zoomed in on Dave with a nervous emotion, removed Alex and kept the same thumbnail copy with a change to the title like “Dave Portnoy Addresses the Drama” and it would have performed way better

Call Her Daddy is a great channel to study and see how important content packaging is. Their show is wildly popular and crushes it on Spotify, but on YouTube, the packaging feels like an afterthought, and the performance is indicative of that. This show should be pulling way more views and poor packaging is the only reason it doesn’t.

If you would like us to keep an eye on your content and give you feedback in the HIT & MISS of the week, reply with the name of your show and the link to it on YouTube! Also, let us know your favorite shows so we can study their success and break it down for you.

Happy Podcasting.

See you next week.

-Ben