Zero listeners, zero fans, zero reputation.
Every podcast creator starts in the same place.
It’s easy to begrudge the big brands and media empires for instantly racking up millions of downloads without having to pay their dues.
But they did.
They started from zero too.
Not in the podcast world maybe, but they’ve spent years, decades, or in the case of GE—who’ve put out some fantastic podcasts—well over a century building their brand, following, and clout.
Attention can be bought and sold, but audiences can only be earned, no matter who it is that’s building them.
Most of the brands and media businesses bringing their massive followings and name recognition to podcasting were once small, scrappy, one-person operations themselves, struggling to garner attention, customers, and funding.
Their persistence paid off, however, and now they’re simply bringing the audience they earned and grew via other mediums to podcasting.
This is the process we all have to go through.
As solopreneurs and indie creators, it’s not productive to rail against the behemoths we might feel aren’t playing by the same rules we are.
If the podcasts they produce are good?
Great! We all benefit from more great content in the world.
If the podcasts aren’t good?
Well, few people are going to listen anyway.
I regularly turn off podcasts, Netflix series, movies, click away from YouTube videos, and put down bad books.
I’m sure you do too.
Rather than begrudge them, our opportunity is to learn from these producers and apply those lessons to our own podcasts.
We can’t beat them at their own game.
But by choosing to aim smaller, more intimate, more personal with our audiences, we can choose to play a very different game.
And we can win.
