How Many Podcast Downloads Do You Actually Need to Keep Going?
Everybody talks about growing their audience. Nobody talks about the number where they'd quietly give up.
This month's Question of the Month flips the growth conversation on its head: what's the smallest number of downloads that would keep you making your show — and if you dropped below it, would you quit, or try to fix it? The answers from School of Podcasting listeners are surprisingly close... and my answer might not be a number at all.
Also in this episode: a guest-pitch so bad it somehow involves a U-Haul dealership, and a heads-up on a booking-platform trick you'll want to know before you pitch yourself as a guest anywhere.
In this episode- This month's Question of the Month: what's your download floor?
- Steve Stewart says he'd think about quitting under 25 downloads an episode — but here's why he probably wouldn't
- Frank Bravo is already running on "10s" of downloads, and explains why that number doesn't bother him
- Ralph Estep Jr. went from 20 downloads to over 1,000 — but what actually keeps him going isn't the number
- Dave's answer: which of his 30+ podcasts he let die, which ones he kept, and why it's rarely about the download count
- The 6-episode survey test — how to know if it's time to change your show or just accept where it's at
- Scott Johnson (What Was That Like) shares the worst guest pitch he's ever received
- A warning about how some guests are gaming booking platforms like PodMatch — and how to vet who you let on your show
- School of Podcasting — use code LISTENER for a discount on monthly, quarterly, or yearly plans
- PodPage — this episode's sponsor
- Steve Stewart — Podcast Editor Academy / Podcast Editors Mastermind
- Frank Bravo — Your Tech Makeover
- Ralph Estep Jr. — ralphestepjr.com / new show: Becoming Financially Confident (launching Aug 31)
- Scott Johnson — What Was That Like
- York - Welcome to Earth Stories
- PodMatch
- PodcastGuest.com
- Pitch a Podcast
- Building a Better Dave
- Marketing Musician
- Weekly Web Tools
- New To Cooking
This content may contain affiliate links, meaning I earn a small commission if you purchase through these links at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products or services I trust and believe will provid
