A question worth sitting with: where do people actually find podcasts these days? Because the place your podcast lives and the place people discover it stopped being the same place a while ago, and if you don’t know that, your launch plan might be pointed at completely the wrong spot.

I go through where people say they’re really discovering shows now, and it’s probably not where you’d guess, and definitely not just Apple and Spotify. This matters because if your whole plan is to upload your audio, cross your fingers and hope the right people stumble across it, I’m sorry to say it, but that plan doesn’t work anymore.

This isn’t me telling you to give up on audio, it’s the exact opposite, and I explain why the finding and the trusting are two completely different jobs that need two completely different things from you. I also get into why the clips you make aren’t an afterthought at all, and the one thing a happy listener can do for you that’s worth more than any ad.

Have a listen, then go and do the little task I set at the end, because the answer you get might change how you show up. New Pod Shot every weekday. Come and find me on Instagram and TikTok: @lynsaymakeswaves

Something a bit strange, and both halves of it are true. Your podcast is going to be the most trusted thing you make, and it’s going to be the worst at getting anyone to actually click or do something in the moment. Most people read that second bit as a problem. I read it completely differently.

There’s research behind this, thousands of people surveyed, looking at trust across every kind of content people consume, and audio podcasts came out somewhere that genuinely surprised me. In this episode I tell you where, and then I explain why the very thing that makes your podcast look weak on paper is the thing doing all your selling for you.

I get into where your listener actually is when she’s hearing you, why she can’t act in that moment even if she wants to, and how to tell your podcast is working when the numbers look flat. I also give you one question to ask on your next enquiry call that your analytics will never answer for you.

If you’ve ever looked at your download stats and felt a bit deflated, this is the one to press play on. New Pod Shot every weekday. Come and find me on Instagram and TikTok: @lynsaymakeswaves

There’s a number doing the rounds in the podcast world right now, and most people who sell what I sell would keep very quiet about it. I’m going to do the opposite and put it right in front of you.

Loads of listeners say they’d be less likely to carry on with a podcast they love if they found out it had AI voices in it. I sell an AI voice product, so you’d think that would be bad news for me. This episode is me telling you exactly what I think that number is really measuring, and why it isn’t the thing everyone assumes it is.

I get into who those listeners actually are, why audio people feel differently about this than video people, and the one word buried in the research that changes the whole meaning of it once you spot it. I also tell you exactly where my own line is on using AI, and it might not be where you’d expect.

Have a listen and then come and tell me what you think, because this one’s a proper debate and I genuinely want to know. New Pod Shot every weekday.

Find me on Instagram and TikTok: @lynsaymakeswaves