Is Posting Consistently Overrated? Why Great Storytelling Can Beat the Algorithm
What if the advice you hear all the time (post consistently, feed the algorithm, follow best practices) isn't the only way to grow? This week I'm looking at a YouTuber called Dr. Plants who posts three videos a year and averages tens of millions of views. He's zagging while everyone else zigs, and he has a lot to teach podcasters about storytelling and great content. I also cover why Buzzsprout's Kevin Finn says Spotify isn't being a good partner, what to check before a surprise Black Friday renewal hits your account, the RSS feed cloning problem on Spreaker, and why you need to start now if you want your podcast launched in January 2027.
Best Practices vs. Amazing Content
The last time I really dug into this topic was back in October 2016 on episode 535 (the one with the weird commercial for my cats' record). Last week, Brian Cottington from Libsyn walked us through titles, thumbnails, and hooks, and all of that absolutely matters for getting found. But in the end, amazing content matters too.
Then I watched Sean Cannell of Think Media interview Dr. Plants, and I thought, "Here's someone who isn't zigging. He's zagging."
"YouTube Is Just a Storytelling Contest"
Dr. Plants' view is simple: the people telling the best stories are the people getting the most views.
When Sean asked him for the most overrated piece of YouTube advice, his answer was posting consistently. He puts out three videos a year, on random dates, whenever each one is done to the best of his ability. He admits consistency might build a more loyal audience, a deeper connection with fans, or more product sales. But if you only care about views, he says you could post one video a year.
Is YouTube (or Podcasting) Too Saturated?
YouTube says 20 million videos are uploaded every day. Is it too late to start? Dr. Plants says there has never been less competition, because AI has made everyone's content exceptionally average. That's why so much of YouTube looks the same. His formula: find what everyone else is doing and do it 10% better, because being 10% better can multiply your views tenfold. Improve one little thing on every video and it's nearly impossible to lose.
So, Dave, Is Consistency Important or Not?
Yes, I still think consistency is important. When you publish on a schedule, you become part of someone's routine. I've had listeners tell me I'm with them every Monday on the way to the feed store, and there are shows I listen to on certain days of the week. When you take a couple of weeks off, you give someone else a chance to get at your audience. (If you're doing it to keep your sanity, that's a good reason.)
But nothing in podcasting is mandatory. Dan Carlin of Hardcore History has always been the poster boy for "well, it depends." He's in the Podcaster Hall of Fame, and he releases an episode every two or three months. Each one is three or four hours long, basically a small audiobook. So there are best practices, and then there's Dan.
If your gut says there's a better way to do something, but your head says "that's not how everyone else does it," that might be a really good sign. That's zagging when everyone else zigs.
AI Is Making Content Average
I'm not anti-AI, but I see people trying to be thought leaders using thoughts from ChatGPT. Dr. Plants is right: AI is making a lot of content average. Not bad. Just average. If you want to break out, you have to be better than the competition. You have to be relevant, and you have to resonate. Turning on two microphones and shooting the shinola with your friends probably isn't amazing content. It isn't bad, but it isn't going to inspire someone to tell a friend.
How to Tell Better Stories on Your Podcast
I've been singing this song for years: it's all about storytelling. Most storytelling books just tell you stories are good and have been around since the caveman. Yeah, duh. My favorite, Storyworthy by Matthew Dicks, actually shows you how to cut out the non-essential parts of your content.
He also points out that stories always have a transformation. His example: Jurassic Park isn't about dinosaurs. The first scene has a man complaining about how expensive and smelly kids are. By the end, that same man is risking his life to save the children.
The biggest storytelling tip I can give you is figuring out where to start the story. We usually give way too much background. Find where the transformation starts, then back up only as far as you need to give the listener enough context to understand it.
Great Podcast Content = Content + Delivery
Dr. Plants sounds crazy at first, but he's really just the flip side of feeding the algorithm: he's feeding the emotional side. Both are great.
Remember that an episode is made up of content and delivery. Amazing content delivered in a boring way won't work. Amazing delivery about paint drying won't work either. (I was watching the NFL, and the voiceover guy has incredible delivery... about Burger King.) On YouTube, the algorithm is kind of the delivery, and Dr. Plants is all about the content.
How to Promote Your Podcast
Once the content is great, you still have to market it:
- Social media
- Newsletters
- Appearing on other podcasts
- Going to where your audience is, making friends, and telling them about your show
Which of those are you doing? If the answer is "a little bit of social media" and you're not happy with your growth, maybe do more.
Buzzsprout's Kevin Finn: Spotify Isn't a Good Partner
I've said over and over that Spotify isn't a good media host (free or not), and I'm not the only one. On Buzzcast, Buzzsprout co-founder Kevin Finn shared a support case where a customer sent screenshots of the Spotify for Podcasters settings. Right on the screens podcasters must visit to enable video distribution, Spotify displays banners asking why they're hosting somewhere else and offering free hosting.
Kevin's point: the Spotify team is nice to work with in person, but the app tells a different story. Podcasters who switch often come back after struggling with support, stats, and unresolved issues, and he feels Spotify's hosting is mostly a way to pick off successful shows for its ad program (which you don't even need to host with Spotify to join). Compare that to Apple, which consistently asks how to strengthen the relationship. Buzzcast is one of my favorite shows, and I love Jordan, Alban, Kevin, and the whole Buzzsprout team.
Podcast Download Stats: See Where You Stack Up
If you're a fan of Rob Walsh and Elsie Escobar, they used to publish mean and median download stats at a previous company. Now that's happening again on In and Around Podcasting. You can also see where you stack up at Buzzsprout's stats page.
Check for Surprise Subscription Renewals Before Black Friday
I've worked at the School of Podcasting, Libsyn, and now PodPage, and one thing I see over and over is people getting mad when a company renews their subscription. That's like asking Netflix why it charged you again. And it's a no-win situation: when companies send reminders, people ask why they keep reminding them.
It's November as I record this, which means last year's Black Friday deals, especially the annual ones, are about to renew. Log into the checking account you use for your podcast (you do use a separate account for your podcast, right? I covered that on Your Podcast Consultant). Look for anything you're not using. Every year someone discovers a $94 charge for something they forgot they bought, and getting a refund isn't guaranteed because it's in the terms they didn't read. Put it on your to-do list before this year's Black Friday sucks you in again.
Cloned RSS Feeds on Spreaker
School of Podcasting member Nancy May (Family Tree Food Stories) asked me about a story going around: people are taking the RSS feeds of very popular shows, importing them into Spreaker (a free, ad-supported host owned by iHeart), and earning ad money from them. That money doesn't go to the original creator. It goes to whoever cloned the feed, and to iHeart.
James Cridland at Podnews has pointed out lots of these cloned shows, and Spreaker doesn't seem to be in a giant hurry to remove them.
What does that mean for you?
- Unless your show is very popular, you probably don't need to worry about this.
- It's not a great look for the Spreaker brand. On Podcasting 2.0, Adam Curry and Dave Jones (who run the Podcast Index) talked about cleaning out AI slop, fake shows,
