The honest numbers, unexpected lessons, and whether it’s actually worth the effort
6 months ago, Dylan and I launched the Growth In Reverse podcast. We’ve published 28 full-length episodes, stuck to our weekly schedule, and learned a lot about what it actually takes to run a podcast alongside a newsletter.
Now that we’re past our 6-month mark, I wanted to share the real numbers, the surprising lessons, and whether you might want to start a podcast for your newsletter (or not).
The Numbers Everyone Wants to Know
Let’s start with the question I get asked most: How many email subscribers has the podcast driven?
The honest answer? Not many.
Between Transistor (our podcast host) and YouTube, we’ve gained roughly 170 email subscribers that we can directly attribute to the podcast.
Is a podcast a quick growth lever for newsletters? Absolutely not.
If you’re looking for rapid email list growth, a podcast probably isn’t your best bet. The direct subscriber conversion just doesn’t reflect the work that goes into it.
What The Podcast *Has* Done
While the email subscriber numbers might seem disappointing, the podcast has delivered value in other ways (some I didn’t expect):
Audio downloads: Over 14,000 all-time downloads across 31 episodes (about 451 per episode average), plus 8,300 plays on Spotify. We have 275 estimated subscribers on Transistor.
Podcast analytics feel very hard to actually figure out, so take all of these numbers with a grain of salt.
YouTube growth: 1,677 subscribers, and our top 10 videos have all surpassed 1,000 views. Our most-watched episode has over 5,000 views.
Relationship building: This has been the biggest surprise. When I went to the Newsletter Marketing Summit in February, people kept coming up to me saying “I love the podcast!” – not the newsletter….and we were at a newsletter conference.
There’s something powerful about people getting to know your face, your mannerisms, how you think through problems in real time. It builds trust in a way that written content just can’t match.
The Unexpected Benefits
Better opportunities: I’ve gotten way more podcast invitations since starting our show. I think people see that you have a podcast and naturally think, “They’re comfortable being recorded and talking in real time.”
Or maybe through seeing the show, they realize that you have a podcast too and invite you on. Not sure which is more accurate. 🙂
Clearer thinking: Being able to talk through ideas and concepts instead of just writing them down has been huge for me. It’s helped me formulate thoughts better and explore topics more deeply.
Content multiplication: We turn podcast episodes into newsletter issues, and I’ve gotten great feedback on those posts. Most people don’t even realize they started as podcast conversations.
Networking tool: Having a podcast gives you a legitimate reason to reach out to interesting people for interviews. It’s opened doors that might have stayed closed otherwise.
And, you get to network with those people in real-time.
Dylan and I got to meet Anne-Laure Le Cunff (who we interviewed here) in Boise recently. Actually, she came to the meetup we put on just to say hi before the conference ended. How fun is that?
This wouldn’t have happened if we hadn’t interviewed her. At least not in the same way.
The Reality of Podcast Production
Here’s what I wish someone had told me before we started: It’s a lot more work than you think.
Okay fine, they did tell me that. But I didn’t believe them.
I used to go on other people’s podcasts and think, “Oh, we just talk and they upload it later.”
There are actually many more steps involved:
- Recording
- Editing
- Publishing to multiple platforms
- Creating thumbnails
- Writing show notes
- Creating timestamps
- And don’t forget actually promoting the episodes.
If you don’t promote episodes, people won’t magically find them. This isn’t Field of Dreams (although that’s a great movie). You can’t just build it and expect them to come.
You need to actively let people know when new episodes are live and what they’re about.
Different Audiences, Different Preferences
One thing that’s become clear: podcast listeners and newsletter readers aren’t necessarily the same people.
The majority of my newsletter subscribers don’t listen to the podcast. Some people prefer reading and won’t listen to audio content. Others want podcasts because they’re walking, driving, or multitasking.
There is definitely crossover where some will listen and read it, but it’s not a big percentage.
This creates an opportunity, though. You can repurpose content across formats to reach different audiences with the same core ideas.
One of the biggest wins in my opinion has been that some of the podcast episodes turned into blog posts have actually gotten some of the best feedback.
And for most people, they won’t even realize that you’re simply repurposing the content into a blog post.
👉 Let’s test this out: Did you, as someone who is reading this article, realize that this came from a podcast episode Dylan and I recorded?
Should Every Newsletter Have a Podcast?
Okay, so let’s get into whether it’s worth it for newsletter creators to start a podcast.
My answer? It depends.
Jeremy Enns, a podcast marketing expert, put it perfectly when Dylan interviewed him last year. He said not every newsletter needs a podcast, but every podcast should have an accompanying newsletter.
I definitely agree with that take.
I would start a podcast if:
- You enjoy talking as much or more than writing
- You want to build deeper relationships with your audience
- You have the bandwidth to stick with it consistently
- You’re not expecting immediate growth
- You want to practice articulating your thoughts out loud
I wouldn’t start a podcast if:
- You’re looking for quick email list growth
- Your time is extremely limited
- You’re expecting easy, passive content creation
- This is going to be a distraction from your regular content creation
Of course, that’s not an exhaustive list, but I think it hits many of the main points. Podcasting can be a great medium, but it can also be quite time-consuming.
How to Start Simple
If you do want to experiment with podcasting, here are some of the lowest-lift ways to begin:
Voice Memo Style
Record yourself in audio-only, talking through ideas and topics you’re interested in. You can get a cheap microphone and even do this while you’re on your daily walk.
Our friend, Becky Davidson, just launched a voice memo podcast because she knew she could stick with that format.
Audio versions of existing content
Read your newsletter issues out loud. The Pourover does this and gets tons of downloads from people who want to listen during their commute.
There are plenty of examples of this working quite well, and can help you build a more robust habit with your audience.
Private podcast series
Create a 7-part series as a lead magnet from content you might already have created. I did this with the 30 Days of Growth and people loved it.
This can help you test whether you like the format before committing to a full show.
Q&A format
With this, you can answer common questions from your audience. Simple to plan and always valuable content.
At the end of each episode, you can share a link where listeners can submit their own questions. This can help build a great flywheel of content ideas you can build around in the future, not just for the podcast.
The Monetization Reality
I would caution against starting a podcast expecting immediate revenue. It’s more challenging than you’d think to do sponsorships well, especially if you want integrated ads that don’t annoy your audience.
If you have a paid newsletter, you could add podcast content as a perk for subscribers. But focus on building an audience first, monetization later.
What We’ve Learned About Growth
Podcasts grow differently than newsletters or social media.
Audio discovery is incredibly difficult – it’s orders of magnitude harder than growing an email list or YouTube channel.
If you want podcast growth, you probably need a video component for discovery. Jay Clouse is a perfect example – he had an audio podcast for years, then added video and grew to 100,000 YouTube subscribers. I am not sure of his numbers, but I doubt he’s hit 100,000 subscribers on the podcast version of these episodes.
But Jay would tell you himself that doing YouTube well takes enormous time, effort, and often hiring help.
The Bottom Line
The podcast hasn’t been a direct growth driver for my newsletter. But it’s been incredibly valuable for building relationships, clarifying my thinking, and creating new opportunities.
And now there are these beautifully uncomfortable stills of my expressions out there in public for me to cringe at 🙂
If you’re thinking about starting a podcast, don’t do it for quick wins. Do it because you want to build deeper connections with your audience, and you genuinely enjoy the format.
Start simple. Record into your phone while walking. Read your existing content out loud. Try a short private series before committing to a weekly show.
And remember – whether you start a podcast or not, make sure you’re capturing email addresses. If you have a podcast without a newsletter, you’re missing a huge opportunity to build a more direct relationship with your audience.
Would I do it again? Absolutely. Just with more realistic expectations about growth and a better understanding of the time investment required.
The relationships and opportunities it’s created have been worth it, even if the subscriber numbers don’t tell the whole story.
If you happen to also be someone who likes podcasts, you can listen wherever you get your podcasts.
