Shownotes
We’re diving into the challenges podcasters face when it comes to understanding their audience beyond the flashy year-end summaries. While platforms like Spotify and Goodreads showcase a neat wrap-up of the year, we know that for creators, it often leaves us feeling frustrated because it only shows a fraction of the full picture.
That’s why we’re rolling out a six-step approach to help you create a comprehensive feedback document that digs deeper into your analytics. We’ll cover everything from establishing core numbers to identifying your best episodes and leveraging audience patterns to craft a solid plan for 2026.
By the end, you’ll have a clear strategy that goes beyond the surface and gets to the heart of what your audience really wants.
Takeaways:
- Every December, the Internet is flooded with wrapped summaries highlighting our past year.
- As creators, we often feel frustrated with how limited data from Spotify and others can be.
- It's essential to analyze not just total downloads, but also listener engagement on various platforms.
- Understanding geographic data can reveal unexpected opportunities for connecting with new audiences.
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Be a Better Podcaster is a tips and growth podcast brought to you by Jamie and Jaayne. These are AI hosts - their voices are auto-generated, reading content created by Danny Brown, host of One Minute Podcast Tips and 5 Random Questions.
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Transcripts
So every December, the Internet just, you know, it lights up with all these wrapped summaries.
Jaayne:Oh, yeah, it's everywhere.
Jamie:Spotify, Goodreads, you name it. And there's this, this real satisfaction in seeing your whole year packaged up so neatly. It's fun. It's totally viral.
Jaayne:It is. But for us, for the creators, there's always this, this quiet frustration that comes along with it.
Jamie:Exactly, because the listener's rapt is a nice little artifact, but for a podcaster, it only shows a tiny fr of.
Jaayne:The story, a sliver.
Jamie:Maybe you have 40% of your audience on Spotify, maybe a bit more. But what about everyone else? Yeah, so it feels nice, but it's. Well, it's deeply insufficient for making actual business decisions.
Jaayne:It gives you a cheer, not a blueprint. That's a great way to put it.
Jamie:And that's the problem we're going to tackle today, right?
Jaayne:How do you move past that glossy, you know, partial data, the marketing fluff, and build something that's actually comprehensive, something that's a strategic feedback document.
Jamie: very own podcast, wrapped for:This isn't just about tallying up numbers. This is the path to being truly informed about your audience.
Jaayne:And to make that happen, the analysts we've been looking at, they lay out a very structured six step approach. It's about taking that raw historical data and turning it into actionable feedback.
Jamie:So not just a nostalgic recap.
Jaayne:Not at all. This is about designing your success for the coming year.
Jamie:Okay, let's unpack this. Step one, then. Establishing the core numbers. You have to start with the most objective data you can find, and that.
Jaayne:Means starting with your hosting provider. We call this the source of truth. And that distinction is really crucial.
Jamie:When you say source of truth, are we talking about the raw download logs, the ones that account for every single listening app, not just the platform dashboards.
Jaayne:Precisely. Your host is the one place that sees everything.
Every download request that hits their server, regardless of the app, it gives you that macro picture unfiltered.
Jamie:Okay, so what metrics are we pulling?
Jaayne: rics, and you have to compare: Jamie:Completion rate that Comparison to the previous year feels absolutely essential.
Jaayne:It is. You need to know, if you move the needle, the goal here isn't, you know, perfection in every number.
It's about spotting those undeniable macro trends. Did the show grow? Did it plateau, or did it contract?
Jamie:And then asking the big question, the biggest question.
Jaayne:If you saw a major shift up or down, you have to ask yourself why? And that single question, that's the fuel for this entire investigation.
Jamie:Okay, so once we have that top down view from the host, step two is where we zoom in on the specific listening apps, right? This is where we break out Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Casts, Overcast, any of the others that show up consistently.
Jaayne:We're moving from the huge aggregate numbers to the more nuanced stuff. And you're looking for a surprising growth or maybe an unexpected decline on these individual platforms.
Jamie:For instance.
Jaayne:For instance, did you suddenly get a massive spike in followers on a smaller app like Pocket Casts that you just weren't anticipating? Or maybe a platform you've always counted on is, you know, quietly shrinking?
Jamie:And this is where it gets really strategic, because we're not just looking for quantity anymore. We're looking for quality, for engagement.
Jaayne:That is the key shift. This is about finding where your best listeners actually live, not just where the most downloads are coming from.
Jamie:And you can find that data.
Jaayne:You can. You can get data on which apps have higher completion rates directly from tools like Apple's Podcasts Connect and the Spotify for Creators Dashboard.
The biggest download numbers don't always equal the most engaged audience. The analysts we read kept hammering this.
Jamie:Point home, but I have to challenge that a little.
If Spotify is driving, say, 80% of my total downloads, why should I spend valuable time analyzing a tiny group on Overcast, even if they finish every episode? Surely volume matters for things like sponsorships and scale.
Jaayne:That's a fair challenge. And that tension is exactly why this step is so important. Volume matters for reach, absolutely.
But engagement, that matters for monetization and for community.
Jamie:Okay, break that down.
Jaayne:If the data shows that your Apple listeners are, say, 20% more likely to finish every single episode, that cohort is your most committed, high intent audience. So you'd prioritize Apple for new monetization features like paid subscriptions or premium feeds, because they're proven loyalists.
ur most valuable resources in: Jamie:That distinction, reach versus loyalty. That is incredibly useful. And that Brings us perfectly to step three, which zooms back out to the macro level, but through a totally different lens.
Geography. Even if you're not intentionally marketing anywhere specific, your data tells a story about.
Jaayne: w countries that popped up in:Regions are showing the fastest growth rate even if the total volume is still small.
Jamie:Right. I can imagine a podcaster looking at this and thinking, oh, neat. I have three listeners in Uzbekistan. That's fun trivia.
But it's not just trivia, is it?
Jaayne:Not at all. That's a genuine opportunity. Knowing who's listening lets you make these really meaningful, low effort adjustments that can have high returns.
I like what?
Well, if you suddenly see a major growth spike in, say, India or the uk, you might adjust your release timing, or maybe you think about bringing on a guest from that region. It turns fun little fact into a real strategic decision that can deepen engagement.
Jamie:Okay, so we've covered the who and the where. Now we pivot to the what. What content was so good that all these listeners from all over actually sought it out. Step four.
Identifying your episode hall of fame.
Jaayne: yze the content hotspots from:Second, the episodes with the highest completion rates. And third and third, the ones that just dramatically outperformed your expectations. The outliers.
Jamie:So once you have that list of hits, the real work begins. The dissection detective work.
Jaayne:Exactly. You have to follow up with a structured set of questions to figure out what the key factor was.
Let's take a mini case study, say episode 42, the future of AI law just blew everything else out of the water. You have to look closely. Was it the guest, a top tier lawyer who brought their own huge audience?
Or was it the simple non jargon title, AI Law that just attracted a ton of organic search traffic?
Jamie:And telling the difference between those two guests, celebrity versus topic searchability. That's the valuable work right there.
Jaayne:It is. And the data can be brutally honest. A lot of podcasters find out their favorite episode, the one they spent three weeks on.
Jamie:Yeah.
Jaayne:It was actually their lowest performing.
Jamie:Ouch.
Jaayne:Yeah. And meanwhile, the audience might love the quick conversational format that you thought was just filler.
That analysis, breaking down the successful parts is the closest you'll ever get to a guaranteed hit formula.
Jamie:It's fascinating how many creators Just skip this. They just move on to the next episode and hope lightning strikes twice.
Jaayne: ically increase your odds for: Jamie:Okay, now we're at the synthesis steps, and I think these are the most important Step five, which ironically is the one that gets skipped the most, asking what is the data actually telling me? This whole custom wrapped isn't just a recap. It is pure, unadulterated audience feedback, sometimes painful feedback.
Jaayne:You have to move from just looking at data points to real pattern recognition. You're looking for persistent signals that show a clear, unmistakable direction for your show, even if it contradicts your own creative vision.
Jamie:What are some of the clearest patterns we should be looking for? The ones that really point us in the right direction.
Jaayne:The analysis highlights a few common ones. For example, maybe you find that episodes under 30 minutes consistently do better than your longer ones.
Jamie:And why is that?
Jaayne:Well, maybe your audience has fatigue and they prefer content they can actually finish on their commute. Another pattern could be that your solo episodes are crushing those high effort interviews you book. That's a directional signal.
It's telling you the audience values your insight more than the novelty of a guest.
Jamie:Or maybe you see a recurring theme, like episodes about historical finance always end up in your top five, even though your show's supposed to be about modern tech.
Jaayne:Exactly. These aren't anomalies. They are directional signals. It's not a coincidence.
It's a clear message from your audience about what delivers the most value for them. And if you're fighting those signals, you're just making your job harder.
Jamie:That's a tough but necessary thing to hear. And recognizing those patterns leads us right to the final, most crucial step.
Jaayne: ing this whole thing into the: Jamie:Right. You have all the data, you've found the patterns. Now you have to formalize the strategy.
Jaayne:And the blueprint for that strategy is built by answering three really straightforward, really powerful questions, all derived from the analysis you just did.
Jamie:Let's nail down those three questions.
Jaayne:First, what should I double down on based on those clear positive patterns you just found? Second, what can I stop doing? Because the data shows it isn't serving the audience and it's just eating up your time.
And third, where should I experiment more next year based on those subtle successes, those outliers you found in your hall of fame?
Jamie:The power here is really in the elimination of low impact work.
If you find out those long, complex interviews are low performing Maybe you don't stop them completely, but you do them less often and you double down on the high performing solo format. You're trading effort for impact.
Jaayne:That's how you build a robust plan. You get so much clarity on where the effort to reward ratio is highest.
If you start the new year with those three questions answered, you have a huge advantage.
Jamie:So if you really take the time to create this document, even if it's just for you, you start the next year with more clarity than a lot of podcasters ever get.
Jaayne:And that's the final wisdom here. I think motivation is great for starting something, but it's clarity. That clear data driven plan that keeps the engine running.
Clarity beats motivation every single time.
Jamie:That is a deep dive completed. We move way past the superficial fun of a generic mash.
Wraptain laid out a six step plan for going from raw numbers to well to genuine strategic understanding. Yeah, this whole process guarantees you understand the why behind your success, which lets you replicate that hit formula.
Jaayne:And here's the final thought I'll leave you with as you start this process. Your audience has already voted. They voted with their ears.
With every download, with every minute they listened, they have explicitly told you what they want more of. Your only job now is to listen back to what that vote was truly telling you.
