141: How you can do even better than the recent Joe Rogan / Spotify deal

Let's talk a bit about Joe Rogan...Joe is an American comedian, podcaster, actor, television host, and mixed martial arts commentator Joe is 53 years old (one month younger than yours truly) The Joe Rogan Experience is a talk-show / interview format (like most of the podcastosphere it seems) He's been publishing his podcast (and YouTube versions) for over 10.5 years He typically publishes 3 or more episodes per week > average episode length is just over 2 hours 30 minutes As of October 2020 his show "The Joe Rogan Experience" has published just over 1700 episodes That's 4,360 hours of content > if you listened non-stop, 24/7 it would take you 182 days to listen to all of it (at normal speed) As of April 2019 > 190 million downloads per month He's increased his publications year over year, but 2020 it appears that he'll actually publish less than he has been in previous years Not bad for a guy who started out entirely independent (like you and me) The most recent hype - Spotify The podcast-o-sphere is all abuzz with the news that Joe just signed a multi-year deal with Spotify estimated to be worth $100M. That's one of the largest licensing agreements in podcast history. But there are some not-so-good things in the deal that many of us Indie podcasters wouldn't be too keen about... His show can ONLY be found on Spotify Paying members have no-ads Non-paying members have ads (Spotify generated, presumably) In sPITE of all that, it's Easy to say... Wow, it must be nice to be Joe Rogan! But think that through... The dude has paid his dues He has done the work required He has earned every cent (though there is a way I think he could be making more AND keeping full control of where his show is distributed - watch for an upcoming episode about that) Though we can argue about the lasting value he provides his audience, he's clearly hit on a format and personality mix that is entertaining to his demographic Why you should NOT compare yourself to Joe You haven't been at it as long You haven't published as frequently You haven't build the audience he has You haven't had the same opportunities You are likely podcasting for a different reason than Joe (serving an audience, providing help, building a clientele, selling books/courses, etc.) You have differing gifts, personality, abilities, etc. that make your show and approach intrinsically different than his There is a LOT more to successful podcasting than a big deal like Joe signed People helped Specific needs met Pain relieved World-view and mindsets challenged Changed lives What SHOULD you do?Get clear on YOUR purpose (What are you podcasting FOR?) Get clear on your audience (Who are you trying to serve) Figure out where they are (online and in real life) Figure out how to get your message to them (creative, diligent, tireless work) Be willing to pay the price Listen to this episode to get all the deets about these things and more!