We often define success in podcasting as having a lot of downloads. If there are a lot of people listening to us, or when we make an impact on our audience’s life, our show is definitely successful, right? The definition of success for me has changed after interviewing a lot of different podcasters and hosting my podcast for more than a year and a half.

In today’s podcast episode, I will tell you a little bit about what I learned, what I experienced,  how I changed my mindset around a successful podcast, and also how I currently define a successful podcast.

My POV: Definition Of A Successful Podcast

“The bigger the podcast, the better. If everyone knows the podcast name then that is a success.” – Anne Claessen

Amy Portfield (Amy Portfield Podcast) and Joe Rogan (The Joe Rogan Experience) are some of the podcasters who made a huge name in podcasting. Almost everyone knows them, and we can define them to have a successful podcasting career. However, over time and working with different clients, I started to realize that it’s not always good to have a big podcast. It means that everyone knows who you are. Is that something you want?

A big podcast with a large number of listeners does not always mean a lot of money in our bank account or a large number of clients coming in the door. I noticed that my clients with a smaller audience enjoyed podcasting and could be very creative in their podcasts. They had clients coming in and selling seemed to be super easy.

It’s not necessarily about having a large audience or being well-known to almost everyone. It’s about being happy, creative, and excited to create new content. That’s what keeps your energy going, and getting new clients is a huge bonus.

Podcast Goals: Road to Success

I’ve always been very focused on my goals, especially when I started my podcast. I thought:  when I reach milestone X, I know I’ve accomplished something and I’m a real podcaster. The problem is: this is just ego.

You have to make sure that your goals are aligned with what you really want. Not only because it’s the trend, but because it will make sure that you will have fun in the process. I have two podcasts and I created different goals for each of them which are:

For The Podcast Babes, my goal is to experiment, so that I can give really good advice to my clients. “The more I learn, the more successful my podcast is.”

For Digital Nomads my goal is to have fun. I get to speak to amazing guests and I monetized it, so I had fun +  I am earning money. “The more fun I have, the more successful my podcast is.

What Is A Successful Podcaster For You?

My definition of a successful podcast might be different from yours, and that’s fine as long as it works for you, and you have a bit of fun along the way.

“There are a lot of options when we’re talking about successful podcasts. Bigger is not always better, more listeners are not always better.” 

As a podcaster who hasn’t seen the results you were hoping for, listen to this episode about finding podcast success:  The Mindset You Need To Make Your Podcast A Success, With Chelsea Riffe