ThePodcastHost

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Channel • 6 Shows

Business

Business

Updated Weekly
Mental Health

Mental Health

Semi-weekly Series
Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship

Updated 29/08/2016
Astronomy

Astronomy

Updated 19/11/2018
Design

Design

Series
Health & Fitness

Health & Fitness

Updated Weekly

1 June

AI-written Descriptions, Cold Email Outreach, & Bonus Content: Cut or Keep?

With the right amount of background info and a good prompt, an AI tool like ChatGPT or Claude can write you a brilliant podcast description. But does outsourcing this task miss the entire point of the podcast planning process? Is cold email outreach necessary for contacting podcast guests, or is it almost always flagged as spam and ignored? Is paywalled bonus content really worth the extra time and effort? And should you avoid inviting listeners on as guests, or are they an underused source of value? On this episode, we dig into these four aspects of podcasting before deciding whether to cut or keep them. Podcraft is brought to you by Alitu and The Podcast Host

1 June

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31 min
23 Mar

Should Podcasting Never Feel Like Hard Work?

"Podcasting should never feel like hard work". It sounds nice, but is it true? If it were that easy, wouldn't everyone have a massively successful podcast? On the latest episode of Podcraft, we’re back with our “agree or disagree” format, running through a few statements and giving our take on each. Here's everything we discussed... You should plan at least 10 episodes before launchingThe narrower the niche, the betterAudiograms still work in 2026It’s okay if your first 3 episodes sound badYou might as well host on Spotify - it’s freeShort episodes perform betterWeekly publishing is unrealistic for most peoplePodcasting advice creators are part of the problem Podcraft is brought to you by Alitu and The Podcast Host

23 Mar

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46 min
10/10/2025

Lessons From 500 Episodes & 5 Years of Podcasting

How do you keep a podcast going long enough to reach 500 episodes? Most shows fade away after a handful of recordings, but The Photowalk has just passed a huge milestone. This week, I’m joined by its host, Neale James, to explore what it really takes to stay consistent, build a community, and even turn a passion project into something sustainable. Read the full blog post on this too, here. Neale shares: Why showing up every day matters more than waiting for inspirationHow listener nicknames, mailbags and “the other listener” helped build a loyal communityThe role authenticity plays – including leaving in planes overhead and barking dogsLessons carried over from his BBC radio career into podcastingHow he’s pieced together monetisation with Patreon, sponsors, mentoring and photo toursIf you’ve ever wondered how to keep your podcast alive and enjoyable well beyond launch, Neale’s story is packed with lessons you can take straight into your own show. Also Mentioned Alitu: The Podcast MakerScoreApp

10/10/2025

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59 min
16 Mar

Do Podcasters Control Their Own Discoverability?

Is your podcast growth at the mercy of "the algorithm", or do you have more control than you think? On this episode of Podcraft, we run through a few statements about podcasting and debate on whether we agree or disagree with them. Podcasters need to keep in touch with industry news and trendsPaid subscription requires extra work or contentPodcasters control their own discoverabilityYouTube is now more important to podcasters than Apple PodcastsSponsor and ad reads should always be host-readGuesting on other podcasts is overrated Also mentioned: Colin's Creator Business PageAlitu: The Podcast Maker

16 Mar

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39 min
19 Jan

Podcasting in 2026: What Still Matters (and What Doesn’t)

Do you still need all the “must-do” podcasting advice that gets recycled every year, or has some of it quietly expired? In this episode, we revisit a long list of podcasting essentials and ask one question of each: Does this still matter in 2026? We look at what still earns its place, what has changed, and what you can stop worrying about entirely. The focus is on practical decisions, not trends. When consistency helps and when it gets in the way, why some advice was never essential to begin with, and how much effort makes sense depending on whether your show is a hobby, a growth project, or a business. The thread throughout is simple. Understand why you are doing something, not just whether you have been told you should. Do you still need... A podcast website?A podcast trailer?Apple Podcasts reviews?A microphone?A consistent format or length?To launch with three episodes?An email list?To add metadata to your files?Interview guests?An RSS feed?To listen back to your episodes? Also mentioned Get in touchPodpagePodcast trailer guideUsing Rephonic to find collaborators The Samson Q2U mic Podcraft is brought to you by Alitu and The Podcast Host

19 Jan

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48 min
11 May

Is ChatGPT Killing Your Creativity?

"A creative assistant" is a common label many podcasters assign to LLMs like ChatGPT and Claude. There's no getting around it; these tools are incredibly powerful. But what hidden cost do we pay if we outsource cognitive practices like writing and idea development? In the fitness world, "use it or lose it" is a much-repeated phrase about muscle, and it might be time to treat our brains in the same way. LLMs can help you create more and do it faster. But if you want to create something truly valuable (and retain the ability to do so again in the future), it might be time to slow down, to worry less about quantity, and focus on quality. On this episode, we also unpacked three other 'hot takes': For podcasters, listening is a more important skill than speakingGrowth is overratedYou should NEVER interrupt your guests Podcraft is brought to you by Alitu and The Podcast Host

11 May

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35 min
4 May

Surprising New Data About Podcast Fans Who Mostly Listen

According to a new report from Sounds Profitable, Audio Primes are podcast consumers who listen to at least 75% of their content as audio. It's easy to imagine these listeners as eccentric holdouts from a bygone age; in it since 2004, fiercely loyal to their MP3 players, and manually downloading shows on the iTunes desktop app. (Not that there is anything wrong with this, by the way!) But the data shows Audio Primes as an audience that skews younger. To add to their youthfulness, we see a group who are well-educated, high-earning, engaged, deliberate, loyal, and value word-of-mouth recommendations. On this week's episode of Podcraft, I'm joined by the report's author, Tom Webster. Tom helps us understand more about who Audio Primes are, and what this can mean for us as indie creators in our own efforts to reach them. Podcraft is brought to you by Alitu and The Podcast Host

4 May

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25 min
26 Jan

Podcast Predictions 2026: What Fails, What Survives, and What Thrives?

What will podcasting actually look like by the end of 2026, once the hype settles and habits stick? In this episode, we make grounded predictions about where the medium is heading and what creators may want to do less of. We examine the growing pushback against video-first shows that neglect audio listeners, why audio-only content may regain strength, and how screen fatigue could reshape creator priorities. We also look at the future of tools and platforms. Where AI editing genuinely saves time, where it risks flattening personality, and why rougher, more human solo content may become more valuable rather than less. We explore distribution too, including what might come next from Spotify, whether Apple Podcasts is likely to evolve, and why open RSS still matters even as video grows. Finally, we wrap up by looking ahead. Which formats are likely to thrive, how monetisation and advertising may shift, and how creators can decide what is actually worth their time. Podcraft is brought to you by Alitu and The Podcast Host

26 Jan

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55 min
27 Apr

YouTube Can Get You Discovered. But Can It Deliver?

When Apple Podcasts announced vastly improved video capabilities back in February, I'll admit that my first thought was, "Will anyone care?" To my mind, if someone already watches video podcasts on YouTube, what incentive would there be to change platforms? But, I missed one crucial aspect. Delivery. On YouTube, you can hit subscribe and smash as many bells as you like; there's still no guarantee the platform will show you the new episodes of your favourite podcasts. This is the crucial difference with video on Apple Podcasts, where you can follow a show and get all new episodes sent to you as soon as they're published. For podcasters creating video, this provides a real incentive to let your YouTube viewers know there's a better place for them to keep up with you. The Big Y might be helping you get in front of potential new fans, but can you trust it to serve up your new content to them week after week? Even if the answer is "yes", it's brilliant to have other options available. And on this week's episode of Podcraft, I thoroughly enjoyed picking the brains of Buzzsprout's Alban Brooke, who really has his finger on the pulse with all of this. Podcraft is brought to you by Alitu and The Podcast Host

27 Apr

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38 min
6 Apr

Do Podcast Ads Do More Harm Than Good?

Back in November, our Independent Podcaster Report found that only 15% of creators were actively monetising their shows. Of those that did, the majority were running ads and sponsorship. If you missed it, the full report is here. This week on Podcraft, we got into the thornier side of that: can ads erode audience trust? Are they an annoyance? And how many is too many? We picked apart some other claims, too: AI voices will become indistinguishable from real hostsOne viral clip can change everythingYouTube rewards podcasters more than podcast apps doIf you don't have 5+ hours a week, don't start a podcastYour podcast idea isn't uniqueIf you're not getting feedback, your podcast isn't memorable Podcraft is brought to you by Alitu and The Podcast Host

6 Apr

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39 min

We're not only teachers, we're creators too! This is our network of shows, from our flagship Podcraft series, to experimental shows like FantasAI. Check out what we make, here, and if you want to learn to do it yourself, listen to Podcraft to find out how.

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