Podmastery: podcasting insights and advice for indie creators

New research from Signal Hill Insights, presented by Tom Webster at Sounds Profitable, surveyed over 5,000 podcast listeners — and the findings are uncomfortable for most indie podcasters to hear. Probably the most uncomfortable for me to hear, considering they contradict everything I've ever told people around podcast growth. But, as with all things, this research is not gospel. It's, as usual, a soupçon of insight into a complex and wide challenge.
It challenges what our audio is, what our newsletter does and why our video clips should be.
So listen as I break down the Podcast Atlas findings and what they actually mean for indie shows without a publisher, PR team, or paid clip editor behind them.
You’ll hear:
— Why the 43% trust number matters — and why it’s useless until someone finds you first
— What the data says about clips as a discovery engine (and my nuanced take on whether that shifts my position)
— Why 61% of your potential audience is untapped and ownable — and what to do about it
— The only two things in this whole system you actually own
📊 Download the full Podcast Atlas report (free): https://soundsprofitable.com/research/the-podcast-atlas/
Three ways to work with me:
1. Start the free 7-day podcast makeover email course at podmastery.co
2. Take the listener survey and receive a free download: podmastery.co/listener-survey/
3. Ready to work directly? podmastery.co/need-podcasting-help/

A couple of episodes back I made the case for Apple Podcasts’ new HLS video. Then I had to go and actually do it — because the theoretical version of podcasting-about-podcasting is slightly embarrassing, and I hold myself to a better standard than the people spouting expertise about things they’ve never tried.
So I enabled video for B2B Podcasting Insights, my other show, in Captivate. A real show, in a crowded market, with real numbers. This episode is the field report.
In this one:
What HLS video actually is — and why it isn’t the old MP4-in-the-RSS-enclosure trick that nobody could see
What the listener experience really looks like (spoiler: “clean” is a Michelin star in podcast infrastructure)
The hosting catch — it lives or dies on who you host with
Three workflow changes nobody warns you about, including the upload time and editing for two audiences at once
What two weeks of data actually showed — told straight, no fake growth-hack victory lap
The honest verdict: who should switch it on now, and who should wait

LINKS
Got something about your show bugging you at half eleven at night? Go to podmastery.co and click get in touch. Let’s sort it rather than just theorise about it.
Recorded on Boomcaster — free trial + 50% off your first three months (affiliate link): podmastery.co/boomcaster
And go follow B2B Podcasting Insights if you want more on getting the most from a B2B show: podknows.co.uk/b2bpi

Your show sounds cleaner than it ever has. You've sorted the room, fixed the levels, maybe even brought in an editor. And when you listen back — nothing.
No connection. No feeling. Just technically correct audio with nobody in it.
Hi, I'm Neal Veglio, founder of the Podmastery community from Podknows Podcasting. And this week, I'm exploring why that hollow feeling has nothing to do with your equipment — and why the fix is simpler than you think.
I share a story from my radio days about a presenter who went from compelling-but-rough to polished-and-forgettable, what broadcast training actually teaches about the difference between performing and talking, and the 30-second exercise I even use myself before every recording.
If you'd like a proper look at what's sitting between your show and where you want it to be, head to podmastery.co, hit the Get In Touch page, and tell me what's going on.

Somebody just moved the goalposts on podcast metrics. And most podcasters didn’t even notice.
The Alliance for Measurement in Podcasting — AMP — has defined a new cross-platform standard for what counts as a ‘play.’ Spotify has already adopted it.
In this episode, Neal breaks down what this actually means for indie podcasters — why your dashboard numbers are about to look fairly different, why that doesn’t mean your show is doing better, and why optimising for any play-count threshold is optimising for the wrong thing.
You’ll hear:
— What AMP is and why they’re trying to standardise this
— What is ‘intentional consumption’ in Spotify’s words, and what that actually means
— Why Apple’s definition is still extraordinary (and not in a good way)
— The one metric that actually tells you if your show is working
🔗 Listen to other episodes here: https://podmastery.co/
📊 Free 7-day podcast makeover email course — one tip per day, no filler. Sign up at podmastery.co
💡 Want to work through your specific show? podmastery.co/need-podcasting-help

Every podcaster who's ever had a guest on has felt it. You do the edit, write the show notes, create the clips, tag them everywhere — and hear absolutely nothing back. No share. No repost. Not even a like.
So is it you? Is it them? Is this just how guests are?
In this episode, I'm getting into why podcast guest cross-promotion is one of the most persistent myths in indie podcasting.
If you're booking guests to borrow their audience, this episode is going to save you a lot of disappointment.
Free 7-day podcast makeover: head to podmastery.co and sign up — one practical tip per day, straight to your inbox.