How Many Podcast Downloads Do You Actually Need to Keep Going?

What is Your Rock Bottom Podcast Downloads Number?

Everybody talks about growing their audience. Nobody talks about the number where they'd quietly give up.

This month's Question of the Month flips the growth conversation on its head: what's the smallest number of downloads that would keep you making your show — and if you dropped below it, would you quit, or try to fix it? The answers from School of Podcasting listeners are surprisingly close... and my answer might not be a number at all.

Also in this episode: a guest-pitch so bad it somehow involves a U-Haul dealership, and a heads-up on a booking-platform trick you'll want to know before you pitch yourself as a guest anywhere.

In this episode

• This month's Question of the Month: what's your download floor?
• Steve Stewart says he'd think about quitting under 25 downloads an episode — but here's why he probably wouldn't
• Frank Bravo is already running on "10s" of downloads, and explains why that number doesn't bother him
• Ralph Estep Jr. went from 20 downloads to over 1,000 — but what actually keeps him going isn't the number
• Dave's answer: which of his 30+ podcasts he let die, which ones he kept, and why it's rarely about the download count
• The 6-episode survey test — how to know if it's time to change your show or just accept where it's at
• Scott Johnson (What Was That Like) shares the worst guest pitch he's ever received
• A warning about how some guests are gaming booking platforms like PodMatch — and how to vet who you let on your show

Links mentioned

• School of Podcasting — use code LISTENER for a discount on monthly, quarterly, or yearly plans
• PodPage — this episode's sponsor
• Steve Stewart — Podcast Editor Academy / Podcast Editors Mastermind
• Frank Bravo — Your Tech Makeover
• Ralph Estep Jr. — ralphestepjr.com / new show: Becoming Financially Confident (launching Aug 31)
• Scott Johnson — What Was That Like
• York - Welcome to Earth Stories
• PodMatch
• PodcastGuest.com
• Pitch a Podcast
• Building a Better Dave
• Marketing Musician
• Weekly Web Tools
• New To Cooking

This content may contain affiliate links, meaning I earn a small commission if you purchase through these links at no additional cost to you. I only recommend products or services I trust and believe will provide value to you. Thank you for your support!

Mentioned in this episode:

Where Will I Be?

I love meeting you when I'm out at events. Here are some of my next events: Podcast Movement September 17-18 Podindy November 7th (use the coupon pacer at podindy.com)

Where Will I Be?

Question of the Month: Constructive and Deconstructive Feedback

This month we are talking feefdback. What is the most constructive or deconstructive (or both) piece of feedback you've received. If you haven't asked for feedback, why not? I need your answer by September 25th (late entries won't be accepted) go to www.schoolofpodcasting.com/question and be sure to mention your show and your website address so I can link to it in the show notes.

Question of the Month

Podpage Email Alerts

Podpage just launched a feature called Episode Alerts. It automatically emails your subscribers the moment a new episode goes live — no third-party email tool needed. When you publish, Podpage sends the email, links listeners straight to the episode, routes replies to your own inbox, and handles unsubscribes automatically. They also run every email address through validation and monitor bounces/spam complaints to protect your sender reputation. It's not meant to replace a full newsletter platform — no drip campaigns or segmentation — just a simple "hey, new episode's up" notification. It's available for Pro and Elite users, with monthly sending caps of 500 emails on Pro and 5,000 on Elite. For more information see https://www.podpage.com/updates/introducing-episode-alerts/

Podpage

Join the #1 Podcast Education Site - The School of Podcasting

Adam Curry is the co-founder of Podcasting (and the co-host of the No Agenda Show). When asked about learning how to podcast Adam said, "The place to go with the guy who has taught more people how to podcast than anybody I know - Dave Jackson, School of Podcasting.com"

School of Podcasting