Insider Secrets to a Top 100 Podcast with Courtney Elmer | Podcasting Strategy for Business Growth

One in two podcast listeners discover new shows through search inside Apple and Spotify… which means, if your show isn’t showing up in search, you’re handing half your audience to someone else.

In this episode, we’re fixing that. I’m back in the studio with Irene Picco from Ausha to share the 5 best Podcast SEO practices that get your show ranking where listeners are already looking for content like yours, so every episode becomes a...

41% more downloads in just 30 days. No podcast ads. No podcast guesting sprint. Just Podcast SEO done right.

In this episode, I’m joined by Irene Picco from Ausha, widely recognized as the global leader in tracking podcast SEO performance. Irene and I first unpacked this data live from stage at Podcast Movement, and now we’re giving you the inside look at the Podcast SEO experiment that helped this show climb 99+ search positions, r...

“Just stay consistent and make great content” is the podcast industry’s favorite advice, and it’s exactly why most shows never grow. It doesn’t matter how good your content is if no one can find it. And if your podcast isn’t showing up in search, you’re missing out on 54% of the listeners who are finding new shows that way every single day.

In this episode, I’ll show you how Podcast SEO makes it easier than ever for niche shows to g...

Taylor Swift’s engagement dominated headlines, but the real story is what it revealed about fan psychology. To outsiders, it might look like an obsession. In reality? This "crazy" fan behavior all boils down to simple human psychology. And it’s the same psychology you can use to get your listeners binging your podcast every week.

In this episode, I'm breaking down five simple but powerful shifts that will help you tur...

Taylor Swift’s engagement isn’t just celebrity gossip, it’s the biggest podcast marketing lesson of the year.

Swifties aren’t only streaming her music, they're buying the exact Ralph Lauren dress she wore in her engagement photos and crashing ticket servers because they feel like they know her (even though in reality, they don’t).. That’s not hype, it’s human psychology. And nowhere do you have a bigger opportunity to tap into ...

You’ve niched down (at least, you think you have). You’ve defined your ideal listener, picked a category, maybe even reworked your show description and cover art (twice). But deep down, you’re wondering… have I niched down too far? Or not far enough?

In this Fix My Pod session, I help Anthony uncover the subtle red flags that were keeping listeners from hitting play on his content, and show you how to spot (and fix) the same signs i...

Hot topics get clicks. But what about the episodes you want to record, even if they’re not “trendy” or SEO-friendly? It's a smart question, and it begs an even bigger one: how do you make every episode sound like a must-listen so listeners can’t help but hit play, no matter what you’re talking about?

In this episode, I’m answering both and showing you how to strike the right balance between trending topics and thought leadershi...

Think your podcast doesn’t need to solve a problem? In this episode, fellow podcast host and wine educator Kristi Mayfield shares how uncovering the problems her listeners cared about turned her “just for fun” show into a Top 100 podcast that’s now positioned to drive real revenue—and how you can do the same.

We’re breaking down how to find the problems your show solves, why they don’t have to be deep or life-changing to hook listen...

It’s great to hear “I love your podcast!” from friends and fans — but let’s face it, we BOTH know that this kind of feedback won’t tell you why new listeners stop listening after one episode (or worse, why they aren’t hitting play to begin with).

That’s why Jay Nachlis, VP at Coleman Insights (the research powerhouse behind some of today’s most listened-to shows), joins me back inside this episode to share the surprising patterns be...

Most podcasters rely on feedback from listeners and fans to figure out whether their podcast is good—and it’s costing them hundreds (even thousands) of potential new listeners who decide within seconds if your show is worth their time.

In this episode, Jay Nachlis, VP at Coleman Insights, joins me to reveal why this kind of surface-level feedback gives you a false sense of success, the blind spots that make new listeners tune out in...

Ever finished an interview and thought, “Well, that sucked”? Your audience felt that too — and one boring, rambling guest can make even your most loyal listeners question if they should ever hit play on your show again. But when your guests deliver specific strategies and bold takes they can’t get anywhere else, listeners finish the episode, tell a friend, and trust you more with every listen.

We're breaking down why “good on p...

You’ve done everything the podcasting experts say to do: publish weekly, stay consistent, share on social. Maybe you’ve even changed your cover art, rewritten your description, or tested a new format. But the listens STILL aren’t coming (and you’re low-key resenting how much time you’ve spent talking to an empty room.)

Most podcasters think it’s a marketing problem. But more often, it’s messaging — starting with your episode titles....

If you’re tired of posting content to social media trying to grow your podcast only to get four likes and no new downloads—the problem isn’t the algorithm. The problem is that you’re expecting social to drive podcast growth instead of letting your podcast drive your social strategy.

That's because social isn’t where people go to discover your podcast. It’s where they decide if they trust you enough to listen to your show in the...

If you’ve ever thought, “My content’s so good—so why aren’t more people listening?”  the problem might not be your content at all. It might be what your podcast is saying about you before people ever hit play (and what you’re saying once they do). Because even if your episodes are packed with value, if your show doesn’t clearly signal why people should pick your show out of hundreds of others they could listen to, the right listene...

You’ve been told to make your podcast content “valuable,” but no one ever tells you what that actually means. So you default to teaching step-by-step—hoping that if you give away enough value for free, your inbox will be flooded with messages from people asking how to work with you. But that’s not how it works. Because listeners won’t hire you if they feel like they already got everything they came for. 

So where’s the line between ...

Most podcasters treat email like a checkbox: “Sent the episode to my list—done.” But if that’s your whole strategy, it’s why no one's clicking. In this episode, email marketing legend and Do This Not That podcast host Jay Schwedelson is back to break down what it actually takes to use email to drive real podcast growth.

You’ll learn why the first two words of your subject line decide whether your email gets opened, the one stat...

Still think LinkedIn is just for job seekers or recruiter pitches? Think again. It’s one of the last platforms where organic reach actually works—and it might be one of the fastest ways to get new listeners to your podcast every week.

In this episode, Jay Schwedelson breaks down the exact LinkedIn strategy he's used to help grow Do This, Not That into a Top 10 marketing podcast in the U.S., with over 390 episodes and 2,000+ glo...

If you’ve ever asked yourself, “Where in my episode should I put my call to action?” — this one’s for you. Because even if your CTA is perfectly worded, it won’t drive action if it’s in the wrong spot or the listener payoff isn’t clear.

And if your audience isn’t taking the next step, you’re not just missing out on listener engagement—it’s a hidden leak in your lead flow, costing you potential clients and revenue you don’t even real...

You KNOW you should give a call to action in every podcast episode. But every time you sit down to record, your brain short-circuits — should you tell them to follow the show? Join your list? Download the freebie? Book a call? Support your sponsor? Buy your thing? Say too much and you sound desperate. Say too little and you miss your chance to turn listeners into leads.

In this episode, I’m breaking down the real reason CTAs feel aw...