Podcast Perspectives

Podcast advertising is unique in the world of advertising. Impact can be challenging to gauge and Chartable, a leading product in this space, is sunsetting. To understand the world of ad performance and measurement now, I’m joined in this episode by Pete Birsinger, the founder and CEO of Podscribe, and Cameron Hendrix, founder and CEO of Magellan AI. Both companies measure how effective podcast ad...

In this episode of The Sound Off Podcast, Podcast Perspectives host (and The Podglomerate's CEO/Founder) Jeff Umbro discusses his transition from book publicist to podcasting, highlighting The Podglomerate's evolution since 2017. He emphasizes the importance of podcast promotion, noting that cross-promos are effective but should not be the sole strategy. Jeff also shares his insights on video's ro...

As we look towards the New Year, we’ve gathered some of the brightest minds in podcasting to reflect on a transformative year. From indie creators to network executives, our guests share their most humbling lessons, unexpected wins, and the moments that made them rethink everything. Plus, they reveal what’s keeping them up at night – and what’s getting them excited – as we head into 2025. Guests i...

How has iHeartMedia reigned supreme in podcasting? Will Pearson, president of iHeartPodcasts, joins me to discuss how curiosity and collaboration have shaped his career and approach to creative development. From starting Mental Floss to holding executive roles at HowStuffWorks and now iHeart, we explore how Will and his team at iHeart have put the spotlight on underrepresented voices, the role tha...

Are audiobooks the key to landing big-time clients like Marvel and DC Comics? My guest, Molly Barton, Realm's co-founder and CEO, has done just that. She dove into the world of audio after leaving her job at Penguin Random House to co-found Serial Box, an audio story company that reimagined what an audiobook could be. In 2021, Serial Box was rebranded as Realm, and Molly and her team are now devot...

Gretta Cohn, CEO of Pushkin Industries, has had a fascinating career path, from cellist for Cursive and Bright Eyes to intern at the Village Voice, to producer at WNYC and Earwolf, to founding her own company. We discuss what she's learned throughout her career, her experience founding the production company Transmitter in 2017, her feelings about the 2022 acquisition by Pushkin, and what her day-...

How does it feel to go from being a podcast co-host to the owner of a brand-new podcast venture? My guest, Alex Goldman, host and creator of Hyperfixed, shares his experience of taking the big leap to podcast ownership. We discuss his previous show, Reply All, how he's built his new business with a lean team, the role Supporting Cast subscribers play in story development, and why he turns to Kurt...

What’s the next frontier of podcasting? My guest, Leital Molad, the Head of Podcasts at WaitWhat and podcast trailblazer, has some answers. We discuss her approach to developing groundbreaking shows, like Paul McCartney’s A Life in Lyrics and A Slight Change of Plans. I also get her thoughts on AI – including her insight into WaitWhat’s Listener’s Bill of Rights in the Age of AI and their new show...

How do you create a meaningful podcast advertising campaign in today's market? In this episode, I’m talking with Lisa, CEO of TWiT.tv. She's led the company for 16 years and has witnessed many ebbs and flows, especially when it comes to ad sales. Lisa and I talk about the range of podcast advertising options, her approach to sales partnerships, and how the pandemic continues to impact sales. She a...

Podcasts are intimate. Listening to them is often a solitary experience, and although fandoms emerge, building community within the industry can be a challenge. In this episode, I’m talking with three guests who have extensive experience developing community in the podcast world through festivals and awards: Jemma Rose Brown, general manager of the Signal Awards; Davy Gardner, head of Tribeca Audi...

What do wrestling and podcasting have in common? Jason Hoch, who ran WWE’s digital team during the early social media days and is now a leading podcast producer. In this episode, I talk with Jason, now the CEO and Chief Creative Officer at Wavland. Jason and I chat about his experience at the WWE, what it was like to work at HowStuffWorks on the hit podcast Atlanta Monster, and with Taylor Sherida...

The podcast industry, like all media and entertainment, is undergoing a course correction. In this episode, I speak with Rachael King, CEO of Pod People. Rachael and I chat about podcast marketing strategies, team building advice, her latest predictions for the future, and why her first question to client has nothing to do with podcasts. To learn more about Pod People, visit podpeople.com. Rachael...

Storytelling podcasts are a unique subsection of podcasting, and one with many obstacles and challenges to overcome. In this episode, I’m talking with Hassan Chaudhry, head of partnerships and strategy at Blanchard House, a UK-based independent podcast company which focuses on storytelling. Hassan is the former director of business and strategy with HBO. Hassan and I chat about his experience at B...

The podcast world is growing rapidly, and podcasters can fall behind without a glimpse of the future. Predictive analytics have become vital for podcasts to survive and flourish. In this episode, I’m talking with Sean Howard, the founder and CEO of Flightpath, a predictive analytics platform for podcasting. He’s also the founder of Fable and Folly, which is a network of fiction podcasts. Sean and...

On today’s episode we’re doing something different: Chris Boniello, the Podglomerate’s VP of Production Services, is taking over the host seat to discuss the production side of podcasting. He chats with Garrett Tiedemann, Mix Engineer and Sound Designer at Campside Media. This year, Garrett was nominated for ‘Best Production and Sound Design’ at the Ambies for his work on Chameleon: Dr. Dante. The...

There are many unknowns when it comes to podcast marketing. This is because ‘podcast marketers’ are often podcasters who become marketers, rather than professional marketers who got into podcasting.  In this episode, I’m speaking with someone from the latter category: Odile Beniflah, Head of US at Ausha. Ausha is a podcast hosting platform with an integrated suite of podcast marketing tools. Odile...

Since its founding in 2014, Acast has become a global, publicly-traded company. Their business has touched many facets of the podcasting landscape – from building a hosting platform used by more than 125,000 podcasts to acquiring companies like Pippa, RadioPublic, and Podchaser. Acast also launched and shuttered its own app.  In this episode, Acast’s CEO Ross Adams joins me to discuss the company’...

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) can be a confusing organization for the podcasting industry. They’re an influential player that many recognize by name, but it's not often clear to the everyday podcaster what they actually do. The IAB’s main objective is to develop and establish the ‘rules and regulations of podcasting’ – namely determining how we measure key metrics within the industry, s...

Wonder Media Network was founded in 2018 to “introduce empathy into politics, business, and culture.” Since then, they’ve grown into a sizable independent network, creating award-winning originals and branded series for clients.  To walk me through the secrets to Wonder Media’s success, I talk with their Head of Development, Emily Rudder. Emily has been at Wonder since 2019, and has held a variety...

The 27-year-old Slate Magazine just had its most profitable year ever, and it credits podcasting for much of its success. Slate has been publishing podcasts since the 2005 launch of Political Gabfest, and they’ve built on that success ever since. Today, they have dozens of successful shows, a thriving subscription business in Slate Plus, and they recently acquired Death, Sex & Money from WNYC. To...

In March of 2023 the podcast agency Maximum Fun announced the company would convert to a worker-owned model. At the same time, Maximum Fun’s founder, Jesse Thorn, would be stepping down as CEO after nearly 20 years at the company (though would still work at MaxFun). On this episode, I'm checking in with their current CEO Bikram Chatterji to see how things are going. Bikram and I discuss why the co...

Since the launch of Up and Vanished Season 1 in 2016, Tenderfoot TV has steadily grown into one of the most impactful companies in the podcast industry. To explain how Tenderfoot TV got to where it is today, CEO Donald Albright joins me to talk about Tenderfoot’s unique approach to podcast marketing, how they leveraged the success of Up and Vanished to develop partnerships across the industry, and...

Chris Peterson is betting big on the podcast industry in 2024. The ex-iHeart executive founded DWNLOAD Media, a podcast roll-up aimed at buying and operationalizing existing podcast companies to compete with the giants in the space. He’s currently in the early stages of development, pitching investors and audio companies on the idea. To promote his venture, Chris recently released the 2024 DWNLOAD...

Today I’m chatting with Dusty Weis, Founder and President of the B2B podcast production company Podcamp Media. Podcamp is a small but mighty firm based in Wisconsin. They largely works with companies, brands, and trade associations also based in the Midwest. Dusty does for brands what typically takes a whole team – from conceptualizing to producing shows for his clients. Dusty's background is in r...

The antiquated radio drama is making a comeback, now rebranded as “fiction podcasts,” and agencies like QCODE Media are leading the way in making these shows marquee programming. Their production is up there with the best, the artwork has the iconic look of an HBO original, and they’ve cast A-list Hollywood stars like Rami Malek, Kerry Washington, and Matthew McConaughey, to name a few. To find ou...