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Transcript

The Algorithm Is Not a Podcast God · Your Mic

• 0:00
  You can fight me in the comments, but I am convinced that there are people who check on their podcast stats more often than they check on their kids.
• 0:07
  Open the app, refresh. Open another app, refresh. Go to YouTube Studio, refresh. Rinse, repeat, over, and over, and over again.
• 0:19
  Every little bump is a miracle. Every tiny dip is a crisis. There's more faith in the recommended tab than in anything resembling a God.
• 0:30
  Welcome back to your mic. My name is Freddie Cruz, founder of Speak Podcasting. If you want to chat pods, hit me up.
• 0:37
  Freddie with a Y at SpeakPodcasting.com.
• 0:41
  And today is really just an exorcism. The algorithm is not your God.
• 0:48
  Here is what an algorithm actually is on these platforms.
• 0:52
  Glorified sorting and recommendation math that's trying to keep people on the platform as long as possible.
• 0:58
  It's not a personality test. It's not divine judgment of your worth as a creator. No, no, no.
• 1:05
  Look at how people actually find new podcasts. All right. Depending on the study you read, around 30% of new listeners use the internet and search to find shows.
• 1:16
  Roughly 19 to 33% find new podcasts through word of mouth and personal recommendations. Friends, family, co-workers, maybe a newsletter that they subscribe to.
• 1:27
  Social media, YouTube, and podcast apps own browse sections, each pool, big chunks, too. In other words, some of it is due to the algorithmic overlords.
• 1:39
  And a lot of it is still someone texting their buddy, yo, this episode cooked me.
• 1:45
  But we don't act like that, you and I trust me. I know I don't.
• 1:50
  We act like the only path to growth is seducing a black box.
• 1:56
  We keep saying algorithm when we really mean validation.
• 2:00
  That's how you get hosts changing their entire tone every six months because some guru said shorter shows are favored now.
• 2:07
  That's how you get titles that sound like AI swallowed a LinkedIn post, maximizing impact in 2026, seven surprising levers for intentional leaders boring.
• 2:19
  That's how you also get people rebuilding their entire show format after one bad week of stats. You're not optimizing you are contorting. And that ain't good.
• 2:32
  Here's the thing nobody wants to hear. The algorithm does not care about your feelings. It cares about behavior.
• 2:42
  If people click your thumbnail, if they watch or listen for a while, if they don't bail early, if they come back for more, the system thinks cool.
• 2:50
  This is sticky. Let's show it to more people. And if they don't, the algorithm doesn't.
• 2:56
  So obsessing over the math without obsessing over the human behavior that drives it is like arguing with the scoreboard instead of playing better.
• 3:05
  So right now, let's split this into what you owe the person and what you owe the machine.
• 3:11
  What you owe the person is this.
• 3:14
  A reason to care in the first minute or less. That means a hook that hits an actual fear, desire or curiosity, something a real human would replay or share.
• 3:25
  A story worth repeating. People spread shows that make them feel smart, feel seen or even a little bit shaken up clarity. Oh, do we want clarity?
• 3:36
  This episode is for X person who struggles with Y and once Z. If your listener cannot explain your episode in one sentence to a friend, they won't.
• 3:47
  Harsh truth, I know. Those are the word of mouth levers and word of mouth is still one of the biggest drivers of discovery. I know this from personal experience.
• 3:58
  Well, you owe the AI overlords now. Okay, here we go. You ready? You owe the AI overlords, clean honest titles that actually match the content and use the language or listener would search useful descriptions and episode notes with relevant keywords, names and topics.
• 4:15
  Not for keyword stuffing. No, no, no. But so search and recommendation systems know where to file you. Here's what else you owe the AI overlords being present or discovery happens.
• 4:28
  Podcast apps search YouTube and at least one social channel you're serious about. And that's it. Pass that you're sprinkling glitter on a house with no foundation.
• 4:39
  When you worship the algorithm, you start sacrificing the wrong things. You sacrifice weirdness. Those left-field metaphors, hot tags and risky solo episodes that would make you unforgettable to a thousand people. Well, you kill them because they might not perform.
• 5:00
  You sacrifice honesty. Oh, man, is that a sacrifice to you don't say what you really think about your space because controversy might hurt reach.
• 5:13
  You sacrifice patience. You don't give episodes time together word of mouth because you're too busy projecting trends from four days of data. Again, I've been there.
• 5:23
  Meanwhile, the stuff that actually improves your odds with both humans and machines stays underfed. I'm talking craft, story, specificity, consistency. So here's the move. Right. There's some steps here. Step one is you were going to write down your last three algorithm sacrifices. Where did you betray your taste or your listener to chase numbers?
• 5:46
  Was it an episode topic you didn't want to discuss, but you did because it might pop? Was it a title you hated, but used it because it was SEO friendly. And believe me, I get it. SEO friendly is important. Still though, where else did you betray your taste or your listener?
• 6:04
  Was it when you clipped a cut that was trend ready, even though it wasn't your best moment? Name them. Step two, decide once sacrifice you're done making. Maybe it's one where you stop copying title formulas you despise. Maybe you stop forcing your show into trends that don't fit. Maybe you stop rebuilding your format every time a growth hacker publishes a new thread.
• 6:30
  This is a line in the sand. Write this down. I would rather grow slower than become that. Step three, pick one simple optimization you will keep because this isn't never care about the algorithm algorithms are important. All right.
• 6:50
  It's care about the algorithm in the right way. Some examples, you ready? Always write a clear specific title that a listener could repeat to a friend. Always add a one sentence, CTA asking people to share the episode with one specific type of person, an engineer, a founder, a frustrated marketer, always repurpose one moment into a clip for YouTube or social where discovery actually happens.
• 7:17
  The point is don't ignore the system. The point is to stop kneeling to it because you're not in a relationship with an algorithm. You are in a relationship with the person who has your voice in their ears while they wash dishes in a house you'll never see.
• 7:35
  Their behavior is what moves the numbers, not your prayers to the for you page. So build the episode for them. Then give the system enough information to do its job. And remember, please for the love of all things sacred, the algorithm is not your God. It's the weather.
• 7:53
  Dress appropriately and get back to work or don't just be sure to share this episode with the podcast host in your life who needs to stop worshiping the algorithm. Thanks for listening.