Stop Asking Friends What They Think of Your Podcast
Free resources from Speke Podcasting: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/freeresources Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/pricing-plans Podcasters quit right before it starts working. This episode breaks down the real timeline behind three working shows, and why time, effort, and feedback (not luck) are what actually separate the ones who make it from the ones who don't. Key Takeaways 1. Compounding takes years, not months. One client didn't cross 100K downloads until roughly two and a half…
Spotify’s Ad Skip: Smart Feature… or Indie Podcaster Nightmare?
Get the FREE Speke Roadmap: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/givethemroadmap Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/ Indie podcast expert Frank Racioppi joins me to unpack AMP’s new play metric, Spotify’s ad skip feature, broken CPMs, and why targeted listeners beat vanity downloads if you actually want a podcast that makes money. Subscribe to Frank’s newsletter (https://podalization.substack.com/) Read Frank’s work in Forbes (https://www.forbes.com/sites/frankracioppi/) Key Takeaways…
Stop Using “Authenticity” as an Excuse for a Sloppy Podcast
Free resources from Speke Podcasting: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/freeresources Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/pricing-plans Freddy takes a blowtorch to the “intentional mistake” trend that is quietly trashing good shows. You hear the story of a client’s phone ringing mid‑recording, why leaving it in was not a clever brand move, and how big creators are now telling you to keep typos and stumbles on purpose to prove you are human. Freddy calls that what it is: fear and…
How to Use Hot Takes Without Turning Your Show Into Noise
Free resources from Speke Podcasting: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/freeresources Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/pricing-plans Freddy rips apart the idea that your show has to be either bland or outrage‑bait to stand out. He uses cooking as the frame, introducing the “anti‑hero” as the salt of your podcast, the informed opinion your listener suspects is true but never hears anyone say out loud. You hear how this sits alongside the classic storytelling elements Freddy teaches…
Too Many Ads, Not Enough Show: Why I Built My Own Network
Free resources from Speke Podcasting: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/freeresources Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/pricing-plans Seven minutes of ads. Then more ads. Then a 45 minute episode where maybe 30 of those minutes were actual content. Freddy Cruz watched it happen from inside the radio world and saw the same disease spread into podcasting. So instead of bloviating about it, he built something. This episode is the official introduction of the Speke Originals Network, two…
Why They Ghosted: Buyer Psychology for Podcasters
Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/ Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/your-mic/id1777171203 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1PQNHuqxIVhkLfjGYuWcxl Learn more about Katie: https://katieread.com/ Learn more about the Castle Guard Framework: https://buyerpsych.com/ Freddy Cruz chats Katie Read on Your Mic unpacking her Castle Guard AI framework from psych roots. She reveals four buyer blocks drive identity risk pattern derailing sales. Podcasters…
Silence Cooks Podcast Gold
Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/ Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/your-mic/id1777171203 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1PQNHuqxIVhkLfjGYuWcxl Freddy rips apart podcast editing myths around silence. New hosts walk away knowing exactly what to cut and protect so your episodes grab ears and hold them. You get the beats breaths brakes system to make every show feel human and heavy. Stop babysitting distractions. Start wielding quiet like a pro. Key…
Tactical Batching For Hosts Who Refuse To Miss An Episode
Freddy tears apart the fantasy that you can wing your podcast and still build a real show. This episode is a Waffle House level reality check on what happens when you treat your feed like a 24 hour operation instead of a hobby that folds every time life swings. You walk through green, yellow, and red zones for your pipeline so you know exactly when your show is healthy and when you are one sick day from silence. Freddy hands you a simple batching framework that busy founders can actually run, with real…
Your Podcast's Invisible Enemies
Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/ Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/your-mic/id1777171203 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1PQNHuqxIVhkLfjGYuWcxl Imagine your podcast as a beat‑up character in a movie, throwing punches at shadows in an alley. That’s what it feels like when your show is getting hammered by enemies nobody else can see—not trolls, not reviews, not even the algorithm, but the junk living rent‑free in your head. In this episode,…
Cruz Through HTX: How Killing a Good Show Saved a Better One ​
Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/ Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/your-mic/id1777171203 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1PQNHuqxIVhkLfjGYuWcxl Cruz Through HTX was a love letter to Houston—stories, people, and weird corners of the city that felt like destiny for a former radio guy turned podcaster. But destiny doesn’t care about your calendar, your bandwidth, or your business model. While hosting Cruz Through HTX, building a production company,…
DIY vs Pro: How to Tell If Your Editor Knows What They’re Doing
Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/ (https://www.spekepodcasting.com/) Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/your-mic/id1777171203 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1PQNHuqxIVhkLfjGYuWcxl You don’t need to be an audio engineer to hire one. You do, however, need to know what to ask. In this solo riff, Freddy breaks down how to spot the difference between a real producer and someone just pushing “remove filler words” and exporting. You’ll walk away…
Corporate Nude Podcasts vs. Punk Black Audio
Work with us: https://www.spekepodcasting.com/ Listen on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/your-mic/id1777171203 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/1PQNHuqxIVhkLfjGYuWcxl From branding sex workers to crowning movie stars, lipstick never changed—only the story did. Freddy shows how your mic is the same weapon. Are you painting in corporate nude, suffragette red, or punk black? This episode dares you to choose your spell on purpose and leave one crack showing.