In a recent episode, I mentioned that I was going to test out a podcast promoter's services and share my findings. I've finished the test, and in this episode, I'll share the experiment, my findings, and if I think it's worth pursuing.
Thank you to the
Podhome.fm team for assisting me in gathering insights from analytics data that cannot be shared due to privacy concerns.
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If you've ever wondered if one of those "Professional Podcast Promoters" could really deliver results, you won't want to miss this one.
Listen as I reveal the results of a three-day promotion by a podcast promoter promising high rankings and a large organic audience. I explain how I secured my shows and Apple ID, worked with my media host (Podhome.fm) to track analytics, and share the outcome: my show quickly rose in the Apple Podcasts charts, hitting #1 in Education > How To, and daily downloads surged from 1–2 to 70–100 almost overnight.
Analyzing the data, I found that the spike didn't seem organic. Podhome's patterns showed repeated downloads of the same episode from the same user IDs on Apple Podcasts, indicating possible manual download and deletion tactics. While the promoter technically delivered a #1 subcategory ranking, I don’t believe they delivered a real, targeted audience.
I discuss why this kind of manipulation is a vanity metric at best, why advertisers would see it as a red flag, and what (if any) residual discovery benefit might remain. I wrap with my takeaways, why I declined a monthly contract, and what to consider if you’re tempted by similar pitches.
There are some images included in the
. I encourage you to check them out.
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