The Podcast Accelerator: How to Grow Your Podcast · Mark Asquith

Dave Jackson's Podcast Industry Predictions

·49 min·3 clips

Podcasting has a discoverability problem? Dave says, “Podcasting doesn’t have a discoverability problem.”

1. The Podcast Accelerator episode “Dave Jackson's Podcast Industry Predictions” centers on Dave Jackson’s view of where podcasting is going and why people still start shows. 2. Dave Jackson is the guest, known for School of Podcasting.com and Power of Podcasting.com, and Mark asks the questions because he runs the show and works in podcasting. 3. The episode asks whether podcasting still has room for new creators when there are already millions of shows and a growing business layer. 4. Dave says he started podcasting around 2005, after getting into it through DC Comics and an early web workflow that involved Dreamweaver and feed software. 5. He describes an early moment in Ohio when Michael Van Law in Nuremberg, Germany found his show and sent a voicemail, which made podcasting feel global. 6. Dave and Mark compare podcasting with music, where both of them come from bands and where podcasting removed many of the old gatekeepers. 7. Dave says the first hurdle for new creators is not audience size but getting them to turn the microphone on because they fear looking stupid. 8. He says many first-time podcasters think nobody is listening, then react differently once they see “10 people” or hear that someone found them. 9. Dave describes coaching a creator through Spotify, then asking him to search for his own show and watch his reaction when it appeared. 10. He recounts a listener lunch where a pastor said his podcast led him to an agency head and then to senior people in a large organization. 11. Dave says that, at the heart of every good podcast, “is a servant,” meaning someone trying to serve an audience rather than perform for abstract industry approval. 12. He contrasts the early conference reaction to monetization, where people treated money talk like “the devil,” with today’s more business-driven podcasting landscape. 13. Dave points out that early shows were mostly independents, while today events include large organizations and roles such as storyboard staff. 14. He says one producer at a Brooklyn event described himself as “part of the storyboard,” which Dave contrasts with his own simpler workflow. 15. Dave says some podcast jobs may disappear because the industry keeps adding layers that may not be necessary. 16. He argues that podcasting started as “a big giant middle finger” to radio, especially stations that played the same songs and commercial blocks repeatedly. 17. Mark says podcasting feels therapeutic because it lets him say what he needs to say, and Dave agrees that creators attract listeners who like their style. 18. Dave says AI can help him brainstorm, but he is not convinced it can replace the emotional, personal episodes that come from real experience. 19. The tone is conversational, opinionated, and informal, with guitar jokes, industry references, and direct criticism of hype. 20. People who want practical podcast growth advice and industry context will get the most from this episode, while listeners seeking a polished beginner tutorial may skip it.

As heard by us

A loose, practical look at podcasting, with real advice on gear, distribution, and AI.

The episode moves through podcasting with an easy, conversational pace, shifting from early memories to the practical stuff: audio quality, getting shows onto Apple and Spotify, promotion, and where AI fits without taking over the work. The throughline is clear enough.

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Why you'd press play

Want blunt podcast advice without the polished conference-speak?

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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