The Audacity to Podcast®

Episode 424: A New Way to See Podcast Industry Insights!

Host: Daniel J. Lewis
Date: March 18, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, Daniel J. Lewis unveils the launch of the rebuilt PodcastIndustryInsights.com, an open and free platform providing detailed analytics and data on the podcasting industry. Lewis shares the behind-the-scenes journey of building this powerful resource, explains the technical improvements, and demonstrates how podcasters and industry professionals can use the site to track trends, audience activity, and industry shifts with unprecedented detail and ease.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Evolution from My Podcast Reviews to Podcast Industry Insights

• The Backstory

  • Lewis started tracking podcast industry metrics in 2018, initially through My Podcast Reviews, which later became Podgagement.
  • The early platform was built in Ruby on Rails—a technology Lewis was unfamiliar with and reluctant to maintain.
  • In 2018, Lewis decided to rebuild the system himself, teaching himself JavaScript, Node.js, and modern web frameworks for a more robust, scalable solution.

• Branding Challenges

  • The "my" in My Podcast Reviews led to awkward attributions, e.g., "According to my podcast reviews…" (07:40).
  • This inspired the strategic decision to launch a standalone, properly branded resource: PodcastIndustryInsights.com.

2. Technical Rebuild and Eliminating Friction

• Upgrading the Backend

  • Legacy code was inefficient, slow, and costly. Lewis recently rebuilt the backend, updating the engine that powers data collection and analytics.
  • The frontend now relies on Next.js and fully leverages JavaScript, allowing dynamic data display and robust performance improvements.

• Website Redesign for Usability

  • No paywall, no email wall, minimal advertising ("just advertising my own stuff" - 19:20).
  • Purpose is to serve podcasters, professionals, agencies, and journalists without monetization pressure:

    "I don't really intend for this to be a money making thing anymore." (20:30)

3. Powerful New Insights Now Freely Available

• Historic Data Expansion

  • Now offers up to seven years of historical podcast industry data (24:30).
  • Enables users to track the industry's growth, identify patterns (e.g., the post-Anchor slowdown in new podcast launches), and make informed decisions.

• Anchor, Spotify, and Podcast "Pollution"

  • Explains a key shift: Anchor (now Spotify for Creators) stopped auto-publishing podcasts in summer 2021, slowing the flood of low-effort shows ("pod flashes"):

    "Anchor stopped auto publishing their pollution of podcasts to Apple Podcasts... they stopped doing that in summer of 2021. And that's why the growth rate of the number of podcasts have slowed." (27:20)

  • This improved the quality of new shows being published and led to a more intentional, opt-in approach.

• Multiple Data Sources

  • Tracks Apple Podcasts, Podcast Index, and (satirically) YouTube, emphasizing that YouTube is not a real podcast platform:

    "There are zero podcasts on YouTube and zero podcast episodes on YouTube." (31:10)

4. Deep, Actionable Analytics for Podcasters

• Activity Metrics

  • Easy tracking of active podcasts (last episode within 7, 30, 60, or 90 days).
  • Demystifies competition: Not millions, but "a few hundred thousand that have published an episode within the last 90 days" (37:30), or an even smaller number in a given category.

    "Focus on that number of how many podcasts published an episode within the last week. That's closer to the kind of competition that you might have." (36:15)

• Category and Genre Breakdown

  • Lewis unveils dynamic charting for deep dives into Apple Podcast’s 110+ categories, now possible thanks to new tech:

    "Now I can. Because the new podcast industry insights.com is built on Next JS... I don't have to create 110 pages. I just create a few charts and tell it, swap the data." (43:00)

  • Example: Mathematics is the category with the fewest active podcasts (about 120 active in the last 90 days), offering niche creators a competitive edge.

5. Podcasting 2.0 Feature Adoption Tracking

• Tracks adoption of Podcasting 2.0 features—transcripts, chapters, value tags, etc.—at both the podcast and episode level.

  "Go to podcastindustryinsights.com and click on Podcasting 2.0; you'll be able to see how these particular features have grown over time and been adopted." (53:00)

• Presents trends and adoption insights for innovators and feature-focused podcasters.

6. Ease of Sharing and Presenting Data

• Instant, high-res chart downloads (in 16:9, 4K with headlines, branding, and credit) for use in slides, social media, or reports (56:00).
• Charts are customizable by time period, category, source, and respect user preference for light/dark mode.

  "You can now, with one click, download an image of that chart... in 16 by 9 ratio in 4K resolution. And it has a nice heading... and it even has the credit there on the slide." (56:35)

7. Encouragement and Impact

• Demystifies "podcasting competition" by showing actual numbers in each category and activity window, reassuring creators:

  "It's actually only a few hundred thousand that have published an episode within the last 90 days. It's an even smaller number who have published in the last seven days." (1:04:00)

• Defines his mission to empower podcasters through data transparency and resource sharing.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Branding Challenges:

  "Are you saying your podcast reviews told you there are nearly a million podcasts in Apple podcasts? How do your podcast reviews tell you that? You see the problem there by having that 'my' in there." (07:40)

• On Podcast Growth Slowdown:

  "It had everything to do with Anchor… because it was in summer of 2021 that Anchor stopped auto publishing their pollution of podcasts to Apple Podcasts." (27:20)

• On Addressing the 'Podcast Competition':

  "Focus on that number of how many podcasts published an episode within the last week. That's closer to the kind of competition that you might have." (36:15)

• On Open Access:

  "Now it's all completely free. There's not a paywall, there's not even an email wall or opt in wall… it's kind of like the byproduct of an engine that's powering features inside of Podgagement." (19:20)

• On User-Friendly Features:

  "You can now... download an image of that chart... in 16 by 9 ratio in 4K resolution... it's designed for a slide layout and it even has the credit there on the slide, so you don't have to worry about trying to copy and paste that onto the slide." (56:35)

Timestamps of Major Segments

• 00:00 – 07:40: The backstory: legacy tech, learning coding, and initial metrics
• 07:41 – 16:30: Branding dilemmas, the decision to spin off PodcastIndustryInsights.com
• 16:31 – 20:49: Upgrading backend/frontend, focus on free and open access
• 20:50 – 30:00: Demonstrating historical data, Anchor/Spotify’s impact, tracking podcast growth
• 30:01 – 36:14: Breaking down industry metrics: Apple Podcasts, Podcast Index, and the YouTube “troll”
• 36:15 – 43:00: Deep activity and category analysis, understanding “actual podcast competition”
• 43:01 – 52:59: New tech powers category-level dynamic data, niche category stats (e.g., mathematics)
• 53:00 – 55:59: Podcasting 2.0 features and their adoption
• 56:00 – 58:29: Instant chart sharing, light/dark mode, fostering open data culture
• 58:30 – End: Final encouragement, call to action, and feedback invitation

Additional Notes

• Special thanks to listeners Brian Insminer and Chad F. for their feedback and support via satoshis (1:08:30).
• Daniel invites feedback and contributions, especially about using OpenClaw or similar podcasting-automation tools.

Final Call to Action

"Check it out over at podcastindustryinsights.com – completely free to use… what I really hope is that this will be inspirational to you." (1:04:05)

Useful Links

• Podcast Industry Insights
• Podgagement
• The Audacity to Podcast
• Podcast Feedback

Summary prepared by an episode listener for anyone seeking a comprehensive, practical overview of Episode 424.