E690 - A Podcast Lesson from an Apple, Understanding Your Podcast Audience

Summary

Episode Overview

Podcast: The How To Podcast Series
Episode: E690 - A Podcast Lesson from an Apple, Understanding Your Podcast Audience
Host: Dave Campbell
Date: May 18, 2026

In this episode, Dave Campbell draws a practical and inspiring lesson for podcasters using the metaphor of an apple and its seeds. He discusses how understanding the potential and impact of your podcast—beyond just the numbers—can transform your approach to content creation and audience engagement. The session sets the stage for an upcoming mini-series on creating meaningful podcast messages and explores the idea of private podcast feeds.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

The Apple Seed Analogy: Measuring Impact Beyond Numbers

• Story Introduction (02:24):
  Dave and his co-host revisit a powerful analogy that compares an apple seed’s unseen potential to the reach of a podcast episode.

  • "Somebody told me this story a long time ago... Dave, when you look at an apple, you hold it in your hands... if you take a knife and just cut that apple in half, what you're going to see are seeds." (02:59)
  • You can count the seeds in an apple, but not the apples in a seed:
    • "You can count the number of seeds in an apple, but you can't count the number of apples in a seed." (04:23)

• Applying the Metaphor to Podcasting (04:25):

  • Podcasters often focus on statistics—downloads, listeners, listen time—but should instead focus on the immeasurable potential impact of a single episode.
    • "You don't know the impact of what you're saying and what it means to someone listening to your show... You don't know the ripple effect that your podcast can have in this world." (04:25)
  • The true value is in deep connection and potential, rather than surface-level numbers.

• Motivating Podcasters Through Small Beginnings (05:06):

  • Dave encourages podcasters to be inspired even by what seems a small listenership or effort.
    • "If one person's life is different because you hit record and published a podcast, and that life impacts more lives... your podcast can have a positive impact, not just on one listener, but their extended community, their family, and into the future." (06:15)
  • Suggestion: keep an apple on your desk to remind yourself of your work’s potential.
    • "Maybe grab an apple and put it there in front of you when you do your recording and we talk about speaking to your avatar, speak to your apple, and realize that the content you're putting out... could reach far and beyond anything you could ever imagine." (05:54)

Upcoming Series: Crafting Meaningful Podcast Messages

• Focus Shift Announcement (07:38):
  • Dave announces a 10-episode mini-series on creating an impactful podcast message, beyond technical how-tos.
    • Topics to include: defining your purpose and audience, crafting a compelling message, researching and preparing content, etc.

Offering Podcast Feedback for Charity (09:18)

• Feedback Offer:
  • Dave invites podcasters to submit an episode for free feedback, with only one request: make a donation to a charity of their choice, which will be promoted on the episode.
    • "I don't charge anything for this. But the one thing I'm asking... is for you to make a donation to the charity of your choice and then let me know who that charity is, because I'd like to promote that charity on your episode." (09:32)
  • Distinction is made from shows that mock creators; Dave’s approach is supportive and collaborative.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• The Core Lesson:
  • "You can count the number of seeds in an apple, but you can't count the number of apples in a seed." (04:23, repeated at 11:04)
• On Listener Impact:
  • "If one person's life is different because you hit record... your podcast can have a positive impact, not just on one listener, but their extended community." (06:15)
• On Podcasting Motivation:
  • "May that be the thing that inspires you today to get behind the microphone and hit record." (05:42)
• On Audience Connections:
  • "It is about connections, deep connections with your audience. Something that we all need and we need to focus on more." (12:08)

Private Podcasts: Pros and Cons

• Listener Q&A Segment (14:06):
  • Advantages:
    • Ability to monetize and create exclusive, paywalled content for supporters (Buy Me a Coffee, Patreon, Supercast, etc.).
    • Opportunity for deeper community building among dedicated fans.
  • Disadvantages:
    • Content hidden from search engines and the broader audience, reducing discoverability.
    • Extra content expectations—requires more time and planning.
    • Only a select group benefits, limiting wider impact.
  • "Whatever is behind a paywall needs to be of such amazing value that people are willing to part with their money to be a part of it." (15:18)
  • "You're hiding your best content from the world and keeping it for a small group of people. Does that fit with your plans or does that go against your plans?" (16:06)

Episode Timeline (Timestamps for Key Segments)

• 00:00–02:24: Introduction, recycling the apple seed analogy, invitation to the Apple Seed playlist
• 02:24–04:23: The apple story & metaphor introduced
• 04:23–06:15: Applying the metaphor to podcasting; impact beyond statistics
• 06:15–07:38: Motivation and advice for podcasters with small audiences
• 07:38–09:18: Preview of upcoming impact-focused mini-series
• 09:18–11:08: Feedback for charity—how to get podcast coaching and give back
• 11:08–13:40: Community encouragement, supporting the podcast, universal application of the apple seed metaphor
• 14:06–16:20: Listener question—private podcasts, paywalls, and their implications

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Conclusion & Next Steps

• Dave encourages listeners to reflect on their audience's real, long-term impact, not just numbers, and sets the stage for forthcoming episodes on message impact.
• Listeners are invited to submit podcast episodes for free review, supporting charity in the process.
• A thoughtful Q&A wraps up the episode, highlighting the nuances of launching a private podcast feed.
• The apple seed metaphor ties the whole episode together: plant small, think big, and let your message grow in ways you may never fully see.

Call to Action:
Check show notes for the Apple Seed series playlist, consider the charity feedback coaching, and keep an apple nearby as podcasting inspiration!

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For more details, feedback offerings, and to join the community:
Visit HowToPodcast.ca

Transcript

[Dave]

Hey, welcome back to the how to Podcast series. It's Dave with you. Hope you're doing well. I am bringing back a an episode from the past, recycling some stuff that we've had from the past that I

[Co-host]

think is still really valuable.

[Dave]

And one of the things I did a while back was a little mini series around an Apple Seed. A A quote, a metaphor, a story that really resonated with me from the past. And now that I'm in podcasting, I see it even better with more clarity that this, this little analogy story thing gonna sit with you. And I've used it many times on podcasts, as a guest in speaking engagements, virtual summits, all these things that I do in my coaching with people. One on one, we talk about the Apple Seed. It seems it's a very seemingly insignificant little thought, but when you expand on it and think about it, it actually will like seeds do, it kind of grows on you. And I wanted to share this. This is the introductory idea around the little mini series. And from here I then expanded on it and grew it even more. So if you look in the show notes, you will find a link to the playlist for the Apple Seed series that I did. And it's a bunch of episodes around the Apple Seed. So I would love for you to, to, after you listen to this, to click the link in the show notes, you can go over to the. To YouTube and see the playlist. You can also then search back through the, through the episodes and you can find them as well. But the YouTube version is probably going to be the easiest way for you to find it. So please head over there and you'll see all of these great episodes. Oh, and while you're there on, on YouTube, only a small, tiny percentage of this audience is following me on YouTube. So I love and appreciate the follow because we do some special stuff over there that we don't do here and it's in addition to what we do on the show and it's there for you and I'd love to for you to go check it out and links in the show notes and also on the website everywhere. HowToPodcast CA. Here's my recycled little mini episode which sparked the idea for the series around an Apple Seed. Here's an early version of Dave coming back from the past. Whoa. Here we go. Thanks for being here.

[Co-host]

I'm going to be talking to you about a little story and illustration that somebody shared with me a long time ago and it really stuck with me and I hope to share it with you here And I hope it has the same impact on you as you kind of think about your podcast, think about your life in general. A little story about an apple. Not the company that upsells you on their expensive products. No, no, no. An apple, the kind you eat and how it can relate to podcasting. I know, it's a stretch. Stick with me.

[Dave]

We're going to talk about it here

[Co-host]

on the how to Podcast series. This is the Daily Dave. I'm Dave. Nice to have you here. So somebody told me this story a long time ago, and what they said was, dave, when you look at an apple, you hold it in your hands. So I'm picturing a red apple.

[Dave]

I don't have one with me.

[Co-host]

I have to go grocery shopping. But I'm picturing a red apple, okay? It's about the size of a small baseball, right? Still got the leaf on top, right? The stem is still there. You look at it as an apple,

[Dave]

and you're holding it in your hands.

[Co-host]

And you could be. You could have a different apple in your hands right?

[Dave]

Now.

[Co-host]

If you have one close, Pick it up. Look at that apple. Okay? Now, if you take a knife and just cut that apple in half, what you're going to see are seeds, right? And so what you can do is you can cut the apple up into sections, and you can pick out all the apple seeds and put them in a pile. And what somebody said to me was, dave, you can count the number of seeds in an apple, but what you can't count are the number of apples in a seed. You can count the number of seeds in an apple, but you can't count the number of apples in a seed.

[Dave]

Wow.

[Co-host]

It's true, right? One seed has the potential to become a tree, which can produce apples. For years, numerous amounts of apples could come from one seed. And that's what I think of when I think of podcasting, is you can count the number of podcasts, you can count the number of podcasts about the topic you're talking about. But what you can't count is just take one of those podcasts, one of those episodes, and what you can't count, even though you get statistics and numbers, you can see how many people are listening and where you don't know the impact of what you're saying and what it means to someone listening to your show when it releases a week later, a month later, a year later, 10 years later, you don't know the ripple effect that your podcast can have in this world. So my challenge to you is, instead of counting Apple seeds. When we talk about our podcast, how many listeners, how many downloads, how long did they listen? All these things that we can fixate on as podcasters. My challenge for you is to take that pile of seeds on your desk in front of you on your countertop. You can count them. There's 20, there's 30, there's 15, there's, there's, there's a number of seeds in front of you. But again, pick up one and realize the, that there's such great potential in even just one seed. And your podcast has great potential to meet many, many needs and to talk to many, many people in your community and beyond. And when you go to hit your record on your next episode, I want you to think of that apple, maybe grab an apple and put it there in front of you when you do your recording and we talk about speaking to your avatar, speak to your apple, and realize that the content you're putting out into the world, the people you're aiming to serve, the message you want to share, could reach far and beyond anything you could ever imagine. And may that be the thing that inspires you today to get behind the microphone and hit record. There's going to be days when it's going to be very tough in the busyness of life. Family, work, job, everything that goes on in life, right? To carve out time to sit down and collect your thoughts, record an episode and put it out into the world. And if that's you and you're kind of struggling with that, then next time you're at the store, buy an extra apple and just put it in front of you when you're recording. And realize that it may seem small, your efforts may seem small, your listener ship may seem small, but if one person's life is different because you hit record and published a podcast, and that life impacts more lives. Do you see what I'm here? I'm going to. Your podcast can have a positive impact, not just on one listener, but their extended community, their family, and into the future. Just because you said, I'm going to, I'm going to record my episode. So what we're going to do in the next few episodes coming up is we're going to be looking at how to create a meaningful impact and a message through your podcast. We're going to move away from some of the the how to parts, and we're going to focus really in on the content because again, there's hundreds of podcasts that teach you how to podcast, and there's some really great ones. Again, I would love to point you in direction of ones that I really like and I would love to point you away from some of the ones that I think could be harmful to your podcasting journey. But I want to focus on I'm looking at 10 episodes coming up that are going to be focused directly on creating an impactful message for your podcast, going to expand on them. So we'll be talking about stuff like defining your purpose and audience, crafting a compelling message, how you research and prepare, and on and on and on. We're going to look at 10 different things to help you with your to give you impact in your message and help you grow your podcast and your community. I hope you're ready, hope you're interested and you want to join in on that. So just watch for these. I'm going to have them titled appropriately for all 10 around having an impactful message. So watch for those coming up here on the how to Podcast series. And I want to put this out there again. One thing I'm hoping to do more of is, and I've done this before in the past, but if you have a podcast and you were looking for some feedback on your show, give me an episode that you want me to look at and review. What I'll do is I'll listen to the episode, give you my feedback, some comments around your episode, and then what I'm going to do is I'm actually going to give you back the episode and let you listen to it before I release it to the world. And that way I can get your feedback and your sign off if you're okay with what I'm talking about in your show. There's another podcast that does this, but they just mock people and the host is grumpy and it's just a terrible experience. It's very awkward and icky to listen to. And the people that respond back with negative comments are usually the people that he mocks in the podcast. So instead of doing that, I'd much rather do this where you get the episode back, you get to hear my thoughts, the final episode. And then if you're okay with it, then I'll release the episode. It's all free. I don't charge anything for this. But the one thing I'm asking for anyone who does sign up is for you to make a donation to the charity of your choice and then let me know who that charity is, because I'd like to promote that charity on your episode and tell people about why you chose that charity. Make any donation you want. Doesn't matter, but make a donation to the charity of your choice. Tell me the charity and we'll include that in the podcast when we review your show. HowToPodcast CA is where to find that if you want some feedback on your show, you want to make it better, you want to grow, you want someone to listen to it who isn't related to you. I would love to help you with that. HowToPodcast CA is where to find me. Again, thank you for being here and we will talk to you on the next episode. Get out there and hit record and take those seeds because again, you can count the number of seeds in an apple, but you can't count the number of apples in a seed. Something to think about on the how to Podcast series. Take care. Talk soon.

[Dave]

Thanks for being part of the show. Again, go to the links in the show notes. You'll see the link to the playlist with all the Apple Seed episodes together. And I would encourage you to share this thought on your show is because you could probably apply this story to anything that you're talking about on your podcast no matter what your episodes are about. I think that this is a universal message and it opens the door for us to, to think about our audience in a different context. It's not about the big numbers. It's not about being the top 100. This, it's not about any of that stuff. It is about connections, deep connections with your audience. Something that we all need and we need to focus on more. So again, take a look at the link in the show notes to the playlist While you're on YouTube, hit that follow, subscribe and all that fun stuff and we'll catch you back here tomorrow for more of the how to Podcast series. Thanks for being part of the show. So I get asked quite often, usually at the end of a podcast, like right now, Dave, how can we help you? Like, how can we as a listener, like support the show? Can we come rake your leaves? Can we cut the grass? Shovel the snow? Watch your dog help you move? What can we do? Clean your dishes? Oh, that'd be interesting. Well, if you don't, if you can't do that because you know you're in Poland, maybe you can help us by supporting us with our Buy me a coffee. It's right there on our website and you know, it just will help us to a stay fueled because you know we drink a lot of coffee around here and it helps the show. So if you want to help us, it's out of the goodness of your heart I can tell you that listening to the podcast to this point, you've already helped us so much. But I do have people saying, dave, I'd love to. To give back something small, even just to the show. Buy me a coffee Link is on our website at howtopodcast Ca. And you can support the show that way. It would mean a lot to have you on our team supporting what we do here. If you find value in the show, then that's great. Share the show, tell somebody about it. And when somebody says, dave, I want to start a podcast, who should I check out?

[Co-host]

Oh, you should go check out the

[Dave]

how to Podcast series because of all the great co hosts and all the things that happen here, the meetups, everything. And I would appreciate that. And then fill her a cup once in a while if you can. But again, thank you so much for being here and supporting the how to Podcast series.

[Co-host]

Take care. Talk soon.

[Dave]

You're still here. That is amazing. I'm just finishing up an Apple while I'm recording. I'm not, but I. I'm thinking about it. Anyways, as we wrap up today, I had a question from a podcaster who was creating their show. They're thinking about having a private podcast feed and they're asking me what my thoughts were about a private podcast. And there's some good things and some things to consider as well. Good things is you are.

[Co-host]

Is.

[Dave]

Yeah, because the good things are nice that you can put it behind a paywall if you wish, so that only certain people have access to it. People who pay you can have access to it. So, like, for example, you could have that behind a paywall on Buy Me a Coffee. You can have it behind a paywall on Patreon and a bunch of other places. I think Supercast is another one. You can actually have your content hidden from your regular audience, and only people who pay for it get the special link. And your podcast hosting site has a way to flag your episodes as private, so the person listening will get their own unique link, which then they can listen to on their app so it's not public facing. The downside of a podcast that's behind a paywall or private is that it's also hidden not just from your listening audience, but from search engines. They can't see it because it's hidden behind a wall. It's all covered up and you're not. You're not gaining anything from Google searches or AI searches or any of that because it's hidden behind behind a wall.

[Co-host]

Right.

[Dave]

So you're gonna miss out on some opportunities. So think about that. The other thing about a private podcast, if you're doing it in addition to your free public facing podcast, is you're now committing to extra content. So before you, before you make this a thing, make sure you have time to make it a thing. Whatever is behind a paywall needs to be of such amazing value that people are willing to part with their money to be a part of it. Some people will buy into it just to support you because they love you, but others are looking for value beyond what you do on your show. So this would be new content, not covered for free, but something different, something deeper, something and the next level for your audience for them to part with their money. It better be valuable if you're going to ask for people to pay for it. So keep that in mind. Private podcast. They're great for making money with your show. They're great for community building within a private community. But they also hide you from the world so the world won't see your content or episode titles. None of that stuff matters because it's hiding behind a paywall. Just keep that in mind. Keep that in mind. You're hiding your best content from the world and keeping it for a small group of people. Does that fit with your plans or does that go against your plans? If you want to talk about this more, howtopodcast ca. Happy to help. Happy to talk anytime. Let's meet. Take care.