Streamlined Podcaster: Save Time Podcasting with Systems and Automation

Jaksot

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  If You Sounded Good, You Were Good [Day 16 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 16.09.2026 5min

  The thing I keep landing on when I ask why my show did well is that I was stubborn about audio at a time when most shows weren't. Guests recorded their own side — I wrote instructions for QuickTime and for Windows, sent a Dropbox link so they didn't have to figure out hosting, and always kept a backup on my end. The story that proves how far I'd take it: I once interviewed Troy Dean with my headphone monitors off, and only afterward realized I'd recorded my entire side on the built-in Mac mic. There was no AI cleanup to fall back on, so I transcribed the whole conversation and re-read every one of my questions between his answers. Back then, sounding good was enough to be good. That is not true anymore, which is where the back half of this series is headed. Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI. Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Forgetting My Mission [Day 15 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 15.09.2026 7min

  The first real dip in my downloads was my own doing. I went from talking to a very specific developer niche, to business owners in that niche, to business owners generally — and the more I broadened, the more I sounded like everyone else. The clearest signal came from an episode I was sure would be huge: Peter Hollens, two million YouTube subscribers at the time, and it landed flat. His audience already knew his story, and mine weren't creators. I forgot who I was serving and left them behind with very little warning, and I don't think I ever fully recovered from it. If you take one thing from this series, take that. Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Why How I Built It Worked [Day 14 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 14.09.2026 6min

  For a long time I couldn't work out why How I Built It took off, and a few people insisted I was just riding NPR's coattails. The download graph said otherwise — coattails give you spikes that fall back, and what I had was slow, sustained growth. My best answer is three things: I was genuinely curious and asked good questions, I was stubborn about audio quality at a time when most shows weren't, and I actually acted on criticism. When a listener said she wouldn't listen without transcripts, I added them and paid to have the roughly fifty-episode back catalog done too. Downloads and site traffic both went up. Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  How I Got My First Sponsors [Day 13 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 13.09.2026 7min

  My first sponsor landed before episode one even dropped. Someone emailed asking to trade backlinks, I told them I don't do that but I did have a podcast coming — a hundred dollars for a show mention and a spot in the notes. That link from July 2016 still resolves, which makes it possibly the best ROI in podcast sponsorship history. LearnDash came next, then a much bigger deal with Pantheon, and the pitch that worked was simple: brands were paying tens of thousands to sponsor a weekend conference, so six months of a show with links that never expire was an easy comparison. None of it was a proven show. It was a proven network. Resources & Links The first episode, sponsor link still intact — streamlined.fm/001 Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  How I Chose My Guests [Day 12 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 12.09.2026 6min

  My early guest list came straight out of my own orbit — Jason Coleman first, then Rebecca Gill, Brian Krogsgard, Corey Miller, Carrie Dils — and my first big guest, Chris Coyier, said yes far earlier than I had any right to expect. Someone eventually pointed out that my roster skewed heavily male, and while I hadn't done it on purpose, I hadn't been mindful about it either; I've kept it close to an even split ever since. The other thing I decided early and still hold to: a guest owes you their time and nothing else. No required social shares, no prep homework, no strong-arming. They're doing you a favor.Resources & LinksJoin my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/joinPodcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.comDisclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  The Tools I Launched With in 2016 [Day 11 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 11.09.2026 6min

  The 2016 stack, as best I remember it: Skype for the call with video on so I could read body language, Ecamm Call Recorder capturing the Skype audio, and QuickTime recording my side locally — with a guest notes page asking every guest to do the same. I edited in Audacity, later GarageBand, and my first mic was the Blue Yeti, which sounds bad mostly because people talk into the top of it instead of the front. I was going to host the files on my own site until my friend Jackie Delia talked me out of it, which is how I ended up on Libsyn. Were they the best tools? No. Were they the ones I had? Absolutely. Resources & Links Ecamm (affiliate link) — joec.pro/ecamm Also mentioned: Skype, QuickTime, Audacity, GarageBand, Blue Yeti, Libsyn Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  The Five Questions Behind How I Built It [Day 10 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 10.09.2026 5min

  How I Built It was a short interview show — 30 minutes at most — built on the same five questions every time, ending with "do you have any trade secrets for us?" The predictability is what made it work for the first hundred-plus episodes, the way a procedural show gives you a format you can settle into. The question that mattered most was the one about failure, because in 2016 everyone was talking about their wins and almost nobody was talking about what went wrong. I'll admit past me used "I like to be surprised along with my guests" as an excuse to skip research, and I don't agree with him anymore. Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Log Your Ideas [Day 9 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 09.09.2026 5min

  I bought the domain howibuilt.it on my honeymoon in Italy, purely because every site I saw there had a .it address and I wanted one. The idea arrived a few weeks later: I was relaunching my online courses, having great conversations with people about how they'd built their businesses, and realized I should be recording them. How I Built It launched in July 2016 — less sloppy, better researched, and aimed squarely at independent developers who wanted to start a business, which is to say, at me. People say good ideas come back to you. I don't believe that. Write them down and revisit them. Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Learn From Others [Day 8 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 08.09.2026 4min

  Going on ShopTalk Show with Chris Coyier and Dave Rupert around 2013 changed how I made podcasts. They had a guest notes page explaining how to get the best possible recording, and they had guests record their side locally so the finished episode sounded like everyone was in the same room — years before Riverside, Zencastr, or SquadCast existed. That one appearance is a large part of why my next show sounded good enough to take off. Spend time in the space, take the good lessons, and apply them. Resources & Links ShopTalk Show — shoptalkshow.com Riverside (affiliate link) — joec.pro/riverside Ecamm (affiliate link) — joec.pro/ecamm Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Serve an Audience [Day 7 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 07.09.2026 4min

  The TIL Podcast failed because I wasn't serving anybody. The technical barriers are gone — you can record from your phone, and RSS.com has a free hosting tier (disclosure: I'm their evangelist, and the link below is an affiliate link) — which means serving a specific audience is now the whole job. Write a mission statement, pick someone real and specific, and talk to them. You don't need millions of downloads; you need people you serve well enough that they come back and bring others. Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Don't Be Afraid to Experiment [Day 6 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 06.09.2026 3min

  After ending the TIL Podcast, I rebooted it as an interview show — I'd talk to friends about their professional lives, starting with Dr. Dan Ostermeier and my brother, who worked at Disney World. It lasted two episodes, because I had no mission for it beyond wanting to make podcasting work. This was before Serial and Lore pulled podcasting into the mainstream, and I still had no reason for the show to exist. Two failed experiments with the same show taught me more than a cautious success would have. Resources & Links Ecamm (affiliate link) — joec.pro/ecamm Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Knowing When to Call It Quits [Day 5 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 05.09.2026 3min

  We made it about six episodes before the TIL Podcast fell to podfade. There were too many of us, we all had full-time jobs, the moderation was loose, and we never carved out a niche that would have made the show worth continuing. When our schedules shifted, we called it — and I asked everyone whether I could keep the name, which nobody minded. Know when to stop, and don't let sunk cost make the decision for you. Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Checking In on Coin, 15 Years Later [Day 4 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 04.09.2026 2min

  After three days of talking about the TIL Podcast, I dug through the archive to find the very first thing we covered on that show: Coin, a connected card that was supposed to replace every card in your wallet. Apple Wallet and Google Wallet killed the product, but the domain is still live — now pointed at beginner crypto guides. Whoever is running it started sloppy, did their research, and iterated, which was not the tie-in I planned when I started digging. Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Iterate and Learn From Your Mistakes [Day 3 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 03.09.2026 1min

  Almost nothing in podcasting is permanent. Your format, your approach, and what you cover can all change, and my early show did get better as my friends and I kept adjusting. More importantly, what I learned making it is what let me launch several successful shows later. (For anyone who hasn't heard the term: TIL stands for "today I learned.") Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Do Your Research [Day 2 30 Days of Podcast Notes] 02.09.2026 2min

  The TIL Podcast was bad, and the reason was simple: we didn't do any research. We'd find a link, hit record, and share our vague opinions on a subject none of us knew well. Research is also what tells you which questions to ask which guests — something I was noticeably bad at as a moderator. Research is easier now than it's ever been, but my rule with AI is don't trust and verify: use it to surface primary sources, then check them yourself. Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  30 Days of Podcast Notes Day 1: Start Sloppy 01.09.2026 3min

  September 30th is International Podcast Day, so I'm releasing one voice note a day in the run-up to it — a tip or a reflection from about 15 years in podcasting. I'm starting with the one that made this series possible: start sloppy. My first show, the TIL Podcast, had no format, no moderation, and no editing, and I still learned more from making it than I would have from planning it. You don't need to launch perfectly. You need to launch. Resources & Links Join my newsletter for solo business owners: streamlined.fm/join Podcast hosting by RSS.com (affiliate link): rss.com Disclosure: this episode description was generated with AI.Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  Is Video a Dumpster Fire for Podcasting? 11.09.2026 11min

  Eric Nuzum wrote a piece arguing that podcasting's pivot to video is going to end in a charred mess of garbage fire wreckage, and I think he's mostly right — though not for the reason most people assume. This is a reaction to that article and a follow-up to last week's "is video worth it" question: video isn't a magic wand, and adding it to solve your download problem instead of your audience's problem is exactly the rushed, mistargeted move he's warning about. I get into video's three jobs, why 90% of podcast consumption is still audio, and why serving your audience has to come first. Resources & Links "Podcasting's Pivot to Video Will End Up in a Charred Mess of Garbage Fire Wreckage" by Eric Nuzum — audioinsurgent.substack.com Sounds Profitable — where I expect we'll get real data on this after Podcast Movement Nielsen — the 90%-of-consumption-is-still-audio figure Join the newsletter for solo ops and conscientious AI tips: streamlined.fm/join Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  PocketCasts Support Video Now — Should You Care? 04.09.2026 7min

  My podcast app of choice, Pocket Casts, supports video — and after some Reddit spelunking, it turns out it has for a long time. That sent me back to a question I keep circling: is video actually worth it for your show? I pull up the YouTube analytics for both of my podcasts, explain why a 74% jump in views hasn't moved the metric I actually care about, and lay out the two-question test I use to decide whether video earns its place in your process.Resources & LinksEnjoy Pocket Casts on the big screenRSS.com — where I host this show, and where the video support comes fromGot thoughts? Write in at streamlinedfeedback.comGet systems tips in your inbox: streamlined.fm/joinHave feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  My AI Publishing Automation 28.08.2026 7min

  The real payoff for having an SOP is that you can start handing pieces of it off. I built a scheduled Claude skill that checks my Notion podcast planner for episodes marked ready to publish, pulls the video and the MacWhisper transcript out of Google Drive, writes the description and show notes, and uploads everything to RSS.com scheduled for the date I picked. It runs Wednesday overnight so I can review the episodes Thursday morning before they drop. Three things make it reliable: knowing my own process cold, giving it strict instructions for writing and link gathering, and an API that actually works.Resources & LinksGet my full podcast production SOP — streamlined.fm/sopRSS.com — the host for this show; video support and the API behind this automation (affiliate link)Claude — where the scheduled skill runsMacWhisper — watches the folder and transcribes each episode automaticallyNotion — my podcast plannerHave feedback? Send a voice note to the show!
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  How to Make Your Production Process Shorter (Without Hiring) 21.08.2026 8min

  A written SOP is the fastest way to cut down your production time without hiring anyone. I walk through how I build mine: record yourself narrating the entire process, then hand the transcript to a large language model and have it write out the steps one by one. Talking through each step also forces you to justify it, which is how I've caught steps I didn't need anymore and cut them. Once the steps exist on paper, delegating or automating them gets a lot easier.Resources & LinksGet my exact podcast production SOP — streamlined.fm/sopTella — screen recording with automatic transcripts and shareable video (affiliate link)Claude — the large language model I use to turn transcripts into SOPsEcamm Live (affiliate link)Have feedback? Send a voice note to the show!