PODCAST SUCCESS!

Something was wrong, seriously wrong.

Let me explain.

It was Easter weekend. And, I had flown down to Malta for a spot of RNR.

I love Malta at this time of year. Not too warm but warm enough to enjoy the outdoors and the many delights of its beaches and harbors. I was staying at a resort to the north of the island; but a friend insisted I spend some time with him and his party on board his impressive yacht.

So, later that first day, I was lying on the deck taking in the view and the sea breeze. Perhaps understandably, for I was doing what we should all be doing during Easter week: taking a break. So I let my mind unwind as much as my body on this wonderful island. In the distance I could hear a church bell peal; a glass of chilled wine sat close at hand, as well as a good book. And with the sun overhead and the sea lapping languidly below I asked myself what more could a man ask for.

And, then it started.

My phone started ‘dinging’ and ‘pinging’ at such a breakneck pace that I knew something was seriously wrong. Either the stock markets across the world had collapsed or a nuclear strike had happened somewhere. Whatever it was, it was serious that much was for sure.

As it turned it out it was none of these thing – mercifully – but was in fact the most pleasant news I had had in a long time.

Last December, I think it was around the 8th December 2019, Mt. Bonnell Media launched its podcast series Move your Business to the United States. We had recorded it on location in Texas in September 2019. On our return there was the inevitable and meticulous post-production work in a London sound studio. Eventually – hey presto! – episode after episode was being pumped out across the globe via iTunes, Spotify, and all the rest.

I enjoyed listening to the finished product. I’m biased, I know, but I thought it was not only a well-made series but as good technically as anything on the BBC or elsewhere. It also had a lot of flair and creativity – it was never a dull listen. Besides, there was humor and pathos as well as lots of practical advice about doing business Stateside. Much of the music was original too, as indeed was the whole concept. Part travelogue, part adventure, part “buddy movie”, it was also a welcome journey across Texas – the real Lone Star State, one I recognized instantly from the soundscape evoked.

The download figures were good to begin with, growing steadily and consistently. There was an audience out there; we had suspected as much. At the very least I had hoped for a modest listenership. I wanted people to appreciate the hard work and imagination that had gone into this piece of work and benefit from the advice and help offered in it. In retrospect, I see now how I placed the bar for the podcast’s success on both counts far too low.

Sitting in the sunshine on board the yacht I looked at the figures and stats before me. In territories right across Asia the podcast was hitting the top of various listener charts. And not just in the Business categories but in charts for ALL podcasts. Again and again the series was the most popular podcast, better than the BBC, WSJ, FT, or even Bloomberg – and all in regard to a series that had been launched less than six months ago. And it wasn’t just the series that was storming the charts. Individual episodes were making appearances in charts too. In Laos, for example, Move your Business to the United States episodes had managed to take nine of the top ten spots – charitably leaving no. 10 for some else! I smiled when I read this thinking it was lucky for the opposition we only had ten episodes live.

The analytics guys at MBM were understandably keen to keep me appraised of what was happening. It was clear, however, they were struggling to keep up with the avalanche of good news that was coming their way. We were not just conquering the audio landscape of South East Asia but starting to make major inroads into the Middle East as well. And, then, it became clear Japan and China were coming to the party as well.

Asia had been an audio market the team at MBM thought could be a good for Move your Business to the United States. It was a region that was to be testing ground for the strategic thinking around the podcast, thinking and planning as that is as necessary for a media product as much as it is for any other type of product.

I switched the phone off. I placed it on the table beside me. Then I lifted and drained what remained in my wine glass. As I did so, a member of the ship’s crew promptly and politely asked if I cared for another drink.

“Yes, that would be good,” I replied.

Then glancing once more at the phone in front of me, I added: “Let’s make it Champagne.”