Love your podcast's haters: turning critics into your secret weapon

Every single podcaster, you, me, and all your friends,

we all have the same nightmare. It's not that the

mic is gonna break or that we'll get zero downloads.

It's that one star review, that public

comment that absolutely tears our

hearts out of our chests, rips our

shows to shreds. Well, let me tell you about

my version of that nightmare that came true.

It was. It was before I was doing all this full time. I was still

on the radio, and a listener made it her mission to tell the world

that I was bloody awful. And learning how to deal with

that, how to deal with her, taught me the single most

important lesson about building a loyal podcast audience today

that I've ever learned. And I'm now gonna share it with you

in this episode. Podcasting

Insight. Hi, and welcome to

Podcasting Insights, the weekly PO podcast about

growing your podcast and getting the best possible results from it.

I'm Neil Velio, the podmaster, and it's my job to

get you closer to pod mastery.

So that intro probably sounded a little bit dramatic, a bit

mad, right? Your worst critic being your greatest

asset. Are you joking? Velio? Let's

be clear. When I say enemies, I'm

not talking about getting into proper nasty beef with people online.

Life is too short for that. And trust me, as someone that used to make

a living being a radio shock jock and

upsetting people on purpose for spondulix, I

can tell you this now. It's unfulfilling and it's just

exhausting. We're not trying to be Piers Morgan here.

No, when I say enemies, I'm actually talking about the people who provide

friction, the energy, the

accountability. So let's talk about the few different types of

people that tick those category boxes, shall we?

First of all, you got the skeptics. These are the people in your comments

saying, I'm not sure about that. Actually, you've got the

critics, the ones who leave that two star review saying, well, your

audio's a bit tinny, or I just don't agree with you on point

X. You got the haters. These are the

Karens of the world who, for whatever reason, just don't like your

vibe at first. And then you've even got the friendly

rivals. These are usually other podcasts and other

podcasters within your niche who keep you on your toes.

I have several of these as podcasters,

podcasting experts, and I love them dearly, even if they

quite possibly hate me. Why? We're going to get

into that. Okay, so the TLDR of all this Is

apathy is the biggest poison for a

podcast or a brand. I would take one person

who's properly pissed off, over a hundred who

just don't care either way, because at least the properly pissed

off person is listening. Let me give you a bit of a case

study based on an actual experience that I had

in my career in the broadcasting industry. I worked in

radio for more than 25 years. FM,

AM, National, Regional, I did it all. And

during my entire career, of course, I got the occasional critic.

Back in the 90s, they used to write letters with badly drawn

scroll telling you how much they hated you and what you stood for. Then

it elevated to email in the early 2000s,

text messages in the mid-2010s, and

towards the late 2000s, once everyone got a grasp on

social media, it was on social media feeds. All

the hate, all the criticism, it was there in

public display. Back in 2014, I was pulled out

of retirement from radio. I first retired in around about 2010

when Radio Consolidated and basically there

were a lot of big radio brands buying out all the local

stations and I didn't like the direction the industry was going. So I

went freelance and I became a podcast producer. I became

essentially a digital content guru.

But off the back of a voiceover job that I did for radio brand, I

was sort of enticed back into doing some freelance show covering

for a station called Jack FM in Oxford. Now, I'm not going to go into

the details of how the radio industry works and certainly not how individual

brands work within the radio industry, but basically, Jack FM was kind

of like a franchise. In other words, underperforming radio stations could

buy the license to the Jack FM name, do away with the need

for branding and for intros and jingles

and all that sort of stuff, and could just focus on playing their music

policies. There was usually only one presenter and

that was the breakfast show. So staffing these stations was really

easy. There was a radio station in reading called

reading107fm,

online at reading107107fm.com and

on air across reading on 107fm. This

is reading 107,

which had been underperforming for a few years. Chris Taran's daughter had been put

on breakfast. That didn't work. A local legend, a guy

called Robert, who had been on the previous radio station,

210fm, they put him on breakfast. That didn't work. So

they wanted to go for something truly different. And that's where they decided to take

on the Jack FM franchise. Well, as someone that had been with the

Jack FM brand since it started in 2008, I hosted

shows now and again. So I kind of knew the Jack FM thing.

And this radio station in Reading went, hmm, it would be really great

to get someone who's experienced with the Jack FM brand

who has proven ability to build an audience on morning

shows. Be really great to get them to do our morning show.

So roll forward to 2014. I am tasked with the job

of following a bunch of underperforming legacy

shows on this previous radio station and relaunch

it as a new station with a brand new crazy breakfast

show course. I was up for the challenge and let me tell

you this now, absolutely nailed it. Built market share,

grew the audience and put this radio station on the map

at a time when it had essentially been an also rank that

no one ever listened to. But before we get to the success of this, we

need to roll back to how this all started. Because I'd been brought on

board to launch this breakfast show, I did what I always

do when I got a new radio station morning show. I

started to build the hype. And among those things that I did was

go on social media and start tweeting,

start Facebooking. And despite the fact this

radio station had been underperforming, there were still

some really hardcore fans who loved the radio station

when it was reading 107. They really gelled with it. They loved

the presenters and they felt like it was their radio station. So you can

imagine how they felt when they started researching the new guy who'd been announced

to do the breakfast show with this shock jockery background,

all the zany bits he'd been doing in the past and the slightly

what to some abrasive nature of the material I was

broadcasting, they weren't happy. Their nice little safe

radio station was in jeopardy and it was going to be

taken over by this absolute maverick who seemed like an absolute

Burke. So they took to social media to essentially

broadcast through their own medium, social media,

to tell everybody that would listen how bad this news was.

Did I take it personally? No. And here's

why. I understood something which

I'm now going to tell you. The reason people are

negative about anything ever

is because they want to feel heard when it comes

to their own personal fears. Now, I don't know what it was

about that radio station that that made these people feel safe.

Perhaps the familiarity, perhaps the safety, perhaps the

predictability. The previous presenters hadn't exactly

been different or exciting. They were pretty much the same sort of

presenters that you would find anywhere you tuned the

dial. And here was I coming in with something a bit different,

a bit unpredictable. So they took to social media

to express their fear around this. All it needed me

to do was understand what the fear was,

and that's exactly what I did. Rather than getting

upset and defensive and blocking these people, which is what

most people tend to do when they get online criticism, I actually

started to tweet these people directly under my own accounts.

They'd been tweeting the radio station previously with, oh, we don't want this.

Can you fire these people? No. I directly from

my own account, reached out to these people and I said to them

things like, can I ask what it is that you're worried about with

my appointment? Can you tell me why you loved the previous

radio station so much and why the idea of this new radio

station fills you with so much dread? Do you know what happened?

They started to tell me their reasons, and in most cases,

I didn't get an angry, oh, well, you're a shock jocker. We don't want that

here. We're used to our Safe Robert show. No,

what they started to tell me was things like, I'm sure you're really nice,

but we just don't know what to expect from you. What do you think

I did with those responses? Do you think I just

marked that down as, oh, well, thanks for your feedback? Noted. No,

I took it one step further, and this is what I'm inviting

you to do with your critics on social media,

on podcasting apps that are leaving bad reviews. Speak

to them through your podcast and ask them questions

like, what is it you hate about the podcast? What would you do

differently if you were the host? Is there something I could

do that would get you to give me a second chance? I

did that with this particular listener. I can tell you a name just so we

can get rid of that oh, it didn't happen thing. This was a lady called

Catherine Wilkins. Catherine was a longtime

listener to Reading 107, and her and her entire family used to

listen. So she was one of the most vocal people on

social media about how much she did not look forward to

me starting my show. I did the thing of reaching out to her and

saying, okay, I get that you're unhappy about this.

Is there anything that I can do to assure you

that we really are looking after this radio station? We want you to keep listening,

and we want to give you what you want. She literally gave me a list

of the things that she was wanting from her radio station. And funnily

enough, once I was able to point out to her that

actually she wasn't getting those things from the radio station anyway, as

in nice music that she can absolutely guarantee she'll like

to hear, presenters that will keep the local

community updated with everything they need to know. The previous

radio station certainly wasn't doing that. And some

fun and entertainment that all the family can listen to. Once I

pointed out to her that that was exactly what we were planning to do with

Jack's Morning Glory. Yeah, it was going to be a bit edgy at times, but

certainly nothing that you wouldn't want your kids to listen to in the backseat of

the car. Absolutely. Playing the line. That's what I did my entire

career. I knew how to push to the line but never cross over

it. Never got any off confines, never suffered the

radio Authority's wrath. I was professional, believe it or not.

She backed down. She turned around and she said,

okay, I might give you a chance, then I might listen

Monday morning, lol. But I wasn't satisfied with that.

I didn't want a second chance. I wanted

an advocate. So I asked her,

after the first morning show, when you've listened,

can I call you up on the air to get your review of the show

on day two? And she agreed. And guess what?

She became a regular caller. Not only

did she become a regular caller on the show, she became a

regular visitor to the radio station events. And

she became a regular fan who always

advocated for the radio station and the show. Online,

in public, wherever. And would it surprise you

to know that she booked me for two

private gigs DJing her daughter's

biggest events? So there you go. There's a nice story from my

old job, but what's the takeaway for you and your

podcast right now? It's this.

Embrace your critics. Loving your critics

and hugging your haters does four crucial things for you.

First, it keeps you sharp. A good

critic stops you from getting lazy. If they say your audio's

crap, they might be right. Have a listen and

then work harder on it. If they challenge your ideas,

build stronger arguments. It's free quality control.

Second, it helps you build your tribe. When you have

a strong opinion, some people will disagree with it. Good,

because the people who do agree with you will feel a much stronger

connection. It creates that us,

the critics on the outside, they just make the bond inside that

circle even stronger. Third, it gives

you some amazing content. Addressing a criticism of

your show is compelling as hell. It's authentic.

It shows you're not Trying to mask your faults.

It shows that you're listening to people and you're not afraid of them.

You're in a dialogue with your audience, not just shouting into a void.

It's the difference between that person on LinkedIn who deletes all

the negative comments they get and the other one who

responds to them all with humanity and

understanding and empathy. Fourthly, it makes you

human. Nobody trusts someone who only gets

perfect praise. Seeing you handle a bit of crap with grace

or a sense of humor actually makes you far more relatable and

trustworthy. I do this with every single piece of content

I make, whether that's on YouTube, whether that's a

podcast, whether it's LinkedIn posts. If people come

at me, I deal with it with a sense of humor. I don't

immediately block them and hate them. I mean, sure, some people I block,

but overall, I'm looking to learn. And the only way you can

learn is from understanding. There are different viewpoints. So

here's how to handle your hater without losing your mind.

It's not a free for all. You can't just wade into every argument.

Here are my ground rules. Rule number one, the

troll test. Is this a genuine criticism or

just some bored a hole in his mum's basement trying to get a

rise out of you? Learn to feel out that difference.

Trolls get the block button. Critics get your

attention. Rule number two, the 24 hour

rule. If a comment gets under your skin, don't

address it. Not for 24 hours. Go for a

walk, have a beer, whatever it takes.

Never reply when you're seeing red. If you get

the comment on Monday and your episode's due on Tuesday,

don't address it yet. Wait until next Tuesday. Rule

3. Kill em with kindness. I call this the

Catherine Method. It is the most disarming tactic available

in your content arsenal. Go with things like, well, thanks for

listening. That's a really interesting point. I'll give that

some thought. Appreciate you taking the time to write that. It

means a lot. That's classy. And it often shuts them up

anyway. They feel heard, they feel like you're a decent

human, and they feel like they've built a connection with you,

weirdly. And before long, they'll probably start to like you.

Rule number 4. Find the kernel of truth

in their words. Even in a rant. There might be

one tiny valid little point. Be humble enough

to look for that. So there you have it. Don't be afraid of the critics,

the skeptics or the haters. They're not a sign that you're failing.

They're a sign that you're making an impact. The opposite of love

isn't hate. It's indifference. And

indifference is the only thing that can actually

kill your podcast. My challenge to

you is this. Next time you get a less than glowing review,

don't just ignore it. If it's a comment on social media

about your podcast, don't delete it. Look at it,

Try to suss out the energy behind it. And if you fancy it,

send me a screenshot. I'd love to see it and advise you

on what's contained.

Okay, time for another email. This is from Sophie in Manchester,

and we, of course, are using AI to give her voice for the purposes of

this bit. Hi Neil, just wanted to say thanks for the recent episode how to

Handle Podcasting Summer Slumps. I really needed that. Here

are a few thoughts and a question. I like how you dispelled the idea that

downloads have to drop over summer. That myth weighs heavily

on us all. The three moves that you proposed, especially that one about

re engaging old listeners rather than always chasing new ones,

felt really practical, actually. Your no bloat, no drama

approach helps, and I walk away with something I can do, not just something

to stress about. But here's what I'm stuck on. You mentioned

revising past content to rope people back in,

but I'm not sure how to do that without it feeling redundant. Do you

just reshare old episodes or do you adapt them, I.e.

bonus clips, fresh intros, etc. Thanks for doing what you do. These

episodes help people like me more than you probably realize, and I'm happy to

support and share your show whenever. Well, thanks so much for

your feedback, Sophie. Yeah, no, it is absolutely

about making sure you're connecting with the right audience, not

any audience. So you say that you're not sure how

to revisit past content without it feeling redundant.

I think you're doing the thing that most people do here, which is you're

assuming every single listener has heard every single

episode of your show. And I can tell you that right now that's not

the case. It would be amazing if it was. We'd all be a lot more

successful than we are. So what I'm saying is, if you talked about a really

hot topic from a year ago, even if things haven't moved on that much,

it's worth revisiting it because you've now got a

year's worth of extra insight on top of what you

published before that you can throw into a new version of that episode.

You don't need to do the same script, you don't need to do the same

insights. You can do it from the new perspective if you

like. A perfect example of this is AI. Obviously AI has

changed a lot in the last few years, but the innovation that's happened in the

past year is probably treble what it was

since it first came about. So there's plenty of opportunity

there for new subtopics to emerge from that. You can

reshare the old episode that you did from a year ago if you want to

keep things really simple. But of course then you got to think about the value

add. Are you giving your listeners what they deserve? So is it

worth taking what you did before as a benchmark and

shifting it on so you're definitely satisfying

all the search engines, all the listener needs with your brand

new content on a similar thing? I hope that helps things make a little

bit more sense for you. What do you think of the episode? Am I talking

absolute crap? Go on. I dare you. Head over to Apple Podcasts

or Spotify and leave me a review. 1 star if you dare. I'm just gonna

love you more. Even if you hate it. I can take it. And your

comment might just be the topic for a future episode. Share

this with anyone you think might need a little bit of help

getting closer to Pod Mastery. Follow the show in whichever app you're

listening to. This now, if you haven't already

Podcasting Insight.