First published in Daily Maverick 168

Public speaking isn’t something that comes naturally to me. But I jumped at the chance this past week to host Guy Raz, the creator and host of one of the world’s most successful podcasts, “How I built this” (“HIBT”). This was the (online) South African launch of the book by the same name, sharing lessons from more than 300 successful entrepreneurs Raz has interviewed in the six-year run of the show produced in partnership with National Public Radio. 

The opportunity was just too good to pass up, despite jitters that beset my public appearances, because it meant being able to geek out on three topics close to my heart: media, entrepreneurship and media entrepreneurship. And to riff on these with someone who moved the needle for an industry offshoot – yes, please! When someone makes a podcast about the history of podcasts, Guy Raz’s impact will be up there alongside Ira Glass (“This American Life” and “Serial”), Sarah Koenig (“Serial”) and Alex Blumberg (Gimlet Media).

The book is not only packaged into themes and chapters pertinent to the journey of anyone considering entrepreneurship but also details Raz’s own journey into building a media production company that employs a small team of dedicated producers, researchers and editors, and generates millions of dollars in revenue. Though the disruption of the media industry and the challenges facing digital start-ups are well documented, here is a standout example of a journalist-turned-entrepreneur craftsman who’s made a global success of his trade. With more than three million downloads/listens each week, “HIBT” consistently tops charts across the global app stores. But Raz warns people that if you’re in it for the money, podcasting isn’t the place for you. 

With more than one million English-speaking podcasts available, garnering 1,000 listens for an episode puts you in the top 5% of performers. And the advertising revenue you can get off that is barely enough to pay the data costs to upload the file to the interwebs. 

The warning “don’t do it for the money” is the same one Raz advocates in his book about entering the world of building a business. Profit is such a lame reason to start a business and quickly gets old, even if you’re making a ton of money. Building a business is about people and people want to work
in a place that has purpose and operates with integrity. 

The profit is the byproduct, not the inspiration. These are the kind of builders he tends to seek out for his podcast, investing a crazy amount of research, time and effort to understand and get to know his subjects before spending up to five hours recording. From start to finish, a single episode can take three months. And it shows. Like any service business, the ones that stand out are the ones that attain levels of quality that just blow the competition out of the water. 

Even when this means sacrificing short-term monetary gains. In each instalment, which lasts longer than an hour, expertly researched and edited, there are barely two minutes of advertising. Some popular US podcasts spend the first few minutes rattling off sponsor products before jumping into an unedited sit-down between the host and guest. Although that approach does work for some producers, it won’t endear itself to audiences around
the world in the same way people speak about “HIBT” and how it inspired them to start or push through the many challenges of entrepreneurship.

In South African terms, podcasting is still trying to get out of the starting blocks. If monetising a popular US show is hard, it’ll be some time before we see quality, custom-made productions making the big bucks here. 

Which possibly explains why most “podcasts” you hear these days are live radio or live audio sessions repackaged into an on-demand format. For radio broadcasters, most ad revenue still comes from the airwaves, and there is little incentive to dive deep into the medium, which is why very few efforts are created as bespoke offerings for the digital audio audience. (One exception is our own “Don’t Shoot the Messenger” with Rebecca Davis, a superb global-standard effort even in my biased opinion, supported by five-star Apple ratings).

As with all new ventures, there is a risk/reward equation that founders, creators and investors need to weigh up in pursuing their continued efforts in the space. How long will you need to carry investments before projects break even, and how can you generate value beyond traditional advertising? 

Podcasting is the corner piece of the Rubik’s cube that is the media sustainability conundrum, where growing audiences are accompanied by declining or nonexistent ad revenues. Although these business puzzles are difficult to solve, with patience, technique and a lot of practice it can be done. We just need to learn new skills, unlearn some bad habits and study at the feet of those who have made it work.

The same digital medium that brought our disruption also offers us access and the means to acquire these skills, if we know where to look. And listen. Luckily for those in the media entrepreneurship or general entrepreneurship space, Raz’s book is a lifeline on how to navigate some of these big issues, and how to de-risk the plunge into the adventure of several lifetimes. 

It’s likely that, in many episodes of “HIBT”, entrepreneurs will recognise themselves or their journeys. In that, we should take comfort because the people who succeeded are no different from you and me. 

They are not luckier or more talented; they simply started and persevered. They looked around and asked for help. They kept building, no matter what. 

The post-Covid-19 world will require more builders than ever before, whether it be one-woman operations, SMEs or corporate giants. Only builders will create the jobs we need to survive. DM168