Running Growth Experiments to Expand Reach for a Prominent Podcast Show

During my 12-week apprenticeship as an Associate Growth PMM, I created and ran a growth experiment for Product Marketing Adventures, a podcast about the practical work of product marketing—from real-world case studies to messaging critiques. Elle Grossenbacher, the founder of Dusted, is also the founder and host of the podcast. The podcast was already growing steadily, but we wanted to expand its reach, attract more listeners, and eventually make it one of the top B2B podcasts by downloads. That goal created the moment for me to examine where promotion could help more people discover and listen to each episode.

The business objective was straightforward: increase downloads of Product Marketing Adventures by helping more people discover and listen to each episode. My objective was narrower but demanding: during a 12-week apprenticeship, I had to evaluate several possible growth hypotheses, choose a focused one, design and run the experiment, and analyze the results.

The hardest part was narrowing the scope. I could not change the podcast content, distribution, and promotion simultaneously, so I focused on whether more frequent, varied post-launch promotion could increase listening. The experiment also had to be executed organically, without relying on paid advertising or a large campaign budget.