71. What’s a Podcast Reset And Does Your Show Need One?

If your podcast has started to feel a little meh—like you’re just going through the motions or stuck in a creative rut, you’re not alone. This episode is your permission slip to pause, reassess, and RESET. Because sometimes the best way forward is to realign with where you are now.

You don’t need to rebrand. You don’t need to burn it all down. But you might need a refresh that helps your podcast catch up with who you are today.

Whether your downloads have plateaued, you feel disconnected from your audience, or you’re just not having fun anymore… this episode walks you through what a podcast reset actually is—and how to know if it’s time.

In this episode, you’ll learn:
✅ What a podcast reset actually means (and how it’s different from a rebrand)
✅ The telltale signs you’ve outgrown your current format
✅ Why skipping episodes might mean something’s off
✅ Where to start if your show feels out of alignment
✅ Practical ways to reset your show without losing momentum
✅ Why your podcast should evolve alongside your brand, business, and life

Quick Reset Experiments to Try This Week:

• Rewrite your podcast description so it actually sounds like you
• Review your top 5 episodes—what’s working, and how can you replicate that magic?
• Map your current workflow and circle every part that feels heavy
• Ask yourself: what do I really want this podcast to do for me right now?

Ready for a Reset?
Grab the free checklist from last week’s Podcast Glow Up episode to see if a few easy tweaks do the trick—or if a reset is calling your name.
Download the Glow Up Checklist

Want me in your corner?
 Join the waitlist for Podcast Reset in a Box, my new DIY toolkit that walks you through a full reset step-by-step.
Hop on the waitlist

Or book a Reset Audit, and I’ll personally review your show, give you a custom strategy, and help you make your podcast feel like magic again.
Learn more about Reset Audits

Let’s Keep the Conversation Going
DM me on Instagram or Threads: @soniviastudios
Email me: rue@sonivia.com

Music Credit: Up An Octave Theme by Rue Spence with additional vocals provided by Darnell Spence

Up An Octave is hosted by Rue Spence of Sonivia. Up An Octave is a podcast for women and nonbinary people who are ready to take up space in podcasting to share their voices with the world.

Transcript

  You are listening to Podcasting Up in Octave, a podcast by sovia, the podcasting agency that believes that women and queer people deserve to take up space in the podcasting industry because our thoughts, voices, and stories matter. Here, you'll learn how to make a dope podcast that inspires, educates, converts, and most importantly, makes your voice shine.

I'm your host, Ru Spence, and I'm here to take podcasting up an octave. Let's get into it. 

Hello. Hello and welcome back to podcasting Up an octave. So you tried to glow up your podcast last week. You followed all the 10 tips that I gave in the free checklist, and it still feels just kind of mid. First of all, that does not mean that you're failing, but it might mean that it's time to pivot and reset your podcast.

We've all hit the point, or we will if you're not there yet, where something just kind of feels off in your podcast, even if you can't name it. Today we're talking about what a podcast reset actually is and the signs that you might be ready for one, and what you can do about it.  So some signs that you might need to reset your podcast, and when I say reset, you know we're gonna get a little bit more into what that is, but it's one part rebrand and one part just refresh.

So the signs are you may feel bored or disconnected from your show. It just doesn't feel like magical and aligned and like juicy when you're making it. It's just kind of something that's on your to-do list. You're skipping weeks even when you don't want to. You're like, Ugh, it's time for me to get an episode out, and then you let the next episode of Netflix roll on, or you just shirk that and all of a sudden you don't have an episode.

Your downloads have plateaued or dropped. People are not connecting with what you're putting out, or maybe there's nothing that they can connect with because you are becoming so inconsistent. You feel like you're talking to everybody and connecting to nobody. You've lost sight of who your ideal audience member is.

You've grown as a person or a business depending on what model your podcast is following. Your podcast is stuck behind you. You dread recording, editing and promoting, or you feel like your podcast isn't doing anything for you anymore, whether that's for you as just a creator or for your business. So if you're nodding your head right now, it's okay.

I'm gonna take your hand when I tell you this. Let's talk about what a podcast reset actually is.  This is not rebranding or relaunching. This is a strategic tuneup that brings your podcast back into alignment with who you are now, who you're talking to, and what you actually want your podcast to do for you.

Sometimes this is as simple as just changing your intro and your call to action. Sometimes it's reworking your format or just redefining your goals, and sometimes it is about pulling it apart and then putting it back together even stronger. Your reset could be clarifying your goals and voice updating your show's description, episode titles, or your episode structure, auditing what's working and what's not, as well as what's connecting, creating a batching or production workflow that actually fits your life and your podcast and realigning your podcast with your brand or business or personality, especially after you've tried the glow up.

So what can you start experimenting with right now? Get clear on your goals and voice. Why are you podcasting right now? If you feel like things are not in alignment, chances are your why may have changed. Ask yourself, what do I want my podcast to do for me in this season of life? Journal about it. What do I actually want to say and who do I want to say it to?

If this feels hard to answer, that is a sign that it's time for you to reset. This is exactly what I help clients explore in a reset audit. Another thing that you can try experimenting with is updating your show's description, your episode titles, and your episode structure. You don't need to rebrand, you just need to tighten up the packaging.

Read your podcast description out loud. Does that still even sound like you? Is that how you talk? Is that the language you use? Is that how you talk about your business or the passion that is behind the podcast? Review your last 10 episode titles. If you were just finding your podcast for the first time, be honest, would you click them and ask yourself, is this format still fun or does it feel like a drag?

Every time I sit down to record? If you realize that you're trying to talk to everyone, or that you're still using your copy from two years ago, it's time to clean that up and bring it into something that feels current for you now audit what's working and what's not. Your numbers are telling a story.

The question is whether or not you're ready to listen to them. Look at your top five episodes. What is the common thread? Then check your worst performers. What's different there? Notice where you're getting the most engagement shares and replies. Something else that's interesting to do here is to see if there is kind of a drop off.

See where that occurred. Did something happen that changed how you felt about the show that you're making at that point? Or is it just kind of sporadic? Maybe that can help you reveal something inside yourself that you didn't even know about. Create a workflow that actually fits your life. A podcast you dread is not sustainable, nor is it worth it.

Map your current workflow. What does your process look like? Circle anything that feels heavy and unsustainable. Ask yourself, what could I batch? What could I simplify? What could I delegate or offload? You deserve a realistic workflow that doesn't burn you out or make you avoid getting on the mic. 

Finally realign your podcast with your brand or your business, or whatever it is that made you start this show. If your podcast doesn't reflect the business that you're building, it's time to reset.  Pull up your website and your podcast side by side. Do they match an energy, clarity, and vibe?  Does it feel consistent between both of those platforms?

If you've recently rebranded or you are about to, or just your energy has changed, your podcast deserves to come along for the ride. It's absolutely okay if you are feeling seen by this episode. It's also okay if you're feeling called out by this episode. A reset does not mean that you failed. It simply means that you're allowing yourself to pay attention, and it means that you actually care about your show because if you were not in love with your show, you would not feel called to reset it or restructure it or refresh it or anything.

You would just let it fade. The fact that you have hooks that you're willing to dig into, this means that you still care. So if you're nodding along right now, I have got two things for you. One is the podcast Reset in a Box, which is coming soon. This is a DIY toolkit that I have engineered to walk you through the entire process of resetting your podcast.

You can hop on the wait list now at the link in the show notes, and two, if you want my eyes and expertise on your show. I also offer reset audits where I listen, review, and give you a personalized action plan and roadmap to make your podcast feel like magic again. Your podcast deserves to grow with you, and it will, you are allowed to reset the vibe at any time.

Let what I'm going through right now be your.  Guide your permission slip, whatever that is for you, uh, that you get to change your mind. When it feels good, you get to create content that you love and you get to be in alignment. Like I've said in the past, if Taylor Swift gets to completely go through different eras and rebrand with every album she releases, I.

Darn it. You deserve that too. Hop on that wait list and you know, get all the goodies that I've got in the show notes, then come hang out with me over on Instagram and at Threads. I am at Sovia Studios. Uh, you can shoot me an email directly@ruatsovia.com. And in the meantime, thank you for being here, and thank you for helping me take podcasting up in octave.