Between 2010 and 2018, the term evergreen content was sort of a buzzword around
podcasting, but what does it actually mean? Well, in this episode of Podcasting Insights, I'm going to share with you why
green and how to keep those old episodes alive without lying to yourself. Let's do it.
People love the
idea of evergreen content. I mean, it sounds so reassuring, doesn't it? Like once you've made something, you could just
freezer that you are absolutely, definitely gonna eat one day.
The ones where you think, yeah, I probably wouldn't say that now.
Let's talk about those.
Evergreen started off as a sensible idea. It meant an episode that
wasn't tied to a specific news event or topical timeline, not a trending piece. In other words, not here's what happened last
evergreen as a term, quietly mutated. It stopped meaning still useful even over time and started
meaning, I'm never gonna think about this again. Evergreen became emotional insulation. And honestly, I get it because
revisiting old content forces you to confront some deeply irritating truths that you'd probably explain differently
you'd probably explain it all differently.
Now you've learned more, you've changed your mind. Some tools you confidently recommended no longer
exist, were acquired, or maybe turned into a flaming bin fire or worse. The episode didn't do very well, and your brain has
sticker on it that says, do not draw attention to this ever. So instead of dealing with any of that, most podcasters
They move on. They publish new episodes in the hope that they bury those old ones in the feed and they promote the latest
still working for them. Meanwhile, the back catalogue quietly turns into a content drawer. Still there technically
one day, probably haunted.
And here's where I want to be a bit annoying in a loving way to you. Evergreen does not mean
timeless. It does not mean always correct. It does not mean perfectly current enough, and it definitely does not mean immune to
context reality, or mild cringe. Evergreen actually means something much less impressive.
The core problem still exists. The thinking still
mostly holds up, and someone can still get something useful out of it without you having to apologize first. That's it. If
imaginary gold standard of perfection, you are never gonna use them again, and you don't need to lie to yourself about why.
So let's talk about why people stop
sharing the old episodes. Because this bit gets weirdly emotional for some. Some people stop because they're embarrassed by
because the audio isn't as good as their current stuff. Some stop because the episode mentions platforms or tactics that
because, well, frankly, it all, and that one kind of hurts because even though everyone.
Because even though everyone pretends they don't care about their numbers, the
brain remembers them vividly like a traumatic event with charts. So
instead of asking, is this still useful, we tend to ask. What if people were to judge this now and that's how content
quietly dies. Not because it stopped being valuable, but because you stopped wanting to be associated with it. So let's
actually make this episode earn its place. There are three ways to keep old podcast episodes alive.
Honestly, no pretending, no marketing,
gymnastics, no. Just rediscovered this gem nonsense. First, reintroduce the episodes. Don't just reshare them.
Stop flinging links around, like time is fake. Say why? It still matters now,
Or I'd explain parts of this differently
today, but the core problem hasn't gone anywhere. That level of honesty builds trust instantly, and it's much, and it's
embarrassing than pretending that it's brand new and hoping nobody notices you reference clubhouse with a straight face.
Secondly,
update the context, not the content. You don't need to rerecord everything. Just add a short new intro. Add a line at the
notes, pin a, add a line at the top of the episode. Description, pin a comment, explain what's changed since it was
rewriting history. Here you are adding footnotes, which is a very much calmer, more grown up energy, much better than
And thirdly. This is the one people hate hearing, so I do apologize in advance, but some episodes are allowed to
die. Not everything deserves saving. Some episodes were experiments, some were placeholders, some were okay. Letting them
mean you failed. It means you are curating, not hoarding.
Dragging every single episode into the present like some kind of wounded soldier, helps nobody,
least of all you. Here's the sneaky upside of all this. Once you stop trying to be timeless, something loosens you stop
trying to future proof every single sentence you utter. You stop over explaining.
So if your
back catalogue of episodes feels awkward, ignored, or quietly avoided, that's not a sign you've messed up.
It's a sign that you've changed. You've grown, you've progressed. You don't need more episodes.
You probably don't even need a new strategy around this. You just need to stop pretending. The past version of you
embarrassing.
Treat the work you've already done with a bit more honesty. A bit more
respect. We all came from somewhere and just having grown and progressed doesn't make previous you invalid.
I hope this has prevented you from wasting hours of your time going back and deleting old episodes just to rerecord them again.
Hopefully I've given you an idea of how you might be able to repurpose some of that content if you use a platform such as
dynamically inject new content on your old episodes.
Maybe consider how you could use that tool to inject
a bit of fresh perspective on the beginnings and the ends of your old episodes. I hope you found this episode
useful, and if you did. Please do share it with another podcaster that you think might find it useful.
If you haven't yet, please do follow the podcast in your favourite podcast app. Whichever one you're listening to right
If you haven't yet, smash that subscribe button on YouTube. It really helps us to get discovered by more like-minded
The next episode, I am wishing you continued luck and success with
your journey towards attaining pod mastery.