Your Living Room Just Became the Most Important Podcast Platform

Something fascinating happened during a client call last week. I asked a room full of business professionals a simple question: “How many of you have watched a podcast on your living room TV in the last year?”

Five out of six hands shot up immediately.

These weren’t just tech-savvy millennials or Gen Z content consumers. They were people across age groups, professions, and backgrounds. All of them had done the same thing—sat down on their couch and consumed podcast content on the biggest screen in their house.

That’s when it hit me: we’re in the middle of a massive shift in how people consume podcast content, and most creators haven’t caught on yet. The platforms are changing. The format is evolving. And the opportunity for coaches and consultants who understand this shift? It’s absolutely massive.

If you’ve been on the fence about starting a video podcast or wondering if it’s worth the investment, what I’m about to share will change how you think about content creation in 2026.

The Data You Can’t Ignore: Video Podcasting Is Going Mainstream

Let me give you the facts that prove this isn’t just a hunch—it’s a seismic shift happening right now.

YouTube has become one of the largest podcast platforms in the world. Not an add-on. Not a secondary channel. One of the primary ways people discover and consume podcast content. The platform that was once just for vlogs and music videos is now competing with Spotify and Apple Podcasts for podcast dominance.

Netflix is making serious moves into podcasting. At the time of this recording, they’re negotiating to acquire Warner Brothers and simultaneously exploring how to bring podcast content onto their platform. Think about that for a second. The company that revolutionized how we watch TV is betting big on conversational, long-form content.

The Golden Globes just added a podcasting category. Shows like SmartLess are being nominated alongside traditional film and television. Podcasting has officially crossed over from niche medium to mainstream entertainment.

What does all this mean? Video podcasting isn’t a trend—it’s the new standard.

Why Young People Are Watching Podcasts (Even Though They Don’t Call Them That)

Here’s something that might surprise you: Gen Z watches tons of podcast content. They just don’t call it that.

During a recent conversation with a client, they mentioned their younger team members kept saying “nobody watches podcasts” and that they should focus on TikTok instead. But here’s the truth: those same young people are consuming hours of conversational, long-form content every single week. They’re just not labeling it as a “podcast.”

They call it a “show.” They call it “content.” They might not even have a name for it—they just know they like watching two people have a real conversation about something they care about.

The format is the same. The consumption is the same. The only difference? They’re not looking for “Episode 12” in the title. They’re looking for value, entertainment, and authenticity packaged in a conversational format.

And where are they watching it? On their phones, yes. But increasingly on tablets, laptops, and yes—living room TVs.

If you’re creating video podcast content, you’re already speaking their language. You just need to show up consistently and deliver value.

The Shift From Downloads to Community (And Why It Matters More Than You Think)

For years, podcasters obsessed over one metric above all others: download numbers. How many people subscribed? How many people listened? What’s our ranking in the charts?

But 2026 is going to be the year that changes everything. Because platforms are starting to deprioritize those vanity metrics in favor of something far more valuable: engagement.

Subscriber counts are becoming less visible. Follower numbers are being hidden. And what’s rising to take their place? Real connection. Real community. Real conversations.

Here’s what this means for you as a coach or consultant: you don’t need a million listeners. You need the right listeners. You need people who resonate with your message, trust your expertise, and want to go deeper with you.

Your podcast isn’t a megaphone—it’s a magnet.

It attracts the people who are meant to work with you. And then your job is to give them a place to go deeper than just consuming your content. That’s where community comes in.

How to Build Community Around Your Podcast (Without It Taking Over Your Life)

Building community doesn’t mean you need to be online 24/7 or manage a dozen different platforms. It means creating intentional spaces where your audience can engage with your message and with each other.

Here are a few ways to do that:

Create a free Slack or Discord channel. This gives your most engaged listeners a place to ask questions, share wins, and connect with like-minded people. You don’t need to be in there every day—just show up consistently.

Launch a membership or client portal. If you’re a coach or consultant, a private community for paying clients can be one of the most valuable things you offer. Your podcast becomes the front door, and your community becomes the living room where real transformation happens.

Host live Q&A sessions or workshops. Invite your podcast listeners to join you for live sessions where they can ask questions and get personalized insights. These don’t need to be elaborate—even a monthly 30-minute Zoom call can create deep loyalty.

Leverage what already exists. The digital community infrastructure exploded during COVID with the rise of Zoom and virtual spaces. Now we’re seeing curated communities form around ongoing content like podcasts. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel—you just need to give people a place to gather.

The goal isn’t to build the biggest community. It’s to build the right community—one where people feel seen, supported, and equipped to take action.

What This Means for Coaches Who Want to Grow Their Business

Your podcast should be the number one business sales opportunity working for you 24/7. Not in a sleazy, pushy way—but in a way that builds trust, demonstrates expertise, and naturally leads people to want to work with you.

Here’s the progression:

Your podcast becomes the hub. This is where you teach, share stories, and showcase your expertise. It’s where people get to know you and start to trust you.

Your community becomes the engine. This is where people go deeper, ask questions, and begin to see you as the guide they’ve been looking for.

Your business grows as a result. When people trust you and have experienced value from you in your free content and community, hiring you becomes the obvious next step.

This isn’t about hacks or tricks. It’s about creating a system that works—a system where your content attracts the right people, your community nurtures them, and your offers serve them at the highest level.

The Bottom Line: Get in the Game Now

Video podcasting is going mainstream. The platforms are investing. The audiences are watching. And the Golden Globes are literally giving out awards for it.

If you’ve been waiting for the “right time” to start your podcast, this is it. If you’ve been creating podcast content but not seeing business results, it’s time to build community around it.

You don’t need to be everywhere. You don’t need a million subscribers. You just need to show up consistently, deliver value, and give people a place to go deeper with you.

The living room revolution is here. The question is: are you going to be part of it?

Ready to turn your podcast into a business asset that attracts premium clients? Visit 1898creative.com and let’s build a system that actually works for you.

Full Transcript

Darren: Today, we want to make some predictions. You ready to speak to the future?

Dustin: Yeah, yeah, I’ve kind of tapped into my inner weatherman.

Darren: There you go.

Dustin: Forecast mentality here, so just some forecasting.

Darren: Yeah, let’s do some forecasting. I like this idea. Dustin and I are going to talk about our podcasting predictions for 2026. I think this is important just to kind of look ahead, see what we’re seeing on the landscape, speak to it directly. And then maybe at this time next year, Dustin, we’ll look back and see if we’ve made any sense at all, or if we’re just a bunch of idiots. I don’t know.

Dustin: I don’t know.

Darren: So we’re going to walk through the five predictions here. Okay. I’m going to give you a few. Dustin’s going to give you a few, and then we’re going to land the plane.

The big thing that I’m seeing, I’m going to start off with number one, my first prediction for podcasting in 2026 is that video podcasting is going to continue to boom. What? Crazy, right? I think we’re going to see more and more platforms optimized for video podcasting. You’re already seeing it with YouTube becoming one of the biggest podcast platforms that there is out there from a video standpoint.

And Dustin, I was on a call the other day with one of our clients, the whole entire team. There was like six or seven of them on there. And I asked in the call just off the cuff. I didn’t plan this, I didn’t do anything. We were talking about the importance of the YouTube channel and having a video presence with the podcast. And I said, raise your hand if in the last 12 months you have watched a podcast episode on your TV in your living room. And dude, five of the six of them raised their hands. It wasn’t just the young people, it wasn’t just the old people, it was all of them, right? All of them collectively raised their hand and said that. And I know I have done that. I’m assuming you have done that, Dustin.

Dustin: I was thinking about my house, there’s four people in here. I can tell you that’s true for three of the four of us have definitely done that.

Darren: Wild, wild, right? And it was funny because I was talking to another client and they said, oh, you know, some of those Gen Z-ers were telling us that we needed to get on TikTok more because nobody watches podcasts. And I kind of stopped them and I was like, I think they do watch podcasts. They just don’t realize they’re watching podcasts because they’re not calling it a podcast. They might call it a show. They might call it their content or whatever. They’re not putting episode 12 after the title, right? They’re just creating the content in a conversational way and they’re consuming it as Gen Zers or whatever, Gen X, whatever the young folks are called nowadays, right? And they are consuming that, but they’re just not realizing it.

And the reason that this is my prediction too is I don’t know if you’ve heard, but Netflix has been starting to make some noise about bringing podcasting content onto their platform. And as the time of this recording, they’re also negotiating with buying Warner Brothers, which is also crazy. So if Netflix is trying to do the Warner Brothers deal as well as leverage their platform for podcasting, I’m thinking in 2026, we’re going to see a lot more video podcasting. And so if you haven’t gotten in the game yet, it’s time to get in the game.

Number two is I think what we’re going to see, we’re already seeing a little bit, but I think it’s going to be even heightened in 2026 is we’re going to see community around the podcast becoming more important. We’re already seeing a drop in the importance of subscriber numbers and different things like that. Follower counts on social, right? We’re seeing that drop and it’s now the content is the most important and it’s going to find its audience.

So I think what we need to do around the idea of podcasting is we need to create better community around it. How can we get people engaged in deeper levels? And obviously around here in 1898, we encourage the podcast to be the number one business sales opportunity for you, right? The thing that works for you 24 seven. And ultimately that podcast driving people to community, that community drives people into your business and ultimately growing your business through podcasting, right?

Dustin: Yeah, it’s having all the other things that go along with it that’s going to drive the importance of your podcast existing, right? So we’re talking about coaching with content here. So as a coach or a consultant or whatever you have in the client-based world that you live in, being able to create a community of whether it be a free thing that you do on Slack or Discord or anything like that, being able to do that, have membership client portals. Being able to do that is going to create that digital community, which we all, it kind of naturally boomed out of COVID anyway, with the kind of the explosion of Zoom. Now we’re seeing curated communities and part of that curated community is ongoing content like podcasts.

Darren: And I’ll say too, just back to your first point, Golden Globes have announced podcasting as a category.

Dustin: No way.

Darren: Yeah. Yeah. So that too, they also, so talk about podcasting going global. The Golden Globes now have a podcasting category, which one of my favorite podcasts SmartLess is up for.

Dustin: That’s amazing. I did not know that.

Darren: And so that just directly speaks to what we’re talking about here today. Like it is, it means that there’s going to be a lot of people getting in the pool, but to the point of the communities, that means that you’re going to be able to find your audience and maybe you don’t have a million subscribers. Maybe you don’t have a million listeners or downloads, but you’re speaking directly to the right people and getting them to move. And now you’re seeing your business grow in really cool ways. And so this is super cool. And I love that you brought that up, that they are making that a category because that speaks to that reality. And so we’re going to see it in 2026.