Platform Media head of sport Conor Hewitt speaks to the Broadcast Sport Podcast

The Good The Bad And the Football podcast

Talent buy in, social media nous, and the right format are among the key ingredients for making a hit digital show, according to Platform Media head of sport Conor Hewitt. 

Platform and Hewitt are behind shows such as The Good, The Bad & The Football, Joe Marler Will See You Now, The Wayne Rooney Show, and plenty more across sport and beyond, and he recently gave advise to those in the podcast and digital space on the Broadcast Sport Podcast. You can listen to the full conversation below. 

According to Hewitt, the very first thing that the company looks at when finding a new show and talent, “is someone who’s going to come in and treat this like a partnership, someone who wants to build something and has that inner drive to push and grow it as big as possible. 

“It’s very easy to get a huge name who’s not that interested in making a podcast, and it becomes a chore for them. What we’re looking for is creative partners who really want to get involved and build something of their own that’s just shared with us, essentially.”

This is reflected in some of their biggest shows, including with former England rugby international and now media personality Joe Marler: “He’s a huge part of the creative process. He’s sitting down with us and working out guests, and we’re constantly firing stuff back and forth in a WhatsApp group. He’s as much a producer of the show as any of the producers are.”

Elsewhere, formats are key, as well as promoting heavily across social media. Hewitt said, “It’s not just let’s insert a big name person, and have them chat to another big name person. We really are trying to push the boundaries of format, and it could be something as subtle as positioning,” such as the positioning of The Good, The Bad & The Football as taking place in a working men’s club. 

He added on social media pull, “When we’re doing our commercial deals we’re selling against the long form, but we’re also selling against the social KPI. The social views are just as important as the long form views in a lot of ways.”

You can listen to the rest of the episode below, where Hewitt goes on to discuss his top tip for making a hit digital show, the market’s move to more visual mediums, the prerequisites for talent and ideas, and more. You can subscribe to the Broadcast Sport Podcast on all major podcast platforms.