Generation Barney

Objective

The Podglomerate is the industry-leading podcast services company, named the “Best Podcast Production & Marketing Agency” by PR Daily, as well as a “Fastest Growing Company in New England 2025 and 2026” by The Boston Globe and “Fastest Growing Company in America 2026” by the Financial Times. We specialize in comprehensive podcast growth strategies and have a proven track record with major media outlets and publishers, including NPR, Netflix, and AFAR.

In 2024, The Podglomerate supported Generation Barney with a multi-channel marketing strategy that included press outreach, podcast app features, digital media optimization, and cross-promotional swaps.

The Podglomerate’s goals were to:

Drive audience growth and deepen engagement among existing and new Connecticut Public listeners, with the goal of achieving at least 100k downloads for the new feed.
Generate high-impact earned media coverage across major media publications and podcast app platforms.
Foster strategic collaborations with complementary, high-performing podcast feeds.
Elevate awareness of Connecticut Public and contribute to key organizational goals, including social media engagement, podcast page traffic, and event attendance.

01CHALLENGE
02SOLUTION
03PROCESS
04RESULTS

Show Summary

Generation Barney – produced by Connecticut Public, the same award-winning NPR and PBS member station that “discovered’ and then helped launch “Barney & Friends” on PBS – explores the impact of “Barney & Friends” on a generation. Hosted by lifelong journalist and Barney enthusiast Sabrina Herrera, the podcast series re-examines the Barney phenomena that swept the globe more than three decades ago. It’s about the purple dinosaur. But it’s also about music, love, backlash, toys and nostalgia. Most of all, it’s about the television show that helps us become who we are. Generation Barney was produced with support from PRX and was made possible in part by a grant from John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

THE CHALLENGE

While podcast launches are often supported by paid acquisition campaigns to drive scalable audience growth, Generation Barney did not allocate additional budget toward paid promotional strategies. As a result, The Podglomerate was tasked with driving listener acquisition, conversion, and retention entirely through earned media placements.

“We were inspired to work with Podglomerate after hearing the success other public media stations had working with their team, including how easy they were to work with. We found both things to be true. Not only are they connected, organized, and a pleasure to work with but our teams learned so much in the process that will carry over into future launches.”

Meg Fitzgerald, Senior Manager of Projects and Radio Programming

THE SOLUTION

The Podglomerate crafted a comprehensive marketing plan to grow the audience and exposure for Generation Barney, which included:

Publicity: Conducting targeted outreach to local, regional, trade, national, and international media to strategically capitalize on renewed cultural interest in Barney surrounding the October 2024 launch of Barney’s World and the announcement of the live-action movie Barney.
Marketing: Strategic recommendations to leverage Connecticut Public’s owned (newsletter, website, and existing podcast feeds) and social media channels to promote the show.
Cross-Promotion: Harnessing industry relationships with top documentary, society and culture, arts, and TV and film podcasts.
Podcast App Features: Securing prominent placements across Apple Podcasts, NPR, Spotify, and Amazon Music.
Data Management: Monitoring and assessing the show’s audience development and engagement.
Award Submissions: Positioning Generation Barney for prestigious podcast awards to solidify its reputation and reach.

Keep reading to discover how we achieved incredible results for Generation Barney in each of these key podcast marketing and audience growth areas.

How has your experience been working with The Podglomerate for marketing of Generation Barney?

“The Podglomerate helped us understand the landscape for marketing our podcast and secured placements across mediums that our team would not have been able to get on our own. We saw direct correlations in downloads and momentum as a result of their efforts during launch and throughout the campaign window. It was a great achievement for the podcast to be a Signal Award Winner and we couldn’t have gotten in front as wide of an audience without their help.”

Meg Fitzgerald, Senior Manager of Projects and Radio Programming

THE Process

A podcast marketing agency’s role is to provide extensive audience growth strategies tailored to each show’s goals, target listeners, available resources, and genre. Here’s how we supported Generation Barney:

Publicity: Developed a press kit and strategically pitched Generation Barney to key outlets, including New England media publications and major entertainment outlets, as part of this podcast marketing strategy.
Marketing: Optimized Generation Barney’s owned and social media channels, including its website, newsletter, and other podcast feeds, to drive listenership.
Cross-Promotion: Partnered with top publishers, including NPR’s Pop Culture Happy Hour, Slate’s Decoder Ring, Vanity Fair’s Little Gold Men, Pushkin’s Cautionary Tales, and Freakonomics Radio, to arrange high-impact cross-promotional swaps.
Podcast App Features: Secured broad distribution and high-visibility placements across major podcast platforms, including a two-week feature in Apple Podcasts’ main carousel and a special tap-through promotion from NPR, helping drive audience growth and discovery.
Data Management: Monitored audience growth, engagement, retention, and demographics to help Generation Barney understand the marketing campaign’s impact and relationship to its listeners.
Award Submissions: Submitted Generation Barney to industry awards, earning a nomination from a top-tier podcast competition.

The Results

Achieved nearly half a million downloads for the new series, surpassing the team’s goal of at least 100k downloads and proving the power of our strategic podcast growth methods.
Obtained more than 50 earned media placements, including the host’s appearances on NPR’s Weekend All Things Considered (which was syndicated across various NPR member stations), NPR and WBUR’s Here & Now (also syndicated across numerous NPR member stations), and The Vinnie Penn Project; editorial coverage from Variety, PEOPLE Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, New York Post, The Guardian, MSN, and Fox News; and multiple app features from Apple Podcasts, NPR, Amazon Music, and Pocket Casts.
Earned a nomination from a prominent podcast award competition.
Secured more than 600k impressions from cross-promotional swaps with major podcast networks and other Connecticut Public shows.
Ranked #18 Documentary Podcast and #107 Society and Culture Podcast on Apple Podcasts.

This case study highlights how a tailored audience growth strategy helped Generation Barney break into a competitive podcast landscape. Through strategic publicity, smart growth tactics, and keen data analysis, The Podglomerate helped the show reach nearly half a million lifetime downloads while laying the groundwork for future seasons, including the release of Generation Gilmore Girls in fall 2025.

Want to learn how The Podglomerate can grow your podcast’s audience? Email us at [email protected].

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

no small endeavor podcast

No Small Endeavor with Lee C. Camp

The Podglomerate successfully marketed No Small Endeavor with Lee C. Camp in 2025, generating more than 2M lifetime downloads.

Garrison institute case study

The Garrison Institute Presents: The Common Good

The Podglomerate partnered with The Garrison Institute to launch The Garrison Institute Presents: The Common Good, building a global production workflow that supports research-driven conversations with leading voices in science, spirituality, and social change. The result is a professionally produced podcast that extends the Institute’s mission beyond its physical retreat center into the digital space.

Going Wild with Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant

Going Wild with Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant

The Podglomerate successfully marketed the fourth season of Nature’s Going Wild with Dr. Rae Wynn-Grant, generating nearly 300K season downloads and more than 1M lifetime downloads for the series. While this case study is about season four of the show, The Podglomerate has worked on all episodes of the show since publication.