<p><strong>What does it look like to build a network around removing every obstacle that kills podcasts before they ever find an audience?</strong></p><p>Rich Butler started RAGE Works Podcast Network in 2014 after his own long-running podcast wound down and the people around him caught the bug. Rather than pointing them elsewhere, he handed them a blueprint and stayed in the room. What followed wasn't a revenue-first strategy. It was a production-and-distribution model built around making it easier for motivated people to create. His reasoning is simple and consistent: content is what grows a network, and the best way to get more content is to get out of the way.</p><p>What makes Rich's approach distinct is what he refuses to optimize for. He won't take a cut of ad deals he didn't facilitate. He won't chase podcasters for their episodes. He won't guarantee listeners or money in the first conversation. The network exists to water plants and watch the garden grow…and he'll tell you that's exactly why it works.</p><p></p><p><strong>Listen For:</strong></p><p>03:08 Network as a Discovery Platform</p><p>04:37 How My Take Radio Became a Network</p><p>07:41 Why the Dual-Feed Model Still Works</p><p>10:01 Revenue Without the Revenue-First Model</p><p>13:04 On Downloads, Die-Hards, and Real Numbers</p><p>16:25 What to Ask Before You Join a Network</p><p>18:47 Removing the Roadblocks That Kill Podcasts</p><p>23:53 Audio First, Video Second</p><p>27:48 What the Onboarding Process Actually Looks Like</p><p>31:04 The Jockey Runs the Horse</p><p>36:54 Gary Vee Called His Bluff</p><p>39:51 The Case for 10 Downloads</p><p>44:02 Be of Service, Not a Gatekeeper</p><p></p><p><strong>CONNECT WITH GUEST: RICHARD BUTLER</strong></p><p><strong>FOUNDER OF THE RAGE WORKS PODCAST NETWORK</strong></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/richbutler6/">LinkedIn</a> | <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://www.rageworksnetwork.com">Website</a> | <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://www.pressrecordstudios.com">Website 2</a> | <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://instagram.com/rageworksrich">Instagram</a></p><p>Rich's Podcast Rec: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://pod.link/853941025">The Jay Ferruggia Show</a></p><p>Rich's Book Rec: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://amzn.to/488eJly">Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook </a>by Gary Vaynerchuk </p><p></p><p><strong>CONNECT WITH GREG WASSERMAN,</strong> <strong>HEAD OF RELATIONSHIPS FOR </strong><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://RSS.COM"><strong>RSS.COM</strong></a></p><p><a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/podcast-network-insights/about/">Website</a> | <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregwasserman/">LinkedIn</a> </p><p>Greg’s book rec: <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://amzn.to/4tIyOXZ">Return on Courage</a> by Ryan Berman</p><p></p><p><strong>Systems, Sponsors, and Partners:</strong></p><p>Hosted with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="http://RSS.com">RSS.com</a><a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://rss.com/?via=9f060f"> Podcast Hosting</a></p><p>Produced by <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://storiesandstrategies.ca/">Stories &amp; Strategies</a></p><p>Content Repurposed with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://get.castmagic.io/greg">Castmagic</a></p><p>Podcast Project Management with <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="https://app.northflow.io/sign-up?via=greg">Northflow</a></p>