How Ramsey Network shows doubled their audience with video on Spotify
Ramsey Network has been a driving force in digital media innovation since the 1990s— from radio to internet syndication to ubiquitous distribution across multiple platforms. Their latest adaptation, adding video to Spotify, has seen their audience on the platform more than double.
When Blake Thompson started working with Dave Ramsey in 1996, he was editing audio spots with a razor blade and reel-to-reel tape. Nearly three decades later, as he prepares to retire from his role as Executive Vice President of Ramsey Network, the media landscape looks radically different — and so does his successor's toolkit.
Hank Fuerst, moving into the role once Blake retires, is stepping into a world where AI is reshaping how content gets created and distributed. It's a fitting transition: Blake began his career at the dawn of the internet era, while Hank is taking the reins at what feels like a moment where new technology is rapidly reshaping how content is created and distributed.
"When I started with Dave in 1996, it was the first time I ever heard about email and this new ‘internet’ thing," Blake says. "It's been a cool ride going from an analog listening world to something like Spotify now in digital."
Over the years, Blake watched the organization grow from a small radio operation to an 80-person team producing content five days a week across seven main shows. He saw “The Ramsey Show,” the network’s flagship, become the fourth podcast ever to reach one billion downloads.
We sat down with both Blake and Hank to discuss Ramsey Network's evolution and its approach to staying ahead of media innovation.
Highlights from Ramsey Network's growth with video on Spotify:
- The Ramsey Network's consumption hours have doubled and their audience has grown over 400% on Spotify this year to date since rolling out video across their slate of shows.
- "The Ramsey Show" specifically recently surpassed 100 million views on Spotify.
- "The Dr. John Delony Show" experienced a 70% increase in monthly consumption hours this year on Spotify since adding video.
- Enrolling in the Spotify Partner Program has added a valuable new revenue stream for the network.
Beyond money: Building a network for real life
While best known for financial advice, “The Ramsey Show” has covered mental health, entrepreneurship, relationships, and other topics.
"When you go 30,000 feet in the air and look over all the stuff people are talking about when they call in, it starts with just their life," says Blake. "There's marriage issues, how to raise my kid, I hate my job — we want to try to help everyone where they're at."
That philosophy has become the defining quality of a Ramsey network show: meeting people where they are in life and offering hope in the areas that matter most to them. As Blake puts it, the network operates on a core principle that Dave Ramsey established years ago: "If you help enough people, you don't have to worry about money."
As that mission has evolved, the network’s programming has evolved, too. "The Dr. John Delony Show" addresses mental health and relationships, filling a need that Blake says became more apparent after the pandemic. "People are more open now, and that's a good thing."
The power of video
Introducing video into the mix was a natural next step, given the network’s expanding scope. For "The Dr. John Delony Show," in particular, video enhances the therapeutic nature of the content.
"He's so relational with the caller; he gets down to where they are," Blake says. "We get so many comments saying, 'Man, he really cares,' and it's because of the expression on his face. You can see how he's reacting."
The numbers bear this out:
“The Dr. John Deloney” show has seen monthly consumption hours increase 70% on Spotify since launching video.
"I don't think we would have the numbers we do today if we didn't have video on Spotify,” Blake says.
The rollout strategy that helped them get video right
Adding video to established shows can take significant investment and changes to workflows. When the network decided to add video on Spotify, they took a measured approach, starting with their smallest programs first.
As Hank explains:
We got familiar with the platform, we saw all the awesome comments from our users, all the awesome data and analytics and retention charts, and we just started scaling up from there.
This approach allowed the Ramsey Network team to work out technical challenges before launching video across the board. "Had we started with our biggest show, we would have had to learn on the fly with a much bigger audience," Hank says.
By the time they brought video to "The Ramsey Show" in April, the team had developed clear processes and understood what worked on the platform.
In under six months, the show surpassed 100 million views on Spotify.
More revenue, more reach
As the move to video drives increased consumption, enrolling in the Spotify Partner Program has opened an additional revenue stream for the Ramsey Network’s shows. As Hank puts it, "that's not an insignificant amount of money" for the network.
Anytime we have a new revenue stream open up like that, we reinvest in our shows and reach more people.
"What we're excited about is that we use that money to create awesome new content," Hank says.
Finding new fans where they already are
The Ramsey Network's approach to audience growth reflects a distribution philosophy they've maintained since their radio days: “go where the people are.”
As Hank explains, "you may have somebody in your tribe that is an audiobooks or a music fan in Spotify," so the strategy is to bring content to where those audiences already are.
That strategy has paid off.
Since adding video across their network this year, their audience has increased by more than 450%.
As Blake puts it, they've discovered "new people because they're Spotify people" — audiences who primarily consume content within the Spotify ecosystem and might never have found Ramsey Network content elsewhere.
For the network, these new viewers represent potential long-term fans.
Whether they're watching us for just a few seconds, a few minutes, or starting to become true fans of the show and consuming hours after hours, we just want to take those new fans in.
Data that drives daily decisions
As they explore new distribution models and grow their audience, the Spotify for Creators dashboard has become essential to the Ramsey team's content strategy.
"We love the retention charts," Hank says. "We're able to zoom in to the very second to say, 'Wow, look at the retention on this specific segment, and maybe let's double down, triple down on doing more content like that.'"
These are metrics that we would only have dreamed about back then.
Building for the next three decades
As Blake prepares for retirement after three decades, he's confident in the foundation the team has built.
"The thing that's going to remain true,” Hank says, “is our core values of how we produce content, of what we stand for as a company."
We're humans helping humans, and we're going to remain humans helping humans by doing this awesome content five days a week.
"We've made it on the air 35 years. We're excited for the next 35."
Inspired by the Ramsey Network story? Get started with video on Spotify.
Results achieved by individual shows and networks may not be typical of all creators or publishers.