Why The Diary Of A CEO Founder Turned Down A $100M Deal To Build A Podcast Empire

Forbes

Streamers want him. But Steven Bartlett says he can grow his media empire better than anyone. Now he’s taking on the U.S. market to prove it.  Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexyork/2025/04/19/why-the-diary-of-a-ceo-founder-turned-down-a-100m-deal-to-build-a-podcast-empire/  Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?sub_confirmation=1  Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:  https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript  Stay Connected Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes More From Forbes:  http://forbes.com  Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.

Transcript

00:00Today on Forbes, why the Diary of a CEO founder turned down a $100 million deal to build a podcast empire.

00:10It's a Monday morning in March and Stephen Bartlett sits in his studio in London's hip Shoreditch neighborhood

00:15to record the latest episode of his hit podcast, The Diary of a CEO.

00:21With more than 10 million YouTube subscribers and 25 million social media followers,

00:26the interview show is one of the most popular in the world.

00:30Only Joe Rogan has more listeners when it comes to hosted podcasts.

00:34On this particular day in March, Bartlett is recording a debate between economics influencer Gary Stevenson

00:40and entrepreneur Daniel Priestley, where they'll argue whether entrepreneurship can save the middle class.

00:46The episode will later attract 3.6 million views and more than 46,000 comments on YouTube alone.

00:53The debate is fiery, but the buzzy content is only partly why millions tune in.

00:58Data plays a vital role, too.

01:02Bartlett, who launched two social media companies before hitting podcast fame,

01:06has already tested and optimized every aspect of the show.

01:10He's calibrated each detail for maximum attention,

01:13the capital letters and exclamation points in the episode's title,

01:16the lighting, the camera angles, even his raised eyebrows in the preview thumbnail photo.

01:21Each factor is part of Bartlett's blueprint to attract viewers.

01:26The 32-year-old Bartlett says,

01:28quote,

01:29I've not met a single podcast network, company, media conglomerate in the world

01:33that can help you grow your podcast using the modern platforms in the way we can.

01:37And grow he has.

01:41Launched in 2017 as a hobby to let Bartlett get inside the minds of other CEOs,

01:46the podcast has attracted more than 1 billion streams,

01:50including 50 million monthly listeners in December alone.

01:53Guests have ranged from comedian Trevor Noah and YouTube titan MrBeast

01:57to a mix of self-help experts including longevity gurus, nutritionists, and sex therapists.

02:03In 2024, thanks to his mix of compelling content and growth hacking,

02:09Bartlett says the franchise generated $20 million in revenue from brand partnerships

02:14with brands like LinkedIn, Oracle, and Shopify,

02:18speaking engagements, and hawking products like hoodies and branded journals.

02:22Now he's out to make even more, and do it as a free agent.

02:27While other podcast royalty have signed mega deals with streaming networks,

02:31like Alex Cooper's $125 million partnership with SiriusXM

02:35and Joe Rogan's $250 million deal with Spotify,

02:39Bartlett is building on his own.

02:42It's not for lack of interest.

02:44Last October, Bartlett flew from London to New York City

02:46to meet with several of the world's biggest media networks

02:49to discuss potential partnerships.

02:52Bartlett won't say who or how much,

02:54but Forbes estimates that $100 million contracts were in play.

02:57Why turn down frothy deals?

03:01For Bartlett, the choice is simple.

03:03He believes he can do it better solo.

03:05He says,

03:06quote,

03:07We looked at what they did in terms of testing, experimentation, innovation,

03:10and I felt like I was looking at the past.

03:13When I see what happens here, I'm looking at the future.

03:15The future was far from certain back in 2017 when Bartlett launched the podcast.

03:22Unknown in the social media sphere, and lacking a significant following,

03:26Bartlett leaned on data analytics and constant experimentation to grow.

03:30Soon, he was A-B testing every aspect of the podcast.

03:34Keywords, captions, punctuation, even whether to smile in the preview photo.

03:39Looking serious usually worked best.

03:41But it was 2020 before he really began investing in the show.

03:46Bartlett says it was a 2023 episode with former Google exec Mo Gaudat

03:50that was a game changer for the podcast.

03:53Bartlett says,

03:54quote,

03:55Apple said it was the most shared podcast episode of 2023 in this part of the world.

04:00He adds,

04:01quote,

04:02That episode taught me that the most important thing in podcasting

04:05isn't actually the amount of followers someone has or how famous they are.

04:09It's ultimately about the value that it gives, because people will share it.

04:15For full coverage, and to see a behind-the-scenes video tour and interview with Bartlett,

04:19check out Alexandra York's piece on Forbes.com.

04:24This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes.

04:26Thanks for tuning in.

04:39Thanks.

04:40Thanks.

04:42Thanks.

04:42Yes.

04:43Thanks.

04:44Thanks.

04:47Thanks.

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