How to Launch a Video Podcast: Lessons From The HORRORble Podcast

All guidesUpdated September 17, 2026

The HORRORble Podcast launched from an empty room on October 1, 2025. As of September 17, 2026 it has 51 long-form episodes, about 840,000 followers across YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and Spotify, and more than 114 million cross-platform views. Q6 Media built the set, produces the show, cuts the clips, and sells the sponsorships. Here is what those first eleven months of numbers say about launching a video podcast.

1. Decide the show before the room

Format, cadence, host dynamic, and guest strategy come first, because they decide the room. A two-person conversation, a show with a rotating guest chair, and a panel of four need different seating, camera positions, and lighting. Building a studio first and then fitting a show into it is an expensive way to start.

2. Design the room for vertical video

Q6 Media designs studios with 3D renders before the build. Check any render in a vertical 9:16 crop as well as the wide shot, because vertical clips are where most people will see the show. On HORRORble, the clips have out-viewed the long-form YouTube episodes more than ten to one.

3. Turn every episode into about four short-form videos

HORRORble averages about four short-form videos per episode, on top of the long-form release. Across 51 episodes that is 773 short-form posts across TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube Shorts and more than 105 million clip views, against about 8 million views on the long-form YouTube episodes. Each clip is tied back to its episode and guest, so the team can see which moments and which guests drew the most views.

4. Post natively everywhere, then read the numbers

The same show performs very differently from one platform to the next. HORRORble’s clips as of September 17, 2026:

Views as last collected by Q6 Media’s analytics pipeline on September 17, 2026. Older clips on some platforms are no longer refreshed, so treat these totals as minimums.

For this show a TikTok clip has averaged roughly twenty times the views of a YouTube Shorts clip, and Facebook Reels has beaten Shorts by a wide margin. More than three quarters of HORRORble’s followers are on TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook, the platforms where the clips run. Other shows will see a different split, which is why it pays to post everywhere and measure.

5. Compare episodes at a fixed window

Views keep arriving for months, so comparing a new episode with an old one is meaningless. Q6 Media compares every HORRORble episode at 28 days after release, on YouTube and Spotify. A fixed window is also the fairest number to show a sponsor, because it describes what a new episode is likely to do. One caution: YouTube changed how it counts public views in late August 2026, so compare episodes from either side of that change with care.

6. Sell sponsors on numbers you can repeat

Once the fixed-window numbers are steady, the show has something a sponsor can buy. Quote on what a typical recent episode delivers, not on the best one. HORRORble’s biggest episodes run well above its typical ones, so a quote built on typical episodes leaves room to deliver more than was promised, which is the strongest case for a renewal.

What the numbers say to someone starting today

• Pick a cadence you can hold. HORRORble has released 51 long-form episodes since October 1, 2025.
• Build the room for the show you are making, and check it in a vertical crop.
• Cut about four short-form videos from every episode and post each one natively on every platform, as HORRORble does.
• Post on every major platform and let the numbers pick the winners.
• Compare episodes at a fixed window before you sell anything.

Frequently asked questions

How long does it take a new podcast to build an audience?

It varies by show. The HORRORble Podcast launched on October 1, 2025 and had about 840,000 followers across five platforms by September 17, 2026, releasing a long-form episode most weeks and about four short-form videos per episode.

Should a new podcast be video or audio only?

If growth is the goal, video. It gives you a long-form episode for YouTube plus the short-form clips that reach new people. On HORRORble the clips have generated more than 105 million views, against about 8 million on the long-form YouTube episodes.

Which platform is best for podcast clips?

For HORRORble, TikTok: 52.1 million views from 219 clips as of September 17, 2026, followed by Instagram and Facebook Reels. YouTube Shorts has produced about 2 million views from 167 clips. Other shows will see a different split, so post everywhere at first and let the data decide.

Why compare podcast episodes at 28 days?

Views keep growing for months, so comparing a two-week-old episode with a six-month-old one tells you nothing. A fixed window such as 28 days makes episodes comparable and shows what a new episode is likely to deliver.

What does a podcast studio need for vertical video?

A set that still looks intentional when the wide shot is cropped to one person in 9:16, lighting that holds up in a tight crop, and camera positions that give each host a clean single. Check the design in both formats before the build.