We were lucky to catch up with Molly Smith recently and have shared our conversation below.

Alright, Molly thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I believe there are a few distinct experiences that helped me learn the craft of podcasting.

One is that I’m an avid podcast listener myself—I consume a ton of content and try to mirror some of the qualities, pacing, and styles of other shows I enjoy, while bringing my own flavor to it.

Another skill that set me up for success is my experience with interviews. As a writer, I’ve become comfortable talking to new people and asking questions to craft a story. Hosting a podcast is really similar. You have to think on your feet and create a space where the other person can share engaging insights for the listeners.

Overall, my background in creative writing has been directly applicable to podcasting. No matter the medium, content creation relies on storytelling and creativity. The creative process might look a little different, but it all goes back to the same principles.

The technical side of podcasting was mostly unfamiliar to me before I started my show. Fortunately there are tons of resources online to help new podcasters learn what kind of equipment they need, audio editing tools to use, countless distribution platforms, and forums to share ideas. Other podcasters in the Denver community gave me advice when I asked for it and cheered me on as I was getting established—that was a huge help.

Today, I rely heavily on my podcast studio for production support. It would take me years of learning and thousands of dollars in equipment to replicate the production value that I’m able to achieve with Dude, IDK Studios. Leaning on others’ unique skillsets to put together a kick-ass show is crucial. I don’t have to have all the answers, and I don’t have to know how to do everything. I just need a community of inspiring, creative people around me.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m the host of Did That Age Well?, a podcast about movies from the past and how they hold up. All of my episodes are recorded at Dude, IDK Studios and are available to stream wherever you listen to podcasts, or you can watch them on YouTube.

I’m proud of the way we’ve found a niche topic that can still be accessible and interesting to a wide audience, and how we don’t take ourselves too seriously. We’re here to entertain and share some insights without being heavy-handed.

I launched the podcast at the end of 2020 when I was in a creative rut (I’m a writer as well) and decided that a pop culture podcast would be a fun, fresh outlet. Because of the pandemic, I recorded my episodes virtually with friends from all over the country, then once I felt like I was in a good rhythm, I started reaching out to other creatives I hadn’t met before and asked them to be guests on the show. Over time, I was regularly hosting episodes with other podcasters, comedians, and writers who I admired. In 2024, I decided it was time to take my podcast to the next level, so I joined the podcast network at Dude, IDK Studios to create video content and give my listeners better audio quality. Beyond the production improvements, I’ve also gained an awesome community at Dude, IDK.

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Building an audience on social media is a fickle game. It seems like every few months there’s a “change in the algorithm” and a new supposed method to increase organic reach and engagement—and it’s constantly changing. The unfortunate truth is that it’s just hard to get your stuff in front of people without an advertising budget.

I have a background in copywriting, and I wish I could tell you that my marketing skills were key to growing my social media presence, but in reality, luck has played a more significant role than skill. In 2023 I created a series of silly, low production value clips on my iPhone talking about my frustration with method actors, and those videos gained millions of views seemingly out of nowhere. There are plenty of other clips I’ve spend HOURS creating that I think are objectively better quality—higher-resolution, funnier, more “strategic”—and they’ve hardly gotten any views in comparison. If there was a one-size-fits-all answer to the social media puzzle, we’d all be using it. But there isn’t. So all we can do is be consistent and try to find some joy in it.

Sometimes I’ll share a clip that I think is hilarious and it’ll hardly get any traction. Sometimes I’ll share a clip that I’m uncertain will resonate with people and it’ll get tons of views. That’s not to say that social media strategies are irrelevant, but I encourage those who are just starting to build their social media presence to not get discouraged by the metrics. If you hate social media, consider hiring someone else to do it for you.

To me, social media presence a balance. Make content that you’re proud of, but don’t exhaust yourself trying to make it perfect. And engage with other aspiring creators online to build a network of support.

What can society do to ensure an environment that’s helpful to artists and creatives?

Even though I’m not a standup comedian, my podcast is in the world of comedy, and what I’ve found is that comedy is still a boy’s club. To support a more interesting comedy scene, we need to let more women and queer people host comedy shows where they can book diverse talent, we need male comedians to stop gatekeeping, and we need people in the comments to stop disparaging female comedians and focusing solely on their appearances. People can support women and queer people in comedy by following them on social media, going to their shows, and supporting venues like Dude, IDK that make the scene more equitable.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://tinyurl.com/didthatagewell
• Instagram: @didthatagewell
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@didthatagewell
• Other: TikTok: @didthatagewellpod