How to advertise on True Crime Bullsh**: what it costs, who buys, and how to book

Host-read inventory on True Crime Bullsh**: The Israel Keyes Investigation sells direct and gets quoted per campaign, not off a public rate card. Spotsnow attributes nearly all of the show's tracked ad activity to direct response, which is about as coded and attributable a buy as podcast advertising gets. The show's top host-read spender, Quince, has run roughly 3 to 4 ads in the recent window. For a brand weighing this feed, the mix reads as a small, loyal DR audience rather than a broad reach play. Spotsnow estimates all of this from tracked advertiser activity, not audience surveys.

See the full profile for True Crime Bullsh** on Spotsnow for the tracked advertiser history behind this piece.

Why True Crime Bullsh** is built for host-read direct response

The show is hosted by Josh Hallmark, a producer who works FBI files, interrogation footage, and FOIA research on the Israel Keyes case under his own label, Studio BOTH/AND. It sits in the retail advertiser orbit through anchor buyers like Quince, though the show itself lives squarely in true crime.

Spotsnow attributes nearly all of the show's ad activity to direct response, which is the format's whole argument here. Codes, vanity URLs, and clean promo lines mean the buy is measured, not guessed. Spotsnow estimates reach at roughly 100,000 listeners per episode, an estimate rather than an audited count. That number is smaller than the network true crime giants, and it converts because the show earns sustained attention. A serialized investigation keeps people through the break, and a host who reads his own leads carries that same trust straight into the endorsement. That borrowed trust is what a coded host-read runs on.

On engagement, the show holds a 4.6 star average on Apple Podcasts across roughly 4,800 to 5,300 ratings, per Spotsnow's pull, plus an Instagram community of about 13,700 followers at @truecrimebs. The influence here is concentrated in the feed and that Instagram circle rather than spread across a dozen platforms, which is exactly the shape a direct-response advertiser wants: a listener who acts on what the host says.

Who is advertising on True Crime Bullsh**

The roster runs deep, with Spotsnow tracking well over 150 distinct brands in recent activity, most of them national names buying produced network spots while a tight core buys host reads. Recognizable names in the feed include Starbucks, Toyota, Domino's, Lowe's, and Wells Fargo.

The anchor advertisers, broken down

Quince

Quince sells direct-to-consumer luxury basics, cashmere, silk, and home goods at factory-direct prices. Spotsnow shows the top spender here, with an estimated total spend of over $10K across roughly 3 to 4 ads, all host-read direct response. It fits because a mostly female, US audience shopping for quality-over-price essentials is exactly who clicks a coded apparel link.

BetterHelp

BetterHelp runs online therapy, matching users with licensed counselors over text, phone, and video. Spotsnow puts its estimated total spend at over $10K across roughly 3 to 4 ads, all host-read direct response. Mental health messaging lands with a true crime audience that spends hours in stories about trauma and its aftermath.

Banyan Botanicals

Banyan Botanicals sells Ayurvedic herbal supplements and wellness products. Spotsnow puts its estimated total spend at over $10K across about 4 ads, all host-read direct response. A wellness brand fits a female, middle-to-upper-income listener who treats the feed as part of a routine, which is where habit-forming supplement offers convert.

All spend figures are Spotsnow estimates.

Why true crime brands cluster here

A true crime feed that runs on an investigator's own reporting sells something the produced spots can't: authority you can borrow. Hallmark works with law enforcement, reads primary documents, and gets his listeners emotionally invested for hours at a stretch. When that voice reads a Quince or BetterHelp line, the endorsement carries the same weight as the case work. The audience skews young to middle-aged, largely female, and mostly US-based, and it leans toward wellness, DTC apparel, and mental health, which is precisely why those three anchors keep coming back rather than testing once and leaving. The national names buy produced spots for reach. The DR core buys the host because the host converts.

What makes a show like this convert

1. The format does the work. Spotsnow attributes nearly all ad activity to direct response, so the coded host-read is proven to move listeners, not just reach them.
2. Host credibility carries the offer. Josh Hallmark's FBI-file, FOIA-driven reporting builds the trust that a host endorsement spends.
3. The audience is a fit, not a firehose. An estimated 100,000 mostly female, US listeners who return episode after episode beat a broad, shallow buy for lifestyle and DR brands.
4. Repeat buying proves the math. Quince alone has run roughly 3 to 4 host reads, and brands don't re-book a feed that doesn't pay back.

True Crime Bullsh** in a nutshell

This is a young-to-middle-aged, largely female, mostly US audience of about 100,000 estimated listeners who stay for a serialized investigation. Quince, BetterHelp, and Banyan Botanicals already buy here, all on host-read reads tracked as direct response. The show is sold direct and quoted per campaign, with the host's own label, Studio BOTH/AND, behind it. If your goal is coded, attributable conversion from a loyal niche, it suits direct response; if you need raw scale, look elsewhere.