Hey, friend, have you heard the good news about podcasts?
Given the most recent stats, it’s highly likely you have. Over half of all Americans over 12 years of age have listened to at least one. Podcasts have well and truly hit the mainstream. In other words, the gold rush is on for brands looking to connect with a highly-engaged, long-attention-span audience.
However, getting a podcast up and running isn’t as simple as publishing a blog. We recently published an entire B2B podcasting webinar to walk you through the entire process, from conception to publication. This post will zero in on the choices you need to make and the steps you need to take to release your podcast into the wild.
B2B Podcasting Launch Checklist: 10 Steps
Sure, you could just upload your audio to your web server, add an RSS feed, and call it good. But if you want people to actually find and listen to your podcast, there are a few extra steps you should take. This checklist will help your podcast find an audience and start building a subscriber base.
via GIPHY
#1: Choose Your Hosting Platform
A podcast syndication platform makes it easy to publish your podcast and get listed in directories. Think of it like WordPress is for your blog — it hosts the files, makes them look pretty, and makes it so people can find them.
Most platforms will also give you embed codes for 工作职能邮件数据库 embedding episodes in blog posts or on a landing page. You’ll also get stats on how many people are downloading episodes, and on what program they’re listening.
We prefer Libsyn as our hosting platform. Podbean, buzzsprout, and Blubrry are also solid options. They all have a free tier of hosting, but you’ll want to pay a few bucks a month for bandwidth and analytics.
#2: Upload Your First Three Episodes
Podcasting is all about establishing a regular cadence (more on that later). But for launch, you’ll want to have at least three episodes ready to go. There are a few reasons for publishing multiple episodes for your debut:
One episode may not be enough to convince people to subscribe.
Multiple episodes show you’re committed to keeping the content coming.
Most importantly, Apple podcasts requires at least three episodes to qualify for their “New and Noteworthy” section.
So before you publish, have at least three episodes completed, and be ready to follow up with more at your promised publishing cadence.
#3: Register with Podcast Directories
Podcasts are peculiar in terms of content delivery. Your hosting platform makes the files available, but most people will listen to your podcast on their chosen podcast app. Each app maintains its own directory — think of it as a search engine for podcasts.
Your podcast needs to be listed in their directory, or people won’t be able to find you. I recommend registering with at least these six:
Apple Podcasts
Google Podcasts
Stitcher
Podbean
Spotify
TuneIn
Each of these sites will ask for the RSS feed of your podcast, which your hosting platform will generate for you.