January 28, 2025 • 20 mins
The algorithm can feel like your enemy, but understanding how it works can empower you to reach your audience more effectively. In today’s episode, I’m breaking down how podcast algorithms actually work, what they prioritize, and how to optimize your content to get noticed.
We’re also getting real about how to use your podcast to say the things that matter, especially in a time when censorship and suppression are rampant on other platforms. Learn how to leverage podcasting as a powerful tool for change, connection, and freedom of speech.
What’s Inside:
- How podcast algorithms work: listener behavior, metadata, and engagement metrics
- Why consistency and keywords are your podcast’s best friends
- Tips for leveraging early engagement and geographic reach
- How podcasting gives you the freedom to speak your truth in ways social media can’t
- Building resilience against suppression through email lists, private communities, and backups
Key Takeaways:
- The Algorithm Loves Engagement: Completion rates, repeat listens, and active subscriptions signal to platforms that your podcast is high quality.
- Optimize Your Metadata: Keywords in titles, show notes, and transcripts help the algorithm match your show with the right listeners.
- Consistency is Everything: Weekly episodes keep both listeners and algorithms on your side.
- Freedom in Podcasting: Unlike social media, podcasting platforms don’t censor content in the same way, giving you more room to say what needs to be said.
- Stay Secure: Build direct connections with your audience through email lists and private communities, and always back up your content.
Resources:
- Waitlist: My course, Podcasting on Autopilot, launches February 21st! Sign up here to save your spot and lock in for exclusive bonuses.
- Buzzsprout for all your hosting needs
- Vox Your Socks Off: 24 hours of all-access, on-demand coaching with me to get your podcast flourishing!
- Pitch Perfect Sponsorship Guide
- DM or tag me on Instagram/Threads: @SONIVIAstudios
- Email: rue@sonivia.com
Music Credit: Up An Octave Theme by Rue Spence with additional vocals provided by Darnell Spence
Up An Octave is hosted by Rue Spence of Sonivia. Up An Octave is a podcast for women and nonbinary people who are ready to take up space in podcasting to share their voices with the world.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
You're listening to Up an Octave, a podcast by
Sonivia, the podcasting agencythat believes that women and
non-binary people deserve totake up space in the podcasting
industry, because our thoughts,voices and stories matter.
Here you'll learn how to makedope podcasts that inspire,
educate, convert and, mostimportantly, make your voice
(00:24):
shine.
I'm your host, rue Spence, andI'm here to take podcasting up
an octave.
Let's get into it.
Hello, hello and welcome backto Up an Octave.
Today, we are talking about thealgorithm.
Today, we are talking about thealgorithm and what that looks
(00:45):
like in the context ofpodcasting.
How algorithms work inpodcasting is a little bit
different than how they work insocial media or on things like
Netflix, so I'm excited to getinto that, and I'm also going to
(01:07):
be talking about some of thethings that algorithms can't see
and how we can use those to ouradvantage as disruptors in the
podcasting space.
This is something that I'mfinding incredibly necessary in
this current landscape, and I amcommitting to helping other
podcasters create change intheir lives, in their
communities, in the world aroundus at large, by using our
voices, standing resolute andsaying the things that we need
(01:29):
to say.
So let's get on into it.
First up, we need to talk abouthow the podcasting algorithm
works.
Algorithm is a really scaryword that seems to absolutely
rule the thoughts and minds ofall content creators in any
space, whether it's podcastingor social media, tiktok, etc.
(01:52):
But within the context ofpodcasting, something that is
most prioritized with is howlisteners engage with shows.
Listener behavior drives otherrecommendations, so when we talk
about this, it includescompletion rates.
So episodes with a highercompletion rate signal high
(02:13):
quality content.
This means that your audienceis staying until the very end
and not getting bored andclicking away.
When we see that consistently,people are not finishing shows,
it kind of signals meh, maybethis isn't the best show out
there.
Repeat listens.
The algorithm also favors yoursuper fans.
So when people are showing upevery single week to listen,
(02:37):
that is going to boost yourranking and listening depth.
So this is skipping orabandoning episodes or, you know
, not really listening for awhile.
Then maybe listening to anepisode or two that can
negatively impact yourvisibility if it is happening.
Often the algorithm favorsshows that people cannot wait to
(02:58):
listen to on release day.
Part of listener behavior isalso subscriptions or followers.
Platforms tend to prioritizeshows that have a positively
trending number of subscribersor followers, depending on the
language of your podcatcher,especially when that growth is
recent and sustaining.
So this metric shows to thealgorithms of the podcatchers
(03:23):
that that podcast is relevantand is continuing to appeal to
new listeners.
So seeing a positive trend thatdoesn't just kind of fade off
but continues to elevate isgoing to be positive to the
algorithm, and this is a big one.
Reviews In the context of thealgorithm, reviews are somewhat
(03:48):
important.
There are other aspects inwhich reviews are more important
.
They don't affect your rankingwithin the algorithm, but they
do help to benefit yourcredibility, your social proof,
and give people an understandingof what they're signing up for
when they click on your show.
When they do find it.
Consistency is also huge.
(04:11):
I talk about consistency allthe time for listener value that
people like to have somethingthat they are reminded week over
week.
Hey, this show exists,especially with Apple changing
how they auto-download.
But the algorithm also lovesconsistency.
Platforms like Spotify andApple these are the biggest
(04:34):
podcatchers.
They favor shows that publishregularly because that does keep
listeners engaged.
Like we were talking aboutearlier, weekly episodes tend to
perform better than sporadicuploads and this is something
that is both with the algorithm,but also that is just human
nature.
We like things that are routine.
(04:56):
We like to have our cute littlerituals.
Something else that isinteresting about new episodes
is that when new episodes drop,the algorithms on different
podcatchers may temporarilyboost that show just to kind of
see where the audience interestis.
So this is a way that they cankind of help support shows with
(05:16):
finding a new audience, and youare rewarded for being
consistent.
Keywords and metadata areessential.
This is something I've talkedabout with SEO and show notes.
Searchability in podcastingdepends on your titles and your
show notes.
Using keywords your targetaudience is searching for is
(05:38):
critical in the algorithm beingable to pair you with your ideal
listener.
Episode titles that performmost highly with the algorithm
include keywords like how-totips or anything else that's
like a trending topic, and thesame goes for show notes.
This should include relevantphrases that people who are
(06:00):
searching for your specificcontent should be looking for,
and that's why I kind of treatthe show notes as like just an
SEO feeding frenzy, because thatis where the algorithm is doing
so much of the heavy liftingand, honestly, it's less what
people are looking at.
(06:20):
People come to listen to yourshow.
They don't really come to readshow notes.
Typically, show notes act aslike the footnotes or, I guess,
like the index, almost where youcan find what is being referred
to in the show.
But the algorithm is combingthrough for keywords to help
match the right podcast with theright audience member.
(06:44):
Something else that is relevantto the algorithm is high
engagement in the first 48 hours.
The first 48 hours after youpublish an episode are crucial.
Downloads and listens duringthis time frame let the
algorithm know how in demand ashow is.
So that's why I always suggestpromoting really heavily during
(07:07):
that window and, you know,encouraging your listeners to
show up for you.
But that's also this is whereepisode timing becomes the most
significant.
So this is why I typically willrecommend people not make
Fridays their publishing days,because we tend to see listening
sink a little bit during theweekends.
(07:29):
Now, especially what I havefound for my show.
But just in talking with myclients and kind of reviewing
how their analytics look,weekends are often when I am
discovered and when I noticethat my clients are discovered
and people will go through andbinge episodes.
But for the week over weeklisteners, you want to catch
(07:51):
them on days that they are moreprepared to make you a part of
their routine, like with theircommute, and algorithms also
reward shows that have a widelistener base.
If your audience is expandinggeographically or is entering
new demographics, platforms mayboost your podcast a little bit
(08:11):
more widely.
The caveat with that is thatyou don't want to just become a
show that's for everybody.
You still want to really keepit clear who you're appealing to
and who you're speaking to withyour podcast.
But if you are able to startreaching people in different
geographic locations especially,that is huge and good for you.
(08:34):
So think about strategies thatcan help you reach those
different people.
Talk about things that arespecifically interesting to them
.
That's something I see all thetime with, like paranormal
podcasts.
If a show covers a story fromIreland, they'll see a boost in
listeners from Ireland becausepeople are excited Like, oh my
gosh, you're talking about thisspecific cryptid that no one
(08:56):
outside of Ireland knows about.
How cool to hear it on thisshow that's from somewhere else.
So thinking about ways that youcan engage with a wider
audience while still keepingyour special sauce and your
you-ness is something that issignificant and can help boost
you with the algorithm.
So some tips for leveraging thealgorithm in your favor is
(09:16):
focusing on engagement.
You know, encouraging people tofollow the show, encouraging
people to share the episode,having a really strong presence
on whatever your promotionalstrategy looks like.
For some people that's going tobe Substack, for some people
that's going to be social mediameta or blue sky and being
really present and gettingthings out there, optimizing
(09:40):
metadata.
So this is those clear, keyword, rich titles and show notes.
There is also potentially aschool of thought that the
metadata that you put actuallyas you're exporting the track,
is helpful.
It's something that I do justfor the sake of doing it, but
it's not necessarily criticaland I'm not sure how much it's
(10:03):
just habit versus actuallyhelpful for me.
So that's something that youcan explore and play with for
your own show.
Consistency as always if I'vesaid it once, I've said it a
bazillion times being consistentwith releasing, releasing your
episodes on the same day of eachweek and just continuing to
show up for your audience isgoing to boost both the human
(10:24):
behavior side of things but alsothe algorithm's intervention.
And then, of course, promotingeverywhere that you can, whether
that's your email, social mediawebsite, any channel that I
mentioned earlier.
Having that external promotionand not just relying on the
algorithm will actually help thealgorithm notice you later.
(10:44):
It seems a littlecounterintuitive, but in order
to get noticed and favored bythe algorithm, you have to show
up to the algorithm and keeptrack of your analytics, see
what's working, see what's not,see what episodes people are
responding to and tailor yourcontent strategy around that.
That's one of my favoritethings to do with, like my
(11:05):
one-off clients, or a newoffering that I've got called
Voxer Socks Off, which is a24-hour unlimited access to me
on Voxer just to talk aboutanything within your show, and
analytics are one of the thingsthat I can nerd out on forever,
so that's something I'm reallyexcited to be offering.
(11:27):
So now I want to switch gears alittle bit and talk about how
you can say the things that youneed to say on your podcast in a
way that will help you flyunder the radar with the wrong
people and connect with theright people.
So, as we're talking aboutalgorithms, podcast algorithms
(11:48):
do not listen to your contentthe way that humans do at the
point of recording this.
This may be a change that wesee, especially as AI continues
to advance and develop, butpresently algorithms cannot
listen to your episodes.
They rely on that metadatalistener behavior and show notes
to determine what your podcastis about and who should be
(12:12):
listening to it, rather thananalyzing the audio itself.
So, as we look to play that toour favor, if you are genuinely
trying to make sure thateverybody has the opportunity to
listen to your podcast, makingsure that you're using good
titles and keywords and shownotes helps the algorithm
(12:34):
understand what your podcast isabout.
This is also where transcriptsare helpful, because it's easier
for algorithms to analyze textwhere they're not able to listen
to audio tracks.
This is not something thatSpotify or Apple currently does,
but it is an SEO thing thatfactors into, like your personal
(12:55):
website.
Because of this, as we're havingso many conversations about
censorship or media suppression,with things changing over at
Meta, and now we're seeing, like, weirdly, people are following
Trump and Vance and all thesepeople that they hadn't followed
and are, like, automaticallybeing unfollowed from other
(13:18):
people.
There are a lot of interestingin a bad way things that are
happening within social mediaright now and for so many people
, that has been a way that theyhave disseminated information to
their audience or theircommunity, and this is somewhere
that podcasting, I believe, isso incredibly powerful as we
(13:41):
look to revolutionize and resistcertain aspects of what is
happening in the world around usand because of these dead
angles that algorithms cannotsee, you have a little bit more
creative liberty that you don'thave on places like tiktok.
So you know, right now we'vegot like the cute winter boots
(14:04):
trend, like be careful, it'sgetting a little icy out, uh, in
this part of town.
These things that we have to doto be really vigilant about
censorship don't exist in thesame way with podcasting, which
liberates you to speak moreclearly and be more frank.
(14:24):
You know, that's where, likespelling men backwards came from
on like Facebook, or sayingcorn instead of adult content,
or I'm trying to think of otherones Unalive is another one
instead of talking about dyingand that type of censorship just
(14:46):
doesn't exist here in the sameway.
So, because podcast platformsare not currently policing your
content in the same way as theydo on social media, you get to
be a little bit clearer, you getto be a little bit more
specific, which is going to helpyou become more of a voice to
(15:08):
the people with which you aretrying to reach.
And if you are feeling superconcerned about censorship or
podcasting hosts or platformsgoing away or being affiliated
with something that you mightnot support.
You can explore a self-hostedRSS feed to give you complete
(15:29):
control over your content.
But at this point I think thatthe big ones Libsyn, you know, I
love Buzzsprout I think that byexisting in the way that they
do, that they continue to bechampions of free speech and
they're going to providedistribution to all major
platforms.
I, of course, will keep youinformed if any of that changes
(15:53):
for any reason, but I believethat those podcast hosts are
safe and reliable, at least atthis point in time.
It feels like every morning Iwake up to new changes in the
world, but at this point I haveno reason to be concerned about
that.
But, like I said, if you aresuper concerned hosting maybe on
(16:13):
Substack or embedding your ownRSS feed into a website that you
own if you are tech savvy,that's helpful.
While you're able to speak morefreely within your podcast, it
does change how you promoteyourself on social media or in
other channels.
So, just because podcasting isa little bit more of a
(16:36):
free-for-all, a little bit moreof the wild wild west of content
, thinking about how you'regoing to play the game if you
are still on meta's social mediaavenues where you are more
likely to see suppressed postsor flagged languages.
You know, avoid directlyreferencing sensitive content in
(16:57):
promotional materials.
Use that neutral or, like wetalked about earlier, with coded
language.
Redirect followers to youremail lists or communities that
you control where you can shareyour links, your thoughts, etc.
Without any of that bigbrothery moderation.
And, you know, use those kindsof tools that are going to route
(17:20):
traffic directly to yourpodcast without forcing you to
specify topics that metaplatforms don't seem to be
liking right now, and do yourbest to build direct engagement
with your listeners.
Build loyalty that bypassessuppression by fostering those
direct relationships.
(17:41):
Email marketing, I think, isgoing to be a really huge thing
in the next few years as a lotof people are giving up on meta
as a whole and as blue skycontinues to grow and be new.
Having a list that you own thatwill not change because some
(18:03):
big boss guy says it's changing,is going to be significant.
Starting a private Discord, Ithink, is also something that a
lot of content creators aregoing to be doing as a place to
have a community.
In the past, up until like twoweeks ago, facebook groups were
huge communities for podcasters,and I don't think that that's
(18:26):
going to change.
But I do know a lot of peoplewho are having a mass exodus
from meta, and so Discord isdefinitely another option that
people can pursue I also.
This is just good practice, butI do want to remind you to back
everything up and keep yourfiles somewhere.
Maybe that's investing in flashdrives or like a terabyte or
(18:49):
external hard drive.
Just save your episodes ortranscripts on those external
drives.
If you trust cloud storage,that's awesome.
I'm a big Google Drive person.
That's where a lot of mycontent is backed up.
But if you feel morecomfortable having it physically
, getting something like a flashdrive or an external hard drive
(19:09):
, you know, just so you've gotit All right.
That's it for today.
I'm definitely frustrated thatthis is necessary content to be
making right now.
For the next few weeks, I ampivoting and focusing on AI for
podcasting because I'm superexcited that my course is
(19:32):
launching on February 21st.
I have, oh my gosh, I've put somuch love into making this and
I'm really, really, reallyexcited for you to see it.
It's going to make thingseasier on you, as content
creator, to free up more of yourenergy for doom scrolling if
I'm being so for real right now,but in general it's.
(19:54):
It's something that is reallyprecious to me and I hope that
it helps make podcasting easierand more magical for you.
So if you're not already on thewait list, get over there.
The link is in my show notes.
But in general, thank you forbeing here, thank you for using
your voice, thank you for beingbrave enough to talk about what
(20:15):
is important.
I love you.
Go drink some water and thankyou, thank you.
Thank you for helping me takepodcasting up an octave.
© transcript Emily Beynon.
You're listening to Up an Octave, a podcast by
Sonivia, the podcasting agencythat believes that women and
non-binary people deserve totake up space in the podcasting
industry, because our thoughts,voices and stories matter.
Here you'll learn how to makedope podcasts that inspire,
educate, convert and, mostimportantly, make your voice
(00:24):
shine.
I'm your host, rue Spence, andI'm here to take podcasting up
an octave.
Let's get into it.
Hello, hello and welcome backto Up an Octave.
Today, we are talking about thealgorithm.
Today, we are talking about thealgorithm and what that looks
(00:45):
like in the context ofpodcasting.
How algorithms work inpodcasting is a little bit
different than how they work insocial media or on things like
Netflix, so I'm excited to getinto that, and I'm also going to
(01:07):
be talking about some of thethings that algorithms can't see
and how we can use those to ouradvantage as disruptors in the
podcasting space.
This is something that I'mfinding incredibly necessary in
this current landscape, and I amcommitting to helping other
podcasters create change intheir lives, in their
communities, in the world aroundus at large, by using our
voices, standing resolute andsaying the things that we need
(01:29):
to say.
So let's get on into it.
First up, we need to talk abouthow the podcasting algorithm
works.
Algorithm is a really scaryword that seems to absolutely
rule the thoughts and minds ofall content creators in any
space, whether it's podcastingor social media, tiktok, etc.
(01:52):
But within the context ofpodcasting, something that is
most prioritized with is howlisteners engage with shows.
Listener behavior drives otherrecommendations, so when we talk
about this, it includescompletion rates.
So episodes with a highercompletion rate signal high
(02:13):
quality content.
This means that your audienceis staying until the very end
and not getting bored andclicking away.
When we see that consistently,people are not finishing shows,
it kind of signals meh, maybethis isn't the best show out
there.
Repeat listens.
The algorithm also favors yoursuper fans.
So when people are showing upevery single week to listen,
(02:37):
that is going to boost yourranking and listening depth.
So this is skipping orabandoning episodes or, you know
, not really listening for awhile.
Then maybe listening to anepisode or two that can
negatively impact yourvisibility if it is happening.
Often the algorithm favorsshows that people cannot wait to
(02:58):
listen to on release day.
Part of listener behavior isalso subscriptions or followers.
Platforms tend to prioritizeshows that have a positively
trending number of subscribersor followers, depending on the
language of your podcatcher,especially when that growth is
recent and sustaining.
So this metric shows to thealgorithms of the podcatchers
(03:23):
that that podcast is relevantand is continuing to appeal to
new listeners.
So seeing a positive trend thatdoesn't just kind of fade off
but continues to elevate isgoing to be positive to the
algorithm, and this is a big one.
Reviews In the context of thealgorithm, reviews are somewhat
(03:48):
important.
There are other aspects inwhich reviews are more important
.
They don't affect your rankingwithin the algorithm, but they
do help to benefit yourcredibility, your social proof,
and give people an understandingof what they're signing up for
when they click on your show.
When they do find it.
Consistency is also huge.
(04:11):
I talk about consistency allthe time for listener value that
people like to have somethingthat they are reminded week over
week.
Hey, this show exists,especially with Apple changing
how they auto-download.
But the algorithm also lovesconsistency.
Platforms like Spotify andApple these are the biggest
(04:34):
podcatchers.
They favor shows that publishregularly because that does keep
listeners engaged.
Like we were talking aboutearlier, weekly episodes tend to
perform better than sporadicuploads and this is something
that is both with the algorithm,but also that is just human
nature.
We like things that are routine.
(04:56):
We like to have our cute littlerituals.
Something else that isinteresting about new episodes
is that when new episodes drop,the algorithms on different
podcatchers may temporarilyboost that show just to kind of
see where the audience interestis.
So this is a way that they cankind of help support shows with
(05:16):
finding a new audience, and youare rewarded for being
consistent.
Keywords and metadata areessential.
This is something I've talkedabout with SEO and show notes.
Searchability in podcastingdepends on your titles and your
show notes.
Using keywords your targetaudience is searching for is
(05:38):
critical in the algorithm beingable to pair you with your ideal
listener.
Episode titles that performmost highly with the algorithm
include keywords like how-totips or anything else that's
like a trending topic, and thesame goes for show notes.
This should include relevantphrases that people who are
(06:00):
searching for your specificcontent should be looking for,
and that's why I kind of treatthe show notes as like just an
SEO feeding frenzy, because thatis where the algorithm is doing
so much of the heavy liftingand, honestly, it's less what
people are looking at.
(06:20):
People come to listen to yourshow.
They don't really come to readshow notes.
Typically, show notes act aslike the footnotes or, I guess,
like the index, almost where youcan find what is being referred
to in the show.
But the algorithm is combingthrough for keywords to help
match the right podcast with theright audience member.
(06:44):
Something else that is relevantto the algorithm is high
engagement in the first 48 hours.
The first 48 hours after youpublish an episode are crucial.
Downloads and listens duringthis time frame let the
algorithm know how in demand ashow is.
So that's why I always suggestpromoting really heavily during
(07:07):
that window and, you know,encouraging your listeners to
show up for you.
But that's also this is whereepisode timing becomes the most
significant.
So this is why I typically willrecommend people not make
Fridays their publishing days,because we tend to see listening
sink a little bit during theweekends.
(07:29):
Now, especially what I havefound for my show.
But just in talking with myclients and kind of reviewing
how their analytics look,weekends are often when I am
discovered and when I noticethat my clients are discovered
and people will go through andbinge episodes.
But for the week over weeklisteners, you want to catch
(07:51):
them on days that they are moreprepared to make you a part of
their routine, like with theircommute, and algorithms also
reward shows that have a widelistener base.
If your audience is expandinggeographically or is entering
new demographics, platforms mayboost your podcast a little bit
(08:11):
more widely.
The caveat with that is thatyou don't want to just become a
show that's for everybody.
You still want to really keepit clear who you're appealing to
and who you're speaking to withyour podcast.
But if you are able to startreaching people in different
geographic locations especially,that is huge and good for you.
(08:34):
So think about strategies thatcan help you reach those
different people.
Talk about things that arespecifically interesting to them
.
That's something I see all thetime with, like paranormal
podcasts.
If a show covers a story fromIreland, they'll see a boost in
listeners from Ireland becausepeople are excited Like, oh my
gosh, you're talking about thisspecific cryptid that no one
(08:56):
outside of Ireland knows about.
How cool to hear it on thisshow that's from somewhere else.
So thinking about ways that youcan engage with a wider
audience while still keepingyour special sauce and your
you-ness is something that issignificant and can help boost
you with the algorithm.
So some tips for leveraging thealgorithm in your favor is
(09:16):
focusing on engagement.
You know, encouraging people tofollow the show, encouraging
people to share the episode,having a really strong presence
on whatever your promotionalstrategy looks like.
For some people that's going tobe Substack, for some people
that's going to be social mediameta or blue sky and being
really present and gettingthings out there, optimizing
(09:40):
metadata.
So this is those clear, keyword, rich titles and show notes.
There is also potentially aschool of thought that the
metadata that you put actuallyas you're exporting the track,
is helpful.
It's something that I do justfor the sake of doing it, but
it's not necessarily criticaland I'm not sure how much it's
(10:03):
just habit versus actuallyhelpful for me.
So that's something that youcan explore and play with for
your own show.
Consistency as always if I'vesaid it once, I've said it a
bazillion times being consistentwith releasing, releasing your
episodes on the same day of eachweek and just continuing to
show up for your audience isgoing to boost both the human
(10:24):
behavior side of things but alsothe algorithm's intervention.
And then, of course, promotingeverywhere that you can, whether
that's your email, social mediawebsite, any channel that I
mentioned earlier.
Having that external promotionand not just relying on the
algorithm will actually help thealgorithm notice you later.
(10:44):
It seems a littlecounterintuitive, but in order
to get noticed and favored bythe algorithm, you have to show
up to the algorithm and keeptrack of your analytics, see
what's working, see what's not,see what episodes people are
responding to and tailor yourcontent strategy around that.
That's one of my favoritethings to do with, like my
(11:05):
one-off clients, or a newoffering that I've got called
Voxer Socks Off, which is a24-hour unlimited access to me
on Voxer just to talk aboutanything within your show, and
analytics are one of the thingsthat I can nerd out on forever,
so that's something I'm reallyexcited to be offering.
(11:27):
So now I want to switch gears alittle bit and talk about how
you can say the things that youneed to say on your podcast in a
way that will help you flyunder the radar with the wrong
people and connect with theright people.
So, as we're talking aboutalgorithms, podcast algorithms
(11:48):
do not listen to your contentthe way that humans do at the
point of recording this.
This may be a change that wesee, especially as AI continues
to advance and develop, butpresently algorithms cannot
listen to your episodes.
They rely on that metadatalistener behavior and show notes
to determine what your podcastis about and who should be
(12:12):
listening to it, rather thananalyzing the audio itself.
So, as we look to play that toour favor, if you are genuinely
trying to make sure thateverybody has the opportunity to
listen to your podcast, makingsure that you're using good
titles and keywords and shownotes helps the algorithm
(12:34):
understand what your podcast isabout.
This is also where transcriptsare helpful, because it's easier
for algorithms to analyze textwhere they're not able to listen
to audio tracks.
This is not something thatSpotify or Apple currently does,
but it is an SEO thing thatfactors into, like your personal
(12:55):
website.
Because of this, as we're havingso many conversations about
censorship or media suppression,with things changing over at
Meta, and now we're seeing, like, weirdly, people are following
Trump and Vance and all thesepeople that they hadn't followed
and are, like, automaticallybeing unfollowed from other
(13:18):
people.
There are a lot of interestingin a bad way things that are
happening within social mediaright now and for so many people
, that has been a way that theyhave disseminated information to
their audience or theircommunity, and this is somewhere
that podcasting, I believe, isso incredibly powerful as we
(13:41):
look to revolutionize and resistcertain aspects of what is
happening in the world around usand because of these dead
angles that algorithms cannotsee, you have a little bit more
creative liberty that you don'thave on places like tiktok.
So you know, right now we'vegot like the cute winter boots
(14:04):
trend, like be careful, it'sgetting a little icy out, uh, in
this part of town.
These things that we have to doto be really vigilant about
censorship don't exist in thesame way with podcasting, which
liberates you to speak moreclearly and be more frank.
(14:24):
You know, that's where, likespelling men backwards came from
on like Facebook, or sayingcorn instead of adult content,
or I'm trying to think of otherones Unalive is another one
instead of talking about dyingand that type of censorship just
(14:46):
doesn't exist here in the sameway.
So, because podcast platformsare not currently policing your
content in the same way as theydo on social media, you get to
be a little bit clearer, you getto be a little bit more
specific, which is going to helpyou become more of a voice to
(15:08):
the people with which you aretrying to reach.
And if you are feeling superconcerned about censorship or
podcasting hosts or platformsgoing away or being affiliated
with something that you mightnot support.
You can explore a self-hostedRSS feed to give you complete
(15:29):
control over your content.
But at this point I think thatthe big ones Libsyn, you know, I
love Buzzsprout I think that byexisting in the way that they
do, that they continue to bechampions of free speech and
they're going to providedistribution to all major
platforms.
I, of course, will keep youinformed if any of that changes
(15:53):
for any reason, but I believethat those podcast hosts are
safe and reliable, at least atthis point in time.
It feels like every morning Iwake up to new changes in the
world, but at this point I haveno reason to be concerned about
that.
But, like I said, if you aresuper concerned hosting maybe on
(16:13):
Substack or embedding your ownRSS feed into a website that you
own if you are tech savvy,that's helpful.
While you're able to speak morefreely within your podcast, it
does change how you promoteyourself on social media or in
other channels.
So, just because podcasting isa little bit more of a
(16:36):
free-for-all, a little bit moreof the wild wild west of content
, thinking about how you'regoing to play the game if you
are still on meta's social mediaavenues where you are more
likely to see suppressed postsor flagged languages.
You know, avoid directlyreferencing sensitive content in
(16:57):
promotional materials.
Use that neutral or, like wetalked about earlier, with coded
language.
Redirect followers to youremail lists or communities that
you control where you can shareyour links, your thoughts, etc.
Without any of that bigbrothery moderation.
And, you know, use those kindsof tools that are going to route
(17:20):
traffic directly to yourpodcast without forcing you to
specify topics that metaplatforms don't seem to be
liking right now, and do yourbest to build direct engagement
with your listeners.
Build loyalty that bypassessuppression by fostering those
direct relationships.
(17:41):
Email marketing, I think, isgoing to be a really huge thing
in the next few years as a lotof people are giving up on meta
as a whole and as blue skycontinues to grow and be new.
Having a list that you own thatwill not change because some
(18:03):
big boss guy says it's changing,is going to be significant.
Starting a private Discord, Ithink, is also something that a
lot of content creators aregoing to be doing as a place to
have a community.
In the past, up until like twoweeks ago, facebook groups were
huge communities for podcasters,and I don't think that that's
(18:26):
going to change.
But I do know a lot of peoplewho are having a mass exodus
from meta, and so Discord isdefinitely another option that
people can pursue I also.
This is just good practice, butI do want to remind you to back
everything up and keep yourfiles somewhere.
Maybe that's investing in flashdrives or like a terabyte or
(18:49):
external hard drive.
Just save your episodes ortranscripts on those external
drives.
If you trust cloud storage,that's awesome.
I'm a big Google Drive person.
That's where a lot of mycontent is backed up.
But if you feel morecomfortable having it physically
, getting something like a flashdrive or an external hard drive
(19:09):
, you know, just so you've gotit All right.
That's it for today.
I'm definitely frustrated thatthis is necessary content to be
making right now.
For the next few weeks, I ampivoting and focusing on AI for
podcasting because I'm superexcited that my course is
(19:32):
launching on February 21st.
I have, oh my gosh, I've put somuch love into making this and
I'm really, really, reallyexcited for you to see it.
It's going to make thingseasier on you, as content
creator, to free up more of yourenergy for doom scrolling if
I'm being so for real right now,but in general it's.
(19:54):
It's something that is reallyprecious to me and I hope that
it helps make podcasting easierand more magical for you.
So if you're not already on thewait list, get over there.
The link is in my show notes.
But in general, thank you forbeing here, thank you for using
your voice, thank you for beingbrave enough to talk about what
(20:15):
is important.
I love you.
Go drink some water and thankyou, thank you.
Thank you for helping me takepodcasting up an octave.
© transcript Emily Beynon.
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