Podcast Insider

The more mainstream podcasting becomes, the more insistent the need for transcripts are. We urge you (and ourselves) to consider including the podcast transcript when you publish your episodes. There are various softwares that provide this function including, Audioburst.

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Podcast Insider. Looking to be a guest on the show? Let us know.

Live Facebook recording.

News

The minimum ad spend to get on Joe Rogan is $1million! (According to Ashley Carman from HotPod News)

Eric Nuzum predicts companies will switch from podcasting to video

Podcast host ShoutEngine shutting down Dec. 30th

If you need to migrate to Blubrry, drop us a ticket. We can get you two months free!

Podcasters at iHeart are unionizing

Podcast listeners are more likely to order food delivery

Gorge Noory and Premiere Networks are launching Coast to Coast AM Podcast Network

The New Media Show interviewed Adam Curry yesterday!

SiriusXM is being sued by the National Association for the Deaf

Best Practice

A good FIRST impression goes a long way. Short and sweet podcast intros.

Blubrry News

Blog Post: You don’t have to monetize your podcast by Kim Krajci.

Affiliate payments including annual bonus will go out this week.

We will not be taking off any podcast release days for December, so expect episodes on the 23rd and 30th.

The team will be out the following days for the holidays: December 24th and December 31st.

Blubrry Pro Tip

Sponsorships

Question(s) of the Week

Question: When changing the name of your podcast, should you create a whole new account or just change everything on your current account and leave the old episodes?

Answer: Depends… if the rebranded show is on the same subject (or close) then just renaming things and pressing on with all the old episodes still there is the way to go. If the show is majorly different, it’s likely better to kill the show (see last week’s blog post) and start a new one with a new RSS feed.

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Got a question you’d like us to answer on the show? Drop an email to [email protected] (audio, text, video) and we may use it.

The best place for support with any Blubrry products/services is our ticket system (https://blubrry.com/support/). Tickets give the whole team access rather than direct emails or calls.

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Coming to you this week from the New Media Studio in southern Michigan and Mike Dell’s World Studio in northern Michigan. Produced by the Blubrry Pro-Production team.

Schedule a one-on-one with Todd (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Schedule a tech checkup with Mike (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Send us your podcast sticker and a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) and we will send you a Blubrry care package.

Our mailing address is:

Blubrry – MacKenzie

150 E. Campus View Blvd. #180

Columbus, Ohio 43235

We suggest you resist the urge to skip episode releases in December and to instead continue podcasting through the holidays. We don't plan on taking any weeks off for December and will continue with our normal publishing schedule.

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Podcast Insider. Looking to be a guest on the show? Let us know.

Live Facebook recording.

News

Joe Rogan still #1 at Spotify

Edison Research report compares US/UK podcast listening

Chris Cuomo (cohost of the The Hand Off podcast) who was suspended from his CNN primetime show has been fired from CNN and is also leaving his Sirius/XM show.

Webby Awards entry deadline is Dec 17, 2021

CUMULUS MEDIA And Signal Hill Insights’ Podcast Download – Fall 2021 Report

Podcast Movement Evolutions in March 2022 will host the Edison Research Infinite Dial results

Best Practice

Promote future episodes with a preview at the end of your current episode

Blubrry News

Blog: When is it time to kill a podcast? by Mike Dell

Affiliate payments including annual bonus will go out next week. Apply to be an affiliate here.

We will not be taking off any days for December, so expect episodes on the 23rd and 30th

Blubrry Pro Tip

Do not take a break over the holidays! 

Question(s) of the Week

Question: How can I easily schedule guests for my show without multiple emails back and forth to find a good time for both or more people?

Answer: We highly recommend using some scheduling software, service, etc. We use Calendly for scheduling guests for this show as well as some client consults. It’s much easier for everyone involved and professional. Here is a list of recommendations.

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Got a question you’d like us to answer on the show? Drop an email to [email protected] (audio, text, video) and we may use it.

The best place for support with any Blubrry products/services is our ticket system (https://blubrry.com/support/). Tickets give the whole team access rather than direct emails or calls.

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Coming to you this week from the New Media Studio in southern Michigan and the Blubrry Studio in Columbus Ohio. Produced by the Blubrry Pro-Production team.

Schedule a one-on-one with Todd (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Schedule a tech checkup with Mike (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Send us your podcast sticker and a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) and we will send you a Blubrry care package.

Our mailing address is:

Blubrry – MacKenzie

150 E. Campus View Blvd. #180

Columbus, Ohio 43235

This week began a whole slew of end of the year lists, commemorating the beginning of the end of 2021, and podcasts lists were no different. Both Apple and Spotify revealed their most popular shows for listeners for the year of 2021. Infinite Dial released their findings on podcasting and media consumption, based in the UK. Students, don't miss out on NPR's annual podcast challenge and then tune into your childhood roots with the Bugs Bunny and Daffy podcast.

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Podcast Insider. Looking to be a guest on the show? Let us know.

Live Facebook recording.

News

Apple Podcasts released their Best of 2021

Spotify Wrapped dropped yesterday and it includes podcasts

Chris Cuomo, co-host of the podcast The Hand Off, suspended by CNN for a breach of journalistic ethics

LiveOne expanding for connected vehicle listening

Podcasting has changed since the early days

NPR’s College Podcast Challenge is back with a chance to win $5k!

Infinite Dial UK findings are available today

Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck do a podcast!

Best Practice

File names

Artwork file names

Media file names

Best practice

No spaces. Letters, numbers and dashes only.

Only numbers or letters at the end of the file name.

No periods in the file name OTHER than the .mp3 or .jpg.

Media File Example: PCI-2021-12-2.mp3 or pci271.mp3

Artwork file example: PCI1400.png or pci3000.jpg

Blubrry News

Blog: Livestream Your Show by Tara Jean O’Brien

Blog: How to Choose a Co-Host by David Day

Internal Affairs released their second episode recently.

Blubrry Pro Tip

Are You Taking Full Advantage of Your Podcast Asset

Question(s) of the Week

Question: How long should I spend on my podcast episodes?

Answer: As long as you want. However long you feel is necessary to put out the level of quality you have in mind. I have heard 4:1. If you do a 1 hour long show, you could spend up to 4 hours working on it (prep, recording, editing and promotion, etc.).

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Got a question you’d like us to answer on the show? Drop an email to [email protected] (audio, text, video) and we may use it.

The best place for support with any Blubrry products/services is our ticket system (https://blubrry.com/support/). Tickets give the whole team access rather than direct emails or calls.

______________

Coming to you this week from the New Media Studio in southern Michigan and Mike Dell’s World Studio in northern Michigan. Produced by the Blubrry Pro-Production team.

Schedule a one-on-one with Todd (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Schedule a tech checkup with Mike (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Send us your podcast sticker and a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) and we will send you a Blubrry care package.

Our mailing address is:

Blubrry – MacKenzie

150 E. Campus View Blvd. #180

Columbus, Ohio 43235

Tempted to release mini podcast episodes? You're not alone, and companies and creators alike have the same idea. Mike and MacKenzie discuss the pros and cons of releasing mini podcast episodes, as in 90 second or so, as a whole new podcast or including them in your normal feed, and a new company taking this idea by storm.

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Podcast Insider. Looking to be a guest on the show? Let us know.

News

Edison Research released the top 50 podcasts by audience size for Q3 2021

Podchaser partners with Critical Mention to track brands mentioned within podcasts

Asia Podcast Festival will culminate at the end of the month, awards submissions and accelerator lab are going on currently.

Racket, like TikTok but for 99 second audiograms.

Navy Yard, a DC neighborhood, has a new apartment complex in development, featuring a studio for musicians and podcasters.

Rick Flair teaming up with Mare Madden for a new podcast.

Best Practice

Interact with your social media following

Blubrry News

Blog Post: Barriers to Podcasting by Kim Krajci. Essentially a part two of her blog post in September.

November Podcaster of the Month: Alan Petersen, Meet the Thriller Author

Off next week for Thanksgiving

Working hard on our stats update

Here is your weekly PowerPress update. 8.7.7 was recently released, fixing a long-standing bug.

Blubrry Pro Tip

The value of replays.

Question(s) of the Week

Question: From a Facebook Group I have a recommendation from a buddy that grew a podcast quite successfully. I release episodes weekly (35-60 minutes depending on guests). His recommendation is to release daily short episodes (60-90 seconds) with a daily snapshot, daily update on a topic of interest to my audience. Has anyone done this?

Answer: I have a long time ago on one of my shows. To be honest, it didn’t do much for my listenership. In fact, I would say it annoyed some of my listeners. Frankly I would be annoyed if I am expecting a 30 min show and I get a 90 second show. Personally, I pick shows by length when I set up a playlist for a particular listening session. A bunch of short shows is ok grouped up, but I wouldn’t listen daily. 

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Got a question you’d like us to answer on the show? Drop an email to [email protected] (audio, text, video) and we may use it.

The best place for support with any Blubrry products/services is our ticket system (https://blubrry.com/support/). Tickets give the whole team access rather than direct emails or calls.

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Coming to you this week from the Blubrry Studio in central Ohio and Mike Dell’s World Studio in northern Michigan. Produced by the Blubrry Pro-Production team.

Schedule a one-on-one with Todd (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Schedule a tech checkup with Mike (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Send us your podcast sticker and a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) and we will send you a Blubrry care package.

Our mailing address is:

Blubrry – MacKenzie

150 E. Campus View Blvd. #180

Columbus, Ohio 43235

There are numerous podcast apps and they are all in slight competition with one another. The question is: what podcast app market share does each one hold. Todd and Mike provide their theories on who will come out on top in the future in this episode of Podcast Insider.

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Podcast Insider. Looking to be a guest on the show? Let us know.

Live Facebook recording.

News

Apple Podcasts has brought back the 'refresh feed’ button

Podcasts becoming people’s go-to for news

Pew Fact Sheet

Molly Wood is leaving APM’s Daily Show.

Edison Research and NPR presented the ‘Spoken Word’ audio report today, catch a replay here.

Podcaster listenership is rising among Black Americans.

On the New Media Show, yesterday Todd said Facebook will be the #2 podcast listening platform in a year.

Best Practice

Figuring out who your target audience is so you can be where they are.

Blubrry News

Blog Post: Blubrry’s March for Show Growth, written by Todd Cochrane

PowerPress 8.7.6 is out, with security and bug fixes.

Be sure to follow us on social. Blubrry or Blubrry Podcasting on all of the platforms.

Blubrry Pro Tip

What Sort of Podcaster Are You?

Question(s) of the Week

Question: Why am I only getting 7% of my downloads from Spotify, and 50% from Apple, but ‘everyone’ says Spotify has way more market share than that?  

Answer: We can only show what actually happens. NOT what gets reported elsewhere. Across all the shows that Blubrry tracks, we see anywhere from 2-10% market share for Spotify. Other platforms may see higher or lower depending on a lot of factors. Demographics, geography, show type, target audience and many other factors. You are doing nothing wrong.

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Got a question you’d like us to answer on the show? Drop an email to [email protected] (audio, text, video) and we may use it.

The best place for support with any Blubrry products/services is our ticket system (https://blubrry.com/support/). Tickets give the whole team access rather than direct emails or calls.

______________

Coming to you this week from the New Media Studios in southern Michigan and Mike Dell’s World Studio in northern Michigan. Produced by the Blubrry Pro-Production team.

Schedule a one-on-one with Todd (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Schedule a tech checkup with Mike (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Send us your podcast sticker and a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) and we will send you a Blubrry care package.

Our mailing address is:

Blubrry – MacKenzie

150 E. Campus View Blvd. #180

Columbus, Ohio 43235

One of the greatest benefits of audio shows is the ability of remote podcast recording. The ability to bring any hosts, guests, etc. together for a podcast is easily one of the most advantageous factors of the medium. And it can be quite easy. We recommend some tips for any remote recording you'll be doing for your show.

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Podcast Insider. Looking to be a guest on the show? Let us know.

Live Facebook recording.

News

Headliner now helps you post to YouTube automatically. Remember, they're a partner of ours!

Amazon Music launches synchronized transcripts for podcasts

Almost half of podcast listeners in the U.S listen to an indie podcast at least once a week 

Congratulations to Bradley Tirpak, the new CEO of Libsyn Inc.

National Podcast Posting Month is going on for the month of November, http://napodpomo.org. (Mike is doing it this year with Mike Dell’s World)

Best Practice

Remote recording of podcast guests (or if you are a guest) 

Do not use Bluetooth or wifi to record interviews.

Use a wired connection to a computer.

Wifi can lag in time causing uncomfortable gaps and talking over each other.

Do not use Apple AirPods or any other Bluetooth microphone or headset.

Bluetooth lag can be as bad as wifi lag

Use a USB microphone if possible.

Some hosts have a couple of mics they will send out to guests before interviews.

Or call in using a cell phone, the audio will be better that way.

Be sure to do a quick test record.

Blubrry News

Blog post: How to be a great podcast guest - by Meryl Klemow

Our next webinar, Podcasting With WordPress and PowerPress is Nov. 30th at 3:30pm

Getting closer to the big stats update! Stay tuned.

PowerPress 8.7.5 is out. More bug fixes

Be sure to follow us on social. Our interns Mandy and Chau are knocking it out of the park on Instagram and TikTok (and all the rest).

Blubrry Pro Tip

It’s all about cross-promotion.

Question(s) of the Week

Question: How can I get a PowerPress shortcode to work on the WordPress web page to show a list of the recent episodes?

Answer: First, Enable the “PowerPress Playlist” in the advanced menu of PowerPress settings. Then, put shortcode on the page you want to use it on. That will, by default, give you a list of the last 10 episodes. You can change the number of episodes and a few other things by adding to the shortcode. Information about all the options are on this page.

Bonus Support Topic: Put your email in your feed settings. 

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Got a question you’d like us to answer on the show? Drop an email to [email protected] (audio, text, video) and we may use it.

The best place for support with any Blubrry products/services is our ticket system (https://blubrry.com/support/). Tickets give the whole team access rather than direct emails or calls.

______________

Coming to you this week from the New Media Studios in southern Michigan and Mike Dell’s World Studio in northern Michigan. Produced by the Blubrry Pro-Production team.

Schedule a one-on-one with Todd (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Schedule a tech checkup with Mike (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Send us your podcast sticker and a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) and we will send you a Blubrry care package.

Our mailing address is:

Blubrry – MacKenzie

150 E. Campus View Blvd. #180

Columbus, Ohio 43235

Lots changing here for those working in podcasting. Personnel changes in podcasting are a hot topic this week and Mike (solo this week!) dives in to these new roles at multiple platforms. He also points out that sometimes, an old way is still a great way to promote your podcast. Cross promotion between podcasters is a great way to not only gain new listeners but develop a relationship with fellow creators. Tune in for these topics and more.

News

FTC warns podcasters about endorsement ads

Sony Music has appointed two executives for podcasting efforts

Blake Thompson named EVP at Ramsy

PRX adding two new roles in their podcasting division

Think having a podcast is, a lot? You're right. The average podcaster does five different jobs for the podcast

Did Spotify overtake Apple Podcasts in the US?

Best Practice: Promoting your show the old fashioned way, cross-promotion.

Swap promos with other podcasters in your niche

Promote your show on your other show (if you have more than one)

Have other podcasters in your niche on your show

Go on other podcasters shows in your niche

Join a loose network in your niche (like Tech Podcasts Network)

Years ago, this was much more common

Blubrry News

Todd is traveling home from the SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) event in Austin Texas today

Blog Post: There are Times You Want to Keep It Private Your Company can Secure Content for Exclusive Audiences

MacKenzie is looking for podcasters of the month for the rest of the year. Email her, [email protected]

Internal Affairs, a new podcast from our marketing interns, Chau and Mandy, here at Blubrry.

We are looking for a savvy digital marketer to join the Blubrry team! If you are or you know of someone who is, we will have the full job description and a job posting soon. Stay tuned!

Blubrry Pro Tip

Interview techniques and the open-ended question

Question(s) of the Week

Question: Why are all the directories and apps so picky about podcast artwork? I’m having a hard time getting mine to pass the size requirements. 

Answer: Most apps and directories have optimized their apps over the years for images that are exactly square. 1400x1400px (up to 3000px). Even one pixel off from that size will cause most directories to reject your feed.

The requirements:

1400x1400 pixels (square)

RGB color space

PNG or JPG format

Under 500kb (½ of 1 MB in file size)

You can edit images in Photoshop, Photoshop Express App (Free), Canva and many others. Or you can have a designer make your podcast artwork for a lost cost on fiverr.com.

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Got a question you’d like us to answer on the show? Drop an email to [email protected] (audio, text, video) and we may use it.

The best place for support with any Blubrry products/services is our ticket system (https://blubrry.com/support/). Tickets give the whole team access rather than direct emails or calls.

______________

Coming to you this week from Mike Dell’s World Studio in northern Michigan. Produced by the Blubrry Pro-Production team.

Schedule a one-on-one with Todd (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Schedule a tech checkup with Mike (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Send us your podcast sticker and a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) and we will send you a Blubrry care package.

Our mailing address is:

Blubrry – MacKenzie

150 E. Campus View Blvd. #180

Columbus, Ohio 43235

Podcast show prep can be as detailed or as open as the host would like it to be. For example, this show uses a document with bullets outlining the topics, but not much of the commentary. Other shows might be completely written ahead of time and simply recorded until they should just right. There is no right or wrong way to conduct podcast show prep.

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Podcast Insider. Looking to be a guest on the show? Let us know.

News

Chelsea White and Irena Lam from Facebook were on the New Media Show yesterday.  Video Replay: https://youtu.be/MpY_VYbq5sE

See our article about Facebook’s Podcasting system here.

Audacy will acquire WideOrbit’s streaming tech for $40 million.

Apple explains how auto-downloads work on Apple Podcasts.

Jordan Harbinger signed a “high seven figure” contact to stay at Podcast One.

Stephen Colbert starts a new podcast The Late Show Pod Show (audio-only version of the CBS talk show).

Kerri Hoffman (PRX Chief) thinks exclusive podcasts could hurt the podcasting industry.

Best Practice: Podcast Show Prep

There are many ways to go about preparing for your episodes. 

Hit record and wing it

Outlines

Scripts

Blubrry News

We're looking for podcasters of the month for the rest of the year. Email [email protected].

ShePodcasts recap from MacKenzie: It was not only nice to see some old friends but to meet so many new podcasters. 2020 was a very big year for women/non-binary, etc. podcasters, they came into this event strong on knowing what they want to learn more about and confident in what they are doing well. An incredible group of creators and event organizers.

Affiliate payments coming soon.

Podcaster of the month (and our guest last week), Natty Bumpercar.

Don’t forget to check us out on social! Our social team is hard at work keeping everyone updated over there.

Blubrry Pro Tip

All About Episode Titles

Question(s) of the Week

Question: If I post my episode in the Blubrry dashboard, does it immediately upload to Apple podcasts or do I still need to go into my Wordpress to make it go to Apple podcast?

Answer: 

If you are using PowerPress on a WordPress site, that is where Apple (and everyone else) looks to PULL your new episodes. If you publish an episode post at Blubrry (which you should not be able to do if you have it set up correctly) it won’t go anywhere other than the Blubrry.com directory.

You need to setup how you publish with Blubrry. From the Blubrry Publisher (dashboard) OR from A WordPress site using PowerPress. Never both!

Of course, if you need help setting that up, let us know blubrry.com/support/

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Got a question you’d like us to answer on the show? Drop an email to [email protected] (audio, text, video) and we may use it.

The best place for support with any Blubrry products/services is our ticket system (https://blubrry.com/support/). Tickets give the whole team access rather than direct emails or calls.

______________

Coming to you this week from Blubrry Studio in central Ohio and Mike Dell’s World Studio in northern Michigan. Produced by the Blubrry Pro-Production team.

Schedule a one-on-one with Todd (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Schedule a tech checkup with Mike (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Send us your podcast sticker and a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) and we will send you a Blubrry care package.

Our mailing address is:

Blubrry – MacKenzie

150 E. Campus View Blvd.

Todd is back this week! We talked about how Blubrry won't kick you off if you get too popular and how we want your show to grow. We also did the normal news and best practices, then interviewed Natty Bumpercar, the winner of our feedback contest a while back and our forthcoming Podcaster of the Month (post to come on that). Enjoy the show!

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Podcast Insider. Looking to be a guest on the show? Let us know.

News

The 26th annual Webby Awards are open for early registration.

Facebook Audio hub for Podcast, Live Audio and more is live now.

Let’s Encrypt Root Certs expired a while back. Could have caused trouble with your podcast.

The Last Podcast on the Left is no longer Spotify Exclusive after February 2022.

‘She Podcasts Live’ is going on now in Scottsdale, Arizona -  MacKenzie and Aaron from the Blubrry team are there!

Best Practice: Simpler is sometimes the better choice

Podcasting is an AUDIO format (for the most part) and what your site LOOKS like is not as important as its function. A nice-looking site (but simple) is great.

Function follows form in this case. It’s better that it works than if it looks fabulous.

Do not worry about the small stuff.

Show notes will not look as good on the platforms as it does on your site.

Spending a lot of time getting on a particular platform may not be the best use of your time.  Some platforms are not used by many listeners.

It is good to “Be Everywhere” but spending a lot of time for two or three listeners could be time not well spent.

Pick your battles!

Blubrry News

We are in between big releases, but are working behind the scenes tweaking what we have and getting ready for the next BIG update.  Stay tuned!

Blog post:  Become a Headliner by Tara O’Brian

Facebook Releases Special Tools for Podcasters: Facebook for Creators

Again, MacKenzie and Aaron are at She Podcasts this weekend. If you are there, go visit them to say HI and get some swag!

Blubrry Pro Tip: Toby has the week off.  

Interview: Natty Bumpercar - The Bumperpodcast

Question(s) of the Week

Question: My podcast host is asking me to leave because I’ve become too popular. HELP!

Answer:  Come to Blubrry!  (What did you expect us to say?) Blubrry does not kick someone off because they’re popular. We want you to GROW your podcast.

If you want to keep track of all your ratings and reviews from every country on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Podchaser and Castbox, all in one place . . . check out My Podcast Reviews -  https://mypodcastreviews.com/

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Got a question you’d like us to answer on the show? Drop an email to [email protected] (audio, text, video) and we may use it.

______________

The best place for support with any Blubrry products/services is our ticket system (https://blubrry.com/support/). Tickets give the whole team access rather than direct emails or calls.

______________

Coming at you this week from New Media Studio in southern Michigan and Mike Dell’s World Studio in northern Michigan. Produced by the Blubrry Pro-Production team.

Schedule a one-on-one with Todd (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Schedule a tech checkup with Mike (hosting customers only). Email [email protected]

Send us your podcast sticker and a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) and we will send you a Blubrry care package.

Our mailing address is:

Blubrry – MacKenzie

150 E. Campus View Blvd. #180

Columbus, Ohio 43235

Never one to shy away from encouraging podcasters to have a website of their own, we did a deep dive into why podcasters should take control of their podcast on all levels. Kate joined Mike to discuss what exactly a podcast is - the ins and outs - as well as the numerous benefits of having your own website, with a significant example from earlier this week.

Special guest host: Kate from Blubrry Pro Production

Thanks for joining us on this episode of Podcast Insider. Looking to be a guest on the show? Let us know.

News

Congratulations to the winners at the People’s Choice Podcast Awards 

The great Facebook outage of 2021

Why do we call it a ‘Podcast’?

From Ashley at HotPod, Gimlet’s Heavyweight is becoming a Spotify exclusive in November.

Find the next big podcast star! PodcastOne, a leading podcast platform and a subsidiary of LiveXLive Media, has set its award winning panel of judges to select the winner of Self Made Podcast Edition, an audio competition to find the next big podcast star for the network giant. Can you really know what the “next big hit” will be? What constitutes a “hit” to one is a “flop” to many. For instance... many didn't expect the success of Sleep With Me (https://www.sleepwithmepodcast.com); and hosting on it's own site, links, resources, etc available independently regardless of social or directories.

Is a YouTube “podcast” really a podcast?

Yes and no. While you can certainly repurpose any audio content and add it to your RSS feed to make it into an actual podcast, a video on Youtube is not a ‘podcast’ any more than a music video is a podcast. An actual podcast requires an RSS feed. There is quite a bit of value in putting your RSS based podcast on YouTube with a static or even a series of images that match the content and loading that up for additional listenership that drives your listeners/viewers to your website and yes, I’m going to circle back once again because it cannot be said too much, if you don’t have everything on your own website, your own .com or dot, then you don’t actually own your intellectual property or the land on which it lives and you could be shut down and offline in a second.

Best Practice

Piggybacking off the Facebook outage, a best practice for any business, especially podcasters, is to have your own website where your content will never go off line. While we beat this like an old dead horse, we do that for a reason. Hundreds of thousands of businesses who only have a ‘Facebook website’ lost untold dollars of revenue when the platform went down and customers didn’t have an actual website to visit. Best practice of the day is to always have your own website for your podcast and your business and avoid being at the mercy of someone else's bad tech.

Blubrry News

Blog post: Boost Listenership with Special Series of Episodes

Winner of the free year for giving us feedback on the new dashboard changes has been selected.  We will have him on Podcast Insider next week.

PowerPress 8.7.4 is out, minor bug fixes and a typo fix.

Follow our Instagram account to keep up on blog posts and releases, podcaster of the month, etc.

Blubrry Pro Tip

Why Only Using Social Media is Dangerous and How to Fix That DB Link

Question(s) of the Week

Question: Are ratings and reviews on Apple Podcasts important?

Answer: Yes and no.

Yes, they can be good for social proof. They can be great for indicating what you are doing right (and wrong). It’s a good ego boost that you might need to keep going if you don’t get a lot of other feedback.

No, it will not help your rankings at Apple podcasts or anywhere else we know of. The system isn’t global and the ratings and reviews only show ...