You’ve created your podcast ready RSS feed so what’s next? You need to send it out to the world!
There are many places your podcast can be found however you need to submit your show’s RSS feed to multiple directories and apps in order to have people find you.
On this episode, I talk about the top ten directories that send me the
most traffic and where you should submit your podcast first, in order to find the majority of your audience.
I also discuss Auphonic.com as a fantastic option for easy post production including the simplest way to make sure you are hitting proper Loudness targets for podcasting.
Auphonic for Easy Post Processing
After you’ve recorded your audio and assembled the pieces of your show (music, sound FX, etc.) in your audio editor, a few steps remain. You’ll want to make sure your audio hits the suggested target for podcast Loudness (-16LUFS for stereo, -19LUFS for mono) and include your ID3 metadata (a.k.a. tags).
Auphonic.com makes this really simple. With the click of a few checkboxes, Auphonic can process audio to your specified Loudness target (multiple options exist), reduce noise and hum, filtering of disturbing low frequencies, perform leveling for balancing levels between speakers, music and speech, and a few more awesome features. And in most cases it does a stellar job.
If you are using the online version (2 hours of free processing each month), there are also desktop apps, you can also include ID3 tags in your final podcast ready audio file. This is very handy for streamlining your workflow. This option is not yet available on the desktop versions.
Podcasting Directories and Apps – Where to Submit Your Podcast
When you’re ready to start publishing your podcast to the world, you’ll want to submit your show to as many podcast directories and apps as possible. Don’t overwhelm yourself with trying to get into all the directories you can find on your first week. Submit to the directories listed below first and then over the period of a few months, work on getting in new directories as you have time.
I spent a good deal of time over at PodcastPlaces.com, a great site for getting all the information you need for submitting your podcast to almost every known podcast directory and app.
Below is a list of the top places you should make sure your podcast can be found first. Since half of these fill their directory by pulling info via the iTunes API, once you submit to iTunes, you’ll be half way done.
The below list is broken into “Primary” and “Secondary” directories and apps based on download numbers from the shows I produce. You’ll likely see different results for your own show but being in these directories will account for a large portion of your audience.
Of course, you should also make sure your podcast is easily available via an HTML5 (mobile friendly) audio player on your own website. Behind iTunes, this is the second largest source of listens for The Podcasters’ Studio.
Top Places Where Your Podcast Should be Available**
Primary (1-5), Secondary (6-10)
- iTunes. If you only submit to one place, this is the one. It’s where most people find podcasts (always has been) and is also your gateway into many other directories and apps. See the video below for how to submit your show.
- Stitcher – likely soon to fall to third place after Google Play Music, this is usually the number two source for podcasting listening. People using both iOS or Android devices can use Stitcher to find and listen to your show.
- Google Play Music – While not currently available to the end-user, this new directory is taking submissions ahead of it’s public release. Get in now.
Miro – open source directory available to Mac, Windows and Linux users.(Sadly, it appears, Miro is no longer available.)- Overcast – free iOS and web app gaining in popularity. This app pulls from the iTunes API so all you need to do once you submit to iTunes is check the app (it’s free) to make sure your show is in there.
- Pocket Casts – iOS, Android and desktop app. Probably the most popular premium option. This also use the iTunes API but they also have a submission portal at pocketcasts.com/submit
- iCatcher – premium iOS app, pulls from the iTunes API – You’ll need to buy this app or find someone who has it and have them confirm your show is in the directory.
- PlayerFM – Android and web app. Pulls from iTunes but you can also submit via player.fm/suggest
- Podcast Addict – Android and Kindle Fire. Pulls from iTunes but you can submit via podcastaddict.uservoice.com > Contact support link > submit RSS feed URL
PodCruncher – Premium iOS app. Pulls from iTunes. This one may actually have been an accident. I’m seeing downloads from here but on second look it doesn’t seem to produce enough to make this list. Not sure what happened but at least now you know it exists;) Don’t put any extra effort into confirming you’re in this one.
See my, Where to Submit Your Podcast Infographic.
For the remaining podcast directories and apps (over 100 total) visit PodcastPlaces.com to stay current with all the available places to submit your podcast.
Once again, these are just the places I’m seeing good download numbers originating from. Yours will be different. Hopefully you have good stats so you can track where people are coming from.
Some important notes: along with having your podcasts available on your website, you should also have subscribe links to the biggest places to find podcasts such as iTunes, Stitcher, Miro and your own RSS feed as well as email. Included in this should be a link for Android users that you can create via subscribeonandroid.com.
Links mentioned in this episode:
- Ray’s Patreon Page
- Loudness standards with Georg Holtzmann from Auphonic
- Recent updates (10/2015) to Auphonic’s desktop Leveler (1.6) and Multitrack (1.2)
- Podcasters’ Roundtable (watch below): #59: iTunes Search, Rankings, and Algorithms
- “Myth or Fact: Fraunhofer > LAME CBR MP3 Encoder ?”
- How to Submit a Podcast to iTunes (watch below)
- Podcast Places (comprehensive directory of podcast directories and apps).
- Google is adding podcasts
Looking for a reliable media host for your podcast? Consider using Libsyn (my chosen host) or Blubrry (the two best, most reliable podcast media hosts IMO) and get your first month free when you use promo code: PODCASTHELPER at checkout.
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*all links should be considered affiliate links. Please read my ethics statement as it relates to products I link to. I only post affiliate links to products and brands I use and/or trust. Thanks for helping support this content!
**You should read each directory’s terms of service before submitting your show so that you can decide if you are OK with releasing your content to that platform.
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