This blog post, authored by Joe Stone, was originally written for and published by Jam Street Media on January 4, 2021, and is no longer publicly available.
Whether you’re a podcasting pro, or just starting out, here is a curated list of resources from our Director of Operations, Joe Stone.
The podcast industry is growing exponentially -- and the tech along with that. There is no shortage of tools out there to help you grow your podcast or help you manage it more effectively on the administrative side. Here are the top-5 websites that help keep me in the loop and the knowledge at my fingertips.
Podnews is more than just a daily podcast newsletter and, errr, podcast. The website has a variety of in-depth tools, guides, and how-tos. Their podcast directory is top-notch. Not only does it give you information about each show, but it has integrations with Podchaser, Chartable, and a few others. With that, you can see ratings, talent/producer information, chart positions, get universal links, hear the latest episode, validate/troubleshoot your RSS feed, see what podcast players have your podcast on them, and so much more. It’s incredible what James Cridland has done with this site.
They call themselves the IMDb of podcasts, but honestly, I think of it more as a Goodreads of podcasts. You can follow your favorite podcasts and talent as well as other users, leave reviews, and more. When you go to a show page, you can listen, see host, guest, and other creator information such as producers and editors. If your show (or any show) is missing information, you can add updates. You can also claim and manage podcasts and talent. For advertisers or networks looking for shows to work with, the Podchaser Pro feature will give you a listenership range, and in a future update will provide you with a brand strength score.
A podcast company known for its excellent branded podcasts has an even better blog. Contributors such as Dan Misener are always publishing in-depth content about podcast analytics and industry trends. If you want to learn more about the industry and be amazed at the wizardry that Misener comes up with, their blog is the place to go.
Speaking of really great blogs, Sounds Profitable with Bryan Barletta is a fabulous weekly newsletter and blog that also happens to a part of Podnews. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed about podcast monetization and ad tech -- you’re not alone. Each week, Bryan breaks down this side of the industry in ways that are easy to understand and leaves you walking away, feeling a little bit better about all things podcast monetization.
Chartable provides chart positions and tracking and audience metrics and Smart Promos and Smart Links. If you are a network or have shows hosted on multiple RSS providers, this is great for getting all of your audience metrics in one location. The only thing is, your RSS providers have to allow 3rd party tracking prefixes. Suppose your provider doesn’t allow prefixes (such as Acast, Blubrry, Anchor, etc.). In that case, you’ll have access to limited metrics and are better off getting that information directly from the RSS provider themselves. The service also integrates with podcast management accounts such as Spotify for Podcasters and Apple Podcasts (kind of) to pull limited data from other places. The Apple Podcast integration is somewhat flawed because Apple now requires two-factor authentication (2FA) on all Apple ID accounts, so you have to relink it any time you want that data refreshed.
The smart link feature is pretty awesome. A large chunk of podcast listeners use Apple podcasts, but their slice of that pie is dwindling. With Chartable's Smart Links, you can set up and share a link to your show or episode that will open whatever app the listener has on the device they are using. For example, for macOS and iPhone users, links will open Apple Podcasts, Android users - Spotify, Google Podcasts, etc. Or, it can pull up a list and give them a choice. This way, they can listen and subscribe right away, without being directed to a platform they don’t use.
For more Jam Street Media resources check out the slideshow below:
What are your favorite podcast-related sites that help you get things done? Share them with us on Twitter!
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