PodMov Daily: Wednesday, January 26

Episode 577: Your Midweek Update

Spotify’s Promo Strategy for “Less-Streamed” Podcasts

Yesterday a Spotify R&D team posted recent research into “how less-streamed podcasts can reach their potential.” The overall goal was to identify the shows that can benefit the most from a recommendation boost, first by understanding their potential audiences. One study involved more than five million recommendations.

A high-quality, niche podcast that “has a hard time building an audience ‘naturally’” justifies more strategic audience matching — but only if chances of success are high. Figuring out those chances has much to do with a listener’s taste, which is based on the hosts, topics, guests, and publishers of shows they already enjoy.

The results spell good news for every podcaster that studies their competition. While you can’t X-ray listeners’ brains like Spotify, you’ll benefit from knowing the ‘keyword’ details about shows in your podcast’s neighborhood. Tools like Rephonic’s discovery engine and podcast audience graph can help.

How to Choose Your Cross-Promo Swaps Wisely

Thinking about swapping promotions with another show? (See ‘podcast neighborhoods’ above.) Proper labeling is key, says Andrew Davies of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s Audio Studios team. “The last thing you want to do is confuse listeners into thinking the episode is something it’s not.”

Even if your show and its counterpart feel like a perfect fit, listeners don’t appreciate an unexpected drop-in. “If you release a bonus or partial episode, be really clear with your listeners ― in the title and episode description ― that it’s not a regular episode,” he writes. “Reinforce in the episode description why you’re doing the swap.”

The article links to well-executed swaps, like one between Radiolab and NPR’s Rough Translation. Afterward, the most important part is measure success by isolating the campaign’s impact. Davis explains which factors to watch and how, along with a warning to think about each opportunity long and hard.

Descript: Shareable Podcast Video, Made Easy

New from Descript, custom short-form video lets you turn your podcast into shareable clips in a few clicks. Instantly transcribe any audio or video, then customize it with photos, waveforms, progress bars, or animated text. It’s fast, easy, and fun to engage your community on any social platform.  

Descript videos aren’t just beautiful and versatile — they’re discoverable. With automatic captions and transcripts, audiences can find your content just by searching. It’s an all-in-one software for repurposing your podcast into marketing magic.

From TikTok videos to full-length audio episodes, editing with Descript is as easy as editing a doc. Ready for the power of a professional studio with none of the grind? Take it for a spin: All new users get three free transcription hours.

Here's what else is going on:

• Center stage: The second round of Evolutions speakers is out, featuring experts like Shira Atkins (Wonder Media Network), Shantae Howell (Acast), and Gordon Firemark (The Podcast Lawyer). This week’s PM update reveals 18 sessions across the Industry, Creator, and Pro Podcaster tracks.

• Hungry hippos: “Eight of the 10 most popular podcasts from Q3 last year have either now been acquired, licensed, or were already operating under a major media organization,” notes Ashley Carman in Hot Pod. “The last ones standing are Pod Save America and This American Life.” Woah.

• Front row: Tomorrow at 8:00 pm ET is Back Issue’s first-ever live episode, part of the virtual Hot Docs Podcast Festival. Co-hosts Tracy Clayton and Josh Gwynn will be joined by Kelefa Sanneh of The New Yorker for an evening of conversation, trivia and pop culture nostalgia. Tickets are $10.

• Own it: Acast Amplifier, the company’s first incubator program, has launched in the UK. Three aspiring podcasters will receive a £2,500 grant, have their first three episodes produced and their branding (artwork and music) developed — and keep IP rights to it all. Applications close March 14.