PodMov Daily: Wednesday, May 18

Episode 647: Your Midweek Update

Watching Podcasts: YouTube Edges Out Spotify

For this spring’s Podcast Download Report, Cumulus Media and Signal Hill Insights decided to include consumers who watch, rather than just listen. Factoring in video-first audiences reveals quite a shift, at least in this study: “YouTube, by a nose, is now the most used podcasting platform in the U.S.”

10% of respondents said they only ‘watched’ podcasts in the last week, and 60% of weekly consumers (audio and video) said they prefer podcasts with video. “Podcast watchers” are younger, lean male, and are likely to be new to the medium. YouTube the clip discovery engine, indeed.

The report also highlights the “eyes on” advertising attentiveness of podcast watchers. At YouTube’s upfront in New York yesterday, the company announced a new ad-frequency capping solution for brands using Google Ads. This could be good news for podcasters already wary of overloading new fans.

How Do Podcast Apps Search for Episodes?

If you want podcast apps to surface your episodes based on search terms, where should you focus your efforts? In a piece for Podnews, Mark Steadman of the podcast studio Origin has catalogued what’s indexed by 14 major apps. One takeaway: keyword-stuffing is not an effective growth strategy.

“Apps heavily weight podcast-level data over episode-level data,” Steadman confirms. That said, he recommends putting guests’ names in episode titles, especially if they’re well-known. Podcast descriptions, another key piece of metadata, are surprisingly not indexed by Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and Pocket Casts.

Steadman says that the goal should not be to attract new listeners through podcast apps. “Instead, make your podcast easy to find by name, so that when people read your insightful tweet, […] your helpful blog post or your conference talk slide, they know exactly what to search for, whichever app they use.”

Swell: Where Short Audio Meets Great Conversations

Swell is a new platform offering the best of social audio with none of the noise. Posts up to five minutes long bring short conversations and interviews directly to a growing community. Podcasters use Swell like bloggers use Twitter – it’s the perfect way to share, engage, and grow your audience.

Unlike live-only platforms, Swell is asynchronous. Anyone can listen to your posts and reply with audio, anytime. With no need to schedule, spontaneous thoughts can reach a wider audience. You can even moderate speakers and replies to keep your conversations on-track. 

Swell is full of interesting people discovering new content. It’s free, fun, and flexible: Your dedicated page and embed widget let you share off-app, without limits. Ready to make great audio in small packages? The world is listening

Here's what else is going on:

• Plus one: “How to Grow Your Podcast Audience” is tomorrow at 1:00 ET. Producer and marketer Devin Andrade (Tink Media) will dig into crafting a marketing strategy that’s affordable and actionable. Topics include auditing your content, social media, collaboration, and pitching. Free registration.

• Fine print: “Liability in Podcasting: Record Responsibly” continues on Monday at 7:00 pm ET with discussion about defamation and libel. From the Black Podcasters Association powered by Afros & Audio, and led by the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. Free registration. 

• Road trip: PM’s Texas podcaster meetup tour (Houston, Austin, and Dallas) is ready to roll in early June. This week’s community update has those details, plus a new live presentation in PMU, access to 100+ session videos from Evolutions in LA, and the best deal on PM22 registration.

• Group chat: Applications are due on May 25 for Oye: The Lab for Latinx Creators, a new podcast accelerator from NPR and LAist Studios. Set to start in mid-July, the 6-week “blueprint to launch” program will provide a small cohort with guidance, equipment, and stipends of up to $2,500.