Whether you are looking to get into podcasting or you have been doing it for years, you have to know the ins and outs. For starters, you need to learn what types of content are permitted to be broadcast on your platform. You’ll also want to know how to optimize your show for the right viewers. This includes things like sound quality, rating systems, and algorithms. And don’t forget to learn about the COVID-19 content warnings and platform rules.
Podkite
Podkite is a podcast marketing tool that helps podcasters get found, grow their audience, and improve their rankings. It consolidates all your podcast data in one place, provides analytics, and gives you alerts on the latest reviews.
Podkite offers a free account, plus a premium subscription. It includes all the basic features, such as tracking rankings, generating smart links, and reporting, and adds the Kitelinks feature.
The Kitelinks feature lets users create and share simple episode links that lead listeners to the podcast player. They can also use multiple links per podcast. The website also allows you to view stats, including total downloads, clicks, and user language.
Podcharts is another tool for checking your podcast rankings. It displays your ranking over time and compares it to your competition. You can track your ranking in multiple countries. It is a flexible tool, so it’s ideal for tracking how effective your podcast promotion efforts are. It is also great for identifying your immediate competitors.
Podkite has a weekly email report that sends you information about your ratings and rankings. You can also see how much traffic your podcast gets, how many people have clicked on your links, and more.
Podkite also offers a Podchaser feature, which is a tool that allows users to rate and review your podcast. It’s easy to set up, and you’ll be able to combine reviews and ratings in your Podchaser profile.
Sound quality
Streaming audio services are a growing category of services, and Spotify has been making a push into the podcast space in recent years. In the past, the service capped its streaming quality at 160kbps, though now it offers 320kbps. The streaming quality is available in desktop and mobile versions. Depending on how you use the app, you can adjust the sound quality.
You’ll see the options to change the quality in the settings menu. You can choose between a Low, Normal, or High option. For paid subscribers, the service offers a Very High quality. You can adjust the equalizer sliders to achieve the perfect listening experience.
You’ll also see a Flat equalizer, which resets the equalizer to the default. For example, if you select “Discover Weekly,” Spotify will automatically adjust the equalizer for that genre. You can also further adjust the equalizer sliders for a more perfect listening experience.
Spotify also has a free tier that includes access to most of its premium library. The service also has a growing number of paying subscribers. However, most users still use the free tier. For these reasons, the company has to make sure the audio quality of the service is up to par.
Some music enthusiasts are unhappy with the audio quality of Spotify. Some of them have even pulled their songs from the service. Despite this, the music service has a growing subscriber base. It’s currently the largest music streaming service in the world.
Algorithms
Despite a number of scandals, Spotify has managed to maintain a healthy business. As a result, the company is looking to diversify its media mix by investing in podcasts. In fact, the company recently acquired podcast streaming service Podz in hopes of increasing its market share.
To ensure that it delivers the best user experience possible, Spotify uses algorithms. These algorithms are based on artificial intelligence and machine learning. They are designed to recommend content based on users’ preferences and behavior.
The Find the One podcast recommendation tool is one example of how Spotify is using algorithms to improve the recommendations that it offers to its users. It uses a series of questions to determine which podcasts users are most interested in. The questions include what kind of music they listen to and what kind of shows they follow.
The five-star rating system that Spotify plans to roll out in the near future is similar to Apple’s rating system. However, it will only support star ratings. It will also lack written reviews. The ratings will help podcast creators gauge how popular their show is.
In order to achieve its goal of being a recommendation engine, Spotify has rolled out a new feature to its users in the US and UK. This feature includes a daily podcast playlist. The playlist is a mix of Spotify recommendations, including news bites and long podcast episodes.
Ratings
Getting ratings for your Spotify podcast is a good way to make your show known to other listeners. Not only will it help you improve your content, it will also improve your chances of success. In fact, it’s an important first step to building a loyal audience.
For years, Spotify was a streaming music service. Eventually, the company started adding new features for users. One of these was the ability to pay for Premium access. Last month, the service rolled out paid subscriptions to its podcast services.
Recently, the service announced that it’s debuting a ratings feature for its podcast listeners. The new feature has already begun to roll out in some markets.
Using the new ratings feature, a listener will be able to rate the quality of the show they’re listening to. In turn, the creator will get feedback and insight into how their show is performing. The company expects that listeners will use ratings to discover new shows.
In addition to the rating system, Spotify is introducing podcast charts. These charts are created based on the type of content being shared. Specifically, these charts will display a general top podcasts list, as well as genre specific ranks. Choosing the right category for your podcast will influence how many people you’ll reach. If you want your podcast to hit the top of the charts, you’ll need to choose the category that’s best suited to your show’s content.
Neil Young’s request to remove his podcast
Earlier this month, Canadian-American rock star Neil Young asked Spotify to stop streaming his music library. The music has earned hundreds of millions of streams on the service. However, the audio quality was so low that Young said he wanted his work removed from the service.
The singer posted an open letter on his website urging his record label to remove his songs from Spotify. He also gave the music streaming platform an ultimatum: remove his podcast from the service or he would delete all of his music. Ultimately, Spotify agreed.
According to The Wall Street Journal, Young’s music is now being pulled from the service. In a statement, a Spotify spokesperson confirmed the company had agreed to the removal. The move was made after several Spotify competitors faced similar complaints about Young’s audio quality.
In addition, a group of 270 medical professionals wrote an open letter to Spotify last month asking the music streaming service to address the misinformation on its platform. They were specifically concerned about claims by Joe Rogan, the host of one of the platform’s most popular podcasts. They were reportedly upset that Rogan was making inaccurate claims about vaccines, and asked the company to take action against him.
While the letter was not specifically addressed to Rogan, he has been the target of liberal media for his views on the pandemic and anti-vaccine theories.
COVID-19 content warnings and platform rules
Hundreds of physicians and scientists have signed an open letter demanding that Spotify implement COVID-19 misinformation policies. Spotify responded with a content advisory that appears on podcast episodes that discuss the virus. The advisory directs listeners to a COVID-19 hub, which provides up-to-date information shared by experts.
Spotify’s platform rules prohibit promoting vaccines as dangerous, encouraging listeners to intentionally get the virus, and denying serious diseases as real. They also prohibit encouraging people to use bleach to cure diseases.
Twitter has also acted quickly to combat COVID-19 misinformation. It issued an advisory warning on false information about the virus, and it banned tweets that could help it spread. Similarly, Apple Podcasts has no COVID-19 content warnings, and its platform rules do not seem to prohibit arguments against vaccination.
Some artists and celebrities have also protested against misinformation. Neil Young, for example, removed his music and his catalog from Spotify, and Joni Mitchell pulled her work from the streaming platform. Several other well-known creators have pulled their work.
However, the new “content advisory” label does not appear to address the concerns of these creators. Instead, it adds another layer of confusion, and Spotify has not publicly explained its policy. It seems like Spotify wants to find a middle ground between the two groups.
In an interview, Spotify CEO Daniel Ek says the company does not want to censor content. He said that the company’s internal team developed the platform rules. He added that the rules set a high bar for content removal.
