When you hear the word, “Spotify”, the first thing that comes to mind is streaming music because that is what the platform has been popularly known for. However, in the past few years, Spotify has been making its way into the podcasting scene. We have watched Spotify making significant investments in podcasting and introducing features that are beneficial to podcasters. They most certainly have not stopped chasing the podcasting dream as the once-known Anchor has now become Spotify for Podcasters.
This is a very exciting announcement for podcasters, features that were once only available on Anchor have now been integrated into Spotify for Podcasters, making it a one-stop-shop. In addition to this Spotify has introduced new features to the app and web app that help creators to market, grow and interact with their audience.
Video Podcasts
It is time to go visual with Spotify for Podcasters! You now have the option of uploading your episodes as just audio or video. The video formats accepted are mp4, and mov. The uploading process is the same as the one for audio. Remember what we said about the power of visuals, this will be great for keeping your listeners hooked on your show. And to ease your mind, Spotify will automatically send the audio version of your podcast to other platforms.
The Q&A + Poll Features
You can now add a question for your audience with each episode or a poll. This is a great way to engage with your listeners and get feedback. Automatically the question that Spotify will put under your description is, ‘What did you think about this episode?’ Being able to interact easily with your audience allows you to create the right content for them through their feedback and their questions.
Say Hello to Premium Episodes
Whilst advertisements have been the most popular way to make money via Spotify, now your fans can put a little change in your pocket too because Spotify is partnering with Patreon! Previously, creators were pre-announcing the Patreon episode and then posting snippets on Spotify to encourage them to go and listen. That shall no longer be necessary because you can now do it all on Spotify for Podcasters. We think this is pretty cool, don’t you?
Episode Previews
This feature best serves the listener more than the creator and as a listener, I got a little excited about it. There are times when the title doesn’t match the energy of the episode and you only get to catch on when you are minutes in, it’s very disappointing. With previews on the timeline, you get a feel of what is in the episode before committing. Pretty awesome!
Autoplay for Podcasts
Podcasts, just like music, will now be auto-playing. Search for an episode, play it and once it is done Spotify will play another episode that is in line with the one you were listening to. This feature is also great for creators as it aids discoverability and widens reach.
Spotify Analytics
Anchor did show analytics for your shows but Spotify has introduced a dashboard with more comprehensive analytics. You can now view your listener demographics, which helps you tailor your content to suit the audience that you are attracting. Analytics also includes episode rankings which are very useful for crafting your promotion strategy for your show. And because money has to be made, having all this information including audience engagement metrics helps when pitching for advertisement partnerships.
Podcast Hosting and Distribution
It is free! You read that right, Spotify continues to offer free hosting for podcasters. This means you get to save a lot of bank whilst distributing your podcast to multiple podcasts at a time. If you haven’t already, head on over to Spotify for Podcasters and register!
The Spotify for Podcasters App
Chat with your audience on the go. If you were already registered with Anchor, you will notice that your app logo changed to the Spotify one and is now called Podcasters. This app allows you to check your analytics and respond to your audience at any time.
We are sure this is only the beginning of great things with Spotify for Podcasters and it is very exciting to see more platforms thinking ahead for creators. As we wait for them to unleash more cool stuff for us, we want to hear what you think of this change. Are you excited to try the new features or did this encourage you to start that podcast?
About the Podcast Sessions:
The Podcast Sessions focuses on the African podcast industry. Our offerings include a magazine, news website, and podcast, all of which provide in-depth coverage of the latest trends and developments in the African podcast industry.
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