Single, actionable tips to help you improve and grow your podcast. Plan, record and promote better podcasts one tip at a time.
Ray Ortega - Professional podcast producer. Teacher and avid listener.
ID3 artwork is your podcast’s logo (see mine on the right) that gets inserted into every episode( mp3) file you create (see below for the differences between show level artwork and episode level (i.e. ID3)). When designing your show’s artwork there are special specifications to be aware of. 1. Image size should be square (300 […]
YouTube took a page out of the podcasting playbook and released a one-click subscription button that you can place on your website (see mine in the sidebar on the right). While YouTube is not podcasting because you cannot host and place your hosted files into an RSS feed, I do recommend that those podcasters who […]
When you compress/export your final edited version of your podcast into an .mp3 audio file you have a couple decisions to make. How big or small do you want the file to be versus how good do you want it to sound? There are many factors that can lead to a final decision regarding your […]
Naming your podcast is kind of a big deal. Yet some people might just jump into it without ever asking anyone if the name is any good or more importantly, makes any sense? I know I did, oops. Yes, some podcasters will start a podcast with a name that tells you nothing about the content […]
If you have a podcast where you have on guests/interviewees, you should include those names in the title of your episode(s) for better search results in iTunes. I’ve noticed that when I search for someone’s name on iTunes I get results not only for their own podcast, assuming they have set up their feed correctly, […]
Most podcasts are a hobby endeavor which usually means budgets for gear, websites, software and everything else involved in making a podcast is limited. When deciding where to put your money first, focus on the elements of your podcast that are most likely to affect the overall quality of your show. The best place to […]
Learn how you can earn money when someone uses your iTunes subscription link to subscribe to your podcast. Every podcaster should have a link to their podcast in the iTunes store on their website. You can see mine in the upper right hand corner widget area of this site. It’s important to make it easy […]
Is FeedBurner shutting down? I cover this topic, the fear going around the Internet and the truth about what is really happening. The key takeaway here is not to worry. Don’t panic and scramble to move your podcast RSS feed(s) away from FeedBurner. If you are currently using it, there has been no official announcements […]
Creating a free Gravatar account for your podcast, will allow you to automatically insert your branded logo or personal image alongside comments you make on the internet. For example, if you leave a comment below this post and you have a Gravatar account, when you type your email into the email section of the submission, […]
Listening to your podcast while you edit with headphones on might lead you to think your audio is just right. That everything sounds perfect. But what about the most important listener…your audience? Make sure the audio you’re publishing sounds as good to your audience as it does to you. Take your podcast for a trial […]
Once you’ve edited your video you need to export it, add some metadata and then upload it to YouTube. But before you do that, make sure that the name of your actual video file is something relevant to the information contained in the video itself. This is because YouTube indexes the file name as well […]
Looking around my studio, I counted almost ten different ways to record a podcast. Over the next few episode of Podcast Quick Tips, I’m going to be using each of these methods to demonstrate how you can produce a quality sounding podcast many different ways. First up is the Zoom H4n. This digital audio recorder […]
If you weren’t already aware, Skype is likely controlling your audio levels. As podcasters, we want to make sure we are in control of all our settings all of the time. This is how you can make sure Skype isn’t changing your audio quality. Skype just released (03/06/12) a new version of it’s software for […]
Sean Allen sent in a guest Quick Tip detailing how he increases the credibility of his podcast by using voice overs. Subscribe to Podcast Quick Tips
When you insert a link to a hosted audio file into Facebook’s link section above the status box, Facebook will automatically create an audio player. Below this audio player is a couple areas of information about any particular audio file you link to. They don’t make it obvious that you can actually edit the information […]
There are any number of reasons why you might need to convert a video from one format to another. In the case of video podcasting perhaps you need to make your file compatible to work on Apple devices or you need to take your original file created specifically for iTunes and make it more compatible […]
An introduction to mixlr.com, a new live streaming dedicated to the audio only podcaster. With mixlr’s easy to use app, available for both Windows and Mac, you can easily stream your show live to the web while you record it in your studio. The advantages to live streaming audio only are many in the case […]
If you use WordPress to create your podcasting RSS feed then you may have noticed that only ten or less of your most recent episodes are showing up in podcatchers such as iTunes. There’s a simple fix. Simply adjust the default syndication setting (10) in the Reading section of your WordPress settings. Click here to […]
When you create your album artwork the graphic that represents your podcast (also referred to as show art or ID3 image), make sure you use a high enough resolution so that it displays well on large screens. I recommend making your show logo 600 x 600 pixels. This is a square image that will display […]
Resources for tracking statistics for your podcast and website. By using some simple resources, you can get a clear picture regarding how many people are listening to your podcast as well visiting your website. File hosts such as Libsyn, Blubrry, and Blip.tv all keep statistics about the number of people downloading your show as well […]
With the recent update of the Powerpress plugin for WordPress, your podcast can now be HTML5 and Apple device friendly. HTML5 player for non-flash devices This is an important point because of the iPhone’s dominate spot in the mobile market and the rise of the iPad as the primary tablet device of choice (at the […]
Learn what options you have when choosing a microphone for your video podcast productions. In most cases audio is as important or even more important than the quality of your video. Find out the different types of microphones that you can use together with whatever video camera you have to get the best quality audio […]
Promote your podcast by contacting the people and or companies you mention in your show. Many times those people will respond by passing on your content to their community. Whether it’s through a simple tweet or facebook post, your content gets exposed to infinite amounts of new listeners when it’s passed on by someone else. […]
When you’re deciding on what kind of mixer to get for your podcast there are several things to consider before making your purchase. I run through the most important things I think you should be looking for in a mixer that will be used for producing podcasts. Some of the things I like to have […]
[UPDATE] I no longer recommend this method unless you have some compelling reason to do so. The approval process is usually complete within 24 hours now and you will benefit more by having at least three episodes ready to do publish when you submit your podcast. When creating a podcast, before you even publish it […]
How long does it take before a podcast RSS feed is accepted into the itunes store once you have submitted it? When you’ve submitted your podcast to itunes and its not showing up in the itunes catalog, many podcasters start to worry that they did something wrong. So what do you do once you have […]
Submitting your show to new podcatchers is the best way to grow your audience fast. Make sure to submit your podcast to all the podcasting directories you can find and don’t forget the thousands of people who are consuming, searching, and using the Blackberry Podcast store. Go to the Blackberry Podcast Store to create an […]
Learn why having a logo for your podcast is so important and how to create one for free. Also learn some of the most important elements of show logo design for maximizing the impact it has on your audience. right-click to download Subscribe to Podcast Quick Tips
Find out about a powerful facebook strategy I use to potentially gain a large increase in the amount of people listening and subscribing to your podcast. right-click to download Subscribe to Podcast Quick Tips
Learn the importance of using the "remember playback position" check box when tagging your podcast files with ID3 tags (i.e. metadata). This is one item I always check when filling in my ID3 information and can easily be done using the itunes software. Also, do you listen to your own show? Do you make sure […]
Today I’m asking the listeners of Podcast Quick Tips to submit their very own Podcast Quick Tip that I can play on the show. If you have a 2 to 4 minute tip about how to podcast that you would like to share on this show, please submit that tip by calling 925-567-3335 or better […]
Using an ITPC link to create a one-click subscribe button for your podcast on your website will exclude itunes from knowing you have a new subscriber. Don’t be cheated out of your stats and thus hurting your show’s ranking in the itunes podcast directory. Learn how to use native itunes links to make each subscriber […]
Learn why it’s important to always publish your audio podcast in the mp3 file format. right-click to download Subscribe to Podcast Quick Tips
Learn an easy way to convert your videos into itunes friendly formats. right-click to download Subscribe to Podcast Quick Tips
When you create a new hyperlink on your website it’s always good to set the link to open in a new window or tab so that the person visiting your site is not taken away from your page prematurely. right-click to download Subscribe to Podcast Quick Tips Here’s some bonus video that I’ve placed on […]
Learn how to make your podcast rank higher in search results via google, bing, yahoo, etc. By titling your episodes using relevant keywords (words that are contained within your episodes content), you are more likely to show up on the first page of search results when someone is looking for your niche focused content. right-click […]
Whenever possible ask friends, family to help you out with your show. Podcasting requires many resources most of which is your time and energy. If you have friends or family that are willing to help you produce your show even if just once in awhile, it creates more time for you to create new content […]
When embedding your audio and/or video file into your blog and/or website, make sure to include a text hyperlink to the raw file. This will allow users on mobile devices such as iphones and ipads to download and listen to your podcast. This is also how some people prefer to receive your content. Some people […]
Visitors to your podcast’s website may leave within the first few seconds of arriving if they don’t see that you have a podcast that can be played easily. Make sure you place a podcast player on your website and at the top of each individual podcast episode post so that there is no confusion about […]
Google voice is a free service that you can use to together with your podcast to allow your listeners to call into your show and leave voice mail feedback. Once someone calls your google voice number and leaves a message, you will be sent an email which will include an mp3 file which you can […]
You never know how long any listener or viewer of you podcast is actually going to stay tuned in. Because of this is best to get your most important information out to them as soon as possible. Let them know all the things that will be covered on your episode, your email and website where […]
Use twitter to get more mileage out of your content by tweeting about the various topics covered during an episode. For example, if on your most recent episode you talked about three different topics, you essentially should break up those topics into their own individual tweets. By doing so, you will be able to tweet […]
I talk about the various different online platforms you can use to produce a live stream of your podcast. Are you interested in letting people watch you live while you record your show? If so then you can use various different sites to accomplish this. Sites such as Ustream, Livestream and Justin.tv are just a […]