Podcasts have gone mainstream these days. But it’s only until recently that podcasts and other types of audio content have been viewed as direct SEO assets. 

Things only began changing in 2019 when Google announced podcasts needed to be indexed. Or in other words, they’ll appear on search results. 

AI and natural language processing have identified verbalized keywords on these podcasts and ranked them accordingly. 

Fortunately, there are several strategies that you can use to optimize your podcast, both for written and audio content. That way, this ranks higher up on search results. Here are the 7 SEO tips that every podcaster needs to know: 

Start With a Search-worthy Topic

It’s a lot easier if your niche is specific. Let’s say that your podcast is all about remote working or working from home. 

Now that you have a clear niche in mind, you can brainstorm on several topics, like: 

• How to handle procrastination
• Building excellent communication among team members
• Remote working culture
• Home office set up

Ideally, you need to develop a list of topics your target audience is searching for. Find out a way to answer their questions and, as much as possible, cover relevant queries about the topic. 

By the time you’re done, you should already have a list of your planned content. You can use it to structure your website and then interlink similar topics. Doing so makes it easier for you to develop a flow for future podcasts episodes and other related content. 

Incorporate the Right Keywords

It would be silly not to include keyword research during the podcast creation process since you already know that Google indexes and ranks podcasts. 

Usually, these keywords will tell people and search engines what your content is all about. A great way to start, for instance, is by including a keyword on the title of your podcast. It’s even better if you can mention it a couple of times in your audio. 

To get your hands on the keywords themselves, you can use tools such as SEMrush, and Ahrefs. If you have a limited budget, you might use Google’s “Related Searches” feature at the bottom of the search results page. 

Transcribe Your Podcast Episode

Transcribing podcast episodes can be tedious, especially if you have long episodes. You’ll likely need to go through it a lot as you edit the “uhms” or “uhs” to make your text more readable. 

Although sifting through and cleaning up all the text that’s generated from your sound files does take a while, this becomes a catalyst for your podcast to rank in the long run. 

Turn it Into a Video

Another excellent SEO strategy to boost your podcast reach is turning it into video. Although your priority is making a podcast, you might consider adding a video or turning it into a live stream to expand your reach. 

Also, are you aware that Google also owns YouTube? YouTube is the second biggest search engine on the internet. Adding a video element in your podcast will get your brand, content, and keywords on Youtube’s search engines. 

By having video podcasts or live streams that accompany your actual podcast, it’s easier to engage with your viewers live on the comments section, which in turn, will allow your content or podcast to rank better. 

Let People Talk About Your Podcast

Another way to get high podcast rankings on Google is to get people to talk about it!

You can do this by allowing people to talk about your podcast through their website, blogs, social media channels, or in their own podcasts. 

Syndicate to Google Podcast

If you’re new to the podcasting world, it’s pretty easy to miss this one. Make sure that you syndicate to Google Podcasts. 

In a nutshell, it means that every time you publish new episodes on your podcast hosting service, this will automatically update podcast players, also known as directories. Doing so allows you to upload an episode all at once. 

Ask for Podcast Reviews

Finally, you can also ask for podcast reviews. You could do so by encouraging users to leave a review if they’ve enjoyed your podcast. You can start with your most loyal fans. 

Having these reviews will direct more audiences to your content. Doing so will also notify search engines of the most successful pieces of content. It’s also worth noting that Google places a lot of weight on reviews, especially if this comes from respected third-party sites. 

Over to You

SEO is a great strategy that requires constant effort if you want to grow your podcast. By making it a crucial part of podcast production and your marketing process, you’re adding another wheel to your marketing machine. 

So, make sure that you apply these SEO tips as they will pay off and be worth it in the long run.