SEO for Podcasts: Why Your Show Isn’t Growing And How to Fix It

If you’ve been showing up consistently, publishing episodes, and promoting your podcast, but it’s still not growing, it’s not just you. Most podcasts grow slowly at first, and many never take off at all. Not because the content isn’t good, but because the right people are not finding it. The average podcast only gets about 30 downloads in the first week. If you're one of those podcasters whose show isn't growing and you're not sure why, I want you to know there is something you can do about it. We can do SEO for podcasts and help our shows grow faster than without SEO. 

Most podcasters focus on creating content. But if you’re not also optimizing your show to be found in podcast apps like Apple Podcasts or Spotify, new listeners may never find your show. You can have the best content, but if you don't help the podcast apps understand it, they won't show it to new people. 

How Podcast SEO Helped Me Grow My Show

When I launched my podcast a few years ago, I followed best practices and expected it to grow. In my first month, I got 121 downloads. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great either. I was about average. Over the next few months, my downloads grew not as fast as I'd liked. Most of the advice was to promote on social media, create audiogram clips, etc. And, while that works to a degree, it won't grow your show as quickly as SEO will. 

I wasn't sure if podcast SEO was an option because I didn't see anyone talking about it. However, I knew that SEO would help, and there had to be a way to optimize the podcast. I just needed to figure out how to do it. So, I dug in and started researching and figured out how to use SEO on a podcast, and my show immediately started to grow. Within a few months, my downloads were 5x what they'd been before I started doing SEO on the show. And within a year, it had doubled again. 

Today, my podcast is a top-ranking podcast and regularly ranks in the top 100 Marketing podcasts on Apple Podcasts. It drives traffic to my business weekly and helps me connect with and nurture my audience. If we can get your podcast ranking higher in the podcast apps, yours can help your business grow, too. 

What Is Podcast SEO?

Podcast SEO is making your podcast easier to find on listening platforms. It’s not about ranking on Google. It’s about helping apps like Apple Podcasts or Spotify understand your show so they can recommend it when someone searches for a topic you cover. The higher you show up in the app, the easier it is for your show to grow because more people start to find you when they search for podcasts. 

Apps look for keywords to help them understand what your podcast is about. We want to use keywords in different areas to help the apps. 

• Your podcast title

• Your episode titles

• Your episode descriptions

• Your show description

• Your name

If those elements aren’t clear or optimized, your show may not appear in search results, even if your content is great. 

Why Your Podcast Isn’t Growing

If you're only focusing on the content you're creating, then you will probably continue to struggle to grow. Your show's content is critical, as is being consistent and releasing episodes on a regular, predictable schedule. But the missing piece for most podcasters is the same thing that was missing for me, and that's podcast SEO. Once you start to optimize your show, you will start growing. The good news is that podcast SEO works much faster and is much easier than Google SEO. If you've never done SEO, this is a great place to start, and if you've tried SEO and know the basics, you'll find this much easier, I bet. 

3 Steps to Improve Your Podcast SEO

Use a Clear, SEO Friendly Show Name

In podcasting, clear, simple, and straightforward beats clever every day. You want to think about the words your customers use when searching for information related to your podcast niche. Choose a simple name with your keyword to help your show grow faster. For example, my podcast is about SEO, and it's called Simple SEO. You can't get much more straightforward than that. Also, make sure your show name is easy to read on a small image on a phone. Consider the length of your show name when making your decision. Before you decide on a change to your show name, check out a mockup of your cover art on your phone to see how it looks in a tiny image. Can someone tell what your show is about without clicking? 

Update Your Podcast Show Description and Include Keywords

Your overall show description matters just as much as individual episode details. This is where podcast apps look for information about your show and audience. 

Be sure to let potential listeners know who the podcast is for, what topics you cover, and how it can help them. Also, include multiple keywords they might search for in the podcast apps to help your show be more visible. 

Write Strong Episode Titles that are SEO-Friendly and use Keywords

Avoid clever or vague titles. Instead, use plain language that includes the main topic of the episode and includes keywords again to help the app understand your content and connect it with potential listeners. 

Example: Instead of Let’s Talk Funnels, try How to Build a Funnel That Converts in 3 Steps.

If Your Podcast Isn't Growing, Focus on Visibility 

If your podcast isn’t growing, it’s probably not a content problem; it’s a visibility problem. It's time to learn how to do podcast SEO to help your show grow. Optimizing your show makes it much easier to reach the right audience. 

Podcast SEO helps the right people find your episodes inside the platforms they’re already using. It doesn’t require recording more content. It just takes a few adjustments to your work to help your show be more visible. 

Are You Ready to Work on Podcast SEO?

If you're ready to learn more about podcast SEO and start growing your show, request a copy of my Beginner's Guide to Podcast SEO and find out how to start. If you're ready to learn how to do this step-by-step, take Simple Podcast SEO and learn how to optimize your show for growth.