The Bold and the Podcastful: A Tech Saga

…and how to choose the right podcast hosting platform to suit you

By Kirsten Diprose, founder Rural Podcasting Co. Subscribe to our Newsletter!

Trying to keep up with the relationship drama of podcast apps and platforms, makes me feel as though I’m watching a soap opera, like the Bold and the Beautiful.

 Stay with me on this.

 Let’s say Apple and Spotify are the “Brooke” and “Taylor” of the podcasting world. They’re the two rival “queens’ of their domain; the ones everyone wants to be… and be with. They’re smart, cunning and powerful.

 Then the podcast hosting platforms like Podbean, Buzzsprout, Lisbyn etc are like the myriad of men circling around Brooke and Taylor (aka Apple and Spotify), each competing for time and attention.

 And here we are, the humble podcast producer, who just wants to get their show out to as many people as possible, but to do so needs to understand who’s with Apple… who’s with Spotify… and who’s with Apple and secretly with Spotify… as well as understanding everything else a podcast platform does.

 My own relationship with podcast hosting platforms has been worthy of a few soap opera episodes. And I’m sure I’m not alone in this.

 See, I was very happy with my first platform; Whooshkaa, and I really wanted to stay. But Whooshkaa changed. It didn’t want to hang out with all the other podcast apps anymore. It started calling itself “Anchor” and only wanted to be with Spotify. But I still wanted to see our old friends, so, I had to leave. These days, Whooshkaa/Anchor has completely lost its identity, and is now known as “Spotify for Podcasters”.

 There’s certainly no hard feelings from me – looks like Whooska/Anchor has done very well for itself.

 But, at the time, moving platforms was hard and time consuming. It was then that Buzzsprout came into my life.

 With Buzzsprout, things have been easy. We get along so well. But I am starting to feel like I’m needing a bit more from our relationship… *stares into the camera longingly, as the music rises*

 Find out what happens in next season… of the Bold and the Podcastful.

 Ok, now that’s out of my system. Let’s get down to business.

 Choosing the Right Podcast Platform for you:

 Here’s how I really approach decision-making around podcast platforms. Make the decision based on what you value. And after spending a lot of time looking at podcast platforms, I have come up with 3 main ‘value categories’:

1.     Ease of Use

2.     Convenience

3.     Revenue Generation

 Knowing what you value will help you break through any barriers you might have about being able to consistently show up and produce a podcast. Which do you value most?

1.     Ease of Use:

If you prioritize ease of use and desire a hassle-free startup experience, there's one platform that stands out; Buzzsprout. With its user-friendly interface and intuitive features, Buzzsprout makes it incredibly easy to get your podcast out there.

 It also has fantastic support – if you have a query your email will be responded to within 24 hours and by a real person too (at least if they don’t have it,  they’ve completely fooled me!).

Buzzsprout doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of some of the other big platforms. But in the past year Buzzsprout has added quite a few more services – such as a basic membership/ podcast supporter platform and an AI “Cohost”, which can be used to help you generate show notes, titles and social media (this still needs improvement – but the podcast transcriptions are very good)

2.     Convenience

If you want to minimise the number of software platforms you use and to streamline your podcasting workflow, perhaps you're looking for a platform that offers more than just distribution services.

This can be ideal if you don’t already have recording and editing software that you know and love (if you do, then it’s probably more convenient for you to stick with what you know).

But there are some platforms, such as Podbean, which offer remote recording. Others allow for basic editing too. Podbean also does live streaming and allows you take calls and read messages in real time.

So if convenience is what you want, especially as your podcast grows, then come at the ‘problem’ from this perspective (and make sure you watch demo videos to so you can see how the various offerings work)

3.     "Revenue Generation - Monetizing Your Podcast"

Finally, you’re allowed to have money as your primary motivator or value! I won’t judge you.

Essentially all podcast hosting platforms offer options for generating revenue. However, it's important to identify the source from which you expect to earn the most. If you believe that membership subscriptions will be your primary source of income, there are platforms tailored to support this strategy (such as Libsyn, for example).

On the other hand, if you anticipate ad revenue to be your main avenue for monetization, different platforms provide specific features to help you maximize advertising opportunities. Just a word of warning, you often need to have a lot of listeners to be able to get paid a decent amount by the placement ad programs run by a platform.

 You might want to make your own ads and insert them into your programming (this is called ‘dynamic ad insertion, many of the hosting platforms have it now, but not all.)

 Also keep in mind there are other ways to approach sponsorship and advertisements, which aren’t dependant on a podcast hosting platform at all… and can generate much more money.

So to recap, make sure you understand what you value most: ease of use, overall convenience or revenue generation. Then let that be the framework to assess which platform is right for you.

Of course, you can always change platforms…but it’s a time-consuming process. I’m simply wanting to save you from podcast heartbreak, as we navigate this tech soap opera together.

 Happy podcasting!

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