How to Promote a Podcast: Top 9 Tips for Creators

You put in countless hours planning, setting up equipment, and recording a high-quality podcast episode — but it’s your first. You’re ready to broadcast your message but aren’t quite sure how to best appeal to your potential listeners. 

With millions of podcasts out there covering all sorts of topics, knowing the best promotional strategies is tough. Luckily, there are many ways to make your content stand out, even if you’re new to podcasting. From leveraging social media platforms to teaming up with others in your field, you can learn how to promote a podcast to break through the noise and get your content the attention it deserves.

9 Strategies to Promote Your Podcast and Gain Listeners

Here are nine proven ways to get more people to listen to your podcast. 

1. Publish Your Podcast to Different Platforms

Instead of relying on just one platform, publish your content on various podcast directories to expand its reach and capitalize on those platforms’ audiences. 

Here are a few popular podcast apps to publish to:

• Spotify
• Google Podcasts
• Apple Podcasts 
• SoundCloud
• Podbay
• Podbean
• Buzzsprout

Create accounts with as many podcast directories as you can. Then, create an RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feed and submit it to each directory so your new episodes automatically appear on each platform. An RSS feed is an online file that contains details about every piece of content you’ve published. With this podcast marketing strategy, you reach new audiences without uploading to every platform when you publish a new episode. 

2. Promote It on Social Media

By using videos, soundbites, and teaser clips, podcasters can share and promote episodes across various social media platforms, including Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and TikTok. Leveraging the massive user bases of these platforms allows podcasters to tap into diverse audiences, reaching people who may not actively search for podcasts but regularly use social media.

Here are a few ideas on how to grow your podcast using social media: 

• Publish a static post — Create a bold, stand-out graphic and text that clearly represents your podcast’s topic and message, add relevant keywords, and post it to your social media platforms. This makes your podcast easier to discover by people searching those platforms for non-video content on the same topic.
• Post a short teaser clip — Create a teaser clip featuring a snippet of audio from your podcast and add bold graphics. Post the clip as an Instagram Reel, YouTube Short, or TikTok video to reach audiences on these platforms. Their algorithms consider users' engagement, interests, and content relevance when recommending videos. This increases the odds that they show your podcast to the people who are most interested in the topic and likely to tune in.

3. Convert Your Podcast Audio to YouTube Content

YouTube has the second highest number of visitors after Google, so you should tap into YouTube’s large audience by posting videos of your podcast. 

When people search topics your podcast covers, your video will appear, improving your content’s visibility and drawing in curious users. Then, they’ll watch the video and might even become regular listeners. 

Plus, YouTube content reaches people who don't usually listen to podcasts. Chances are that their interest in the topic and the quality of your content can win them over and encourage them to subscribe and come back for more. 

Here’s how to market a podcast on YouTube:

1. Record video podcasts (audio and visual) — Record yourself doing your podcast rather than recording audio only. This way, you have video footage of your podcast and audio to post on YouTube, as teaser clips, or as promotional YouTube Shorts. 
2. Create a video using podcast audio and static images — Record your podcast audio as usual. Then, upload it to editing software to add an image, text, and more. All you need is your audio file playing over a still graphic or a photo carousel with your podcast logo and episode title. Download the file from the editing software and upload it to your YouTube account to share with your audience. 

4. Cut the YouTube Video Into Clips 

Use Captions, a user-friendly AI-powered creative studio, to automatically extract interesting clips from a longer YouTube podcast video to generate your teaser clips. AI Shorts from Captions ensure that you use the most viral-worthy parts of your podcast to promote it across platforms. This increases the chances that viewers will find it intriguing, tune in to listen to the full episode, and subscribe for future content. 

With Captions, you can convert a single video into five clips with a simple tap. Here’s how to create AI Shorts:

1. Upload your video to the Captions app.
2. Tap “Create.”
3. Select “AI Shorts.”
4. Paste the YouTube URL and tap Apply.
5. Wait for AI Shorts to extract your clips.
6. Once your clips are ready, you’ll receive a push notification. 
7. Open the app, review, and download your clips. 
8. Open each clip as a project, edit, and post them as YouTube Shorts, TikTok videos, or Instagram Reels. 

Just note that you need to have an uploaded YouTube video, as the AI Shorts are generated from the URL.

5. Transcribe the Audio and Highlight Show Notes

Convert your podcast’s speech into written text to make it easier for listeners to find the key points or a certain moment in your recording. 

Transcription also makes your podcast more accessible to people who are hard of hearing or those listening in a noisy environment, such as on public transport. This inclusivity can attract a broader audience and improve the overall reach of your content.

The most efficient way to transcribe your content is with an all-in-one creative studio like Captions AI. Transcribe your videos with AI-generated captions and style your transcriptions to reflect your personal brand and message for stronger branding and visual appeal. 

6. Invite Guests or Be a Guest of Another Podcast

For significant podcast growth, reach out to podcasters in the same niche as you. Chances are their listeners match your target audience (the specific group of people interested in your podcast’s topic). When these podcasters appear on your podcast, their regular listeners will tune in, and if they like what they hear, they could become your audience as well.  

Being featured on established podcasts also enhances your credibility, implying that the podcast host recognizes and endorses your personal brand. People are more likely to subscribe to your podcast if they view you as an authority in a particular field.

Invite guests to appear on your podcast to offer your followers fresh and diverse perspectives, enriching your content and making it more enjoyable for your audience. Consider swapping appearances with a creator you admire, like hosting them for an episode in exchange for them hosting you. 

7. Encourage Interactions and Reviews

The first step in grabbing audience attention and encouraging engagement is creating stand-out, relevant content — but it doesn’t stop there. 

Podcasting isn’t about one-way communication where you talk and audiences listen. It’s about sharing valuable perspectives on topics that you and your audience care about. Incorporating the audience’s perspective and addressing topics aligned with their interests can deepen your engagement. 

Regularly request input through surveys, polls, or comments, and then highlight feedback in your podcast episodes by reading reviews, answering questions, and giving shout-outs to followers. This shows that you value listener opinions, which can deepen audience engagement. The more valued listeners feel their comments are, the more likely they are to engage, boosting your performance.  

8. Run a Giveaway

Use social media giveaways to engage your audience and expand your podcast's reach effectively. By offering prizes, you can stimulate interaction and create excitement about your brand. 

Ask listeners to tag people in the comments of your podcast or share a link to a particular episode to enter the giveaway. Alternatively, you could use a related social media account, like Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok to ask your audience to share and tag friends. This works well if you’re routinely sharing promotional content for your podcast on affiliated social media accounts. 

As people share the giveaway, it introduces your podcast to a broader audience, attracting listeners interested in the prizes you’re offering and your content.  

9. Make Your Podcasts Easy for Guests to Share

After guests appear on your podcast, reach out to them to ask them to share your content. To maximize exposure, ensure it’s easy to promote the episode to their listeners. Consider drafting content or emails they could share, like:

• Graphics with quotes they could share on their blog or website
• Emails for their mailing lists
• Static posts for Instagram, Facebook, or Twitter
• Video clips for Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts, or TikTok videos

Remember, they’re more likely to share with their audience if it doesn’t involve more work for them. It’s worth taking the time to create high-quality promotional materials for them to repost.

Leverage Video and Go Viral With Captions

Repurposing your podcast as video content to share on other platforms is key to successful promotion, helping your brand gain visibility among users who might not actively seek out audio-only content. 

Incorporate Captions into your podcast promotion strategy for professional-grade video creation. Use AI to generate Shorts of your podcast’s best moments or subtitles to enhance the clip’s accessibility and turn social media users into loyal listeners.