Why Do We Need Podcast ShowNotes

Have you ever wondered related to the necessity of having a show notes to your podcast? Have you ever wondered if the show notes creation effort you are putting in is worth it, and what benefit it adds for your podcast? Have you looked at some of the other podcasts having detailed show notes and wondered how you will benefit from having something similar? Have you ever found a need to have a text-based content available to explain to someone about an episode in your podcast? If your answer to any of these show notes questions is yes, then you need to have Podcast Show Notes done for your Podcast. First, let us answer the questions about what is a Podcast Show Note, who creates it, and when in the Podcast life cycle is it created.

What is a Podcast Show Note?

As a Podcast Host or Podcast Producer, you have spent quality time on finding the guest, recording the podcast, editing the podcast, pushing RSS to the apps, etc. But over and beyond that you need a summarization of the podcast in a concise format, adding in links or recommendations discussed on the podcast episode and any other relevant data to make a complete synopsis of the Podcast episode. Its very simple to create and is needed text-based data to make sure that anyone who stumbles on the Podcast Episode and is interested can get a textual summary of the Podcast before they start listening.

Who creates Podcast Show Notes?

Ideally speaking, the Podcast Show Notes is best created by the Podcast Host themselves as it is easier for them to understand the sub-context of certain important moments in the Podcast episode. But it can also be done by anyone who can critically listen to the entire Podcast and take notes as they are listening through the episode. Hence the name Show Notes. In some cases where you have a lack of time or not sure about the quality, you can also use a service likes Podcast Inc’s to create show notes.

When should Podcast Show Notes be created?

Creating Podcast Show Notes should be a part of the Podcast production process, as is Editing the Podcast or cleaning up the audio. Its best done once the final version of the episode is ready to be pushed into the various apps but best done before being pushed. Most apps include meta-tags to intake Podcast Show Notes along with the RSS feed. So, its best done before Podcast release.

Second, let’s talk about what are the main benefits of having Podcast Show Notes for your Podcast Episodes, and in the many different areas they are used

Show notes increase the stickiness of your SEO.

As we all know, all the podcast apps in the world all have good intentions, but at the end, they are building products and apps to provide them profit and not necessarily always focused on your needs. As a result, as a Podcast producer or host, you need a digital presence of your own, in other words, a website and show notes to help in boosting the searchability of your website cos of the text content in the show notes. Also, show notes are very beneficial, especially when you think about the long term goals, and you have had the podcast for a while, you need your podcast/website found easily. Make sure the show notes have the right keywords for listeners to find your podcast. Also, at the very high-level Podcast is audio content, and although Google has made some forays into crawling audio content, it no way matches the simplicity of crawling text content.

Show notes provide a window into your podcast on any platform

A listener might find your podcast or be forwarded your podcast information on a device that might not be his or her preferred device for listening to Podcasts. In other instances, the listener may not be in the Podcast listening mode at that time. In those cases, all the listener can remember is your Podcast Artwork and brief description. But if there are show notes irrespective of the device the listener is on, he can go through the show notes to understand if he might have an interest in the Podcast. Also, there are more chances of converting a probable user into an engaged listener if he chooses the Podcast based on written show notes.

Show Notes help in reuse of content.

The audio content created for Podcasts is good, but it’s not as easily divisible and shareable as say text content is. When promoting a Podcast or a Podcast episode, it is best to use the content of the show notes to promote Social Media channels. Show notes allow you to market individual shows with the content from the shows itself. It also helps cos your social media followers on these channels can promote your podcast show much better with these bite-sized content. Also, a lot of the times when you have shown, you want to give them a shoutout about their social media. These shoutouts, in turn, helps in your guests reusing your content to promote to their audience, further boosting the reach of an individual episode.

Show Notes helps in exploring the Podcast topic in more details

Usually, the show notes are good enough to provide a great summary of the topic, which was discussed during the Podcast show. Sometimes there will be background research done on the topic or additional reading material discovered that are not included within the Podcast. Show notes then become a great location to provide links for additional reading material as well as expanding on the topic. You can also point to a blog you can write on the topic to provide greater stickiness of the topic to your website. Ins some cases, listeners may come back with some additional material that you might find compelling enough to add to the show notes as well. Sort of a living repository for the Podcast.

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