A medium once thought to be going the way of the dinosaur has skyrocketed back to relevancy and proliferation. Podcasting is becoming a popular – and potentially profitable – communication tool for marketers, entrepreneurs, and anyone else who has something interesting to say.
Nathan Hangen unraveled the mysteries behind setting up a WordPress-based podcast of your own in an article he wrote for Social Media Examiner. He offers simple steps and useful tools for getting the job done. Here are the 5 main steps you’ll need to take to get going:
Step 1: Choose a Host
Setting up a podcast on a WordPress blog is easy. Begin by self-hosting using the same server you use to host your blog. Once your podcast begins generating a lot of traffic, you’ll need to move to a hosting service like BluBrry, Libsyn, or Amazon S3.
Step 2: Configure WordPress
Don’t worry – it’s not as hard as it sounds! Once you have your first episode recorded, you’ll need to insert the audio or video into a blog post. The PowerPress podcasting plugin for WordPress makes it simple: It has a field for adding episodes and several media players to choose from. You can even customize the look of your media player and choose where in each post you’d like to display the player.
Step 3: Set Up Your Podcast Feed
Feedburner is the perfect tool for submitting your podcast to iTunes. Simply grab the URL given in PowerPress, head over to Feedburner, and follow the directions for adding a new feed.
Step 4: Install Analytics
Just as bloggers need to use analytics to improve their posts, podcasters need to analyze how well their podcasts are being received. Blubrry offers free podcast analytics that allow you to monitor your podcast downloads from your WordPress dashboard. Just paste the URL into the “redirect URL” box on the Services & Statistics tab in your PowerPress settings. Additionally, you can monitor your subscriptions through Feedburner.
Step 5: Add the Final Touches
Use an attractive 512 x 512 pixel image for your podcast, which you will need to add to the input boxes in the iTunes settings tab on your PowerPress admin panel.
Create an awesome name for your podcast, along with a description and summary that will entice browsers to listen. Click save, and you’re done. This information should also appear in your Feedburner settings.
Open up the iTunes store, and click the Podcasts link at the top. Click “Submit a Podcast,” and enter your Feedburner feed URL. Click “Continue,” verify your information, and hit “Submit.” You’ll get a confirmation email within minutes and an approval or rejection notice within days. As long as there are no copyright issues, you should be good to go!
Image by Flickr user Judith (Creative Commons)
