When it comes to podcast analytics, Plays on Apple Podcasts Connect and Starts on Spotify for Podcasters are often used as data points for reporting. Here's why you shouldn't use them.
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And now, this week's episode.
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When it comes to your podcast analytics,
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usually the best place to look
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is your podcast hosting company.
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This is because they pull data from all apps and platforms to give you a full overview of how your podcast is performing.
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However, you can also get more data on your audience via the likes of Podcasts Connect from Apple and Spotify for Podcasters.
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But there are a couple of things you need to keep in mind when you're looking at that data.
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And that's to make sure you're listening to the analytics that matter.
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So what I mean by this is on Podcasts Connect, you've got a few different data points.
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You've got Followers, Listeners, Engaged Listeners, and Plays.
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Now it can be tempting to look at plays and think you're getting a lot of engagement on Apple, but that's typically not the case.
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A play on Apple is when someone presses play on Apple Podcasts and the play duration is greater than 0 seconds.
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The problem with that is I could turn off after 1 second, not listen to anything of your episode, but I'll still be tracked on Apple.
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So it's not really an effective data point.
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Instead, you want to be looking at Engaged Listeners.
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Engaged Listeners on Apple Podcasts is when someone's played at least 20 minutes of your episode or 40%, whichever is longest, within a single session.
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So that's a more accurate data point on Apple Podcasts.
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Spotify for Podcasters is similar.
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They have a data point called Starts.
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Now Starts, much like Plays on Apple Podcasts,
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is when your episode has been played
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for zero seconds or more.
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Again, it's not really an effective metric.
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Instead, you want to be looking at Streams.
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A stream is where your episode has been played
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for at least 60 seconds.
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Now this is more like the IAB Certification.
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The IAB is the Interactive Advertising Bureau.
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It's pretty much the default for measurement
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and tracking in the podcasting industry.
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If you look at podcast hosts,
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many of them are IAB Certified,
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and it makes for more accurate data.
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So again, if you're looking at data on Podcasts Connect for Apple
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or the Spotify for Podcasters dashboard,
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just make sure you're looking at the right analytics
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and the one that gives you a much more accurate overview
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of how your podcast is performing on that platform.
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Until the next time, happy podcasting.
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