Google Podcasts Manager Adds More Data from Search: Impressions, Top-Discovered Episodes, and Search Terms

Google announced an expansion of listener engagement metrics today for those using its Podcast Manager. Previously, audience insights included data about the types of devices listeners are using, where listeners tune in and drop off during a given episode, total number of listens, and listening duration, but the service lacked analytics regarding how visitors were discovering the podcast.

Google is remedying that today by expanding the dashboard to show impressions, clicks, top-discovered episodes, and search terms that brought listeners to the podcast. This information can help podcasters understand how their content is getting discovered so they can better tailor their episodes to attract more new listeners.

The podcasting industry has seen remarkable growth over the past five years, which previously led experts to project that marketers will spend over $1 billion in advertising by 2021. After the pandemic hit, podcast listening took a downturn in the U.S. but at the same time, podcast creators have found more time to create new shows and episodes. Businesses are turning to the medium to supplement traditional marketing methods that no longer have the same impact now that consumer spending habits heavily favor online products.

Along with the new metrics available inside Google Podcasts Manager, the company also published a guide to optimizing podcasts for Google Search. It highlights four important items for making sure a podcast can be found:

Detailed show and episode metadata

Ensure the podcast’s webpage and RSS data match

Include cover art

Ensure Googlebot can access your audio files

A detailed breakdown of your audience’s listening habits isn’t worth much if you’re having trouble getting your podcast discovered. Any podcasting plugin for WordPress should handle these basic optimization recommendations, but if you are still having trouble being found via Google, you can dig deeper into the podcast setup guide for more detailed recommendations.