Let’s talk about podcasts descriptions!
Whether you’re launching a new podcast or trying to maintain the one you have, crafting the perfect description can be quite mind-boggling.
However, it doesn’t have to be because writing your descriptions is as much of a science as it is an art.
Now, it is important to note that Misener is referencing the description of the podcast rather than individual episode descriptions. However, I found that the concepts he has come up with work very well for episode descriptions as well.
Moving on…
Write for the everyday person
Put important details at the top
Don’t forget your SEO’s
Those are the three important takeaways from Misener’s findings that have helped me clean up the descriptions for the shows at Jam Street.
Writing For the Everyday Person
Pretty much what this means is that you need to be sure that your audience understands what you are trying to say.
Sometimes, we can get so caught up in our own words that it becomes too convoluted for the audience to understand. Even if it makes perfect sense to you.
The goal is to get new listeners to want to listen to your shows and to keep your current audience engaged in your new content.
So, be sure that you give them the reason as to why they should listen to your podcast, in the clearest and most concise way possible. One of the ways that Misener points out how to do that is to avoid repetition.
For instance, repeating the word podcast or the name of the show in both the show description and the episode description.
Chances are that people know they are about to listen to a podcast, and the name of the show is already right there in big letters.
Details Details Details
Yes, details are important, but it’s about knowing which ones are the most important. That is why when you write your episode description you should always be writing with the inverted pyramid in mind.
You want the most eye-catching, relatable content at the top. This includes the who, the what, and the why of your show and/or episode. (Yes, I am intentionally leaving out the where and the when as they don’t usually pertain to podcasting.)
Follow this with any other important details your audience might find interesting, but don’t give away too much. Or else why would they need to listen to you.
The reason you should focus so much on getting the details out in front as soon as possible is that platforms do have a character limit that the audience can see.
While it does vary from app to app, and screen to screen, the audience still will not be able to see your entire description. Honestly, they probably won’t have the attention span to keep reading, anyway.
So, in short, keep clear, concise, and focused on the detail.
Mind Your SEOs
It’s also something that can be tricky to figure out no matter what business you are in.
Now, you don’t want to go and stuff your descriptions with a bunch of keywords that could label you as spam.
You are going to want to be selective, and really think about which keywords are relevant most to your show, and that specific episode. It's similar to how you have to be selective about the details in your description.
Remember, the content of your podcast will speak for itself. The description is merely there to draw people in, and there is no need for the oversell indicative of a used car salesman.
All you need to do is keep it short, keep it interesting, and make it easy for all to read.
The idea behind this article was originally publish by Dan Misener of Pacific Content on Feb 20, 2020. https://blog.pacific-content.com/the-art-and-science-of-podcast-show-descriptions-44d5ed81df24
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