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Which conditions need to be met for my show to be indexed by Google Podcasts?
There are a few conditions to be met in order for your show to be indexed (i.e., listed in the podcast catalog) by Google Podcasts. (Good news! It’s very easy to meet these conditions with Ausha!)
1/ Your RSS feed must contain at least one episode
Regardless of the listening platform, your show will not be distributed unless it contains at least one episode. For your episode to be considered, it needs to be published as a “public” episode in the privacy settings.
Note: If the episode is published as “unlisted” or “private”, it will not be listed on your RSS feed and listening platforms will reject your distribution request. The same goes for a “scheduled” episode.
2/ Your Podcast Page must be activated
In order to index your podcast, Google Podcasts requires that:
a dedicated webpage exists for the podcast,
the podcast link be included in the RSS feed,
the RSS feed address be included in code for the home page on the dedicated webpage,
and that the feed and the page be accessible (no passwords or other obstructions).
Sounds complicated?
Don’t worry! At Ausha, we take care of everything for you!
Once your Podcast Page is activated (this is selected by default), your show will be indexed by Google Podcasts because the Podcast Page and the RSS feed created by Ausha are compatible with Google Podcasts’ requirements.
To double-check that your show is correctly listed by Google Podcasts, we recommend you enter your Ausha Podcast Page link or your website address in Settings > Export RSS to confirm the page matches the requirements described above.
How do I distribute my show on Google Podcasts?
1/ Automatic indexing by Google Podcasts
Good news: Your podcast hosted on Ausha is automatically distributed on Google Podcasts!
Once the conditions described above are met, you do not have to do anything else. 🎉
In fact, Google’s algorithms scour all webpages daily (particularly Apple Podcasts’ pages) to find new podcast shows to add to the Google Podcasts catalog, without any intervention from podcasters. On the other hand, this operation can take a while, we generally see a delay that varies from 10 days to up to 3 weeks (unfortunately, automatic distribution doesn’t mean instantaneous distribution 😬) !
It will take just a little bit of patience to see your show listed automatically by Google Podcasts. It is normal that your show is distributed on other listening platforms before Google Podcasts (we agree that it is frustrating though). In the end, your podcast will get indexed.
Once your podcast has been indexed, we will automatically retrieve the listen link – for instance:
https://www.google.com/podcasts?feed=aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkLmF1c2hhLmNvL29kMkE1SVhuZEtnWA== - and from then on you can find it in the Ausha Manager under Settings > Distribution > Google Podcasts.
2/ Or manual indexing via Google Podcasts Manager
Though it wasn’t possible before, Google now offers manual indexing for podcast shows with two different methods: creating an account on Google Podcasts Manager or manual indexing via PubSubHubbub.
Google Podcasts Manager is a tool for tracking listening statistics for listeners on Google Podcasts. To use this tool, you need to create an account.
You should know that by having an account and submitting an RSS feed on Google Podcasts Manager your show will be indexed by Google Podcasts. The indexing waiting period will be shorter than that of Google’s automatic indexing (from a few hours to a few days).
To create an account, head to this page.
Scroll to the bottom of the page and click “Start now”.
On the next page, add your RSS feed link (you can find the URL in Ausha under Settings > Export RSS > Your Show’s RSS Link) and follow all the steps up to the verification page (Verify ownership).
Your show will be added within a few hours to a few days after completing this form.
Once your show is online, you can add the Google Podcasts listen link to your Ausha communication tools (Smartlink, Podcast Page, Player).
3/ Or manual indexing via PubSubHubbub
The third possible way to distribute your show on Google Podcasts is by using the PubSubHubbub website.
To do so, head to this link. Enter your show’s Ausha RSS feed URL (you can find the URL on Ausha under Settings > Export RSS > Your Show’s RSS Link) under Publish > Topic URL, then click on Publish.
Once my show has been distributed on Google Podcasts, how do I distribute the next episodes?
Your show is now distributed on Google Podcasts?
Congratulations! Great news - new episodes will be distributed on Google Podcasts without you having to do anything else! 🎉
When you publish a new episode on Ausha, the episode will be automatically added to your show’s RSS feed.
Google Podcasts regularly checks (multiple times a day) your show’s RSS feed which means your show’s data is automatically refreshed, keeping your episodes updated.
You should know 💡 The distribution delay for a given listening platform is related to the RSS feed verification period on that platform. You should keep this in mind when your episode is available on one platform but not yet available on another – this is not necessarily a technical issue. Knowing this fact will help you better time when to promote your new episodes. The trick? Distribute or schedule the distribution of a new episode the day before you communicate about it so that the episode will be available on the most platforms possible right when your listeners are eager to tune in.
Your show fulfills all the requirements, but it is still not online?
If you have followed all these steps and your show is still not online, there may be an issue on Google Podcasts’ end. In this case, we suggest that you contact the Google Podcasts Support team at the following address:
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