Should you upload your podcast to YouTube?

Hey

Welcome to the third edition of the Audience Lift monthly newsletter.

My name is Robert Tuchman and at Amaze Media Labs we’re obsessed with helping creators and publishers grow their audiences…

And in recent years, YouTube has signaled their intentions of becoming big players in the podcasting ecosystem.

They are already the #1 destination in the world for online video content and the #2 most popular search engine… behind Google of course.

This is why brands and creators are asking themselves, “Does my podcast need video in order to be successful moving forward?”

So today I’ll walk you through the pros and cons of publishing podcast content to YouTube, provide some easy next steps if you want to test the waters without loading up on video recording equipment, and point you to resources and products that can help you make the transition.

If you’re not interested in staying up to date on audience growth strategies you can click the giant “Not Interested in Growing My Audience” button below and I’ll take you off of our list…

But if you are interested, keep reading to learn about the pros and cons of publishing podcast content to YouTube.

The Pros of being on YouTube

As I mentioned in the introduction, YouTube is the #2 search engine in the world.

That’s a lot of people looking for content, specifically video content, to help them change their oil, compare mattress companies, and research new marketing strategies (among other things).

It also creates a huge opportunity for creators to make specific videos (podcast episodes) that dive deep into the information that people are looking for.

And once they find your channel and enjoy one of your videos, there’s a good chance they’ll subscribe and stick around for future content.

(At least, that’s the strategy)

The other half of “discoverability” on YouTube is suggested videos (the algorithm).

This is where YouTube sees an opportunity to keep users engaged on the app by showing the perfect video for them to watch next.

To help YouTube with this and get opportunities to be discovered by new viewers/listeners, follow their best practices by:

• Creating engaging thumbnails

• Writing clear and concise video titles

• Grabbing their attention in the first 15 seconds of your video

More than Spotify and Apple Podcasts, YouTube is now the #1 place where podcast consumers go to find and listen to their favorite podcasts (this according to every recent industry survey).

So it stands to reason that you have to be on YouTube, right? Well…

The Downside of YouTube

When you think of YouTube you naturally think of video-first content, either a person talking to you through the camera or someone filming a process or story and presenting it in an organized way.

Audio podcasts don’t have any of those things.

The most popular podcasts on YouTube like Joe Rogan, Theo Vonn, The Daily Wire, and Barstool Sports all produce full video productions that can then be repurposed into an audio format for distribution on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Video is a lot of work!

You can pick up a decent microphone on Amazon for less than $100 and start an audio podcast, but adding video quickly increases the financial investment. Not to mention that editing video takes considerably more time than editing a standard audio podcast.

But beyond the time investment and extra equipment and software needed to produce a high-quality video podcast…

Not every podcaster wants to be on camera. That’s okay!

One of the great things about producing an audio podcast is that you can create magical listening experiences for your audience anywhere in the world.

This picture of Ira Glass recording This American Life from his closet perfectly captures the gritty and industrious spirit of the audio podcaster.

My Advice

Here’s the most honest take I can give you on the hoopla surrounding YouTube podcasts…

If you have the resources, you need to produce a video version of your show.

If you’re hesitant to take the leap (and you’re bootstrapping your passion project), then stick with what you’re doing.

YouTube is a distribution platform, just like Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Uploading your podcast to YouTube does not guarantee that more people will find and consume your content, it simply gives you more opportunities to reach prospective listeners in new places.

It works great for some, and not for others.

But what if you want to dip your toe into the YouTube waters without fully committing to it?

The Easy Button

YouTube recently rolled out an RSS feed integration that allows you to add audio podcast episodes to your YouTube channel.

YouTube will create a still image from your podcast artwork and play the audio underneath it.

They’re also working on API access that would allow podcast hosting companies to pull your YouTube analytics into your podcast hosting platform to keep all of your stats in one place (so stay tuned for that).

This would be the “have your cake and eat it too” solution, but just know that few podcasters have seen significant audience growth with this solution (at least compared to producing a full video version of their show)

If you do want to add a video component, start with your cell phone or computer webcam.

Just record yourself recording your podcast and upload that video file to YouTube. Easy peasy!

Companies that make video podcast production easier

If you decide you want to make the leap into video production, here are some companies and products that do great work and can help you on your journey.

Video Recording

• Riverside.fm

• Ecamm (Mac Only)

• StreamYard

Video Editing

• Adobe Premiere Rush

• Descript

• Riverside.fm (light editing capabilities)

Services that can create Vertical Video Clips for social media

• Social Octopus

• Opus Clip

• Lychee.so

• Castmagic.io

• Descript

Graphics and Thumbnails

• Canva

I hope this newsletter has given you the clarity to move forward regarding YouTube, one way or the other.

Here’s to growing your audience!