How to build a profitable podcast.
This post explains what a private podcast is, why you should create one and how to set one up...
Ever want to record a podcast episode but don't want to world to listen?
👉 Maybe you have a company announcement?
👉 Maybe you have content JUST for paying customers?
👉 Maybe you have a training course that only specific people would understand or benefit from?
Well, there is a solution for you...
And that solution is the: private podcast.
A private podcast is one of the most effective ways to get information to a specific and streamlined set of people.
This set of people could be members of an association or employees of a business. Traditional podcasts are accessible to the public, this is NOT the case with private podcasts.
RSS feeds are generated for each member and access can be revoked at any time, only those within the group will gain access to the podcast.
A public podcast and a private podcast follow the same process to record, but the significant difference is how these podcasts are distributed.
If you are a newbie podcaster and you are looking to get more attention to your podcast, it is not advised that you start a private podcast. In this post, we focus on those people podcasting JUST to a select group of people.
We will cover what you would want to start a private podcast and then also how to set one up...
Let's do this!
A private podcast is a podcast that is not made available to everyone.
For a public podcast, you list your show in directories such as Spotify, Apple, or Google Podcast.
But for private podcasts, you control who has access to the content.
With a private podcast, you wouldn't find the RSS feed in podcast directories across the internet. The URL for a private podcast is known only to the distributor, and the distributor has to personally give the URL to the chosen set of people for them to gain access.
The number of podcast listeners keeps on rising, and the podcast industry is expected to keep growing.
Businesses have seen the data behind the growing popularity of podcasts and have started to jump on the train: if more people consume audio... then why not meet the people where they are and give them content that you want them to consume?
Private podcasting has been extremely successful for businesses looking to educate their employees, along with many other use cases.
Creating content only for the ears of the employees, partners, and stakeholders of a business is an effective way of educating and indoctrinating key people into your way of looking at the world.
If you are still in doubt about how a private podcast is beneficial to businesses and others who chose to go that route, let's dig into this further...
Sales reps can get information on products and customers via private podcast feeds.
While in the field, reps can easily consume the latest from the company along with new announcements about products and what the customers are saying. This is not something that you want your competitors to hear!
With this, they can make better-informed decisions that will boost sales for the company.
Private podcasts help businesses to get innovative with learning and training.
Studies have shown that video and audio are way more effective for communicating than text. People remember information from audio and video for a more extended period than written information; with private podcasts, people involved in the training can also consume the audio as many times as they want – thereby making the information stick better.
Businesses will find it easier to broadcast executive communications, internal meetings, or a product launch across their offices everywhere in the world.
Private podcasting ensures that every employee or member of the company/team can access accurate, up-to-date, and top-quality information regardless of their location.
Employees of a company or members of an association might have to be in a different location for multiple reasons. A private podcast can help to get information to them without much hassle. All they need to do is access the RSS feed and a computer to consume the podcast. It saves everyone time and reduces the stress and cost associated with individual communication.
There are still several benefits that a private podcast offers as being an effective way of communicating confidential information.
If you share information that should not get to the public ears, you don't want it discovered on the general web. That is one of the good things about a private podcast: you control the audience!
With audience segmentation on private podcast hosting platforms, you can make ensure that your message reaches the specific set of people you want. Private podcast hosting platforms allow you to control access to the podcast based on department, location, security, and other factors.
Private podcast hosting platforms like bCast are easily accessible. Even if your target audience is commuting, they can scroll through without stress. Private podcasting enables you to reach your audience on their schedule. With a mobile-friendly private podcast hosting platform, your target audience can listen to the podcast anywhere and at any time, increasing productivity.
The private podcast hosting platform you use must have the analytics feature. Analytics will help you get a better insight into your audience. By tracking and measuring how the Podcast performs, you can improve the ways of communicating and create better content for your audience.
With audio and videos, it becomes more challenging to ignore the content. Private podcasting will get the target audience's attention better than texts, and they will interact better with the content.
To create a private podcast, you will need a podcast hosting platform that supports private podcasts. Several hosting platforms support the private podcast, but each has its strength.
To create a private podcast, you will need a private RSS feed. You will send this RSS feed to your audience. It can either be a one-time RSS feed, where all they have to do is click on the link every time to listen, or you might have to send them the RSS feed each time you upload a new episode.
Here are some of the best private podcast hosting platforms that you will find.
1. bCast
bCast is a podcast hosting platform that delivers the best service for all types of podcasts, including private podcasts. bCast allows you to create a private podcast by making a secret podcast RSS feed for you. You can control access to your RSS feed by email address, where you give and revoke access at will to every subscriber with a click.
After getting the private RSS feed you send to them, your subscribers can add this unique RSS feed to podcast directories and listen to your Podcast without stress.
There are two options for giving access to your podcast RSS feed. These options allow you to have total control over who listens to your Podcast. You can create a generic RSS feed that will always be accessible to everyone you sent it to for the first option. The second option helps you to give each subscriber a private feed. The RSS feed is unique to the subscriber, and you can always disable it from your bCast dashboard if you want them to have access to the Podcast at any point.
2. Transistor. fm
Transistor enables you to create a private RSS feed that is password-protected. They have a $19/month starter pack, and this option is available on it. To make your Podcast private, you have to mark a box in advanced settings that stop your show from discovering podcasting apps and the web.
You can also generate multiple Podcast feeds for your private subscribers. However, you will have to upgrade your plan to business, enterprise, or professional to access this feature.
3. PodBean
PodBean has a feature called SSO (organization's single sign-on) that offers top security and is designed for businesses that own a private podcast. With this feature, employees can access the private Podcast with an existing company login.
You have to create a new channel on PodBean for a private podcast. There is also the option of turning a public channel into a private one if you click on the lock button.
On PodBean, you can group users such that they are in different departments, levels, and every other category you choose to use. With this, you can grant access to each category based on the relevant information for their roles. Other categories do not have to deal with information that isn't relevant to them.
You can use private Podcasting by subscribing to the business plan, which has a price of $129/month or $99/month if you want to pay for a year.
4. Castos
Castos offers the private podcasting feature, and it is integrated with WordPress. You can make changes to the Podcast directly from your WordPress dashboard.
To make your Podcast a private one on Castos, you will have to hide the episodes from your podcast page. You can do this via settings on the dashboard. After hiding the episodes from your podcast page, you will have to protect your RSS feed via a password; else, it will still be up.
Castos offers the private podcast feature in their starter pack, which costs $19/month or $190/year. They offer both podcast downloads and uploads on all plans. However, there are options like podcast editing and transcription of episodes depending on the plan you choose.
5. Spreaker
Spreaker offers private Podcast and episode sharing features through the 'limited access podcasts'. You can access this for $20/month or $18 if you pay for a year. This plan is their mid-tier plan, which means private Podcasting is not available on their starter pack. On the mid-tier plan, you get unlimited listens, audio storage up to 500 hours, and live podcasts for up to 3 hours.
However, the limitation with Speaker's episode visibility feature is how listeners can only tune in to the podcast only on Spreaker.com or through the embeddable player.
Spreaker has now made the limited RSS feed feature available for its Enterprise clients for $120/month. With this, the episodes can now go up on third-party apps like Overcast and Apple podcasts.
6. Patreon
Patreon is a platform where creators can get support in the form of payment from their dedicated fans. The platform also has a feature where you can create a unique RSS feed for your patrons. You can do that on the Page Editor and click on 'enable RSS feed'. The 'notify your patrons' button enables you to share the RSS feed with your patreon through email.
After enabling the RSS feed, you can go on to set up your podcast title and artwork. You also get control over what each patron listens to based on their levels. Patreon receives a cut from the money you make, which is 5% on the lite plan and 12% on the premium plan. They also deduct a fee for payment processing.
Other podcast hosting platforms have the private podcast feature as well. However, each one comes with its limitations and different pricing. We recommend bCast because of its reasonable price, simple interface, and secure platform. The premium plan on bCast goes for $75/month and $720/year. When you compare these other platforms, there is a lot of value there.
Listening to private podcasts is not as straightforward as traditional podcasts. When you are on the listening end of private podcasts, you would likely have received an email invitation to subscribe to the private podcasts. The URL shared in this email is unique to you, and you should not share it with others.
Not all podcast apps support private podcast listening, which is quite unfortunate. However, some already support private podcast listening, these apps simply require that you add the podcast URL, instructions are below!
Apple Podcasts
Google Podcasts
Pocket Casts
Overcast
Castbox
Breaker
Podcast Addict
Downcast
The most widely used private podcast listening platform on PC is Apple Podcasts. Mac PCs have the Apple Podcast app pre-installed, but you will have to install it on a Windows computer.
Apple Podcasts
If you run a business or a company and want to start a private podcast for internal communications. It is essential to restrict access to the content. With this, you can comfortably share sensitive information about the business without fear.
Here are the steps to take to create a private podcast for your business
Like traditional Podcasting, private Podcasting also requires that you have a plan before stepping to the microphone. Have the goal of your Podcast written somewhere before you begin to record.
The important questions to answer are:
If you can answer these questions with conviction, it will ensure that your show kicks off in the best way. The company's objectives for this Podcast must align with the type of content that the host will put out.
After the plans are in place, the step is to begin recording. To record, you will need a good-quality podcasting microphone and functional podcasting software. The software that you choose must consider catering for both in-house and remote recordings.
Editing can take time and be quite stressful. However, you can always employ producers with experience to edit the episodes and save yourself from stress. If you do it yourself, you will have to learn and have some patience.
After recording and editing the episodes to your satisfaction, the next step is to publish and distribute them. Because it is a private podcast, you cannot follow the same process that traditional podcasts use. You have to limit access to the content and ensure that it only gets to your target audience.
You need a podcast hosting platform like bCast to distribute your Podcast. Follow the steps listed above to ensure a good and secure distribution for your Podcast.
Private podcasting is great for both companies and podcasters that want to offer exclusive content to a specific set of people. However, it would be best to remember that the listeners with access can download a private podcast to their phone. Once this happens, there is no control over who can listen to the episode on the listener's device.
Therefore, set rules but be aware that this content will not be 100% private so be careful with the kind of information you share...
And finally, if you do want to set up a private pod, bCast has the features to do on ALL our plans, check out more information here or drop us an email on support@bcast.fm if you have any questions 🚀
