More and more companies are getting into podcasts, and now according to a report by Social Media Today, Google has announced it will start highlighting links to relevant podcasts in search results.



This is the official statement from Google:

The notable thing here is how Google ranks these podcasts in results. There's a direct reference to what's being talked about. That understanding on Google's side is based partly on the title and description of the podcast - however, there's some ability for the search engine to understand the audio content. As reported by Android Police earlier this year, Google already generates transcripts of podcast episodes and uses the text output as metadata to help searchers find relevant shows.


That could improve podcast discovery massively. It's not yet clear how accurate Google's methods are, but one thing is for sure - they will only improve. That could open up podcasts as an even more valuable asset with regard to SEO. Google also says that in the near future, users won't even need to specify the term "podcast" in their queries. Episodes will appear based on query relevance.

If you have a personal brand and you've overlooked podcasts up until now - it might be time for you to reconsider. Podcast listening is on the rise and coupled with more Google power, that makes them a viable medium - especially when it comes to niche interests.



An amazing 124 million Americans are listening to podcasts routinely in 2019. That type of figure represents a huge number of potentially highly engaged consumers. Adding in the informative capacity of podcasts and the scope to raise brand awareness only makes the medium more attractive as a promotional tool.

Google also intend to use notes which are designed to help podcasters attract increased numbers of listeners. There will be an option for publishers and brands to highlight podcasts which can even be limited to a purchase or a subscription.

What do you guys think about this new feature? Do you think the podcasting niche will have a huge growth with SEO being a factor in driving traffic now?