How to upload and publish your podcast episodes on Captivate
We're podcasters just like you. That's why we crafted the Captivate experience to make things nice and easy for you, starting with how to create and publish your podcast episodes.
Are you new to Captivate? Every podcaster gets a 7 day free trial when they sign up with us, alternatively check out our features to see that we offer (hint: so much more than just hosting)
Head to the top right of your Captivate dashboard and click Publish New Episode. You will then be taken to the publish new episode view to start to craft your episode:
Upload Your File
Episode Details
Dynamic Content & Ads
Advanced Options
Transcription and Discoverability
Marketing
External References and Links
Guest Bookings
Member Access
General Release Time
When it comes to uploading your podcast episode audio file, you have a few options:
the usual drag-and-drop upload box/browse files link
add media from the Last Upload (for the most recent file uploaded)
add media from your Content Library
Import your (audio and transcriptions) from Descript
Or, if your audio isn't quite ready yet skip this step and upload the file later 😊
Episode title: your episode title will be displayed in all podcast directories and players. Try and make your episode title catchy and something that grabs your audiences attention.
Display a different episode title on Apple Podcasts? use this if you would like to display a different episode title in Apple Podcasts, for example, a title without an episode number in.
Episode show notes: show notes are a great way to let your listener know what to expect from your episode, as well as offer takeaways, links to connect with you, download resources and more. Check out our top tips to create great show notes for your podcast!
Episode number: this lets you choose which episode number you are publishing. This helps both listeners catch up on shows they've missed, and podcast apps differentiate in what order an episode should be displayed.
Season number: Podcasts usually fall within two categories - episodic or serial/season. Episodic are standalone shows that can be listened to in any order. Serial, however, are part of an ongoing series, and can be broken down into seasons (much like your favourite TV shows!). This option lets you display what season the episode is part of.
Do you have a pre-roll, post-roll, or in-content ad you want to include in your podcast? No problem, we've got you covered with Captivate's dynamic ad insertion tool, AMIE.
Check out how to insert dynamic ads into your episodes here.
Here you can choose from the following options:
Feed Exclusion: hide your episode from the public RSS feed, perfect for premium content
Expiration: the option to remove your episode from your RSS feed and podcast apps altogether after a certain day and time
Episode Meta: set the episode type (Normal, Trailer, Bonus), and mark whether it’s explicit or not
Transcript: add a transcript to your episode to make it more accessible for the hard of hearing
Episode SEO: if you use the free Captivate Site, or our WordPress plugin Sync, you can add a SEO Title and Description and customize the episode URL to optimize it for search engines
Episode Artwork (optional): if you want to use different artwork for individual episodes, you can upload that here
Research Links: if you use the Captivate Research Links feature, this is where you’d choose which one(s) to add to your episode
If you use the guest booking feature, you can assign that guest to your episode here, and then use the short code feature on your episode editing screen to add the guest details.
If you use Captivate’s Memberships feature, you can choose which tier your episode is assigned to.
Exclusive Episode: mark this as Exclusive just for your members
Early Access: set how far in advance your members receive an episode before anyone else
General Release Details: set the publish date and publish time
Publish Summary: details on when your episode is being published. This will also include Early Access information if that’s in effect
That's it! You're ready to publish your episode, safe in the knowledge that your show notes are on point, your SEO is ready to drive listeners to your show, your new episode is looking and sounding the best it can, and any perks for your Membership are all in place!
Recommended Reading
Podcast Analytics with Captivate - Overview
Are you new to Captivate? Every podcaster gets a 7 day free trial when they sign up with us, alternatively check out our features to see that we offer (hint: so much more than just hosting)
How to publish your podcast episode with Captivate
Head to the top right of your Captivate dashboard and click Publish New Episode. You will then be taken to the publish new episode view to start to craft your episode:
Upload Your File
Episode Details
Dynamic Content & Ads
Advanced Options
Transcription and Discoverability
Marketing
External References and Links
Guest Bookings
Member Access
General Release Time
Upload Your File
When it comes to uploading your podcast episode audio file, you have a few options:
the usual drag-and-drop upload box/browse files link
add media from the Last Upload (for the most recent file uploaded)
add media from your Content Library
Import your (audio and transcriptions) from Descript
Or, if your audio isn't quite ready yet skip this step and upload the file later 😊
Episode Details
Episode title: your episode title will be displayed in all podcast directories and players. Try and make your episode title catchy and something that grabs your audiences attention.
Display a different episode title on Apple Podcasts? use this if you would like to display a different episode title in Apple Podcasts, for example, a title without an episode number in.
Episode show notes: show notes are a great way to let your listener know what to expect from your episode, as well as offer takeaways, links to connect with you, download resources and more. Check out our top tips to create great show notes for your podcast!
Episode number: this lets you choose which episode number you are publishing. This helps both listeners catch up on shows they've missed, and podcast apps differentiate in what order an episode should be displayed.
Season number: Podcasts usually fall within two categories - episodic or serial/season. Episodic are standalone shows that can be listened to in any order. Serial, however, are part of an ongoing series, and can be broken down into seasons (much like your favourite TV shows!). This option lets you display what season the episode is part of.
Dynamic Content & Ads
Do you have a pre-roll, post-roll, or in-content ad you want to include in your podcast? No problem, we've got you covered with Captivate's dynamic ad insertion tool, AMIE.
Check out how to insert dynamic ads into your episodes here.
Advanced Options
Here you can choose from the following options:
Feed Exclusion: hide your episode from the public RSS feed, perfect for premium content
Expiration: the option to remove your episode from your RSS feed and podcast apps altogether after a certain day and time
Episode Meta: set the episode type (Normal, Trailer, Bonus), and mark whether it’s explicit or not
Transcription and Discoverability
Transcript: add a transcript to your episode to make it more accessible for the hard of hearing
Episode SEO: if you use the free Captivate Site, or our WordPress plugin Sync, you can add a SEO Title and Description and customize the episode URL to optimize it for search engines
Marketing
Episode Artwork (optional): if you want to use different artwork for individual episodes, you can upload that here
External References and Links
Research Links: if you use the Captivate Research Links feature, this is where you’d choose which one(s) to add to your episode
Guest Bookings
If you use the guest booking feature, you can assign that guest to your episode here, and then use the short code feature on your episode editing screen to add the guest details.
Member Access
If you use Captivate’s Memberships feature, you can choose which tier your episode is assigned to.
Exclusive Episode: mark this as Exclusive just for your members
Early Access: set how far in advance your members receive an episode before anyone else
General Release Time
General Release Details: set the publish date and publish time
Publish Summary: details on when your episode is being published. This will also include Early Access information if that’s in effect
That's it! You're ready to publish your episode, safe in the knowledge that your show notes are on point, your SEO is ready to drive listeners to your show, your new episode is looking and sounding the best it can, and any perks for your Membership are all in place!
Recommended Reading
Podcast Analytics with Captivate - Overview
Updated on: 29/10/2024
Thank you!