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Research and Planning FAQs

Questions about Captivate’s Research and Planning tools? We got you covered!

Danny Brown avatar
Written by Danny Brown
Updated over 2 years ago

What’s the difference between Episode Planning and Research Links?

Episode Planning lets you jot down ideas for upcoming episodes, that can be used as Recording Notes. Research Links let you pull in external research links to add to your episode, so listeners can find out more about the topics discussed while also offering you handy recording notes for when you produce your episode.

Where do the notes I make in Episode Planning go?

These notes become Recording Notes, which offer a nice reference point for anything you wish to discuss in an episode. You can open these Recording Notes in your Captivate dashboard, or print them off to have on your desk during recording. You can also print as a PDF, and share with upcoming guests, to help them prepare for their recording session with you.

Can I change Recording Notes if I made a mistake?

For sure! Editing is super easy, and will update any changes you make. You can edit Recording Notes from the Episode Planning section.

How do I create an episode with Episode Planning?

Yep, just click the little convert icon next to the idea you want to turn into an episode, and this will open the default episode editing screen. From here, add your episode details as normal, add the Research Links shortcode if using this feature, and then schedule/publish your episode.

Where do the Research Links appear?

Using our Dynamic Show Notes Builder, you can add the Research Links shortcode to your show notes. This then displays the link, the Label you assigned it, and any extra copy you added in the Notes box. While it’ll appear as a shortcode in your episode editing screen, it’ll appear as a clean piece of text that links out to the target URL in your RSS feed and podcast apps.

Can I update Research Links as well as add new ones/delete old ones?

Yes indeed! Simply click the edit icon for the specific link, and then make any relevant changes to the URL, Label, and Notes. Click Update Research Link to save, and the new link will be updated across the episode(s) it’s attached to, as well as your RSS feed and podcast apps.

What is a Label in Research Links?

The Label is the text that will be displayed for the link - so, for example, instead of just showing the URL for Google like www.google.com, you could enter the text Learn more at Google in the label section, and this is what would be displayed in your show notes! Captivate auto-generates the label based on the URL, but you can also change it to your preferred text instead.

What is the Notes box in Research Links used for?

Notes lets you add additional information you want to share about the link. This can be a little more information on what’s being linked to - a blurb about the guest, for example, or an explanatory blurb on what to do after clicking the link. So if you’re linking to a landing page, you could add a blurb that instructs how to download an ebook, or sign up for a course, etc. Anything you add here will also appear in your show notes.

Are there limits to how many links and episode ideas I can use?

Not at all - the sky’s the limit!

How much does this cost?

Episode Planning and Research Links are included in your Captivate plan!

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