If you've ever dreamed of winning a Pulitzer, but you're not a writer, you might be able to squeeze in with your podcast. MacKenzie stumbled upon some new podcast apps that are very niche oriented. We're getting closer to the holidays and have some advice for how to handle vacation days and your podcast. Mike does a great job explaining some common Blubrry terms that can cause confusion with accounts. And of course, we're excited to share the latest Blubrry podcaster's story you. Beth O'Connor, the host of the Rural Health Voice Podcast, joined Todd to discuss why it was necessary to start their podcast.

Thanks for joining us this episode of Podcast Insider.

This week on Podcast Insider…
News:

Pulitzer Prize, audio-reporting, specifically for nonfiction. If you've never thought of the after-effects of producing your show, start thinking bigger.
Industry stats update: Thanks to Daniel J. Lewis for providing the numbers on podcasting.
Sparks app: In beta currently, this app lets people take notes and continue their learning while listening to episodes.
Listen app: A community based podcast listening app.

Best Practices:

Consistency! The show must go on! People build your show into their schedule. If you're consistent, they are more likely to set aside time to listen to you. More episodes released each week tends to grow an audience, but not if quality goes down.
Don’t stop during the holidays!  Nothing wrong with pre-recording. New audience growth happens while people are off work and traveling with their new devices. Be there with fresh content for them to listen to.
Blubrry Pro-Production can help you stay on track this holiday season and beyond!

Blubrry News:

PowerPress 8.1 is in testing now. We've removed 'Simple Mode' and and replaced it with a 'Getting Started' menu. We'll announce a webinar once 8.1 is available, demonstrating how to setup PowerPress with new features. 
MP3 vs. MP4, we took a look at the numbers and mp3 still reigns over all.
Boxing Day (Dec. 26), we'll have a different format. Should be a fun episode, don't miss it.  
Holiday schedule for Blubrry Podcasting

Dec. 24th 8am - noon EST
Dec. 25th OFF (Merry Christmas!)
Dec. 26th Back to normal hours
Dec. 31st 8am - noon EST
Jan. 1st OFF (Happy New Year!)
Jan. 2nd Back to normal hours

Interview:
Beth O'Connor, M. Ed.  - Rural Health Voice podcast, put on by the Virginia Rural Health Association.
Support:

Show listings, Media Files, and Stats are all different things at Blubrry. They are connected by what we call the “program keyword” or “web friendly title”. Unfortunately, because the keyword is tied to so many things, it can’t be changed without starting over.
An “account” at Blubrry is just the login to your Blubrry Podcaster Dashboard. You can have many show listings within one “account”. Each show listing can have a stats subscription (free, pro or advanced) and each show listing can have a hosting subscription. Overall, account - show - subscription.
The directory at blubrry.com is powered by the RSS feed (unless you publish AT blubrry without WordPress). If you don’t see your episodes on your directory listing, put your RSS feed into the Listing Settings in the Podcaster Dashboard. Hit “save and update” and Blubrry’s directory will PULL your feed into your listing. The listing will update as you publish. You can force an update by doing the above after publishing on your website.

Connect with Beth O'Connor M. Ed here:

Rural Health Voice Podcast
Contact Beth and the podcast team
Virginia Rural Health Association Twitter
Virginia Rural Health Association Facebook