Out with the old…

…and in with the new.

Besides the logo and website what else is changing with RedCircle?

Since we started in 2018, our mission has been to provide exceptional podcast hosting and help creators grow their audiences. But we quickly realized we could do more to support independent creators and networks. So we set out to create powerful monetization tools on top of our first-class hosting platform, allowing podcasters big *and small* earn revenue. Our new brand reflects our commitment to being the go-to platform for independent creators and networks to earn the revenue that fuels their craft. Our name pays homage to the record button that podcasters use to create their content, representing our dedication to supporting creators at every stage of their journey.

Out with the old…

…and in with the new.

Our new image is not just about looks. We’ve been pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in podcast hosting and monetization, launching new and advanced features that have made us the leading platform for podcasters. We’re proud to have expanded our ad platform capabilities and taken our dynamic insertion technology to new heights, giving our podcasters the flexibility and creativity to monetize on their own terms.

At RedCircle, we’re committed to providing exceptional features and service to our podcasters. Our new brand reflects our dedication to innovation, creativity, and growth. We invite you to join us on this exciting journey of growth in 2023 and beyond. Thank you for your continued support, and let’s continue to make sound waves in the podcast industry together!

Happy Recording!

The post Announcing Our New Brand appeared first on RedCircle Blog.

‘Count to Ten’ is a statement of defiance against the notion of “staying calm”—something individuals in marginalized groups are told to undermine their experiences when facing complex issues around social and racial injustices, gender or identity inequality, mental health, and more. Taking ownership of the phrase “count to ten,” the podcast is Bri Hall’s way of breaking that silence and creating a safe, educational yet entertaining space where listeners can feel seen and heard. Throughout the podcast, Hall will tap a special guest to provide their unique insight and expertise on select themes.

Bri’s creative genius paired with RedCircle’s editing and production prowess has opened a new avenue for creators. In addition to production, RedCircle’s overall podcast management of “Count to Ten ” allows for a deeper host/creator partnership than typically offered by other hosting companies This partnership allows Bri as much creative freedom as possible while RedCircle does the heavy lifting! RedCircle will oversee production, guest bookings, ad deals, cross-promotions, episode uploading, and distribution. This partnership structure removes the tedious and often daunting tasks that come with managing your own podcast and empowers podcasters to focus on their voice and message. It is an exciting opportunity for RedCircle to gain deeper, more meaningful connections with podcasters while empowering them to make a living doing what they love.

When asked her sentiment on starting her newest podcast endeavor, Bri said “ “I’m excited to share a huge part of myself that supporters don’t always get to see from an Instagram photo or a makeup tutorial. Between filming for videos and creating content, I’m deeply engaged in conversations with colleagues, friends, and family about social justice, personal struggles, and marginalized identity. It feels like such an organic step to use my platform to further delve into these stories on a larger scale. I hope that people will learn more about marginalized identities and themselves through this podcast. Oftentimes, the gap between empathy and apathy is a lack of understanding and a fear of asking the wrong questions. By having a first person, fly-on-the-wall invitation into these conversations, I hope a deep feeling of connection between diverse communities will emerge for my fans and new listeners.”

The post RedCirle partners with social media influencer Bri Hall to produce new “Count to Ten” podcast appeared first on RedCircle Blog.

It’s not hard to make a podcast. It’s difficult to make a good podcast. Some folks buy a microphone and dive in head first, only to spend days editing afterward. Others labor in the planning stage, overthinking every decision and never publishing. You do have to try it, make mistakes, learn from them, and use that information to your advantage. Before that happens, though, I’d like to make the journey easier for you. Here are five ways to make podcasting easier. 

1. Eliminate Distractions

This doesn’t just mean “dedicate a quiet space for recording.” It also means having a space and time in which to plan your episodes, schedule recording sessions, edit your audio, and connect with your audience. Virginia Woolf wrote famously about “a room of one’s own,” a literal and figurative creative place. Make a quiet space, and schedule time for planning, recording, editing, publishing, and promotion. You don’t have to have a professional studio (though it doesn’t hurt). It’s not hard to make a silent home studio. People have made excellent podcasts in closets and blanket forts. As long as you can focus your effort consistently, and block out unwanted sound, it’s a good space. 

2. Plan Ahead

How often do you want to release episodes? How many in a month? Once you know this, you can start thinking about how you want to fill those blocks of time. Write down your overall idea for your podcast’s topic. Let’s say your podcast is about fly fishing. Then, break that topic down into episodes. For example, you could have episodes about fly fishing in different locations, for different kinds of fish, with different kinds of equipment, and so on. Write down your episode plans and schedules, to maintain a good overview of the project. 

3. Batch Processing

Batch processing your episodes is a strategy that many podcasters swear by. If you wanted to bake cookies, you wouldn’t mix the ingredients for each cookie, then bake each cookie individually, right?  Batching your podcast means that you plan a group of episodes, then record them, then edit all of the recordings, then upload and publish them in a series. This lets you focus on one particular task or skill at a time.  It also means that you can take advantage of different resources for different podcasting stages.  For example, you can record or edit several episodes at a time, when no one else is home and your house is quiet, but publish and promote them at another time.

4. Use Tools

Adding extra apps and software to your podcasting might seem like extra work. But, the time you spend learning to use any of these tools is time and effort you can save later on. 

For example: 

• Trello, or another task scheduling software, can help you plan your episodes, schedule recording, complete editing, and publish on a consistent schedule. 
• A social media scheduling tool can publish your podcast’s social media for you, so that you don’t have the distractions that social media provides.
• Canva has free templates and systems to help you make great podcast art. 
• Alitu is an all-in-one web-based podcasting solution. It will help you record, edit, polish, and publish your podcast, so you can focus on creating great content, and connecting with your audience.

These apps might mean spending a little money, and a little extra time in the beginning. But, the assistance means you can deliver a good podcast consistently, and become your audience’s favorite listening habit. 

5. Know Your Podcast Niche and Your Audience

A podcast can’t be universally liked by everyone in the world. But, it’s not difficult for your podcast to have a small, loyal following. If you can engage with your audience properly, they’ll recommend it to their friends, and your audience grows. 

Take some time to think about who your podcast is for. If your audience were a made-up character, what would that person be like? Think about that person’s habits, what they like and don’t. Some people might call this a “target demographic,” others would call it an audience avatar. Keeping this person in mind when you record, plan and promote, is like having a friend on the outside.  If you keep them in mind while you record, you feel more purposeful. This helps you know where to promote your show, and what actions to take with it. 

Your podcast’s niche is equally important. It’s the reason your ideal audience member would choose to download your podcast, instead of doing anything else. For example, with the (fictitious) fly fishing podcast we mentioned earlier, you can focus your topic further: not just fly fishing, but fly fishing in America, or more specifically in Wyoming, or in Wyoming by women who love Disney movies. Now, there’s a niche. Just imagine these fly-fisher-women, singing “Colors Of The Wind,” while casting lines in Rock Creek. 

While we’re imagining an ideal audience, you should take time to engage with and reward yours. Don’t just reach out to your audience on social media. It’s free advertising, but it’s designed to be distracting. Instead, reach out to your listeners in ways where you have more control. 

Make sure that your audience can get in touch. It’s never been easier to make a simple website for your podcast..  An email newsletter is a great way to position your updates front and center for your audience. But, what about simply thanking them, in your podcast episode? When people email, mention the show on social media or leave a review, thank them by name. Everyone likes to be remembered. 

In Summary 

The fewer obstacles and friction between you and your podcast, the more chance there is you’ll keep going with it. With RedCircle, you won’t need to fork out a monthly fee for your podcast hosting and they have some great monetization options to help you earn once your show is established. RedCircle makes it super easy to be found in all notable podcast listening platforms too. All that’s left to do is choose your topic, grab your equipment, and hit record!

The post 5 Ways to Make Podcasting Easier appeared first on RedCircle Blog.

To better serve this evolving customer base, RedCircle is excited to announce a new set of features that help podcasters both big and small.

Collaboration and Control With Team Seats

With Team Seats, account owners can now invite their teammates to their Organization, complete with separate login credentials and fully customizable levels of access.

Co-creating a podcast with a friend?  With Team Seats, you both can log in and manage the podcast independently, without having to share credentials.

Running a network and need to provide limited access for each podcaster?  With Team Seats, each podcaster can get a login that allows them to fully manage their own podcast, without access to any others in the network. As the account owner, you can dive into all the podcasts on your account and view analytics across the network.

And if you run a major network with producers, creators, and salespeople, you can add as many Team Seats as you’d like, each with customizable access to any shows in your org.

This is one of our most requested features, so we’re very excited to see how our creators take advantage of these new collaboration capabilities!

Dive Deeper with New, More Comprehensive Analytics

We released a major update to the RedCircle analytics page last April, which added new data visualizations and upgraded the design so that we could add more widgets as our analytics capabilities grew. Today, we’re utilizing that new design and launching an entire suite of new more comprehensive analytics to help you get a deeper understanding of your audience, income, and podcast performance. Here’s just a few of the new analytics we’ve added:

Podcast Performance: Compare downloads across all the podcasts on your account.

Time of Day: Check out when your listeners are tuning in.

Exclusive Downloads: Understand the audience that’s behind the paywall for your exclusive content.

Dynamic Insertion Analytics: Get data on insertions by type, by episode, and for specific audio blocks. With this new data, you can more easily run dynamic insertion campaigns on your own show, and report back to advertisers on campaign progress.

Expanded Revenue Analytics: RedCircle helps you to monetize your content across several revenue streams.  Our new revenue analytics lets you dive into the details of each monetization product, and observe your revenue growth over time.

New Account Plans and a Commitment to ‘Free’

With these new products and features comes a change to RedCircle’s pricing structure. Though we are committed to always offering a comprehensive free plan, these more advanced features will be part of our new paid account plans, as described on our new pricing page. These paid account  plans also include access to other new features like Instant Payouts to get paid faster, one-click YouTube publishing on podcasts of all sizes, and more. 

Is RedCircle Still Free?

We are absolutely committed to continuing to provide the best free tier that you can find in podcasting. We’ll continue to offer unlimited episodes, unlimited downloads, unlimited storage, access to our monetization products, and more, completely free. Our free plan is not designed to be an incomplete hosting solution that forces you to upgrade — it’s a fully functioning hosting product that will cover most podcasters’ needs.

The growth of our monetization products has been off the charts over the last 12 months — we’re putting millions of dollars in podcasters pockets and are excited to continue to grow with our creators. Adding these pricing plans, which are primarily oriented towards professional podcasters and indie networks, are not a change in our business model, but an extension to our offering that will allow RedCircle to deliver scale and revenue for podcasters that are large or small, independent or network-bound, and professionals or hobbyists. 

What About Existing Users?

RedCircle’s existing active customers have been legacied into a special RedCircle Original Plan which includes just about all the features they have access to today on their existing podcasts, and will continue to be free.

RedCircle’s team is growing, our platform is expanding, and the revenue we’re delivering to podcasters is rapidly on the rise. We are incredibly excited to launch these new products, but we’re even more excited about delivering on our long-term mission of helping podcasters make money and be heard. More to come!

The post Introducing Team Seats, Advanced Analytics, and More appeared first on RedCircle Blog.

A growing industry that’s leaving creators behind

The podcast industry is booming. According to eMarketer, podcasting will be a $2 billion industry by 2023, and by 2025, there will be over 144 million monthly podcast listeners in the United States. However, as the industry rapidly expands, most of the revenue lands in the hands of large publishers, while the independent creators – who have fueled the podcasting medium since inception – are usually locked out of the growth. 

“Our data show that 65% of the listening is happening outside the top shows that are owned by Big Media and Big Tech. And yet, most of the money in the ecosystem ends up with these podcasts and networks,” stated Mike Kadin, co-founder, and CEO of RedCircle. “We built RedCircle to ensure that podcasters of all sizes can benefit from the industry’s growth. Simply put, we believe in democratizing access to podcast revenue.”

RedCircle’s technology for distribution, cross-promotion, dynamic audio insertion, listener payments, and automated advertising gives independent creators the same powerful tools as major publishers, allowing podcasters to compete on a level playing field. 

Podcast monetization, democratized.

RedCircle helps independent podcasts monetize through the RedCircle Advertising Platform (RAP).  RAP enables brands to purchase host-read ads or programmatic, pre-recorded advertising across a large number of podcasts through a fully automated platform. With tools for demographic targeting, advertising attribution, and brand safety, RAP allows brands and their agencies to establish a foothold in podcast marketing or scale their existing spend. RAP also takes the overwhelming operational overhead of executing podcast advertising campaigns out of the equation, allowing sophisticated, performance-minded marketers to point-and-click to create a campaign in a data-rich, self-service environment, similar to that of Facebook and Google.  Hundreds of advertisers are already taking advantage of RedCircle’s inventory and are on pace to spend several million dollars in 2021. The majority of the revenue is distributed to the podcasters, supporting their creative work.

Many podcasters take advantage of the RedCircle Exclusive Content product, a cross-platform paywall that lets creators restrict bonus episodes to paying subscribers only. Podcasters can therefore build their subscription business and understand its growth in the exact same platform where they view audience analytics. Using Exclusive Content, RedCircle’s podcasters have amassed tens of thousands of paying subscribers, and many are generating six figures annually as a result. 

Leveling the playing field

By bringing powerful tools to independent podcasters, RedCircle has been growing at an exponential rate since its inception in 2018, with thousands of monthly active podcasters earning several million dollars this year alone. With this new Series A funding, RedCircle plans to expand its team and enhance its offerings so that more podcasters can earn what they deserve.  

“We’ve seen how software tools can empower independents against incumbents, like with Shopify and Amazon,” says Nick Efstratis, managing partner of EPIC Ventures, one of the investment round’s leads. “Considering the strength of the RedCircle team and their traction thus far, I’m confident that they can stand up to the big names in podcasting and ensure that podcasting revenue and resources become accessible to all.”

About RedCircle

Founded in 2018 by Mike Kadin and Jeremy Lermitte, RedCircle provides a platform for podcasts and brands to scale their message. The platform helps podcasters with distribution, growth, and monetization, and its advertising platform helps brands purchase advertising efficiently, guaranteeing high ROI. The team is hiring for a large number of roles. Visit jobs.redcircle.com to apply.

The post RedCircle Lands $6 Million in Series A Funding as Podcast Industry Soars appeared first on RedCircle Blog.

What’s new??

The new analytics dashboard will showcase all of your analytics, all in one place! Additionally, we’ve paid close attention to the new design to ensure a sleeker appearance and a more streamlined user experience. Select a date range and you’ll now be able to see both your overtime and cumulative metrics. The revamped analytics dashboard will allow podcasters access to detailed metrics, beyond just downloads

These changes are just the beginning! Keep an eye out for even more updates in the near future!

The post Getting Smart with RedCircle’s New and Improved Analytics appeared first on RedCircle Blog.

The RedCircle Ad Platform (RAP) has expanded its suite of advertising products which now includes “Programmatic” advertising in addition to “Host-Read.” RAP is a podcaster’s one-stop shop to monetize their show with advertising, all from inside their RedCircle account, and allows brands and agencies the power to easily purchase ad inventory and run campaigns across an array of podcasts. With thousands of podcasters on the platform, and shows spanning every conceivable topic, Programmatic Advertising is the newest addition to RedCircle’s suite of monetization products that puts more money into creators’ pockets.

This is RedCircle’s fourth monetization feature released in less than two years after launching in April of 2019. Whether it’s donations, subscriptions, programmatic ads, or host-read endorsements, RedCircle gives every podcaster the opportunity to make money in a way that fits their style and strategy. 

About RedCircle:

RedCircle is a platform for podcasts and brands to scale their messages. RedCircle’s monetization features empower creators to create their own audio empires by growing their audience and earning money through advertising, listener donations, and paywall subscriptions. For brands, RedCircle provides scalable access to potential customers through thousands of vetted independent creators and networks.

The post RedCircle Adds Programmatic Advertising to RedCircle Ad Platform (RAP) appeared first on RedCircle Blog.

What is programmatic advertising?

Programmatic advertising is very similar to streaming music ads. Pre-recorded ads will automatically be inserted into your predesignated ad insertion points. The more ad insertion points, the more opportunities for you to earn money.

How does it work?

Programmatic ads can be enabled on all podcasts with 500+ weekly downloads. The programmatic ad marketplace allows brands to bid at scale on a given amount of downloads. This process is almost instantaneous! As listeners download your show, our platform will assess how many available ad blocks there are and allow brands to dynamically insert their ads based on your show’s content and opted in categories. The beauty of it all is that two listeners could download the same episode at the same time and get an entirely different set of ads targeted directly to them.

Get started using programmatic ads

To enable programmatic ads, podcasters should go through the RedCircle Ad Platform (RAP). In RAP, you can opt into Host-Read and programmatic ads by going to the advertising section of your account > “Edit Profile” > “Programmatic Settings”.

The specific aspects of programmatic ads that we’ll need from you are:

• Your show’s primary category
• Any advertising categories you wish to exclude from playing on your show (eg if you don’t want political ads running, you can check “Politics” as one of your exclusions)

After you enable programmatic ads, be sure to double-check that your insertion points are at your desired position! The great thing about programmatic is that it’s “set it and forget it” meaning you don’t need to review or accept any of these ads, you just need to make sure your Default Ad Block insertion points are at timestamps in their episodes that sound natural for an ad break, to ensure an ad doesn’t cut you off in the middle of a sentence.

I’m all set up, now what?

Sit back and let the money roll in.  The best part about this feature is it all happens in real-time. No need to approve audio or accept offers, as long as you set any category exclusions, and indicate where in your episodes you’d want ad breaks, we’ll do the rest. If you have any current ads running, no need to worry. We will prioritize all host-read ads first and programmatic second.

We can’t wait to see how you use programmatic ads in your podcast!

The post The Wait is Finally Over! Programmatic Advertising is Here! appeared first on RedCircle Blog.

Not providing a unique offer 

Unlike other digital channels, the promo code or unique URL is the primary way to track the performance of a direct response campaign. A bad or lacklust offer simply won’t generate good results. So, it’s especially important to customize your offer directly to the audience you’re trying to reach and make sure it’s simple enough to understand and compelling enough to motivate a new customer to take action. Which is why you want to avoid using the same offer that you’re using in other channels or an offer that is readily available to everyone that visits your website.  If you’re automatically offering free shipping on all orders, then free shipping won’t be an effective offer for your podcast campaign. 

Treating podcasts like other mediums 

Many marketers mistakenly assume that they can apply the same strategies from social media and other paid advertising channels to podcasting. But podcasts are different and much more intentional than other forms of media. When someone listens to a podcast, they are highly engaged in the content and much more invested than they would be scrolling through instagram. Podcasts require more of an upfront investment and some patiences, since results tend to drive over longer time periods. It’s also important to be flexible and consider adapting your messaging and strategy to podcasting. You may have perfected your messaging in other channels, but there’s a good possibility that messaging will not translate directly to podcasts.

Making assumptions about your target audience

For a marketer that is passionate about podcasts, it can be tempting to want to advertise on your favorite shows to start. But, just because you like a podcast, it doesn’t mean that it will necessarily resonate and reach your target audience. In order to drive results, it’s important never to lose sight or make assumptions about your target audience when planning a podcast ad campaign. The most critical part of your ad is making sure the show, message, and offer are a good fit for the audience you’re trying to reach. Which is also why it’s smart not to adhere too strictly to a single category of shows. You can’t automatically assume that the health-conscious listeners you’re trying to reach are only interested in health-related podcasts, when you may be surprised to learn they are also dedicated listeners to comedy podcasts.

Prioritizing reach over frequency

Another common mistake marketers make is choosing big podcasts just because they assume that will reach the most people. Just because you’re advertising on Joe Rogan’s podcast doesn’t mean it will automatically drive great results. If the ad isn’t a good fit for the podcast and that audience, it won’t perform well. Instead of focusing on reaching the most people, it’s more important to focus on reaching the right people. 

It’s much better to prioritize the frequency of your ad, over the ad’s reach when selecting podcasts for your campaign. No matter how great your ad or your product is, if a customer isn’t familiar with your brand, it’s very unlikely they’ll make a purchase after hearing just one ad. Marketing experts say that people need to hear about your product 7-10 times before they purchase. Which is why it’s smarter to select podcasts where you are able to purchase three to five ads that run consecutively, versus just one ad on a large podcast. 

Get more tips on selecting the right podcasts for your campaign, here. 

Not testing before scaling

One of the easiest ways to avoid making a common mistake and ensure you’re spending your budget smartly is to be diligent in testing your ad across a variety of shows and audiences before you start to scale your campaign. It’s always best to start small and figure out what exactly is working for your brand and audience before scaling up. 

Once you’ve ran a few campaigns and experimented with different messaging, ad formats and podcast categories – it will become clear what is working and what isn’t. Like any other medium in marketing, testing and continuing to optimize your campaign based on the data is key to driving better performing campaigns.  

RedCircle’s Advertising platform and team of experts helps you to launch a seamless campaign and save you from frustrating and costly mistakes. To learn more about advertising with RedCircle, sign up and we’ll get in touch! 

The post The Most Common Mistakes Marketers Make in Podcast Advertising appeared first on RedCircle Blog.

Know your target audience 

It’s critical to know that you are advertising to the right listeners, otherwise your money and efforts will go to waste. So before you start looking at a list of potential podcasts, first you’ll need to clearly define the audience that you are trying to reach. If your target audience is too broad or large, not only will the process of selecting be much more complicated, but your campaign will not be as effective.

Standard demographic labels are a good place to start, including your target audience’s gender, age, education, and interests. Next you’ll want to think about the categories of podcasts that fit your target audience. It’s important to think outside the box when it comes to categories. For example, if moms that are 25-35 years old are your target audience, parenting shows are an obvious fit. But young moms aren’t just listening to parenting podcasts, they’re also listening to pop culture podcasts, news podcasts, etc. Which is why it’s also important to understand your existing customers and use that data as the basis for your target audience. Surveys are a great way to quickly gain a deeper understanding of your customers interest and habits, including the types of podcasts they listen to. 

Maximize your budget

Your target audience and broader content categories will help to narrow down the field of potential shows. In order to narrow that list down further, you’ll want to consider what size of shows you want to partner with and how that will factor into the overall budget and scale of your campaign. 

Bigger shows aren’t always better when it comes to podcast advertising. The bigger the podcast, the more expensive it is to advertise on and you don’t want to spend your entire budget on a single ad spot. In order to really see if your ad is effective or the show is a good fit, it’s ideal to advertise on consecutive episodes for four to six weeks. 

Independent shows offer a huge benefit to brands that want to accurately match up shows to their target audience. Not only do the independent shows have CPMs that are much more affordable, they also have dedicated audiences with content that is focused around niche categories. Since the inventory is generally less expensive, it also provides flexibility to test your budget across multiple shows and broaden your overall reach. 

There are several more advantages to buying ads on smaller, independent shows. Smaller and new shows are often priced with lower CPMs. Less expensive inventory enables brands to be more flexible and test their budget across multiple shows and broaden their reach. Independent podcasts have dedicated audiences with content that is focused around niche categories. It’s a huge benefit to brands that want to accurately match up shows to their target audience.

Make sure the show is a good fit

After narrowing down your options by budget and target audience, next you’ll want to identify the shows that best align with your brand and customers. If you are new to podcast advertising, it’s helpful to listen to a few of the top shows you’re considering partnering with. This way you can determine first hand if the show is something that your customers would listen to and if the podcast’s tone and content will be a good fit for your brand. 

It’s helpful to learn what type of brands the podcast partners with and see if that is inline with your target audience. This will also give you a sense of their approach to advertising. Keep an ear out for hosts that are passionate about the brands they are promoting and are able to naturally incorporate the ad into the conversation. 

RedCircle is here to help

We’re here to help you find the right podcasts for your business. RedCircle’s Ad Platform was built to make host-read podcast campaigns easy and scalable for brands of all sizes. Whether you are just starting out advertising on podcasts or looking for ways to expand your existing reach, sign up to learn more about advertising with RedCircle.

The post How to Select the Best Shows for Your Podcast Advertising Campaign appeared first on RedCircle Blog.