Google is making podcast episodes a part of the search experience, and the Podcast community couldn't be happier! According to their announcement yesterday, Google has stated "Starting today, when you’re searching for a podcast about a topic on Google, such as “podcasts about Awkwafina” or “Instant Pot recipe podcasts,” we’ll show you playable episodes in Search results alongside web pages, news, images, and videos. We’ll surface these episodes based on Google’s understanding of what’s being talked about on a podcast, so you can find even more relevant information about a topic in audio form. Soon, you won’t necessarily need the term “podcast” in your search to see episodes, making podcast discovery simpler across Search."

With up to 124 million Americans now listen to podcasts regularly, this adds a major capacity to boost brand awareness via search on Google.  This will tremendously help in finding and listening to podcasts based on what the search topics are.  Google also notes that it'll be looking to help podcasters further build their audiences by adding an option for publishers to specify where people can listen to their podcasts within search results. This new functionality could fundamentally change how people find new shows because podcasts have lacked discovery tools (trust me, I know first hand). Right now, people typically find podcasts through friends or other shows (thank you all!), but they are also having a hard time finding shows about specific topics because there’s no easy way to search by topic. Google including episodes in search clearly changes that.

As a fan of podcasts, and having one of my own, this is great news for an industry that is rapidly growing and being embraced by millions of people across the world. Whether if you're Joe Rogan, or one of the little guys like us, it's getting easier for podcasters to be heard around the world based on what topics are being discussed on the show. Hope you enjoyed the article and be sure to follow us on IG, FB, and YouTube, and subscribe to our podcast on your favorite platform.