So how can you increase your chances of getting discovered for the kind of topic you’re covering episode after episode?

The answer is podcast transcripts.

There are three main reasons you want to include podcast transcripts of your show on your website.

1. Boost SEO and Get Found

People google millions of things per second. You might have created an amazing episode that addresses exactly what someone’s looking for, but it’s not going to show up in the search results if it’s just video or audio, so the podcasters out there who are not using transcription are actually missing out on a huge growth opportunity.

Many podcasters publish what is called “show notes,” which are an abbreviated, simplified summary of the podcast. But notes are only a few hundred words. What happens if you start publishing every single word from your episodes? Well, you’re making search engines really happy. And you’re making their job super easy.

An audio transcript translates all the keyword-rich content from your podcast episodes into text that bots can read. A transcript of a 30-minute episode can reach about 6,000 words, which is a ton of content that you’ll easily get indexed for, creating a massive SEO boost for your website. Search engine algorithms will easily recognize you as an authority in your field. Publishing your podcast transcripts along with your audio files will greatly increase your traffic and bring new listeners to your site.

2. Repurpose Your Awesome Content

Diversifying how you share your podcast content with your audience can do great things for your show, whether your goal is to get more listeners, strengthen your brand, or grow your business. A podcast transcript is a valuable stock of written content that you can repurpose as many times as you need.

You can easily skim through your episode transcripts and put together written content really fast. This is brilliant, as it allows you to save a ton of time by using the audio content from your website to get your message out through other media, like books, eBooks, email marketing campaigns, blog posts, and social media content.

This way, when you get your next idea for an awesome blog post or newsletter, you’re not starting from scratch, and you don’t have to spend extra time creating fresh content. You can simply transform your high-value audio content into text for maximum exposure.

3. Increase Accessibility and Reach

With podcast transcripts, you can provide your listeners with a more wholesome experience and add incredible value to your already powerful content.

A transcript will likely appeal to people who are hard of hearing, those who find themselves somewhere where they can’t listen to your podcast — or have forgotten their earbuds at home — those who aren’t native speakers of your language, or those who simply prefer reading to listening.
Just because you choose audio as a method to create content, it doesn’t mean the people who are interested in it prefer audio as well. Be conscious of that.

If you only provide audio, only listeners will get the full value. But what about the readers? I’ll bet there are plenty of older people who haven’t figured out podcasting yet. So to reach more people and increase audience diversification, use transcription to bring the full value of your content to as many people as possible.