Why people aren’t clicking on your podcast episodes

You could record the best podcast episode you’ve ever made and still have hardly anyone listen to it. Not because the episode isn’t good, but because the title didn’t give them a reason to press play.

We spend SO much time thinking about what we’re going to talk about on our podcasts. We plan the episode, record it, edit it, write the show notes and create the social media posts. Then we get to the podcast episode title and think “what on earth am I going to call this?” So, we quickly write something that explains what the episode is about and move on.

But your episode title deserves a bit more thought than that. Because before someone hears how brilliant your episode is, they have to decide whether they want to listen to it. And your title is one of the things helping them make that decision.

So, next time you’re writing a title, ask yourself: Would someone who’s never heard of me instantly understand why this episode is worth their time?

Why are your podcast episode titles so important?

Think about what you do when you find a new podcast. You might look at the cover artwork and read the podcast description, but chances are you’ll also have a quick scroll through the episodes. I know I do. I’m looking to see if there’s anything there I want to listen to. I’m not going to scroll through 150 episodes to find out. I’ll look at the first few podcast episode titles and make a decision. That’s why your titles matter.

Someone might have found your podcast through search, a recommendation, your website or social media, but now you need to give them a reason to press play.

Does your title tell people why they should listen?

There’s a difference between telling someone what an episode is about and telling them why they might want to listen to it. Let’s say you’re a social media manager and you’ve recorded an episode about creating content when you’re short on time. You could call it: “How to create social media content”

It’s perfectly clear. I know what the episode is about. But what about: “No time for social media? 5 ways to create content faster”

Now I can see who it’s for. If I’m struggling to find time to create content every week, I’m probably going to be much more interested in that second title. Your title doesn’t need to be really clever or clickbait. It just needs to make the right person think, “Oh, I want to listen to that.”

Get more specific with your podcast titles

One of the easiest ways to improve your episode title ideas is to get more specific.

For example: “How to get more clients” could become: “Getting enquiries but no bookings? 4 things to check”

Or:

How to improve your website could become: 5 website mistakes that could be losing you enquiries

The first titles aren’t necessarily bad, they’re just very broad. The second versions give someone more information about whether the episode is actually relevant to them.

And that’s really what we’re trying to do. You don’t need everyone scrolling through Spotify or Apple Podcasts to click your episode. You want your ideal listener to click it.

Think about what your listener wants

When you’re stuck on a title, forget about trying to make it sound impressive. Think about your listener:

• What’s going on for them right now?
• What are they Googling?
• What are they asking you?
• What are they frustrated by?
• What would they LOVE to know?

Those questions can give you some of your best podcast title ideas.

For example, if you’re a business coach, your audience might be thinking: “Why am I getting enquiries but no one is buying?” That’s already a potential episode title.

Or perhaps you’re a copywriter and your clients are always asking: “Should I put my prices on my website?” There’s another one.

You don’t always have to invent a fancy title. Sometimes your audience is already giving you the best ones.

Use keywords, but don’t stuff them in

Keywords are important too. If you want new people to find your podcast, think about the words they’re searching for.

So, if you’ve recorded an episode about how to start a podcast, it makes sense to use that sort of wording in your title rather than giving the episode a clever name that doesn’t mention podcasting at all. I’ve written more about this in my guide to simple podcast SEO tips for better discoverability.

But please don’t read that and think you now need to squeeze five keywords into every title! You don’t. Choose the most relevant keyword and use it where it makes sense. Your title still needs to sound like it was written for a person.

Please don’t make people work out what your title means

I love a clever title, but there is a time and a place for one and your podcast episode isn’t it. If someone has to work out what your clever pun has to do with the episode, you’ve already made their decision harder.

Let’s say you’ve recorded an episode about writing your website About page. You could call it: “It’s All About You”. Quite clever, but what am I actually going to learn?

Something like: “What should you put on your website About page?” isn’t as clever, but I immediately know whether I want to listen.

Should you use numbers in podcast episode titles?

Numbers can work really well. Titles like these tell me exactly what I’m going to get from the episode.

• “5 things to do before you launch your website”
• “3 signs you’ve outgrown your current offer”
• “7 questions to ask before hiring a business coach”

But there’s one type of number I wouldn’t waste your title space on: “Episode 87:”

Does your new listener really care that this is episode 87? Probably not. They care about what comes next. Unless your podcast is designed to be listened to in order, I’d leave them out of the title. Use that space to tell people something useful instead.

How long should a podcast episode title be?

I try to keep podcast episode titles around 60 characters where possible. Podcast apps only have so much space to display your title, especially on a phone. You don’t want the interesting bit disappearing because you’ve spent the first half of the title saying: “Episode 47: In Today’s Episode I’m Talking About…”

Get to the point, tell me why I should listen, and don’t get too caught up counting every character either. If your title is slightly longer but it’s much clearer, that’s OK. The main thing is to make those first few words count.

Questions can make brilliant podcast titles

Questions are one of my favourite ways to come up with episode title ideas because they’re often exactly what your listener is thinking. For example:

• Do you need a website when you start a business?
• Why is no one opening your emails?
• Is it too late to start a podcast?
• How often should you release a podcast episode?

If your listener has been wondering the exact same thing, they’re going to want to hear your answer. Again, it comes back to making your episode relevant.

What if you have a podcast guest?

If you have guests on your podcast, think about whether their name is the most interesting part of the episode title. If they’re a household name in your industry, absolutely use it. But if your listener doesn’t know who they are yet, their name isn’t necessarily going to make them click.

Instead of: “My interview with Emma Taylor” you might have: “How to take a month off without your business stopping, with Emma Taylor”

Now I know what I’m going to get from the episode. That’s much more interesting to me than simply knowing who you interviewed.

Try this with your last five podcast episodes

Open your podcast and look at your last five podcast episode titles. Pretend you’ve never heard of yourself before.

• Would you click on any of those episodes?
• Do the titles tell you why you should listen?
• Or do they just tell you what the episodes are about?

If you’re looking at them thinking, “Hmmm, maybe not”, that’s OK. You don’t need to go and rename your entire back catalogue, just start with your next episode.

Your title might not be the only thing stopping people listening

If your podcast isn’t growing, it’s very easy to assume you need to promote it more. Yes, promotion is important, but what happens when someone DOES find your podcast?

Your cover artwork, podcast name, description, podcast episode titles and show notes are all helping them decide whether they want to listen. If those things aren’t clear, sending more people to your podcast might not solve the problem.

Think your podcast could be working harder?

Maybe you’re reading this thinking your episode titles aren’t the only thing you could improve. And when you’re so close to your own podcast, it can be hard to work out what’s helping and what’s getting in the way.

That’s exactly what my Podcast Audit is for. I’ll look at your podcast as a whole and show you what’s working, what I’d change and where there could be opportunities to make it easier for the right people to find and listen to your show.

You might already have some brilliant episodes sitting there. Let’s make it easier for the right people to choose them.

Laura McRae
Podcast Strategist & Podcast Producer