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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\nAdditionally, most hosting platforms (including RedCircle) agree to the IAB\u2019s definition of a \u201cdownload\u201d. The measurement guidelines are complicated, but in general, a \u201cdownload\u201d means that the listener listened to a portion of the content for at least one (1) minute. The same device on the same network downloading the same content within 24 hours will not be counted twice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But that doesn\u2019t necessarily mean that downloads are 1:1 when it comes to audience size. While you may have 1,000 downloads, the number of actual listeners may be lower than that. Some downloads may be 1 person listening multiple times to the same episode, or it could even be automatically downloaded episodes. In fact, Apple Podcasts automatically downloads<\/em><\/strong><\/a> 1-3 episodes for every show that is followed<\/em><\/strong> (more on that later!)<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are roughly three major places to source data on your podcast: your hosting platform, a third-party service, and\/or the listening platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, we may be biased with this particular recommendation, but your hosting platform offers the most complete data (heck, even Podnews<\/a> says so!) This is because hosting platforms receive data from the various places your show is distributed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Another way to view data is through a third-party app such as Magellan, Claritas, Podscribe, etc. These platforms provide you with either a \u201cPrefix URL\u201d or a \u201cTracking Pixel\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Finally, you can view the stats for your show on each individual listening platform. However, it\u2019s important to keep in mind that this might not give you the full picture of your listeners. Each listening platform attracts different kinds of folks. For example, younger audiences tend to favor YouTube over Apple Podcast. Just be sure to keep that in mind when viewing and comparing these stats!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, you might expect that each of these sources follow the same rules for measuring, right? Well, that\u2019s not exactly<\/em> the case. While most hosting platforms and third-party prefix platforms follow the guidance of the IAB<\/a>, a few listening platforms do not adhere to these guidelines. The numbers provided by platforms that do not adhere to these guidelines may differ vastly from platforms that do follow these guidelines. Be sure to keep that in mind!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Speaking of vast differences; Apple, Spotify, and YouTube do not<\/em> follow the IAB guidelines. Instead, they have created their own terms and definitions for podcast listening. Let\u2019s take a look at them individually so we can better understand them!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Apple doesn\u2019t count \u201cdownloads\u201d but, rather, uses their own proprietary terms<\/a> to showcase your podcast\u2019s performance:<\/p>\n\n\n\n As you can see, the metrics Apple Podcasts uses to showcase performance differs vastly from what your podcast hosting platform and prefix provider might be showing you. It\u2019s important to take these metrics with a grain of salt since their accuracy is a bit lacking, at least when it comes to counting \u201cdownloads\u201d! Remember earlier, when we mentioned that Apple Podcasts automatically downloads 1-3 episodes every<\/em> time you follow a show? Yeah, those are counted in the \u201clisteners\u201d stat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Your numbers will most likely appear higher in Apple Podcasts when compared to other platforms due to the way that they count \u201cplays\u201d and \u201clisteners\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Spotify recently announced<\/a> that podcasts with 50,000+ \u201cplays\u201d will have their \u201cplay counts\u201d visible as \u201cincremental milestones\u201d. They state that the exact numbers won\u2019t be shared, but just the incremental milestones including 50k, 100k, and so on. Exciting news! But what does Spotify define as a \u201cplay\u201d? Let\u2019s find out!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Like Apple Podcasts, Spotify has created their own<\/em> way<\/a> of measuring podcasts. One that doesn\u2019t adhere to the agreed-upon standards set forth by the IAB:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Again, you can see that these metrics differ greatly from what the IAB defines and even what other platforms measure. Spotify\u2019s metrics tend to count users more than once depending on their behavior. So, their metrics also need to be taken with a grain of salt. Generally, though, the patterns and trends seen on Spotify should correlate with your podcast hosting platform. For example, if you\u2019re seeing a 10% increase for all metrics on Spotify, then you should see a similar increase on your hosting platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n YouTube holds their information a little bit closer to their chest. They haven\u2019t shared many details on how they measure podcast performance on their platform. That said, it\u2019s generally understood<\/a> by experts in podcasting that they count a \u201cplay\u201d as a minimum of 30 seconds. Which, again, differs from the agreed-upon standards shared by the IAB.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2013<\/p>\n\n\n\n You can probably tell by now that trying to compare across listening platforms and your hosting platform can be tough. Especially since three of the largest listening platforms define \u201cdownloads\u201d (and their equivalents\u201d) entirely differently from your hosting platform as well as each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Our rule of thumb<\/strong>: Be cautious with the information listening platforms provide you. These metrics can be helpful in understanding how your podcast is performing on that specific platform, and ways you can increase your performance there, but they don\u2019t provide you with a wholly accurate look at your performance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hosting platforms have the benefit of pulling information from several sources, which can help to provide a much fuller picture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Like a lot of other hosting platforms, RedCircle adheres to the IAB\u2019s definition of \u201cdownloads\u201d<\/strong>. We only count an action as a download if the user listens to a minimum of one (1) minute of content. We also do not count the listener again until 24 hours after their first \u201cdownload\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Instead of boring you with the finer details, we recommend perusing our Help articles for a better understanding of our analytics tools. Maybe grab a latte or hot cup of tea while you browse!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Whew<\/em>, that was extensive! We hope we were able to shed a bit more light on this complicated topic. Though we\u2019re sure that we\u2019ll be creating another blog in the future as the landscape for podcast measurement continues to evolve!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Interested in testing out our advanced analytics? Join today and unlock a 7-day Free Trial! Explore our platform to its fullest without spending a dime.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most podcast hosting platforms agree upon the term \u201cdownload\u201d to refer to \u201clistens\u201d, \u201cplays\u201d, or \u201cstreams\u201d of an episode. This is because hosting platforms have no way<\/em> to determine if a person hits play on the third-party apps (like Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc.) when tuning in to a podcast. These apps do not share that level of information with hosting platforms.<\/p>\n\n\n\nSources Galore<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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Apple Podcasts<\/h6>\n\n\n\n
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How RedCircle Measures Downloads<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
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