Practical guide

Podcast directory checks before launch

Last materially reviewed 2026-09-19

Quick answerA public feed and a directory listing are not the same completed task.
What to know

Setup checklist: choose the intended destinations

List the directories that matter to your audience and the responsible account for each. Do not submit everywhere simply to make the launch checklist longer. Some destinations may need a separate account, approval or format handling. Confirm current requirements before promising a launch date. Keep the show’s official title, artwork and contact information consistent so the receiving service can identify the intended publication.

What to know

Inspect the feed first

Check that the feed contains the intended public material and no draft or private content. Review the latest episode, dates, explicit-content information where applicable and the links a listener will see. A directory submission is not the right place to discover that the wrong audio file was attached. Use an authorized review process that does not expose confidential material through public validation tools.

What to know

Record each result separately

Maintain a short table of destination, submitted feed, account owner, status and listing URL. Distinguish submitted, pending and visible. A confirmation email may acknowledge receipt without confirming publication. If a directory takes longer than expected, check the existing submission rather than creating a duplicate. The same principle applies when a show has moved: inspect the current listing before assuming a fresh submission is necessary.

What to know

Test as a listener

Once visible, inspect the actual listing and a representative episode using the intended listening path. Check the title, artwork and release order rather than assuming the dashboard preview is identical. Keep any platform-specific differences in the launch record. This does not require generating artificial audience activity or repeatedly downloading the catalogue. A bounded, documented check is enough to establish what was observed and which destinations remain pending. For Apple, the published technical requirements include a stable episode GUID and a unique media enclosure. Preserve those identifiers instead of manufacturing replacement episodes to solve a visibility problem.

Continue when useful

Next: The small-network podcast launch checklist

Launch only after content, ownership, distribution and recovery each have an observable pass.

Open The small-network podcast launch checklist →

Sources used for this page

These records support the facts and comparisons above. Merchant-controlled records are labelled so you can separate product claims from independent evidence.

  1. Transistor distribution — Merchant documentation · transistor.fm · Merchant-controlled · checked 2026-09-19
  2. Transistor multi-show hosting — Merchant documentation · transistor.fm · Merchant-controlled · checked 2026-09-19
  3. Apple RSS technical requirements — platform rules, not certification of this site — Standards and certification reference · podcasters.apple.com · Publisher independence not verified · checked 2026-09-19