Show Notes 101

What are show notes?

A few years ago, I tuned in to my first podcast episode. As a person who loves to learn and hear stories, I was immediately hooked. Ever since then, I have listened to more podcasts than music. One of the main reasons podcasts have become so popular is that you can listen while you are doing other things. This was certainly a selling point for me- while I loved YouTube, it just is not possible to watch a YouTube video and drive, clean the house, or work at the same time! Podcasts give freedom that video content does not while allowing for lots of information to be absorbed at one time.

Great right?

Yes, except when I want to follow up on something that the guest or host is talking about. I'll be listening to a podcast, driving down the road-no pen reach, as they rattle off valuable information about a person, place, or thing that I am never going to remember if I don't write down. If the podcast does not have show notes, then that means I will need to listen back through the episode for this information. As a busy mom, that is just not happening.

Cue the show notes

At the most basic level, show notes are an overview of a podcast episode, a place for listeners to get more information on the topic and guest, and a place to put links to products or services discussed. Show notes are made in various formats, lengths, and styles. Some podcasters do show notes themselves; others choose to hire someone else to do them. Some podcasts don’t have show notes at all. A short paragraph about the episode is better than nothing at all; every podcast needs show notes.

Good podcast show notes include these elements:

• A recap of what happened in the episode

• A list of important moments or topics discussed in the episode, ideally timestamped.

• A place to find out more information about a guest speaker and ways to connect with them.

• A place to easily access additional resources about the topics discussed

• A list of products and affiliate links discussed in the podcast episode

• A call to action for listeners, A place to quickly connect with the show across various platforms to leave comments, likes, reviews, ratings, and take part in any special offers you may have

• Show notes should be clear, easy to read, and navigate

• Include good keywords for SEO

Benefits Of Having Show Notes

• It brings more organic traffic to your podcast.

• Delivers higher value to your listeners by giving them a place to easily to refer to for product, resource, or guest speaker information

• It gives your podcast a professional, polished feel

• Establishes you and your guests as trusted experts in your respective industry

• Allows your listeners to multitask while listening to the podcast and not worry about scrambling for the pen to jot down important information

• Provides content that can easily be shared via social media or email subscribers to increase interest in the episode or show.

• Draws high-quality guests and provides a nice platform to highlight their expertise and knowledge.

Show notes are an essential element to every podcast. Check out my website, or shoot me an email about having show notes done for your podcast today!