How to find hidden reviews on Apple Podcasts (iTunes)

Let’s say it has been an exhausting day. So you crack open a bottle of wine, get your food on the pan, and put on your favorite podcast while cooking a delicious meal. In today’s podcast, you hear a review of a book you’ve always wanted to read. Sounds perfect, right? 

Every other person has developed the novel habit of listening to podcasts. Are you doing boring household chores? No problem, your podcast is here. Do you wish to kill time on a subway ride home? Your podcast comes to the rescue again! This generation of young adults has emerged as the ultimate podcast listening generation. Never has there been more of a demand for this medium than there is now. As consumers of audio content, the ease of listening to one’s favorite topic on the go has practically made Podcasts a cultural phenomenon. 

The Rise of Podcasts

The undisputable rise of Podcasts as the new medium of infotainment has been proven by the sheer number of shows available for streaming at this very moment. With over 2,000,000 shows, nearly 48,000,000 episodes combined covering a wide variety of topics like history, science, entertainment, cooking, traveling, true crime, global news, sports, and much more, Podcasts have proved time and again as to why they continue to capture audiences at such phenomenal rates. Unsurprisingly, the global podcast market was estimated to have been worth $9.28 billion in 2019 and $11.07 billion in the year 2020. Forecasts further predict that this industry is growing at a compounded rate of 27.5% from 2020 to 2027. Interesting, isn’t it? 

Many content creators and professionals alike turn to this platform to engage with audiences and churn out meaningful content. Just like any other form of infotainment, there is an implicit need for one’s podcast to stand out among every other podcast of the same kind. While some capture audiences through their unique podcast music, others look to play around with free background music and integrate it into their show to create the vibe that they have set for themselves.  

In such circumstances, insights into one’s podcast like statistics showing its performance, personal comments from listeners, and understanding the reach of one’s podcast has over audiences across the globe proves to be extremely crucial. These are more commonly known as podcast reviews. Reviews are of immense help when you improve your content or marketing based on data and analytics. If you are a podcaster that is exhausted from relying solely on your podcast intro music appeal and you’re looking to achieve sustainable growth through this platform truly, it is essential to have these insights.  

So, what does  “review” of a podcast actually mean? 

Ultimately, reviewing a podcast is essentially giving (hopefully constructive and qualitative) feedback about the podcast itself. The more reviews one gets on their show, the better is the quality of the growth that they can achieve. It works in a very simple manner: the higher the number of reviews one is able to access, the better is the potential for controlled and directional improvement. Therefore, it becomes an absolute necessity that a podcaster is up to date with every review that comes his way. They must know how to analyze said data and eventually use it for marketing themselves in the industry better. 

While it is easy to say all of these things, many podcasters struggle to grasp the infinite world of data and statistics. No one was born with the knowledge of statistics and data interpretation – leave that boring and arduous task to the likes of Newton and Einstein, right? Growing one’s audience without spending tens and thousands of bucks is a useful skillset to have in the long haul. With the added issue of hidden reviews, the only sustainable solution is outsourcing one’s analytics to another platform. It is why you need to think outside the box.  

While platforms for acquiring free stock music are well known among audio content creators, what one should be aware of are the platforms that offer invaluable assistance in discovering and arranging Podcast reviews in meaningful ways. Most of the time, getting your work to feel like real success is a legitimate hustle. There is, however, definitely good news for everyone; online platforms like Podkite work in a very specific manner – they offer the most efficient way of circumventing hidden reviews on platforms like Apple Podcasts (iTunes).

How can a podcaster ask for a review?

If anyone wants to fully benefit from online podcast analytic tools, getting those prized reviews on their show becomes their first priority. To ease the process, here are a few ideas to get those reviews rolling in:

Insert a hyperlink.

One of the easiest ways a creator can get an honest review is to keep it super easy. The ease of tapping on a hyperlink will guide the listener to making pro-review choices automatically! A link could look like this: ReviewThisPodcast.com/MY_PODCAST or this demo link.

Incentivize your listeners to leave a review.

Suggesting a simple coupon winning the contest for the most reviews could whip up that magic when it comes to collecting a decent number of reviews on one’s podcast.

Simply ask them.

These platforms have ultimately been made for one major purpose – to provide the creator and the listener a common ground to have an indirect interaction. Including a small request at the beginning or at the very end of a podcast could really give a boost to the influx of reviews one receives. 

Why should podcasters turn to these websites to acquire valuable insights into their reviews? 

Let’s take the case of Apple Podcasts. As one of the biggest players in the music industry, users worldwide have had a wonderful experience with the famous streaming platform, ranging from a good selection of music to ease of accessibility for preferred content. So, is this platform pitch-perfect for creators then? Not.

It seems that the issue is quite specific. Podcasters, I.e., the creators of these Podcasts, have been facing certain hiccups regarding accessing reviews and insights into their audience’s feedback. Reigning as the king of podcast analytics, the Apple platform has been designed in a way that allows reviews and ratings to impact the discoverability of one’s podcast directly. 

Attacking the issue of Hidden reviews

However, numerous podcasters that have been a part of the and Apple Podcasts / iTunes community for the past few years have brought up the issue of hidden reviews on their podcasts. Try as they may, many if not all of these creators struggle to understand the invisibility of insights like accessing reviews from some countries on high-profile platforms like Apple Podcasts. To put it simply, hidden reviews make it difficult to view detailed analytics of one’s podcasts. 

It is easy to understand why this could be a major impediment for podcasters on these platforms – how else will they develop, improve and promote their podcasts in a better way? 

As mentioned before, most of these problems seem to stem from hidden reviews. From podcasters claiming that they cannot view all of the reviews posted on their podcast to not being able to see anonymous ratings, streaming platforms all across the board have faced flak from podcast creators. Aside from stomping down on royalty-free music, the opacity surrounding the backing up of data for analytics and the tools used to interpret the reviews received on a podcast have always been carefully kept out of public scrutiny by Apple music. 

Using the right tools at the right time

Fortunately, existing online platforms like Podkite Reviews already offer these insights, coming to your aid and giving you exactly what you’re looking for. Some of them have specifically been designed to present podcasters with discoverability statistics, tools for engagement, and monitoring facilities. They are essentially a one-stop shop to review everything from chart rankings to reviews and ratings across all major streaming platforms. Thanks to them, Podcast reviews, ratings, and analytics have now become unbelievably easy to access. 

All in all, Podcasts are the newest revolution in the infotainment industry. Armed with the right tools of analysis, the possibility of turning a profit for oneself and using it as an opportunity to increase one’s discoverability becomes a realistic goal. Though numerous other issues exist in this industry, being up to date with relevant feedback and ratings will help anyone sail through the cutthroat competition. Guaranteed success does come about easy – it’s all a matter of using the right tools, isn’t it? 

Conclusion

Podcasters and content creators alike should remember that updating their knowledge outside of their familiar world is necessary to thrive in this industry. Having your podcast reviews dodge the annoying incidents of hidden reviews, all the while being presented comprehensively, is the best any podcaster could ask for as a media creator. 

They say mixing business with pleasure is a bad thing. However, the pleasure of having all of your reviews presented in tip-top fashion in the blink of an eye is a good thing for business. After all, there’s no harm in making one’s life easier while having a bit of fun.