Publish Video Podcasts To Spotify And YouTube

Summary

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Buzzcast Episode Summary

Episode Title: Publish Video Podcasts To Spotify And YouTube
Date: August 7, 2026
Hosts: Jordan, Kevin, and Alban (main conversation between Jordan and Alban)

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Overview

This episode of Buzzcast celebrates a significant product update: Buzzsprout’s rollout of one-click video distribution for podcasts to Spotify and YouTube, in addition to Apple Podcasts. The hosts discuss their hands-on experience launching these features, the impact on podcast workflow and mental bandwidth, how this opens video podcasting to more creators, and early stats from Buzzcast’s transition to video formats.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

Launching Video Podcasting on Spotify & YouTube

• Buzzsprout’s new feature: Now allows podcasters to upload a single video file and distribute it to Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and audio platforms in one streamlined process.
  • “We launched Spotify and YouTube video distribution. ... We've been testing both for, I don't know, at least three, four, five episodes.” – Alban (01:16)
• Previous launches targeted Apple Podcasts video (using HLS).
• Motivation: Simplify a technical, time-consuming process that previously required multiple uploads, unique formatting, and individual platform management.

Notable Quote

• “When we added the ability to just upload one video file into Buzzsprout, ... when it publishes, it publishes to YouTube, to Spotify, to Apple, and then, like, everywhere else on audio. ... I now have all this extra time that I can use to improve my craft or, you know, get other things done.” – Jordan (02:49)

Improving Workflow and Reducing Burnout

• Both hosts discuss the former pain points:
  • Multiple logins, different specs, minor but compounding time costs.
  • Tedious, draining nature of manually distributing to social/video platforms.
• The new integrated process frees up time for creative work and experimentation.
• Parallels drawn to tools like Buffer for social media, as a way of handling “workflow overload.”

Notable Quote

• “The creation part is still fun. The publishing part, especially when I'm uploading it to all these different spots, it's not all that fun.” – Alban (03:25)

Video Podcasting: Personal Experience and New Surprises

• Initial skepticism about video podcasting has given way to genuine enjoyment.
• Hosts remain primarily audio podcast consumers, but video has been more rewarding to produce than expected.
• Setup is easier than anticipated, though slightly more complex than standard audio podcast feeds.

Technical Details & Plan Information

• YouTube and Spotify video publishing are now included in Buzzsprout’s $25/month video plan.
• Plan includes 1080p (HD) video across destinations, with careful handling to preserve video quality.
• Over 2,000 podcasters at Buzzsprout are utilizing video podcasting.
• One-click distribution also now includes iHeartRadio for audio (announced mid-episode).

Notable Quote

• “I think Apple Podcast video and Spotify video are still quite a bit more—even YouTube—all quite a bit harder to set up than audio submissions. ... In Buzzsprout, it’s one click.” – Alban (05:30)

Early Stats from Buzzcast’s Video Episodes

• Buzzcast's average downloads: 1,000–2,000 per episode.
• Recent episode with guest Courtney Elmer is the best performer, both in downloads and engagement.
• Stats from the past five video-published episodes (approximate totals):
  • 7,000 impressions/downloads/views (audio + video + YouTube).
  • 754 video plays in Apple Podcasts (~10% of total audience).
  • 130 views on Spotify.
  • 117 views on a newly launched YouTube channel (with no active promotion yet).

Memorable Moment

• “Do you know what the biggest episode we’ve had in the last ... ten episodes is?”
  “Was it one that you and Kevin were on?”
  “No, it’s one that we were not on. Courtney Elmer came and joined you for an episode and it blew up. Everybody went, wow, the content got so much better and way less goofing around from the boys.” – Alban & Jordan (08:13–08:30)

Reflections on Platform Differences

• YouTube offers discoverability and “virality potential,” reaching new audiences thanks to its recommendation engine.
• Traditional podcast apps (Apple Podcasts, Overcast, etc.) remain the home for the most loyal listeners, providing a regular, focused experience without the distractions of YouTube.
• Video podcasts can serve both goals: wide reach via YouTube, steady listenership via audio-first platforms.

Notable Quote

• “Apple and all the podcast listening apps in particular, they are going to be where our most loyal audience stays ... I think this is a really nice setup with both the opportunity for virality over on YouTube and the consistency and reliability and delivery of normal RSS podcasting.” – Alban (11:54)

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:00–01:20 – Episode context, launching video podcasting features.
• 01:20–03:30 – Testing process, simplicity of new workflow, parallels to social media tools.
• 03:30–05:00 – Personal reflections: enjoying video, easier setup than expected.
• 05:00–06:47 – Technical specifics on platform support, plan details, and new iHeartRadio integration.
• 07:38–10:40 – Sharing early Buzzcast video stats, discussion of platform-specific engagement.
• 10:43–13:00 – YouTube’s potential for audience growth vs. steady listenership on audio platforms; concluding thoughts.

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Memorable Quotes

• “It is a huge bandwidth hog for your mental health ... But then when we added the ability to just upload one video file into Buzzsprout ... I now have all this extra time that I can use to improve my craft.” – Jordan (02:17)
• “The creation part is still fun. The publishing part, especially when I'm uploading it to all these different spots, it's not all that fun.” – Alban (03:25)
• “Apple and all the podcast listening apps ... are going to be where our most loyal audience stays because they're not going to be constantly bombarded with every Mr. Beast video next to Buzzcast.” – Alban (11:54)

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In summary:
This episode is both an announcement and a case study in integrating video podcasting into established workflows. Buzzsprout’s upgraded toolset eliminates hours of manual work, revitalizes the creative process, and empowers more podcasters to reach hybrid audiences – all without falling into burnout. With early stats and real-world insights, Jordan and Alban make a compelling case for why now is the time to consider reaching podcast audiences through video on Spotify and YouTube, alongside traditional audio distribution.

Transcript

[A]

All right, Jordan, this is a bit of a test.

[B]

What?

[A]

We mostly record this on Tuesdays, and we just launched something big for Buzzsprout. And so now it is Thursday, late afternoon. It's pretty much there's no more time in the day. Friday is when we publish Buzzcast. We're now doing video for Buzzcast.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And I messaged you and said, hey, can we get an episode out tomorrow?

[B]

I said, absolutely. I'm gonna have to start, like, adopting those things that the people do, you know, the podcasters that talk about, like, how they have, like, three days within one day.

[A]

Oh, yes. The guy who is, like, his life hack. Oh, this video is so good. We need to find it and link to it. He's like, my life hack is my first day starts at 6am and it ends at noon. So that's already one day. And the second day goes from noon to six. That's day two. And he's, like, basically just cutting the days down.

[B]

Yeah. So this is late afternoon for you, but it's first thing in the morning for me.

[A]

Yeah. Jordan stacking her days over a lifetime. That's totally different. Explains how you get so much done every day.

[B]

Yeah, exactly. All right, well, you teased that we launched something. What is it?

[A]

Oh, we launched Spotify and YouTube video distribution. So we launched Apple podcast video distribution, which works with hls, and we did that a few months ago, and we've been doing it for our podcast. And then Spotify has video, and so you started uploading video to Spotify, and obviously, YouTube is the biggest video platform in the world. And so you're uploading video to YouTube, and then we go, okay, it's time to add both. And both have been in. We've been testing both for, I don't know, at least three, four, five episodes.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah, I think it's been five episodes.

[A]

And we're now at the spot where there were just so many little things to work through, and it works beautifully now. And now it's out for everybody on Buzzsprout.

[B]

Yeah, this is. This is super exciting. It's so funny being in the position of the podcaster who has to, like, go through all the motions that our podcasters go through, because, like, I'm guinea pig number one, baby. Everything gets tested on me, and I have to go through all those things. But I actually really love it because it's. It makes me so much more excited for when we have launches like this, because I've gone through those pain points of having to juggle all these different Platforms and logins and everything has to be, like, different formats and you have to have descriptions and, like, chapters are, like, handled a little bit differently in, like, certain things. And it's just like, it's not doable, but it is a huge bandwidth hog for your mental health. It takes so much work, and so it feels like you're on the edge of burnout. But then when we added the ability to just upload one video file into buzzsprout, and then it was so cool because I just fill in all my stuff, make sure everything's good, and then I hit schedule. And then when it publishes, it publishes to YouTube, to Spotify, to Apple, and then like, everywhere else on audio. And it's just like, I now have all this extra time that I can use to improve my craft or, you know, get other things done. Like, it's amazing.

[A]

So I had the same experience with social posts. When I was doing all those videos. I had this note that was like, here's the login to post a reel to Facebook. Here's a login to post the reel to Instagram. Here's the login, here's the page to post to X. Here's the one for LinkedIn. Here's the one for TikTok. And it's like, is it hard? No, it is not hard. But each one of them takes a few minutes. Each one of them wants a slightly different format. Each of them has its own little quirks. And so you end up. This note gets bigger and bigger. And eventually I was like this. I know we've used Buffer in the past. Why don't I just go sign up for Buffer again and have one way that I can put a video file in one spot and get it out to all the social places and it's just nicer. And now I create more video content because I know it's not as big of a deal. The creation part is still fun. The publishing part, especially when I'm uploading it to all these different spots, it's not all that fun.

[B]

Yeah, that's actually exactly how I felt because I was really dreading the video process, especially having just extra little things that I had to make sure I was doing. And when you have a streamlined workflow like this, it makes it so much more fun. And I'm actually, like, enjoying some things about video podcasting, which I thought, like, I don't know, like, how it works.

[A]

I didn't expect it either. I. I still am a audio podcast consumer. I only listen to podcasts. I really don't maybe I watch a few YouTube videos, but not many. But I've enjoyed creating it more than I expected.

[B]

Oh, another thing that really surprised me was how easy it was to get this set up. It felt like doing that was going to be really complicated because I remember when YouTube first did like their version of like RSS integration through it was still complicated, right?

[A]

Yeah, the kind of RSS ingestion, it

[B]

wasn't crazy hard, but still like extra steps.

[A]

Yeah. I think Apple podcast video and Spotify video are still quite a bit more. Even YouTube all quite a bit harder to set up than audio submissions. You know, we've had 25 years of, well, 20 years since everything's been in Apple that we've been able to get better and better at RSS distribution and getting into directories. And so it's like, I mean in Buzzbread, it's one click. You go in, you click for each directory and say, get me in there and it's in.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

By the way, third announcement, I'll announce this right now. We also have one click distribution to iHeartRadio. Now we didn't have that. And I was like, why is this so complicated? And I emailed somebody at iHeart and they said, here you go, here's how to do it. And that's out now as well. Iheart made it easy. RSS makes it easy. So the video is a little bit more complicated, but you do it once and then it's done. You get the API key, you claim the show, everything you need to do and it's done. Few things I've missed that I need to cover. YouTube and Spotify are included with all video plans. So starts at $25 a month. That's really what almost every one of our over, I think over 2,000 podcasters now on doing video podcasts with Buzzsprout. Everybody, almost everybody's on that $25 plan. 1080p is included. So you're getting HD video on all those destinations. We make sure that it's set up to not like reprocess the video in a way that makes it super grainy. So you're watch it right now. If this video looks good, then you should, then you'll be happy. And the third is we're only announcing it publicly now because it's available to everybody now. We've had lots of people using it for a bit, but we kind of kept that private. But now you can sign up for buzzsprout today. You can log in, you can set up a video podcast yourself and get your podcast video distributed to Apple Podcast, the Spotify video and YouTube video and audio, which I prefer to everywhere else.

[B]

So now that we've been doing this for a while, do we have any stats that we want to share with our listeners?

[A]

Oh, yes. So we've. I think we've done. I don't know exactly how many video episodes we've done. Maybe close to 10, but I think four or five that are on YouTube and Spotify.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And so we could pull up some of our Buzzcast stats. Disclaimer. Buzzcast isn't the biggest show in the world, but I think we average between a thousand to two thousand downloads an episode, coincidentally, actually. Jordan, do you know that what the biggest episode we've had in the last four, five, ten episodes is?

[B]

Was it one that you and Kevin were on?

[A]

No, it's one that we were not on. Courtney Elmer came and joined you for an episode and it blew up. Everybody went, wow, the content got so much better and way less goofing around from the boys.

[B]

So to be fair, Courtney Elmer was a pretty big get. So I was expecting that.

[A]

Yeah. Huge fan of Courtney. All right, so we're looking at the last five episodes inflated a little bit. With some of the Courtney Elmer numbers across audio and video and YouTube, we are looking at just shy of 7,000 download/views,/youtubes.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

If you were to guess how many of those are video downloads. So that would just be Spotify and Apple.

[B]

Just video.

[A]

Yeah. Maybe we'll go. Well, let's start with Apple. What do you think Apple is?

[B]

Oh, I don't know, 44,000.

[A]

I don't know, 44,001.

[B]

I was thinking 40 and then I said 4,000 or whatever. I don't know. Don't. Why do you make me do math? Why are you.

[A]

The one you're. You can't edit that out. All right, I'll just. I'll tell you. These. 7,000 total impression, download video, everything. 7,000 of all of them. All in whatever you call it. 7,000 podcast things. 754 of those are video plays on Apple Podcasts. So 10% are people who are on Apple podcasts. And clicking. I want to look, watch one of the video episodes. You know, they flip over to video for some portion. Now, I think some of that is that Apple podcast has always been the largest app for us because our podcast historically wasn't in Spotify. So because everyone's listening in Apple podcasts, many are going to switch over to the video segment for a period that doesn't mean 10% of the time they're watching us.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

10% of the listeners go, you know what? I want to watch some video. And when they watch some video now, they're going to show up there.

[B]

Yeah. I can imagine them like pressing play and the video comes up, they're like, no. And like shut it down.

[A]

They pop up, they see me, they go, oh my gosh, turn it off. And then they.

[B]

I'm out.

[A]

Spotify. 130 views. And I think that's actually pretty big is.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

130 people watching this over on Spotify, which we've not been in but for a few episodes or a few of our episodes have been in there.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And we're up to 117 views on YouTube. That's a channel that we haven't promoted in any way. A brand new channel. And it's starting to pick up again. Your episode with Courtney is the number one on that channel.

[B]

Yeah. That's crazy. I mean, still like 117. Because I'm not doing anything on the YouTube channel. I'm starting to like try like I'm experimenting right now with clipping like shorts and stuff like that, which I'm sure we'll talk about later.

[A]

But.

[B]

But like I've posted two. They don't have that much traction. So it's definitely not growth from that.

[A]

Yeah, I think that YouTube is really good at getting distribution. We've talked about this a number of times. YouTube is going to help us get in front of a new audience. The clips will help us get in front of the new audience. We're going to do a bunch of episodes and some will catch on on YouTube.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Apple and all the podcast listening apps in particular, they are going to be where our most loyal audience stays because they're not going to be constantly bombarded with every Mr. Beast video next to Buzzcast on YouTube. You know, on YouTube you're just constantly distracted. And so I don't expect we're going to see a high consistency across the number of views on YouTube. Some will blow up and many will be relatively low. I'm hopeful that the episodes that kind of go, you know, viral, ish or get 10 times the views over on YouTube that those will lead to people listening to us in what I call normal podcast listening apps like Overcast or True Fans or Castbox or, you know, any whatever you listen to Apple podcasts and they'll listen to us there and they'll stick around. And I think this is a really nice setup with both the opportunity for virality over on YouTube and the consistency and reliability and delivery of normal RSS podcasting.

[B]

Yeah, absolutely. I'm I'm really excited about this, so I'm glad that we hopped on to share with everyone what we've been working on at buzzsprout. And until next time, thanks for listening and keep podcast.