E683 - I Googled Myself and Not One Mention of My Social Media Accounts - Podcasting Tips and Search Engine Optimization SEO

Summary

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The How To Podcast Series — E683: “I Googled Myself and Not One Mention of My Social Media Accounts - Podcasting Tips and Search Engine Optimization SEO”

Host: Dave Campbell
Date: May 11, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this insightful episode, host Dave Campbell revisits an earlier “Daily Dave” segment to explore the powerful, often overlooked intersection of podcasting and Search Engine Optimization (SEO). He takes listeners step by step through a real-life experiment: Googling your podcast and reflecting on the results. Dave reveals why owning your online presence beyond social media is critical for growth, visibility, and true audience connection. He infuses practical tips with personal experience, offering actionable advice for podcasters at all stages.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. The Value of Googling Yourself (00:59)

• Exercise Suggested: Dave encourages every podcaster to search their own show in Google and see what shows up.
  • “I would encourage you to try this yourself and see what happens and see if it mirrors what I see.” (01:10)
• Dave uses his podcast “Living the Next Chapter” as a case study, after 200+ episodes and 16 months of production.

2. The Results — Where Your Podcast Appears (01:22)

• Top search results: Apple Podcasts, his own website, YouTube channel, hosting platform (Buzzsprout), Spotify, Podchaser.
  • “The top six on page one of Google for Living the Next Chapter … Not one single message of any of my social media platforms. Facebook is not listed here. Not one mention of Facebook. Not one mention of Instagram, not one mention of my TikTok. Not one mention of my Clapper. Nothing.” (02:00)
• Key Insight: Social accounts don't automatically rise to the top in search engine results for your show’s name.

3. Control vs. Dependency — Owning Your Web Presence (02:35)

• Dave highlights the importance of owning your domain and website for real authority and brand security.
  • “Do you have a website of your own that you own? Not somebody, somebody, somebody, slash, Living the Next Chapter? No, just Living the Next Chapter. Nothing before, nothing after. Not a free host for a website. I own the domain. There is only one Living the Next Chapter dot com. There is only one and it’s me.” (02:51)
• Dismisses reliance on only social media; platforms can change or disappear.
  • “You don’t own Facebook, people. It's free. If it is free, you’re the product. Sorry, you’re the product.” (06:39)

4. Platforms and Practical Recommendations (03:50)

• Recommends being present on major podcast providers (Apple, Spotify, Podchaser, etc.)
• Website Hosting Advice: Favors GoDaddy for ease of use—strong words against free/temporary hosts and WordPress fatigue.
  • “If I hear WordPress one more time, I think I'm gonna yell WordPress. Whatever. I have a website that I built myself through my host on GoDaddy and it's serving me so well.” (04:12)

5. Social Media as a Supplement, Not the Core (05:33)

• “Land on social media, use it as a tool, but don’t live there. Okay? Think of like, of a vacation house, like a place you go to hang out, but you don’t actually live there on a day to day basis…” (06:20)
• Warns about building a house on rented land; your audience connection should not rely on the whims of social platforms.

6. Actionable Challenge and Listener Engagement (06:41)

• Dave challenges listeners to Google their own podcast and share results via a voice message on his site.
  • “Type in the name of your podcast if you have any episodes in the world at all and tell me what happens. I’d love to hear it… Did you show up and what were you…what were the listings and what page were you on? That’s interesting.” (06:56)
• Proof of success: “For me, the top six listings on page one of Google for Living the Next Chapter are all listed there. There’s no one else, just me. Little old me.” (07:15)

7. The Importance of Having a Podcast Website (07:55)

• Final, strong advice: Every serious podcaster should have a dedicated website—control, discoverability, and community-building all benefit.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On dependency on social media:
  “If you’re putting all of your trust in Facebook to be found for your podcast, you’re not going to do very well and you need some help.” (08:10)
• On audience connection:
  “I’m happy if one person listens to the show. And if I can have a conversation with that one person, all of this is worth it. I’m not here to sell you a mattress. I’m here to help you with your podcast.” (09:01 – 09:08)
• On engagement habits for podcasters:
  “When you listen to the show, while you’re listening to the show…Instead of saying if you are listening to this part…replace the word if with when or as you listen to the show.” (12:09)
  • Entertaining riff: “We don’t need any ifs. We don’t need to see your ifs. We don’t need those stinking ifs.” (13:30)
• On leaving a mark:
  “You and I need to talk. Like, soon. I need to talk to you. I got stuff to tell you, even though we haven’t met yet…” (14:10)

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Bonus Tip — Podcast Language Patterns (11:26)

• Replace "if" with "when" or "while":
  Dave observes that podcast hosts often say “if you’re listening…”—but it’s more powerful and accurate to say “when you’re listening…” since the listener is present and engaged.
• This conscious language tweak can increase engagement and make the host-listener relationship feel more immediate.

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:59 — Introduction to Google self-search experiment
• 01:22–02:35 — Breakdown of Dave’s podcast search results
• 02:51 — The importance of owning your domain
• 04:12 — Gripes about WordPress and praise for GoDaddy
• 05:33 — Social media’s decreasing discoverability role
• 06:20 — Analogy: Social platforms as a vacation home
• 06:56 — Call to action: Listeners try Googling their podcast
• 07:55 — Strong case for a dedicated website
• 09:01–09:08 — Heartfelt mission: Connection > audience size
• 11:26 — Mini-masterclass: Using “when/while” not “if”
• 14:09–14:23 — Friendly invitation for direct listener engagement

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Conclusion

Dave Campbell delivers a clear, practical message:
If you want your podcast to grow and your audience to find you, don’t build your brand on rented (social media) land. Own your domain, create a central website, and make yourself easy to find in search engines. Social media is a tool, not your home base.

He closes with encouragement, humor, and a direct invitation for listeners to reach out, reminding everyone that authentic, direct connection is always at the heart of podcasting.

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For resources, community, and to send your podcast Google results, visit howtopodcast.ca.
Want to support the show? Buy Dave a coffee via the website!

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Transcript

[A]

Hey, welcome back to the how to Podcast series. It's Dave with you. Hope you're doing well.

[B]

As part of these daily episodes for

[A]

the How To Podcast series, I am going back into the archives, grabbing some of my old Daily Daves because they're really good and bringing them forward into today. So, yes, this episode has come out in the past, but so much good stuff in here for us as podcasters. And this is all about SEO and looking yourself up online. And it might sound weird to say it, but Googling yourself, yes, go Google yourself. And now we have AI. And so this episode came out in the past. So you might. Some of this might sound familiar or you're totally unaware of it because you've never gotten back into the archive. So I'm bringing it forward, sharing it with you. Here's an older episode of the How To Podcast series, but it's still got some relevant stuff for us today. I hope you enjoy this. Here's an older version of Dave. Here we go.

[B]

When we talk about search engine optimization, that's when you go to Google and you type something in and see what comes up. So I just went to Google and typed in Living the Next Chapter podcast. I would encourage you to try this yourself and see what happens and see if it mirrors what I see. So that's one of my podcasts. Over 200 episodes. 16 months in the process of that podcast. It's really new, but 200 episodes. We're having a great time over at Living the Next Chapter. Go over there and check it out. You can even Google it. Living the Next Chapter podcast. So when I type in Living the Next Chapter podcast, here's what I see on my screen. Okay. And I want to bring something to your attention. I see my Apple listing, number one, I see my website, Living the Next Chapter dot com. Number two, I see my YouTube channel, Living the Next Chapter podcast. I see my Buzzsprout was where I'm hosted for Living the Next Chapter. I see my Spotify listing for Living the next chapter. Podchaser for living the next chapter. So 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, the top six on page one of Google for Living the Next Chapter. And not one single message of any of my social media social media platforms. Facebook is not listed here. Not one mention of Facebook. Not one mention of Instagram, not one mention of my TikTok. Not one mention of my Clapper. Nothing.

[A]

Nothing.

[B]

My Apple listing, my website, my YouTube channel, my hosting site, my Spotify listing for the podcast and podchaser. Type in the name of your Podcast and see what happens. If you've been doing this for a little while, go type it in, see what happens. Do you see any social media information around your show? I post for Living the Next Chapter on all the social platforms that I am on on a regular basis. So, Dave, what are you learning from this? I think you need to be where the search takes people. So are you on Apple? Yes or no? Are you. Do you have a website of your own that you own? Not somebody, somebody, somebody, slash, Living the Next Chapter? No, just Living the Next Chapter. Nothing before, nothing after. Not a free host for a website. I own the domain. There is only one. Living the Next Chapter dot com. There is only one and it's me. I own the website. I own the address. Living the Next chapter podcast on YouTube. Number three on my search. Is your podcast on YouTube? It isn't. Okay, well, we need to talk. I can help you with this. It's simple. You take a playlist, put all your episodes in there, and then you convert that to a podcast and it shows up in search people. It's on the page. It's in front of me on Google. Number three is YouTube Living the Next Chapter podcast. Buzzfroat supports the podcast and that's where are my host is for my show. I love Buzz Prout. It's an amazing place for people who are not super techie. If I hear WordPress one more time, I think I'm gonna yell WordPress. Whatever. I have a website that I built myself through my host on GoDaddy and it's serving me so well. My gosh, whatever. So Living the Next Chapter is hosted on GoDaddy. Again, I love it. It's a really great website. I'd highly recommend it over all of the other sites out there to buy a domain again, buy your domain, buy the address. Don't. Don't use a free place. Own your audience. Own your communication with your audience. Own the experience. Don't. I hear so many people saying, oh, well, I use Facebook and it is the best thing in the world. Okay, for an aging population, maybe. But the newest, newest people coming up, the younger ones, they're not going to Facebook. Grandma's there sharing your recipes on banana bread. So go. Go to where your audience is. If your audience is on Facebook, love them and cherish them. Do it. Do it 100. But for me, I'd rather go where people are going to be, not where they are currently or leaving from. It's always good to be ahead of the curve. So I would love for you to do this exercise. Go to google.com if you never heard of it. It's pretty amazing. Type in the name of your podcast if you have any episodes in the world at all and tell me what happens. I'd love to hear it. Go to my, go to howtopodcast ca. There's a little speak pipe button. And tell me what happened when you typed in your name of your podcast. I want to know, did you show up and what were you, what were the listings and what page were you on? That's interesting. So for me, I was quite impressed and happy to see that the top six listings on page one of Google for Living the Next Chapter are all listed there. There's no one else, just me. Little old me. Having your podcast online and not under a social media thumb where you don't own Facebook, people. It's free. If it is free, you're the product. Sorry, you're the product. Own your real estate, stop renting. Land on social media, use it as a tool, but don't live there. Okay? Think of like, of a vacation house, like a place you go to hang out, but you don't actually live there on a day to day basis because anytime the landlord could show up and say, you know what, Facebook's not working out for us, we're going to close up shop. Then what are you going to do, people? Again, go to Google. Type in the name of your podcast. I would love to hear where you rank, where you are and how we can get you in the top six. Hey, it works. I'm doing stuff and it's working and I'd love, I would love to help you be found. But again, nobody is not one listing here for Facebook mentioning my podcast. So if you're putting all of your trust in Facebook to be found for your podcast, you're not going to do very well and you need some help. So please reach out. I would love to have a conversation with you and work with you to be found on this beautiful, wonderful place called Google because it works. And I would ask you to try it yourself and see how it works for you. Type in Living the Next Chapter podcast into Google and let me know what you see for me. Top six, I write their Apple, my website, YouTube, Buzzsprout, Spotify and Podchaser. Some thought for you today as you build out your website, as you build out your show, I think you need a website for your podcast. That's my advice and I can help you with that. Reach out. Let's have a conversation. Thanks for listening to the Daily Dave, more episodes coming. I really appreciate you guys. We're way over almost 6,000 listens for their podcast in a very short amount of time. I know I don't like to brag about any types of numbers. When I know to some people, they're like, that's not very many, Dave. For me it's. It is because I'm connecting with great people around the world and I'm happy if one person listens to the show.

[A]

1.

[B]

And if I can have a conversation with that one person, all of this is worth it. I'm not here to sell you a mattress. I'm here to help you with your podcast. Thanks for listening to how to Podcast series. More episodes coming soon. Get out there and do a podcast

[A]

and I can help.

[B]

Take care. Talk soon.

[A]

So I get asked quite often, usually at the end of a podcast, like right now, Dave, how can we help you? Like, how can we as a listener, like, support the show? Can we come rake your leaves? Can we cut the grass? Shovel the snow? Watch your dog help you move? What can we do? Clean your dishes?

[B]

Oh, that'd be interesting.

[A]

Well, if you don't, if you can't do that because you know you're in Poland, maybe you can help us by supporting us with our Buy me a coffee. It's right there on our website and you know, it just will help us to a stay fueled because, you know, we drink a lot of coffee around here and it helps the show. So if you want to help us,

[B]

it's out of the goodness of your heart.

[A]

I can tell you that listening to the podcast to this point, you've already helped us so much. But I do have people saying, dave, I'd love to give back something small, even just to the show. Buy Me a Coffee link is on our website howtopodcast ca. And you can support the show that way. It would mean a lot to have you on our team supporting what we do here. If you find value in the show, then that's great. Share the show, tell somebody about it. And when somebody says, dave, I want to start a podcast, who should I check out?

[B]

Oh, you should go check out the

[A]

how to podcast series because of all the great co hosts and all the things that happen here, the meetups, everything. And I would appreciate that. And then fill her a cup once in a while if you can. But again, thank you so much for being here supporting the how to Podcast series.

[B]

Take care. Talk soon.

[A]

You're still here. Amazing. Okay, so, all right, so this show is meant to be more than just me talking about podcasting and giving you suggestions and pointing you in the right direction and supporting you. It's also meant to be a demonstration as well of how you can podcast. And so I'm demonstrating right now a little bonus tip at the end of the episode, encouraging my listeners to listen longer. You're here, so it worked. Awesome. So that's one thing. But I'm also experimenting in real time for you as a listener. So one of the things I would say to you is, when I listen to podcasts, often I hear podcasters fall into this. This trap and what they say. They'll say if you're listening to this show, and it's quite obvious that they are because they heard you say it. So instead of saying if you are listening to this part, if you are still here listening, if you are listening to the show, maybe, and this is just a suggestion, replace the word if with when or as you listen to the show, when you listen to the show, while you're listening to the show, instead of if. Because it's pretty well understood that if they're hearing you talk right now, then they're not ifing anything. That sounded like I was swearing. I must work. They're not iffing in the moment. They're actually listening. So you don't have to assume or ask or ponder if they're listening, you're still here. So I don't have to say if you're still listening to the podcast right now. Thank you. Because you are listening to the podcast. You're right here, so that's kind of obvious. So maybe think about replacing the word if from your vocabulary to as you listen to this podcast, while you're listening to this podcast, as you. Any take the if, remove all the ifs. We don't need any ifs. We don't need to see your ifs. We don't need those thinking ifs. Yeah, go with as, whatever, something different. Because it's pretty blatantly obvious they're listening, they're still here, you're still here. So I don't have to assume. Right? Yeah. This music makes me feel like I'm on Leave it to Beaver. Now, I. I know you're probably way too young to even know what I'm talking about. It's not. It's not a show about wildlife, so. But no, it's a TV show. Anyways, it's very happy music and I like to. I like to end on a high note.

[B]

So thank you for being here.

[A]

Thank you for being part of the show. HowtoPodcast ca. You and I need to talk. Like, soon. I need to talk to you. I got stuff to tell you, even though we haven't met yet, so. How to podcast ca Calendars.

[B]

Right there.

[A]

You and I, let's do this. Take care.