Podcast Discoverability Begins in Search. Are You Showing up?

Why is my podcast not growing despite good content?

You put in the hard work every week. You have invested in professional gear, you edit your audio perfectly, and your guests are insightful. But when you look at your podcasting analytics, the numbers tell a frustrating story: your download count is plateauing. This is the most common struggle for independent and professional podcasters alike: knowing your content is valuable, but failing to reach a wider audience.

If you find yourself Googling “how to get more listeners,” you have probably tried promoting on social media or talking about your show to your friends. But to achieve podcast growth, you need to solve a problem: Discoverability. 

To increase podcast downloads, you need to capture the “cold” audience, people who don’t know you yet but are actively looking for content like yours right now. According to a story from The Podcast Host, nearly 50% of listeners find new shows simply by browsing apps like Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Here is the critical statistic that changes everything: 70% of those listeners use the Search Bar of these platforms with specific keywords to find their next binge-listen. If your show doesn’t appear immediately when they type those words, you aren’t just invisible; you are handing those potential fans over to your competitors. PodWars is designed to solve this exact bottleneck. Our free tool tells you immediately if you are ranking high enough to get those organic downloads… or if you need to adjust your strategy.

 ➡️ Check your podcast ranking for free.

The #1 way to grow your audience organically (The “Search Bar” Strategy)

To understand how to get more streams, let’s look at the mechanics of Apple Podcasts (Spotify and other directories work on very similar logic). Understanding the platform’s ecosystem is the first step to growing your podcast. There are four main entry points for a listener:

1. The Homepage : This section is curated by human editors. It is great for brand awareness, but it accounts for only about 6% of new discoveries. It is highly competitive, temporary, and hard to control.
2. The Explorer Tab (where you can find Podcast Charts): About 24% of listeners look here. However, the charts are usually based on recent download velocity. This creates a “chicken and egg” problem: you need downloads to get into the charts to get more downloads.
3. The Library: This is where your existing subscribers live. This drives retention, which is important, but it does not help with new listener acquisition.
4. The Search Bar (The Growth Engine): This is where 70% of new listener discovery happens. It is the most reliable, scalable way to get more traffic to your show without paying for ads.

The “Top 5” Reality

User behavior on podcast apps is similar to Google. When a user searches for “Real Estate Investing,” “Vegan Recipes,” or “Mental Health,” they rarely scroll down past the first screen. The vast majority of clicks go to the top 5 results. If you rank #15, you are invisible. You might get a few accidental clicks, but you won’t see growth. Ranking high for these high-volume keywords is the most sustainable way to get consistent new downloads every single day. If you are wondering how to rank higher on Apple Podcasts, you first need to establish a baseline. You cannot improve what you do not measure. 

➡️ Use our free rank tracker to see if you are in the Top 5.

Check your Podcast Ranking on Apple Podcasts instantly

Stop guessing why your numbers are low and start looking at the data. Diagnosing your visibility problem takes less than a minute. With PodWars, our free podcast rank checker, you get a clear, unbiased picture of your performance in the search results:

1. Type your podcast name: We connect directly to the public Apple directory to find your show.
2. Enter your target keywords: Think like a listener. What could people type to find a podcast like yours? (e.g., “Crypto news,” “Learn Spanish,” “NBA analysis,” “True Crime”).
3. Get your results: See your exact numerical position for each term.

You will instantly see if you are capturing the search traffic or if your metadata needs an overhaul. You might discover you are winning on a niche term but completely invisible on the high-traffic keyword that could double your audience. 

➡️ Run your free analysis now.

Podcast SEO: The best long-term strategy to get more listeners

Knowing your ranking is the first step. Changing it is the mission. To build a successful show that grows month over month, you need to master Podcast SEO (Search Engine Optimization). Don’t let the acronym scare you. It simply means optimizing your show’s text so algorithms understand exactly what your episodes are about. Just like websites optimize for Google to get web traffic, you must optimize for Apple and Spotify to get more streams.

It involves the strategic use of keywords in your Podcast Title, Episode Titles, Show Notes (Descriptions)… When you do this right, you align your content with user intent. You stop chasing listeners and start attracting them automatically. This is the shift from “stagnant growth” to “consistent daily downloads.”

Automate your growth with the Ausha PSO Control Panel 

Available exclusively on the Ausha hosting platform, the PSO Control Panel is the ultimate tool for podcast growth. It replaces guesswork with data. It helps you:

• Discover the Keywords That Listeners Actually Use: See which keywords people search for most with Search Volume, and how competitive they are with the Difficulty Score.
• Track your rankings globally: Monitor your position over time and across different countries to see if your optimization efforts are working.
• Analyze competitors: See exactly who is outranking you, analyze their metadata strategies, and find the gaps you can exploit to take their spot.

With the PSO Control Panel, you turn visibility into a strategy. You stop hoping for a viral moment and start building a solid foundation for ranking.

Why tracking your visibility is critical for success

The podcast market is crowded and becoming more competitive every day. For every topic, whether it’s “Business Entrepreneurship,” “Parenting Tips,” or “History”, there is a fierce battle for the top spots in search results. Ranking #1 for a popular keyword acts like a funnel, bringing you  new listeners. 

But these rankings are not permanent. Competitors update their descriptions, new shows launch, and platform algorithms shift their criteria. To keep your download numbers trending up, you need to monitor your visibility constantly. PodWars gives you that competitive edge: it maps out the battlefield so you can adjust your strategy, protect your position, and win the listeners. 

➡️ Start tracking your podcast visibility today.

FAQ: Common Questions about Podcast Growth

How can I increase my podcast downloads for free? 

The most effective free method is Podcast SEO (Search Optimization). Since 70% of listeners use the search bar of their favorite listening platform to find new content, optimizing your titles and descriptions with the right keywords ensures you appear when people are looking for your topic. 

Why is my podcast audience not growing? 

If your content is high quality but your numbers are flat, it is likely a discoverability issue. If your show doesn’t appear in the top results for relevant searches on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, new listeners simply cannot find you. 

How can my podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts? 

Ranking is heavily influenced by your metadata.  To rank higher, you need to identify the specific keywords your audience uses and place them strategically in your podcast title, episode titles, and author tag. Tools like the Ausha PSO Control Panel can help you identify these keywords and track your progress.

What is the best tool to check podcast rankings? 

PodWars is a free tool designed to check your current search positions on Apple Podcasts instantly. It is perfect for a quick audit. For long-term tracking, keyword research, and optimization features, the Ausha PSO Control Panel provides a comprehensive dashboard to monitor your growth.

Does changing my podcast category help get more listeners? 

It can, but it might be less effective than Podcast SEO. Categories help for browsing, but keywords help for searching. Focusing on Keywords in your titles and descriptions will generally yield better results for getting more downloads than simply switching categories.