How to Fix Podcasts on TuneIn

I love the listening app for radio. But not for podcasts. With a new owner on the horizon, I list ways TuneIn can improve the podcast experience.

Is it too soon to make a holiday wish list?

I would like a more podcast-friendly TuneIn for Christmas.

Never listened to podcasts on TuneIn? Don’t know what TuneIn is?

The longtime listening app is getting snapped up by Canadian media company Stingray for $175 million dollars, pending regulatory and shareholder approval.

What needs to happen with podcasts on TuneIn? A lot.

First and foremost…

Please care again - TuneIn did seem to care about podcasts before sweeping layoffs hit the company in 2023. When at Dow Jones, I worked with TuneIn on podcast projects. They were invested in helping partners with their content. Back in the early 2010s, TuneIn even created a “radio station” for non-stop streaming of WSJ Podcasts. It was a beautiful thing.

Improve podcast support - Has anyone tried submitting a new podcast to TuneIn? Good luck. The old portal takes you to a customer service page now. Once upon a time, you entered info (Name of Podcast, RSS feed, Language, etc.) and then contacted someone there to make sure your podcast appeared properly. Now? Nothing. I’m currently working with a half-dozen podcast clients, and TuneIn is not on my radar for distribution or promotion.

Innovate - So much of the podcast universe pegs off the Apple directory. God forbid a nuclear blast ever hits Cupertino. Podnews editor James Cridland, a fellow TuneIn user, has shared a great recommendation: TuneIn should peg off the Podcast Index, which currently lists 4.5 million podcasts. That should help TuneIn stay current with new shows.

Promote podcasts better - TuneIn will never beat Apple or Spotify when it comes to podcast listeners but there’s room for growth. A recent Transistor survey found 0% percent use TuneIn. (That number jumps to 1% for Gen Z consumers.) But you could enhance the UX by promoting podcasts better. TuneIn used to curate the home page and promote new shows - like when my team at Westwood One launched Rich Eisen’s Just Getting Started podcast back in 2021. Let’s get back to that.

Improve in-car experience - I also use TuneIn in my car. Kudos to them for having deals with over 50 in-car systems. TuneIn has been a leader on that front for years. I have Apple CarPlay and use TuneIn. But the podcast curation experience is lacking. It’s very difficult to drive, keep my eye on the road, and browse for podcasts.

Finally…

I hope TuneIn can improve its overall approach to podcasts. Why? Because they have no other choice if they hope to stay relevant in the audio space in the long run. You can longer ignore podcasts. Even Netflix has come around. I have reached out several times to senior leadership at TuneIn and offered to help improve the UX.

I’m a hardcore TuneIn user and podcast veteran. So who better to lend a hand?

In podcasting since 2006, John Wordock runs his own consulting company John Wordock Media LLC. He served as Executive Editor/SVP for Podcasting at Westwood One from 2019 to 2024, helping build Cumulus Podcast Network into a top ten network. He also used to be Executive Producer for podcasts at The Wall Street Journal until 2019. You can reach him here: John@JohnWordockMedia.com.