Apple Podcasts is finally rolling out follower analytics to podcasters

Rejoice, podcasters. Apple is finally going to provide some crucial data about your show.

According to Variety, Apple Podcasts will be rolling out follower analytics to its show creators starting next month. 

If readers will recall, Apple changed the term "subscriber," once used to describe people who followed your free podcast, to "follower" when it launched paid podcast subscriptions last year. So basically, Apple is about to provide podcasters with metrics concerning how many people overall are subscribed to their non-paid, public podcasts for the very first time.

Podcasters will be able to login to their Apple Podcasts Connect account, used to set up podcast distribution, and track the follower data from their shows under the Analytics tab. After selecting which of their podcast shows to analyze, creators can view the number of new followers over a timespan of a week, month, 60 days, and all time. As Variety points out, podcasters will also be able to track the amount of time followers and non-followers listened to a show's episodes.

Podcast episode analytics have been available to podcasters via Apple Connect for some time. While that can help creators get a rough estimate of their fanbase, not every podcast follower is going to listen to every episode. And, of course, non-followers listen to episodes they come across too. This upcoming update is certainly going to be welcomed by podcasters.

Apple first started supporting podcasts in iTunes back in 2005 before launching a standalone podcast app, Apple Podcasts, in 2012. For years, the company was the leading podcast directory and listening platform. However, over those years, Apple seemed to take its position in the podcast industry for granted with little attention paid to updating or refreshing the podcast experience on its devices and operating systems. For example, it's taken 17 years for Apple to provide this follower data to podcasters!

Music streaming service Spotify obviously saw an opening in the podcast space and entered the market full throttle, focusing on the podcasting experience on its platform. The company recently overtook Apple in podcast listening market share. Since Apple launched paid podcast subscriptions last year, it has had a renewed focus on reclaiming its top spot in the industry.