Looking around recently at a few of my fellow podcaster’s websites I was surprised to find how many didn’t have simple ways to subscribe to their show or to get in contact with the hosts.

1. A direct link to your RSS feed.
As a podcaster, your show’s success depends almost exclusively on how many listeners are downloading and listening to your shows. Your site should have an obvious link to your feed.

2. A direct link to your iTunes listing.
Love or hate it, iTunes is #1 when it comes to podcast distribution. Almost 95% of all of my downloads come from iTunes. For the folks who find you in iTunes, no biggie… but when you promo your site, when others link to you, they always send visitors to your main website. When they get there then need

3. A link to a contact page with email, contact form and voice mail line.
I’ve found that one of the best ways to grow your podcast audience is by word of mouth. People will be more likely to tell their friends about your show if their input has been read or played on it. So provide a contact page with an email address, a contact form, and your voicemail line if you have one.

4. A brief description of your show.
When your visitors come to the page, what is going to tell them that you’re not just a blog… that the real feature here is your audio shows? You’ve got to tell them. How you do it is up to you. On Nobody’s Listening’s site I use a subtitle, “A Clean Comedy Podcast” and a small About box in the sidebar that gives a little more information.

5. A link to your promo.
When other podcasters want to promote your show, they’re going to need a promo. Don’t make it hard to find. Provide a direct download link, not just a flash player.

What did I miss? Add your podcast website “must-haves” to the comments.

You can find other great articles on Podcasting here, including How I Podcast.