Set up a private podcast

« To Riverside for Business features: Overview

Give a select group of listeners exclusive access to your episodes through a private podcast feed. Use it to share early releases, bonus episodes, or members-only content, kept separate from your public podcast.

Who: Account owner, admin, director, and editor
Plan: Business
Device: Computer browser

Private podcasts_160826.gif

Step by step

  1. Log in to your Riverside account.
  2. Navigate to the relevant studio.
  3. From the sidebar on the left, click Hosting.
  4. Click Create new podcast.
    You can only assign private podcast hosting to a new podcast.
  5. Enter a title for your podcast.
  6. Click Continue. 
  7. Enter a description for your podcast.
  8. Click Continue.
  9. Under Podcast Categories, choose up to two categories that match your content.
  10. Under Add cover art, click Select file to upload your podcast’s cover art image.
    Riverside resizes the image to match podcast size requirements automatically.
  11. Click Continue.
  12. Enter your Author name.
    This is the name that will appear as the creator of the podcast. It can be your name, a host’s name, or your brand’s name.
  13. Under Website, enter your podcast’s URL. 
    If you leave the field blank, it will default to www.riverside.com.
  14. Under Language, select the appropriate option from the dropdown.
  15. Next to Content, choose between Clean and Explicit.
  16. Next to Type, choose between Serial and Episodic.
  17. Next to Visibility, choose Public or Private.
    Selecting Private is a one-time choice. You cannot switch a podcast between Public and Private after it is created.
  18. Click Set up podcast.
    Your podcast is created. You can now go ahead and upload your first episode.

Manage your private podcast subscribers

Every private podcast has its own subscriber list, and only the people on that list can stream or download your episodes. You can invite listeners one at a time by email or import a batch from a CSV file, and each subscriber gets their own private RSS feed link once they're added. From here you can also resend invitations or remove subscribers at any time.

Private podcast subs_160826.png
  1. Log in to your Riverside account.
  2. Navigate to the relevant studio.
  3. From the sidebar on the left, click Hosting.
  4. On your private podcast page, click Subscribers.
  5. You will see a list of your subscribers.
  6. To add subscribers:
    1. Click the  plus.svgAdd icon.
    2. From the dropdown click Enter emails to add subscribers one at a time by email.
      Or, click Upload CSV to Select a CSV file and add subscribers in bulk.
      Private podcasting add subs_170826.png
      Your newly added subscribers will instantly receive an email prompting them to choose a platform to listen to the private podcast.
  7. Your list will update with any new subscribers added.
    The number of streams to the right of the subscriber email shows how many times they have listened to the podcast.
  8. To the right of each subscriber, click ••• [the three dots] to:
    • Copy email address
    • Resend invitation email
    • Remove subscriber

Edit your private podcast

  1. Log in to your Riverside account.
  2. Navigate to the relevant studio.
  3. From the sidebar on the left, click Hosting.
  4. In the top right corner of the private podcast page, click ••• [the three dots].
  5. From the dropdown, choose:
    • Edit details: Update any of the podcast details you set during setup.
    • Move to another studio: Move your private podcast to a different studio within your Riverside account.
      You are only able to move to a studio that does not already host a podcast.
    • Remove podcast: Permanently delete your podcast.
      This cannot be undone.
    • Remove all subscribers: Revoke access to any future episodes from your podcast.
      Downloaded episodes will still play, but they will not receive any new episodes you release.

Icon.svg Good to know

  • Visibility is a one-time choice. You can only choose between Public and Private during the creation of a podcast.
  • Private podcasts are audio-only.
  • Private podcasts can only be connected to Apple Podcasts and YouTube.
  • You can invite up to 6,000 subscribers to a single private podcast.
  • Removing a subscriber revokes their feed access right away, so they can no longer stream or download new episodes. Episodes they already downloaded remain on their device.

Learn more