PowerPress Sites

Blubrry Launches ‘Turnkey’ PowerPress Sites Deluxe Podcast Publishing Service

~ shawn

Blubrry logoThere might be as many different podcast hosting/publishing platforms these days as there are podcasts. This kind of competition is good for podcasters, and for the podcasting space overall, as it provides lots of different options for creators. Blubrry, one of the industry’s longest-running providers of podcasting services, recently launched its PowerPress Sites Deluxe service, which the company is describing as a “turnkey” solution for podcast publishing:

PowerPress Sites Deluxe is a full turn-key solution for podcasters and includes hosting, statistics, and a managed WordPress website. The Deluxe option includes additional WordPress templates, themes, plugins and most importantly, the ability for podcasters to use their own domain for their website. Domains are purchased separately and are added to the site during setup.

PowerPress Sites Deluxe is the second stage in the rollout of Blubrry’s PowerPress Sites service that was first announced in the summer of 2015. The “PowerPress” part of the PowerPress Sites name might sound familiar to many podcasters, as the service relies on Blubrry’s PowerPress plugin to create podcast RSS feeds. Prior to the launch of PowerPress Sites, podcasters had to run self-hosted WordPress installations along with the PowerPress plugin in order to create a fully functional podcast site. A PowerPress Site is also a WordPress site that comes with PowerPress built-in. The big difference is that all PowerPress Sites are fully hosted and managed by Blubrry. That means things like security, updates, and backups are all handled directly by Blubrry.

The new Deluxe version of PowerPress Sites specifically offers:

The Deluxe Site is for podcasters who may want to use their own domain and those wanting enhanced Search Engine Optimization / Discovery with an SSL certificate. It includes the most popular plugins and multiple site templates, as well as a variety of themes to choose from.

A Blubrry media hosting subscription is required in order to use the PowerPress Sites service.

Disclosure: Blubrry CEO Todd Cochrane is Executive Editor of Podcaster News and I work part-time with the Blubrry support team.

Blubrry’s Free PowerPress Sites Is Now Available

~ shawn

Blubrry logoThe WordPress website platform is often mentioned synonymously with podcasting. Podcasters need websites, and WordPress has all of the tools to help would-be web builders get to work. And while WordPress itself is fairly easy to use once its set up, getting that first WordPress site online and keeping it updated could be tricky for a novice user. That’s why media hosting and podcast services company Blubrry came up with PowerPress Sites:

Blubrry’s PowerPress Sites is essentially the “easy button” for podcasting. With a free Basic account, users get a hosted WordPress website (the perfect place for publishing show notes and a streaming version of your show via the PowerPress audio player) that comes with built-in subscribe widgets, website streaming capabilities, and other essential plugins. The sites are designed with search engine optimization in mind, and can be set up in five minutes so you can get your show up and running right away.

PowerPress Sites come with these features:

  • Site caching to increase loading speed
  • Add Google Analytics codes for web stats and traffic information
  • WordPress themes designed specifically for podcasters
  • New, unbranded Blubrry HTML5 media player

While the new PowerPress Sites is technically free (no additional charge), it’s only available right now to Blubrry media hosting customers. Current PowerPress Sites users will be able to set up their WordPress sites thru special subdomains created by those users (username.blubrry.com). Future updates to PowerPress Sites will allow for more customized, advanced features.

Check out the official PowerPress Sites page to learn more about the service.

Disclosure: Podcaster News Executive Editor Todd Cochrane is CEO of Rawvoice, the parent company of Blubrry, and I work part-time with the Blubrry support team.