Your podcast episode could be full of gold—amazing stories, valuable insights, or laugh-out-loud moments—but if no one clicks on it, all that magic gets buried. That’s why your episode title is so important. It needs to be clear, clickable, and search-friendly. Big emphasis on the search-friendly.
If you struggle with writing compelling, SEO-optimized titles, you’re not alone. I used to spend way too much time tweaking and testing titles, only to still feel unsure about their effectiveness. That changed when I started using the resources and tools available to me, like ChatGPT and Capitalize My Title.
I discovered Capitalize My Title when I began freelance writing in 2018. One of my clients required me to use it as a way to format my headers in APA style for the blog posts I wrote for them. And I noticed that they had a “headline score,” and within the headline score, they had an SEO score! I already knew all things SEO for blogging, and I’ve used Capitalize My Title as a resource for my own writing ever since.
At first, I didn’t realize I could optimize my podcast for SEO. Still, as I continued podcasting and gained experience and knowledge from other podcasters who were further ahead than I, I learned about Podcasting SEO. And I started using Capitalize My Title for my podcast episodes in addition to my articles.
When I couldn’t think of a catchy podcast episode title, I started using ChatGPT to help me. From its suggestions, I began to see which ones were SEO-optimized, and from there, this three-step system was born.
Here’s exactly how I create SEO-optimized podcast episode titles:
Step 1: Use ChatGPT to Generate Title Ideas from Your Transcript
Start by pasting the full transcript of your podcast episode (or just the key parts) into ChatGPT with a prompt like:
“Can you generate 10 SEO-optimized podcast episode titles based on this transcript?”
You can even be more specific:
- Ask for different angles (emotional, informative, curiosity-driven)
- Mention your niche or audience (e.g., personal growth, immigrant stories, entrepreneurship)
You’ll usually get a solid list of options to start with—some may be too long, others too vague, but you can mix and match from the different options it provides to get your title.
If your transcripts are over 5,000 words, which is the limit for the free version of ChatGPT, upload the transcript document and have ChatGPT read it and provide title suggestions.
Step 2: Pick a Few You Like (Mix and Match If You Want)
Once ChatGPT provides you with title ideas, review them and select a few that resonate with you.
Sometimes I take the structure from one and the wording from another. Feel free to combine pieces or adjust them to better align with your brand’s voice.
Here’s a quick example:
- ChatGPT suggestion: “Overcoming the Odds: A Refugee’s Journey to Building a Life in America”
- I might adjust it to: “From Refugee to Restaurateur: One Immigrant’s American Dream”
Mixing and matching helps you find a title that’s both accurate and engaging.
Step 3: Check the SEO Score on Capitalize My Title
Once you’ve narrowed it down to a few favorites, run them through Capitalize My Title’s Headline Analyzer.
You’re aiming for a score above 60. This tool checks for things like:
- Word balance (emotional, power, common, uncommon)
- Title length
- Clarity and clickability
Note: Capitalize My Title does have a title generator, but in my experience, it hasn’t produced SEO-friendly results. Ironically, the titles it suggests often don’t score well on its own analyzer—so I don’t rely on that feature. Use the analyzer instead of the generator for better results.
Final Thoughts on Creating SEO-Optimized Podcast Episode Titles
Your title is your first (and sometimes only) chance to hook a listener. Using ChatGPT to brainstorm and Capitalize My Title to validate your picks helps you create headlines that are searchable. Keep in mind that you want your podcast and/or episode to appear when your listeners are searching for your keywords.
The process may take a few extra minutes, but it’s worth it when you start seeing higher click-through rates and better discoverability. And since podcasting is an evergreen marketing strategy, you’ll have listeners finding your episodes for years to come.
Try this method for your next episode and let me know how it works for you. What’s the highest-scoring title you’ve created so far?
With Love, Heidy
Check out my SEO Guide and Free Podcasting Resources at – https://stan.store/heidydelacruz
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