There are two answers: For iTunes and other directories—these are usually cached and when everything is working properly, it can take 15 minutes to a few hours for a new episode to show up in the directory listing. For subscribers—with a few exceptions (Stitcher, Google Play, iHeartRadio, and Spotify), when someone subscribers to your podcast...

iTunes and other podcast apps won't accept a podcast if the RSS feed isn't valid. An invalid feed could also prevent your podcast from updating in apps and directories. Here's how to validate your podcast feed. Copy your podcast feed URL. Paste into CastFeedValidator, Podba.se Podcast Validator, or Feed Validator. Look for errors. Warnings from Feed Validator...

… could I run affiliate ads … in my podcast … and still ask the listeners in the beginning for contributions? —Dennis Yes, but this could be tricky to do well. It really depends on how you promote the affiliate. If you make the affiliate sound like an ad, some listeners will question why they need...

The best ways I've seen to promote affiliates is to make them contextually relevant. Instead of treating the affiliate like an ad, mention an affiliate's product or service when it makes sense within the context of your content. For example, I share my affiliate code (“noodle”) for Libsyn, Blubrry, and Spreaker when I mention any of...