Find Out About Equifax Reporting

Did You Want to Learn About Equifax Reporting?

It is time to learn about the business credit reporting agencies. More specifically, Equifax reporting.

But let us start with some definitions and background on business credit.

Business Credit

This is credit in the name of a business. It is not tied to the creditworthiness of its owner or owners. Instead, business credit scores depend on how well a company can pay its bills. Hence consumer and business credit scores can vary dramatically.

Business Credit Benefits

There are no demands for a personal guarantee. You can quickly get business credit regardless of personal credit quality. And there is no personal credit reporting of business accounts. Business credit utilization is not going to affect your consumer FICO score. Plus the business owner is not going to be personally liable for the debt the business incurs.

Business Credit Details

Being accepted for business credit is not automatic. Building business credit requires some work. Some of the steps are intuitive, and some of them are not.

Fundability

Fundability is the current ability of our business to get funding. Some factors are within your control. Others (like your time in business) are not. Your online presence and data are one area which is at or close to 100% with your control.

Business Credit, Fundability, and Business Funding Applications

The better your business credit and fundability are, the more likely you are going to get approval for business financing. Today, let us concentrate on Equifax reporting.

There are Three Different Credit Bureaus – But What Differentiates Equifax Reporting?

What distinguishes the three biggest credit bureaus? And can you use that information to your advantage?

There are three main credit bureaus for business: Dun & Bradstreet, Experian, and Equifax. CreditSafe and FICO SBSS are also players in this space.

In the business world Equifax and Experian are up there, but it is Dun & Bradstreet which is the major player.

Dun and Bradstreet has more than 10 times the records of the next closest reporting agency. For more details, see dnb.com/about-us/company.html. Even when talking about Equifax reporting, it makes sense to start with Dun and Bradstreet. You are going to have to start the business credit building process with them anyway.

Dun & Bradstreet

Go to Dun and Bradstreet’s website and look for your business, at dnb.com/duns-number. What happens if you can’t find it? Then get a free D-U-N-S number. You are going to always need a D-U-N-S number to start building business credit. Go here to get a D-U-N-S number: dnb.com/duns-number/get-a-duns.html.

D-U-N-S Numbers

A D-U-N-S number is how Dun and Bradstreet gets your company into their system. And a D-U-N-S number plus 3 payment experiences leads to a PAYDEX score. A payment experience is a record of a purchase from a business which reports to a credit reporting agency. In this case, Dun and Bradstreet. Once you are in Dun and Bradstreet’s system, search Equifax and Experian’s sites for your business. You can do so at creditsuite.com/reports.

Equifax Reporting

You can check out a sample of Equifax reporting at https://assets.equifax.com/assets/usis/small_business_sample_credit_report.pdf.

Keep your business protected with our professional business credit monitoring.

The company gets its data from a data sharing agreement with the Small Business Exchange, Net 30 type industry trade credit information, and from a wide variety of suppliers that provide products and services to businesses on an invoice basis.

Equifax combines financial data with industry trade credit data. They add in utility and telephone data and public record information (bankruptcies, judgments, and tax liens).

Here’s what that report says.

Company Identifying Information

The first section is devoted to identifying information about your company, namely your business name and address and telephone number. This section will also include your Equifax ID. An Equifax ID is how Equifax can tell your business from similarly-named businesses.

Credit Risk Score

The next section is about the Credit Risk Score. This score runs from 101 to 992. Higher numbers are better. This section also shows key factors.

Key factors are positives and negatives about your business, such as how old your oldest account is, and whether you have any charge-offs, and the size of your business.

Credit Utilization

The next section shows credit utilization. This is shown as a pie chart. It graphically shows which percent of your available credit line you are using. It also has identifying labels to show how much each percentage truly is. But it is only for your financial accounts.

Keep your business protected with our professional business credit monitoring.

Payment Index

The next part is your Payment Index. The score runs from 0 to 100. Higher numbers are better. It also shows Industry Median.

There is also a table explaining the numbers:

90+: Paid as Agreed
80-89: 1-30 days overdue
60-79: 31-60 days overdue
40-59: 61-90 days overdue
20-39: 91-120 days overdue
1-19: 120+ days overdue

Days Beyond Terms

This is a line graph. It shows the average days beyond terms by date reported. It is for non-financial accounts only. Plus it shows any recent trends, so if you’ve improved your payment habits, it will show up here.

Business Failure Score

The next piece is on your Business Failure Score. This score runs from 1000 to 1880. It shows its own key factors, like recent balance information.

Inquiries

The next section is devoted to inquiries. It shows the date, and whether it was an inquiry on a financial or non-financial account. This is a rather short part of the report.

Bureau Messages

The bureau messages part, appears to be a free form field. It seems its purpose is to add notes to a profile. These can be notes on the number of locations, or business aliases.

Bureau Summary Data

The bureau summary data section contains a wealth of information. It shows:

The number of financial and non-financial accounts
Date the credit became active
Number of charge offs
Total dollars past due
Most severe status in 24 months
Single highest credit extended
Total current card exposure
Median balance
Average open balance

It also shows Recent Activity, which includes:

The number of accounts delinquent
New accounts opened
Inquiries and
Accounts updated

Public Records

The public records section has information on:

Type Status:
- Bankruptcy
- Judgments
- Whether judgments are satisfied or not
- Liens filed and opened, or released
- Number
- Dollar and
- Most recent date filed

If there are none reported, then the date field will indicate as much.

Additional Information

The final section appears to contain somewhat miscellaneous information, which probably doesn’t fit in well anywhere else. such as alternate company Names and DBAs.

It also contains:

Owners and Guarantor Names (name, type, date reported)
Business and Guarantor Comments (seems to be another free form field) and
Report Details (this shows the date the report was generated)

Improving Your Equifax Report

Now that you know what goes into it, you can see that some of the more important pieces of data Equifax looks into are:

public records
credit usage
and how you handle your financial and nonfinancial accounts

Improve your Equifax score by:

Clearing your debts as quickly as possible and not going delinquent
Keeping credit utilization within reason, as that makes it easier to pay your bills
And avoiding late payments

Whatever improves your Equifax report is bound to improve your reports at D&B and Experian. Paying off accounts pays dividends, as does avoiding bankruptcies.

Disputing Issues with Your Equifax Report

Equifax will not change your scores without proof. They are starting to accept more and more online disputes. Include proofs of payment with it. These are documents like receipts and cancelled checks.

Fixing credit report errors also means you specifically spell out any charges you challenge. Make your dispute as crystal clear as possible. If you need to snail mail anything in, then use certified mail so that you will have proof that you sent in your dispute. Correct Equifax issues at: equifax.com/small-business-faqs/#Dispute-FAQs. Be specific about the concerns with your report.

Monitoring Reporting

Use Equifax Complete. It currently costs $19.95 per month, after an offer of 30 days for $4.95. See equifax.com/equifax-complete/Equifax.

Monitoring Your Business Credit Scores and Reports at the Major Business CRAs

Add monitoring for all three big CRAs together for a year and it costs $468 for Dun and Bradstreet, $189 for Experian, and $224.40 for Equifax (with the special). So this is for a grand total of $881.40!

Monitoring Your Dun and Bradstreet, Experian, and Equifax Credit Scores and Reports

You can monitor your business credit at Dun and Bradstreet, Equifax, and Experian through Credit Suite, for considerable savings over what it would cost you at those different credit bureaus. And this is all in one place! Credit Suite offers monitoring through the Business Finance Suite (through Nav). See what credit issuers and lenders see so you can directly improve your scores and get the business credit and funding you need. See suitelogin.com and creditsuite.com/monitoring.

Equifax Data Breach

No blog post on Equifax reporting would be complete without at least mentioning the recent data breach. The company does seem to be better about making sure that consumers can get monitoring without having to jump through quite so many expensive hoops.

In addition, any pursuit of the company through Congress seems to have ground to a screeching halt. However, that may be due to the 2020 pandemic and election.

Will Equifax’s current and former management end up back in the hot seat again? Only time will tell.

Keep your business protected with our professional business credit monitoring.

Equifax Reporting: Takeaways

Equifax gets much of its data from the Small Business Financial Exchange.

Monitoring reports from all three of the bigger business credit reporting agencies is expensive. But you can save 90% by monitoring your Dun and Bradstreet, Experian, and Equifax scores through Credit Suite.

The post Find Out About Equifax Reporting appeared first on Credit Suite.

Find Out About Equifax Reporting

Did You Want to Learn About Equifax Reporting?

It is time to learn about the business credit reporting agencies. More specifically, Equifax reporting.

But let us start with some definitions and background on business credit.

Business Credit

Business Credit Benefits

Business Credit Details

Being accepted for business credit is not automatic. Building business credit requires some work. Some of the steps are intuitive, and some of them are not.

Fundability

Business Credit, Fundability, and Business Funding Applications

The better your business credit and fundability are, the more likely you are going to get approval for business financing. Today, let us concentrate on Equifax reporting.

There are Three Different Credit Bureaus – But What Differentiates Equifax Reporting?

What distinguishes the three biggest credit bureaus? And can you use that information to your advantage?

There are three main credit bureaus for business: Dun & Bradstreet, Experian, and Equifax. CreditSafe and FICO SBSS are also players in this space.

In the business world Equifax and Experian are up there, but it is Dun & Bradstreet which is the major player.

Dun & Bradstreet

D-U-N-S Numbers

Equifax Reporting

You can check out a sample of Equifax reporting at https://assets.equifax.com/assets/usis/small_business_sample_credit_report.pdf.

Keep your business protected with our professional business credit monitoring.

Equifax combines financial data with industry trade credit data. They add in utility and telephone data and public record information (bankruptcies, judgments, and tax liens).

Here’s what that report says.

Company Identifying Information

Credit Risk Score

The next section is about the Credit Risk Score. This score runs from 101 to 992. Higher numbers are better. This section also shows key factors.

Key factors are positives and negatives about your business, such as how old your oldest account is, and whether you have any charge-offs, and the size of your business.

Credit Utilization

Keep your business protected with our professional business credit monitoring.

Payment Index

The next part is your Payment Index. The score runs from 0 to 100. Higher numbers are better. It also shows Industry Median.

There is also a table explaining the numbers:

90+: Paid as Agreed
80-89: 1-30 days overdue
60-79: 31-60 days overdue
40-59: 61-90 days overdue
20-39: 91-120 days overdue
1-19: 120+ days overdue

Days Beyond Terms

Business Failure Score

The next piece is on your Business Failure Score. This score runs from 1000 to 1880. It shows its own key factors, like recent balance information.

Inquiries

The next section is devoted to inquiries. It shows the date, and whether it was an inquiry on a financial or non-financial account. This is a rather short part of the report.

Bureau Messages

The bureau messages part, appears to be a free form field. It seems its purpose is to add notes to a profile. These can be notes on the number of locations, or business aliases.

Bureau Summary Data

The bureau summary data section contains a wealth of information. It shows:

The number of financial and non-financial accounts
Date the credit became active
Number of charge offs
Total dollars past due
Most severe status in 24 months
Single highest credit extended
Total current card exposure
Median balance
Average open balance

It also shows Recent Activity, which includes:

The number of accounts delinquent
New accounts opened
Inquiries and
Accounts updated

Public Records

The public records section has information on:

Type Status:
- Bankruptcy
- Judgments
- Whether judgments are satisfied or not
- Liens filed and opened, or released
- Number
- Dollar and
- Most recent date filed

If there are none reported, then the date field will indicate as much.

Additional Information

The final section appears to contain somewhat miscellaneous information, which probably doesn’t fit in well anywhere else. such as alternate company Names and DBAs.

It also contains:

Owners and Guarantor Names (name, type, date reported)
Business and Guarantor Comments (seems to be another free form field) and
Report Details (this shows the date the report was generated)

Improving Your Equifax Report

Now that you know what goes into it, you can see that some of the more important pieces of data Equifax looks into are:

public records
credit usage
and how you handle your financial and nonfinancial accounts

Improve your Equifax score by:

Clearing your debts as quickly as possible and not going delinquent
Keeping credit utilization within reason, as that makes it easier to pay your bills
And avoiding late payments

Whatever improves your Equifax report is bound to improve your reports at D&B and Experian. Paying off accounts pays dividends, as does avoiding bankruptcies.

Disputing Issues with Your Equifax Report

Monitoring Reporting

Use Equifax Complete. It currently costs $19.95 per month, after an offer of 30 days for $4.95. See equifax.com/equifax-complete/Equifax.

Monitoring Your Business Credit Scores and Reports at the Major Business CRAs

Monitoring Your Dun and Bradstreet, Experian, and Equifax Credit Scores and Reports

Equifax Data Breach

In addition, any pursuit of the company through Congress seems to have ground to a screeching halt. However, that may be due to the 2020 pandemic and election.

Will Equifax’s current and former management end up back in the hot seat again? Only time will tell.

Keep your business protected with our professional business credit monitoring.

Equifax Reporting: Takeaways

Equifax gets much of its data from the Small Business Financial Exchange.

The post Find Out About Equifax Reporting appeared first on Credit Suite.

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Use This Secret Weapon to Slay Your Funding Foes and Find the Best Sources of Alternative Loans for Businesses

Are you struggling to get funding for your business? Never fear, alternative loans for businesses are here. They tend to get a bad rap. This is mostly due to the fact that predatory lending runs rampant in today’s world, and it’s hard to know who to trust and who is scamming you. However, not all sources of alternative business financing are created equal.

10 Alternative Loans for Businesses to Help Your Business Soar

Nothing is guaranteed and things change every day. Still, at the moment, these 10 alternative lenders for small business tend to work well for many. They also offer a wide range of alternative business financing options to fit a variety of needs.

Learn business loan secrets and get money for your business.

Fundation

When it comes to alternative loans for businesses, Fundation provides both term business loans and lines of credit. It is most known for its working capital financing options. These are funds meant to help cover the day-to-day costs of running a business rather than larger projects.

StreetShares

StreetShares has its roots in lending to veterans. They still hold true to that mission, but now offer term loans, lines of credit, and contract financing to all types of business owners. The maximum loan amount is $250,000, and preapproval only takes a few minutes. They use a soft pull on your credit so it doesn’t affect your score.

BlueVine

There are two options for small business financing with BlueVine. They include lines of credit and invoice factoring. Minimum loan amount is $5,000 and maximum loan amount is $100,000. Annual revenue must be $120,000 or more and the borrower must be in business at least 6 months. Personal credit score has to be 600 or above.

Fundbox

With Fundbox, you get an online lender that offers a super-fast automated process. Originally, they only had invoice financing. Yet, now they offer a line of credit service as well. Repayments are automatic on a weekly basis. So,be sure you have enough funds in whatever account you let them draft from to cover your payment each week.

Kiva

Kiva is an online lender that is a little different. For example, the interest rate is 0%. That means even though you have to pay it back, it is absolutely free money. They don’t even check your credit. There is one catch though. You have to get at least 5 family members or friends to throw some money in the pot as well. In addition, you have to pitch in a $25 loan to another business on the platform.

Learn business loan secrets and get money for your business.

Fora Financial

Fora Financial was founded in 2008 by college roommates. It now funds more than $1.3 million in working capital around the United States. There is no minimum credit score, and there is an early repayment discount if you qualify.

OnDeck

Obtaining financing from OnDeck is quick and easy. First, you apply online. If you receive approval, your loan funds will go directly to your bank account.

Lendio

The secret to Lendio’s success is excellent customer service and a short, easy application process. The loan-connections service it offers slashes the time it takes to find the right alternative loans for businesses. This is due to its heavily vetted network of lenders.

Credibly

Credibly is a specialized lender offering unsecured business loans online. The application process and funding can be complete in as little as two days, sometimes less. They offer daily and weekly repayment options.

Upstart

Upstart uses a completely innovative platform for loans. They choose to use a combination of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to gather alternative data for use in making credit decisions.

This may include such things as mobile phone bills, rent, deposits, withdrawals, and even other information less directly tied to finances. The software they use learns and improves on its own. You can use their online quote tool to play with different amounts and terms to see the various interest rate possibilities.

Learn business loan secrets and get money for your business.

Warning: Alternative Loans for Businesses Aren’t for Everyone

Despite the fact that these alternative lending companies tend to offer alternative loans for businesses with less stringent requirements, they won’t work for everyone. Alternative financing methods are just not always a good fit. Here is another other option. Keep reading to the end for a sure-fire way to ensure you can always qualify for the business funding you need when you need it.

The Credit Line Hybrid

What if there were alternative financing options that allowed you to have an even better interest rate than a secured loan, and yet get the money faster and easier than any type of traditional funding. What if you could get business funding without having to supply bank statements or check stubs? This is exactly what the Credit Line Hybrid offers.

This is alternative funding for small business that allows you to fund your business without putting up collateral. You only pay back what you use. You do need good personal credit however. That is, your personal credit score should be at least 680. In addition, you can’t have any liens, judgments, bankruptcies or late payments. Furthermore, in the past 6 months, you should have less than 6 credit inquiries. Also, you should have less than a 45% balance on all business and personal credit cards. In addition, you need at least 2 credit cards with at least 2 years credit history.

If you don’t meet all those requirements, you can still qualify. You can take on a credit partner that meets each of these requirements. Many business owners work with a friend or relative to fund their business. If a relative or a friend meets all of these requirements, they can partner with you to allow you to tap into their credit to access funding.

Use This Secret Weapon and Always Get the Business Funding You Need

To be eligible for the highest limits and best rates when it comes to business credit, your business has to be fundable. There are over 100 factors that impact the fundability of a business. It is a complicated web to weave through. Things from decades ago, long before you ever imagined owning a business, can affect fundability.

The key to having a strong, fundable business that can qualify for any funding is to work with a business credit expert. What can a business credit expert do for you?

Help you assess the current fundability of your business
Guide you to the most effective and efficient ways to improve fundability if necessary
Help you find the best funding options for your business right now
Guide you in what specific, actionable steps you need to take to qualify for more funding with better rates
Leverage lender relationships to cut through a lot of the red tape and bureaucracy that can keep borrowers from getting the information they need, when they need it

It’s common for a borrower to call a lender or vendor credit department directly and not be able to find out if they report to the business credit reporting agencies, or exactly what they are looking for when it comes to credit approval.

A business credit expert already knows a lot of this information, and what they don’t know, they know how to get. They also know their way around alternative sources of financing for business, so they can offer guidance in this area as well.

This is your number one top-secret weapon to getting your business to a point where you know you can get funding when you need it. Try a free consultation with a Credit Suite business credit expert to get started now.

The post Use This Secret Weapon to Slay Your Funding Foes and Find the Best Sources of Alternative Loans for Businesses appeared first on Credit Suite.

Use This Secret Weapon to Slay Your Funding Foes and Find the Best Sources of Alternative Loans for Businesses

Are you struggling to get funding for your business? Never fear, alternative loans for businesses are here. They tend to get a bad rap. This is mostly due to the fact that predatory lending runs rampant in today’s world, and it’s hard to know who to trust and who is scamming you. However, not all … Continue reading Use This Secret Weapon to Slay Your Funding Foes and Find the Best Sources of Alternative Loans for Businesses

BrickSeek: The Hidden Tool Online Consumers Use to Find Hidden Inventory Sales

Have you ever wanted a fast way to get the best deals in retail stores like Walmart, Home Depot, Target, and more?

Whether you’re just looking to save some money or you’re into retail arbitrage, the ability to easily check product inventory from the comfort of your home is something many people only dreamed about.

Until BrickSeek came along, that is.

What is BrickSeek, and how can it help you get the best deals on some of the most popular products?

What Is BrickSeek?

BrickSeek is an application that allows users to search for sales and clearance sales in retail shops in their area.

Launched in 2014, BrickSeek started as a website to help Lego enthusiasts find hard-to-find pieces—on and offline. The website quickly evolved into a massive platform that includes inventory information on just about every product stocked by retailers.

You can choose to use the web-based version or the mobile app as BrickSeek supports Android and iOS.

While BrickSeek doesn’t support all retail brands at the moment, they do have access to inventory for retailers like:

Target
Walmart
CVS
Home Depot
Macy’s
Lowes
Office Depot
Staples

BrickSeek uses product identification numbers like stock-keeping units (SKUs) and unique product codes (UPCs) to work its magic. With these, the software can find the best discount prices on specific products you want—for online and offline stores.

Besides showing you the best deals in your area, BrickSeek also shows the availability of all products stocked by most major retailers.

While you can use BrickSeek to browse store inventories, other features require you create a member account. Pricing starts at $9.99/month.

Why Should Consumers Use BrickSeek?

Now that you know what BrickSeek is, you’re probably wondering why you should even consider using the platform—especially the paid services.

There are two main reasons why you should use BrickSeek:

1. Saves Time (and Energy)

Tired of going from store to store looking for the best deal on products?

BrickSeek will take care of that for you with its inventory checker. With just a few clicks of a button, you can find out which stores offer the best deals. You can also learn whether they have the product in stock or not.

2. Saves Money

BrickSeek helps you save money by showing you the best deals on products. You also save money that you would have otherwise used to commute from one store to another.

Whether you’re a consumer or merchant, these two reasons are strong enough to make BrickSeek part of your tool kit.

How Does BrickSeek Work?

Thankfully, while it may seem like a daunting task to run through all the inventory of your favorite big box store, with BrickSeek, it isn’t. That’s because BrickSeek has a powerful inventory checker that digs into the inventory of the stores it supports.

From a user’s point of view, you have two options when it comes to using Brickseek to find deals:

1. Specific Search

To search for a specific product, you will need more information on the product than just its name. For best results, you’ll need metadata like the SKU, UPC, or model number of the product you’re looking for.

BrickSeek for consumers - using brickseek for specific search

BrickSeek also allows you to filter out products by zip code, so you get the deals closest to you.

Once you’ve entered the product information, click on the “Check Inventory” button. BrickSeek will then give you information on:

Local stores that have the product in stock.
Available prices and best deals on products.
Number of products in stock at each store.

Do note there may be some minor discrepancies in rare cases of miscounts or server lag after inventory has been updated.

2. Browsing for Products

Another way of using Brickseek is by simply browsing trending deals.

How Does BrickSeek for consumers Work - Browsing for Products

This function is particularly useful if you’re a small business that deals in retail arbitrage. You can use it to find products that are in the clearance section. BrickSeek allows you to search by trending deals (online and in-store) and by categories to make the search easier.

What Effect Do Tools Like BrickSeek Have on E-Commerce?

The world of e-commerce is rapidly evolving, all thanks to technological advances in the industry. There has never been a better time for entrepreneurs to start an e-commerce store as the setup has become easy and affordable.

However, one of the main challenges budding e-commerce store owners face is finding the right products to sell, at the right price.

That’s where tools like BrickSeek come in.

Whether you’re looking for stuff to sell on platforms like eBay, Amazon, or any other platform you use for e-commerce, tools like BrickSeek streamline the process of finding what to sell. You can easily compare prices without having to leave the comfort of your couch. As a result, you speed up the process and get the best deals. These are all benefits you can pass on to your customers, giving you a competitive edge.

However, tools like BrickSeek are a double-edged sword. While they help e-commerce store owners find and sell more products, they also help savvy shoppers cut out the middleman. A simple visit to the BrickSeek website is all it takes for consumers looking for a great deal in-store or online.

BrickSeek Features

BrickSeek started as a simple platform for finding Lego pieces. However, the platform has evolved into a powerful tool you can use to search through massive product inventories to find specific products, the best deals, and the local stores that stock them. To help you do that, BrickSeek has several nifty features. Here are some of the most prominent ones:

Inventory Checker

The inventory checker is by far the most used feature on the BrickSeek website.

As noted earlier, this allows you to browse through the inventory of the retail stores featured on the platform.

Recent Stock Changes

BrickSeek’s recent stock update feature shows inventory updates like availability and price. A significant advantage of this feature is it helps you compare prices in different stores and locations. If you’re a consumer, this enables you to get the best deals. If you use BrickSeek for business purposes, it helps you decide how to price the items you buy for resale.

Markdowns by Store

As the name suggests, this members-only feature shows you items that have been marked down in stores near you. The number of items displayed is dependent on your membership level.

Brickseek for consumers: markdown feature

When you access each store’s markdown deals page on BrickSeek, you’ll get information on each product that has been marked down. Apart from the product name and description, this information includes:

previous and newest detected prices
date and timestamp of the recent detection
the manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP)
a stock status indicator

This information is essential in helping you know whether the product that’s been marked down is worth investing in.

Online Stock Alert

Is the product you’re looking for out of stock?

This is where the online stock alert feature comes in handy.

The online stock alert feature is reserved for users who have created an account with BrickSeek. This handy feature sends notifications when out-of-stock or hard-to-find items are available in a store near you. When a product you’re looking for is out of stock, BrickSeek will ask if you want to be alerted when the product is in stock.

For those in the retail arbitrage business, the online stock alert feature is a massive time-saver as you won’t have to hunt for a product physically. It also gives you an advantage over your competitors as you get notified first when popular and in-demand products arrive in stock.

With features like these, BrickSeek is definitely a tool you must include in your tool stack as an e-commerce store owner, especially if retail arbitrage is your primary business model.

Three Alternatives to BrickSeek You Must Know

As excellent a tool as BrickSeek may be, it’s always a good idea to look around for some alternatives. That’s why I want to make that search easier for you by highlighting some of the most popular BrickSeek alternatives.

Let’s get to them, shall we?

Dealspotr

Dealspotr is one of the most popular BrickSeek alternatives and has been around since 2015. Dealspotr is a platform that finds coupon codes, discount sales, and promotions run by e-commerce stores listed in their store directory.

Besides their software that scours for deals, Dealspotr also has a large community of users who edit and verify the deals posted on the platform. This helps ensure all coupons and deals are current and legitimate. Another reason Dealspotr is so popular with users is that it rewards them for posting legitimate deals.

Slickdeals

Another great BrickSeek alternative is Slickdeals.

Slickdeals is touted as the most trusted deals platform on the internet as real people source all deals. The community of deal seekers that power the platform is obsessed with uncovering the greatest deals and savings opportunities online.

What sets Slickdeals apart from other platforms is the vibrant community designed to make you feel like part of a tribe of like-minded people. Everyone on the platform can share, confirm, and comment on deals to make sure everyone benefits. You can also sign up to receive notifications of deals in your favorite categories.

PriceGrabber

Getting the best deals means finding the lowest-priced products. That’s exactly what PriceGrabber does.

PriceGrabber is a price-comparison site that allows you to compare prices on products in almost every category in retail. Whether you’re a merchant looking for inventory or a savvy shopper looking for a great deal, PriceGrabber is an excellent platform to turn to.

BrickSeek for Consumers Conclusion

With retail e-commerce sales at $4.9 billion last year alone, there’s no better time than now to hop on the e-commerce bandwagon. To catch up to players who have been in the game for long, you need an ace up your sleeve.

BrickSeek might just be that ace you need to make your first e-commerce sale and many more.

Leverage the platform to find the best deals around, and you’ll soon grow a thriving e-commerce business. BrickSeek will also help you personalize your inventory as you use it to find out what your customers are looking for.

Have you ever used BrickSeek or its alternatives in your e-commerce business?

Find software roles 30 startups (including YC) at YC's Job Expo this Thursday

Article URL: https://www.workatastartup.com/events/startup-tech-expo-summer-2021

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=27445070

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How to Find Image Sources For Proper Attribution or Research

There’s no shortage of amazing images online, but that doesn’t mean you’re always going to find the original. So many images you find on blogs and other websites originated from somewhere else. While it may not seem like a big deal, it seriously pays to know how to find the original.

Here’s how to find an image source quickly and easily.

Why It Is Important to Find Image Sources

It’s always handy to know how to find proper image sources online. It won’t just make your life easier when it comes to finding high-quality photos; it could also help you avoid legal trouble.

You Saw an Image and Want to Find It Again

Is there anything more annoying than seeing a cool image online, saving it to your desktop, and then forgetting where you found it in the first place? Worse still, you then have to waste hours trawling through your browser history to find it.

All of this wasted time and effort can be avoided when you know how to find image sources quickly.

You Want to Use an Image in Your Blog Post and Attribute It Properly

Images are vital when writing blog posts. Research shows articles with photos get 94 percent more views than those without them. That’s because nothing puts readers off more than huge blocks of text. Images help break your writing up, make points clearly and improve the reading experience.

However, you can’t just use any old photo you find on the internet in your blog. You have to make sure you are legally allowed to use it and that you can attribute it properly. You’ll need to find the original image source for both of these tasks.

Once you’ve found the image source, you’ll be able to work out whether you’re allowed to use the image (I help you with this below if you’re still not sure), and you can attribute it correctly if you need to.

While it’s very rare for small sites to get into legal trouble for using copyrighted images or not abiding by Creative Commons, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

You Need a High-Quality Version of an Image

Low-resolution images suck. They look bad on your blog, and they look even worse when you scale them up for printed marketing materials — but pixelated images are exactly what you’ll get if you don’t find the original image source.

Why? Because reposted images are usually shrunk to reduce the file size and increase website load times. This is great for the website in question, but it’s not great for you. The original image, on the other hand, is usually much larger in size. Whether you want to use an image in a piece of marketing collateral or edit it yourself, it pays to be able to find the source.

5 Ways to Find Image Sources

Finding an image source isn’t difficult. Here are five different ways you can use to find any image source today.

1. Use Google’s Image Search to Find Image Sources

Google Images Search is the de-facto place to find images online. You probably don’t need me to tell you that, though. What you may need me to explain, however, is how to use Google Images to find the source of an image.

Ways to Find an Image Source - Image Search on Google

You can do that easily using Reverse Image Search. Head over to image.google.com, but instead of typing in a keyword, upload your image. Google will show a link to every page on the web with that picture, and it shouldn’t be too hard to find the original.

You can even use Google’s Reverse Image Search on your iPhone by requesting the desktop version of the site in Safari.

2. Use Other Reverse Image Tools to Find Image Sources

Ever found an image on Twitter or Facebook and wondered where to find the original image? While it sounds like a tall order, reverse image search tools actually make finding original sources using just the image far easier than you’d think.

All you need to do is upload or copy and paste the image into the tool, and the search engine will find every instance of that image online. In most cases, it won’t be hard to find the original image.

There are plenty of reverse image search tools out there, but here are a couple of my favorites.

TinEye

TinEye is a great reverse image search tool that helps locate an image source in seconds. You can search by uploading a URL if you have one or the image itself.

You can also use TinEye’s Chrome extension to right-click on any image while browsing and instantly get access to the platform’s data.

Search By Image

Search By Image is an Android app that lets you reverse search for images on Google TinEye or Yandex. Search by uploading images from your phone or opening images from Facebook, Twitter and other apps.

3. Look Up the Image MetaData to Find Image Sources

You can find a surprising amount of information about an image in the file’s metadata. Sometimes it will even include the image’s source.

You don’t need to be a technical whiz, either. First, download an image. For the purposes of this example, I’ll be downloading this image from the Good Housekeeping website.

Ways to Find an Image Source - Look Up the Image MetaData

On a mac, you can find the image’s metadata simply by right-clicking on the image and selecting “Get Info.” You’ll be served up a load of data that probably won’t make much sense, but you’ll clearly be able to see the image’s source.

On Windows, just right-click the image and select “Properties.”

4. Use the Chrome Browser to Find Image Sources

If you use Chrome, you don’t need to visit Google Images to do a reverse image search. Instead, right-click on the image when you find one you want to search and click “Search Google for Image.”

You’ll be shown the full reverse image search results as usual.

5. Use Visual Search by Bing to Find Image Sources

Bing has its own image search functionality called Visual Search that makes reverse image searches a breeze.

You can drag your saved image into the search bar or upload it, and Bing will show every location it can find it online. You’ll also get a pretty in-depth rundown of the image’s attributes and any text that Bing can find in the image.

How Do You Attribute Image Sources Correctly?

How you attribute images depends on the type of image and where you found it. Most sites will be very clear about what you need to do when it comes to attribution, but it can help to know the following terminology.

Creative Commons Images

This nonprofit organization allows the use and sharing of images and other creative materials through a series of licenses. Some won’t require attribution at all, some will let you edit images, and some will be incredibly strict.

Attribution is a legal requirement of Creative Commons images unless the image has been published under a Creative Commons Zero (CC0) license. The Creative Commons outlines clearly what it classes an “appropriate credit” using the TASL method. You’ll need to include the following details:

title
author
source
license

Here’s an example from Creative Commons that shows exactly what they mean.

find image sources - how to attribute image example

“Creative Commons 10th Birthday Celebration San Francisco” by tvol is licensed under CC BY 2.0”

If you alter a Creative Commons image, you must include the changes in the attribution.

Public Domain Images

When work is listed in the public domain, it means the copyrights to it have expired. It is free to use, share, and edit. You don’t need to attribute the image at all or ever reference the original source.

Royalty-Free Images

Royalty-free images usually aren’t free. Rather, you have to pay a fee to use the image once, but are then free to use it again as many times as you like without paying royalties. That’s what the royalty-free part means.

Royalty-free images usually don’t require attribution, but be sure to check the licensing agreements of the site you downloaded them from. There may be other restrictions, too, like not using them for a certain purpose or in a certain niche.

5 Sites to Find Great Images

The costs of paying for images every time you use them quickly adds up for small businesses. It simply isn’t a sustainable practice. That doesn’t mean you have to go without images, however.

There are plenty of places online to find high-quality royalty-free images. Here are a few of my favorites.

Unsplash

Unsplash is probably the best stock photo platform in the world. You can use the images for free in almost any way you like.

Pexels

Pexels is another large, free stock photo platform like Unsplash. It has its own license that governs what you can and cannot do with photos.

Burst

Burst is Shopify’s stock photo platform. You can download photos for free without being a Shopify customer.

Flickr

Flickr is a fantastic image repository where you can find thousands of images to use for commercial purposes for free.

Canva

You may have used Canva to create a new logo or poster, but did you know it also has hundreds of free stock images you can use, too? You don’t even have to edit them to download them.

Conclusion

Finding an image source can seem like a lot of work, but it’s well worth it to find a high-quality image or protect your site from legal issues. Use any one of the five strategies I list above, and you’ll be sure to find the original source of just about any image you can find online.

Once you’ve found your image, make sure you are using it in the best possible way on your blog or are using the best editing tools if you want to make the image even better.

Where do you find your favorite images?

How to Find Image Sources For Proper Attribution or Research

How to Find a Mentor Online

Success in many areas of life depends on personal and professional development, and finding a mentor can help.

You can’t successfully take the journey to personal and professional development alone.

Mentorship simply means a relationship between you (the mentee) and a more experienced person (mentor) that benefits your growth.

How to Find a Mentor

Finding the right mentor is never an easy task. However, if you know how to go about it, you could connect with the one who can transform your life. Here are a few tips on how to find a mentor:

Know What You’re Looking for in a Mentor

The first step in finding a mentor is having a clear picture of what you’re looking for. A few qualities to look for in a mentor include:

relevant knowledge, expertise, and experience
enthusiasm to impart their knowledge
ability to give honest feedback
empathy
passion for the field/skills you want to grow in

There may be many people who can mentor you. However, not all of them can do so successfully. As with any other relationship type, find someone who understands and is willing to invest in you.

Join a Mentorship Platform

There are several mentorship platforms created to help connect mentees to mentors.

Examples of such platforms include:

MentorCruise

MentorCruise is one of the best mentorship platforms for those in tech, design, and business

One of its advantages is it’s a two-sided marketplace. Mentees can look for mentors and vice versa. Mentors set prices, usually $150 to $250 per month with a seven-day trial.

GrowthMentor

As the name suggests, GrowthMentor is a mentorship platform targeted at growth hackers.

GrowthMentor’s most significant selling point is the unlimited calls with mentors. You can also post help requests and have mentors reply to you. You get all this and more starting at $50 per month paid yearly.

Pelion

Pelion connects developers to experienced mentors in their fields of expertise.

Featuring mentors from top tech companies worldwide, it’s one of the best mentorship platforms for those in tech. Mentors set prices, usually starting at $300 per month.

Clarity

Clarity operates on a simple model where you browse through their community of experts and request a call with your mentor of choice. Unlike other platforms, you usually only work with a mentor briefly to solve an immediate problem.

Mentors set per-minute rates, as this method is done via a call rather than an ongoing mentorship setup.

Reach Out to Your Existing Network

One of the best ways of finding a mentor is to look within your existing network. Find some people in your network who have already achieved what you want to achieve. Make a list of those people, looking closely at each one to help you narrow your list.

Once you’ve established who will make for a suitable mentor, reach out to them, asking if they’d be willing to take you on as a mentee.

With this method, you don’t have to start a relationship from scratch or hope you and your mentor get along.

If you can’t think of someone you already know, though, reach out to other members of your network. They could potentially recommend a perfect match for you.

Go to Professional Networking Events

Professional networking events connect you to people in your exact industry who have the knowledge, skills, experience, and connections you need.

The key to finding a mentor at professional networking events is to attend as many events as possible. Observe experienced participants and take note of those who fit your desired mentor profile.

Find an Industry Meetup

Industry meetups are similar to professional networking events because they’re full of people in your field looking to learn more, but they’re not strictly about networking. Examples of industry meetups include:

conferences
networking and speaking events
trade shows

You can also consider attending informal meetups organized by players in your industry or created through online platforms like Meetup.

Attend Volunteer Events or Social Clubs

Volunteer events and social clubs let you meet new people and learn what’s important to them. While these may not necessarily be industry-specific, you never know who you may encounter—perhaps the person cleaning the kennel next to you at the animal rescue is an established person in your field!

Consistently attending volunteer events and social clubs could help you get to know the regulars. Doing this will help you see who will make a suitable mentor for you in a situation outside of work.

While this takes a lot of time on your part and may not work all the time, you could find yourself doing good for your community and having fun, if nothing else.

Use Social Media

Social media helps people worldwide and from all walks of life connect on an equal level.

That’s what makes it an excellent tool for finding mentors.

Most social media platforms allow you to search using keywords and hashtags. These features make it easier to filter according to the specific criteria you’ve set for the type of mentor you need. You can then monitor your potential mentors’ activities to check for authenticity and engagement.

So which social media platforms are best for finding mentors?

The answer depends on which social media platforms are most popular in your industry. However, the platforms that are likely to help you find a mentor online are:

LinkedIn
Facebook (especially Facebook Groups)
Instagram
Reddit
GitHub

A word of advice: Never pitch your prospective mentor outright. To increase the chances of accepting you as a mentee, engage and interact with their posts first. You want them to know who you are and what you value.

4 Tips for Getting the Most of Your Mentorship

Finding the right mentor is only half of the mentorship equation. You must also know how to get the most out of your mentor/mentee relationship. Here are a few tips to help you do that:

1. Have a Goal for Your Mentorship

Sit down with your mentor to discuss what the outcome of the mentorship should be. Doing so will help both of you focus on what matters the most in the mentorship relationship. Without clear-cut goals, you won’t know whether you’re making progress or not.

2. Prepare for Your Sessions

Never attend a mentoring session without first preparing for it. Remember, these sessions are for your benefit, so you must put in the work to ensure you maximize the time your mentor is giving you. Before your meeting, you should:

Review the notes from your last meeting.
List down questions you want to ask.
Set goals for the upcoming meeting.

While it’s your mentor’s responsibility to impart knowledge, you should also play a role in driving the conversations.

3. Know How to Give Feedback

An essential aspect of your relationship with your mentor is the feedback process. While most feedback will come from them, there are several times when you’ll also be expected to provide feedback. Here are a few tips to help you do that:

Avoid vague statements—be specific.
Only give feedback when it’s solicited.
Be descriptive rather than evaluative.

You must also be honest with your feedback. Trying to sugar-coat feedback will only slow down the process. Don’t be rude, but be clear.

4. Learn to Take Constructive Criticism

Part of the growth process involves receiving criticism. Not all feedback you’ll get from your mentor will be positive. You must learn to accept and handle negative feedback well. It’s only when you are open and receptive to constructive criticism that you’ll get the most out of your relationship with your mentor.

Remember, though: Constructive criticism isn’t the same as destructive criticism. The former helps find solutions, while the latter only finds problems. Assume positive intent—maybe you and your mentor communicate differently, or one of you is simply having a bad day.

But, if you’re only finding problems and not solutions, seek a new mentor and kindly exit this relationship. There are plenty of mentors out there!

Why Should You Find a Mentor?

No matter where you are in your business or career, you could benefit from having a mentor.

You can have many mentors as long as their knowledge and experience don’t overlap too much. Each member of your group of mentors should bring something unique to the table.

A few reasons why you must consider finding a mentor include:

Expedite Your Progress

One of the most significant advantages of mentorship is it could speed up your progress toward a goal. Mentors help you avoid common mistakes many in your niche/industry make. They may also show you the right steps to take to get where you want to go. As a result, your progress could be faster.

Extend Your Network

Another reason to consider finding a mentor is it can help expand your professional network. A mentor who has been in the industry for a long time has likely made some valuable connections. Access to a mentor may grant you access to those connections.

Improve Your Professional Skills

One of the best ways to learn and improve a skill is to get someone to teach you. That’s precisely what mentors do. If you want to enhance your professional skills, mentorship may be the best way to go about it.

Widen Your View of Your Field, Niche, or Industry

A common frustration many face in business and on their career paths is hitting a plateau. This usually happens because of not seeing other alternatives and ways to grow. Thankfully, because a mentor can often see the bigger picture, they could advise you on continuing to move on an upward trajectory.

As you can see, mentorship has several benefits for both your personal and professional development.

Conclusion

Mentorship is an essential part of the success equation. Whether you want to master digital marketing, programming, or any other career discipline, the best way to develop yourself is through mentorship. No matter your field, industry, or even level of expertise, mentorship is one of the most effective ways to help you level up.

For that to happen, however, you must know how to find a mentor. Using the advice outlined above, you can improve the chances of finding the right mentor.

Have you ever gone through mentorship or mentored someone? What was the experience like?

Podcast Discovery 101: How to Find Podcasts Easily

The growth in podcasts is significant for listeners looking for a show that appeals to their individual interests. Plus, it’s great for marketers and business owners looking for new platforms to advertise on and new audiences to reach.

While you won’t find any lack of podcasts, the sheer volume out there makes it time-consuming to slim down your choices and find appealing podcasts.

In this guide, we explore both how to find podcasts as well as how to get your own podcast discovered.

How to Find Podcasts That Interest You

If you’re overwhelmed by the number of podcasts out there, it’s not surprising. How many podcasts are there exactly? The latest research shows there are over 47 million episodes available, and the number is growing.

As an article on Pacific Content states, there are “Too many podcasts. Not enough time.”

Keeping up with new episodes and freshly-launched podcasts are tough enough, and that’s before finding time to read the backlog of podcasts we’ve got lined up.

Even if we don’t listen to a podcast, 75 percent of U.S. adults are at least aware of them, and with mobile devices, I think it’s safe to assume this number will keep growing.

With so many podcasts available, how do you find the ones you want to listen to?

1: How to Find Podcasts by Performing a Discovery Google Search

The quickest and easiest way to find podcasts is Google. Just choose your niche, and type in “business podcasts,” “health podcasts,” “relationship podcasts,” or whichever topic interests you the most. Google isn’t your only choice, though.

2: How to Find Podcasts Using the Search Bar in the Main Podcast Host Sites

There’s no shortage of podcast hosting sites. With a quick search on Google, you’ll find:

Buzzsprout
Podbean
Anchor
Riverside
Spreaker

There isn’t space to talk you through all of them, so I’ll use Spreaker as an example.

On Spreaker, go to the “listen” option at the top of the page and click. You’ll then get a list of subheads, including “staff picks,” ”crime,” and “featured,” where you’ll find plenty of podcasts to browse through.

3: How to Find Podcasts Using New and Emerging Podcast Discovery Tools

Regular podcast listeners may well be familiar with some of the newer discovery tools. These tools take the effort out of finding podcasts.

Below, I will outline some of the most prominent tools, explain how to use them, their advantages, and their main features, starting with Listen Notes.

Listen Notes

If you’re trying to find a podcast, Listen Notes calls itself “the best podcast search engine,” but it does a lot more than purely serve as a discovery tool.

To give you a better idea, you could:

spot cross-promotion opportunities with other podcasters and use them for networking
build podcast apps with Listen Notes API
find information about topics for content ideas

The site is packed with features, too:

“listen later,” where you create your playlists
a “submit your podcast” option
a discover tab for finding new podcasts
the podcast academy, which provides tutorials and articles
hot, best, curated, and “find similar podcasts” search functions
classified ads, where you’ll find guest spots and cross-promotion opportunities

Listennotes.com takes you straight to the main search engine, so you can just type in “business growth” or “digital marketing,” or whatever interests you. Doing this will bring up a list of podcasts so you can dive in and see which ones appeal to you most.

It’s also worth typing in “trending” to see what’s happening and what’s capturing other users’ imaginations.

Another way to find podcasts is to go to the “discover” link at the top of the page. Here, you’ll find a drop-down list to select from.

Listen Notes is free, but you can sign up for a paid membership to access the “super” search engine and other features.

The site’s main advantages are its ease of use and navigation, and if you’re just looking for podcasts in your niche, you shouldn’t find any real disadvantages.

Pod Hunt

Pod Hunt promises “the best podcasts daily.” When you visit the site, you’ll go straight to the main search engine, where you can start your search.

In the example above, the search term is “technolog.” Once you’ve got a list of podcasts, you can click through to whichever one grabs your attention.

Along the top of the page, you’ll also find:

episodes, for a list of recent episodes
categories, which show an extensive range of A-Z topics
collections, where you’ll discover curated podcasts
feeds, where you can find the top podcast episodes

You can also sign up for the site’s newsletter or submit an episode from the main search engine page.

You might find Pod Hunt is not quite as sophisticated as Listen Notes, and there are fewer features. However, it’s a good site if you want to do a quick search.

Podchaser

Podchaser lets you find podcasts, curated lists, ratings, reviews, and guest appearances. The search page brings up a list of the latest episodes, or you can use the white search box at the top of the page to find podcasts in your preferred niche.

The right side of the page shows you the most popular categories, where you’ll find easy access to business, comedy, true crime, and news podcasts, among others. You’ll also find trending creators with well-known names like Barack Obama, Trevor Noah, and Joe Rogan.

It’s free, but if you want to “supercharge your broadcast planning and outreach,” you can request further details.

There are no apparent drawbacks. It’s a simply structured, easy-to-use search site.

Spreaker

Spreaker is podcast creation software and app. It organizes, curates, and delivers content through live audio feeds, simplifying everything and making it straightforward to find podcasts and import your podcast library.

Spreaker is also favorable to creators by using RSS feeds for direct distribution and monetization. It’s compatible with the iPhone and the iPad, and you just need to download the app to begin.

Its key features include:

short-form audio highlights, enabling you to find podcasts of interest for you
a personalized audio feed, which features recommendations
a live playlist showing you the latest content
nine categories, including “true crime” and “self-improvement”

The app’s biggest advantages are the time it saves looking for the content you want and how easy it is to find podcasts.

Castro

Castro is another podcast app you can download from the Apple App Store. It provides a single playlist known as the “Queue.”

Through Castro, you can manage large numbers of podcasts and choose whether you want to listen to the podcasts straight away or if you want them sent to your inbox for later.

Main features include:

enhanced audio options
push notifications for immediate listening
customized playback speeds and reduced listening times
podcast sharing

To use it, just download the app for free, or pay $18.99 a year to unlock advanced features.

Podible

Podible promises “more time listening and less time digging.” Download the free app from the iTunes store, and you’ll find podcasts and discover similar shows.

Other features include:

listening to classics
podcast recommendations
playlist creation

Using the app needs little description: Just install it, and you’ll soon find your way around.

The most significant advantage is the ease of finding podcasts that match your niche, and it gets positive feedback for its user interface.

The recommendations feature needs some work on the downside, and it’s been some time since Podible has updated its social media content.

4: How to Find Podcasts Using Niche Podcast Discovery Apps

Another way to find podcasts is through niche apps. These further refine your search by narrowing it down to niche topics it’s true crime, business, comedy, or tech.

These apps are growing in popularity due to their time-saving abilities. To give you an idea of what’s offered, I’ve highlighted a few below.

Laughable

You’ve probably guessed the Laughable app is the place to go to find comedy shows, but it acts as a gateway to other genres as well. For example, you can discover Oprah’s and Barack Obama’s podcast through the app.

It’s regularly updated, so there’s always fresh podcast content available. Other features worth exploring are:

curated episodes and download options for offline listening
finding comedians when they’re hosting or appearing as a guest.
different playback speeds and the “subscribe” button for listening to actors, musicians, and athletes

Laughable is extremely popular and often rated among the best. Its top feature is the easy search function, where you’ll find podcasts, episodes, and series.

As for negatives, some users would like to see a playlist, and a reviewer felt downloading podcasts was more complicated than necessary.

Pinna

On Pinna, you’ll find a host of resources to keep children entertained. Pinna doesn’t just limit its content to apps. It’s an ad-free service that offers audiobooks and music.

A yearly fee gives you yearlong access to the shows, and Pinna provides a month’s free trial to begin with.

Once you get on the Pinna website, choose the subheading that most interests you and get exploring.

You’ll find shows like:

Hero Hotel
The Totally Unauthorized Minecraft Fan Show
Opal Watson: Private Eye

Click on whichever show grabs your attention or your child’s imagination, and sign up for the free trial to start listening.

They have various categories of content for different age groups, where you’ll find:

bedtime stories
car trip stories
play along with content
learning content

Leela Kids

Leela Kids searches the internet for audio content suitable for children. You can download the app from the App Store or Google Play, and there are three steps to accessing content:

Choose the age group and area of interest.
Check through the results to find suitable content.
Then, click and listen.

You can also opt into emails to get recommendations a couple of times a month.

Like other niche-specific sites, Leela Kids takes the effort to find podcasts online, and its ease of use is by far its biggest advantage.

How to Get Your Podcast Discovered

Maybe you’re a podcaster trying to get your show discovered, or perhaps you’re just thinking about starting one up, and you want to make it easier for others to find your podcast.

It might seem intimidating if you’re not sure where to start, but don’t worry. These next steps will help you promote your show.

Use keywords: You use SEO to get your other content discovered, and there’s no reason you shouldn’t make your podcasts SEO-friendly as well. You can research keywords with free tools like Ubersuggest, the Ubersuggest Chrome Extension, or Google Keyword planner.

When you’ve got your list of keywords ready, include them in titles and descriptions and add them to podcast directories for organic traffic.

Get social: That doesn’t mean just using prominent platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Instead, take advantage of the networking opportunities you’ll find on podcast directories.

Some directories listed in the article have a networking section so you can build relationships with fellow podcasters and get the word out.

Use your mailing list: Existing marketers have a ready audience thanks to their mailing lists. Share snippets and links in your newsletters and other marketing materials to help them find your podcasts.

Start marketing: Don’t just use your existing customer base. Start marketing to a broader audience. Finding guest post opportunities, issuing press releases when you’re doing something newsworthy, and writing guest blogs for your niche are a few ways you can spread the word.

Repurpose your content: The more places you share your podcast content, the better chance people will find the content you’ve created. For example, you could:

share part of a transcript in your newsletter with a link to the whole show
create short YouTube videos or get your podcast listed on apps
make an infographic or meme to share on social media

Conclusion

Podcasts are growing in popularity, and successful shows like the Marketing School give absorbable content for listeners on the move.

However, the sheer volume of podcasts can sometimes make it hard to find the podcasts you’re searching for, which is where podcast directories and niche apps come in; they simplify your search to make it easier to find podcasts that match your interests. You can use similar methods to get your own podcast discovered.

If you want to advertise on podcasts or make one of your own but aren’t sure how. to get started, reach out to our agency. We can help!

Do you listen to podcasts? How do you find podcasts that capture your attention? Tell us below.