Google has warned podcast creators of changes that will be needed if producers want their podcasts to be fully indexed and found on the Google Podcast platform.

Google will start enforcing new requirements for podcast RSS feeds to be eligible to appear in recommendations on Google Podcasts and other Google surfaces…

If your podcast does not meet these requirements, it will still be available on Google, but not eligible for recommendation.

The new requirements provide information that “allows Google to better understand what your podcast is about.”

The changes come into force from September 21.

Cover art will be required or Google will not promote the show without a “valid, crawlable image.”

Podcast cover art must be square to work in most apps. They must be sized between 1400 x 1400 up to  3000 x 3000 pixels.

Another new requirement is that “RSS feeds must include correctly formatted link to valid homepage.”

Other requirements, presumably to confirm the bona fides of podcast creators, mandate that podcast RSS feeds must include a description, a valid email address and the author’s name. Many podcast hosting companies already have requirements for all that information to be provided by the podcast creator.

Full details of the new requirements are here.