What is Person Tag?
The podcast:person tag credits hosts, guests, and production team members in your RSS feed with names, roles, and optional profile images and links. This metadata improves discoverability and provides proper attribution for everyone who contributes to your podcast.
Person Tag Structure
<podcast:person
role="host"
href="https://example.com/jane"
img="https://example.com/jane.jpg">
Jane Smith
</podcast:person>
<podcast:person
role="guest"
href="https://twitter.com/guest"
img="https://example.com/guest.jpg">
Dr. Guest Name
</podcast:person>
<podcast:person
role="editor">
Production Person
</podcast:person>
Standard Roles
| Role | Description |
|---|---|
host |
Regular show host |
co-host |
Secondary host |
guest |
Episode guest |
editor |
Audio editor |
producer |
Show producer |
writer |
Script/content writer |
composer |
Music creator |
narrator |
Voice talent |
Person Tags Scope
| Level | Usage |
|---|---|
| Show level | Regular hosts, ongoing team |
| Episode level | Guests, episode-specific credits |
Show-level example:
<channel>
<podcast:person role="host">Jane Smith</podcast:person>
<podcast:person role="co-host">John Doe</podcast:person>
<!-- Episodes inherit show-level people -->
</channel>
Episode-level example:
<item>
<podcast:person role="guest">Dr. Expert</podcast:person>
<!-- This guest only appears for this episode -->
</item>
App Support
| App | Person Display |
|---|---|
| Fountain | Person pages with all appearances |
| Podverse | Credits in episode details |
| PodcastGuru | Person search and discovery |
Why It Matters
Person tags enable discovery across shows and proper attribution for everyone who contributes. As podcast databases improve, person metadata becomes increasingly valuable.
Why person tags matter:
-
Cross-show discovery: Find all podcasts featuring a specific person.
-
Proper attribution: Credit everyone who contributes to your production.
-
Guest promotion: Guests can link their appearance to their profile.
-
Network visualization: Apps can show relationships between shows and people.
-
Search improvement: "Find podcasts with [Person]" becomes possible.
Discovery potential:
| Use Case | How Person Tags Enable |
|---|---|
| Fan follows guest | Find all their podcast appearances |
| Industry expert | Discover their thought leadership |
| Producer credits | Build portfolio of work |
| Network analysis | Map connections between shows |
Professional benefits:
| Role | Benefit from Person Tags |
|---|---|
| Hosts | Build cross-platform profile |
| Guests | Portfolio of appearances |
| Producers | Credit for work across shows |
| Editors | Professional recognition |
The growing graph: As more podcasts implement person tags, a connected graph of podcast personalities emerges—enabling discovery and attribution that's impossible with current metadata.
How to Use This in Dispatch
Add people to your show and episodes from the team settings:
Adding show team:
- Go to Show Settings → Team
- Add regular hosts and production team
- Assign roles (host, co-host, producer, editor, etc.)
- Add profile images and links
Adding episode guests:
- Open episode in the editor
- Navigate to the Credits section
- Add guests with their role and details
- Guest appears in
podcast:persontags for that episode
Person details:
- Name (required)
- Role (host, guest, producer, etc.)
- Profile image URL
- Personal website or social link
Automatic integration:
- Show-level team members appear in your feed's channel section
- Episode guests appear in the specific item
- Credits propagate to supporting apps automatically