[10:02 AM] Customer: Hi, I published a new episode about 40 minutes ago, but it still isn’t showing up on Spotify or Apple Podcasts. It’s visible on my podcast page, though.

[10:03 AM] Support: Hi Maya! I’m happy to help. If the episode is live on your podcast page, the publish step completed successfully. Could you share the show name and episode title?

[10:03 AM] Customer: The show is “Second Draft,” and the episode is “Why We Keep Rewriting Our Goals.”

[10:04 AM] Support: Thanks. I can see the episode in your RSS feed, published today at 9:21 AM. Spotify and Apple Podcasts fetch updates on their own schedules, so there can be a delay even after the episode appears in your feed.

[10:05 AM] Customer: What’s the normal delay? Our episodes usually appear within 10 minutes.

[10:05 AM] Support: Ten minutes is common, but it can occasionally take a few hours. Apple Podcasts may take up to 24 hours in some cases. Spotify is generally faster, though temporary ingestion delays can happen.

[10:06 AM] Customer: Is there anything wrong with the audio or artwork that could be blocking it?

[10:07 AM] Support: I checked both. The MP3 is accessible and has a valid MIME type, and the episode artwork meets the directory requirements. I’m not seeing validation errors in the RSS feed.

[10:07 AM] Customer: Okay. I did schedule it for 9:00 AM, but then changed the title at 9:20. Could that have caused this?

[10:08 AM] Support: It may have reset the platform’s cached version of the feed, but it wouldn’t normally prevent publication. The directories should pick up the revised title on their next refresh.

[10:09 AM] Customer: Can I force a refresh?

[10:09 AM] Support: Spotify doesn’t provide a manual refresh option. In Apple Podcasts Connect, you can open the show and select “Refresh Feed,” although Apple may still take some time to process the update.

[10:10 AM] Customer: I just did that. Should I avoid editing anything else for now?

[10:10 AM] Support: Yes, I’d leave the episode unchanged while the directories process it. Repeated edits can make troubleshooting harder because each service may cache a different feed version.

[10:11 AM] Customer: Makes sense. When should I contact you again if it’s still missing?

[10:11 AM] Support: If it hasn’t appeared on Spotify within 6 hours or Apple Podcasts within 24 hours, reply to this chat or open a ticket. Include the episode URL, and we can escalate with the directory-specific diagnostics.

[10:12 AM] Customer: Great, thanks. One more thing: will subscribers still get the episode automatically once it appears?

[10:12 AM] Support: Yes. Once each listening app refreshes your feed, the episode will appear for subscribers according to their app’s notification and download settings. You won’t need to republish it.

[10:13 AM] Customer: Perfect. I’ll wait and check again later.

[10:13 AM] Support: Sounds good. Your feed looks healthy from our side, so this appears to be a normal directory delay. Let us know if it passes those timeframes and we’ll take a closer look.