Private podcast hosting for Chicago companies, so only your people can listen
A suburban plant, a warehouse near the interstate, and an office in the Loop rarely share a channel. Our private podcast hosting gives them one show that only invited listeners can hear.
We serve Chicago companies online, so setup happens from your desk. You choose how locked down it is, and you keep the guest list.
Why do company updates miss so many Chicago workers?
Chicago’s big employers tend to look alike in one way. Manufacturers, freight and logistics firms, insurers, and health systems all have huge teams who don’t spend the day at a screen.
A machinist on second shift won’t read a long email. A nurse coming off nights has missed the town hall again. A dispatcher picks up the update secondhand, usually after it’s changed.
Audio meets those people on their own time. The tricky part is that a normal show on public podcast hosting is open to anyone who searches. A staff show should stay inside the company.
How locked down should your show be?
Tighter settings tend to add a step for listeners. Match the level to how sensitive each show is.
| Option | How people listen | Where it shines |
|---|---|---|
| Unique RSS feed | Invites arrive by email, and each one carries a personal feed that works in any podcast app. Switch off one person, and only their feed goes dark. | Leadership updates you’d rather not see forwarded |
| Private RSS feed | One shared feed for the whole group, hidden from directories like Apple, Spotify, and Amazon. | Low-risk news for a big audience, such as every plant at once |
| Private embed player | There’s no feed. Episodes live inside a player you drop onto your intranet or training site. | Safety and skills training that already sits behind a login |
| Secure microsite | This one skips the feed too. People sign in to a password-protected site to listen. | Programs that don’t have a portal of their own yet |
How many Chicago-area jobs happen away from a desk?
Two public totals give a sense of scale. They describe the region’s workforce, and they don’t tell you who listens to podcasts.
Plenty of those jobs run on shifts, on docks, and on the road. That’s where an episode on someone’s phone tends to beat one more memo.
What could a private show do at your kind of company?
Our team sketched these as starting points. They’re ideas, and they don’t describe anyone we’ve worked with.
Manufacturing
Give each site its own show, with a combined feed for leaders who want all of them. Our manufacturing internal podcast page goes deeper.
Logistics
Short briefings people can play before a shift or on a break. Partners and contractors can sit on a list of their own.
Insurance
Claims and service teams hear one story from leadership. An outside agent network can get a separate show with its own listeners.
Health care
Night and weekend staff catch up whenever they’re off the floor. See our healthcare internal podcast page for ideas.
What will your IT team want to know?
Security and IT folks usually ask the same handful of questions. Here’s the short version.
- People join through an email invite, or they sign in with Slack.
- Once someone’s account is closed, their access goes with it, even for episodes already out.
- Developers can use the subscribers API to tie the listener list to your HR records.
- You’re able to run several private shows from one account. Each has separate listeners, and episodes are unlimited.
- Your dashboard shows downloads, subscribers, apps, and where people are, and the embed player adds more detail.
- You can remove our branding from the player and pick a microsite theme that matches yours.
- When you’re stuck, a real person answers on live chat, the phone, or a private Slack channel.
What are the four steps to a private show?
Create it
Add a show in your dashboard and set its privacy level.
Build the list
Invite people by email, or connect Slack. It can change as often as your roster does.
Publish
Upload an episode once, and it reaches every app, player, or microsite with access.
Learn from it
Look at what got played, then shape the next one around it.
Will you make the episodes, or should we?
Hosting on its own
Your team records and edits. We handle the private side. It’s a good match if you’ve already got someone in-house who’s comfortable with audio.
Hosting with production
We’ll plan the episodes, record your speakers, and handle the edit, with private hosting included. It’s all covered by our internal communications podcast service.
Where does private hosting stop?
There’s no such thing as fully private audio, since any listener could record what they hear. Treat each one like an internal memo, and leave confidential details out.
Hosting controls who gets in. It won’t review the content, and it can’t replace safety training or notices you’re required to give. Your own legal and HR teams set those rules.
If IT has tougher questions, bring them along to the call. You’ll get straight answers, including when a question falls outside our work.
What Chicago teams ask about private hosting
Is there a Resonate office in Chicago?
No. We serve Chicago companies online. Setup, hosting, and support all happen remotely, so there’s nowhere you’d need to drive to.
Can each plant or site have its own show?
Yes. One account holds several private shows, and every show keeps a separate listener list. Leaders can follow all of them.
What happens when a seasonal or contract worker leaves?
You take them off the list, and their access ends. If access runs through Slack, it closes when their account does.
Do workers need a new app?
Not with the RSS options. The feed goes into an app like Apple Podcasts, and they’ll listen the way they always do. The embed player and microsite play in a browser.
How secure is it?
It keeps out casual listeners, but any audio can be recorded by someone who hears it. For sensitive shows, pick a unique feed or a sign-in option.
What does private hosting cost?
Plans follow the size of the audience you need to reach, and large companies get a custom plan. Book a call with a rough headcount for a quote.
Tell us who belongs on the list
Share who you need to reach across your Chicago sites and what they should hear first. We’ll recommend the right access option and show you how setup goes. Still deciding whether it’s worth it? The podcast readiness quiz takes a few minutes.