By TheOpenMat.com

Launched in November of 2013, TheOpenMat.com’s Short Time Wrestling Podcast has seen tremendous growth. On Thursday, May 8, Short Time took another step towards furthering TheOpenMat mission as it was approved by iHeartRadio to appear in its show listings of podcasts.

Already listed in all of the top podcast directories, Short Time is now available via the iHeartRadio website and smartphone app.

Link: theopenmat.com/iheartradio

This falls in line with the mission of TheOpenMat, which seeks to advance the needs of wrestling fans and expanding the overall reach to grow the sport’s fanbase.

The Short Time Wrestling Podcast is a semi-daily show that talks about pertinent topics in the sport with news, previews, reviews and interviews. During this past season, Short Time featured a highlight-style show to capture the previous day’s top moments. After the season, Short Time began to implement interview-based shows released 2-3 times a week.

“This is a big step towards not only bringing the wrestling community access to the top news, reviews and interviews in the sport, but to further expand the reach of wrestling content beyond its normal consumer base,” said Jason Bryant, Editor of TheOpenMat.com and the host of Short Time. “iHeartRadio is pretty demanding in their process to get listed. It’s not just a generic listing of shows. They have a focus on quality with their listings. It’s a big step forward for our brand, our company and our partners.”

Podcasts have seen a revival in recent years with the proliferation of on-demand media. People from all walks of life have become mini media outlets while mainstream media outlets are turning to the medium to further distribute their content.

The “pod” in podcasting actually means portable, on-demand. It’s not tied to a specific device, such as the iPod.

“What I really like about the podcast format is it’s completely portable,” said Bryant. “You can listen on your phone, on your iPod or mp3 player, on your computer. Some cars now have apps built into their consoles to subscribe and download media. The message can literally go anywhere the consumer goes. They don’t have to be sitting in front of their computer to gain access to your content.”

FlipsWrestling.com is the presenting sponsor of Short Time.

“I listen to a lot of different podcasts when working or traveling and the reach never goes away,” said Bryant. “I’m still finding older podcast episodes with topics I’m interested in even if they were published a year or two ago. It’s a medium that will remain somewhat timeless in a lot of ways. We’re pleased FlipsWrestling was the first to jump on board and see the value of the medium and the potential it has for growth and reach beyond traditional wrestling avenues.”

Short Time also publishes the weekly On The Mat radio program run by the National Wrestling Hall of Fame’s Dan Gable Museum. On the mat is aired in the Waterloo-Cedar Falls metro area locally on 1650 KCNZ AM and his hosted by the director of the Gable Museum, Kyle Klingman.

“We feel we have the most expansive collection of news and relevant wrestling information on the web,” said Bryant. “Using Short Time and the podcasting platform to deliver the news not only brings fans back to the website, but also gives us the opportunity to put our product in the headphones of the consumer wherever they are.”

Short Time has been available in the iTunes Store and popular podcasting apps like Stitcher, Spreaker, TuneIn Radio, Double Twist and Pocketcasts.

TuneIn Radio, one of the top competitors to the iHeartRadio app, has also increased functionality, allowing users to share individual podcast episodes straight from their web interface or smart phone.

“As our tagline suggests, you’ve got time … for Short Time,” said Bryant.

Short Time listings are available on the web at audio.theopenmat.com

[saf]