# Podcast Sponsor-Ready Host Lead Extractor (`ayeeyee/podcast-sponsor-lead-extractor`) Actor

Turn Apple Podcast URLs, iTunes IDs, feed URLs, or keyword searches into sponsor-ready host leads: owner email from the RSS itunes:owner tag, MX/DNS-verified emails + phones + socials + tech stack from the podcast's own site, an A-D lead score, and a sponsor-readiness signal. No API keys, no proxy.

- **URL**: https://apify.com/ayeeyee/podcast-sponsor-lead-extractor.md
- **Developed by:** [Virtual Footprint LLC](https://apify.com/ayeeyee) (community)
- **Categories:** Lead generation
- **Stats:** 2 total users, 1 monthly users, 100.0% runs succeeded, 0 bookmarks
- **User rating**: No ratings yet

## Pricing

from $3.00 / 1,000 sponsor-ready podcast leads

This Actor is paid per event. You are not charged for the Apify platform usage, but only a fixed price for specific events.
Since this Actor supports Apify Store discounts, the price gets lower the higher subscription plan you have.

Learn more: https://docs.apify.com/platform/actors/running/actors-in-store#pay-per-event

## What's an Apify Actor?

Actors are web data automations that power AI and operations. They run on the Apify platform to scrape websites, process data, connect APIs, and automate workflows.
In Batch mode, an Actor accepts a well-defined JSON input, performs an action which can take anything from a few seconds to a few hours,
and optionally produces a well-defined JSON output, datasets with results, or files in key-value store.
In Standby mode, an Actor provides a web server which can be used as a website, API, or an MCP server.
Actors are written with capital "A".

## How to integrate an Actor?

If asked about integration, you help developers integrate Actors into their projects.
You adapt to their stack and deliver integrations that are safe, well-documented, and production-ready.
The best way to integrate Actors is as follows.

- **AI agents and MCP clients** — the [Apify MCP server](https://docs.apify.com/integrations/mcp.md) at `https://mcp.apify.com` (remote, streamable HTTP, OAuth on first use).
- **Agentic workflows and local Actor development** — [Agent Skills](https://apify.com/.well-known/agent-skills/index.json) with the [Apify CLI](https://docs.apify.com/cli/docs.md): `npm install -g apify-cli`, then `apify login`.
- **JavaScript/TypeScript projects** — the official [JS/TS client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs.md): `npm install apify-client`.
- **Python projects** — the official [Python client](https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs.md): `pip install apify-client`.
- **Any other language** — the [REST API](https://docs.apify.com/api/v2.md).

For usage examples, see the [API](#api) section below.

For more details, see Apify documentation as [Markdown index](https://docs.apify.com/llms.txt) and [Markdown full-text](https://docs.apify.com/llms-full.txt).

# README

## Podcast Sponsor-Ready Host Lead Extractor

Turn Apple Podcast URLs, iTunes IDs, direct RSS feed URLs, or niche keyword searches into **sponsor-ready host leads**: the host/owner contact email (pulled from the public RSS `<itunes:owner>` tag), MX/DNS-verified emails + phones + socials + tech stack from the podcast's own website, an A–D lead score, and a **sponsor-readiness signal** (publishing recency + frequency + catalog size + reachability → A–D grade with a plain-English pitch-readiness line).

No third-party API keys and **no residential proxy required** — Apple's iTunes Search/Lookup API is a public keyless endpoint and RSS is public XML, so this Actor sidesteps the proxy limits and cost that constrain search/map scrapers. The enrichment layer is shared with our Website Contact & Company Extractor, ATS Hiring-Intent Lead Finder, and Shopify Store Lead Extractor.

**Why this beats the incumbents:** existing podcast scrapers (`ryanclinton/podcast-directory-scraper`, `benthepythondev/podcast-intelligence-aggregator`, `automation-lab/podcast-scraper`) just dump raw RSS fields — none bundle a *verified* host email + website enrichment + a sponsor-readiness score into a ready-to-pitch sales lead, and none bill per *verified* contact (the #1 complaint about flat-rate RSS dumpers that charge for null/stale emails).

### Input

```json
{
  "podcasts": ["https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/startalk-radio/id325404506"],
  "searchQueries": ["marketing", "technology"],
  "maxPerQuery": 10,
  "verifyEmails": true,
  "enrichWebsite": true,
  "concurrency": 5
}
```

Provide `podcasts` (Apple URLs / bare iTunes IDs / direct feed URLs) and/or `searchQueries` (keywords resolved via Apple's iTunes Search API). At least one of the two is required.

| Field | Type | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| `podcasts` | array | — | Apple Podcast URLs, bare iTunes numeric IDs, or direct RSS feed URLs. One record per resolved podcast. |
| `searchQueries` | array | — | Keywords to discover podcasts via Apple's keyless iTunes Search API. Each returns up to `maxPerQuery` podcasts. |
| `maxPerQuery` | integer | `10` | Cap on podcasts returned per search query (1–50). |
| `verifyEmails` | boolean | `true` | Validate the best contact email's domain against live MX/DNS records. |
| `enrichWebsite` | boolean | `true` | Fetch the podcast's own website (RSS channel `<link>`) for emails/phones/socials/tech stack. Disable for faster runs when only the RSS owner email is needed. |
| `concurrency` | integer | `5` | Podcasts processed in parallel (1–10). |
| `proxyConfiguration` | object | none | Optional — only needed if you hit rate limits; the Actor works without a proxy. |

### Output

One record per resolved podcast, pushed to the dataset:

```json
{
  "inputRef": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/startalk-radio/id325404506",
  "matchType": "id",
  "podcastId": "325404506",
  "title": "StarTalk Radio",
  "author": "Neil deGrasse Tyson",
  "appleUrl": "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/startalk-radio/id325404506",
  "feedUrl": "https://feeds.simplecast.com/4T39_jAj",
  "website": "siriusxm.com",
  "ownerEmail": "feed@startalkradio.net",
  "ownerName": "StarTalk Radio",
  "summary": "Science, pop culture, and comedy collide on StarTalk Radio! ...",
  "category": "Science",
  "language": "en-us",
  "country": "USA",
  "episodeCount": 1117,
  "lastEpisodeDate": "2026-07-10T05:00:00+00:00",
  "episodesLast30Days": 9,
  "emails": ["feed@startalkradio.net"],
  "emailVerified": true,
  "phones": ["1-866-635-2349"],
  "socials": {
    "facebook": "https://www.facebook.com/siriusxm",
    "twitter": "https://www.twitter.com/siriusxm",
    "youtube": "https://www.youtube.com/siriusxm",
    "tiktok": "https://www.tiktok.com/@siriusxm"
  },
  "techStack": ["Nginx", "React"],
  "sponsorReadiness": "A",
  "sponsorLabel": "Prime sponsor target — actively publishing, established catalog, reachable contact.",
  "leadScore": "A",
  "hasContact": true
}
```

- `ownerEmail` comes from the RSS `<itunes:owner>/<itunes:email>` tag — the canonical host/owner contact. It is always ranked first in `emails`.
- `emails` are de-duplicated and filtered against a placeholder/asset/support-widget blocklist; the best email's domain is MX/DNS-verified (`emailVerified`).
- `website` is the RSS channel `<link>` (the podcast's own site). When a feed publishes a scheme-less or parent-network link (e.g. StarTalk → `siriusxm.com`), website-derived fields (phones/socials/tech) reflect that domain — the `ownerEmail` is still the show's own contact.
- `sponsorReadiness` (A–D) grades publishing recency (≤7d/≤30d/≤90d), frequency (episodes in the last 30 days), catalog size (≥50/≥10), reachability (has a contact), and has-own-website. `sponsorLabel` is a plain-English line you can paste into a pitch.
- `leadScore` (A–D) grades contact-signal richness (verified email + phone + socials + tech).
- `hasContact` is `true` when at least one of `emails`, `phones`, or `socials` is non-empty — this drives billing (see Pricing).

### Real example (live run, 2026-07-11)

**Input**: `podcasts: ["https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/startalk-radio/id325404506"]`, `searchQueries: ["marketing", "technology"]`, `maxPerQuery: 1`, `verifyEmails: true`, `enrichWebsite: true`.

**Result**: 3/3 podcasts returned a verified owner email + sponsor-readiness signal. All graded **A**.

| Podcast | Match | Owner / verified email | Website-derived | Eps | Last ep | Sponsor | Lead |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| StarTalk Radio | id | feed@startalkradio.net ✓ | phone, 4 socials, Nginx/React | 1117 | 2026-07-10 | A | A |
| Marketing Happy Hour | search:marketing | cassie@cammmedia.com ✓, hello@marketinghappyhr.com | 4 socials, HubSpot/Squarespace | 275 | 2026-07-02 | A | A |
| The Future of Everything (Stanford) | search:technology | podcasts@podiumpodcastco.com ✓ | 4 socials, Cloudflare/GA/GTM/Mailchimp/React | 385 | 2026-07-10 | A | A |

Note: StarTalk's RSS channel `<link>` points to its parent network `siriusxm.com`, so its website-derived phone/socials/tech reflect SiriusXM — the `ownerEmail` (`feed@startalkradio.net`) remains the show's own verified sponsor contact, ranked first.

### Pricing (pay-per-event — you pay only for successful results)

| Event | Price | Charged when |
|---|---|---|
| `podcast_lead` (primary) | $0.008 | Podcast returns at least one real contact signal (owner email, website email, phone, or social) plus publishing metadata |
| `verified_email` | $0.003 | Podcast yields at least one MX/DNS-validated contact email |
| `sponsor_signal` | $0.001 | The A–D sponsor-readiness grade is computed for a podcast |
| Actor start | $0.0001 | One-time, per run |

No charge for podcasts with no contact signal at all (dead feeds, no owner email, no website contacts). Zero upstream compose cost (Apple's keyless iTunes API + public RSS + the podcast's own public website) — margin-positive at these prices.

### Troubleshooting

- **`(no result)` for an Apple URL / ID**: the iTunes lookup returned no match — the ID may be wrong or the podcast delisted. Use the bare numeric ID or a keyword search instead.
- **`ownerEmail: null`**: the feed has no `<itunes:owner>/<itunes:email>` tag. The Actor still enriches the podcast's website (`emails` may be populated from there); if neither yields contact, `hasContact` is `false` and the run is not billed.
- **Website-derived socials/phone don't match the show**: the RSS channel `<link>` sometimes points to a parent network or host platform rather than the show's own site. The `ownerEmail` is always the show's own RSS contact and is ranked first.
- **`emailVerified: false` on a real-looking email**: the email's domain had no MX record at check time (transient DNS or a dead domain). The email is still returned; retry the run to re-check.
- **Slow runs on many search queries**: lower `maxPerQuery` or raise `concurrency` (max 10). Each podcast takes ~2–5s (iTunes lookup + RSS fetch + optional website fetch).

### Use cases

Podcast sponsorship / ad-sales prospecting, host outreach for guest appearances, agency lead lists for podcast networks, audience-research bundling, and MCP agent tools like "find sponsorable podcasts for niche X with a verified contact."

# Actor input Schema

## `podcasts` (type: `array`):

Apple Podcast URLs (https://podcasts.apple.com/.../id<ID>), bare iTunes numeric IDs, or direct RSS feed URLs. One record is returned per resolved podcast.

## `searchQueries` (type: `array`):

Keywords to discover podcasts via Apple's keyless iTunes Search API (e.g. 'marketing podcasts', 'true crime'). Each query returns up to `maxPerQuery` podcasts.

## `maxPerQuery` (type: `integer`):

Cap on podcasts returned per search query (1-50).

## `verifyEmails` (type: `boolean`):

Validate the best contact email's domain against live MX/DNS records.

## `enrichWebsite` (type: `boolean`):

Fetch the podcast's own website (RSS channel <link>) and extract emails/phones/socials/tech stack. Disable for faster runs when only the RSS owner email is needed.

## `concurrency` (type: `integer`):

Podcasts processed in parallel (1-10).

## `proxyConfiguration` (type: `object`):

Optional. Only needed if you hit rate limits; the Actor works without a proxy (Apple's iTunes API + public RSS).

## Actor input object example

```json
{
  "podcasts": [
    "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/startalk-radio/id325404506",
    "325404506"
  ],
  "searchQueries": [
    "marketing",
    "true crime"
  ],
  "maxPerQuery": 10,
  "verifyEmails": true,
  "enrichWebsite": true,
  "concurrency": 5,
  "proxyConfiguration": {}
}
```

# Actor output Schema

## `results` (type: `string`):

No description

# API

You can run this Actor programmatically using our API. Below are code examples in JavaScript, Python, and CLI, as well as the OpenAPI specification and MCP server setup.

## JavaScript example

```javascript
import { ApifyClient } from 'apify-client';

// Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
// Replace the '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token
const client = new ApifyClient({
    token: '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>',
});

// Prepare Actor input
const input = {
    "podcasts": [
        "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/startalk-radio/id325404506"
    ],
    "searchQueries": [],
    "proxyConfiguration": {}
};

// Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
const run = await client.actor("ayeeyee/podcast-sponsor-lead-extractor").call(input);

// Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if any)
console.log('Results from dataset');
console.log(`💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/${run.defaultDatasetId}`);
const { items } = await client.dataset(run.defaultDatasetId).listItems();
items.forEach((item) => {
    console.dir(item);
});

// 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/js/docs

```

## Python example

```python
from apify_client import ApifyClient

# Initialize the ApifyClient with your Apify API token
# Replace '<YOUR_API_TOKEN>' with your token.
client = ApifyClient("<YOUR_API_TOKEN>")

# Prepare the Actor input
run_input = {
    "podcasts": ["https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/startalk-radio/id325404506"],
    "searchQueries": [],
    "proxyConfiguration": {},
}

# Run the Actor and wait for it to finish
run = client.actor("ayeeyee/podcast-sponsor-lead-extractor").call(run_input=run_input)

# Fetch and print Actor results from the run's dataset (if there are any)
print(f"💾 Check your data here: https://console.apify.com/storage/datasets/{run.default_dataset_id}")
for item in client.dataset(run.default_dataset_id).iterate_items():
    print(item)

# 📚 Want to learn more 📖? Go to → https://docs.apify.com/api/client/python/docs/quick-start

```

## CLI example

```bash
echo '{
  "podcasts": [
    "https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/startalk-radio/id325404506"
  ],
  "searchQueries": [],
  "proxyConfiguration": {}
}' |
apify call ayeeyee/podcast-sponsor-lead-extractor --silent --output-dataset

```

## MCP server setup

```json
{
    "mcpServers": {
        "apify": {
            "type": "http",
            "url": "https://mcp.apify.com/?tools=fetch-actor-details,ayeeyee/podcast-sponsor-lead-extractor"
        }
    }
}

```

The hosted server signs you in with OAuth on first connect, so no API token belongs in this config. Clients without OAuth support can send an `Authorization: Bearer <APIFY_API_TOKEN>` header instead, using a token from API & Integrations in Apify Console (https://console.apify.com/settings/integrations).

## OpenAPI specification

Download the OpenAPI definition: https://api.apify.com/v2/actors/2KfmdAdqxw6KRB40N/builds/5n4sz6BTeWdPh5vnZ/openapi.json