Ben No kidding, SoundCloud just got funnier

The jokes are on us: this is a big week for comedy on SoundCloud.

First, we’re pleased to announce that we’re launching a slate of five new comedy Pro Partners. Our new Pro Partners follow in the footsteps of The Nerdist and Kevin Smith’s SModCO, who’ve been with us since we launched Pro at South By Southwest.

Who’s in the new crew? There’s Earwolf, a comedy network featuring top celebrity guests from the stand-up world and beyond. The Bugle, starring John Oliver and Andy Zaltzman, the transatlantic region’s leading bi-continental satirical double-act. The comedian-owned All Things Comedy Network. Laughspin, a weekly comedy news and feature wrap-up, straight out of New Jersey. And Splitsider, which gathers up some of the best comedy podcasts out there for your listening pleasure.

That’s just the beginning of the hilarity: we’re also excited to say that Comedy Central has now joined us as a new partner on SoundCloud. Hear what they’re serving up.

And if you prefer to tell your own jokes, we have good news for you, too. We’re all about making it possible for anyone to create and share audio, which is why we have one more collaboration to tell you about: we’re also partnering with the BBC for BBC Radio’s New Comedy Award, a nationwide search to find the best new stand-up talent in the UK. Upload your entry and make the world LOL.

Jami Make Your Profile Sing

You’ve uploaded some sounds, but what next? Here are a few tips to help you get the most out of sharing your music & audio on SoundCloud.

Stand out and be found

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Make it easy for people to find your profile by making your username clear, correct and concise. You can edit this in your settings. Your profile image is key, too. Head to your profile, then drag and drop the image you want to showcase over your current profile image (ensuring you only upload images you have the rights for).

The more information you add in your advanced settings, the better picture you’ll provide to those who visit your page.

Give your sounds some context

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Make sure there’s a eye-catching artwork image for each of your uploads, not just your profile photo (again, only upload work you have the rights for). Also, try to use established genres and tags to describe your work (not something like “mysupercoolwobblebaserock”). For example, “deep house” or “post hardcore” are fine.

Don’t forget that your sound’s description can be used to go into detail about your sound, adding information like recording location, label, release, instruments and so on.

Share your sounds

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Now that your work is on SoundCloud, it can be played anywhere. Be sure to share your sounds with your friends and followers on Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and more, using our share button and widgets. Linking to your SoundCloud profile will also help your existing fans find you.

If you have more content to upload, try holding it back and spacing out your posts. This will prevent you from flooding the Stream of your followers, and will keep your profile fresh over time. If you’re low on sounds, consider reposting sounds you’re enjoying to show off your taste, and give your friends a boost. They might return the favor!

Find your community

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A large part of building a community, and audience, is linking up with other artists who create work that excites and inspires you. Follow bands you’re friends with, or those you relate to. It’ll help others paint a better picture of you, plus you’ll keep up to date with new uploads from your friends. For some ideas on who to follow, visit https://soundcloud.com/people, which will give you some suggestions based on what you have listened to.

Have fun!

Justin Now Integrated: Google+ And Search

We want everyone to be able to use SoundCloud to share and hear the world’s sounds. Which is why that we’re excited today to be announcing a new partnership that should make it easier than ever: we’re getting together with Google to help everyone to share and discover more.

Hear the news first from David Glazer, Google’s Director of Engineering:

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The integration’s happening across Google+ as well as Search. First, the new sign in function with Google+ will make it simpler to sign up or log in, whether you’re on the web or on mobile. You’ll also be able to add a Google+ logo to your profile, so that people can find you there (as always, you can manage your privacy settings here).

Launching today, the Google+ integration makes sharing on the network effortless. Look for the button next to every sound on the platform. (It’s your choice — nothing will be automatically posted on your G+ profile.) And this is just the beginning. Stay tuned for more from our new partnership with Google, all designed to make it even simpler to share your sounds.

Things have also changed with Search: Google is now displaying socially-relevant search results based on activity from Google+ users you’re connected with on SoundCloud. That means that discovering what your networks are hearing and loving will be easier than ever.