How To Start A Podcast

If you’re in search of a information that walks you thru methods to begin a podcast, you’re completely in the best place… Starting a podcast isn’t troublesome, however there are a selection of steps you’ll must undergo with a purpose to get it launched. In this podcasting tutorial, we’ll stroll you thru each step of the method:

Choosing a subject & identify
Show and episode format
Cover artwork creation
Intro & outro music
Equipment choice
Audio recording & editing
Submission to Apple Podcasts (iTunes)
Promotion ideas

And far more…

Why podcasting works as a content material platform

Podcasts have become a popular content platform due to their easy accessibility. Listeners can tune in to podcasts while on the go, while driving, at the gym, or even at work. Additionally, podcasts are device-friendly and can be listened to on any device, from smartphones to desktop computers and tablets.

Unlike radio, podcasts are on-demand, allowing listeners to access content whenever they want. Compared to other content platforms, podcasts provide an opportunity to create a more personal connection with your audience. Imagine having your target listener’s undivided attention for 30 minutes or more. This allows you to establish a more intimate relationship with your audience.

Because of this stage of engagement, folks even hear extra intently to the advertisements. Whether you’re trying to begin a podcast to advertise your corporation or to monetize with advertisements, Midroll discovered that 61% of listeners bought a product or service after listening to it marketed on a podcast. Lastly, podcasts are free. They’re free to create and free to take heed to.

Planning

This is the preliminary (typically missed) stage to make a podcast. You’ll need to spend a good period of time right here earlier than you progress on. Feel free to get out a pocket book or a whiteboard so you can begin planning your podcast like a professional.

Choose A Topic

You need your podcast to be targeted on a selected matter or area of interest. Try to slim it right down to one thing you possibly can talk about for a lot of episodes (100+) however that isn’t so broad that you just won’t attraction to your potential viewers. For instance, as an alternative of getting an “outdoor” podcast, speak about mountain climbing – or much more particular, like mountain climbing 14ers. You can at all times broaden your matter later as you get extra in style. Important: see the part about selecting a reputation to be sure to don’t restrict your self.

Pick A Co-host (elective)

Do you’ve a good friend, enterprise associate, or coworker that you just need to co-host with? It will be a lot simpler to begin podcasting when you’ve got a co-host. You will naturally have a extra partaking dialog should you each share your factors of view on a subject. It may also be useful to have somebody to maintain issues on observe. Plus, you possibly can break up extra duties of editing, selling, and extra.

There will be downsides although. You’ll need to make certain each of you dedicated to it for the long time period. And it helps to set a schedule from the start so you understand when you can be recording each week. There aren’t guidelines right here although. If your co-host drops off, you could possibly nonetheless proceed the podcast without them. Or you could possibly begin solo and add a co-host later. The essential factor is to only get began.. so let’s select a reputation:

Choose A Name

If you take a look at the top Apple Podcasts charts, you’ll see a wide range of totally different names. Some are descriptive of what the present is about, whereas others don’t imply a lot. I’m really going to seemingly contradict what I mentioned earlier: You need to decide on a identify that’s broader than your matter. Using the mountain climbing instance earlier, if we select “The 14er Cast” as our identify, what occurs once we need to speak about backpacking & ultralight tenting too? Instead, select a reputation that may allow you to broaden should you resolve to later.

Maybe “Mountain Adventures (Above & Below 14K ft)” would work because it offers a touch to mountain climbing 14ers however offers you the choice to speak about every kind of stuff if you’d like. I simply got here up with that as I used to be scripting this, I’m positive you could possibly do higher!

Action Step: Purchase a domain name (opens in a brand new tab) on your podcast. Another choice is to get a free area identify with a Bluehost web hosting plan. You can search proper right here on this web page – strive it out!

Show Format

Length

You’ll discover various “experts” declare that sure lengths are excellent for podcasts. The downside is that’s simply BS. You don’t want a 28-minute podcast as a result of that’s the typical driving time. Or under an hour as a result of folks can’t listen longer than that.

There are 5 minutes podcasts and there are 6-hour podcasts. Find no matter works for you and run with it! What I’d attempt to keep away from is making it longer than it must be since you went off-topic for quarter-hour. Here’s an excellent picture from Pop Up Podcasting that exhibits “easy, good, or long – pick two”:

Style

Interview exhibits are in style, however that doesn’t imply you need to do one. You can do solo (or co-hosted) exhibits half the time and interview exhibits the opposite half. One massive advantage of doing interviews is that they assist a ton with getting new listeners – particularly should you make it easy on your guest to share with pre-written templates and graphics.

Episode Format

So what does a selected episode sound like? I wrote this post about podcast intros, nevertheless it has a bunch of examples of various episode codecs for in style podcasts. Here’s one instance:

Teaser
Intro Music
Welcome
Ad Spot
Interview
Call To Action (“Review us on iTunes!”)
Outro Music

Get artistic with this half. Different segments make it simpler to share small clips on social media too. But do not forget that for each episode you set out, you should have each repeat listeners and new listeners so that you should attempt to converse to each of them.

Preparation

Now that you just’ve written down your matter, format(s), and secured a website identify, we’ll must get a couple of issues ready forward of launch…

Create Cover Art

Your cowl artwork is the primary impression most individuals will see as they flick thru Apple Podcasts or their favourite podcast app. It’s may also be the picture somebody sees if you share your present on social media. Buzzsprout has written a superb article about designing cover art, so I’d undoubtedly begin there. If you’ve somewhat little bit of a budget, I extremely advocate 99 Designs to get yours created. You’ll get a whole lot of various designers to supply a draft – then you possibly can select those you wish to have them additional refined.

Get A Professional Intro (Optional)

Music Radio Creative is the best place to get professional-quality voiceovers and intros. Having a third-party introduce you simply takes your perceived worth up a notch, which is a good way to face out when first beginning a podcast.

Choose Intro Music

I’m an enormous fan of PremiumBeat for podcast music. It’s easy to look, you get a full license, and so they have a bunch of various kinds. Take a take a look at this post on royalty-free music for extra choices. Most folks don’t want an infinite subscription-style music service – only a tune or two.

Get A Microphone

Audio high quality is essential nevertheless it doesn’t need to price a ton to get a good high quality microphone for podcasting. One of the preferred podcasting microphones is the Audio-Technica ATR2100x-USB (model new model for 2020). It’s each a USB microphone and has an XLR connection which helps you to improve your recording gear without needing a brand new mic. I like to recommend looking at our podcast starter kit post for extra choices right here, particularly should you plan on having a co-host or two.

Podcast Guests

If you might be doing an interview present, now’s the time to get a list collectively of who you need in your podcast. Then begin reaching out to them. It might help to make use of a scheduling tool like SavvyCal so folks can e book proper in your calendar when it’s handy for you.

This saves the headache of going backwards and forwards figuring out a gathering time – and means you possibly can concentrate on getting extra visitors! Plus you possibly can ask them for sure information like their Skype username or an intro you possibly can learn once they schedule with you. To document your interviews if you’re not in-person (or in case your co-host doesn’t document in the identical room with you.

Recording & Editing

Alitu (The Easy Way)

If you haven’t used editing software program earlier than, even easy actions in GarageBand or Audacity will be fairly intimidating. It’s comprehensible: audio manufacturing is totally filled with jargon! If that’s the case, then Alitu might be the way to go. It’s a ‘podcast making’ tool that automates quite a lot of the complicated technical components, and virtually builds your episode for you.

It’s all primarily based proper inside your browser, so no software program to obtain, and it really works on any computer connected to the internet. It is built to be tremendous easy to make use of and does just about all the pieces:

Takes care of audio cleanup
Lets you add music
Helps you piece collectively your audio segments
Has direct publishing of your episodes.

All you’ll want to do is add your recordings, and use the fool-proof podcast-specific editor to take out any massive errors. Alitu does the remaining! Even higher, Alitu features a library of music and jingles which you should use as your theme tune, or as transitions between segments. Whether you’re an entire newbie, or an skilled podcaster trying to drastically minimize down in your manufacturing time, you should undoubtedly give Alitu a strive. It comes with a 7-day free trial, so sign up here and try it out!

GarageBand (Free Option)

I’m going to indicate you methods to use GarageBand for recording and editing. Other audio editing software program is analogous however most have extra superior features that you just don’t want when getting began. Popular choices are Adobe Audition & Audacity (each work with Mac & PC). You can even take a look at our full post on podcast editing software.

Create A Template

Before you get began, it will likely be a lot simpler should you create a template that you would be able to reuse each time you document a podcast episode. What this implies is that you should have your intro & outro music already positioned, area for advert spots, as well as your tracks on your voice or an interviewee. Keep in thoughts this can look totally different relying in your episode format – create a podcast template that works for you. Here’s one I take advantage of: I’ll simply open the template up, click on File -> Save As, and save the file as my episode identify (i.e. 008-episode-8-title). This will even maintain any results you’ve utilized to the tracks, together with compression, EQ, or the rest. I’ll present you the settings I take advantage of within the editing part below.

Record Your First Episode (Or 3)

Solo

If you’re simply recording a solo episode or need to document an intro to an interview you probably did, merely choose the observe you need to document to (see the sunshine grey Podcast Audio observe chosen above) and click on the crimson Record button up top:

Multiple Hosts

If you’ve a number of hosts, you’ll must click on Track -> Configure Track Header and test Record Enable. This will provide you with the choice to allow a number of tracks to document without delay and also you’ll see the Record Enable button on every observe: You’ll click on that button on every observe you need to document, then click on the massive document button up top. Easy sufficient!

Remote Interview

Many folks use Skype for recording remote interviews and the simplest solution to really document the audio (or video) is with Ecamm Call Recorder For Skype (Mac only) or Pamela (for Windows). If you need higher audio high quality than Skype or Zoom permit, or a solution to have particular person audio files for greater than 2 folks, providers like Iris are wonderful. They are designed for remote recording and podcast interviews. When you might be performed recording, you’ll have two separate tracks that you’ll place on top of one another like this: This additionally exhibits one other template that you could be need to use. The Podcast Audio observe is only used for solo exhibits, and the Interview tracks are only used for interview exhibits.

Edit Your Episode

There are a pair issues you possibly can simply arrange as soon as (and save in your template) that may make your podcast (and your voice) sound a lot better. Keep in thoughts that everybody’s voice is totally different so there aren’t completely common settings, however these could offer you a good start line:

Select the observe you need to work with (begin along with your voice)
Click an empty area within the Plug-ins field
Add compression by going to Dynamics -> Compressor:
I take advantage of these settings (typically I’ll add extra acquire):Play round with them and simply click on the power button subsequent to the compressor plugin to simply evaluate.
Next we’re going so as to add EQ (under EQ -> Channel EQ).
Here are my settings:

100 Hz: 24dB/Oct roll off, Q: 0.79
160 Hz: -2.5dB, Q: 2.20
500 Hz: -1.0dB, Q: 0.71
930 Hz: -0.5dB, Q: 3.20
3400 Hz: +0.5dB, Q: 0.71
5400 Hz: +2.5dB, Q: 0.71

I’m not going to get into what all which means, however should you simply do one, the low-end roll-off (on the left) will probably be a good begin. Or you possibly can simply obtain my Podcast Vocal EQ settings here (.pst file on Dropbox). The final step I’d advocate goes to Auphonic to use some normalization for loudness (LUFS), leveling, and filtering. It will even routinely add ID3 tags should you want them.

Launch!

Get A Podcast Host

I take advantage of and extremely advocate Buzzsprout podcast hosting after attempting many alternative corporations over time. Plus you’ll get a free $20 Amazon reward card after you join a paid plan! Feel free to take a look at our full podcast hosting guide if you wish to see different choices, however one other nice choice for bigger manufacturers is Transistor. You can even take a look at this list of the best podcast platforms. Once you’ve signed up, you’ll must fill out some required information about your podcast (identify, description, classes, and so forth.).

Upload Your First Episode

If you employ Buzzsprout, this course of is tremendous easy. If not, it’s possible you’ll want to mess with issues like embedding ID3 tags into your MP3. Sounds complicated and pointless – let’s not do this. You’ll simply must click on the “Upload” button: and so they’ll apply some magic processing to your mp3 file. Then you’ll must fill out the episode title, description, abstract, publish date, and episode #. If you need to use Seasons, put a “1” there, in any other case go away it clean. If you employ quite a lot of unhealthy phrases, click on the express checkbox. It will be useful to create a template on your episode description (in a separate textual content doc) to reuse for each episode – I take advantage of one thing like this: Click save and repeat this step on your preliminary launch of episodes. It’s beneficial to launch a podcast with greater than 1 episode so that folks don’t have to attend to listen to extra. 3 to five episodes is a good quantity to begin with.

Submit To Apple Podcasts (iTunes)

I’ve a separate information on how to submit your podcast to iTunes however inside Buzzsprout simply click on Apple Podcasts under the Directories tab and observe the steps they’ve put collectively. After that, seize your podcast RSS feed and undergo different podcast directories too. As you add new episodes, your host will routinely replace your RSS feed and any podcast listing you’re listed on will even replace along with your new episode.

Spread The Word

Use Buzzsprout’s social sharing characteristic to generate teaser movies and begin sharing!

Buzzsprout’s built-in video soundbite creator. There are different corporations that may provide help to generate totally different kinds of audiograms, however having it built into your host makes it actually easy to create (and it won’t price you further). Wavve and Headliner are two wonderful decisions if you wish to create extra customized podcast movies to share. Check out this text on podcast promotion to for a bunch of different advertising techniques. One of essentially the most impactful ones is building your individual web site (see subsequent step below).

Recommended Steps (After Starting A Podcast)

Your job isn’t performed when you begin a podcast. Here are my suggestions to assist make your present extra interesting and simpler to develop:

Create A Website

WordPress (Easy To Medium Difficulty)

Podcast hosting corporations often offer you an internet site, however if you wish to be taken severely get your self a separate WordPress host. For newcomers, Bluehost is well the best choice (plus you’ll get a free area identify for the primary 12 months). If you want a bit extra steerage, begin with this how to start a WordPress blog post for the preliminary steps. I’ve a list of excellent WordPress plugins {that a} podcaster would want too. And should you want extra assist, I’ve a course known as Podcast Website LaunchPad that walks you thru all the pieces.

Podcastpage (Easiest Method)

Podcastpage is an internet site builder and hosting all-in-one made particularly for podcasts. Kind of like Wix however designed for the wants podcasters. No coding is critical. You simply select certainly one of their themes, customise to your liking, and optionally combine e mail advertising or Google Analytics. You can add pages or weblog posts, customise your audio participant, and make it easy on your guests to subscribe! It works with any podcast hosting supplier and pricing is honest, beginning at $80/12 months or $8/month. Check it out and sign up for a free trial here.

Get Transcriptions

Transcriptions are a superb manner for serps (like Google) to “read” your podcast episodes. They additionally give your viewers one other solution to look one thing up rapidly. You don’t have to begin out with them, nevertheless it’s one other a type of issues that may set you aside. Buzzsprout has a built-in transcription service (on paid plans) that prices $.10/minute, however my favourite transcription service is Scribie. Give them a strive.

Create Show Notes

Show notes will be transcriptions like above, a easy abstract of what you talked about, or a full weblog post tailor-made extra towards studying than listening. Some folks do a mixture. On this website, we begin with written content material first after which create podcast episodes after.

Embed Your Episode

Grab your episode embed code and place it in your present notes web page so folks can hear out of your web site. Simple as that! In this ‘How to Start a Podcast’ walkthrough, there are 5 stages, broken down into 20 steps, so read on for the full details. We really hope this guide gives you the skills and the inspiration to get started. And, if it does, get in touch and let us know. We want to hear.

A quick heads up. Some of the services we point to here are affiliate links. This means we’d earn a small commission if you were to buy, at absolutely no extra cost to yourself. This all goes towards supporting the masses of free content we put out. And, rest assured, we only recommend things we use ourselves, and think highly of! Ok, enough procrastinating – that’s what we’re supposed to be avoiding! Let’s find out how to make your podcast

A: Planning Your Podcast

There are two big questions you need to ask yourself here, and they’re joined at the hip. First…

1. What’s Your Podcast For?

So firstly, why do you want to make a podcast? Are you a freelancer? A business? Or a marketing manager? If so, you might have identified podcasting as a great way to build authority, and provide your customers and target audience with valuable and entertaining content. Or are you looking at podcasting from a hobbyist perspective? This might mean you’ll be creating a show in your spare time. And the subject will be something that you’re passionate about. In either case, you can identify your “why” here. That’s important to keep in mind, so that you can stay motivated, even when you’re finding it difficult to get a show out. Next, what about your “who”?

2. Who is Your Podcast For?

So first day, get the big question in: Who are you making this podcast for? The thing is, unless you know exactly who you’re making your present for, and why you’re doing it, you’ve acquired no probability of rising an viewers. If you are coming at it from a enterprise viewpoint, and also you’re (for instance) a private coach who desires to make a well being and health podcast, then your audience is perhaps people who find themselves fascinated about wholesome consuming, weight reduction, train, or bodybuilding.

If you are making a passion present – as an example it is primarily based round your love of zombies and post-apocalyptic fiction – then your audience would merely be people with the identical ardour. They is perhaps fans of TV exhibits like The Walking Dead, video video games like Resident Evil, books like World War Z, and movies like Night of the Living Dead. A number of good folks speak about creating listener personas or avatars. It’s a good thought, sketching out precisely who it’s that you just’d wish to take heed to your content material. That persona is one thing to remember each time you intend an episode: “Would John, our listener persona, like this? Is this focused on what he likes, what he’s interested in?”

That persona and people questions provide help to to maintain your present targeted and on observe, each of which make for extra partaking content material. So as soon as you understand who you need to attain, how do you attain them?

You want to present folks a purpose to hear. This means creating content material that they are going to get one thing out of once they hit play. We’ll speak about that simply shortly, however first up, listed here are some resources so that you can bookmark for future studying.

Do I Need an Audience to Start a Podcast?

One common question is whether it is necessary to have an existing audience before starting a podcast. It can be helpful to have an audience already built around your business, brand, or personal reputation, but it’s not a requirement. If you don’t have an existing audience, you can still start a podcast and work on building a fanbase from scratch.

To start building an audience, you can reach out to potential listeners and ask for their feedback. Ask them about their pain points and struggles, and use their answers to shape your podcast content. You can also gather information about your listeners’ demographics and preferences, including what other podcasts they enjoy listening to. However, be careful not to get too caught up in seeking input from others and let it turn into procrastination or indecisiveness. At some point, you’ll need to make decisions and start moving forward with your podcast.

What If I Have No Audience?

Welcome to the overwhelming majority of people that begin a podcast! Of all of the issues that may put you off launching your individual present, please do not let or not it’s this one. Most podcasters kick issues off by speaking “into the void”, however observe the steps on this information, bookmark the articles we hyperlink to, and you may start to steadily develop your individual viewers from scratch! Here’s some good information for you too.

In our 2020 Podcast Discovery survey, the information confirmed that potential new listeners do not care in the event that they’ve by no means heard of you. In truth, it is the least essential factor they’re going to take into account when weighing up whether or not or to not hit play. Check out the survey hyperlink for extra helpful stats and information.

3. Give Them a Reason to Listen

Whether you are offering information that may assist somebody to shed extra pounds (within the case of our private coach), or doing a extremely entertaining interview with certainly one of your favorite authors (within the case of our zombie podcaster) you are offering worth on your listener. Not only have you ever given them a purpose to hear, however you’ve got additionally given them a purpose to come back again for extra. It’s essential to consider this within the planning phases. Can you write down 10-15 potential episodes that you just assume your audience would like to take heed to?

4. Naming Your Podcast

Option 1 – The Clever Name

You would possibly consider a extremely intelligent identify on your present. But do not forget that folks want to have the ability to discover it once they’re trying to find information about your matter. If you’ve a intelligent/catchy identify on your present, then attempt to additionally incorporate an outline into the title. There’s no level placing out nice content material if no one can discover it. For instance, certainly one of our exhibits known as Path of Most Resistance. It most likely falls into the ‘clever name’ class, though we’re not that intelligent… So, to present a little bit of description, we additionally use the tagline: The Uncommon Leader’s Guide.

Option 2 – The Descriptive Name

The searchable (however some would possibly say boring) choice is to easily name your present what your audience is trying to find. If our private coach known as her present The Fitness Podcast then there’s completely little question as to what the present is about. It’s a good thought, though presumably reduces how memorable it’s, only a bit.

Avoid getting too long and wordy should you go down this route. Remember you’ll must say the podcast identify quite a bit when recording your episodes, so make certain it rolls off the tongue.

Option 3 – Using Your Own Name

This is just about a no-no except you’ve already acquired an viewers. If somebody began The Mike Smith Show and it was about mountain climbing, folks would simply assume “who is Mike Smith?” and transfer on to the following podcast. Again, you possibly can incorporate this into your present’s identify together with one thing descriptive (‘Rock Climbing, with Mike Smith’). But keep away from naming the present after you without every other particulars.

Want this Guide to Take Away?

No worries! Here are a few methods you may get this information offline.

1. The e mail collection, delivered over one week. This is the concise information, for minimal time and stress. The important steps, plus duties & homework, to get your present out on this planet. Then, transfer on to the element later!

2. The full eBook model of this information. It’s expanded out to incorporate each one of many 20 steps, superbly designed and laid out to information you thru your entire course of within the nicest, best manner possible.

Complete element, 20 days, in a single beautiful package deal. Everything you’ll want to launch with confidence

B: Planning Your Episodes

After establishing what type of content material you’d wish to be placing out in your podcast, it’s time to consider the episodes themselves. So, when methods to begin a podcast, what are a few of the most typical questions on podcast episodes?

5. How Long Should A Podcast Episode Be?

Podcast size relies upon solely on content material. Don’t minimize down good content material or pad out succinct work! How long does it have to be to get the message out? If you requested most podcast listeners, a “short” episode would most likely be something under quarter-hour. And a “long” episode would most likely be something over an hour.

Many will reference the time of the typical commute (mentioned to be round 20 minutes) as a good size to shoot for. But something from 20 as much as 45 minutes appears to be throughout the “sweet spot” for an episode size.

If you’ve 50 minutes of useful, related content material, why chop it down to twenty? Or likewise, should you’ve mentioned all the pieces you must say in 10 minutes, why pad it out to 30? In extreme cases, say you do an interview and it’s a incredible dialog from begin to end however runs for two hours. You can at all times chop it in half and create two episodes.

Over time, your listeners will let you know in the event that they assume your episodes are too quick or too long. Try to survey your audience every year to assemble information like this, and you may alter accordingly. When you get that information, in fact, there’s no want to stay to the identical size every time, nevertheless it’s good to have an ‘average’ so your listeners know what to anticipate. Finally, size can really be a ‘unique’ factor, like we talked about in Section 3. Short and snappy 4 minute episodes may swimsuit a sure type of listener, or enormous 3-hour in-depth interviews would possibly swimsuit one other. Think about whether or not size is perhaps a deliberate distinctive choice for you.

6. How Often Should I Release New Episodes?

This is one other massive ‘how to start a podcast’ questions. Here’s the reply: The best schedule is often essentially the most frequent one that you would be able to stick with, regularly. So, should you can only handle as soon as a month, that’s effective. If you possibly can handle each 2 weeks, even higher. If you possibly can handle weekly, then that’s nice.

You can nonetheless have a huge impact with a fortnightly, or month-to-month present, however folks plan their lives round what day of the week it’s. It’s the routine on the forefront of our lives, and tapping into it may be highly effective. That mentioned, sticking to a deadline only for the sake of it’s pointless. You’ll have an even bigger impression should you put out one wonderful episode a month as an alternative of a really common episode each week.

Another Option: Podcasting In Seasons

Season podcasting will get you off the publishing conveyor belt, bringing the enjoyable again into podcasting! Starting a podcast doesn’t need to be like leaping on a treadmill, the place you must get a brand new episode out each week/fortnight/month. You can take a leaf out of tv’s e book and podcast in seasons. When you begin a seasonal podcast, every season will often have a theme. You would possibly create episodes primarily based on that theme or matter for 6-12 episodes, then have a break.

Need Help Launching Your Podcast?

We’ll present you the precise steps, offer you a launch schedule & provide help to alongside the way in which. Check out the Course

7. Choosing Good Episode Titles

Just like selecting a reputation on your podcast, selecting good, searchable, descriptive titles on your episodes is essential.

The largest mistake in the case of naming your episodes is to name them “Episode 1”, “Episode 2”, and so forth. Nobody’s going to know what to anticipate in the event that they hear. The entire level of a podcast is that folks take heed to it, so give them a purpose to click on on certainly one of your episodes. Make it clear to folks what they are going to get from listening to your present.

If you look on any podcast listing you will notice exhibits with titles like “How To…”, “Five Tips For…” and so forth. These are in style as a result of they work. You simply must just be sure you are delivering within the episode what you promised within the title. The further advantage of that is that Apple/iTunes permits looking by episode identify. So you possibly can present up not only for the phrases in your podcast identify, however for the key phrases in your episode titles. That offers you an entire further stage of attain should you identify them well.

Need extra assist with titles, lengths and ALL the small print?

We’ve performed solo, co-host, group, roundtable, drama, blah blah blah… We’ve additionally performed quite a lot of seasons, and made it work actually well for us. Everything we have realized is packed proper into our Podcast Launch course contained in the Podcast Host Academy, and is supported by weekly live Q&A classes the place you possibly can discuss instantly to us. Take the course, ask us for steerage and launch with confidence!

How to document a podcast

When it involves methods to document a podcast, all you’ll want to do is plug in a USB microphone and open the audio recording software program in your computer. Ensure your microphone is plugged in and turned on and that your microphone is the default input gadget on your recording software program. The AKG C414 is a classic microphone that will make you sound like a pro and that’s as loud as it is clear. Simply click on the document button in your software program of choice and discuss away! There’s no must cease or pause the recording, even when there are errors alongside the way in which. You can at all times edit the recording later utilizing the identical software program. To document your first episode in GarageBand, right here’s a pleasant four-minute video that may simply stroll you thru the method:

Once you end recording, you may need to save your podcast. MP3s are the best format on your podcast files, since they compress well (low file measurement) and will be performed on most units. You’ll need to save your MP3 as a hard and fast bitrate and never a variable (VBR) one. Most recording software program will ask you for this information upon saving. A good bitrate to make use of is 128kbps, which retains the file measurement low whereas sustaining good audio high quality. For the pattern rate, I like to recommend 44.1Mhz, which is CD high quality.

How to create a podcast: recording your first episode

Now that you have set up your podcast, it’s time to record your first episode. But what should you talk about in this episode? Well, the first thing to do is to introduce yourself and your podcast to the world. This will be your “Episode Zero.” It’s your opportunity to let everyone know what your podcast is all about and where it’s headed. It’s normal to be a little nervous, especially if you’ve never talked into a microphone for 20-30 minutes straight before. But don’t be self-conscious about your voice. You don’t need a professional radio voice to get people listening. Just speak naturally.

When you listen back to your recording, don’t cringe if you hear your own voice. Everyone hates the sound of their voice at first, but you’ll get used to it. If your voice sounds shaky or nervous, remember that building confidence on the mic takes practice. When I listen back to my first few podcasts and compare them to my current ones, I can see how much I’ve improved. Also, remember that you can always edit the audio after you’re done recording. If you lose your spot or forget your next point, don’t be afraid to sit in silence until you regain your composure and continue. You can edit those gaps and mistakes out later.

Finally, don’t read off of a script. Your podcast should sound natural. People who listen to podcasts don’t want to hear an audiobook. They’re used to the dynamic conversations and discussions that happen on podcasts. It’s okay to have a few bullet points to work off of, but practice talking about topics off the top of your head.

Getting an intro and outro

Having an intro and outro for every episode of your podcast provides aptitude and character. Usually, they’re quick voiceovers with intro music that covers the podcast, episode quantity, the host(s), and the “hook” or tagline of the podcast. These intros/outros are additionally typically known as bumpers. If you’ve acquired the chops, you possibly can document these your self.

Alternatively, you possibly can rent somebody with an excellent voice to create your podcast music and document your intro and outro for you. I’ve used Fiverr prior to now to create the intro and outro for my podcast. I’d advocate listening to different podcasts in your area of interest to get some inspiration for the intro and outro.

How to edit your podcasts

Editing your podcasts permits you to add your intro and outro, stabilize the volume, and take away gaps of useless air and any errors you may need made. Any of the software program beneficial above (e.g. Adobe Audition, Audacity, GarageBand) should do the trick. In your audio editor of choice, search for settings that stabilize the volume routinely so there aren’t spikes of high volume (headphone listeners will thanks for that), and eradicate background noises and pops.

If you battle to be taught the software program or just discover the method too time consuming, you possibly can rent somebody to edit your episodes for you. There are freelancers on Fiverr and Upwork. It’s a good thought to stay with somebody after you discover the best individual since they are going to know your model and editing preferences.

There are additionally post-production providers, akin to Auphonic, which is able to do the leveling, volume normalization and some different issues for you. Whatever you employ, it’s essential to normalize the volume of every episode. You don’t need one episode to be considerably louder or quieter than the others. Once you end editing your recording, reserve it as an MP3, as beneficial earlier, with a 128kbps bitrate and 44.1MHz pattern rate. Once your MP3 is saved, I counsel editing the ID3 tags of the file.

The ID3 tags are your solution to inform MP3 gamers and units extra information in regards to the file, such because the identify of the episode and identify of the “artist” (podcast). This manner, MP3 gamers have observe information to display.

On Mac and Windows units, utilizing Audacity and DataONE’s metadata editor permits you to add ID3 tags, akin to paintings, episode identify, and podcast identify.

This may also be performed in Apple Podcasts. There’s additionally the ID3 Editor ($15 USD), which makes the method of editing tags on Mac so much simpler. Editing ID3 tags is not a required step and doesn’t have an effect on or assist your podcast’s itemizing on Apple Podcasts. However, it’s a pleasant touch, particularly for listeners who obtain your podcast episodes to play them afterward totally different units.

Podcast hosting

You’ll want a separate host simply on your audio files. Even if you have already got a web host and an internet site, you don’t need to host your MP3s on the identical server. Those shared web hosts don’t have the bandwidth or speed for the demand that downloading and streaming MP3s creates. Fortunately, media hosts are reasonably priced. Here are those I take advantage of and advocate:

Libsyn. Podcast hosting beginning at $5 a month for 50 MB of area with limitless bandwidth.
Blubrry. Podcast hosting beginning at $12 a month for 100 MB of area with limitless bandwidth.

Think about what number of episodes you’ll be publishing per 30 days. For instance, let’s say you’re releasing a brand new episode each week. That’s roughly 4 episodes a month. If your episodes are an hour every, each episode is perhaps round 50 MB. This means you’ll doubtless want over 200 MB per 30 days. This is simply an instance. You’ll want to determine what plan is best on your wants and proceed from there. Generally, you’re higher off paying for the choice that permits for somewhat extra space than you want, simply in case.

Syndicating your podcast RSS feed

Once you’ve your media host configured and at the very least one episode uploaded, you may be supplied with an RSS feed by your media host. This feed incorporates your entire episodes and the related information, akin to every episode’s title, paintings, description, and MP3 file location. Fortunately, your media host handles all of this for you, so if this sounds difficult, it’s not.

This RSS feed is what you may be submitting to podcast directories, akin to Apple Podcasts. You only must submit this feed as soon as. Every time you add a brand new episode to your media host, the feed is routinely up to date on Apple Podcasts and every other directories you’ve submitted the podcast to. I’ll go over this in additional element within the subsequent part.

Submitting your podcast to the best channels

Apple Podcasts (iTunes)
Stitcher
SoundCloud
YouTube
Spotify
Google Play Store

There are many directories the place you possibly can list your podcast. I’m going to advocate the preferred, however you possibly can distribute your podcast throughout as many channels as you’d like. You’re going to be requested on your podcast’s identify, description, class, paintings, and so forth.

How to begin a podcast on Apple Podcasts

Apple Podcasts is the most important podcast listing and it should definitely be your focus. If you’re only going to submit your podcast to 1 listing, that is it. To discover ways to add to Apple Podcasts, head over to iTunes Connect’s Podcaster Support web page to create an account and submit your podcast.

How to add a podcast on Stitcher

Stitcher is the second largest podcast listing and one other good way for folks to find your podcast. Basic Brewing Radio, for instance, is a podcast on Stitcher that discusses homebrewing beer. Wine fans, then again, can tune in to the Wine for Normal People podcast.

How to begin a podcast on SoundCloud

SoundCloud is one other channel the place you possibly can list your podcast to amplify your attain. PlayStation, for instance, has built up an viewers of almost 5,000 subscribers for its SoundCloud podcast. Submit your podcast and RSS feed to SoundCloud.

How to begin a podcast on YouTube

You would possibly need to put your podcast up on YouTube to achieve much more folks. You’ll want a video file to add as you’d for every other YouTube video. For the visuals, you should use a static branded picture that enhances your different paintings. Or, you possibly can embody a video. Many podcasts have video recordings of the speaker(s), akin to this one from Bulletproof:

How to add podcasts to Spotify

Spotify is an up-and-coming listing for podcasts due to its reputation with music streaming and talent to make related music and podcast suggestions. The listing is rising rapidly, so that you need to get your podcast in its feed to enhance visibility. Get began by heading over to Spotify for Podcasters and observe the steps to submit your present. It can take two to 5 days to look on the podcast listings, however most sometimes present up in a couple of hours.

How to begin a podcast on Google Play Store

Starting a podcast on Google Play Store is a good way to achieve extra potential listeners. Start by visiting the Google Play Podcasts portal. Click Add a Podcast and paste your podcast’s RSS feed URL, then click on Submit RSS Feed. Once you confirm possession of your podcast and review the information, publish the podcast and look forward to approval.

Launching your podcast

When you launch, there’s a possibility so that you can be featured within the New & Noteworthy part on Apple Podcasts Just think about how a lot this might develop your podcast in a brief time period. This would give your new podcast quite a lot of traction. To get seen by Apple Podcasts and improve your possibilities of being featured, you’ll need to launch your podcast in a manner that you just obtain some listens and reviews instantly. This goes to place you within the place to be featured. While it nonetheless isn’t assured, launching your podcast this manner will provide help to develop organically, too.

To do that, make the launch of your podcast an occasion and generate buzz round it. Create a touchdown web page on your podcast, letting folks know what you’ve deliberate. This touchdown web page should additionally give folks the prospect to decide right into a mailing list, which you should use to achieve out on launch day. Building a small viewers pre-launch is essential, since it could actually assist create a snowball impact. The day you debut your podcast, you should launch it with a couple of episodes, ideally three.

This is a good variety of episodes to have your viewers hear to right away without overwhelming them. If you launch with only one episode, you doubtless won’t get the hear numbers you’ll want to get seen by Apple Podcasts. You additionally want to indicate your listeners that you will be placing out content material commonly, and that there’s one thing to subscribe to.

Having a number of episodes at launch (i.e., displaying episode #1, episode #2, and so forth.) implies that there’s far more to come back. Announce the launch to your e mail list, and ask them to subscribe to the podcast and go away a review after listening. It’s actually essential that you just encourage your subscribers to go away a review, as having reviews (and subscribers) the primary day might help you get seen by Apple Podcasts, rising your odds of getting featured.

Growing your podcast

Yay, you’ve found out methods to podcast and revealed your first few episodes! What’s subsequent? One phrase: progress. Get into the behavior of asking your listeners to go away a review on Apple Podcasts and to subscribe. Having extra subscribers and extra reviews might help you get extra listeners. Encourage this in your web site, on social media, and in emails, as a result of folks listening to your podcast won’t be close to a computer or in a position to go away a review if you ask them live. A method that I like to make use of to encourage reviews and engagement is to reward the listeners who achieve this.

For my podcast, I ask listeners to go away a review on Apple Podcasts, and each week, I learn a random review on the present and provides a free Kindle e book to that listener. It offers my listeners extra incentive to really go away a review since they’ve an opportunity to get one thing totally free. Another essential key to your success is to be constant.

If you intend on releasing a brand new episode each week, do it on the similar time and on the identical day. You must have persistence and you’ll want to put out common content material to indicate your viewers that you just’re severe. Nobody desires to take heed to or observe a podcast that guarantees to place out content material commonly however doesn’t observe via.

Another nice tactic is building a mailing list and inspiring listeners to subscribe so you possibly can talk with them. One Campaign Monitor report discovered that e mail advertising resulted in a mean $44 ROI for each greenback spent in 2016. Simply having your listeners subscribe only to your podcast isn’t good sufficient. When you’ll want to promote or inform your viewers one thing, e mail will probably be simpler than solely utilizing your podcast or social media.

How to earn a living with a podcast

There are alternative ways to monetize your podcast. Your focus first should be to build your viewers and their belief. Then you possibly can take into consideration monetization. One of the extra in style methods to monetize a podcast is to tackle sponsors, and do “reads” selling related products and providers. If you’ve listened to different in style podcasts, you’ve doubtless heard these ads the place the host reads advert copy and directs listeners to a selected hyperlink. The different manner is to easily use your podcast to advertise your individual products and providers.

Just such as you would in a sponsored learn, you possibly can direct your listeners to certainly one of your products or providers firstly and finish of your podcast. If you need to observe this, give your listeners a singular hyperlink or low cost code.

How to begin a podcast FAQ

How do you take heed to podcasts?

There are 3 ways to take heed to a podcast:

On the podcast web site. The easiest solution to tune in is thru an internet site browser, akin to Safari or Chrome. You can hear in your computer or a browser in your cellphone.

On your iPhone or iPad. People with an iOS gadget can uncover and take heed to podcasts within the Apple Podcasts app.

On Android. People with an Android cellphone can hear via the Google podcasts app.

How do podcasts earn a living?

There are quite a lot of methods to earn a living with a podcast. Some of the preferred methods are:

Sponsorships. This is when the podcast promotes a sponsor throughout the present. How a lot you make from sponsorships depends upon what number of downloads your present will get. Sponsors sometimes pay on a cost-per-1,000 foundation with charges starting from $18 to $50 CPM.

Direct help. Direct help is when a number asks listeners for cash to help the present. If folks love your content material, they’ll doubtless throw some cash your manner to assist maintain the podcast operating.

Affiliate gross sales. Podcasters can even earn cash from affiliate advertising. Rather than earn a living per obtain, you’ll sometimes make a proportion of what you promote for the company you’re selling.

Selling products. One frequent manner podcasts earn a living is by promoting products that complement the present. This can embody merchandise, consulting providers, books, live occasions, programs, and extra.

How a lot do podcasters make?

Popular podcasters could make $25 to $40 for each 1,000 listeners from advertisers. Advertise Cast stories the typical podcast promoting charges in 2019 have been $18 CPM (price per 1,000 listeners) for a 30-second advert and $25 CPM for a 60-second advert.

What are the preferred podcast platforms?

The hottest podcast platforms as of April 2020 are:

Buzzsprout
Captivate
Transistor
Simplecast
Podbean
Castos

What gear do you’ll want to begin a podcast?

To create your individual podcast starter kit, you’ll must get:

A good podcast microphone
Audio recording software program
Call recording software program
Podcast gear to enhance sound high quality

Can you begin a podcast totally free?

Yes, you possibly can create and arrange a podcast totally free by utilizing a free podcast hosting service and free audio software program and importing your exhibits to websites akin to Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Google Podcasts totally free. However, one of many largest podcast suggestions is to spend money on a good microphone to enhance sound high quality.

Summary – Start a podcast right this moment

With the podcast listing guide and some research on existing podcasts, you can create a successful podcast today. If you already have an external microphone, record a short episode introducing yourself and your podcast idea. Take the time to get comfortable talking into the microphone and listen to yourself afterward. You don’t have to upload the episode you recorded today, but it’s good to get some practice and familiarity with the process.

If you have any questions about starting a podcast or any comments about this guide, please leave a comment below. I engage with and respond to all of them.