How to Start Your Own Podcast
Testing… testing… can you hear me? Good! Podcasting is a whole new world that is just beginning to be explored. Think of your favorite podcasts. Mile Higher, Podcast Next Door, and Pretty Basic all started somewhere, right? Starting is a lot easier than you think, and you might have just what you need to get a move on. Why wait? Here are our tips on how to start your own podcast!
1. Plan Ahead
Grab a pen and notepad or start a new note on your phone, it’s time to start planning out your vision for the podcast. Ask yourself important questions to guide you towards your end product. What do you want to talk about? Who is your audience? How long and how often will you be uploading content? Do you have enough to say about those topics to stay consistent? Really take the time to brainstorm, plan, and storyboard out the main components of your podcast.
2. What’s My Name?
Deciding on a name can be so extremely daunting. That’s why planning is so important. Hopefully by this point you’ve narrowed down what topic or niche you want to discuss on your podcast. Coming up with an eye-catching name is important in more ways than one. You want the name of the show to be consistent with the topic but also something that stays with the listener. You want the listener to remember the title by either being catchy, witty, funny, or just all-around fitting. We suggest not picking something that is too directed at your topic. Deciding on a name that might have broader meaning will help with expansion in the future.
3. Sound
Once you have a loosely structured idea of how you want your podcast to look, you can move on to the logistics of sound quality and formatting. Picking a microphone is one of the most important aspects when creating your podcast. Because there aren’t a ton of steps a copious amount of equipment or software to invest in, your sound quality has to be AMZING. I mean… sound quality is about 85% of what makes a podcast worth listening to. You don’t need to go out and blow hundreds of dollars on equipment. Do your research on great budget friendly microphones. Use it while you’re getting your podcast off the ground. You can always invest in new equipment as your show grows.
Don’t forget about planning and formatting your show. Interview type podcasts are all the rage right now, but that doesn’t mean you need to that. Finding a comfortable and well flowing format is essential to creating an easy to listen to podcast. Listeners will move on quickly if they can’t vibe or get into a podcast. Take the time to plan out good organization for each podcast when it comes to intro’s, topics, and transitions. Since a podcast is comprised of very few parts, you want to make sure they are all in tiptop shape, so you keep as many listeners entertained. Small hiccups can cause a lot of distractions.
4. Cover Art
The cover art says a lot about the podcast as well. Logo, design, and colors really tell a story and give the listeners an idea of the topics that could be talked about and your personality. You have a lot of options when it comes to cover art. You can create one digitally on your own on software’s like illustrator or procreate, you can also hire someone to execute your vision. Both of these options not for you? On most platforms you can upload a photo from your camera roll. Use a picture of yourself or even one that you’ve found on Pinterest or Tumblr as a good place holder until you decide on something more permanent.
5. Hosting Platform
Speaking of platform, this one is really important. This is what is going to get your podcast out there in the ears of the world! Deciding on a housing platform is important to decide on before getting started. Do your research and decide which platform is the best fit for your podcast. We recommend Anchor when starting your podcast. The hosting platform automatically shares your podcast to the large streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Anchor also helps you find sponsorships and ads to place in your podcast so you can begin to make revenue off of your content. Did we mention it’s free? Anchor is completely free website and application that can be utilized in so many different facets. They even have a very user-friendly interface when you can record, edit and upload right from their website or app. This is a great option if you’re strapped for cash but don’t want to wait to start! There are tons of other hosting websites that might work better for you. Do your research and get to uploading.
6. Editing
Hearing the sound of your own voice can take some getting used to. Recording for the first few times might be challenging because you have to hear yourself talk. That means that it’s probably a nightmare to edit. Be thoughtful of what you’re saying so it makes editing easier. Cutting out ums, likes, and long pauses will get old very quickly. You may even get to the point one day where you won’t need to edit much out at all. Practice makes perfect. Deciding on software to edit on is completely up to you and where you’re recording. You can sometimes record on the hosting platform or you can record on your own computer with an easy audio recording. From there you can edit on free tools like garage band and audacity. Pro Tip: Always back your work up on an external hard drive.
7. Add ons
There are a few finishing touches that can take your podcast from a 6 to a 9. Easy little ad ons like music can make a huge adjustment to your content. Adding in intro and outro music, fun interactive sounds, and music underneath some audio can be transformative to the listener, transporting them to a different time and place.
Sound has the power to transport us to different places and times. With podcasts popping off on every platform imaginable, now is the time to start. Starting your own podcast can seem overwhelming, but with our help, you’ll be a podcasting pro in no time at all.
