Starting a Podcast

Maria Hogan

Thinking about starting a podcast but not sure where to start? We’ve got you covered. From the basics like choosing your topic and format, to getting your podcast on Spotify and other podcast apps, what equipment you’ll need, and how to monetise your podcast.

How to start a podcast

With the right planning and preparation, starting a podcast should be a fun experience. Let’s start with the basics on getting your podcast up and running.

Choose a topic

This might seem obvious to some but hear me out. The first step in starting a podcast is to choose a topic. This could be anything from discussing your favourite hobby to sharing your professional expertise.

If you are starting a podcast for your business, think about something that will add value for your customers. Be creative. Some examples of what corporate podcasts can look like are as follows:

Microsoft’s podcast .future looks at what the future might look like based on how things are unfolding today.
Open for Business by eBay is a podcast interviewing entrepreneurs about growing their businesses from scratch.
Digital Nomad Travel Insurance company Safety Wing has a podcast called Building Remotely hosted by their CEO speaking to remote founders and thought leaders on how to build and scale a remote company.

Identify your target audience

The earlier you identify your target audience, the better you can integrate them into your podcast. I recommend doing this around the same time you chose your topic because it can help you be more specific with your content.

Figuring out your target podcast audience early on will also help you style your podcast cover art, music and marketing efforts appropriately for your audience.

Decide on podcast format

Once you have a topic and a defined target audience in mind, you’ll have to define your podcast format. Ask yourself these questions:

How long will your podcast episodes be?
Will you do interviews?
Will you have any specific segments in the podcast?
How often will you release an episode?

Create a name and logo

Once you’ve got all that done, you’ll need to come up with a name and logo for your podcast. This will help you stand out from the crowd and make your podcast more easily recognizable.

I recommend using Canva to design your podcast logo. If you’re not already familiar with Canva it is a content creation website that just makes everything easier. I absolutely swear by Canva. They have a free and paid plan. The free version has more than enough tools to create a decent podcast cover art but if you want to access extra features and templates their paid version costs $12.99 US per month.

Choose your music

Your podcast music is so important for setting the tone for the podcast. There are some great free sites to get royalty free music such as MixKit and Pixabay. There are also some paid sites too such as Envato Elements.

When downloading music always make sure it is for commercial use and always download the rights document too. To do this on Pixabay you have to log in. You likely will never need it but I have had podcasts have to change their music because we couldn’t provide this document to YouTube.

Record your episodes

You can record the episodes in video or audio-only format. I recommend recording in RiversideFM.

Riverside offers a free package with 2 hours of separate track recording per month. If you go over the 2 hours your quality drops significantly and there may be technical glitches. If necessary you can upgrade to their standard plan which allows 5 hours per month.

Edit your episodes

Next, you’ll need to edit your episodes. There are so many different podcast editing softwares out there both free and paid.

The best free audio editing software in my opinion is Audacity. They have excellent guides on how to use it on their website and there is an abundance of tutorial videos on YouTube. Some other paid options include Hindenburg and Adobe Audition.

Can’t get your head around editing? Contact us at Creatively Contenting for a coaching session or to find out about one of our editing packages.

Set up a podcast host

A podcast host is not the presenter, it’s a site that houses your podcast on the internet and broadcasts it out to all the different podcast players such as Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

On the host site you will upload your podcast, write your description or show notes and schedule the episode for when you would like it to go out.

There are several podcast host sites to choose from. My personal favourites are Anchor and Castos.

Anchor is free and is really intuitive to use. They have an option to create your podcast cover art right on the website, have a monetisation service and an episode builder.

Castos offers excellent analytics and the podcast show notes editor is of very high quality. Some of their plans include free transcription and can be integrated to post directly to YouTube. Having a podcast transcription online helps increase SEO reach.

Create and launch a trailer

A podcast trailer should be around 2 minutes long and entice listeners into saving or subscribing to your podcast. Let them know what your podcast is about, how often it will be out, when it will be released and what they can expect each episode.

I recommend releasing your trailer 7-14 days before your launch.

Share on social media and build a following

Social media is your number one tool for building a podcast audience. Share snippets of your podcast, quotes from it, interesting facts or anything else your audience might enjoy.

I like to share snippets of audio as audiograms. You can create these on Canva or on Wavve.co.

To save time you can schedule your social content on a site like OneUp.

Starting a podcast: equipment

One of the most important things to consider when starting a podcast is the equipment you’ll need. Here’s a quick rundown of the equipment you’ll need to get started:

Microphone

A good microphone is essential for recording clear and professional-sounding audio. I recommend the Blue Yeti mic. It’s very reasonably priced and the sound quality is excellent. It offers different modes where you can set it to record in one direction- for solo recordings, in 2 directions- for interviewing someone sitting opposite you and in 4 directions for a panel chat.

If you need to record audio on the go and don’t necessarily want to have your laptop with you when recording I recommend the Zoom H1N recorder.

If you’re not ready to commit to a mic yet don’t worry. Most smartphones have a decent microphone. The best smartphone mic I’ve found is on a ZTE but iPhone and Samsungs are good too in my experience. Any good smartphone should do.

The most important thing is having the mic/phone positioned up at your mouth. It needs to be level with your mouth and about 12-18 inches away. Being too far will allow background sounds in ahead of your voice. Being too close will result in a popping sound on ‘B’ and ‘P’ sounds, as well as pick up your breathing and other sounds from your mouth.

Recording software

As mentioned above, I recommend recording in RiversideFM.

Headphones

A good set of headphones means your editing will be the best it can be. Wired headphones offer better sound quality.

I recommend these Sennheiser headphones. They are a long trusted brand in various audio related industries and are very reasonably priced.

A pop filter

A pop filter will help to reduce the amount of “pop” and “sibilance” that can occur while speaking into the microphone. Depending on your mic and your positioning you might not need this. Do a few test runs and then if you notice a popping sound on your ‘b’s and ‘p’s or a hiss on your ‘s’s take a look at this pop filter on Amazon.

Starting a podcast on Spotify, Apple and other podcast directories

Once your podcast is ready to go you’ll want to get it on as many platforms as possible so that more people can discover and listen to it. Here are the steps you’ll need to take to get your podcast on Spotify and other podcast apps:

Upload your podcast trailer to your host site. This will activate your podcast and allow you to share it to the other sites.
Your podcast will automatically be on Spotify if you’re using Anchor. For the other podcast directories like Apple go to Podcast Availability in your settings. On Castos visit Distribution> Directories. Each site will show you how to link your podcast from there using your RSS link. This will be provided on your podcast host site.
Once set up, paste your podcast share links from each site to the designated place on Anchor or Castos.
NB. Google and Apple Podcasts take a few days to get set up so you will need to log back in a few days later to finish the set up.

Is Starting a Podcast Free?

You can create a podcast for free but it might take more time, or not be as good quality. By investing in a good mic and headphones you’re giving yourself a pretty solid foundation and then the rest will depend on your preference and abilities.

These are some of the things that you may have to pay for when starting your podcast:

Canva Pro subscription for making your cover art and social media posts.
Podcast music if you don’t use a free site.
RiversideFM if you go for a paid plan.
Editing software if you don’t want to use a free one like Audacity.
Podcast host if you choose a paid option like Castos.
Your social media scheduler OneUp or content creator Wavve.co.
A podcast mic
Headphones

How to Start a Podcast and Make Money

Starting a podcast can be a great way to make money. Here are a few ways to monetize your podcast:

Advertising

One of the most popular ways to make money from a podcast is through advertising. You can sell advertising space on your podcast to businesses or individuals.

Sponsorships

Another way to make money is through sponsorships. You can work with companies to promote their products or services on your podcast.

Affiliate marketing

You can also make money through affiliate marketing by promoting products or services on your podcast and earning a commission for each sale.

Merchandising

You can also sell merchandise, such as t-shirts or mugs, related to your podcast.

Paid subscriptions

You can also charge for exclusive content or access to your podcast through paid subscriptions.

For a more detailed monetisation guide visit my Etsy shop. Use code PODCAST40 for 40% off.

Starting a Podcast Checklist

Starting a podcast can be a daunting task, but by following this checklist you can ensure that you don’t miss any important steps:

Choose a topic
Identify your target audience
Decide on podcast format
Create a name and logo
Choose your music
Buy any necessary equipment
Record your episodes
Edit your episodes
Set up a podcast host
Create and launch a trailer
Share on social media and build a following

Launching a podcast can be a fun and rewarding experience. With a little bit of planning and preparation, you can have your podcast up and running in no time. Remember, even if you start with no audience, with time, effort and consistency, you will gain more listeners. Happy podcasting!