As podcasts become more and more mainstream throughout the world (after all, Joe Rogan just got paid $100 million to move his podcast to Spotify), more and more people ask how to start a podcast.
We live in an exciting era. People are constantly on the go with technology at their fingertips. They want to be entertained. It is possible to sit in a basement in Louisville, Kentucky, and publish something online that can instantly be accessible on the streets of Dhaka, Bangladesh.
There are huge markets for niche discussion groups that can quickly evolve from an enjoyable hobby to a lucrative career. Podcasting has emerged as a way for creative people to express their viewpoints and reach large groups of people. This article will provide several tips and tricks on how to start a podcast.
Step 1: Getting Started – How to Start a Podcast
Before you make any investments of time or money into your efforts on how to start a podcast, there are several important things you can do.
First, know that starting a podcast is a lot of work, and it requires time to develop critical skills and abilities. Just as a writer does not sit down and write a classic novel on his or her first try, a podcaster anchor does not record a successful podcast on his or her first effort. The good news is that money will not hold you back from completing the first few steps of how to start a podcast.
The first steps of starting a podcast involve recalibrating your thinking from consumer to content creator. Develop a different perspective and an awareness of what does and what does not please an audience. Here are some initial steps in how to start a podcast that can be done with little to no investment:
- Listen to other podcasts
- Become active in a podcast community
- Practice your public speaking
- Develop a concept
- Record a basic test podcast
- Bonus: Use resources such as Fiverr to outsource any material such as intro music or voice-overs
Step 2: Recording – Podcast Recording Equipment… Software and Hardware
Once you have completed the foundational steps of how to start a podcast, you’ll be ready to move on to creating a professional sounding recording. When investing in equipment and software, it’s important to have a budget.
It’s possible to get a great sound with low to mid-tier equipment. However, the better the equipment you can afford, the better your podcast will sound. Content will determine whether your podcast achieves a massive audience, but poor sound quality can ruin an otherwise good podcast.
There are fundamental hardware and software components you must have to record a podcast. There are also optional pieces of equipment that can improve your sound and provide other technical benefits to your show.
If you have a limited budget, start with the basic equipment and integrate the improvements as you become financially able to do so. Here is a list of software and hardware necessary to create a quality product for podcast listeners and to take the next step when learning how to start a podcast:
- Computer
- Microphone
- Headphones
- Editing software
- Recording Software (Can Be the Same as Editing Software)
- Mixer or Audio Interface
- Other Equipment
Step 3: Distribution – 7 Podcast Hosting Services and Platforms
Once you have developed the capacity to create high-quality audio files, you need to figure out a way to make these files available to the public. Hosting a podcast is very much like hosting a web page. Your listeners have to interact with your content and either download it or stream it live. Hosting a podcast requires storage and bandwidth. You want to make sure you have enough bandwidth so that your page doesn’t crash if you become popular.
There are many platforms that have a large variety of features. Don’t be too dazzled or pay too much for a monthly fee. Remember that just because you are paying a huge fee to a top-end podcast host does not mean a huge audience will discover your podcast. At the end of the day, the quality of your content is what will determine whether your podcast succeeds. You can always start with a basic host and then change, or add features as you learn more.
Some podcast hosting platforms are:
- Apple Podcasts
- Soundcloud
- Libsyn
- Simplecast
- Podbean
- Blubrry
- Spotify
Step 4: GROW – Persistence, Content Creating, & Marketing
This is really the meat and bones of your success as a podcaster—the most difficult part of your journey. And a necessary one before you can even consider trying to monetize it. After all, what advertisers are going to pay you for ads if you have no audience?
Now What?
So you started a podcast. Everyone will just flock to it and listen for hours on end, right? Wrong.
During this phase, you need to create content consistently, and a lot of it. Potential listeners need to be able to tinker around and see what you have to offer.
On top of that, you need to get the word out to your target listeners that you have a podcast—and why they should listen to it.
The more specific your niche is, the easier they should be to find (as long as it’s not too specific). Before you get started, go back to step 1, and first make sure that you have a sizeable, yet specific, target audience to begin with.
Because build it, and only build it—and they will not come.
- Make sure you have a reasonably-sized potential audience to begin with when picking your niche
- Create, create, create
- Market yourself to that target audience
- Create, create, create
After you have a growing audience, only then can you begin Step 4: Monetizing your podcast.
Step 5: Monetizing – How to Monetize Your Podcast
Now that you have growing audience, you have the opportunity to monetize. And there are many ways that you can do this.
Advertising and Sponsors
The most obvious way to monetize your podcast is to run ads from advertisers. If your following is big enough, advertisers may reach out to you. But don’t hesitate to reach out to them.
Maybe they’ll just want to sponsor your podcast in exchange for ongoing compensation, or maybe they just want to run one ad in the beginning, middle, or end, of your podcast.
Email Marketing
As we mentioned before, email marketing is a great tool for growing and keeping your audience listening. But it’s also a great tool for monetization.
When you can reach out to your audience via email, it’s an easy way to send them a link to something to purchase. Whether it’s your product or a product you’re getting kickbacks from, email is fantastic.
Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is becoming a larger part of the digital marketing strategy. You can use the analytical data supplied by your podcast host to approach marketing agencies about your services. An advertising page on your podcast web page can also provide contact information for individuals who wish to engage your services.
Patreon
Services such Patreon also exist that allow people to sponsor your podcast with monthly pledges. On Patreon, you set various subscriber levels, and then offer bonus content for individuals willing to pledge more to your monthly content creation. Bonus material can be bonus episodes or access to video live feeds of your podcast performance.’
Visit: https://www.audioegghead.com/how-to-start-a-podcast/
