12 Things You Should Know About Starting a Podcast in 2023

starting-a-podcast

Podcasting has been around for quite some time and will stay for a long time. Starting a podcast means giving voice to your individualistic ideas and promulgating your thoughts in front of a bigger audience.

Podcasting is different from live streaming, video logs, social media posts, etc. Unlike mainstream platforms, podcasting focuses on targeted consumers. These consumers subscribe or sign up to your podcast and get regular notifications, reminders etc. for your show in particular.

Why Should You Start Your Own Podcast Show?

Podcasts usually follow a particular niche or topic so individuals subscribe to podcasts that appeal them.

Statistics show a 29.5% rise in podcast listeners in America in the last three years. The number of shows has reached a whopping 2 million with more than 48 million episodes. The figures are evidence of the popularity of podcasts.

In addition, podcasts are a source of marketing. Brands often market their products and services through podcasts, generating a new revenue stream for their businesses.

Podcasts have a more profound impact on listeners since they target a specific audience and the content created caters to that. Simulcasting is also a means by which you can reach a larger target audience.

Lastly, podcasts can help you generate revenue. You can offer paid subscriptions, or sell products through your shows to generate income for yourself.

Here’s A Few Things You Should Know Before Starting a Podcast

With a revenue of $708.1 million in 2019, podcasts’ popularity has skyrocketed in recent years. With more and more people joining the race, the competition has become stronger.

How to start a podcast? If you want to start your own podcast then, you must first make sure that you are equipped with the right tools and techniques to make your mark in the digital market.

Here are a few things you should know as a newbie in the field:

1. Identify Your Preferred Niche

Before you set up your podcast, buy necessary equipment or set up a place for the podcasts, you must identify the niche of your podcasts and the target audience.

You cannot just randomly jump into podcasts without defining your topic, otherwise, you will see no output whatsoever.

Choose a topic that fascinates you the most, identify areas that have not been explored, or if you want to offer a unique insight on the topic. Once you have outlined the topic of your podcast, you can develop the idea and work on it to improve it further.

When choosing a topic for your podcast, ask yourself:

  • Do I have a clear understanding on the topic?
  • Will I be able to produce content on the topic consistently?
  • Can I streamline the idea to a particular topic or a specific niche?

The narrower the topic, the more effective it will be. You can target your audience with a specific idea in mind rather than diving headfirst into a general topic with many diversions.

For example, marriage would be a much broader subject area. A narrower, subtopic would be ‘Men’s role in marriage’. An even narrower topic would be, ‘Working husbands’ role in marriage’. In such a way, you can explore more specific topics.

A specified topic will address a specific audience which will not only attract more loyal listeners but also more interested ones.

2. Identify Your Target Audience

How to start a podcast? Before you actually start one, you have to conduct a thorough analysis to make sure you target the right listeners. Defining your target audience means you can create much more specific content that caters to their needs.

When narrowing down your target audience, you can consider the following:

  • The age group of the listeners
  • Gender
  • Economic status
  • Employment status
  • Marital status
  • Their interests
  • What would appeal to them the most?

The more specific you are, the easier it would be to create content for your podcasts.

3. Podcast Format

podcast-format

After identifying the audience and topic of your podcast, the next step would be to determine the format of your shows.

  • Would you prefer working as a solo host or would you like to work with a partner?
  • Would you like to invite guests for an interview or discuss the topic with your partner?
  • Will you interview the guests with simple question answers or would you prefer to take control of the conversation?

You do not have to strictly follow the podcast format. You can occasionally call a guest or invite a host to change things up a bit and make it more interesting for listeners.

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4. Make A List of Subjects for Each Episode

Brainstorming ideas every couple of days and coming up with new and unique ideas can be a bit overwhelming. To avoid stress every few days, consider making a list of subjects for a few episodes beforehand.

Create a list of subtopics that you might want to talk about in your podcast. For example, if your podcast focuses on ‘Working husbands’ role in marriage’, you can outline the following subtopics for the episodes:

  • Managing work-life balance as a working husband
  • How to keep yourself stress-free as a working husband?
  • How can working husbands contribute to household chore without getting a burnout?

You can also research on your own to identify any ideas that might interest you and your audience. Read books, blogs, articles etc., watch videos and listen to podcasts on relevant topics to find that specific topic.

5. Build A List of Your Contacts

Before you formally start your podcast, create a list of your contacts. This list should include all the people you can reach out to when you upload your first podcast. You can use the help of these people to reach more people and share your podcast with a wider audience, they will also help you gain more listeners.

To make the most out of your first podcast, you can add your loyal friends in the list. Leverage their social media accounts to expand your network and attract more subscribers.

6. Get The Right Equipment

podcast-equipment

The audience will take the time out to tune in to your podcast so you have to make sure that you offer them the best experience. The sound quality of your podcast should be top-notch along with its editing and publishing.

In order to do, you have to get the right equipment for your podcast. Some of the tools that might come in handy can include:

  • A good quality microphone to make sure your voice is crystal clear with no background noises.
  • Audio recording software that can help you record your podcast without any hassle.
  • Outsource a professional for editing or learn audio editing yourself.
  • Identify a hosting website where you will upload your podcasts.
  • You can also employ the use of an analytics tool to gauge the performance of your podcasts’ episodes.

You will have to conduct detailed research to determine the right tools for your podcasts. Explore the features of these tools along with pricing details to find the best ones.

7. Prerecord A Few Episodes

Spice up your launch with a few additional episodes. The episodes will be a surprise gift for your listeners.

If you do not want to upload all the episodes at once, you can stock up on the episodes so that you always have content to publish and do not have to fret about getting out content every week.

8. Track Your Progress

Once you start podcasting, what metrics should you use to gauge your success or failure?

The answer is simple, find out the number of downloads of your podcasts and compare them to identify whether you are making progress or lagging behind. If the numbers dwindle then, you have to detect the root cause by going back to the start.

You can unearth the issues in the process and eliminate them to guarantee the success of your show.

9. Roll Out Content Consistently

You might get a slump once in a while or a plunge in your downloads, this should not discourage you from continuing the streak. Consistency is the key to success.

Make sure you have enough content in stock to last you a few days or weeks so that in case of a mishap or an emergency, you still have sufficient content to upload.

Also, do not let anything discourage you from rolling out content consistently. Even if it does not make a mark today, it will tomorrow so never lose heart and maintain the consistency of your content.

Consistency also ensures that your listeners remain connected to your show and do not unsubscribe due to the lack of content.

10. Promote Your Podcasts

Well, we are not celebrities with millions of followers, we cannot just put up a story and gain hundreds and thousands of subscribers instantly, we have to take the long route.

Since you can only rely on yourself, you have to make use of any and every means to attract audience. This means you take help from your friends, reach out to all your contacts, use social media platforms, etc. to promote your podcasts as much as you can.

In addition, you can also leverage the popularity of your guest speakers to promote your show.

11. Pay Attention to Details

attention-to-detail-in-podcast

Before you launch your podcasts, you must take into account the following details:

  • Graphics: The posters and banners of your podcasts that will be uploaded on social media platforms should be attractive enough to entice the viewers.
  • Description: A short description of your show should include the intro of the show, the niche and topics etc.
  • Schedule: As we mentioned earlier, consistency is the key to expanding your influence. You should have a schedule planned out so that you are always ready to produce content without any hitches.
  • Promotional plan: Make sure you have a promotional plan in place. How will you promote your podcast? What methods will you use? Which platforms will you use? Etc. the answers to these questions will help you plan and execute an efficient promotional strategy that will work in your favor.

12. Monetization

Once your podcast is up and running and you have a set number of subscribers, you can start monetizing your podcast to generate revenue.

You can promote a book, course, etc. to gain more buyers or you can add a monthly subscription fee to the podcasts.

Final thoughts!

There, you have it. These are some of the things you should know as a beginner to learn how to start a podcast. They will not only help you when starting a podcast but will come in handy in the future too.

One thing we would like to add is that your podcasts should be worth listening to. Your topic and hosting should attract listeners, making them subscribe to the channel for the long term. Also, make sure that you offer something unique to your audience, mainstream podcasts will be unfruitful for you as well as your listeners.

Now that you know all the basics of starting a podcast, what are you waiting for? Start right now and build a place for your brand in the market!


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