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How to Start a Podcast: a Complete Guide for Startups

Martin Castilla            No comments            Sep, 2

Podcast listenership is growing tremendously. About 90 million Americans listen to podcasts every month.

As a business owner, starting a podcast is something that can help you reach a wider audience and expand your business. You don’t need to be a tech geek, nor does it require tons of money to learn how to make a podcast.

This guide will walk you through on how to get started with podcasting.

Why start a podcast

If you understand the value of creating content for your business, then you might understand the value of podcasting. Creating a podcast allows you to reach a new audience: people who do not really like long-form content because they prefer the audio format.

A podcast is also a great way to build an audience from scratch and position yourself as an expert.

In addition, podcasts also provide potential traffic to your website.

Lastly, starting a podcast makes it easier to sell your product or service since you’re a credible source. When the audience sees you as an expert, you can influence potential customers to purchase some products.

Why podcasting works as a content platform

Podcasts have become popular because they’re easy to consume and people can listen to podcasts on the go, in the car, or at the gym. Another reason is that they can be listened to on any device-smartphones, desktop computers, or tablets. Unlike radio, podcasts are on-demand since the audience can listen to what they want, when they want.

As compared to other content platforms, podcasts, which could be produced with the help of professionals such as those available at Caspian Studios – caspianstudios.com, can create a more intimate connection with the listeners. The audience hears you talking to them, one on one, which gives you a fascinating opportunity to build a personal relationship with them.

Getting started with your own podcast

Learning how to start a podcast begins with identifying who it is for? Why do you want to make a podcast? What kind of value or entertainment are you going to provide your listeners with?

The next important component is the podcast format. What will your podcast be like? Here are some ideas:

– interview style

– solo

– co-hosted audio show

Interview style

Benefits: A great opportunity to have a chat with an expert, authority, or just an interesting person. On top of this, your guests will likely have their own audiences who may listen to the podcast.

Challenges: You’ll need to constantly find and approach interesting guests, schedule interviews, and master interview skills.

Solo

Benefits: You don’t need to rely on anyone else to record your episodes, and you don’t need to split the profits with anyone.

Challenges: One of the biggest challenges is getting over the feeling that you’re ‘talking to yourself’ and no one really needs your content.

Co-hosted audio show

Benefits: Some co-hosted podcasts have chemistry between the presenters which creates a first-class listening experience.

Challenges: There might be the question of ownership: who’s podcast is it? Do you split income 50/50?

How long will your episodes be? It’s good to have a consistent episode length. If your podcast is about 30 minutes every episode and your listeners are used to that, it’ll be easier for them to time their podcast listening.

When it comes to naming your show, the searchable name is perhaps your best chance to be discovered by your target audience. Avoid wordy names since you’ll find it hard referring to yourself when recording your episodes. Make sure the name of your podcast is memorable and rolls off the tongue.

Recording your episodes

So you’re finally ready to record. I know it may be scary, but here are some tips to help you get started:

1. Warm up

Warm up your vocal cords by practicing your script. Proper voice exercises will improve your pronunciation.

2. Adopt proper microphone techniques

Place your microphone on the same level as your mouth. Keep in mind that the closer you are to the mic, the louder your voice will sound. While you can change your voice’s volume level during post-production, reduce your editing time by keeping your mouth the same distance away from the mic while recording.

3. The magic of editing

Don’t think you’ll get it all done in one seamless take once you hit record. Just accept the fact that you are going to mess up. You will have to re-say lots of things more than twice. You’re going to have awkward pauses. No one has to know about that! That’s the power of editing.

How to make money with a podcast

There are different ways to monetize your podcast. One of the methods would be to create audiogram. By sharing these audiograms on different social media platforms, you may attract potential listeners towards your podcast. Just keep in mind that your focus should first be to create valuable content and build your audience and then you can think about monetization.

Some of the most popular ways to monetize a podcast are:

  • Sponsorships. How much you make from sponsorships depends on how many views your show gets.
  • Direct support. Direct support is listeners support the show with donations. If people love your content, they’ll be willing to give money to help you keep the podcast running.
  • Affiliate sales. This means you can generate an income by recommending some products or services.

Popular podcasters can make up to $50 on average for every 1,000 listeners from advertisers. According to AdvertiseCast, the industry average rates for podcast advertising are:

  • $15 for a 10-second ad CPM
  • $18 for a 30-second ad CPM
  • $25 for a 60-second ad CPM

Conclusion

You can definitely create a successful podcast if you put your mind to it. Start looking on Apple or Google Podcasts for podcasts that are doing what you want to do. Work hard on the quality of your content. The more great content you release, the more opportunities you will find.

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