Have you ever wanted to start a podcast but couldn’t decide the right time to do so? The audio medium is very prevalent in recent times and continues to gain popularity at a breakneck speed. More and more people are taking an interest in podcasts as it involves passive consumption. You can listen to podcasts anytime, anywhere.
Starting your own podcast can be helpful in many ways – it can grow your business, build your brand, help you connect with people in your niche segment, create a relationship with your audience and introduce you to a new hobby. Start your podcast on the best podcast platform and enhance your brand by building a loyal audience.
How to start a podcast
While many companies and brands start a podcast to promote their services and products, some succeed and some don’t. The quality of your show makes all the difference. Keeping your audience engaged so that they would return the following week is a challenging task. However, with proper planning, you would be able to start a podcast and grow it along the way.
To launch your podcast you should choose only the best podcast hosting platform. Try Hubhopper. Hubhopper provides free creation, hosting and distribution to creators. Before you go live with your podcast make sure to go through the following steps:
- Choose a topic you love: Like blogging, you should choose a particular niche for your podcast. Nowadays, plenty of information is available on the internet. In order to withstand the competition, choose something that you are passionate about. That would mean that you are well-read in that niche sector and would be able to provide valuable information to your listeners.
- Name your podcast: Pick a title that would make the listeners anticipate your content. It should be relevant to your niche. Use key phrases as it would make your podcast visible on search engines. Your title could either be clever, descriptive, or your name. Avoid using general titles as that’d not help you in standing out among other podcasts.
- Write a solid description: Write a short but sound description to let your audience know what your podcast is about. You can start with mentioning a little about yourself and then introducing your niche. If you are podcasting about specific topics and have credentials to support that, add them to the description.
- Brand your podcast: It is important to invest in the branding of your podcast to show people that you are a professional. Create some artwork for your show. Make them unique to have an edge in the competition. Optimize your image to fit both mobile apps and website versions. Maintain a specific theme of your podcast even on your social media handles so that you can make a statement. This way people will remember you for your specific style.
- Plan your episodes: Planning your episodes is an essential part of podcasting that you will ace only with time. After enough practice, you will be able to plan your episodes effortlessly. Some tips include selecting a topic, choosing a podcast format & length, and following a proper schedule for consistency.
- Record and Edit: If you are going solo, it might be better to make a script. However, while having a guest or hosting the podcast with other people, you might want to keep it a little bit spontaneous. You don’t have to worry about recording equipment as you can record your episodes with your laptop or even your mobile phone. Just download the Hubhopper Studio mobile app on the Google Play Store to get started with your podcast, straight from your mobile device. After recording, you can edit the audio file using the Hubhopper studio editor.
- Publish your episodes: After recording and editing your episode, export the file in MP3 format. Once you have checked the audio and all the podcast details, you can publish your podcast and go live with it.
There you go! Your podcast is live. Now, all you have to do is distribute it to various listening platforms. Don’t worry, with Hubhopper you get to distribute your podcast to both global platforms (Spotify, Apple Podcasts and more) and local platforms (Wynk, Gaana, JioSaavn and more), all for free.
Wrapping up
Consistency is the key to success. It takes time to be known for your craft. Be patient and put out episodes consistently. Remember that you can always improvise your content. As you keep creating content, you will understand what works for you and what doesn’t. You will also get to know your audience and what content they enjoy the most. Over time you will keep getting better at creating podcasts.
Happy Podcasting!
