To those thinking about starting a podcast or you have an idea but you don’t know how to start don't worry, I will run you through four things that you need to know before you start a podcast.
Podcasting can feel pretty mysterious to people that have never tried it before, but do not worry you will in no time. Just remember that Twitter tradition to leave and return should in case it become too complicated at the first try.
podcasting can be hosted anywhere, there are many different platforms to listen to it on, it is just like having a YouTube channel or an Instagram account because it's another social media platform you can try your hands on although it might be a bit different.
So because of that, it can feel a little bit intimidating to get into. So I will be sharing with you four (4) things that you need to expect so that hopefully it demystifies it a little bit and makes it feel a little bit more accessible for you to get started.
1. IT CAN BE FREE:
You can start a podcast for free but that doesn't mean that you should go the free route. Anchor is a super popular app that allows you to start a podcast for free, Anchor is an amazing option for beginners or people that see their podcasts strictly being a hobby I have one anyway called MrDami & The Gang.
But if you think that you might want to turn your podcast into something professional, which means you would like to eventually monetize or maybe even build a brand around that podcast in business then I would strongly encourage you to consider investing a little in hosting it somewhere else.
No shades on anchor but the reasons why I think this is because any time you are trusting a company to hold your content for free, there's never really a guarantee that it's going to be there forever, and that you're always going to have access to it.
According to anchor's policies, you do own the intellectual property of your content like that audio file belongs to you. However, you can never tell if they want to keep running the business or if they're going out of business and they don't have any money.
Their first priority probably isn't going to be sending out files for everybody to have access to their RSS feeds and their podcasts so not saying that's going to happen not saying you should be totally worried if you are with Anchor but I just think if you're getting started out it might be worth investing somewhere where you know that you have access to those files and you have control over that RSS feed and everything to do with your podcast in addition.
As far as I know, if you use anchor to post to iTunes or other audio platforms, their branding is going to be on it because it's a free service they're going to try to use the content that you create in their App to advertise themselves which totally makes sense like they need to get the word out there about their business and so that's why it's great as a hobby or as a sort of testing zone to get started.
But I would just really advise you to look into some other options for hosting your podcast it's really not as scary or difficult as you think it might be if you already have a website with Wordpress or Squarespace then you can host your podcast on your own website and you have full control over how that goes.
There are other options such as simple cast which offers a really streamlined and easy-to-use service beautifully designed and it's about 15 dollars a month for that subscription so there are lots of options out there that don't have to be that expensive.
2. HIGH AUDIO QUALITY:
it's really important to focus on making your audio crisp and clear and easy to listen to because if you're expecting someone to sit and listen to you regardless of the duration, you need it to be quality audio.
I really feel this so strongly because the audience knows what they want. Youtube for example, if you search for a topic and you stumble on a page and the video quality is not good enough, a very large amount of people will leave such channel to a better on that means your competitors won the audience battle.
So if you want to have listeners that are going to be dedicated to listening to your podcast the whole way through, then make sure that you get a microphone or use a strategy that is going to make sure that your audio quality is good. but truth be told, you can actually make your smartphone audio sound really good If you're in the right environment I have tried it severally and it is true.
3. PROMOTION:
You need to promote your podcast a lot just because you publish a podcast and it's up on iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, etc., does not mean anybody will listen to it there.
Actually, there are tons of discoverability when it comes to any of those platforms the podcast app on Apple does have like an explorer page and you can browse and find new stuff but the majority of people learn about podcasts through word of mouth so in order to promote your podcast.
I would really recommend starting an Instagram maybe even having a Pinterest, maybe a YouTube channel these are all places where there's a little bit more discoverability and a little bit more of a chance to build a community that will then listen to your podcasts on other platforms.
You don’t have to necessarily commitment your time hugely, like on Pinterest you can commit to making a Pinterest optimized graphic for each of your podcast episodes and putting it out into the world and people might find it, and then through that link to your website where you'll have your podcast linked that's a really good way to drive traffic building an Instagram community is going to be effective for anything like this.
My advice for you, if you're trying to make an Instagram account that's going to be around your podcast please endeavor the page isn't just about promoting the podcast episodes. Provide value in different arenas like post content that people are interested in seeing whether or not they listen to your podcast.
4. IT TAKES TIME:
You need to know before you start a podcast that it takes time, as with anything good, it takes a long time to grow it’s just like a YouTube channel or an Instagram page.
A podcast takes a lot of time, dedication and consistency to build an audience listening to your content you need to keep working on it promoting it.
Networking is also a very great way to get your podcast out there, the major goal is to have people on your show so you can exchange audiences with them, there are lots of different strategies out there which I would definitely cover in future articles.
Kindly share your thoughts, suggestion, or questions in the comment section below let's interact.
Thank You.
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