Let’s start this off with a quick question for readers who grew up before the turn of the century. When you think back to media landscape you grew up in, can you believe how much has changed since then?
As a 90s baby, I distinctly remember being almost religiously devoted to the free TV guide that came with the Sunday paper. I’d plan my whole week around what shows were on and what blockbuster movie would be playing over the weekend.
To this day I still base my weekend around whether or not there’s a showing of the Kevin James classic, Paul Blart: Mall Cop
But in the past 10 years, we’ve experienced what can only be called a new media revolution.
We’re no longer subject to the whims of scheduled programming and major media networks. Technology has allowed ordinary people to create and produce their own content without needing permission, and at the forefront of it all is the mighty podcast.
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According to Edison Research, podcasting is becoming a staple in our media diets. Surprisingly, the study found that the average American listens to podcasts more often than any other type of audio. On average, it’s estimated that Americans listen to more than 21 million hours of podcast audio every single day.
Make no mistake, we’re living in the gold rush period of podcasting.
For Foundr, our own podcast has been a game-changer for the business and the brand, and we wouldn’t be the same without it. Some of you reading this may have actually first heard about us through our podcast.
But as much as media has been democratized, it’s still not always clear exactly how to get started. That’s why we’re here. If you want to get in the podcast game today, but aren’t sure where to begin, don’t worry about it. I’m about to give you the ultimate checklist to create a high-quality podcast.
Table of Contents
What Do You Want Out of It?
Tools to Start
Finding Your Niche
Types of Podcasts
Getting Ready to Go Live
Promoting Your Podcast
Conclusion
What do you want out of it?
First all of all, let’s figure out what it is you want to get out of podcasting. It’s important that you clearly understand what your goal is, because as fun as podcasting is, and it is pretty damn fun, at some point in the early stages you’re going to hit the wall.
Being successful at podcasting requires a ton of commitment.
Unless you’re willing to stick to a schedule and routinely push out high-quality content, you’re not going to get very far. So when you hit that point when you find yourself internally groaning at the thought of recording another episode, it’s important to think back to why you started.
So start your podcast checklist by noting your ultimate goal. Remember though, make sure to target only one goal. If you do one right, the rest will naturally follow. Here are some goals a podcast can help you with.
Expand your brand’s influence
For my money, this is the number one reason you’d want to start a podcast—whether it’s building a deeper connection with your existing audience or exposing your brand to an entirely new audience. In fact, I’d even go as far to say that podcasting is actually better at developing your brand’s influence than blogging is.
The main reason is simply a matter of convenience. Unlike reading an article, which requires you to sit down and give it your full attention, with a podcast your audience can take you almost anywhere. Like most, I often listen to podcasts while I’m driving, exercising, or just walking around. That isn’t possible when reading blog posts.
The second reason is simply a matter of numbers. According to MacWorld there are 250,000 podcasts listed in the iTunes directory. Meanwhile, according to Statista there are over 127 million blogs worldwide.
Simply put, it’s much easier to stand out in the crowd in the podcasting world than it is with blogging, especially if you’re consistently releasing high-quality content.
Build Authority
Through hosting the Entrepreneur on Fire podcast, John Lee Dumas was able to quickly cement himself as one of the top influencers in his niche
An interesting quirk of human psychology is the fact that we’re far more likely to retain information if it comes from someone we feel that we have a personal connection with.
A major challenge with blogging is that it’s tricky to establish a clear voice or personality that your audience responds to. The trouble with text is that so much can get lost in translation.
With podcasting, the subtle nuances in tone, emotion and meaning are far less likely to get misinterpreted or go unnoticed entirely. That means not only are listeners more likely to retain the information you’re saying, but they’re also more prone to develop a personal connection with you.
One of the reasons podcasting is so popular is because it feels so intimate. With podcasting, you leverage that feeling of intimacy to build your personal authority as a thought leader or an influencer.
Networking
How many of you would love to talk to someone like Tim Ferriss, Seth Godin or Ryan Holiday one-on-one for 30 minutes? But outside of outright paying them for their time, how else can you get your foot in the door?
A natural side effect of running a podcast, especially if you use an interview format, is that you have a reason to network with high-profile influencers.
After all, no one is just going to give you their time for free unless there’s something in it for them. Being the host of a podcast means that you naturally have a point of leverage that you can use.
What you’re offering is free exposure and publicity and all they need to do is find 30 minutes out of their day to have a conversation with you. That’s a deal that most people would be more than happy to make.
Check out the Podcast Community group to meet other awesome podcasters of all types
That’s not to mention that the podcasting community, while small, is incredibly vibrant. The majority of podcasters are self-starters who are incredibly passionate about their topics. You’ll naturally find yourself being able to tap into that community, and who knows, maybe your podcasting buddy interviewed Seth Godin before and would be happy to introduce the two of you.
A new source of revenue
Did you know that you can make money with podcasts?
There’s a variety of ways to make money off podcasting, but the most direct way would have to be through advertising and sponsorships. According to the Wall Street Journal, US advertisers are looking to spend $35 million on podcast ads this year alone.
That’s all due to the fact that nearly two-thirds of podcast listeners show an intent to purchase after hearing an ad from their favorite podcaster.
According to the latest monthly income report by John Lee Dumas, he made $87,000 through podcast sponsorships in one month. Similarly, if you take a look at Pat Flynn’s monthly income report, you’ll find that he generated nearly $20,000 through podcast sponsorships.
Although I should mention that both Entrepreneur on Fire and Smart Passive Income are exceptionally successful and popular podcasts, with hundreds of thousands of downloads per month. So don’t expect yourself to start generating so much money in such a short amount of time.
The next best way you can start making money with your podcast is to use it to bolster your existing sales funnels. At Foundr, our podcast is a great source for new leads and signups to our paid products like Foundr Club, Instagram Domination and Foundr Magazine.
By being a guest on Andrew Warner’s podcast Mixergy, Dane Maxwell mentioned that he was looking for 10 students for his latest training course, The Foundation. He gave away the website where they could apply and ended up receiving 225 applications!
While podcasting works best as a branding tool, it can also be a fantastic source of revenue for you if you build it up correctly.
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Tools to start
Next up on the podcast checklist is figuring out what your podcasting setup is going to look like. A workman is only a good as his tool after all.
Here’s the cool thing about podcasting, pretty much anyone can do it. Sure you could get spend thousands of dollars hiring out a professional grade recording studio with all the bells and whistles. But you can just as easily create an award-winning podcast with nothing but your standard iPhone ear buds and mic.
Thankfully though you don’t have to live between these two extremes. Here are some inexpensive, and not so inexpensive, options for anyone looking at starting a podcast.
Microphone
The most important thing in your podcast arsenal is your microphone. It should go without saying that if you don’t good quality audio for your podcast then you don’t have a very good podcast. The great thing is that you don’t need to break the bank in order to get a great microphone that produce clear, crisp sound.
All the microphones that we listed here are USB mics, meaning that all you need to do is plug it into your computer and you can immediately start recording. For most podcasters this is a much cheaper option and would be more than enough for their needs.
However, if you’re very pedantic about getting super high-quality sound, or doing live shows, then you might want to invest into an analog microphone with an XLR connection. Although they are usually on the pricier side of things.
Samson Go Mic ($40). My personal favourite on this list, I actually got this mic based off a recommendation by Natalie Sisson, host of the Suitcase Entrepreneur. It’s a handy little travel mic that compact, can clip onto your laptop and great for travelling. All the while delivering great sound quality.
Audio Technica AT2020 ($80). A great middle-of-the-range USB mic where all you need to do is plug it into your computer and you and immediately start recording. If you need anymore convincing, this is the same microphone that Chris Ducker of Youpreneur has been using for the past 5 years.
Blue Yeti Mic ($129). Designed specifically for podcasting the Blue Yeti mic is the go-to microphone for anyone starting out in the podcast industry. While a bit higher-priced, it’s well worth the investment if you’re planning on doing podcasting full-time.
Rode Podcaster Mic ($230). As you get more experienced with podcasting you might want to start investing into mics that are specifically designed for podcasting. As a directional mic it means you won’t have much of an issue with environmental noise as long as it’s not directly in front of you. This is also the official mic of the Foundr podcast as well.
Heil PR-40 Mic ($327). A favourite of John Lee Dumas of Entrepreneur on Fire and Jon Nastor of Hack the Entrepreneur, the Heil PR-40 microphone is a fantastic microphone with dynamic recording ability. Albeit this is more suited for experienced podcasters who already have an invested audience.
Headset
The one thing about podcasting is that you don’t necessarily need those big goofy headphones in order to do a quality podcast. Obviously you can though in case you want to get your Skrillex on
The main reason you’d want to use headphones is that you want to prevent any reverb or feedback into the mic, even then most podcasters that I know of simply use the standard Apple earbuds for podcasting.
Although if you are very particular about your sounds here are some great headset and microphone combos you can use for your own podcast.
Plantronics 655 Multimedia Headset ($30). This is actually the headset that Nathan uses for the Foundr Podcast. Comfy and complete with a noise-cancelling microphone for clear sound, this is a great all-rounder for anyone starting a podcast.
Sennhesier PC 7 USB Headset ($30). A relatively small unit with great recording capability, although personally I’m not a huge fan of the one-ear only design.
Jabra UC MS Voice 550 Noise Cancelling USB Duo Headset ($45). Originally developed for phone calls, this is a great headset with a noise-cancelling microphone which is great if you find yourself in a less-than-ideal recording environment.
Recording
If you’re going to produce a podcast, you’re going to need some recording software. Thankfully, recording software is pretty cheap and easy to come by, so you won’t need to worry about digging deep into your pockets for this tool.
eCamm Skype Call Recorder ($29.95). Because we hold most of our podcast interviews on Skype this is our go-to audio recorder for the Foundr podcast. Unfortunately, it’s for Mac only.
Pamela($27.82). Pretty much the exact same as eCamm Skype Recorder but for Windows instead.
Camtasia ($299). Camtasia is actually a screen recorder, but you can use it as a backup recorder. It’s also great if you’re intending on recording the video from your interview and looking to upload it onto YouTube later.
Bonus: Tips of Recording
Record on two programs at the same time. It’s always a good idea to record on two different platforms at the same time if possible, just in case something goes wrong with your primary recording. It’s best to have your secondary recording to be on an external advice in case your computer crashes mid-way, recording onto your phone can easily do the trick.
Have your guest record their side as well. If it’s impossible for you and your guest to be in the same room for a recording then you should ask your guest to record their side of conversation if possible. It greatly helps with the editing process if you can edit two different tracks instead of just one.
Have an echo-free room. While you don’t need a professional-grade recording studio you should at least be recording in a quiet room where you can be heard clearly. No one likes to listen to a podcast if you can hear a bunch of noise in the background. Just putting a carpet in the room might be all you need in order to echo-proof your room, but here’s some extra tips in case you’re still having problems with your acoustics.
Editing
With the Foundr podcast we actually don’t our own editing. In order to save us time we outsource this task to Balazs, our awesome editor in Hungary. If you can afford to hire your own dedicated editor than I would highly recommend it, however if you prefer to do it yourself then that’s perfectly fine too.
Audacity (Free). Available for both Mac and Window computers, Audacity is a great free alternative to any of the paid or premium audio editing software. It’s a great freeware tool with tons of tutorials out there for you to reference. It also allows you to record directly from a microphone and onto Audacity as well.
Garageband (Free). Packaged with all MacBooks, Garageband is a decent audio editing platform that allows you to do the most of what you’re looking for when editing a podcast. Just like Audacity, Garageband also allows you to record directly onto it and save as an MP3 later.
Adobe Audition ($19.99 p/m). If you want to get really technical then you should go with Adobe Audition. It’s got tons of bells and whistles, but if you’re just starting out with a podcast then it might be more than what you need for your podcast.
Auphonic (Varied Pricing). If you’re not keen on editing your audio levels yourself then you can use a post-production service like Auphonic which will do the leveling, volume normalization and other details for you.
Upwork (Varied Pricing). If, like us, you to outsource your editing then you can easily find a good editor over places like Upwork.
Bonus: Tips for Editing
Pay attention to pacing. The most important thing to pay attention to when editing your podcast is pacing. Basically you want to make sure that your podcast flows as naturally as possible. When it comes to editing you want to be as ruthless as possible. It doesn’t matter how much you enjoyed that tangent where you spent 3 minutes talking about the nature of the aubergine. If you feel like your ideal listener wouldn’t like it, then cut it out.
Check over your audio levels. There’s almost nothing more frustrating for a podcast listener to always be changing their volume because the audio levels are always changing. Don’t make that mistake and make sure your audio doesn’t swing wildly from a soft whisper to loud screaming.
Make sure your tags are in order. Before you publish your podcast episode make sure you go back and quickly edit your ID3 tags. These tags are how MP3 players and device get their information about any audio file. It might sound like a finicky step, but it definitely beats having your podcast rustling around in the “Artist – Unknown” playlist.
Make sure your file is the right format. Make sure that you export your audio as an MP3 with a fixed bitrate as this is the best format for your audio. 128kbps is a good bitrate to use as it keeps the file size low while maintaining good audio quality. Most editing software will allow you to select these features when you export your file.
Hosting
While it is entirely possible to set up your podcast on your own site with a simple plugin, I would recommend against it. If you plan on really growing your podcast then it would be in your favour to invest into a podcasting hosting service.
The main reason is that most websites hosts don’t have the bandwidth or speed to handle the downloading and streaming that MP3s create. Also it’s never a good idea to host all your files on the one server in case something goes wrong. By using a podcasting host you don’t have to worry about things like that and fortunately most of them are very affordable and quite cheap.
SoundCloud (Free or $16 p/m for Pro). For those starting a podcast then SoundCloud might be the best option for you as it allows for free podcast hosting and allows you to distribute your podcast via RSS. Unfortunately though you won’t be able to access any of their analytics without paying for their pro package, so you definitely want to take into account how that’ll affect you in the long-term.
Libsyn ($15 p/m). Often considered to be one of, if not the, best podcast hosting service around, Libsyn is one of the oldest dedicated podcast hosting sites and the go-to choice for many podcasters including us. With Libsyn we’re able to take advantage of their analytics feature and track everything from number of downloads per episode, to the geography of our listeners.
Podbean ($9 p/m). Podbean offers a free option for podcast hosting, but you’ll have to pay in order to access any of their better features like analytics. They also offer a service where they can connect your podcast with advertisers if you’re looking to monetize your podcast at a later date.
Awesome-to-have
While you don’t necessarily need any of the following items on this list, they are definitely nice to have.
Pop Filter. Pop filters help keep out those clicking noises your mouth makes when speaking close to the microphone. They’re usually pretty cheap and well-worth the investment.
Cable Arm. Having a cable arm means that you can keep your microphone directly in front of your face without having to use your hands. While not necessary to have, you’ll be surprised at how much you need to use your hands while recording.
Zoom H1 Handy Digital Recorder ($100). If you’re running a podcast which requires you to be out in the field and outside of your own recording studio then you’ll definitely need a high-quality recorder that you can take around with you. Nice and compact, this recorder can definitely get the job done while cancelling out any environmental noise that might be going on around you. It also serves as a great backup recorder in case your main recording fails for whatever reason.
Presonus Mixer ($1799). Let’s be clear here, you absolutely do not need a mixer in order to do an amazing podcast. Although if you really want to get that extra bit of polish on your audio, along with more control over your recording then you might want to look into getting a mixer.
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Finding your niche
Before you begin recording on all your fancy new equipment, you’re going to need to figure out what niche it is you want to target. This might sound easy since you probably already have a handful of episodes planned in your head already. But you have to consider whether your theme or topic is sustainable.
Is it a topic that can go beyond 10 episodes, or will you find yourself struggling to come up with new episode ideas? Are you sure you even have an audience interested in what you have to say in the first place?
Here’s a very simple exercise that you can do in 15 minutes to help you figure out what your podcast is going to be all about. Ask yourself the following questions:
What are you interested in?
The first step is to create a list of all the things that interest you. Remember, it’s impossible to talk about something that doesn’t personally interest you. If you’re not engaged, then your audience won’t be either.
Make it easy on yourself and set a time limit of five minutes to write down anything and everything that you’re even a little curious about.
As you can see my interests are both varied and kind of weird
What does your audience want?
Next up, write about your perfect listener. Just like creating a customer avatar, you need to figure out what your ideal listener looks like and to get as granular as possible.
How old are they? What’s their gender? What type of schooling did they go through? How do they typically consume podcasts? Why do they listen to podcasts in the first place?
These are only some of the questions you need to be asking yourself when it comes to figuring out your perfect listener. You want to know them so well it’s like you’re going to grab a drink with them this Friday night.
For the next five minutes, write 10 questions you need to know about your ideal listener and then answer them.
You don’t have to use these exact 10 questions, but they can be a good starting point in helping you identify your ideal listener
How do the two compare?
Great, now the hard part is done. All that’s left to do is take a look at your list of interests and see which topics you think your audience wants to know about too.
What you first want to do is immediately cross out half of your list, now matter how large or small it is.
Be honest with yourself when you’re doing your initial cull. Really think about what kind of topics your ideal listener would be interested in
After that, rank these topics in order of audience interest, with the topic you think your audience likes the most at the top, and the least at the bottom.
As you can see, that if I were to do a podcast then it’d definitely be centred around “Creativity, Film and Movies, and Writing”
And there you have it!
The first two or three topics should form the main focus of your podcast, with the rest being subjects that you can touch upon or get more in-depth with if you’re feeling that you’re in a bit of a creative slump.
Congratulations! You’ve now successfully come up with a podcast that’s practically guaranteed to get you results.
Bonus: Check out the competition
If you’re still having trouble figuring out what topic your podcast should cover, a great way to get inspired is to take a look at all the other podcasts that already are out there.
Currently, there are 16 categories in which your podcast can fall into on iTunes.
Take a look at this list and see if you can identify where your podcast would be best suited. After that, find out the most popular podcasts in that category. Which ones are in the “What’s Hot” and “New and Noteworthy” sections.
See what other people are doing and get inspired, and see if any of their formats or styles appeal to you. Once you’ve got a clearer idea of what you want your podcast to achieve, do that simple exercise mentioned above and you’ll be well on your way to starting a podcast.
Types of Podcasts
The key to producing a great podcast, and to creating great content in general, is to always be providing your audience with valuable information. Now that you’ve got your podcast topic, it’s time to figure out how you’re going to deliver that value.
You have to ask yourself what type of value it is you’re providing. Is it entertainment? Is it educational? Is it inspirational?
Depending on your podcast topic and your intended audience, some podcast types will work better than others. Here’s a quick breakdown of the different types of podcasts you can do.
Also, I should point out that these podcast types aren’t set in stone. There will always be some sort of overlap between two or three, sometimes even four different types. Mix-and-match and figure out what format best suits you and your audience.
News and Current Affairs
The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani features exclusive interviews, and coverage of the latest news in the MMA community
Podcasting owes much of its roots to news radio, as some of the earliest successful podcasts were just radio stations releasing their news coverage as MP3s for their listeners on the go.
This type of podcast is great because it offers a lot of flexibility in how you want to structure your show. It could involve interviews, just reporting on the events of the day, or offering commentary on what’s been happening in your niche lately. By nature, a news and current affairs podcast is great at consistently providing value for your listeners.
The major downside to this type of podcast is that it can, more so than the others, require a lot of work to produce. It’s not uncommon for news podcasts to have whole teams of journalists and producers to stay on top of the news, conduct research, and compose into episodes.
Some popular podcasts of this type are:
– The Bugle
– This American Life
– The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani
Interviews
It’s not uncommon for podcast interviews to be conducted with the host and guest in two seperate locations, as you can see with Alex Harris and Pat Flynn
For anyone just getting into the world of podcasting, the interview format is probably the easiest and most versatile.
No matter what niche you’re in, there is always going to be some kind of expert or influencer than you can get in touch with. If your goal is to use your podcast as a networking tool, this is definitely the type of podcast you want to do.
The great thing about an interview podcast is that it’s easily scalable and doesn’t require that much work from you—other than being a good host and interviewer, which takes time and practice, but no specialized or technical skillset. The value of this type of podcast mainly comes from the information shared by your guests, so there’s less pressure on you to be an expert or a seasoned entertainer.
If you’re struggling