What is a Podcast and How to Make a Podcast

Blogging is constantly reinventing itself.  Bloggers today no longer just churn out text based content; they complement it with media rich offerings such as images, audio and video content. One of the more popular formats more and more bloggers are embracing today is podcasting. Podcasts have been around for a while, but is gaining more traction today as bloggers attempt to show off their personality and expertise through their self hosted talks.

What is a Podcast?

A podcast is a digital medium of presenting data that can be download by users. It is usually in the audio format (MP3) although video podcasts are not uncommon. Podcasts are usually made available as a series of shows that people can subscribe and listen to on a regular basis.

Why Do a Podcast?

In earlier times, if you wanted to talk to your readers or audiences, you were limited to doing TV or radio shows. This was fraught with limitations; it was hard to get a gig and you were restricted to showcasing your product only to a small audience located in a specific geo location.

Thanks to the Internet, today you can create your own talk show or podcast without too much hassle. And the benefits are enormous. You get to be the boss of your show and have complete control over everything; you don't need too much money to get started; you work at your own pace, and in the convenience of your own home or office. Best of all, your podcast has a global reach and is instantly available to all.

If you have something unique to sell to your audience and have a personality that can influence an audience, why not cast a spell on them via podcasts! If you are thinking about taking the plunge into podcasting, this guide should help you get started.

How to Make a Podcast

Podcasting Ideas

Now that you’ve set your mind to doing a podcast, what should you podcast about? Here are some pointers.

• Select a topic you are familiar with and are passionate about.

• Do your research well. Go to popular podcasting sites and check out the popular and trending topics for ideas. iTunes is a great place to start with.
• If your topic of choice is in an oversaturated market, you will have little chance of success. That does not mean you give it up though. If you have a unique selling point and are confident of crushing the competition just go for it.
• A better opportunity lies in discovering untapped niches. Chances are, you’ll be able to attract a sizable audience right away.

Determine the Format of Your Podcast

Once you have decided on a topic, its time to start figuring out how you’re going to structure your podcast. Should you do an interview series or present it yourself? How long should you talk? Should you prepare a script in advance?  There are a lot of questions that need to be answered. Make sure that you prepare a checklist and have a clear strategy of your podcasting format. Here are some guidelines.

Learn from the Best

Long or Short?

Prepare in Advance

Set a Time Schedule

Whom to Interview?

Musical Intros

Brand Your Title & Make it Search Friendly

Prepare Eyecatching Artwork

Podcasting Tools & Equipment

Now that you have defined your podcasting idea and have finalized its format, you'll need some tools to start the recording process. If you are on a tight budget, you can start with some free tools, but be prepared to lose some quality. 

In its simplest form, a microphone and a sound recorder should be enough – like your humble laptop. But these are probably better suited for your practice sessions. If you do give it a go you’ll notice that surrounding noises get recorded along with your voice.

You may consider using a pair of headphones to get the job done, (there's probably a few lying around the house anyway) but these are not professional tools and can only do so much. 

If you are ready to spend some money, here are tools worth checking out:

Microphones

All of these microphones come recommended by the International Association of Internet Broadcasters. A general recommendation is that you do a voice test before you make your purchase decision.

Microphone Accessories

If you look through Amazon, you'll find microphones bundled with accessories such as the Heil Sound PR 40 Dynamic Cardioid Studio Microphone. You'll also find bundled offers that shave a few dollars off the price, so search around before you make your purchase decision.

Sound Recorder/Editor

A sound recorder/editor is essential to clean up your recording, add intros and such and two of the best tools that are around are Audacity and Garageband (for Mac). Audacity is free and has plenty of tutorials to help you with your podcast editing. Garageband comes as part of your Mac or can be downloaded from the Mac Store, but you'll find Audacity a lot easier to work with on both platforms.

Mixers

 Mixers improve audio quality and make the recording workflow a lot more smoother and efficient. They are also very handy when you are doing a live podcast directly with guests or using  Skype interviews. There are several factors you need to consider when choosing a mixer, but the models recommended above are some of the best tools you can pick from.

Call Recorders

If you are taking guest interviews via Skype, you'll need tools to record your conversations and any of the above mentioned tools should do nicely. Both products have trial versions to try before you buy.

Recording a Podcast

Now you have decided on the necessary equipment, purchased and set it up, you can start recording your podcasts.

When you start recording, keep in mind these tips for delivering an effective talk.

Editing a Podcast

Now that you have recorded your first show, its time to take a listen to it. You may not be entirely impressed with your voice at first, but that’s where you’ll find Audacity to be of great value. When your recording plays out in Audacity, you’ll see the audio representation in a waveform.

Listen closely to where the voice is distorted (sneezing, coughing, ummmm-ing), highlight that part on the waveform and then hit delete. Replay the audio again to make sure you edited it correctly. You can undo and redo the edits until you’ve got it right. Don’t forget to save the changes after every edit fix. Audacity can sometimes crash leaving you with a lot of rework, so always save your work after every fix.

One more thing you need to keep in mind while editing is not to do too much of it. This can become a seriously bad habit and you'll find yourself never being satisfied with your work.

Once all the edits are complete, you can export the file and save it at its default settings in the WAV format.

The next step involves leveling the audio. This is to ensure that your recording is at a consistent sound level and is perfect for listeners. There aren't many standout tools that I have come across but Auphonic is a web service that's worth checking out. Its not free, but you can take up the free 2 hours processing option before you decide to buy more credits.

If you plan on using music for your intros, be aware of copyright infringement issues. You need to have permission to use music files that are not your own creation. You can find music with licenses (that let you use them the way you want) by doing a Google search for Creative Commons music; you can also find tunes with commercial licenses by searching on Vimeo. Just read the terms and conditions before you use the stuff.

When you have the right music, you can use Audacity to edit the music according to your needs. Keep your intro short and snappy at the start between 10 and 20 seconds and then fade it out gradually. When you have the right mix, save the file and export it.

Now its time to put everything together. Open a new project in Audacity, drag and drop the music file as well the audio file you saved earlier. Adjust the music and the start of your talk according to your requirements and then save and export the file once again.

Giving Your Podcast the Final Touches

Now that your podcast is all ready and rearing to go, its time to upload it. iTunes is one of the best tools to use to add the final touches such as tagging and compressing it to make it ready for upload. 

Set up an iTunes account if you don’t have one, then upload the podcast to the iTunes library. Right click the podcast in your iTunes library and select Get Info. Fill all the fields in the Info tab, add the artwork and then click OK. Make sure your titles are branded and keyword rich, your artwork is attractive and your description has all the keywords integrated.

Once you have tagged all the fields, its time to compress your file and make it easier for users to download.

Go to the iTunes Preferences and in the General tab, click Import Settings. Under Import Using select MP3 encoder. Under Settings select Custom. You can select Spoken Podcast and hit OK. In the iTunes window, right-click the podcast and select Create MP3 version. Your podcast will now be tagged and compressed and placed in the iTunes library.

Uploading Your Podcast

You're all set to upload your podcast now. One recommendation I'd like to make here is that you do not upload your podcasting files to the same location where you host your website. This is because should your podcast take a lot of hits, you'll find it affecting the speed and performance of your website. There are both free and paid media hosts and you can consider a few of the options listed below.

After uploading your podcast, be sure to grab the podcasting link and add it to your website.

Setting Up a Podcast Feed

Setting up a podcasting feed is not the same as submitting a usual blog post feed because your MP3 files don't get recognized with your usual feedburner settings. You'll need to use a plugin for this purpose and the WordPress directory has plenty to choose from. Configure a plugin that works best for you and you'll now have your own unique podcast feed that you can use to submit to various podcast directories.

Submitting a Podcast to Various Directories

After you have published your first podcast, you can submit your feed to directories. It is always better to have a few podcasts under your belt before you submit to directories, because listeners who check out your first podcast may want more and you don't want to be found lacking.

To submit your podcast to iTunes, first grab your podcast feed URL, go to iTunes and select Podcasts. In the Podcasts menu, click Submit a Podcast. Add your feed URL, preview the podcast details and hit Submit. You should be approved in 48 hours. You can also submit your podcast to the popular Stitcher platform and the process is fairly simple...just fill up the necessary fields on the website and you're set.

That's it folks! You should now have a fairly good idea on how to make a podcast. Go ahead and start your podcasting journey.