I think what I'm going to do is let these other people do today's podcast Welcome back to the deep dive This time we're really diving into something I think a lot of you have been thinking about and that's launching your own podcast You've given us a great roadmap to follow today How to kickstart your podcast dream in nine actionable steps Yeah, it's a good one It is so we're gonna unpack those nine steps Figure out what the most knows are And of course add in our own thoughts along the way Absolutely We're gonna break down each part of this guide highlight what's most important and hopefully spark some new ideas for you Okay, so this guide doesn't waste any time It jumps right in with step one Nish down to stand out and they really aren't messing around with that They talk about how you need to find your tribe You know your people instead of trying to make a podcast for absolutely everyone Which makes sense, but why is that as so important when it comes to podcasting specifically? Well imagine walking into a bookstore, right? Are you more drawn to that table that's just stacked with every single kind of book you can imagine Or are you drawn to a table with like a really carefully put together display of books That are all about a topic you already love Yeah, definitely the curated display Exactly and it's the same thing with podcasts I mean think about how many podcasts are out there A lot So if you try to be everything to everyone your podcast It's just gonna get lost in all the noise It's like trying to be the loudest person in a room full of people shouting Exactly, but when you miss down You're like that bookstore display You know what you are and the right people are gonna be drawn to you Makes sense You're tracking the people who are already searching for well you Right, I like that Okay, so the guide actually has a great examples of this Like instead of just a fitness They suggest going more specific like fitness for working parents or strength training for beginners Right, much more specific and think about it You know if you're a busy parent You're trying to fit in a workout But you only have a few minutes here and there Yeah You would probably love a podcast that gets that right One that's specifically designed for your lifestyle Totally It would feel like it was made just for you And that's the thing It's not just about getting people to download your podcast It's about attracting the right listeners The ones who really connect with what you're putting out there You're building a community rather than just a listenership Absolutely And that leads us perfectly into step number two Which is No your ideal listener Which again seems kind of obvious right But they get into some really interesting specifics with this one They even talk about creating a listener persona Which have you ever done that? You know I have to admit I was a little skeptical of that at first It felt very I don't know marketing buzzword to me Right But when I actually sat down and thought about it It was kind of like a light bulb moment Yeah it's like you're having a coffee date with your ideal listener You know you're getting to know their lives What they like What they don't like Even their routines And the guide gives you all of these questions to think about To help with this Like what kind of problems are they facing Or what would they find valuable or even entertaining?
It's so much more helpful Than having this vague idea of just Like oh yeah my ideal listener is someone who likes history You might have something so much more concrete You might realize that no Your ideal listener is Sarah And Sarah is a history enthusiast But she also really loves a good mystery And she listens to podcasts during her commute to work every day And really prefers shorter episodes You know ones that are packed with facts Right because who wants to listen to a three hour podcast on their commute Not me Right So having Sarah in mind changes how you approach your content completely It's not just history It's like okay would Sarah actually find this interesting Exactly And would she even be able to listen to this in one sitting I love that Okay so we found our niche we've met up with Sarah for that coffee date And now it's time to actually make this podcast right Yeah let's do it And that's where step three comes in Content planning and format decisions This is where I start to feel a little bit of that like healthy mix of excitement And also that where do we even begin feeling Oh I completely agree It can definitely feel overwhelming But this is where I think the guide really shines It breaks down some of the most popular podcast formats Which is a really great place to start Because it helps you figure out which one is right for you Awesome So you've got your solo shows Which is where it's just you sharing your knowledge Right Kind of like if you were teaching a class Exactly just an audio form I love that Then you've got the interview format Where you're chatting with interesting people Sharing their stories Always a classic And then of course there's the co-hosted format Kind of like what we've got going on right here on the deep dive Yeah Exactly And with that You have two or more hosts Bouncing ideas off each other Exactly And that back and forth can be really fun It is The right format Is whatever feels the most natural and engaging for you As the creator Because honestly that's going to come through in the final product Absolutely And honestly whatever resonates most with your ideal listener So you know Think about them too Exactly And something else to figure out in this stage That's important But can be easy to overlook Is going to be how long your episodes are actually going to be Yeah Are you going to aim for like those shorter episodes That people can listen to on their coffee break Or are you going to do those deep dives that are like An hour plus long Oh I am such a sucker for those hour long episodes Same here But sometimes yeah You just need something quick and insightful I agree And then once you figure that out Once you land on that sweet spot Be consistent with it That's such good advice Yeah Whether it's weekly Every other week Even monthly Because if you tell your listeners You're going to show up with a new episode every Tuesday at 8am They know to look forward to that Exactly Exactly It's like having a favorite TV show That you always make sure to watch I love that Mmm But I think we do need to talk about the Well, tech stuff Yes, the tech stuff Because as much as we love a good analogy At some point You actually have to make the podcast Right And that's where Luckily step four comes in Which is all about why audio quality matters Okay, audio quality matters Yeah Especially when you're first starting out That you can skimp on that a little bit, right? Yeah Like the content's good People will be willing to overlook Some less than perfect sound I get that But honestly Think about it from your own perspective as a listener How do you feel when you're listening to a podcast And the audio is just Like not great Maybe there's a lot of background noise or static Does that make you want to keep listening? Honestly, probably not I'm way less likely to finish an episode Or even recommend it to a friend If the sound quality is just like distracting Exactly And I mean I get it When you're just starting out It can be really tempting To just use your laptops built in microphone Call it good And focus on the content It's true But putting in that extra effort To get good audio It really shows your listeners That you respect their time And that you're taking what you're doing seriously I've never thought about it like that But it makes sense It's like dressing up for an important meeting You know Exactly It means a good first impression So speaking of that What's a good starting point? The guy obviously talks about needing a good microphone And there are so many out there I know It can be so overwhelming But this guy is great Because they break down some really specific equipment That's good But isn't gonna like break the bank Okay good Because doing loans, right?
Exactly So first and foremost You've got to have a good microphone They actually recommend Two really solid options The Audio Technica ATR2100X or the Blue Yeti Oh I've heard of those I feel like those are recommended a lot Are they really that much better Than just using like My laptop's built in mic Yes Trust me Okay Having a dedicated microphone Like one of those Is like having a personal sound Engineer for your voice Oh fancy It's true It's gonna capture All those nuances You know the richness of your voice In a way that your laptop mic just can't So you end up sounding much clearer And more engaging So it's like the difference between Taking a photo with your phone Versus with like a professional grade camera Exactly Love that analogy Yeah Okay so We've got the microphone What else? The next thing on the list Is headphones Which are gonna be crucial for monitoring your audio In real time as you're recording Didn't get any weird noises or anything like that Yes You don't want to have to start all over Right now This way You can fix it right away Love it And then of course You've got to have some kind of recording software Which is like your digital studio The place where everything comes together Where the magic happens Where the magic happens So what are some of the options there? The guide mentions Audacity Which is a really great option for beginners Because it's free So it's kind of like the training wheels of audio editing Exactly And then once you kind of get the hang of things And you're ready level up You can always move to a paid software They mentioned Adobe Audition Which has a ton of features But might be a little overwhelming When you're first getting started Yeah, start small Yeah Now can we talk about recording space for a second? Because this guide emphasizes That having a good microphone isn't enough You really do need a quiet space to record Oh 100% You would be surprised by how much background noise Can sneak its way into your recordings Oh, tell me about it I was once recording a voiceover And it was going so well I thought it was in the clear And then my neighbor chose that exact moment To start mowing their lawn Ohhh Yeah, it's not exactly the ambiance I was going for Yeah, no So yeah, I mean Look for a room that has carpets Or soft furnishings Because those are going to absorb a lot of the sound If you don't have anything like that I've heard that a closet full of clothes Can actually work really well Really?
Yeah, you'd be surprised You've got to get creative sometimes Love it Okay, so we have tackled recording now what? So that brings us to step five Which is all about the editing magic And this is where you're taking those raw recordings And turning them into an actual episode Shaping it into a story And this guide emphasizes that idea of Like thinking about editing as its own form of storytelling Exactly Which I love Because it is Because you're tightening up the flow You're removing any arms and Oz, awkward pauses You're adding music, transitions Oh, speaking of The guide mentions things like Using music And having an intro and outro for your episodes Yeah How important are those elements? So important They can make a huge difference I mean, think about your own favorite Podcasts for a second Okay They probably have a really distinct sound, right? You do Like a catchy intro That gets you pumped up for the episode I love a good intro Right, or how about well-placed music To kind of emphasize what's happening Set the vibes Exactly And then a really satisfying outro It's all part of what keeps you coming back for more And it makes it an experience Rather than just like Somebody talking at you It's like the difference between watching raw footage Versus like a final edited film Exactly All the magic happens in the edit Now I have to admit This is the part that always stresses me out a little bit Because editing can be kind of its own beast But this guide does a good job of reminding us That practice makes perfect It takes time, it takes practice But luckily there are so many amazing resources Available online, like so many tutorials YouTube is the best Right, you can learn everything on YouTube Seriously Okay, so we've recorded this amazing episode It's edited to perfection We're feeling good Feeling good But how do we actually get it out into the world?
How do people listen to it? So that is where step six comes in Which is Finding a home for your podcast Ooh, a home for your podcast I know, it sounds very official And it might seem a little technical at first But this part is really just about Finding a platform that's going to host your episodes And distribute them to all the different podcast directories Okay, so this is where the guide really loses me a bit Because they start talking about The need for a hosting platform And then this thing called an RSS feed And I always feel like that's where I get lost in all the jargon Yeah, it can feel very tick-bro But I promise you It is not as complicated as it sounds Just think of a podcast hosting platform Like it's a digital warehouse for your audio files It stores your episodes safely Make sure nothing happens to them And then it generates that RSS feed Which is basically just a map That tells all the podcast directories Like Apple podcasts, Spotify, Google podcasts Where to find your show And how to deliver it to listeners So we don't have to figure out all that ourselves No, that's the beauty of it Okay, good You can just let the platform do the hard work So you can focus on actually making your show So it's like having an entire team of people Who are taking care of the technical stuff for you behind the scenes Oh, exactly I love that So the guide actually lists a few different options Buzzsprout, Libsyn, and Anchor Are those the big ones? Yeah, those are all great examples of platforms That are super user-friendly Okay, good You know, they do all that stuff like Storing your files, generating the RSS feed But they also give you some cool features Like listener analytics So you can see how many people are listening You can see where they're from What episodes are the most popular So it's like having a backstage pass To how people are actually interacting with your podcast Exactly That's amazing Yeah, it's super valuable information to have So you can see what works, what doesn't work I love that Okay, so we've got our podcast episodes They sound amazing, they're up on a posting platform There's one last piece of the puzzle we haven't talked about yet Which is How do we actually get people to listen? And that's where, of course, step seven comes in Branding More than just a pretty logo Branding, more than just a pretty logo This is where I always feel like Oh no, this is where they're gonna find out I'm not actually cool enough to have a podcast Like I can talk into a microphone But can I design a logo?
Exactly But this guide makes a really good point Which is that branding isn't just about Having this super fancy over-the-top designed logo It's really more about capturing the heart of your podcast in a visual way So it's less about design skills and more about like Knowing what your podcast is really about and conveying that Exactly, remember we were talking about the listener persona? Yes This is where that comes in So your branding should really appeal to those people, to your people So if my ideal listener is a really busy entrepreneur type My branding is probably gonna look very different Than if my podcast is all about like fairy tales and folklore Exactly One's gonna be more like sleek and modern maybe And the other one's gonna be a little more whimsical It's about attracting the right people with the visuals that you use Love that Now the guide does mention some tools to help us with this part Thankfully, because I do not have a graphic design degree They mention Canva a lot Oh Canva's amazing It really is right Yeah, so user-friendly, you can create a logo, you can create Cover art even just like graphics for social media Social media graphics are important too Yeah Okay, so what about those of us who are like Nope, still not feeling confident about this whole design thing The guide also mentioned Fiverr Fiverr is great if you want to invest a bit You can hire someone Yes To help you out and they can create something really custom and amazing So you can find someone who really gets your vibe Right, exactly Okay, I love it So we have officially gotten through all of the steps For actually making the podcast Our podcast exists, it sounds incredible, and it looks incredible It's ready to go It's time to unleash it Step 8 is promoting your podcast And now I'm in that stage where I just want to tell everyone I know Oh, I get it, you're so excited, you just want to shout it from the rooftops Yes But as the guide points out, you kind of have to be a little bit more strategic about it, right? Okay, that's fair because Again, there are a lot of podcasts out there So many podcasts So it's more about building a community than just like yelling into the void Hoping someone hears you Yeah, so how do we do that? How do we build a community?
Well, luckily the guide has some tips for that too And a lot of it starts with social media, honestly Because that's where your listeners are They're on Instagram, they're on Facebook They're on whatever the new one is Exactly That I don't know yet Right So share snippets of your episodes, maybe some fun behind the scenes stuff Let people get to know you Bloopers, everyone loves bloopers Oh, bloopers are the best The best Okay, so the guide also mentions this thing called cross-promotion Which I've always been interested in, but how does that work exactly? Yeah, it's basically just teaming up with other podcasters Okay To support each other You know, you can have someone as a guest on your show Or you can be a guest on someone else's show So you're kind of tapping into each other's audiences that way Exactly, it's a win-win Now this next one I'm a little bit curious about They talk about creating a website for your podcast And in the age of social media, I almost feel like Is that really necessary? It's a good question It's true What do you think? I think it can't hurt Okay Because it's just one more way for people to find you One more way You can have all your episodes in one place It's like your home base Exactly Okay, I can get behind that You can even have a newsletter sign up if people want to stay up to date Newsletters are making a comeback Yeah Okay, so we have officially covered all eight steps Are we ready to hit that publish button?
Almost Step nine is less of a step and more of like a They call it launch, learn, and grow It's this idea that launching your podcast isn't the end of the journey It's the beginning Do you have any words of wisdom for our aspiring podcasters out there As we get ready to wrap up this deep dive? You know, I think this guide said it best Which is that podcasting is a journey It's about learning, it's about making mistakes It's about like figuring it out as you go Don't be afraid to experiment Exactly Have fun with it If you're not having fun, it's going to show It will And honestly, that applies to anything in life Not just podcasting This has been such a great deep dive into the world of podcasting I hope your feeling is inspired as I am to get out there and make something amazing And who knows? Maybe you'll be back here on the deep dive someday Telling us all about your podcasting journey We can't wait to see what you come up with I hope you enjoyed today's episode That was created by my digitally And I mean digitally Created voices I mean, those people weren't real They were just pulled out of cyberspace And they created this podcast How cool is that? Hear my phone ringing?
I'm not editing Alright, see you next time