How To Set Up a Podcast | Connect With Your Audience

Podcasts are transforming the way people listen to audio content.

They have grown in popularity in the past few years, with over 7 million people in the UK now tuning in to podcasts each week. This form of content offers more choice and has now become a powerful communications tool to connect with audiences.

Podcasts are informative, entertaining and enlightening. They offer you as hosts a chance to connect with your audiences, build valuable connections, make money selling advertisements and products/services and promote your brands(s).

Buy our Guide today and learn how to embrace the power of Podcasts for either your clients or your own brand.

Why Podcast?

We are podcast obsessed! We love listening to them and we have our favourites; from PR industry shows; lifestyle; fashion; comedy and entertainment!  We love podcasts so much that we started our very own…“Rumour Has It”!

Podcasts are transforming the way people listen to audio content. They have grown in popularity in the past few years, with over 7 million people in the UK now tuning in to podcasts each week. This form of content offers more choice and has now become a powerful communications tool to connect with audiences.

Have you ever thought about starting your own podcast?

Here are some top tips to consider before you begin your podcast journey…

Identify who and what your podcast is for

Decide on a distinctive theme or premise for your podcast. Perhaps you’re an expert on the subject, or just passionate about it. If you are both, even better!

You need to understand who your audience is or who it is that you want to reach out to. Instead of casting a wide net and trying to appeal to as many people as possible, pinpoint the unique value your podcast brings and consider the audience who is most likely to listen.

You want to connect with your audience and make them feel like it’s only you and them there when they are listening.  Ensure that your content is relevant from the launch of the podcast and continue to be relevant with your content, avoiding recording too far in advance of the podcast going live.

Connect with your listeners

Once you’ve identified your audience, you will want to connect with them, so they know where to tune in and interact with you. Use your existing social media channels to share content and maintain a presence on the channels to make it easy for people to discover your show. Other suggestions to get the word out there may include:

• Build an email list and send out regular newsletters
• Post about every new episode on your social channels
• Encourage colleagues / peers to share
• Use relevant hashtags
• Reach out or collaborate with another show to cross-promote with them

Ideally, you want to work towards building a ‘community’ around your podcast. For example, start a hashtag for listeners to participate in the conversation around your show.

Choose your format

Think of what the structure will be like. Do you want your podcast to be an interview or chat show style; a solo monologue, or a storytelling format? You will also want to establish the length of the podcast and try to stick to it for all upcoming episode, as your listener will get used to it being a certain length of time.

Cover Art

Create a really eye catching graphic! This will help your podcast stand out and help establish the brand. It is worth getting a professional to help you with this if you aren’t confident in creating it yourself. Our in-house team at Rumour Mill can help you with this!

Podcast Name

Listeners should know what the podcast is all about from just the name alone. If you can, create a descriptive name. Something the ‘hooks’ the listener but is also searchable, is what you should be aiming for.

Welcome a guest

A guest can be a great way to expand your listening audience. Guests can be friends, experts in a field, or someone you’ve always dreamed of talking to. Encourage your guests to promote the podcast episodes they are on, which will help you tap into their followings. Make it easier for them to promote you by giving them a mini press kit with assets they can easily post, like suggested copy, a link to the episode, your awesome cover art, an interesting quote from the interview, and special photo from the recording session. Post about your guests and tag them on your social feeds. They’ll be more likely to share to their own followers.

What Equipment to do you need to get started?

A mic

It is best to have an external mic to record a podcast. Do not simply use a built-in computer mic as the quality will not be as good. Decide on whether you will be using a mic to plug into your computer or a smart phone mic. Your choice is based on preference, both will work well.

Audio-recording / editing software

You need software to record an audio file. There are various software options out there. Choose the best suited to you. For example, if you are new to podcasts, maybe go for one with a free trial so you get an idea of what it is like to record and edit before committing, such as Audicity or GarageBand. There are free tutorials available online and it is designed to be simple and quick to edit. Or if you are more advanced with editing, a great option is Adobe Audition.

Podcast hosting

You’ll need a separate host site just for your audio files. Even if you already have a website where you may have an MP3 file with your podcast, you don’t want to host your podcasts there. They need to be as accessible as possible.  A podcast host is basically the middleman between you and your audience. They take all your MP3s and ‘store’ them so when someone wants to listen to your show, they can stream it or download it directly without you having to do anything.

There is often a small fee for podcast hosting to choose the right one for you. We use Podbean. Others we suggest include, Buzzsprout, SoundCloud and Libsyn.

Best channel for your podcast

Where do you want your podcast to be accessed from? There are many directories out there now, some more popular than others. We host ours on Spotify. It’s the most up and coming music streaming site and with the growth being so vast, it has the ability to make recommendations for podcast and music, based on what you already listen to, therefore getting to the right audience for you. Check out Spotify for Podcasters for more info. Other channels include Apple Podcasts (itunes), Google Play Store, Stitcher and SoundCloud.

Start a podcast today

You can create a successful podcast now! Listen to others for inspiration and find your own style. If you already have an external microphone on your laptop or phone, record a short episode today, introducing yourself and your podcast idea. Get comfortable talking and then listen to yourself. It’s a good practice to get familiar with the process.

If you need any more help on how to get started, please contact the team on content@rumourmillcomms.com

Would you like some additional help getting your Podcast started?