How to Start a Podcast: the Ultimate Beginner’s Guide + Free Workbook & Checklist ⋆ Wonderfully Bookish

Podcasts have been around for years, but right now, they’re more accessible than ever.

Podcasts can now be listened to on pretty much any audio platform: Spotify, Apple Podcasts (iTunes), Soundcloud, YouTube, or anywhere else audio can be uploaded. Their accessibility makes podcasting a great format to play around with, and the fact that it’s cheap (or even free) to create makes it even more appealing.

I started my first podcast in September last year, and now I have two! My first one – Wonderfully Bookish – isn’t updated very often at the moment (as usual, life gets in the way), but I love creating new episodes when I do sit down and actually make the time to record one. My second podcast, Let’s Learn About…, is a brand new one that I very recently created with my friend Ellie, and we’re having so much fun with it!

So here you are, thinking about starting a podcast of your own.

You might have an idea, or something you love to talk about, a lot of people you could interview… but you don’t know where to start! The tech, the process… how does it all work? How do you get your ideas from your brain onto the actual internet for people to listen to?

Well – you’re in the right place!

Last year, when I started researching podcasting guides for beginners, I struggled to find everything I needed. The guides I read focused mostly on one of two things: how to think of podcast ideas, or the tech you need – as in the actual microphones, equipment, etc – that you need to create one.

I couldn’t find much that told me everything I needed to know, from the creation and setup to the recording and publishing. I wished there was an in-depth guide that would show me what to do, step-by-step, without me having to click through a million different articles.

You know what they say – if you want something done, you’ve got to do it yourself. So that’s what I’m going to do!

In this post, I’m basically going to write the podcasting guide for beginners that I would have loved a year ago. I’ll share everything I’ve learned about podcast creation, going back to the basics and building up from there. If you’re a beginner, I hope this post will take you through everything you need to get your podcast from an idea in your head to an real thing people can listen to!

Why should we listen to you?!

Before we start, you might be wondering why you should listen to me. What do I know? Do I think I’m some sort of podcasting guru?!!

No. Of course not. But I do know quite a bit about podcasting, and that’s because it’s often what I’m paid to do.

I’ve worked as a virtual marketing assistant for over three years now (ever since I graduated university) and it’s perfect for learning on the job. I’ve worked on a few different podcasts, including one that has 2.5 million downloads and recently finished its sixth season (which I worked on a heck of a lot behind the scenes).

So after three years of working on other people’s successful podcasts as well as creating two of my own, it’s about time that I share some of what I’ve learned to help you create your own.

Get ready, because this guide is going to be a long one. I’ve included a table of contents below so you can easily jump to the right section. I’ve also created a FREE podcast creation workbook and checklist that you can use as you go along to help you through the process – download it here!

How to Start a Podcast: the 8-Step Process

What’s your podcast about?
What will you name your podcast?
Will you do it alone or with a co-host, and will it be interview-based?
What equipment and software will you use?
How will you structure your episodes?
Which host will you use and where will your podcast be available?
Will your podcast have its own website?
Where will you get your artwork, music and other graphics?

1. Find your niche. What’s your podcast about?

You can’t have a podcast without a theme! Okay, you might be able to have one where you talk about absolutely anything… but it’ll be easier if you have a focus.

(This is when I’m imagining someone pointing out that I have a podcast that’s literally about anything – but that’s different. The whole point is that it’s a general knowledge podcast, a bit like the QI podcast. We market it as a podcast that teaches you something different in every episode, and that’s our primary focus: teaching you weird facts and sharing fun stories that you can impress your friends with.)

Having a niche (i.e. a main thing your podcast focuses on) is important, because it’s the thing that will drive the right kind of audience to discover it. You might be interested in a million different things, but if you discuss your favourite children’s TV shows and then discuss today’s political climate and then focus a whole episode on growing cabbages, you’ll find it hard to pull in a dedicated audience.

You might think that talking about a load of things will attract a wider audience, but it’s actually quite the opposite: a smaller niche will mean that your podcast is a lot easier to find, driving more listeners to find it and subscribe!

2. Make it memorable. What will you name your podcast?

As well as a clear niche, you need a good name that will instantly tell potential listeners what your podcast is about. It shouldn’t be miles long, and if you can, it should include a keyword so that it has more chance of coming up in searches.

You also don’t have to have something with “Podcast” in the title. In fact, it’s often discouraged because it just filled up valuable title space. If people are searching through a podcast directory, they don’t need to see the word “podcast” in the title to know that it’s a podcast!

Your title should be short and snappy, memorable, and people should be able to tell roughly what your podcast will be about from the title alone.

You can find some great podcast names if you just search the podcast directories on things like Spotify and Apple Podcasts. You can also find some good ones here.

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3. Consider the logistics. Will you do it alone or with a co-host? Will it be interview-based?

This decision will greatly affect how much planning goes into your podcast, and should be one of the first decisions you make.

If you do it alone and talk about topics by yourself, then that requires the least amount of planning and work; if you have a co-host, you need to consider how you’ll record if you’re both in different locations; and if you have interviews with other people, you have to consider how you’ll record and how you’ll find your guests. It’s completely up to you.

I’m quickly going to cover some of the main pros and cons for each of these setups.

Going it alone

Pros: If you decide to fly solo, it can be the easiest way to start, logistically. You don’t need to coordinate with anyone else, agree on ideas, or figure out how to record two or more people at once. It’s just you, your thoughts, and a microphone, and you can work to your own schedule.

Cons: When it’s just you talking to yourself, you might find it hard to make it engaging unless you’re inject a lot of personality into it. You might find more freedom in not having to record with someone else, but it could also be restricting because there’s no one there to discuss a topic with or bounce off of.

Making it a team effort

Pros: If you decide to record with co-host, it opens up a whole new realm of possibilities. You can discuss topics together, bounce off each other, make jokes and have fun (if that’s the kind of podcast you’re going for), and have someone there to fill the silences if you’re not sure what to say.

Cons: There will be a lot more planning and coordinating involved. You’ll need to be available at the same time, figure out how to record several people at once (I’ll get to this later on), and agree on topics that you both want to discuss.

Interviewing guests

Pros: Having guests on the show can be a lot of fun because you can get new perspectives, get to know some great people, and also have them promote the episode afterwards. It’s also less work for you when you’re recording if you can ask a question, sit back, and let your guest answer it.

Cons: Out of all three of these options, this one has the most planning involved. You need to contact potential guests, find the ones that are interested in being a guest, coordinate a time to record (which can be especially difficult if they’re in a different time zone), make sure you know how to record and that they know what they’re doing… honestly, this could be a whole guide in itself. (I’ll make a mental note to write whole blog post soon about how to get podcast guests the easy way, so look out for that.)

Do what’s best for you and your podcast

Don’t get too worked up about making this decision right now. Think about what your show is about, the feel you want to go for and the dynamic it’ll have. Consider how much work and planning you want to put into each episode, and how technically-savvy you are.

Just remember, this can change over time! You can start out solo and then decide to recruit a co-host later on (I very recently did it with my Wonderfully Bookish podcast), and work towards introducing interviews to your show. Don’t worry about it – just have fun and see where it takes you.

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4. Get the right the tech. What equipment and software will you use?

Obviously, how you record your podcast is one of the most important, if not the most important thing you need to think about.

Equipment

You might be surprised just how many people will give up listening to a podcast if the audio quality is fuzzy, too quiet, or even too loud, so you’ll need to make sure the sound quality is good and you have basic editing skills. This also means you’ll need a decent microphone.

You definitely don’t need to afford an expensive mic – especially right at the start. Even most modern phone microphones will do if you’re a beginner, or you can spend a little bit on a USB mic that plugs into your computer.

The tech is something that you can upgrade over time, so don’t worry too much right now. While you’re still getting a feel for it, don’t spend a fortune – you might even realise the podcasting thing isn’t working out for you, and you don’t want to have wasted a ton of money.

The equipment I use commonly comes up on lists of recommended equipment for podcasting beginners, so I’d definitely suggest checking these things out. They work well and they’re not massively expensive! Here’s what I use:

Audio Technica ATR2100-USB microphone
Microphone Arm Stand
Pop Filter (which blocks excess air and stops popping sounds when recording)

You can easily find other recommended podcast equipment though by doing a quick bit of research!

Software for recording

You’ll need software that serves two main purposes: recording the audio, and editing it into a proper episode.

I could be here all day comparing the different types of software you could try out, so I’ll cover the main ones that would work well in different scenarios (i.e. whether you record alone or with a co-host/guest).

Skype: Easy to record (I think the most recent Skype update lets you record calls right from Skype itself rather than using third-party software like you used to have to do). I know a lot of people still use Skype to record even if their podcast is hugely successful. One tip might be to turn off your video and just use audio, especially if your internet connection isn’t the best.
Zoom: A lot of people use Zoom, which is a free conferencing program that is quick and easy for guests to join. I haven’t used it for recording purposes, only for work calls; but I’m sure there are tons of resources online about recording a podcast using it.
Zencastr: I use and highly recommend Zencastr, which has both free and paid options. It records each person’s audio on its own track which makes it so much easier when editing, and it also exports the audio in studio-standard quality, removing some of the little noises that might happen while recording. Out of all of these methods, this is my favourite.

Alternatively, if you’re recording alone, you can record directly into a recording software such as Audacity (which is what I use – it’s free and easy, and there are tons of tutorials online).

Note: If you’re recording with a guest or co-host, you could also ask them to record their own audio and send it to you, and then you can sync up your audio with theirs. This might require them to have a basic knowledge of recording themselves though so you don’t get a terrible recording back, and it might require more editing if you start recording at different times.

Software for editing

I already mentioned Audacity above, but I’ll mention it here too because I’ve found it to be the best for editing podcast episodes if you don’t want anything too fancy or intimidating. There are more advanced (and more pricey) ones out there, such as Adobe Audition, and they might have a more modern and user-friendly interface than Audacity does – but for a completely free software, Audacity serves its purpose well, and as I said above, there are tons of tutorials online because it’s been around for years!

I’m not going to go into any tutorials or anything here about editing a podcast episode with Audacity, but I may well do so in a future blog post. Let me know if this is something you’d like me to do. However, until then, there are loads of tutorials online that you can follow, or you can just wing it like I did and work it out as you go along!

5. Find a format that works. How will you structure your podcast episodes?

My podcast follows the same format every episode:

Introduction (a quick, pre-recorded, 30-second intro with me explaining where you can find the podcast and the show notes for that episode, over background music)
An introduction to the episode itself (where I welcome the listener to the show, introduce the guest with a short bio (if there is a guest), and explain what we talk about in the episode)
Theme music (I got this recorded by a professional – more about this below)
The interview or the main body of the episode (which usually lasts about 25-45 minutes)
The outro (like the intro, this is a pre-recorded ending where I explain again where to find the show notes for the episode and my social media channels over the some background music)

You could either choose to stick to a format like I do, or don’t have a format at all and roll with whatever happens. You might have pre-recorded bits like mine, or press record and start talking and upload it as it is. It’s completely up to you.

I like to go through and edit mine to remove any long pauses, cut down rambling, etc – but I also love listening to podcasts that aren’t edited at all, so anything works!

My editing process

Depending on how much editing needs to be done, it takes me anywhere from 30 minutes to a couple of hours to fully edit an episode and record the introduction. I record the episode’s introduction after the interview so I can explain what we discussed.

I then export it as an MP3 and upload it to my hosting site (again, more below), then write up a blog post which includes some notes about the episode, the podcast player, and links to Spotify and Apple Podcasts, and anything mentioned in the episode.

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6. Choose a host. Which host will you use and where will your podcast be available?

Now, I’m not talking about a host as in someone you host the show with – I’m talking about a hosting provider, i.e. where you will upload your episodes.

Basically, a hosting provider will be where you upload your episodes, and it will distribute them out to various destinations that you set up. These can be Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Stitcher, and other podcast directories. (There are loads!)

Of course, you can choose to upload your podcast episodes somewhere without using a host – like directly to Soundcloud, YouTube, etc – but if you want to reach the most listeners and have a single platform do all the work for you while you just upload the file once and let it do the rest, a host is the best option.

There are a lot of options out there and it’ll be impossible for me to cover them all here. However, here are a few of the popular ones you might want to use. Click through to find out more about each one. These usually cost a bit of money, but it’s not very much – and they are doing a lot of the work for you!

I use Libsyn, which is super easy to use. It takes a bit of set up at the beginning but there are plenty of tutorials. Look out for another blog post soon which will go through my whole process of uploading a podcast episode.

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7. Give your show a home! Will your podcast have its own website?

Your chosen hosting provider will send your episodes out to all the different destinations you set up, but it’s also nice to have your own website for your show.

It’s where you can direct people to contact you, get to know more about the show, and read the notes for each episode. It’s also somewhere where you could get people to sign up for your mailing list, if you want to create one. (I’ll go into this in a future guide.)

You could have a free site, like a WordPress site, or you could pay a little bit to go self-hosted (which I’d highly recommend). I won’t go into this too much in this post, but it’s definitely worth considering. You can see the websites for my two podcasts here: Let’s Learn About… and Wonderfully Bookish.

It’s also worth noting that some podcast hosting providers give you a page for your podcast and you can often add your own domain (or use the one they give you), so if you don’t want to create your own website from scratch, look into that.

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8. The extras make all the difference. Where will you get your artwork, music and other graphics?

For my podcast, I have the following essential extras that give it its own branding and make it feel more complete:

Custom theme tune / instrumental music
Podcast artwork
Graphics that I use for the episode featured images / title images
Various graphics that I sometimes use when I share the episode on social media

Here’s my artwork:

And here’s an example of my episode graphics:

Artwork and title images

For my artwork, I had it designed by my friend Joely, who just so happens to be an illustrator. (She takes commissions so if you like mine, you can get in touch with her!) She designed the actual illustration, and then I made the artwork myself by adding the coloured background and the text.

I used Canva, my favourite free site for designing graphics. I also use Canva for my featured images/social media graphics. There are tons of templates you can use and repurpose however you like, so creating graphics on there is so easy!

Note that your artwork should be at least 2000 x 2000 pixels. That seems pretty huge, but for some reason, that’s the size Apple Podcasts says your artwork should be, so you may as well set yourself up right if you want to get your podcast onto Apple Podcasts at some point.

(However, preferred dimensions are always changing, so it’s probably best to do a quick Google search to double-check.)

Music

I commissioned someone on Fiverr to create my custom theme song for me. It cost me around £18 altogether for the song and the instrumental version, which I thought was amazing for a custom piece of music! Listen to it here.

You could also see if you have any musical friends or family who could have a go at it for you, or find someone on Fiverr (or something similar) like I did.

Alternatively, you can use royalty-free music which can sound just as good! The music used on the Let’s Learn About… podcast is just a piece of royalty-free music I downloaded for free. You can find tons of great royalty-free music sites with a quick Google search. Just double-check any music you find is definitely available to use, and you’re not accidentally stealing someone’s music.

I’ll point out here that music isn’t completely essential, but it helps give a professional edge to your episodes when you have a piece of music to break it up a bit and add a bit of interest.

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Time to go out into the world and start podcasting!

I hope this mammoth guide has given you some idea of what to think about when starting a brand new podcast. There are other things to think about too, but podcasting is one of those things that you learn as you go.

It’s all trial and error and I’ve had to deal with so many things that I hadn’t expected. Everyone’s podcasting experience is different, so just have a crack at it, see if you like it, and away you go!