How to Start a Podcast: A Quick Guide to Starting Your Own Podcast
Podcasting has become one of the most popular ways to share stories, ideas, and expertise, with over 2 million podcasts available worldwide. Whether you’re starting a podcast to boost your brand, share your passions, or build a community, the process can be as simple or complex as you make it. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the essentials to get started and open the door to deeper discussions on advanced topics.
1. Start with the Basics
Define Your Podcast’s Purpose
Why are you starting a podcast? Is it to educate, entertain, or inspire? Clarify your goals and niche.
Identify your target audience. Knowing who you’re speaking to will shape your content and style. For example, if your audience includes young entrepreneurs, focus on actionable business advice.
Choose a format
Solo Podcast: You share your expertise or stories.
Co-hosted Podcast: A conversation between two or more people.
Interview Podcast: Featuring guests to discuss specific topics.
Narrative Podcast: Telling stories or exploring ideas in a structured format.
Plan Your Content
Create an outline of your first few episodes, using podcast content planning tools to stay organized.
Keep episodes focused and engaging. A 20-40 minute range is a good starting point for most beginners.
Decide on a name that reflects your podcast’s theme and resonates with your audience.

2. Set Up Your Podcasting Space
What Kind of Space Works Best?
Choose a quiet location to minimize background noise.
Use soft furnishings like curtains, rugs, and cushions to reduce echo. You could even invest in acoustic foam.
If possible, dedicate a room to recording and optimize it for sound.

3. Gear Up: Equipment Essentials
Microphones
Budget Option: USB microphones like the Shure MV7 are affordable and easy to use.
Professional Option: XLR microphones such as the Shure SM7B offer superior quality but require additional equipment like an audio interface.
Audio Mixers and Interfaces
If using XLR microphones, invest in an audio interface like the Focusrite Scarlett series for cheap options and the Rode Rodecaster Pro 2 for a versatile and more expensive option.
For multi-microphone setups, consider a mixer to adjust levels during recording.
Headphones
Use closed-back headphones to monitor audio while recording and avoid sound bleeding.

4. Recording and Processing Audio
Recording Software
Free Options: Audacity or GarageBand.
Paid Options: Ableton or Logic Pro offer advanced editing features.
Ableton offers a 30 day free trial for new users and their cheapest option (Ableton Live 12 Intro) is quite affordable at 79€ offering a sufficient set of features for podcast production.
Tips for Great Audio
Speak close to the microphone (15-30 cm away).
Record in high quality (44.1 kHz/16-bit or higher).
Processing Audio
Noise reduction, equalization, and compression are key steps to enhance audio quality, but this is a whole other subject to be covered in a separate article!

What’s Next?
This guide scratches the surface of podcasting. In upcoming posts, we’ll dive deeper into topics such as:
Adding a video dimension to your podcast.
Creating short video content to maximize reach.
Leveraging AI for editing, transcriptions, and more.
Releasing, distributing, and marketing your podcast effectively.
Starting your podcast is just the beginning of an exciting journey. With the right tools, preparation, and creativity, you’ll be ready to make your voice heard.
Producing a top quality video podcast may require a large start-up investment considering the need for audio and video equipment. A good camera option for video podcasts is the Sony A7 IV coupled with a Sony FE 24-70mm f/2.8 gm II lens for pristine video quality, powerful low light filming and long shooting times.
However, you’ll possibly need two to three sets of these to shoot engaging material. Shooting from only one perspective can get tiring for the viewer. For a set of three cameras you’ll be looking at spending up to 15 000 € for just the cameras. Adding the audio equipment, the total price can get closer to 20 000 €.
Another good option is to outsource the production of your podcast if budget and resources aren’t an issue. Low upfront costs make outsourcing an attractive and quick way to start your own podcast. If you’re looking to start your podcast and wish for help, you can book a free 30 minute consultation here with us.
We’ve helped a number of businesses and brands start their podcast show. We cover everything from planning and production to release and marketing.