Statistica reported that, In 2021 alone, the number of podcast listeners worldwide amounted to 383.7 million internet users. Five years ago, many people were not listening to a podcast, but now they are. The audio industry is growing exponentially because it only requires the direct attention of the consumer sometimes like youtube. Starting a podcast in 2024 is the best decision before it’s too late. In this complete guide, I will walk you through starting a podcast from scratch.

How To Start A Podcast In 2024

Planning is the first phase of starting a podcast. It would be best to spend a reasonable amount of time before you move on. Think about the expertise/experience you have on a particular topic/niche.

Choose A Podcast Topic/Niche

You should always talk about things that you know best. Try to narrow down the topic so that you can publish at least 100 podcast episodes. In my opinion, it would be best to try something with your own name. For example, Obeydul Haque Podcast is a podcast of mine. I included my own name as my podcast name, and by making a podcast under my own name, I made it so broad that I can talk about any topics in the world on my podcast.

Important: Don’t pigeonhole yourself into one topic or niche; go with your own name and build a successful personal brand on the internet.

Choosing the Podcast Format:

Your podcast format is one of the most crucial things you need to decide on. Answer these questions to move on:

What kinds of podcasting formats will your podcast follow?

The possible answer can be a solo podcast, 2) a conversational podcast, 3) an interview-style podcast, 4) a monologue podcast, and more.

Solo podcast means single host podcast. Conversational podcast means two personal podcasts 3)In interview-style podcasts, there are more than 2-person podcasts. Often, it refers to a podcast guest who possesses expertise in a particular domain.4) The Obeydul Haque Podcast is a great example of a monologue podcast. In this podcast format, you can choose to talk about almost anything under the sun.

Choosing Podcast Guests:

If you want to record interview styles and podcasts, there are a few things you need to plan ahead. Reach out to industry people you want to have in your podcast. You can use services like Acuity Scheduling so that you can book them right away and track your upcoming guest list. This will save lots of time of yours and can focus more on planning the podcast episodes.Riverside.Fm is another software tool you would love to use in case you are not recording with podcast guests in the same room.

If you want to see other remote recording options, you will find them here.

Now you know what to podcast about. It’s time to get a few things ready before recording your first podcast episodes.

Create Cover Art

Creating a podcast Cover Art is the first thing someone will notice when listening to your podcast. Buzzsprout has an excellent article on how to design a podcast cover art, so I would definitely start there. If you have a budget and want to create a podcast cover art by professionals, 99 Designs is the best place to go for. But you can always create your own podcast cover art using Canva. Here are the basic guidelines you need to follow when designing a podcast cover art:

• Placement: Listen Now, Search
• Device support: iOS, iPad, and macOS
• Size: 3000 x 3000 pixels
• File type: JPEG or PNG

Get A Professional Intro to look more professional.

Music Radio Creative is the best platform for professional-quality voiceovers and intros. You can choose the person’s voice you want to use for the podcast intro. Having a third party introducing you makes the podcast’s perceived value top-notch.

If you want to use podcast music on the podcast, Premiumbeat is the best place to go. You can check out my royalty-free music sites posted here.

I have a dedicated list post on the podcast starter Kit; check them out for more information.

Choosing a Podcast Mic

Ideally, starting a podcast needs to have nothing but a computer and a USB mic. You can also check out some podcast mics if you want to find the perfect mic for your podcast. One of the most popular podcast mics is the blue yeti USB. It’s a USB mic, which means that you can start recording a podcast just by plugging the mic into the computer right away.

Podcast Editing Before Publishing:

For now, You know what it takes to start a podcast; it’s time to edit a podcast. For most people, GarageBand or Audacity is the perfect audio editing software to work on the editing process of the podcast.

If you know nothing about audio editing software, a simple task can be intimidating. In that case, Alitu might be the way to go.

Choosing A Podcast Host

You need a place to host your audio files, and that place is called podcast hosting. Buzzsprout Podcast hosting is the place to start for beginners. I use them as my podcast host, and you will get a free $20 Amazon gift card if you choose to start with a paid plan.

Buzzsprout pricing plan starts at $12 /month and lets you upload 3 hrs of podcast episodes/Month. Feel free to check out my podcast hosting guide if you want to see other options as well.Once you sign up for podcast hosting services, they will ask you to put some basic info about your podcast, such as (name, description, categories, etc.).

Upload Your First Episode

If you use Buzzsprout podcast hosting, uploading a podcast episode on the platform is simple. Go to your Buzzsprout dashboard, click the upload a new episode button, and select your files. They will apply magic processing to your mp3 file to host on the platform.

After that, you must provide some basic information about the podcast episodes, such as episode title, season #, description, summary, publish date, and episode #. Finally, save your podcast episodes with all the details.

Podcast Distribution

I have a separate post dedicated to Uploading a podcast To iTunes or any other directory. For now, visit your Buzzsprout dashboard and click on the directories button. You will find a tab called Submit a podcast to Apple Podcasts. Click on that and follow the process.

After submitting the podcast to iTunes, it’s time to copy your RSS feed and submit it to other podcast directories. Once you upload a new podcast episode to your podcast hosting platform, they will automatically create a podcast RSS feed, and any directories listed in your podcast will also update with your new episode.

Podcast Promotion

You have followed all the processes of launching a brand-new podcast. Now, it’s time to promote your podcast online to get the listener to your show. You would love to use Wavve and the Headliner app to promote your show on social media platforms and create podcast audiograms. Check out my complete guide on podcast promotion to get advanced marketing tactics for your podcast.

Creating A Podcast Website

It would be best to have a WordPress blog along with the podcast so that you can send your visitors to a place where they can easily connect with you. Check out my how-to start a blog guide to get the exact process. In short, Starting a WordPress blog requires a domain(grab 1 form name.com) and WordPress hosting services to host your domain.

Bluehost is undoubtedly the best WordPress hosting option to start with, plus they offer to get a free domain for one year.

Getting a transcription service is an excellent way to share your podcast on the blog. My personal favorite transcription service is Rev – give them a try.