When are you starting your podcast?

MonkeyPants Productions

I have a real love for podcasts. They are so adaptable, so varied and, in so many ways, so simple.

Of course, the definition of ‘simple’ is quite broad; what might seem simple to me can appear incredibly complicated to you - and vice versa.

However, when I speak to people about podcasting they can find the mere act of just getting started the hardest hurdle to overcome - and so never even get their first episode out.

So, I thought that I would write a blog about the top three barriers that people have mentioned to me, about why they haven’t started their podcast yet.

'I don’t have hundreds of pounds to spend on equipment'

People have got this huge misconception that podcasting means that you have a build a sound-proof studio somewhere and kit it out with the latest microphones, stands, lighting etc.

How about if I told you that you could equip yourself for as little as £100?

Like anything, you can easily throw money at it. If you wanted, you could buy a Neumann USM 69I mt microphone, a snip at £4,555. Good quality broadcasting is what I do, and even I wouldn’t spend that kind of money!

You can get a decent USB microphone for about £70. Headphones are no more than £30 - and the recording / editing program is completely free. So - that’s £100 and you can start getting your expertise, vision and knowledge out to a global audience of billions.

'Nobody is going to be interested in what I’ve got to say'

This is something I do hear an awful lot, but I’ve found that it all comes down to expectations. Are you saying that you don’t think that you’re as interesting as your favourite podcaster? The one that is in the news a lot, and has some of the world’s biggest names on their podcast?

Well, that’s an unfair comparison.

If you can string a sentence together, or read out something that you’ve written - you can be a podcaster.

Will you have listeners in the millions? Probably not - but that’s not the aim of your podcast.

A business podcast lives as part of your digital marketing strategy. It’s there to let people how good your business is / how much of an expert you are, so that they create a bond with you or your business - and become either clients, or cheerleaders.

No matter how niche your business is, there is an audience for what you’ve got to say. Listen, if there are several podcasts for the Foreign Corrupt Practises Act then you will find an audience for whatever you want to talk about, trust me.

'I don’t have time to spend on creating a weekly podcast'

As I said at the beginning, I have a real love for podcasts. One of the many reasons is their flexibility.

There is no governing body for podcasting. No OFCOM, telling you what you should say, how you should say it, and how often.

Before you even start your podcast - think about how much you can commit to it. Is it one day a month? Well, make it a monthly podcast then! You’ve got a couple of days every quarter that you can put aside to create content? Great! Record several episodes and then they can be published on a schedule that would mean that your audience isn’t waiting too long until the next couple of days you have free.

Time is ours to control, when it comes to our podcast.

Also - you might start with a weekly podcast but, after a couple of months, realise that that is a little too much and you might need to change it to fortnightly, or every three weeks - or even ad hoc.

All of that is fine. As long as you keep your audience informed when there’s a change, they’ll come along with you and remain loyal.

Of course, if you want to talk more about podcasting, I’m always up for a podcast chat.

I can’t wait to hear your first episode.