Are you looking to produce your own podcast? We have had the fortunate opportunity of working with many people and companies on their podcasts. With this experience, we wanted to share some of our top tips for creating your own professional podcast.
Podcasts (Personal on Demand Broadcasts) have become a big part of our daily lives. As of 2020, around 15 million people tuned in to their favourite podcast. It is predicted that by 2024 this will increase further to 24 million.
There are a variety of ways to create your own podcast, be this from home, virtually or in a studio. We hope that our top tips for a pro podcast will help you bring your podcast to life.
Tip #1: Equip for High-Quality Audio
One thing you find in common with most professional podcasts is that the sound quality is immaculate. There are a variety of things that come into play when making your audio however it first starts off with your equipment.
Making sure you have the right studio recording equipment for high quality audio is your first step. This doesn’t have to be the latest equipment or the most expensive but making sure you use equipment that will get the best from your vocal recording is vital.
We recommend looking at high-quality audio mics as a start such as dynamic or condenser mics. Depending on what you want to record and who you want to use them with would be the deciding factor on which one you use.
If you don’t have the money to purchase one yourself, then look to either hiring a mic or alternatively look for a podcast studio where you can record.
Another piece of vital equipment is headphones. Make sure both you and any guests you have, are paired with a good quality pair of headphones. This will make it easier to focus on the audio both while recording and when you come to edit.
Here at Chatterbox, we have the equipment ready for any podcast recording.
Tip #2: Location, Location, Location
Where you are recording also plays a big factor in the quality of your podcast.
Ultimately using a recording studio will guarantee your audio sounds crisp and professional, however, if this isn’t an option then you can always record from home.
When recording from home, if you live near a busy road or over a flight path, then chances are that noise will leak into your audio. A good way to avoid this is to record in a small space, such as a wardrobe or staircase and pad out the area using a duvet.
If you are recording an interview via the internet, then you want to make sure that your connection is optimized and stable to avoid your guest cutting out.
Tip #3: Your Podcast Layout
Deciding the layout of your podcast is an important step that should be decided before you record. When you do come to record you don’t necessarily have to record in the layout order of your podcast.
A good example of a podcast format is to start with your intro/episode teaser. This is where you give a brief snippet of what the episode topic is or contains. Next you may want to have your opening music followed by a welcome segment.
Following on you can then start your discussion or your interview with a guest. Before you end your episode, you may want to include a call to action if you are trying to promote something, be this a product, service or a guest’s book. Finally, you will want to end your podcast followed by your outro music.
This doesn’t have to be the format, but it gives a good base to follow.
Tip #4: Just Breathe
When you come to record your Podcast, be this at home or in a studio, the main thing to remember is to control your breathing when you record. Breath control will help avoid heavily editing your podcast.
Take your time when you record as speeding up in your recording session can make your breathing heavy.
Use breath control with the correct mic techniques and your breathing won’t become an issue later down the line.
A good mic technique is to tilt the mic backwards so that your breath doesn’t hit the diaphragm.
Tip #5: Playback
Once you have finished recording it’s important to playback your audio. Through your playback, you can listen out for anything that needs editing, removing or merging.
It’s important to take notes during this process, making a note of the timestamp, section and segment that you want to edit.
This will make it easier when you come to edit your audio as you will know exactly where to make your amends.
Tip #6: It’s All in the Edit
Our last, but certainly not least tip, is to relax during your podcast. The main thing that makes a podcast is the final edit. Mistakes made in the recording can be removed or edited to work better, so don’t panic if something doesn’t quite go right.
A podcast is usually recorded and not live. If you don’t feel like you quite got the right take with your audio, you can do it again in your session. The beauty of recording is that it can be edited for the final finish.
We hope these top tips help you with your podcast. If you are just starting out on your podcast journey then read our guide here.
If you are looking for assistance with your podcast, be it hiring one of our studios or editing your audio, we can give you a hand.
If you are interested in our podcast services, get in touch on +44 (0) 203 744 3558 or email our friendly team at info@chatterboxvoices.co.uk.
