Your Cart is Empty
In today’s world, content is king on the internet. And, with technology at the tips of our fingers all day long, we have the ability to create content constantly, which is a great way to spread new information and ideas. While many of us are used to using social media to share our lives and experiences, podcasting is another form of media on the internet that can be a great source of information and entertainment. The barriers to entry for this type of media are low, meaning that basically anyone can start their own podcast–but that also means it’s much more difficult to stand out from all of the other thousands of podcasters.
However, if you’re using the right podcasting equipment and you take the time to create an enticing show with a specific market in mind, you can find success in this field. You don’t even need to drop a lot of money on fancy new equipment. You can record your podcast right from your iPhone. Here are some tips on creating your first podcast and using your iPhone to record.
People start their own podcasts for a variety of reasons. Some people are experts in a particular field or industry and want to share their knowledge with others. Entertainers and journalists often start their own podcasts as well to grow their audience and bring their form of entertainment–writing or reporting to a new media form. You may want to start your own podcast if you feel as though you have a particular knowledge of one subject that others could benefit from. A podcast doesn’t have to be focused on a niche topic, though this does make it a bit easier to attract a very specific audience. If you have a lot of connections, you could create an interview-style podcast where you discuss important topics with influential people.
Although many people start a podcast with the goal of making money, this is not a great reason to start your own show because it takes a lot of time and work to get to that point. In the beginning, you should have some other motivation behind your podcast venture. Then, over time, if you’re gaining a strong following, you can begin to consider how to attract advertisers and make money off your show.
Before you can begin any kind of show, you need to know what it’s about. If you have a niche special interest that you’d love to talk about in a podcast format, why not create a show around that. Even if you’re not going to cover niche topics, you should try to come up with some hook that makes your podcast different than the thousands of other podcasts. Hosting a podcast alone can also be difficult. Having a co-host or regular guest speakers is important as the show can be more of a back-and-forth discussion and less of a lecture, so talk to your friends and see if they have any niche podcast ideas as well.
Recording equipment is a key component to podcasting, obviously because you need to be able to record, edit and publish your content. If you’re not utilizing the right podcasting kits, you may end up with very poor sound quality, which can alienate a lot of listeners. When the audio is muffled or distant, people are not going to spend extra time trying to rewind and hear what each person on your podcast is saying. They will simply decide not to listen and move on to another podcast. Not only is poor sound quality difficult to understand, but it also makes your show look unprofessional and lowers your credibility. You can purchase actual in-studio podcasting microphones, wireless lapel microphones or simply use your iPhone to record, but you’ll definitely want to add an external mic to your mobile device.
Your podcast’s format is equally as important as your theme or niche. Your listeners want to know what to expect when they turn on your podcast. If your show runs differently every episode, your listeners will get confused and may not enjoy the format in episode 3 as much as they did in episode 2. Formatting refers to how the show is segmented. Many podcasts have different segments throughout the show. Some podcasts will end every episode with a “questions” section where they answer questions sent in by their listeners. You can replace this with another kind of segment to wrap up the podcast as well, but you should have some kind of structure. How does the podcast open? Do you have an interview segment? Consider how to give the show some more variety while also meeting your listeners’ expectations.
Do not go into your first podcast episode thinking that you can just wing it. You’ll realize just how quickly you can run out of things to say when you’re sitting in front of a microphone without any kind of plan about what to talk about. Of course, you can leave some room for ad lib and natural conversation that arises during a podcast, but you should take the time to write out most of what you’d like to say or ask during the show. This will help you plan how long the show will run time-wise, and it will ensure that you have enough entertaining things to say to fill the time.
Although we mentioned the importance of having a structured format for your podcast, it can be fun to add a little bit of versatility to your show once your listeners have become accustomed to the format. One great way to spice up your podcast is by inviting guests to be interviewed or to add their own insight into a given topic or discussion. You can either try to include a new guest in your show each episode as one of your segments or save your guest appearances for special episodes. Either way, you should give some thought to whom you would like to get on the show and what they would add. You can begin reaching out to people right away to see who may even be willing to come on the show. You should have some type of pitch prepared to explain your show and why this guest would be a great addition.
Perhaps the most important part of creating your podcast is your marketing. If you want to gain listeners, you’re going to need to promote your show and let people know that it’s out there. Once you’ve gained some listeners, you may attract more fans from word-of-mouth advertising, but in the beginning, you should market great social media pages for your podcast, share it on your own personal social media accounts and ask your friends and family to spread the word as well.
Although recording your own podcast is fairly easy, there are some techniques you should keep in mind. You can use different types of recording and editing programs to enhance the overall sound of your podcast and ensure that each speaker is easy to understand and background noise has been eliminated. For many new podcasters, using their iPhone is a convenient option because it’s a device that they already own and has the ability to record conversations. However, the iPhone is known for having a low-quality microphone. In order to keep the phone as slim and compact as it is, the microphone also needed to be small, which unfortunately means that we must sacrifice sound quality for phone design. But, there are a few ways to improve the sound on your phone.
With many of the recording apps available on the app store, you’ll also get access to some royalty-free music that you can use in your podcast free of charge. Though this may not be something you’ve yet considered, adding music as a transition, opener or closing is important and makes your show sound professional. These recording apps also allow you to manually control some of the sound settings on your phone. Although you’re still working within the limitations of your phone’s built-in mic, you can greatly improve the sound quality of your recordings with some of the apps available on today’s market. Many of these recording apps will also allow you to upload the content to your computer and edit the recordings to further enhance the quality.
When trying to improve your phone’s recording capability, purchasing an external iPhone microphone is the best way to go. External mics have been designed to eliminate background noise and focus on picking up the sound that is directly in front of them. You will also notice an obvious improvement in the crisp clarity of the audio, making it easier to pick up every word. For extra background noise reduction, you can invest in external mic covers to eliminate the sounds of wind or other weather-related disruptions.
Properly recording your show with the right podcasting equipment is essential to creating high-quality audio, but you also need to have a solid understanding of how to edit your sound as well. There are dozens of great apps and programs that exist to help you edit your podcast to the best of your ability. You can use these programs to cut out unwanted parts of the show and smoothly paste the recording back together. Editing your show is important to make sure that your transitions between segments make sense and further eliminate unwanted background sounds.
Made for the iPhone, this app is straightforward and easy-to-use. It has all the features that you want out of a recording app, including the ability to trim the recording, adjust the playback speed, export to other programs like DropBox and even convert to other formats. You’ll also have unlimited iCloud storage to keep your recordings on file. The app does cost money, but $3.99 is a cheap price to pay for your recording and editing equipment.
Another paid-for app, Voice Record Pro allows you to change the recording settings to save files in a variety of formats, including MPEG and WAVE amongst others. This is helpful if you plan on uploading your files to your computer and you need to use a specific format. You can also speed up or slow down your playback sound and alter the reverb, distortion and pitch. You can easily export any of your audio files to other programs like Google Drive, DropBox and Box Cloud.
This app is one of our favorites when it comes to recording podcasts, specifically because it allows you to trim and split your recorded audio as well as add music and other sounds. These extra features will help you to create smooth transitions between segments and add in a little more personality and fun to your show. Not only does Anchor allow you to record and edit your podcast, but it allows you to host the show through the app and publish it to whichever platform you choose.
If you’ve been considering starting your own podcast, Movo is here to help. You don’t need much equipment to get started. In fact, many people are recording their podcasts on iPhones. But, if you want your show to stand out from the rest and sound professional and credible, you’ll want to invest in a podcasting kit with everything you need–from microphones to recorders. If you’re going to try recording your podcast from your iPhone, you can also browse our collection of external mobile phone microphones to boost the sound quality without purchasing an entire podcasting kit. Once you’ve got your equipment up and running, do some brainstorming on how you want to run your show, and start recording your first few episodes! We recommend pre-recording at least three to five episodes before releasing them to keep yourself ahead of schedule.
Looking for a microphone for singing and recording vocals? Movo can help you learn about the best mic options so that you can get the best sound for your singing.
Dive into a detailed comparison tailored for smartphone videographers. Discover which mic type best suits your mobile filming needs and ensures crisp audio quality.
Unlock professional-quality iPhone interviews with Movo shotgun mics. Explore our guide on microphone types, advantages, and essential tips to elevate your interview recordings.
