There are a lot of people out there with podcasts in 2018. There are even more people who want to start a podcast, but haven’t gotten around to it yet. If you are one of the latter group, you should know that saying “I’m thinking about starting a podcast” to your friends and family will definitely invite some follow-up questions.
Before you go trying to start a podcast, you owe it to yourself to set aside some time to write down answers to these 5 questions. Most of them are pretty simple, but having a prepared answer to them will go a long way towards making you seem professional to friends, family, and even strangers who are curious about your project.
This is usually the first question people ask when you tell them you want to start a podcast. It is a simple question, but answering well will make you seem like someone who has done all their homework, and knows what they are talking about.
So, what is your podcast about? Have a 2-3 sentence answer that you have memorized, and be ready for this question when you tell people you want to start a podcast. You could potentially earn or lose a lot of interested based on how you answer this simple question, so make sure you have a good answer before moving onto the next question.
You can also consider this as practice for your “elevator pitch” for when you are speaking to sponsors, guests, or other podcasters.
This is another simple question, but it is just as important as the first. Why? Because good names matter! You owe it to yourself to pick a name that creatively fits into your podcast’s category. A good, funny name can get a lot of attention for your podcast, and if it can also make a great story to tell people, that’s even better.
I recommend that you take some serious time to decide on a name, and not skip this step just because you are in the planning period of starting a podcast. When people know the name of your podcast, they know what name to eventually start looking for when you actually start recording!
To anyone who is not aware: there is a secret message encoded in this question. When people ask you what made you decide to start a podcast, they are really asking if you’ve got something interesting to say. Most people are really asking “why should I care about your podcast? Do you have something interesting or unique to say, or do you just want people to listen to you”?
Maybe you’ve been to Cuba so many times that you could map out the entire island on a napkin. Maybe you’ve watched so many episodes of Star Trek that you can recite them in your sleep. Maybe there’s something unique and interesting about your job that no one around you realizes. Either way, no matter who you are, you have SOMETHING to share.
Congratulations. If you’ve gotten this far, it means that whoever is talking to you is at least taking your plan to start a podcast seriously. The bad news is that now they are feeling threatened by you, most likely because you have awakened their own latent desire to start a podcast, or some other creative enterprise that they have been putting off.
You can answer honestly, for the most part; there’s no need to inflate the truth for strangers or family members that are feeling threatened. Be honest about what you’re doing, but don’t feign ignorance for the sake of a smooth conversation. You’re allowed to sound like you know what you’re doing!
Don’t be surprised by this question, because you might get it more often than you think. Whether or not the person asking you this question is trying to genuinely add value to your work or just ride your coattails is the subject of a different discussion, but the important thing is to have a response prepared. Whether you say yes or no, don’t beat around the bush because it makes you look indecisive. You don’t need to be rude, but you can straightforward if you need to.
And look at it this way: if this person sees the obvious value in your idea to start a podcast, it’s likely that other people will too!
Once you’ve passed the planning phase and are ready to finally start creating, why not make the most of the free features and benefits that TalkShoe has to offer? Record an episode today, and see what everyone’s talking about!
What does it take to be the best? At TalkShoe, we’ve come to believe that to be the best podcast hosting service, you need to do more than have a free, easy-to-use podcast hosting platform; you need to do the most to help your customers get the most out their time.
Obviously, we’re very proud of our service and how easy it is to create high-quality, shareable content, but this article is about the things that TalkShoe does to show our users that we care.
It is an unfortunate truth in the 21st century that everyone has had to deal with bad customer service at one time or another. At TalkShoe, we’ve taken a lot of steps to ensure that the trend is not repeated.
TalkShoe’s customer care staff are podcast enthusiasts first, and TalkShoe representatives second. They are people that you can truly ask about the culture of podcasting, and for their unique perspective.
If there are any questions that you’ve ever thought about asking, whether they are related to TalkShoe or just podcasting in general, consider dropping our team a line at Support@TalkShoe.com
Emailing is the preferred option for most busy professionals because they can multitask and still get their question answered, but let’s say that’s not what’s best for you.
If you are the kind of person who likes searching for their own answers, you can peruse TalkShoe’s support page and learn more about TalkShoe on your own. If you’re more interested in the subject of podcasting and the best practices for making your own content, TalkShoe’s blog has a lot of great, personalized information for how to start podcasting the right way.
And finally, if none of those contact methods work you, there is always TalkShoe Live: a monthly online webinar that teaches you about the ins and outs of TalkShoe’s podcast hosting and recording platform. You can join this webinar live every second Wednesday of the month at 2PM EST, or just listen to the recording later.
If you haven’t guessed it by now, I’ll just let you in on a secret. TalkShoe really cares about its customers, which is why we go the extra mile to provide you with things that you want, or that we think you could benefit from.
We’re absolutely delighted that so many people are being empowered to create podcasts of their own, and enjoy our free service. If you’ve enjoyed content like this blog, and feel ready to record an episode today and see what everyone’s talking about, then we’ll consider our job a success.
With Talkshoe, it’s easy to create as many different podcasts as you want, discover your niche, or just have fun doing whatever you want. But if you’re the kind of person that would rather start things off the right way and learn as you go, this article is for you.
If you want to learn how to set up a podcast the right way, the first place you need to start with a pen and paper, away from your computer. It may seem strange, but starting at the absolute beginning will ensure that you aren’t backtracking a few weeks or months down the line. So take a moment to grab a notepad, clear some time during the day, and keep reading.
This step is a simple but important one. What will your podcast be about? What topics will it cover? Will it have guests? Why will it be something worth listening to? This step is mostly just about thinking about the nitty-gritty things that you haven’t thought about yet. Why? Because that is what separates the good podcasts from the great ones.
Having a rough plan is better than having no plan at all. Now that you have thought about what your podcast will be about, it’s time to create a rough roadmap for the future. Think about what you want your podcast to look like in a month, and 6 months, and a year. Will you host a special episode during Christmas, or talk about school in September? Famous podcasts often have a content calendar that spans several months into the future, and you should try to do the same.
As you continue with your podcasts you will learn new things, so don’t be afraid of changing your plan if you think of a better idea. Plans can always change depending on any new information you get, but the important thing is to always have a plan.
Don’t feel discouraged if, after everything you’ve done, your podcast is rejected from a top directory like iTunes. You’ve got a good idea and a roadmap for the future, so what you need to do now is fine tune. Get a couple of podcasts under your belt, ask a guest to join you from time to time, and learn the ins and outs of the actual craft of podcasting. Learning how to set up a podcast takes time.
There will inevitably be times where you don’t know what to do, and that is okay! People don’t usually learn best inside a vacuum, so feel free to reach out to TalkShoe Support if you have any question or feedback about our service. You can also reach out to other, more experienced podcasters, such as the ones on TalkShoe’s directory. You’ll find that whether it is in person at a podcaster meetup, or just online, podcasters are a very helpful and supportive community.
The life of a podcaster is a winding one. There is no one way to success, and no one can do the job for you. The best podcasters out there today have a production schedule that they swear by, no matter what their actual publishing frequency is. So whatever your schedule looks like, make sure you stick by it no matter what.
So go grab that notepad, and when you think you’re ready to make the most of the new features and benefits that TalkShoe has to offer, record an episode today and see what everyone’s talking about.
Let’s face it: there are a lot of online voice recorders out there. As an amateur podcast recorder, or someone who is looking to brush up on new technology, it can be difficult to find the right recorder for you. A quick Google search of the term “online voice recorder” receives about 85,000,000 hits, which isn’t exactly a helpful place to start. So instead, if you’re looking for a voice recorder to record podcasts so that you can upload them later, why not start here first?
Why go far, right? I’m sure we’ve all used our voice recorder from time to time, and I’ll admit it’s great in a pinch, but stock smartphone microphones don’t exactly scream ‘quality’. The voice recorder on your phone can be great to leave yourself notes, or to hold a practice podcast with a guest that may be unsure about podcasting. It may also pay off to buy a decent voice recorder with a quarter inch jack that fits into your phone to take your phone recordings up a notch. But on the whole, smartphone voice recorders leave a lot to be desired, and I strongly discourage you from publishing any recordings you create on your phone.
4) SpeakPipeSpeakpipe.com has a quick and easy online voice recorder that you can access from any browser on any device, making it a great alternative if you can’t use your smartphone’s recorder for some reason. It works on all Android and iOS devices, and isn’t too heavy on data if you aren’t connected to WiFi.
It isn’t high definition by any means, so I don’t suggest uploading Speakpipe podcast recordings to your TalkShoe account, but it’s still a good backup online voice recorder if you don’t have a smartphone.
If you were born before the year 2000, you probably remember Vocaroo as the MP3 recording website that people used to share poems, stories, and other creative recordings before anyone knew what podcasting was. Since then, podcast hosting has far eclipsed the need for MP3 hosting, so Vocaroo doesn’t get the love it used to (it also hasn’t changed its look in over 10 years). Nevertheless, if you are looking for a trustworthy MP3 recording and hosting that your Dad might remember, Vocaroo is a perfect choice.
Again, offering people a Vocaroo link isn’t professional by any stretch of the imagination, so consider this an option for informal recordings, like show notes that you might send to someone before or after a podcast for quick online reference that doesn’t require an actual download.
The free version of Skype will allow you to record voice between you and another participant with fair quality, but only after you have both downloaded and installed the software, created and logged into your account, and have navigated their tricky UI. I personally have a Skype account that I have been using about once every two years on average, and every time I log on I have to spend a few minutes getting my head around the changes to their interface, and how to actually make a call.
If you are going to upload your podcasts on the simplest and easiest high quality podcast hosting service out there, why not just record them there as well? TalkShoe’s online podcast recorder is similar to Skype’s, except that it is so simple and easy to understand that your podcast guests will never have trouble joining your virtual studio, turning on their video, using the integrated text chat, or sharing online documents to help your discussion.
TalkShoe also has loads of other features that help create the best podcasting environment possible, and their team has gone to great lengths to make both the uploading and recording process streamlined for podcasts.
If you haven’t already, why not record an episode today, and see what everyone’s talking about?
For the full list of what’s changed in the new and improved TalkShoe, see this support article.
Ah, I remember it like it was yesterday.
It’s the early 2000s and people are all still getting over the fact that the Y2K bug didn’t reset all of the world’s computers (yes, people did actually believe this). A quick Google search will yield a few hits on the term ‘podcasting’, but it hasn’t really caught on yet. Walkman’s are going the way of the dinosaur and the first wave of trendy iPod commercials have just hit the airwaves in style.
Podcasting exists, but it isn’t as big as radio. In 2005, iTunes introduced native support for podcasts, but no one was really thinking about them, especially since the smartphone explosion hadn’t happened yet. The Oxford American dictionary also made ‘podcast’ a word that same year.
In 2010, there were a few big podcasting directories on the scene, and smartphones allowed people to access podcasts on their phones. Podcast recording began to hit the scene! This was a great time to get into podcasting, but it was still considered a “niche” audience by most.
It hasn’t been long since the birth of podcasting, but it has come a long, long way. Now there are many podcasting directories out there that allow podcast recording for the masses. iTunes has grown to become the king of podcast directories, and podcasting has become a household term.
Being a professional podcaster is still difficult, but it is more possible now than ever before. Plus, you don’t have to turn to a dictionary to tell people what podcasting is anymore. There are currently so many different podcasts on so many different topics that saying that you “like podcasting” is as vague as saying that you “enjoy television”.
I’m sure that a lot of podcasters entertain the notion that they should have started earlier, when podcasting wasn’t as well-known. Well, TalkShoe has been around since 2004, so trust us when we say that now is the perfect time to get podcasting.
As you’ve just learned, there are fewer technological barriers than ever to starting your own podcast, and podcasting itself has been social normalized enough that people see it as a legitimate profession.
If any part of you has entertained the idea of starting a podcast of your own, I really think that you should give it a try today. TalkShoe is free for all users and has a thriving community of like-minded people. TalkShoe empowers anyone with a desire to be heard to create their very own podcast, and be listed on TalkShoe’s public directory for the world to hear.
“The best time to start was yesterday. The second-best time to start is today”, right?
Dealing with echo on a live podcast interview can be incredibly annoying. What’s worse, sometimes you may not have the time to troubleshoot the echo because you are busy with your podcast guest. Luckily for you, although echo can be an extremely annoying phenomenon, it is almost always an easy fix.
After reading this quick article, you will have everything you need to know to ensure that your podcast interview is never brought to a halt by echo ever again.
The first thing that you need to understand about echo is how it is caused. What we call “echo” on audio technology occurs when someone’s speakers are too close to their microphone. Sound from their speakers is picked up by their microphone, which is then played through the speakers again, creating an infinite feedback loop of sound.
Echo on podcast interviews is usually caused by someone not using headphones to prevent sound leaking, which is usually the case if they are joining your podcast over a speakerphone like it was a conference call.
Aside from creating echo, a podcast interview on speakerphone also sounds washed-out and unprofessional, which is another reason why you should avoid it.
The next thing you should know about echo is that it is usually caused by the person who can’t hear it. If you are on a large podcast interview with several guests, try asking who CAN’T hear the echo, and you’ve more than likely found the source of it.
This can sometimes be hard to do if your guest doesn’t believe you, and is unfamiliar with technology. I’ve had people become legitimately offended when they were told that they are causing problems with the recording. If this happens to you, remember to be polite and proceed with care. And if they ask for proof? Well, just keep reading.
TalkShoe gives you a simple and easy way to prove just who is causing the echo on your podcast interview. The next time you are conducting a live recording with more than one guest, simply use your host controls to mute your entire room, which can be easily done from your virtual studio. Then, unmute your guests one by one, waiting to see at which point the echo returns.
Doing this will easily prove to you and everyone else in your podcast interview precisely who is generating the echo. You can then instruct the person in question to use headphones, move their mic away from the speakers, or turn down their speaker volume.
Part of the reason why podcast interview echo is so easy to troubleshoot on TalkShoe is because the makers of TalkShoe really tried to create a platform that has everything a podcaster would need, all in one place.
If you haven’t already, why not make the most of the new features and benefits that TalkShoe has to offer? Record an episode today, and see what everyone’s talking about!
Podcast hosting isn’t the taboo word that it used to be. Thanks to TalkShoe, free podcast hosting is easier than it’s ever been, even if you have never created a podcast before
If you’re someone that has always dreamed of having your own podcast, or if you’re just interested in dipping your toe in the podcasting world, you’ve come to the right place. Creating and hosting your podcast for free on TalkShoe’s directory is so easy that you could potentially do it in the time it takes to read this article.
Here’s what we’re going to be going over:
You already know enough for this step. Since you’re already on the TalkShoe website, all you have to do is click on the Sign Up Free button at the top of the screen. After clicking this button, you will be taken to a page where you can enter your email address, name, username, and password. When you have entered all of this information and agreed to the terms and conditions, click Create Account to complete the signup process.
Make sure you take some time on this step. You want your podcast to sound creative and unique, but people who find your show should also be able to tell what it is about by looking at your name and description. TalkShoe allows your name and description to be found by search engines like Google, so you can search optimize your description with keywords that your ideal audience would search for.
For your thumbnail image, consider getting a designer to create the image for you if you can’t do it yourself. Creating an image is simple enough that anyone can do it, but take care that your image doesn’t look unprofessional.
Finally, make sure to set your show’s status to unlisted until you are absolutely ready to go public.
Time to get recording! With TalkShoe’s easy-to-use software, you can start a recording a podcast right away, schedule one for later and invite any desired guests to your show, or upload an audio file directly. No matter what you choose to do, be sure to familiarize yourself with podcasting, talking to guests, planning conversation topics, and all the other soft skills that only come with practice.
Once you feel that you have got your method worked out, it’s time to take off your training wheels. Are you ready?
This is the moment you’ve been waiting forever since you started reading this article, right? Once you’re ready to get your show on the airwaves, navigate to your show’s page and click on the square icon that looks like three dots in a line. It’s the last button on the right, beside the New Episode button. Click Edit from the options, and change your show’s status to public.
Ta-da! Now your show is searchable under TalkShoe’s directory. Take a look for yourself if you don’t believe me! Now that you are taking advantage of TalkShoe’s free podcast hosting, who knows who else will find your podcast.
This part may sound easy, but it can sometimes feel like it is the most difficult. The hardest part of podcasting is keeping to your schedule. Sure, three podcasts a week sounds like an excellent idea until there’s a long weekend, illness, or even just a busy week. One of the golden rules of podcasting is that if you can’t commit to a schedule for at least 6 months, you shouldn’t start at all. After all, lots of famous podcast produce just one new episode a week. The next one could be yours!
Well, what are you still waiting for? Now you’ve got everything you need to start your podcast today. If you’re ready to take advantage of TalkShoe’s free podcast hosting, record an episode today, and see what everyone’s talking about.
Here at TalkShoe, we love to talk podcasting with other passionate podcasters. Last Wednesday, we took some of the TalkShoe crew out to The Pacific Junction Hotel in the heart of downtown Toronto to do just that!
If you made it out to this event, thanks for stopping by and talking about podcasting! And if you didn’t make it, be sure to check out our highlight reel to see what you missed.
To kick off the night we invited expert podcaster and TalkShoe user Todd Shapiro from SiriusXM (@iamToddyTickles) to do a live podcast from the podcast studio at Pacific Junction Hotel. Podcast meetup guests got to witness a podcast star in action as they mixed and mingled around the venue with some complimentary drink tickets.
Next, veteran podcasters Dearbhla Trainor (@iamderv), Sammy Younan (@mypalsammy), and Karim Kanji (@karimkanji) hosted a discussion about how get monetize your podcast, and actually get paid as a podcaster. It was a definite must for anyone looking to turn podcasting into their job, and our guests really seemed to love it.
If you missed this event, don’t worry! TalkShoe has much more planned for the future, and we would love to have you join us. You can check out the social posts for the event under the hashtag #PodcastTO, and follow TalkShoe on Twitter or on Instagram to keep up-to-date on the latest events!
While you’re at it, why not take your podcasting to the next level, and see for yourself the features and benefits that TalkShoe has to offer? Create a free account today, and see what everyone’s talking about!
With TalkShoe, it’s now easier than ever to create a free account and get started recording your own podcast, but we hope that you won’t stop there. While it can be easy to just start pressing record, we suggest investing more time and thought into your podcasts, even if you have only a couple of hours a week.By taking on some of the responsibilities of a podcast producer, you could see the quality of your podcasts drastically improve.
So, what is a podcast producer? Basically, it is someone who is in charge of the planning, administration, and technical part of podcasting in a studio environment so that the host can just focus on recording. By adding elements of this role to yours, your podcasts will grow in their quality and popularity --and hey, you might have some fun as well.
The first reason to start being your own podcast producer is because it allows you to be your own boss. Sure, you can already decide when you want to record, but thinking like a producer can help you decide things like the overall creative direction of your podcast, or what guests you will have to better facilitate your discussion.
When you are thinking like a podcast producer, you are thinking ahead. While this may sound like extra work with no reward, planning in advance actually allows you to have more fun and create better podcasts.
When your questions are prepared in advance, you can focus on just having a good conversation. When you have booked your guests in advance, you can spend more time coming up with quality content. When you know what your next few podcasts will be about, you won’t be fumbling for topics the night before. Podcast producers do a lot, so it helps to incorporate some of their jobs into yours as a podcast creator.
Speaking of jobs, podcast producers also learn several hard and soft skills that can be beneficial to starting a career in any broadcast or even project management-related role. Even if becoming a professional podcast is not your goal, you can benefit from the experience that comes with not just creating podcasts when you feel like it, but actually producing content under a set schedule and taking time to produce good work.
Some of the hard skills that you might learn include video and audio editing, script writing, social media marketing, public speaking, and a familiarity with recording equipment. In terms of soft skills, adding a layer of podcast production to your shows will teach you time management, scheduling, networking, campaign brainstorming and execution, and much more.
In a world where everyone listens to podcasts, most employers and recruiters will be able to appreciate the hard work and attention to detail that comes with producing. Even people who aren’t intimately familiar with podcasts will know that creating good work is not always easy. Having any amount of experience as a self-starting podcast producer on TalkShoe is sure to raise a few eyebrows on your resume.
Sure, breaking into podcast production is a lot of work, and a job on its own, but that’s no reason at all to avoid it. Thanks to the newly updated Talkshoe, you can take on a lot of task that would normally be handled by a podcast producer while only spending a fraction of the time and energy it would take on another platform.
Scheduling: Talkshoe knows that scheduling can easily become the most complicated part of an amateur podcaster’s job. That’s why they’ve created a completely integrated way to send out podcast episode invitations to your guests and keep track of scheduled episodes right from your show page.
Availability: Not every guest can meet you in person. That’s why TalkShoe gives both you and your guests the ability to connect on their preferred device, whether it is a phone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer. Guests calling over the phone also have the freedom to choose the best dial-in number for their location.
Recording: Sure, expensive recording gear is great, but not having it should never stop you from creating a great podcast. TalkShoe takes away some of the difficulty surrounding recording for those who may not be great at the technical side of podcasting. Podcasts can be uploaded or recorded with a single click right from your show page, so all you really need is a microphone to get started podcasting right away.
If you’re ready to supercharge your podcasts, and make the most of the new features and benefits that TalkShoe has to offer, why not record an episode today, and see what everyone’s talking about!
For the full list of what’s changed in the new and improved TalkShoe, see this support article.
This is by far the most exciting episode of our “long and illustrious” podcast series history! Episode 2 of iotum Live features a fantastic interview with our longtime friend and TalkShoe user Todd Shapiro of SiriusXM. Todd stopped by our office and talked about what's next for his podcast series, the do’s and don'ts of podcasting and his love for TalkShoe. This interview is the first of our podcaster interview series which will be featured on the 15th of every month on our iotum Live podcast. Also be sure to catch the Todd Shapiro Show weekdays from 4:00 to 6:00 PM Eastern time on SiriusXM channel 168 and on TalkShoe.
Anyone can record a podcast and it doesn't get easier than with TalkShoe.com. We offer free hosting and storage, live streaming on the platform and to YouTube, and new global call-in capabilities! Our state-of-the-art tools will help take your podcast to the next level and get you noticed online in no time. Why not record an episode today, and see what everyone’s talking about?
Iotum Live is a new podcast by unveiled by iotum, the parent company of FreeConference, Callbridge and TalkShoe. Iotum live will have monthly episodes exploring topics of podcasting, communication and all of the different iotum platforms and corresponding questions concerning iotum’s services.
