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Let's Start a Podcast! - A Step-By-Step Guide to Launching Your Show On Any Budget
How to Design a Podcast: Format, Structure & Strategy for Starting Strong
00:25:11
You’ve decided to start a podcast. Now comes the part most people rush… …and regret later. Designing your show. In this episode of Let’s Start a Podcast, we dive into one of the most overlooked, and most critical, stages of building a show that...
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So you decided to podcast High five. Now comes a part where you build something people can connect with, binge, and come back to again and again. We're getting into the nitty of it now. We're starting to just barely get to the outer edges of creating your podcast. The first thing we need to do is we need to design your show. Designing your show is about much more than just picking a name and hitting record. It's about crafting an experience, a vibe, a format, a brand that aligns with you and resonates with them, your audience. So your first step is choosing your format. There's no one size fits all here. The format you choose should match your strengths, your availability, and your audience's attention span. Let's break that down in the most common types. Number one, an interview show. This is where you bring on guests and you share stories. You share insights or expertise. You interview them. Generally, you bring in an expert on a particular topic. The pros to that, well, it's super easy to generate content because you don't have to come up with it. Your guest already has it and they're bringing it with them. You learn from others. I can't tell you the amount of knowledge that I have gotten through the course of doing the interviews on our show. And it's great for networking and audience growth because as you connect with more and more guests, they become part of your network and they help you build the audience because they share hopefully, their interview on your show to their network and that will build your audience. Now, the cons to an interview show. Well, scheduling is no joke. It can be a real pain. There are some tools that we can go over to help you with that, but. But it does take some doing. It's also easy to become just another interview show out there, unless you niche down or bring a unique twist to your show. Again, more on that a little bit later on. The interview show format is best for show for hosts that are curious, who love conversations and can pull compelling stories out of people. If you guys are just jammering around and going around and, hey, how's your day been? That kind of stuff, you're gonna find you're losing audience really quickly. You need to learn the skill of interviewing and making it interesting for people who are listening. Because, hey, no one cares so much about what your coffee is doing in your stomach right now, but you, literally no one cares but you. So keep that in mind. The second type of show that there are out there, the solo show, you are the star of the show. You deliver insights you deliver advice, you share stories or commentary, but you're alone. The pros is, well, heck, it's flexible, it's fast to produce. You just turn on your mic and you start talking. You hit record. Sorry, you gotta make sure you hit record. But you start talking and just record your thoughts and you put that into the world. It also builds trust and authority quickly because if you're giving advice and you are the expert, you are the coach, you are the guide, and people really respond to that. It's also a lot easier to batch and schedule because it's only your calendar you got to take into consideration. So you can sit and record 5, 10 episode in one shot if you wanted to and have the time without having to. Hey, honey, can we please just do one more show? It's just you and you alone and you are the master of your own calendar. Now, the cons to a solo show. Well, this requires structure to avoid rambling. Can't tell you how many people have opted for a solo show. And they maybe say the same thing three or four times and just rambling. And there's no concrete message that we are getting to. And there's no faster way to lose people than to do that. Well, there are some faster ways and we'll get into that a few. But rambling is really not a good experience for the audience. And then it can also be pretty lonely or awkward at first. If you're not used to talking in front of a microphone or looking into a camera, that can be a little daunting. So again, happy to help you with that. This is the format you prefer to go, but you need to be aware of that comp. This format is definitely best for thought leaders, for educators, storytellers, or people with a strong point of view. If you don't feel like you fit into any one of those, then maybe another format is the best option for you. The third format that I've seen out there is the co hosted show. That's actually the show, the format that we have on our show, the skeptic metaphysicians, that's where two or more people have a regular back and forth on each episode. The pros to that, well, if you have the right co host, you can build on that natural chemistry that you have, right? It's like built in entertainment. Karen and I, because we've been married for so many years, have a rapport that we really feel comfortable with. And that rapport, that intuitive back and forth between us, seems to be something that people enjoy. And so we take Advantage of that. Another pro is assured workload and promotion. This can be a double edged sword because if one doesn't pick up the slack and one of them is actually doing all the work, that could be a bone of contention. But if in a best case scenario, if there's two or more hosts, you can share the workload, you don't have to do it all on yourself. In the best case scenario, don't ask me how it works on my show. Another pro is heck, there is a lot less pressure to carry the show on your own. And boy is that a godsend for me. When I first started the show it was just me doing the interviews and so I felt like I had to carry the show. And what I mean by that is that I had to make sure I had the question ready to go for the next when the guest finished speaking. Answering my previous question, I had to be ready either with a response or a follow up question, or the question that takes us in a different direction. But I had to be the one that carries the conversation. If the guest is not as attuned to the vibe that we're having. And believe me, it happens more than you think when you have a co host, the other person does half the work in the conversation. I liken it to like a three way conversation where sometimes when you're one on one with someone and the person isn't a really good conversationalist, it can be a little rough. But if you have three people, well, sometimes you can take a backseat and just listen to the conversation. And every once in a while you put in your two sets, but it's not all on you. This is kind of like what a co hosted show is about. Now we gotta definitely talk about the cons, because there are some cons. It's more complicated in scheduling now you have to schedule not just with a guest, but also with a co host. And even if you don't have guests, you still have a co host whose calendar you have to contend with, not just your own anymore. Something to keep in mind, there's also a big risk of talking over each other or veering off topic, especially if you have more than two hosts. If you have a multitude of hosts, talking over each other is a very easy thing to have happen and that's not a good experience for the audience. There's a lot of things that turn people off and one of them is when they can't understand what's happening. If they can't understand what's happening, then there's no point them Being there. So that's one of the cons. You have to make sure that you know how to talk without walking over each other. And then sometimes you go off on these tangents because you have this relationship. Again, I might care about the coffee that she's drinking, what it's doing to her stomach, but no one else does. However, because we're a married couple, I'm kind of vested interest in her digestive health. You may not really care that much and it's easy to fall into that trap sometimes, so keep that in mind. Now, the co hosted show is probably best for duos with strong chemistry and clear roles like Karen and I. I do all the research and get everything prepped and Karen just shows up. But we do that on purpose because then she represents the audience perspective. Whereas I might be a little too close to the topic because I've done research this way. It gives a lot of really cool questions I never would have thought of because oh yeah, the audience doesn't know this. She is the audience, so she doesn't know it. So she asks the questions. But the chemistry is really good between us and that's what I recommend the most for this type of show. If you have a co hosted show and there is no chemistry between the hosts, maybe it's time to find another format. The other format that I've seen done is a little bit more advanced, so keep that in mind. It's the narrative or the documentary style. Now these are really cool. These shows are really cool. They're the ones that you hear all the time from companies like Wondery or the New York Times. It's the pre written and produced storytelling, right? It often comes with music and sound design and research. And a lot of times these shows will have big teams behind them and things like that. The pros to this format, super immersive, unbelievably bingeable. If you heard about things like Serial that started it all really, or the telepathy tapes or something like that, where one ends and you can't wait to start listening to the next one. That's kind of what this narrative style is all about. Another pro, it can be repurposed really easy into books and articles and films and all kinds of stuff which only extends the life of that show. The cons, as you can probably already tell, it's super time and labor intensive and you really need a higher production skill. If you don't have that the the time to do it this way. If you don't have the skills to do it to Craft a story or edit the audio with the music and that kind of stuff. It's. It does tend to fall flat. So something to keep in mind. This is probably, this format is probably best for journalists or creatives that are already in the space or brands are looking to create a cinematic experience. Still happy to help you with this if this is a format you prefer to go in, but just know it's going to take more effort on your part. I just want to mention one final format that I've seen. It's basically a hybrid show. It's a mix of all the above that's kind of closer to what our show is now. I think about it. It's a mix of interviews one week, solo insights next week. Sometimes we'll do some narrative stuff, but for the most part it is co hosted. But we don't just do interviews. Although we're super interview heavy, we do different things every week and that keeps the things fresh. The pros, obviously, flexibility. And like I mentioned, it keeps things fresh. But if she's not available any given time, I can just do a solo episode or vice versa. It also appeals to a variety of listeners. Some people love the interview shows and that's really what they're there for. Others, well, they're there for the storytelling, they're there for the advice that you're giving, not for the interview. They want to hear from you, not from your guests. So it does appeal to that audience that likes that variety. The cons, however, there's a big risk of confusing your audience if you don't have a consistent structure. Then people who tune in because of your interview episodes might be turned off when they don't see an interview. Rather, they hear you sprouting off about the coffee in your stomach. And those that tune in because they like hearing how to regulate the issues with your stomach after you drink coffee may not be interested in hearing what some other person thinks about how the coffee beans are ground. You know, I don't know, I'm just trying to give you an idea. So sometimes you run that risk of alienating the audience a little bit. So you have to keep that in mind. So who is this best for me? It's best for hosts that are bored easily or that want to experiment. I get really bored really easily and any one format tends to be really boring for me. So I like to experiment if that's you. Remember, this is not about building a massive audience right away. This is about finding your tribe and your tribe is going to really enjoy the experimentation, the learning the figuring it out with you. And if that's what really speaks to you, that's what you need to go with. Go with whatever speaks to you, not what you think you are going to want to give your audience because that is ultimately the kiss of death. Funny. Now that we have figured out the format of your show, we need to define your structure. Whether you are solo or co hosted, guest based or narrative, your episode structure is really important. Think of it like a restaurant menu. You don't want your audience wondering what it is they're going to get. So here's a typical episode blueprint that I recommend you can absolutely modify to fit your style. This is just what has worked for me, to be honest, probably because I come from the television world and this is the television format. But it gives people an idea of what to expect and our audience particularly likes that. The first thing we do is a cold open like Karen and I, you know, probably about 30 seconds. We do a little banter before we intro the topic. We tease the topic of the episode, but we don't go too in depth on it. It's like a, hey, stick around because you don't want to miss this, right? This is where you're going to grab them. This is your hook. You can use a teaser, you can bring in a quote from the guest, edit it into the beginning, or you can create just a bold statement that make people go, huh? This is where you want to try to hook someone into staying around. The accepted wisdom these days of a podcast is if you can't grab someone within the first seven seconds, then there's a chance that someone might just say, eh, I'll go to the next episode. So first thing you want to do is make sure that you entice someone to stay to put that phone back in their pocket. Because once that phone's back in their pocket, it's going to take an effort for them to take it out of their pocket to skip you and go to the next show. So they'll give you seven seconds before they put that phone back in their pocket. So that is what you have to go with. The first seven seconds are critical. So grab them with humor, with something bold, something controversial, something that's making them go, I gotta listen to this. And then you've got them. From there we go directly into the, what we call the intro of the show. That is a branded welcome message, right? It sets the tone, it says the show name and tells the people what to expect week in and week out. When they tune into the show, for us, it's an edited piece with B roll and music and stuff. It doesn't have to be, it could just be a pre recorded thing from you saying, hi, I'm Will and this is Karen and we are here. This show is about this and it's about that and you're going to learn about this. So tune in every week when we talk about blah blah, blah blah, whatever you want to do. But just make sure that you name the show so people understand. Yep, I'm in the right place. People who are just listening into the for the first time get an idea of what the topics that you cover are going to be about and they know what to expect. Right. If your show is humorous, make sure it's funny. If it's serious, make sure it's serious. If it's scary, well, make sure it's scary. But you get the idea. After the show intro you go into the main content. That's the biggest piece of your show. That is the bulk of the topic, your interview, your story, whatever it is you want to do. That's the big, the big piece of it all. Now about halfway through, I recommend doing a mid roll break. What that means. And then this is totally optional. A lot of shows don't have this at all. For me it helps me to break it up. Sometimes we have some conversations that are so deep that is like you need to take a breath from it. So we do a mid roll break that sometimes we'll throw in a sponsor message in there. Sometimes we'll mention an affiliate. Maybe it'll be a call to action. Hey, if you like to show share with a friend or two or five or maybe in a fun side segment. Hey Karen, did you know that coffee doesn't mess up your stomach if you eat a peanut before you start drinking it? I don't know, I'm just being making things up, you know what I'm saying? Just, just a little break in the action so you can take a breath. The audience can go, okay, we're ready. Go into the next one and then you come back to it. It's just the rest of the main content. Then at the end you always want to do a wrap up. And again optional, you can do a takeaway. That's usually the last three to five minutes of the show. It could be a recap, could be a call to action like hey, subscribe to the show, rate the show, join our newsletter. Or maybe you want to tease the next episode if you already know what that's going to be. This is the time to do it. And then finally it's your signature sign off. Right. That's what I recommend. I recommend you come up with a way to close a show every week. Otherwise you're going to find yourself stumbling and mumbling and not knowing exactly how to close a show. It's still happening to me to this day because I have not yet taken my own advice and figured out how to sign off quote. But now I'm going to, now that I'm laying this down on video. Yeah, it could be something like stay curious or until next time keep questioning everything or that's actually kind of good for me. All right. Anyway, you get the idea. It's like a little, little quote that you say at the close of every show so that people tend to get to identify that quote with you and with your show. I always get this next question. I get it all the time. And is probably one of the hardest questions to answer because it's so vague. Right. The question is, how long should an episode be? All depends. Is your show short form? Is it long form? Is it somewhere in between? Well, I'll give you the guidance that I have given people in the past to the best of my knowledge because the very best answer is make it as long as your story story needs to be without becoming boring. Now, if you want to do a short form show, it should be anywhere between 5 and 15 minutes. This is ideal for a daily show or motivational content or something like that. Easily digestible. I just want to grab my morning, pick up first 10 minutes of my day and then be on with it. You know, that's, that's the best thing for short form. Medium length between 20 to 40 minutes is great for most interviews or even solo episodes. Those are, that's like the sweet spot because they see the typical commute time in the US anyway is about 20 minutes. So if you have an episode that's 20 minutes long, they get to listen to the entire episode and then they leave. If it's a little bit longer, closer to 40 minutes, they've got you going in and they got you coming out and then it's over. That's like the perfect sweet spot for now. If you prefer a long form show, think Joe Rogan. We're talking 60 minutes or above. These are really best for deep, deep dives, like someone who's a guest expert or if you have a long story that you want to tell, something that's a really in depth conversation. But I don't recommend it for interviews. It's too long. I don't recommend it for short form, for more motivational content because it's too long to give. By the time someone gets their motivational content, they've gotten 50 different content. They get all confused because they just need the one bite, right? So keep in mind, whichever length you choose, consistency is key. So don't forget that. We'll talk later on about multiple episodes in a week and the value in that. But if you do do multiple episodes, you could certainly do one that's short form and then one that's a longer format. Whether medium or long, it's really up to you. Just choose wisely and remember, it's going to take some effort on your part. So again, choose wisely. One of the most important things we need to do is to craft your show's unique angle. Like I mentioned at the very beginning of this course, there are literally millions of shows vying for your audience's attention. Literally millions. The good thing is that millions of those are inactive. Remember, I mentioned that figure earlier on, that a big majority of shows, and I'm talking a majority of shows, don't get beyond six episodes. That's just a stat that's out there. So if you are in episode 10, congratulations. You have made it way farther than millions of people who have tried before you. But what's going to get you to get through that crowd, get through that noise of the myriad of millions of shows out there is your. Your show's unique angle. This is really important. We need to figure out how your show stands out. Here's how to find it. Answer these questions for you, for yourself. What makes your perspective unique? What makes your perspective unique? What do you talk about that makes people lean in? Who are you really talking to? And what can people get from your show that they can't get elsewhere? If you can answer those four questions, you're in really good shape. This is where niching down comes in. Popular wisdom in podcasting back in the day was make it as broad as possible. You get as many different people as possible. You have this broad audience that listen to your show. It has been found that is the exact opposite of what happens. You get the people who are coming in to tune into your show because you're talking about yachting one week and the next week you're talking about web design. And the yachting people go, what is this? This is not to show. I tune in for and they're out. So now you got the web design people, but the next week you talk about pottery and then the web Design people going, what the heck? And now you've lost those people. So you're constantly having to rebuild your audience and that is a recipe for disaster. So the closer you can niche down, the more specific you can figure out your audience, the broader your audience is going to be. And I'm talking niching down our show is a skeptic. Positions, we talk about metaphysics, spiritual awakenings, raising consciousness, all that kind of stuff that's even too broad sometimes. We have found that shows that are specifically in, in our field, something like near death experiences, for example, shows that are niched down to just covering near death experiences are more successful faster because they find their audience faster and they build on the audience week after week. One week we might be talking about near death experiences, but the following week we might be talking about energy healing. The week after that might be talking about hypnosis or talking to a channeler or anything like that. So you get the idea. People who are in the space who are curious about all of it will listen in and they do. But people who aren't really interested in astral projection, but they're interested in psychic phenomenon, well, they're going to tune in to a psychic phenomenon show much more than they're going to tune in to a show about all of it. You get the idea? Niche down the best you can. The best way to do that, answer those four questions. It'll give you exactly who your audience is supposed to be. All right, let's define your podcast DNA. I'm going to be giving you here a quick worksheet that's going to help to solidify your show's identity. We're going to flesh out the branding and the naming in the next video. But this is your internal compass that's going to help you to niche down the best as you can. So take a few moments now to download this worksheet and fill it out. The best of your ability. There's no right or wrong here. It doesn't. If you can't niche down completely, it doesn't mean your show is not going to be a success at all. We're just trying to get you focused as possible to your very best audience as possible. This is the first step towards getting your show out there. So go ahead and do that and I'll be right back with you. The link to the worksheet is in our show notes. This is the story of the 1. As the purchasing manager at a manufacturing plant, she knows the only thing more important than having the right safety gear is having it there when you need it. That's why she partners with Grainger for auto reordering, so her team members can count on her to have cut resistant gloves on hand and each shift can run safely and efficiently. Call 1-800-GRAINGER Click grainger.com or just stop by Grainger for the ones who get it done. Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile. 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