The first podcast I ever listened to was “The Joe Rogan Experience” on Joe Rogan’s YouTube channel. This podcast was so appealing to me that I listened to 10 episodes in one week ranging from 2-4 hours. I did not know what a podcast was before, but now I’ve been converted to a big fan of the podcast space. In this very simple and concise article, we want to explain what a podcast is, some ways to listen to podcasts and finally, explain how you can create your own podcast for free.
What is a podcast?
Podcasts, in simple terms, are audio recordings that are posted on the Internet, and anyone can listen to the audio content. This audio content can be one person talking about a particular topic, a multi-person conversation, defining book summaries, learning a language, or any other topic. Install an app on your mobile phone, put headphones in your ear and enjoy listening to podcasts.
Now let’s take a closer look at why a podcast is different from a voice recorded in a telegram or radio program.
Can we create a podcast with this definition of the podcast, that is, to publish the same voice message that they have on messengers like Telegram and WhatsApp? The answer to this question is both yes and no!
Yes, because podcasts are a type of audio content and are not limited to specific frameworks. For example, if Mohammad, who owns a painting business, publishes home painting guides in the form of audio recordings on his telegram channel, has he created a podcast?
No, because podcasts have some important and common features. Podcasts can only be downloaded from dedicated apps. Technically, any audio file that is not available in a podcast app is not a podcast. Also, podcasts are usually of good quality in terms of audio and content.
This way you can easily write a review for the podcast creator, download the podcast, or donate directly. Most importantly, the podcast maker will have a complete and accurate list of listeners.
Even now, there are people who record their voice with a mobile phone and post it on Instagram after pasting it on the image and turning it into a video; The term podcast is also used for this type of post. The same people can publish the generated content in the form of a real podcast if they do a few simple things that follow.
Well, now that we’re talking about podcast apps, let’s take a brief look at the history of podcasts to see why podcasts are a little different.
Where did the podcast come from?
It was in the early 2000s that the idea of publishing audio content on the Internet became popular for a variety of devices. The implementation of this idea required a suitable platform that was not available at that time and they had to think about it.
It was in those years that Apple built and launched the iPod, or “mobile music player.”
The basic idea was that the audio files would be automatically downloaded to mobile players such as the iPod after release, and the user would be able to listen to them whenever they wanted.
It took several years for the idea to materialize, but eventually, big companies like Apple stepped in and paved the way for podcasts. As smartphones increased in the market, applications came, and podcasts became more popular.
For a while, there was no proper name for this new model of content until an author (Ben Hammersley) in the Guardian newspaper used the term podcast. He coined the name from the combination of the two words Broadcasting, meaning public broadcast, and iPod. That is how pod + cast became podcast!
After Apple added the ability to broadcast podcasts to the iTunes platform, radio stations and anyone who had something to say released their own podcast. There are now about one million active podcasts in the world.
Now you might say, well, the podcast is the radio; Instead, they only listen to mobile and electronic door-to-door radios. If you think so, you are sorely mistaken. Here’s why.
What is the difference between a podcast and a radio?
If you are from the 2000s, you may not have listened to the radio even once and you have even tried to remove the FM radio application from your mobile phone once or twice. Of course, if you are from an older generation, you are not very interested in listening to the radio now. In the age of the Internet and social networks, why do we have to wait for our favourite news or program to be broadcast on the radio? And with a low-quality voice and the performers shouting, “Good morning Canada!”. Neither I nor you have the patience for that.
We used to love audio content, but radio is no longer an attractive platform for us. Now we like to listen to any program we want at any time of the day when we have time. We like the quality of the sound we hear. We like to take the program we hear back and forth easily and, most importantly, interact easily with the speaker or creator, express our opinions, like and share.
The podcast came to fix these flaws and fill the radio vacancy. Everything we expected from the radio has now been put together in a podcast.
If we want to summarize the differences between radio and podcast, the following are the most important:
- The podcast is always available, and you can listen to it whenever you want.
- Each episode of the podcast has no time limit. You could have a 10-minute podcast or a 6-hour podcast.
- Podcast topics are more engaging, varied, and free.
- You can download it with your mobile or computer.
- The content of most podcasts is not transient and disposable. They are always interesting to hear.
- Anyone can create a podcast. You can create a podcast with the least cost and equipment.
We will now introduce some of these podcasting applications.
The most popular and best podcast apps
The easiest way to listen to a podcast is to use special applications or so-called podcasters.
Of course, if the podcast maker wants, he can publish the final output of the podcast, which is usually an MP3 file, through other means such as a Telegram channel, a website or any other channel and social network. But as we said, the taste of podcasts is listening to them in the applications designed to host them.
Apple podcast app
The Apple Podcast app can be used on all Apple devices, from iPhone and iPad to Apple TV. You can easily find any podcast you want in this application. Just enter its name or click on the link to open it.
Castbox
Castbox is one of the most popular podcasting apps in the world. Available for Android, iOS and Alexa smart speakers.
This app is not lacking in features and listening to podcasts with Castbox is a pleasant experience. You can set notifications for your favourite podcasts and enable auto-download so your new podcast is downloaded and ready to listen to when you don’t have internet. The only problem with Castbox is the display of ads in the free version, which of course is not very annoying.
One of the new features of Castbox is the possibility of recording and publishing podcasts directly from within the program.
You can install Castbox from Google Play Android and Apple App Store.
Google Podcast
In this application, Google has worked more on simplicity rather than features.
If you do a Google search for a podcast name, you’ll probably see episodes of it on the first page of search results; These results can be found from the same Google Podcast service. Clicking on these results will take you to the web version, and you can listen to the podcast without installing the app.
Install for Android and Install from the App Store for iOS
Spotify
The popular Spotify app is for listening to music, but you can also use it to follow podcasts.
Spotify has a large variety of podcasts you can listen to. They have recently acquired celebrity podcasters such as Joe Rogan to podcast exclusively on their platform. Spotify shows no signs of slowing down any time soon and is looking to dominate the podcast space in the coming years.
Pocket Casts
Pocket cast is another application that is not as popular as other applications. In terms of simplicity and features, Pocket Cast has created a good balance. It is not overloaded with features and complex algorithms, nor so simple that it does not meet the needs of users.
Install from Google Play for Android and install from App Store for iOS
Podcast Addict
Addict podcast is relatively more professional, but unfortunately, it only has an Android version. With this application, you can save backup podcasts on Google Drive. Install the Addict Podcast app here.
Podcast program for PC and web browsers
If you want to listen to podcasts on your computer or web browser, you have several options to choose from. Some of the apps we introduced also have web or PC versions. For example, Castbox and Google Podcast, iTunes and Spotify can be installed on a computer.
The following online platforms are also interesting for listening to podcasts:
In the next section, we will be explaining “how to create a podcast”.
How to create a podcast?
If you are planning to make a podcast, let me tell you first that technical work, publishing and recording podcasts are the easiest parts of the job. The hard part of the story is finding the topic and preparing the content. This means finding and creating meaningful content that people want to listen to regularly
Looking at the statistics of podcasts, we see that many people enthusiastically publish a few episodes but no longer have anything to say, or some are disappointed by the popularity.
In this section, we describe the general steps of the work from the two methods of professional publishing and simple publishing without technical knowledge.
Create a podcast with a mobile app
A simple and free solution for creating a podcast is to use the Anchor app. To create a podcast with Anchor, all you have to do is hold your mobile phone and talk. With this application, all technical work, i.e. uploading to the host server and adding to podcast directories, is done automatically.
Subscribe to the Anchor app first, then enter your podcast details including name, description, and cover image.
After registering, you can record your voice directly in the same program or import a pre-recorded file. It is also possible to add sound effects, cut and add background music in the application.
Once the podcast is ready, just publish it and the rest of the publishing will be done automatically.
Hosting podcasts on Anchor is free.
The most interesting feature of the Anchor app is its listener statistics. Based on the number of times the podcast airs, the country of the audience, and the platform with which they listen to your podcast Anchor provides an estimate of age and gender.
If you record your own voice with a mobile phone, the sound quality will not be great because the mobile microphone has a lot of noise. You can record your voice with quality microphones or market records, then import the audio file. This will make your podcast sound more professional.
Well, that was a simple and new way for anyone to create and publish their own podcasts for free.
In the next title, we will explain the steps required to create a professional podcast.
Steps to creating a professional podcast
There are podcasts around the world that have millions of followers, and some have become a source of revenue. In Canada, too, many podcasts are able to generate revenue, most of which acquire money from advertising.
If you want to make a completely professional and lucrative podcast, you must think about everything. In the following section, we will review the general steps of the work.
Step 0: Set a long-term content strategy
Yes, this is the step zero of podcasting. A podcast that does not have great content will have a hard time succeeding. Many podcasts that started in recent years were quickly shut down because they were not well received. The audience may not care much about the quality of the podcast sound and music at first, but the content is certainly very important. If your audience feels that your podcast is a waste of time, they will not follow it and will not go back.
First of all, plan for the topics you want to talk about. See the general theme of the podcast and how appealing each episode is to people. Next, write a long-term plan for all the topics you would like to talk about in each section. For example, specify the subject or titles of the first 5 episodes.
You can create an educational podcast and teach the skills you know, summarize the books you read, create a chat program with your friends about social issues, and much more….
Step 1: Record your podcast
In the podcast recording stage, the quality of the first letter is played. What equipment you can use to record good sound depends on the number of people talking on the podcast (simultaneously, over the phone or online) and your budget.
Let’s assume you want to record a solo podcast at home. To get started you need:
- A professional microphone
- Headphones
- A room or box to reduce echo and annoying noises
- Audio recording software
- A quiet environment
Your phone’s microphone cannot record quality sound so you may need a studio or professional microphone. There are many types of microphones on the market with low to high prices. You can buy a good, affordable collar microphone like the Boya and save for later or get a multimillion-dollar microphone like the Blue Yeti.
You need headphones to hear the sound. With good headphones, you can hear all the details of the sound and make sure its good quality.
You can connect your microphone directly or through intermediate conversions such as a sound card to a computer or mobile phone. You need an application or software for professional recording. Adobe Audition, Audacity and GarageBand software are best for Windows and Mac systems. Audacity is free and not too hard to work with. After a little research and wandering with the buttons, you will learn.
Now you need to find a quiet room. Of course, you should be aware that you need a completely quiet place without extra echo and noise. You can use special foams (acoustic foam) to remove the echo or the same sound echo. You must either insulate the whole room and make a small box that you can cover with acoustic foam.
Now you can press the red record button and say whatever you want.
Step 2: Edit your podcast
A podcast that has no music or effects is as empty as rice and nobody enjoys eating empty rice. You need to add a little stew to your career. It’s the music and sound effects that make the podcast enjoyable.
Fortunately, you can edit your podcast with the same recording software you installed. Remove parts that are not well-drained, separate the different parts of the podcast with music, and place effects between conversations.
Step 3: Upload the podcast file to a hosting service
You need a host when the podcast file is ready. The podcast host is the server that holds the files and is always available to listeners. The podcast that is uploaded to the host has a feed or so-called RSS address that allows it to reach the podcast tracker tracking apps.
In this list, we introduce some of the best hosting services:
Important Note: If you have a WordPress website, you can use your host to host podcasts. Just install the Seriously Simple Podcasting plugin and then upload the podcast files.
Step 4: Submit your podcast to a directory
For a podcast to be available and downloadable on any podcast application or platform, you must submit it to several directories. Podcast directories are the intermediary between the host and the user when you search for the name of the podcast in the Castbox application. Of course, having the RSS address of each podcast, you can add it to your application.
Some platforms provide integrated hosting and directory service.
To record podcasts on platforms, you must follow standards such as file format, podcast descriptions or each episode, cover image, and so on. The registration process also involves only one step of filling out the form. After registration, it takes a few days for the podcast to be found by name in all applications.
The following directories are the most important. We linked the address of each podcast registration page. You must subscribe to these directories and then submit a podcast. (This is done only once)
Step 5: Done, advertise your podcast
Once you have completed these steps, just upload the file of each episode to the hosting service. In any application and platform, your podcast can be easily found with a simple search.
The last thing you need to do is advertise. Be sure to create an account for your podcast on social networks such as Twitter and Instagram. Talk about your podcast and invite more people to listen to the podcast. If you would like to go a step further, Kiuloper offers a wide range of marketing services that will help your podcast reach the audience desiring your content.
We hope you took some valuable information from this article and are now able to go forth and create a podcast you’ve always dreamt of creating.
