Nowadays, a lot of people are thinking of creating their first podcast, especially that it is now quite easy to find a hosting platform, set up your recording equipment, and start attracting a large audience. However, before you get started, there are a few things that you’ll want to plan out first.
Choosing a website on which you’ll host your podcast shouldn’t be done on a whim. Because many websites offer an array of different features for their users, you’ll have to consider a few factors before choosing one. In this guide, we will walk you through some of these factors to help you make the right decision.
Restrictions or Bandwidth
The first thing you’ll need to ask yourself is how many episodes you’re planning on recording and whether or not there will be multiple seasons. You should also consider the length of your episodes and the type of topics you’ll be covering in that podcast. This step is important in deciding which platform to use, as some platforms will have limitations to how many episodes you can upload. Usually, limitations are applied to free hosting websites. However, you may have unlimited uploads bandwidth if you’re using a hosting website that requires a monthly fee. Of course, the better option here to get unlimited storage to ensure that you can manage your podcast effectively.
User-friendly Interface
The next thing you’ll need to consider is a hosting website with a user-friendly publishing interface. You should be able to edit each episode, manage your podcast, and publish new episodes with a few clicks. The expert reviewers over at Wired Clip explain that a good hosting service should have a user-friendly interface along with other features like the ability to customize audio, and unlimited storage, recording time, and bandwidth. The best services will even go beyond that and allow you to publish episodes from your iOS or Android device.
Free Hosting vs. Paid Hosting
Most podcast hosting sites will offer a structured subscription service to their podcasts, but that depends on what type of hosting website you choose. If you work with a free hosting website, you have to carefully read the terms and conditions in order to understand who owns that right to the content you’ll be uploading. Paid hosting, on the other hand, will provide a variety of plans as well as features. In order to decide which type of hosting you’ll need, write a list of the features that you will need for the next six months. Also, make sure to look at different hosting sites’ pricing, as this will be a crucial factor in making your decision.
Chapter Markers
One important feature that you must look for is the ability to use chapter markers. In recent years, more podcast hosts started using chapter markers, especially for podcast episodes that run for a long amount of time. Chapter markers will make it easier for you, the podcaster, to review specific portions of your episodes more effectively, and it will also encourage your listeners to listen to the entire episode, as they will know what topics you’re going to talk about and when you’re going to cover them.
Listeners are more content when they know what you’re going to discuss, as they’ll be looking for a sub-topic that may not be included in the episode title. The listener will also be aware of how much it is going to take to discuss a certain topic, which will reduce their unwillingness of listening to your episodes.
Marketing Features
It’s true that you need to use a reputable platform to get more people to listen to your podcast, but this can’t happen without applying a few marketing strategies. You should make it easy for your target audience to find your show and design your promotions in a way that makes your podcast seem compelling to the audience. However, before you try to make social media accounts for your podcast, you should look for hosting sites that provide their users with customized websites for promotion purposes. For example, Simplecast will offer its users this feature, which has helped many users get more views and become more popular in the podcast community.
With this information in mind, you’ll be able to choose the hosting site that is most suitable for your needs. It should be noted that you must offer quality content if you want your listeners to come back for more episodes. Make sure that you’re using a quality microphone and editing software, as these will have a huge impact on the quality of your podcast and the number of followers you get as well.