Launching A Podcast: Common Mistakes You Should Avoid

Launching a podcast is relatively easy.

But regardless if you are about to launch your first or fiftieth episode, there are several mistakes that you should be aware of and absolutely avoid.

Now I know we agree that the best way to correct a mistake is to learn from it. But then again, is it ok with you to gamble the quality of an episode just to identify these mistakes we’re talking about?

Of course, it’s not worth it!

And that is why I decided to come up with several common mistakes podcasters make when launching a podcast episode.

Common Mistakes Podcasters Make When Launching A Podcast

• Save

Just Winging It

I’m the first to admit that launching a podcast episode freestyle is fun. You get to do whatever you like and not worry about anything.

Will it sound good though? Well, sometimes it can. Will it sound professional? Definitely not!

Now I’m saying that because at the end of the day, it’s your podcast, so you can practically do whatever you want with it.

But if you are looking at podcasting as a business venture, then not having a plan for each episode will end up in disaster.

Creating a clear plan for each of your episodes should be the first step in the creative process.

A well thought of plan must have all the details (title, main and secondary talking points, rebuttals, supporting data, music, CTA, intro, and outro) you need for an upcoming episode.

With a solid production plan in place, you have more control over the tone and vibe of the episode, making your episode sound more professional.

If you need help on how to create a script for your next episode, then go read our article about Podcast Script Writing Techniques.

Not Being Consistent With Launch Dates

Yes, planning takes time. But not to the point where you end up delaying your launch date.

So which one is your go-to excuse? “I don’t think it’s ready yet” or “I’m a bit nervous about launching this one”. Mine was “I was too busy with other things”.

Look, we all have our own excuses. Some are legit, most are just alibis.

There’s no good or bad excuse – just “excuses”.

The problem with having this kind of mindset of “using an excuse as a way out” prevail is that you get used to it – making it really hard to get rid of.

By delaying the launch of a new episode, there’s a huge possibility that you’ll end up abandoning it. This means that all the time and effort you invested in it are put to waste.

“But I’m going to make a new one” – Right, and then delay it’s launch all over again?

Look, the reason why I’m a bit combative about this is that I went through the same state of mind myself. And I tell you, it’s not a very productive place to be in.

From my experience, the best time to launch a podcast is days after you’re done editing and mastering it.

Being Overly Obsessive With Recording Quality And Sound Engineering

Don’t get me wrong. Making sure that your sound recording is great, and the edits and fine-tuning done to it during post-production are superb is absolutely great!

Nitpicking on the slightest of details though is not helping or productive at all.

Recording an entire session all over again because you bumped the mic in the middle of it is not the right thing to do. In fact, those little mistakes add character to your podcast.

Come to think of it though, I guess you should do a retake if you’re running one of those storytelling type podcasts. But outside of that, nah, don’t even bother with such minute details.

Just like the previous talking point, being obsessive with editing and an error-free podcast will end up with you just seeing additional things that you don’t like.

Once that happens, you get stuck in a loop that ultimately leads to the delay of launching a podcast episode.

So if this is your first time recording a podcast just hit record and just concentrate on making a great show. And if you need a bit of mentoring as you move to pop your podcasting cherry, go read our article How To Record A Podcast: A Definitive Guide For Newbies.

Now for more experienced podcasters that are obsessed with sound engineering, you guys can go read How To Make Your Podcast Sound Better With Audio Engineering.

But again, don’t spend too much time fussing over it. In fact, and unless you are a sound engineer yourself, I strongly suggest that you leave the mastering part to professionals.

Podcast Names: Being Too Edgy Isn’t Good

Of course, we all want to give our podcast an absolutely unique name.

Overdoing it though might turn off some and for some to completely ignore your podcast – or see it as pretentious.

You see, podcast listening individuals prefer to have the name of a podcast automatically give them an idea of what to expect.

I have no problem with you using an edgy sounding name, but at least find a way to connect it with what type of topics your podcast will typically dwell on.

Now another thing why you shouldn’t overdo podcast names is that it can greatly affect discoverability.

Let’s say you talk about conspiracy theories and decided to name your podcast NX8-85O4.

You can justify it all you want, but that doesn’t deny the fact that if someone was trying to convince a friend of his/her to listen to your show – NX8-85O4 would be a difficult name to remember compared to let’s say Room 109, right?

Both names have this air of mystery around them, but the latter is definitely much easier to remember – much more say.

To add, good luck trying to tell Alexa or Siri to look for the NX8-85O4 podcast and get the right result.

Now if you need assistance in coming up with names for your podcast, maybe our article about Best Free Podcast Name Generators might come in handy.

Using Bad Graphics & Aesthetics

The graphics you use play a crucial role when it comes to branding your podcast.

Take into consideration that the images you use will represent your podcast on the internet. And having crappy looking images will have a great impact on how people react to your podcast – as a brand.

With that said though, the idea of aesthetics is very subjective. And that is why you need to make sure that the graphics you use are also relatable to your target audience.

For example, run of the mill internet marketers that peddle how to get rich tips and tricks usually go for safe graphics – because the majority of their audience don’t really care about them, but rather what the host has to say.

On the other hand, most spirituality or self-improvement podcasts go for cleaner, minimalist design aesthetics.

Not Having Your Own Website

Ok, I understand that not everyone has the time, or extra money to spend on hiring someone to create and maintain a website for them.

And though I do believe that having a website is important, I also don’t believe that you really should have a .com.

When I say that not having a website is a mistake, I’m referring to not having a “single” place to redirect listeners to. Be it paid or not, what’s important is that you funnel your listeners, and potential ones, to a single point on the internet where they can listen and view and check all the episodes you have.

You can check out free versions of WordPress, Wix, Tumblr, or even just use a Facebook page or a Soundcloud account.

Of course if you want to look more professional, you really need to have your own .com. But for those that are starting out and don’t have extra funds to spare, the ones I mentioned will do – for now.

So far, those are what I think as the common mistake podcasters should avoid when launching a podcast.

And now that we’re through with that, let’s move on to….

How Often Should Your Release A New Episode

Now launching a podcast completely depends on how invested you are in podcasting and your reason behind it.

If you’re doing it as a hobby and as a break from a busy work life, then once a month is okay I suppose.

But if you are looking at podcasting a business venture, then you need to do weekly shows.

Personally, this is how I see things:

Semi-daily 1-5 minutes & Daily 1-15 minutes

This is for the person that wants to quickly get his/her message across to his/her listeners.

Think of it as sort of the audio version of tweeting – this fits well with podcasts that deal with current affairs, live news, or if you’re an internet influencer with a huge following.

These types of podcasts are somewhat rare though and are a bit of a novelty.

I’d rather use Twitter than do this.

Weekly 15-60 minutes

This for me is the perfect format for those that want to leverage podcasting as a business venture.

Most of the top podcasts use this format.

Biweekly 60 minutes

This for me is the perfect format for people who are a bit busy and are still on the fence if they want to pursue a career in podcasting.

A bi-weekly release date is less hectic, allowing you to plan out better shows without it ruining your daily work schedule.

Also, it’s a great way to check for growth – helping you arrive at a more informed decision in the future if you want to take podcasting more seriously.

Monthly 60-90 minutes

 

This one I think suits best for hobbyists and those with super busy work schedules.

Again, having only to produce a single episode each month gives you all the time in the world to plan out a super entertaining episode.

Going back to the original topic for this article, are you guilty of making the mistakes I mentioned when launching a podcast?

Don’t worry, we all are guilty of at least one.

The important part is that you are now aware of what those mistakes are, and are doing your best to not make them again.

And speaking of “improvement” – do you need help in streamlining your podcast production?

Yes, from creating eye-catching graphics to making sure that each of your episodes sounds absolutely great.

We at Podblade can help you with all of that.
Schedule a FREE consultation call with us and ask how we can help.