What to Avoid While Podcasting
We talk a lot about what you should do when creating and producing a podcast. Such as what tech and software to buy, what hosting platforms to use, what to include in your show, and much more. But one topic that may be even more helpful is what to avoid while podcasting! When it comes to what you should do, there's a lot of options and it really depends on what works best for you! While what to include isn't always cut and dry, what to avoid is a bit more straight forward.
1. Not Having a Clear Audience/Niche
There is no right or wrong audience to target and there’s a plethora of options that you can choose from. There are many ways to categorize your audience. You may want to target an audience of a specific sex, age, nationality etc. Or maybe your focus is based on like minded people who enjoy video gaming, music, true crime, etc. There’s no limit to who counts as an audience or what is considered a niche.
You can focus on more then one niche, we don’t suggest focusing on too many, but a couple would be fine! What you want to avoid while podcasting is not targeting an audience or finding your niche as this can make it easy to lose focus. By doing this one may have a hard time creating content that is consistent. This can quickly lead to losing viewers/listeners as they may not have a reason to return.
2. Not Speaking Clearly
Sound quality is important! While we preach being flexible and using what you are able to, there’s no getting around the importance of sound quality and lacking it can drive your listeners away. Now you don’t have to spend your life savings and have perfectly clear audio! But do what you can to make sure you are speaking clearly and if you can avoid background noise that may distract your listeners. Loud cafes, mumbling, and improper use of your mic is what we suggest you avoid while podcasting. If you are looking for additional tips, check out an Instagram post we did on this topic here.
3. Being Unprepared
Preparing is important and neglecting it is one of the biggest things that we suggest you avoid while podcasting! Have a plan and stick to it as best you can. Think about how many episodes you’ll be releasing weekly/monthly, and what the episodes will be about (at least a general idea), research your topic/guest, and plan any additional content you may want to release.
Think about what you expect from yourself and consider the time you have to get things done. Try to schedule your work ahead of time and get it done when you're supposed to. Once you set an expectation for your listeners they will be more likely to return. Worst case you won't be able to keep listeners as they won't know when you'll be releasing shows and may not have the time or energy to continue following up to see that nothing new has been posted.
4. Not Outsourcing Time Consuming Tasks
This one, while important, may be a luxury for some. Because of that, I’ll take time to emphasize number 3 above and the importance of allocating proper time to do you work (researching, recording, editing, etc.). That being said, maybe your podcast has taken off and you want to give your audience more shows, or you have a job that doesn’t allow you the time to focus 100% on your podcast. There are many reasons that one may not have the capacity to focus solely on their podcast. So we suggest giving yourself grace and outsourcing to avoid burnout.
Again, avoid burnout! If there are tasks you genuinely don’t enjoy and/or just don’t have time for. Outsource! There’s nothing like avoiding tasks, that you don’t want to do, to get you behind and create burnout! Burnout is one of the hardest things to overcome and one we, especially here at GGC, strive to help you avoid while podcasting. It can be the number 1 killer of podcasts, creating pod-fading or just a sudden halt in production.
You don’t have to outsource your whole production, there are many different things one can outsource. Before you give in to burnout see what your options are. We here at GGC offer many packages to help you produce your show (even mini packages)! If you are wondering if hiring a podcast manager is right for you, read this.
5. Not Tracking Analytics
If you’re like me, you might not initially think about the importance of data and tracking your show’s analytics. But analytics will help you keep track of what is or isn’t working well. Especially during the beginning stages of your show when you are trying new things. We highly suggest trying new things and engaging your audience in different ways. But how do you know if it’s working? Analytics! If you’ve been doing things the same way for months and you try something new and all of a sudden your listeners drop drastically, you’ll know to avoid it in the future. Ignorance is important to avoid while podcasting and using analytics to track what engagement is working will support your show’s long-term growth.
6. Not Using a Call to Action
This falls in line with not targeting a clear audience base or having a niche. We suggest this as something to avoid while podcasting as without it you are not prompting your listeners to do anything. For example, maybe you have 100 listeners every time you release an episode but you only have 20 subscribers. Chances are, a majority of these listeners are returning after listening to a past episode. Without a call to action, requesting your listeners to subscribe, they may not think this is important.
There are many different ways you can use a call to action. Maybe it is to subscribe to your show, join your Patreon, or even send in feedback. I’ve heard podcast hosts request listener submissions for ideas, stories, etc. This is a simple step to engage your listeners and create a community!
7. Neglecting Feedback
As with analytics, neglecting feedback can result in losing repeat listeners and missing out on potential new listeners. Feedback is the best way to learn what your target audience likes, doesn’t like, and wants more of. This mistake is important to avoid while podcasting as it is one of the easiest ways to improve your show! Viewers know what they like and might catch things you, otherwise, would not. Feedback can help you fix your audio, brainstorm new ideas, even let you know what the listeners love so you can continue including it in your show, and much much more. Continuously making the same mistakes, whether it be bad audio or rambling, can quickly drive listeners away. We highly recommend that you not only pay attention to your feedback but to ask for it! You can do this on your social media, in the episode itself, in the show notes, try Spotify for Podcasters new “interact” feature, your newsletter, or anywhere else you may connect with your listeners.
8. Not Being Consistent
Inconsistency may not seem like a big deal but it should be avoided while podcasting. Simply put, without consistency your viewers won’t know when to expect your show. Even if they decide to subscribe they likely will lose focus and stop listening as it becomes work to find out when an episode will be released. Causing you to lose out on viewers.
Now consistency doesn't mean that you have to release two episodes per week. You could release one episode per month! As long as your listeners know what to expect and you follow through. This correlates with staying prepared, you must be prepared to stay consistent. So plan accordingly.
9. Focusing on Monetization Too Soon
While many hope to earn money from their podcast it can cause a lot of stress when you’re not earning money right away. We think that this is an expectation that you should avoid while podcasting, or at least when you first start as the frustration may cause burnout. If your expectations are reasonable it will be easier to focus on your passion versus being bogged down by feeling dismayed that you're not earning quickly enough. Who knows you may end up earning faster than you think but if you give yourself space and room to grow you can enjoy your show. Which is the most important part, right?!
10. Not Giving Yourself Enough Time
Again, this falls in line with being prepared and staying consistent! Don’t stress yourself out by packing your schedule so tightly that you don’t have downtime. Take time to really consider what you want to include in your show. Is there research involved? Will you be involving guests? Do you have a job, family, or other responsibilities that come first? There are many reasons why you may get behind on producing your show so make sure to give yourself time to breathe.
For example, maybe you are hosting a show that requires ample research. Set the expectation that you will produce one episode every two weeks. Give yourself a week to research and another week to record, edit, etc. The theme here is burnout! You want to avoid while podcasting as best as you can!
Conclusion
There never seems to be a one-size-fits-all answer to podcasting. But what we can agree on is that there are many things to avoid while podcasting. Most of which pertain to being gentle with yourself and allowing room for hiccups. But most importantly we want to help you do your best and gain subscribers and listeners that will share your podcasts with others.
As always, if you need a helping hand, we are here! Never hesitate to reach out 😊
Hav
This blog post was updated on November 28th, 2023
