Turn Up The Volume On Your Voice

I keep seeing questions asked about podcast cover art so thought it was about time I did a podcast about this.

Your podcast cover art serves a more than one purpose so it's important to get it right.

Not only does it need to stand out on the podcast platforms against the podcasts you're in the same categories as, but it's also what you'll be sharing on social media.

Here's my tips for making the best podcast cover art for your business podcast.

1. Get The Tech Specs right
2. Size Matters
3. Simplicity Wins
4. Photo or No Photo
5. Keep Your Cover Uncluttered
6. Check Out The Competition
7. Your Cover Art Is More Than Just Your Cover Art

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Hopefully you won't need this episode, but actually it's useful to think about the stuff I'm going to talk about because we can all (and I include myself) benefit from taking time to reflect on our podcast.

The good news is this episode is packed with tips on how to identify a failing podcast, what you might be doing to contribute to your podcast failing and most importantly what you can do to get your podcast back on track!

Want Chapter 1 of my Podcast Planning Toolkit just click here

Want to buy the whole toolkit? Click here

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Two years ago my most asked question was "what is a podcast?"

This time last year it began to change to "how long should my podcast be?" and now over the last couple of months I find my most asked question is "how often should I publish my podcast?"

Of course the simple answer is depends. The slightly longer answer is there's a few things to consider including

• Consistency
• How much time you have
• What you are talking about
• Who your audience is
• Habits
• Is your podcast a series or ongoing

Charlotte goes through all of this so you can make an informed decision about how often you should publish your podcast.

You can also find me here...

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I've spoken on this podcast in lots of detail about all the ways you can DIY your podcast. The different methods you can use to plan, record and edit your podcast by yourself.

But what I've not really spoken about is the options you have when it comes to outsourcing your podcast.

So that's what I'll do today. The different parts of the podcast process that you can give to somebody else to get on with while you do what you do.

You can also find me here...

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I can answer this week's question in two words.

It depends.

And whilst the answer is correct, it does depend, it's not particularly useful or a very satisfying answer.

So how long does it take to write, record and edit a podcast? And what can you do to speed up that time!

Charlotte talks you through what she does and how long it takes her to get an episode of Turn Up The Volume On Your Voice from her brain in to your ears!

You can also find me here...

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LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlotte-foster-podcast-queen/ 

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https://www.charlotte-foster.co.uk/

When I first started out I was a little bit clueless about where to start with podcast kit.

There's a lot of choice out there and a lot of words and terms I wasn't familiar with. I was going from a world of radio to a more DIY world of podcasting.

So I started with just my mobile phone.

And that's all you need too. Well that and some cracking content - but that's a different episode.

This week I look at the podcast kit you can use that won't baffle you and you don't need to be a massive tech geek to understand.

I can't promise you won't end up a massive tech geek as you get more in to podcasting though. Sorry.

You can also find me here...

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LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlotte-foster-podcast-queen/ 

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Twitter - @CFPodcasts

https://www.charlotte-foster.co.uk/

Planning your podcast is absolutely vital if you want it to succeed. Of course you've got to understand what success looks like for your podcast first. But we covered that in last week's episode so if you haven't listened to it you might want to go back and catch up.

Of course I'm going to talk about my podcast planning tool kit at this point. But it is how I plan my podcasts. The tool kit is my place to get down all my thoughts, and the processes I use to make sure nothing is missed out when it comes to planning my podcast and the episodes.

It's a tool to understand your podcast and plan your episodes so you can get the best from it. It's not just a pdf you also get a masterclass from me. Yes you get to see my face AND I even put make up on for you. That's some level of effort from me. It's £39 and you can find it on my website www.charlotte-foster.co.uk/-podcast-planning-toolkit

Here's my planning method - I'll be honest there's a lot of ground work I ask you to do so if you want to just dive in and start recording your podcast you might think you can skip this. But the ground work is so important. You wouldn't build a house without decent foundations - what would Kevin McCloud from Grand Designs say about that? (Yes I've been watching the telly again this week!) So why would you start a podcast without solid foundations? The effort you put in now will be rewarded.

Build Your Foundations

Last week I told you the 5 questions you want to ask and indeed answer before you start your podcast. There's loads on why those questions are important in that episode so rather than go through them all again I'll just sum up what they are

1. Why are you doing a podcast
2. Who is your podcast for
3. What does success look like for you
4. How much time do you have to commit to your podcast
5. How much money do you have to commit to your podcast

The first three are the ones you need to bring in to your building foundations stage of planning. Your why, your who and your definition of success for your podcast. These are all very personal questions and what is the right answer for you might be the wrong answer for somebody else. I work with people who use podcasts as an "in" to reach people they want to connect with, I work with clients who use their podcast to build their email list and equally I work with clients who just want to spread the message of their charity. As long as you understand why you are doing your podcast and who the podcast is talking to you will be on the way to success.

We're not moving from the foundation stage just yet because there's a few other things you can do before you've even picked up your microphone.

Have a think about the format of your podcast. Will it just be you? Will you have a co-host? Will you have guests? And while you're thinking about that I want you to think about why you've made that decision and what it means for your podcast and your podcast audience. You want to be adding value. How will you do that on your own, with a co-host or with a guest? The answer will depend on your why, your who and your success definition.

And finally you want to be thinking about your publishing schedule. How often do you want to publish your podcast episodes? Will you do it in a series or season if you must, or will it be ongoing with no breaks? How will you deal with holidays if you're doing an ongoing podcast? (we will go on holidays again. I promise.) If you're doing a series will you still release them weekly or do a series drop so people can binge all in one go. In the same way I binge everything on Netflix. S-Town from the same people who brought us Serial and This American Life did the whole series drop. I think it's an interesting way of doing it. And a great way to get yourself in...

The beginning of a year, a quarter, a month, a week or even the start of a new day all feel like great times to start something new. Including that diet that always starts next Monday, even if today is Monday.

And right now there is a lot going on - coaches are selling courses, there are more 5 day challenges than you can shake a stick at and if you're listening to this close to when it comes out you're more than likely in some form of lockdown and maybe dealing with childcare and homeschooling. A pandemic is a lot to to deal with, especially when it's been going on for quite some time and the rules keep changing.

Obviously I want you to be podcasting. It's a brilliant medium to get your message across, build your audience and even make sales. But I only want you to be podcasting if it's the right thing for you and at the right time for you. It's so easy to get caught up in the latest distraction, shiny thing - the MUST HAVE for 2021! There are some great FOMO tactics going on to get you to spend money!

Last week I told you how to podcast for free, this week I'm going to be telling some of you not to start your podcast. I'll forgive you for thinking I'm still on the Christmas sherry given my whole business is based on podcast services. And yes it does feel counter-intuitive, except I want you to be successful at podcasting. There's no point doing this half-heartedly. You won't see the results and you'll give up, get frustrated and potentially lose money. I've seen too many podcasts start only to suddenly stop 3 or 4 episodes in. No explanations, no nothing.

How do you make sure that doesn't happen to you? Well before you start you should ask yourself these questions. And make sure you're honest with your answers.

1. Why am I starting a podcast?
2. Who is my podcast for?
3. What does success look like for me?
4. How much time do I want to commit to this?
5. How much money do I want to commit to this?

Once you've answered these questions honestly you'll know whether a podcast is right for you and more importantly if a podcast is right for you now.

Always love to hear your thoughts - get in touch with me here

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It's January so if you're anything like me you'll have a million ideas and plans flying around your head for 2021, but maybe not the budget for all of them.

And with lockdown 3 taking place in England right now and restrictions across the rest of the UK and parts of Europe I totally understand why you might be wanting to think twice or maybe three times before you invest tonnes of money in a new podcast for you business.

Here's my guide to starting your podcast on zero budget.

Kit

First and foremost you need to be able to record your podcast. And whilst I'm sitting here with 8 different microphones I promise you do not need 8 microphones. Or even one to start with.

You can record your podcast on your mobile phone. The microphone in phones are actually fairly decent as long as you use them well.

What do I mean by use them well?

Speaking in to my phone in the same way I would if I was talking to a friend on the phone. So holding the top to my ear and the microphone is pointing at my mouth. This is how phone microphones are designed to be used best.

The other option with your phone is (and this is a reference for the UK mainly) to use it in the same way as contestants on The Apprentice use it. Although this sounds far breathier and my ps are really popping and not sounding great. If you do this I recommend you talk over the phone and not in to it. And if you can get a mic foam to go over the bottom of your phone that will take the edge of the breathiness off. (Super saving tip - you can use a sock. I have in the past.)

You also have a microphone in your phone headphones (or if you're posh your Airpods). Again this works absolutely fine if you want to record in to your phone or your computer.

If you're using your computer I would use headphones over the computer's in built microphone any day of the week.

You don't need any fancy software to record your podcast either. If you're using your phone (which I did when first starting my first podcast) you can simply use the voice memo app that comes with it.

If you're recording directly in to your computer you can record into zoom (which is free) or if you have a Mac you can record into GarageBand which is ready installed on your computer.

There is also a piece of software called Audacity which you can use. You have to download it but it is 100% free.

I'll come back to Audacity in a minute because you can also edit using this software. For now just keep in mind it's free and allows you to record your podcast!

Just a side note - if you're using Zoom to record make sure you've selected the right microphone in the settings and I would record on to the computer not the cloud. By recording locally you are not reliant on a good internet connection!

Studio

A studio would be lovely right. Sound treated room so there's no echoes etc. But that can be expensive to make for yourself and in the middle of a pandemic you might not want to be traveling to a podcast studio you can hire out.

But don't panic, your house or office is ok to record in. You just need to make wise choices about where you are going to record.

Soft furnishings are your friend. Choose a room with carpets and curtains. One that doesn't have huge ceilings too.

You want it to be cosy. I am recording this in my back bedroom. The curtains are drawn to protect agains the hard surface of the window. There is carpet. I've got a couple of dressing gowns hanging on the door and there is a bed covered in all my un-ironed but clean clothes.

There's lots of soft surfaces to help stop my voice sounding echoey. And that's all a recording room needs to be. A room that isn't an echo chamber (in the sound sense, not the social media sense).

There's a great description that somebody told me or I read somewhere that you want to imagine your voice as a ping pong ball. What you want is that ping pong ball (your...

Happy New Year!

It's time to leave 2020 in the past and get ready for 2021.

Here's my 7 resolutions you can make to up your podcast game this year. None involve losing weight or taking up exercise! Winner.

1. Be consistent with your episodes

2. Be consistent with your podcast marketing

3. Pitch to be a guest on other podcasts

4. Chat with your listeners more

5. Listen to more podcasts

6. Drink More Water

7. Keep having fun!

You can buy my podcast planning toolkit here

You can book a planning session here

and you can sign up for my awesome emails here

You can make sure I keep my resolution by connecting with me on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/charlotte-foster-podcast-queen/ 

and following me on Instagram - Charlotte Foster Podcasts

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