The 5 Necessities for Producing a Professional Podcast

Many businesses, entrepreneurs, content creators and influencers are utilizing podcasts to market their products, take part in affiliate marketing and, overall, enhance their brands. The problem is, podcast platforms are incredibly saturated, leading to a high bar of entry for new ideas to flourish. 

And, while it’s not a promise that your podcast idea will take off and reach the top of its category quickly, having a professionally produced show will certainly help in the long run. At the core, there’s nothing worse than poor audio quality, over-produced “shock-jock” style shows or concepts without structure, and this article will explore five necessities you can use to hit the ground running and produce a high-quality product for your listeners. 

READ: The Marketing Basics Every Content Creator Needs to Know

Note, for this article we assume you know who your audience is and the concept of your show. For that reason, we’re skipping this; if you haven’t determined these two factors, you should, as market research and creating a structure should always be the first steps. 

Podcast Tip 1: Use high-quality audio recording equipment 

After developing your concept and determining your audience, you should begin purchasing the needed equipment. The amount of equipment will vary, depending on the number of hosts, whether it will be conducted in an in-house studio, will be transported for in-field recording or if it’s a small home production. 

To break it down, there are two general categories of equipment, what you need and accessories that improve the quality of recorded sounds. Here’s a short list: 

Needs

• Microphone(s)

• Headphone(s)

• Audio interface or USB mixer

• Microphone stand/boom arm  

Accessories 

• Pop filter 

• Portable isolation screen 

• Mixer 

Though some may disagree with this and move things between the groups, this is a simple guide to follow when getting started. Further, there are plenty of affordable options when purchasing the initial equipment, though there are certain brands that have been trusted with audio recording for years and come highly recommended, such as Shure and Rode microphones, Audio-Technica headphones and Zoom recording devices. 

Podcast Tip 2: Record in an audio-friendly environment 

Perhaps a no-brainer, but the second necessity for producing a high-quality, professional podcast is having a suitable environment. This isn’t hard to accomplish, though it’s just as easy to mess up this facet of the process. 

Your recording space should be quiet, away from busy streets if possible and not have room for echo to develop. While that last part may be hard to accomplish, soundproofing materials are available for purchase that attach to walls. An easy fix is hanging blankets on large walls that produce an echo, as well as the wall directly behind your setup. This is also where a portable isolation screen can come into play. 

Making sure your studio, home office or location adheres to these parameters will do wonders before post-production. It helps keep your workflow simple and edits minimal. And, while this won’t always be achievable, releasing more episodes recorded in a quality location than not will drive listenership and, thus, the podcast’s ranking. 

Podcast Tip 3: Utilize high-quality audio editing software and know how to use it

After capturing high-quality audio in a soundproofed space, you can finally begin to dive into post-production. The question is, what do you use? 

Most may resort to software like GarageBand, and, while this is OK to use for small projects, if you’re looking to produce a professional-sounding podcast on a frequent schedule, you should look to programs like Adobe Audition. Though more expensive, software like Audition gives you more options and tools to edit your audio on a deeper level. 

No matter the program you use, it’s best to familiarize yourself with it before diving deep into your podcast. Doing so will help you expedite your editing process and workflow, and will help you figure out the best way to structure your show. You may also find that you need to shift your expectations or general production plan depending on the software you choose, or that you need to change the software entirely. 

When editing, make sure you create seamless transitions, remove any background noise, remove ugly sounds like pops, hums, vibrations, knocks, squeaks, “umms,” etc. and listen to it before exporting it as a final episode. 

Finally, consider adding music, background audio that matches your show and introductory and conclusion segments. Though usually lasting around 15 seconds, these two segments are a nice way to begin and end each episode and will familiarize your audience with the show. 

Podcast Tip 4: Create engaging content with a cohesive structure

You know what your audience wants, otherwise, you wouldn’t be creating a podcast, but if the content you feed them is not engaging or the episode structure is clunky and confusing, you’re never going to get the traction needed to be successful. 

Disengagement in an audience can be the result of a boring host or guest, or because the content in singular episodes doesn’t resonate with them. While you can’t necessarily control what each person wants to hear each time you produce a show or that some may not like your guest, you can always control how you or your host presents the show. Make sure this isn’t holding you back, and, generally, your audience won’t abandon the product.

The structure is also important, and it’s different for every show. Some shows go on for 2 1/2 hours and cover a string of topics like the Joe Rogan Experience and hang onto the expertise of the guest, while others are segmented out meticulously to go in-depth on one or two subjects, like The Daily or The New Yorker Radio Hour. 

Creating scripts is often helpful, though that also depends on the style of your show. Just make sure that it’s a logical structure and it flows well, and you’ll be better than most shows in your category. 

Podcast Tip 5: Utilize strong promotional and marketing techniques

The final necessity a professional podcast needs is strong marketing and promotion to “sell” it to your audience.

How many platforms will it be on? Do you want to incorporate video so you can create long-form YouTube videos like the old JRE or bite-sized Reels and TikToks? How many promotion avenues will you plan to push it through in general?

There are many ways to market your show, though it’s always changing and staying ahead of the fads will help you rise through the category rankings. Another way to earn social clout is by collaborating with other podcasters in your category and inviting well-known guests and industry experts to be featured on your show. 

Finally, make sure you write strong show notes and use high-value keywords. This is universal across platforms, as both will help listeners find your show and will help establish it further as a professional production.