How to start a podcast

If you’re wondering how to start a podcast, there’s no need to fear. You don’t need to be tech-savvy or invest a lot of money to start a nutrition podcast. Here are some podcast ideas for how to expand your audience, improve communication skills, and strengthen your brand. 

Podcasts have become a popular way to share content because they are easy to consume. Listeners all over the world tune in while they’re at the gym, in the office, on the road, or even in bed at night.

With so many people listening to podcasts, you have an opportunity to create an intimate connection with your audience. It’s estimated that people will listen to at least 30 minutes of a podcast at any given time, which gives you the perfect opportunity to spur meaningful conversations and raise awareness on certain topics. 

But what do you need to start a podcast, and what are some podcast ideas to get you started? Here’s everything you need to know on how to start a podcast. 

Which skills do you need to develop?

Thankfully, you don’t need to be tech-savvy to start a podcast! However, podcasts are not for the faint of heart. There are a lot of skills involved to create a good podcast, such as:

• Good rhetoric
• Time management
• Listening with empathy
• Recording and editing audio/video
• Conversational tone
• Confidence in front of a mic or camera

These will improve over time as you get better at podcasting, but it never hurts to brush up on these skills before you get started. 

What do you need to start a podcast?

Starting a nutrition podcast is a great tool to use to expand your audience, improve your communication skills, and further strengthen your brand. It’s also a great way to further position yourself as an expert in the nutrition industry.

Starting a podcast may seem as simple as hitting the record button, but it’s actually more complicated than that. Here’s what you need to consider before starting a podcast:

• Understand how podcasting works.
• Identify a podcast theme.
• Decide on a format.
• Create your podcast brand.
• Choose your podcasting equipment.
• Get recording software.
• Outline your first episode.
• Record your podcast.
• Market your podcast.

This may seem like a daunting list, so let’s simplify things a bit and break these podcast ideas down into more detail. 

1. Understand how podcasting works

The best way to get an idea of what works and what doesn’t is to do a little research on the top-rated podcasts. A simple google search or a glance at the Best Nutrition Podcasts article can help you find a simple list of popular podcasts that are trending right now. 

Take notes about what makes them so appealing and successful, and try to incorporate some of these ideas in your podcast. Also, pay close attention to audio quality, episode length, podcast format, how these podcasts are recorded and edited, if they are streamed or downloaded on the RSS feed, and how many podcast episodes are available. This information will further provide insights into how podcasts work and give inspiration for your own podcast. 

You should also research the best podcast platforms at this stage, as this will be helpful later on. 

2. Define your podcast theme

Take a moment to come up with a variety of topics to talk about. This part is important, because if you can’t think of at least 20 episodes, then you may run out of ideas before your podcast gains popularity. 

You should also consider the goal of your podcast, the “why” behind it, and who you want to target. This will help further determine your podcast theme so you can have a clear outline moving forward. 

Lastly, you should consider niching down so your podcast topics aren’t too broad. While it may seem like a good idea to talk about as many nutrition topics as possible, this can actually hinder your efforts when it comes to getting your podcast off the ground. 

By niching down, you can stand out from other professionals, since not everyone in your industry is going to specialize in the same things you do. As a result, you will be able to eliminate a large chunk of your competition and set the stage for growth later down the road. This also allows you to build your brand, increase your reputation, and build a loyal clientele base. 

For example, if you want to start a nutrition podcast, but have an interest in thyroid health, it would make sense to do a nutrition for thyroid health podcast. You can then do your research on what is currently available, and what makes them successful. 

Your podcast topic ideas can be inspired by what is already working well for other podcasters, and what podcast listeners are interested in. Depending on what your research says, some topic ideas for nutrition for thyroid health podcast could include:

• Vitamin D and thyroid health
• 5 things to stop doing right now to improve thyroid health
• What you need to know about thyroid health
• Soya: the good, the bad, and the ugly

TIP: Get inspired by the Nutrium blog's articles.

3. Decide on a format

Are you wanting to do interviews, news features, educational podcasts, or story-telling? Once you’ve decided that, then you can narrow it down even further and determine how you will produce it. If you want to do interviews, will you be the one conducting them, or are you wanting a co-host? If you’re going at it solo, will you bring on guests every now and then or will it only feature you?

This information is important because it impacts the type of equipment and software you need to produce your show. It can also help you determine how long your podcast episodes will be, and how often you need to publish an episode.

4. Choose your equipment

The right equipment and recording conditions are vital to the success of your podcast. 

The audio quality could make or break your audience’s experience, so you need to use a good USB microphone. This will reduce background noise and ensure your voice can be heard. A list of quality microphones can be found here. 

If you are also uploading your podcast to YouTube, you should invest in a good camera. Here are some options to consider. 

Furthermore, you need to have the right recording software, as this will make editing and recording much easier. If you need inspiration, check out some of these options. 

5. Create a strong podcast brand

Your brand is what will attract your audience since this is the first impression new listeners will have of your podcast. Here are four things to keep in mind when creating a strong podcast brand.

• Have an excellent name. This should be 4 words or less while being succinct and intriguing. 
• Choose your category. As a dietitian, your nutrition podcast will most likely fall under health and wellness, sports, or business. However, if these don’t fit, choose the category that best works with your content. 
• Write a solid yet short description. Try to keep your report between 400 and 600 words. It should be engaging, descriptive, and keyword-orientated.
• Design beautiful cover art. Your cover art needs to be beautiful, stand out, and visually communicate your subject. You can create this yourself on canva or hire out.

TIP: Here are 5 steps to creating a personal brand strategy to help you stand out.

6. Create an outline and hit record

Just because your recording equipment is optimal doesn’t mean that your content is going to be worth listening to. 

To draw listeners to your podcast, it’s vital that you create an outline detailing the purpose of the episode, what you want people to get out of it, and how it can keep their attention. 

Once you have an outline, it’s time to record your podcast! Before hitting the record button, here are some things to keep in mind:

• Record in a quiet room with little to no background noise or echo. This will limit distractions and allow your audience to get the most out of the content you are providing. 
• Do a test run to ensure that your equipment is working and everything sounds good. 
• Record 30 seconds of silence to make sure there is no background noise.
  
  

7. Market your podcast

Once your podcast is edited, it’s time to market. You can do this on social media, podcast directories (such as Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or Google Play), email marketing, or blog posts. Need more ideas? Check out these other ways to market your podcast. 

Summary

Podcasts are a popular form of media that can help you expand your audience, improve communication skills and learn new skills. As a dietitian, you can also use this platform to spur meaningful conversations and raise awareness on certain nutrition topics.

Podcasts can be intensive, as there are many steps involved in creating a successful show. You also need to build up a variety of skills and increase confidence in front of a microphone or camera. However, with the right planning and research, you may find that podcasts are well worth the time and effort. 

We are always working toward bringing you the best nutrition content, so we welcome any suggestions or comments you might have! Feel free to write to us at info@nutrium.com.

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