“Should I keep my podcast files on my website?”

“How can I upload my podcast to iTunes?”

These are questions I get asked a lot in both the NLCast Forums and via email. I thought I’d write an article that I can direct people to later. This article assumes you’ve already got a nice little mp3 file complete with id3 tags, album art and all. If you need pointers on recording your show, read How I Podcast.

So you’ve gone and recorded yourself a podcast. Good for you! Really! Now you know how much work they are. But how do you get this mp3 online for folks to start downloading? How do you generate a feed? How can you get this sucker on iTunes? Well, this may not be THE way to do it. But this is how I did.
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As Nobody’s Listening Podcast creeps up on its one year anniversary (woot!) I can’t help but look back at my podlife in 2007. I’ve gotten acquainted with a lot of great people. Many of which have been inspired to experiment with starting their own show. It’s been one of the most gratifying parts of podcasting being able to inspire others the way Scott and Micheal did me.

I’ve compiled a five tips I find myself giving (or wishing I had given) folks who are looking to start a podcast as a hobby. Hope they help you!

6 Tips For Starting A Hobby Podcast

1. Keep it simple. Especially if you’re pressed for time in real life. Prepping for a podcast can take more time than doing the podcast. Simplicity should also be the rule of every other aspect of your show. The website should be clean and simple. Don’t bog it down with ads, forums, etc. Forums are embarrassing until you have a following.

2. Educate yourself. To podcast you need to know computers, the internet, recording, compression, encoding, uploading, creating rss feeds, blogging and networking. (How To Podcast, Podcasting Step-by-Step, How I Podcast)

3. Do it for free. You can always upgrade everything to do with your show later. But you’ll never get your money back if you can’t keep your show going. The only think you may want to spend money on is a URL. Make sure the one you want is available for the name you have chosen and reserve it. Even if you don’t use it or only use it for a while, it’s only $8 a year. (Hosting/Blog – Switchpod, URL – GoDaddy, Recording – Audacity)

4. Use feedburner. It has great stats and let you know when people are listening even when they don’t talk to you (via email and vmail). As a podfriend once said, “Podcasting can be lonely” and he’s right. Feedburner will help you know they’re out there listening. Plus if you ever have to move your hosting, change your ‘real’ feed in anyway, you can just update what feedburner is pointing to and your subscribers will never know the difference. (Feedburner)

5. Start strong. When you release your first episode, don’t spend the whole show talking about what your show will be about. Make your first show what the show will be. When that show is ready to release, post that feed everywhere! Post it to iTunes, Podcast Pickle and every other list you can get on (but don’t ever pay to do so). Also, have a good name and a logo to begin with on a 300×300 graphic for iTunes. (iTunes, Podcast Pickle, Other places)

6. Be consistent. Monthly, bi-weekly, weekly, three times a week… whatever it is release regularly on the same day about the same time. That will mean reserving a recording time ahead of time. If you don’t put it on your calender, and get permission from family to spend the time, you will not release a consistent show. It’s okay for a hobby podcast to miss a week here and there… just let people know the week before.

I hope you find these tips helpful. If I can ever answer any questions for you, don’t hesitate to contact me. If you’d like to know how I do my show, read How I Podcast.

A lot has changed in the way I record the show from when I first started. I wish I could say it was a gradual process, but a lot of my learning has taken place in just the last couple of months. My process of mixing the show down has shortened from several hours to right around 45 minutes. I thought an update on an earlier post was in order.

The How I Podcast post from August 23rd has been rewritten to reflect my new methods. This article has been a great resource for me to refer folks who are interested in starting their podcast. With these updates, I hope to help even more folks shave a few months off their own learning curve and not have to struggle through it as I did.

How I Podcast

Updated 12-07-2007

Some of our listeners, and even a few of our guest-hosts, have asked how we do what we do. I finally figured out that I needed to create a post that I can refer them to rather than giving very short email responses that don’t really help anyone.

First, the mandatory disclaimer. This is not THE way to do it… it’s just how I do it. It works for me. If you have a better way, please let me know.

Second, thanks to Michael Murloc (formerly of The Weekly Murloc) and Scott Johnson (of ExtraLife Radio) for all their help. Michael shaved three months off my learning curve and Scott’s emails helped me tremendously when we had to shift to being a Skype-cast. Also thanks to my bud Vance who turned me on to the whole iPod, iTunes, podcasting thing to begin with. Continue reading →