Almost everyone who walks into a studio for the first time brings the same hidden question: where do you start? Learning how to make a podcast does not require knowing about sound or having a ten-season plan. It requires knowing what you want to talk about, with whom and for whom. The rest you learn by recording, just as nobody learns to drive by reading the car manual.
If you are not yet sure exactly what a podcast is, start with what is a podcast and how is it different from radio. And if you are, this is the guide we would have liked to have when we started, in the same order in which the decisions are made.
Before thinking about microphones, write down in a single sentence what your podcast is about and who it is for. “Conversations with women who changed careers after forty” works. “A podcast about life” does not, because it does not help you choose guests or explain to anyone why they should listen. If the sentence fits in a WhatsApp message and the person reading it knows whether it interests them, you have your starting point.
Three formats almost always work: the interview, in which one person asks and another tells; the conversation between two or three regular hosts who know each other and give their views; and the monologue, in which a single voice explains or narrates. The interview is the most rewarding for beginners, because the guest carries the weight of the content and you only have to prepare the questions well. Decide on the length too. Between 30 and 50 minutes is a good size: there is time to go deep and it fits into a commute or a gym session.
Today most podcasts are watched as much as they are listened to. Recording on video lets you publish the full episode on YouTube and also cut short clips for social media, which is where most people will discover you. If you record audio only, everything is simpler, but you give up that second life of the content. Our recommendation is to record on video even if at first you only publish the audio: you already have the material.
A podcast is not read out. What works is a running order: a list of segments and questions in the order you want the conversation to go, with two or three spare questions in case a topic runs out early. Write the first and last questions carefully, because they are the ones people remember most. And share the topics with your guest a few days beforehand. You do not need to send the exact questions; it is enough for them to know where you are heading so they arrive relaxed. We go into detail in how to write a podcast script.
Four things are enough to start: one microphone per person, a pair of headphones, something that records the voices separately, whether a mixing desk or an interface, and a room that does not sound hollow. If you want video, add at least one camera and a light that illuminates your face from the front. You do not need to buy everything on the first day. If you are unsure about the microphone, we explain it in which podcast microphone to choose.
The most common mistake is thinking the problem is the microphone, when it is almost always the room. A room with echo makes even the best microphone sound like a bathroom. That is why, for the first episodes, it is worth recording in a prepared studio: the sound is treated, the lighting is set up and someone makes sure everything records properly while you only think about the conversation. If you want to know what a session at our studio is like, we tell you in podcast recording in Barcelona.
Editing is not about making the conversation perfect, it is about removing what is not needed: long silences, repetitions and moments that add nothing. An episode that sounds natural is more engaging than one polished until it sounds like an advert. If you record with several cameras and live switching, editing is reduced enormously, because the shot changes are already done.
To publish the audio you need a podcast hosting platform, such as Spotify for Creators, which distributes it to Spotify, Apple Podcasts and the other apps. The video goes to YouTube. Then comes the part that really makes a podcast grow: consistency. It is better to publish one episode every two weeks for a year than ten episodes in a row and then disappear. People come back to podcasts the way they go back to their usual bakery, because they know it will be open.
If we had to keep just one piece of advice, it would be this: record the first episode as soon as possible, even if it is not perfect. The second will turn out better, and the tenth will look nothing like the first. What is not recorded does not improve.
If you want to record your first episodes with a technician and three cameras, you can check the studio’s hourly rates or book directly. And if you are working out the budget, here is how much it costs to start a podcast.
If you want to go deeper into each step, we have specific guides: how to choose among podcast name ideas, what you need to record a video podcast and how to upload a podcast to Spotify once it is ready.
Written by Adina Harnagea, journalist and co-founder of the studio.