A podcast hosting platform will enable the distribution of audio content. However, YouTube also allows its users to upload any video, including podcast videos.
YouTube is a popular platform for uploading video podcasts, as many podcast listeners use it to search for video content.
It is important to remember that while YouTube is a popular platform for video content, it is not explicitly designed for podcasting.
But by including visual content such as moving/static images or pre-recorded videos in your podcast’s audio, you can use it as a podcast hosting platform.
In this article, we will also provide information on tools that can be used to create YouTube podcast videos.
By the end of this article, you will have a better understanding of the benefits and necessary steps for successfully launching your podcast on YouTube.
Reasons Why You Should Start/Not Start a Podcast on YouTube
Although YouTube is the second largest website, it is not a podcast-hosting platform. It is mainly for video content creation and uploading.
Advantages of Starting a Podcast on YouTube
The following are the advantages of starting a podcast on YouTube.
- Boost engagement for your video podcast episodes.
- Increase Visibility and Brand Awareness.
- YouTube analytics helps you gain valuable insights.
- Your YouTube podcast can act as a means of income through YouTube ads, sponsorships and more.
- It is easy to learn how to use YouTube because of its extensive online knowledge base.
- YouTube visual content aids your podcast growth by increasing your audience retention rate.
Disadvantages of Starting a Podcast on YouTube
Your knowledge of YouTube can greatly impact the potential success of your podcast. Before creating a YouTube channel for your podcast, consider the potential drawbacks listed below.
- A new podcast episode may require more time to gain exposure among YouTube users.
- YouTube users can hinder your podcast growth by leaving their honest reviews (even negative impressions) about your videos.
- YouTube will only promote your videos if your audience is engaging by liking, commenting and sharing your videos.
The Ultimate Steps to Enhancing Your Podcast Visibility on YouTube
There are five important steps you need to learn and practice to start your podcast on YouTube successfully. Knowing and following these steps can help ensure the long-term success of your podcast channel on YouTube.
These steps are the foundation of the most successful podcasts on YouTube. They are outlined and explained below:
Research
Creating and starting a podcast on YouTube without research is like gambling with your time, effort, and resources.
So instead of wasting time, do thorough research on the search inquiries related to your niche, your competitors and the best catchy name for your video podcast. Learn more about this below:
Niche/Topic:
Your niche/topic should be what you are passionate about or the interest of most of your followers.
Also, do some internal research and soul-searching to understand your podcast goals. Once you have an answer, be very specific about your video content creation.
Your Target Audience:
Write down all the significant audiences you want to attract to your podcast.
The writing process will help you determine your show’s content and format/style. The possible format styles are:
- In-person interview shows
- Remote interview shows
- Roundtable discussions in video format
- Solo audio in video format.
Keyword Inquiries:
Keyword research helps plan how you may gain the trust of the target audience who don’t know you from Adam.
Several search engine users know and understand the questions they need you to answer. In contrast, others will only search for word clusters because they are still determining their inquiries.
Suppose you are just starting a new podcast on YouTube; it is best to answer 3 to more word cluster topics related to your niche.
You can use keyword research tools such as Google Search Console and Answer the public for keyword and topic research. Check social media platforms such as Quora to gather data insight for your target market.
Your Competitors:
Every YouTube podcast channel has a competitor. Whether these channels are new or not, look for these podcasts.
Learn and observe how these channels are growing.
Remember to keep adding more competitors that will help refine your values and build on what you learned.
Your Podcast Name:
Your podcast name should be clear, catchy and short. If it is too long, your target audience will get confused. Instead, choose a podcast name to position you as a better authority in your niche.
When choosing a name for your podcast:
- Use words that state your podcast niche
- Use words that voice the solution your podcast provides (your brand values)
In short, use your podcast name to communicate the values of your podcast content. Also, talk about topics you and your ideal audience are passionate about.
Get the Proper Equipment
The next step is choosing quality equipment for your video podcast. Fortunately, you can access YouTube podcasting equipment resources and tutorials almost anywhere.
You can even use low-cost equipment to enable your podcast audience to start growing.
The following are the essential items you will need:
An External Camera:
You will need a camera to film your podcast show. There are many cameras in the market, so do your research to find one that fits your needs and budget.
You can use your phone or an external camera to record the entire episode.
But the non-negotiable rule is; to purchase the best camera you can afford. Doing that will help to increase your audience retention.
A Good Quality Microphone:
The audio of your podcast is another crucial factor to consider when starting your podcast on YouTube.
We recommend you get a dynamic microphone for the best audio quality.
Additionally, you can add a pop filter to reduce unwanted background noise or use headphones to hear yourself during the filming of your podcast show. For quality audio, you can use a room set up or a soundproofing booth for your videos.
A Computer or Laptop:
Creating a video podcast requires you to be in the camera frame.
The littlest movement could move you out of the camera frame. Connecting your camera to your computer will combat this issue.
The connected computer will let you know when you are out of frame, thereby hastening the video process.
Lighting:
To make your podcast look professional and visually friendly, buy some light equipment or use natural light from the sun.
Put on enough lighting equipment or use natural lighting to record. It helps with the total video quality of your podcast.
You can purchase ring lights or LED lights or sit at the front of a window to leverage the natural light from the sun.
Tripod Stand:
A tripod stand is necessary because of its stability function for your microphone and camera. You can get one of those affordable ones if you are on a budget.
Editing software:
It is necessary that you choose an editing software that can help you edit the audio and cut off audio mistakes.
You need editing and recording software such as Audacity to record and edit the audio if you recorded it separately.
You can use video editing software such as Adobe Premiere Pro to edit and add video slides, special effects and audio to your podcast video for a better audience retention rate.
You may choose an editing software to help you edit the audio and cut off any audio mistakes, such as echoes or differences in volume.
Learn How to Use YouTube as a Podcast Platform
YouTube offers podcasters like you many features that can help your show to grow.
YouTube can host your video podcasts, create an RSS feed, and submit your show to directories like iTunes and Stitcher.
Doing the following will help promote your video podcast on search engines:
Create a YouTube Channel/Handle:
To start a podcast on YouTube, create a YouTube channel/handle for your show and upload your episodes. Using a YouTube handle for your show will make it easier for your audience to tag you when they use your video cards).
Make your title catchy and optimized
The first thing you want to include in your video podcast is a catchy title. Optimize your titles by inputting your primary keyword.
Search engines such as YouTube will display your optimized podcast on the result page. Also, if the searcher is not impressed by the title, your target audience won’t click on your YouTube video.
Use an Attractive Thumbnail:
Next, you need to decide on the best thumbnail you will use. Thumbnails are the first thing YouTube users will see when your video shows up. If it is not attractive and valuable, nobody will watch it.
Create a thumbnail with humans and text to increase the number of YouTube users that click your videos.
Make Your Video Shows Shareable:
Optimize your videos for sharing and promotion by creating YouTube shorts. Marking the intended micro-videos/shorter videos is easier when you script/outline your podcast.
If you have uploaded your YouTube videos, watch this video. The video will teach you how to create YouTube shorts.
If you prefer to learn by reading, follow these steps:
- Click on the video in your YouTube channel
- Select create under your video
- Then choose edit into short
Add Keywords:
Rank your videos by adding keywords to your YouTube handle description and tags.
Apart from adding keywords to the description and tags, allowing YouTube to index your videos will help elevate your loyal subscribers.
If you need more help with keyword research and gathering, you can use Tubebuddy.
We advise that you use different hashtags for each podcast video. Hashtags with lesser competition should be on your list, especially when you recently started.
Make Your Show Interactive:
Lastly, use slides to engage listeners with the different segments of your show. You can frequently change the background image to grab the attention of listeners who got lost in the show’s monotonous visuals.
After editing and uploading an episode on your YouTube handle, create an RSS feed. YouTube’s RSS feed generator can help you.
Then grant podcast directories such as iTunes access to your podcast.
Submitting your RSS feed to podcast directories will help you become one of the best new podcasters.
Use Social Media to Promote Your Podcast
Promoting your podcast through social media and other platforms will boost its visibility. Make sure to promote each episode on your social media channels.
Also, consider encouraging your listeners to share your podcast with their friends.
Pursuing social media ads and collaborative campaigns with other podcasters is advisable. However, for effective promotion, distribute valuable content and promote as necessary.
Another great way to promote your video podcast is to create micro clips/YouTube shorts and include slides. While slides will enable viewers to tag you when they use your statements, micro clips will cause traffic, in contrast.
As your podcast attracts more viewers, monetize it. To monetize your YouTube post, turn on YouTube ads, i.e., joining the YouTube partner program.
Other monetization ideas are:
- Getting sponsorships deals
- Selling your other products on your podcast.
Analyze Your Podcast’s Performance
It’s relevant for you to analyze the performance of your podcast once in a while.
Investigate which episodes worked well and why. Then improve your future podcast episodes as appropriate.
You can use YouTube Analytics to track things such as:
- The total views and downloads of each YouTube podcast episode.
- The range of countries in which most of your listeners live.
- The device type your audience is using to listen to your show.
Use insight from YouTube Analytics and the comments section to decide the topics to cover in future episodes.
Tips for Starting a Successful YouTube Podcast
YouTube is a visual and audio-engaging software. It offers a refreshing alternative to the older audio-engaging benefits of podcasts. It’s great that you saw a future for your podcast on YouTube because this platform is also a goldmine for gaining a loyal audience.
- Create a website for your podcast
- Be Consistent
- Script/Outline your YouTube podcast content for consistent value
- Bring your microphone into the video so that your volume is consistent
- Keep your episodes short and easy to understand
- Engage with your audience
- Use keywords and SEO to help people find your podcast
- Collaborate with other podcasters and brands
- Stay up to date with the latest podcasting trends
Conclusion
It will benefit you to script and plan your podcast before recording or creating a video for YouTube. Scripting will increase your podcast’s content quality and make promotion easier.
Remember to explore YouTube, use quality recording software/equipment and thoroughly research your competitors.
After all, consistency, engagement and providing value to your audience is key.
So go out there and start making video podcasts on YouTube!
Frequently Asked Questions for How to Start a Podcast on YouTube
The ideal podcast length to avoid boring your listeners is around 30 minutes.
This medium-length podcast gives you enough time to provide in-depth content.
Note that the length of your podcast episodes depends on your competitor’s podcast length and the topics you want to discuss in an episode.
You need 1000 followers to start making money from your YouTube podcast.
Have it at the back of your mind that you can make money with any number of followers.
Take the opportunity of brand sponsorships and advertising services to monetize your podcast.
Yes, because YouTube is searchable and it is the second most used search engine. It is visually engaging and easy to understand and use.
Additionally, it enables you to create a micro-video podcast, add a link to the full episode in the micro-clip and distribute it to other platforms.
No. YouTube will strike another creator if they use part or all your video content without asking for the right to use it. Your podcast is safe due to the US copyright law that provides creator security for their works online and offline.
The difference between a podcast and YouTube is that:
A podcast is an audio file platform that allows other podcast hosting platforms to index your podcast. While YouTube is a video file search engine social media platform, it is rich with talented creators that can interact in real-time.
