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Deciding on the subject and format of your first podcast

So you’re ready to embark on the podcast adventure but you’re still hesitant as to which topic or format you should go with. Afraid of not being original enough or not being able to captivate others? Take a deep breath, let’s take a look at how you can find your style!

Deciding on the subject of your podcast is crucial for the rest of your adventure. You need to be comfortable enough with the subject in order to talk about it in front of a microphone. However, you also need to have something to say about it.

To make sure you can go the distance, establish a list of ten episodes in advance. That way, you’ll see whether or not your passion for Flamin’ Hot Cheetos can be adapted into several episodes.

Your subject could be incredibly specific and niche. If so, you should see it as an advantage as less people will have handled the subject before you. The more precise and peculiar your topic, the more likely you are to have a public. Head over to iTunes and have a listen to some of the podcasts that deal with the topic that you’d like to address. That should give you a slightly better idea as to whether the topic could be of interest and à la mode.

In any case, go with a topic that interests you personally in order to avoid getting bored after 4 episodes. A good subject is therefore a subject that provokes interest, one which you’ll be able to create content for and one which fascinates you. However, the subject is not the only thing that will make your podcast unique. The concept and format will also play a major role.

Now that you’ve chosen to talk about sports (for example), the question is: what format should I adopt? For instance, you can talk about sports, alone, with your friends, with professionals etc. In other words, the format is the way in which you handle your subject.

There are different types of formats:

Solo
Group
Interview
Personal Storytelling
Fiction
Documentary

This choice will depend on your desire, your time but also the material that you have.

Defining the concept of your podcast

The concept is the way in which you will approach your subject. Are you going to stay serious or take a slightly more comic stance? You will also need to define whether or not your podcast will include sequences, bulletins or whether you want to involve your listeners: this is all part of your concept.

If your subject happens to be rather vast, the ideal option would be to associate it with a strong concept. For example, talk about a series while cooking.

Size matters…

The duration of your podcast will obviously depend on your concept as well as the frequency of your episodes. If you feel motivated and you’re able to maintain quality content over a long time, perfect! On the other hand, if you think that you’re going to reach your limit after 15 minutes, don’t force yourself.

Now that you have the subject and format of your podcast, all you have to do is gather the necessary material to start recording.

Emma Potier

Emma Potier is Head of Brand Content at Ausha. She leads the company’s content strategy and works closely with her team to create content that helps podcasters successfully launch and grow their shows. She also regularly represents Ausha as a spokesperson, both in internal webinars and at industry events. A serial podcaster, she has launched several podcasts and currently hosts Tips, Ausha’s podcast. With over five years of experience and more than 100 episodes produced, she shares practical marketing strategies to help podcasters amplify their reach.