Client
Own project
Industry
Outdoor and Audio
Year
2021 – 2023
Challenge
I saw an opportunity to launch a podcast dedicated to the theme of long distance hiking. Yet with no experience making a podcast I needed to work it out from the beginning.
A success would have looked like 10 episodes, and 30 listens per episode.
When the show finished I had 41 episodes with 600 monthly listeners, I’d found sponsorship, and signed off an agreement to have an exclusively sponsored episode.

Action
I knew I wanted to get early momentum on the idea and booked guests and interviews before I did anything else. With 7 guests booked, I conducted my research, and purchased a microphone.
After I had spoken with my 7 guests I learned how to edit the podcast, using downloaded podcasts from professional shows to determine the best volumes and fades for my show.
I selected some theme music, and a audio tone for the show, before pairing the audio branding to a matching visual aesthetic.
From here, every episode was scheduled, planned, recorded, edited, published and marketed by me, giving me a full understanding of exactly what’s required when putting together a podcast.
Show launch checklist
Launching a podcast was hugely rewarding, and remains one of my strengths and career defining moments. Gaining sponsorship for the show was a huge point of validation for the work I put in, and gave the show commercial viability.
If you are considering launching a podcast I would suggest the following steps in loosely this order:
- Brainstorm show themes, and consider a name for your podcast.
- Sit on it for a week or two. You will know when you have the right show, and being comfortable with your show direction will help with a frustrating and time consuming show pivot later on,
- Start emailing and sending DM’s to guests with a Calendy link to book them onto your show. Be respectful of their time and grateful that they are on your show.
- Offer a good user experience for each guest, with a pre-booking word document containing all the information they need from zoom/riverside FM links to how to set their space up for maximum sound quality.
- Research 20 questions per guest. The more you have, the better your interview will be. Many guests will answer questions you have written without you asking them. So make sure you have extra.
- Turn up on time, enjoy the recording, laugh, ask questions and thank your guest for their time.
- Learn how to edit using YouTube tutorials, or outsource it.
- Design your cover artwork using Canva.
- Design individual episode artwork using Canva.
- Upload your podcast to a free hosting platform such as Anchor.fm
- Don’t over think where your Podcast is hosted. If its hosted, then its available and honestly not much else matters here.
- Write your show notes and add to your episodes on Anchor.fm
- Create social media assets on Canva for your podcast episodes.
- Schedule these assets into your social media. Make sure to add your guest as a colabirator if they are on IG as this will increase your reach.
- Share your show with relevant Facebook Groups, Reditt communities, Influencers, your grandma, and more.
- Sit back, be patient and repeat the process again.