Chances are, if you are a fan of Ricky Gervais or indeed a user of iTunes, you’ve heard the term ‘podcast’. If you’re reading this, you’ve almost certainly heard of it. Even if you haven’t, we’ve got you covered. We will show you just how to set up a podcast with WordPress as your software.
What are Podcasts and how do they work?
We told you we’ve got you covered. A podcast essentially consists of an episodic, sequential series of audio files. These audio-files, together as a podcast, can be subscribed to and downloaded by users to listen in.
Much like WordPress allows users to subscribe to blog posts via an RSS feed, a user can also subscribe to your podcast that you’ve recorded and put up, using apps and programs that help with an RSS feed. Apps exist on multiple platforms over Windows, Linux, Mac OS, the Android, iPhone and Windows Phone mobile platforms as well.
Setting up your Podcasting Website
- A good webhost. This is vitally important. You’ll need a good web hosting provider for the site you want to place your podcasts in. We recommend BlueHost, who are an official WordPress hosting provider and hence, you can use BlueHost through your WordPress interface.
- A trusty media host. Your recordings as podcasts are usually large chunks of media files and for quick, easy access, a separate media host is recommended. We’d suggest Blubrry, a platform that does podcasts well.
The Hardware.
As you gain popularity and numbers and listeners, it’s only imperative that you will want to know about better recording equipment. As a beginner however, here are a few excellent microphones that work on a budget.
- Samson C01U (USB) Entry-level microphone.
- Rode Podcaster (USB) The best value USB mic we could find.
- Heil PR-40 (XLR connection. For professionals.)
We also recommend a flat response, DJ studio headphones such as the Sony MDR-V6.
Recording your Podcast.
You will require an audio recording software to capture your content. The most widely used software is the free, open-source Audacity. Professional, high quality podcasts are a breeze with it. Clicking here will give you a detailed look of how to record via Audacity.
Publishing your Podcast.
- Uploading your recording. By logging into your Blubrry hosting account, you can add your podcast file by clicking on Content Media Files. This will lead you to the next screen, where clicking on ‘Upload New Media’, will get the job done.
- Now that you’ve got your recording and uploading done, all that’s left is publishing your content! First, install and activate the Blubrry PowerPress Podcasting Plugin, which is a part of WordPress. This serves as a direct link to your Blubrry account, where all podcasts will be uploaded to – Blubrry, as your media host.
- Adding your first Podcast. To publish your first podcast, navigate to Posts > Add new. A catchy title helps, along with a description.
iTunes Integration
- Previewing your Podcast on iTunes. Launch iTunes on your device. To check how your Podcast link to be shared will look like, go to File > Subscribe to Podcast and enter your feed URL. An example URL would look like : http://www.sample.com/feed/podcast . Make sure you have Permalinks enabled for the link to show your RSS feed directly. Now comes the testing part. Entering the URL in iTunes should fetch your feed and display it. If it’s showing up, everything is dandy!
- Submitting your Podcast to iTunes. The simple part. Launch iTunes and click on Podcasts to find a link which says ‘Submit a Podcast’. This will ask you for your podcast feed URL which you’ve set up earlier.
That’s it! Once the iTunes review staff approves it, it’ll be added on to the iTunes Podcast directory and will be accessible by millions around the world! Good luck and happy podcasting!