Corey Marie Green - The Podcasters Audio Handbook: A Technical Guide for Creative People

This Apress imprint is published by the registered company APress Media, LLC part of Springer Nature.

The registered company address is: 1 New York Plaza, New York, NY 10004, U.S.A.

UK comedian Deborah Frances-White was about to quit comedy due to the grind of dealing with sexism in the industry. Instead, she decided to start a podcast: The Guilty Feminist. When she shared her experiences, she found a community of like-minded people and created a much-needed space for diverse comedians.

The audio quality of your podcast is important, because your podcast is important. Most podcasters start out because theyre passionate about a topic and want to share that passion with other people. Your podcast might make people laugh, teach them a new skill, or inform them about an important issue. Podcasts are an excellent way to build community. However, poor-quality audio can be an impediment to reaching your audience.

Audio quality sends a message to your listeners about how much you value your ideas. And its not just your ideas: if you invite a guest onto your podcast, you will want to give them the best platform possible. If you value your work, then it will encourage others to do the same.

Good-quality audio is not just an extra, its an accessibility issue. Improving your audio quality will make your work available to a much wider audience.

You should also consider that the audio you release into the world might not reach your listeners in the same state as you sent it. Even if your initial recording sounds OK, a podcast that has been played through a streaming service undergoes processing. On top of that, you have no control over the equipment your listeners are using or the circumstances in which theyre listening. You do have control over the recording and editing process.

You cant stop a member of your audience from listening to your podcast in a laundromat out of an old shoe, but you can release a podcast with high-quality audio

Maximizing your audio quality makes your podcast accessible to a wider range of people. When creating a podcast, you should consider who your audience might be and what needs they have. Low-quality audio could make it impossible for certain people to access your work.

People who are hard of hearing particularly need a podcast to be clear. This might be a specific consideration if you expect your audience to be older or to be made up of people who frequent rock concerts.

Another thing to consider is that you or an interviewee might have difficulty speaking. Alternatively, you could be speaking with an accent that is different to your listeners. Its incredibly important to include a diversity of voices in the media, and independent media such as podcasts often take up this work. In this instance, a high-quality recording will be helpful for the listener.

Your listeners attention may be divided between your podcast and another task. In 2019, Edison Research surveyed podcast listeners in the United States and found that 59% of respondents had listened to a podcast while doing chores. You may be competing for your listeners attention with the task of removing mold from between bathroom tiles. You will know from your own experience that it takes your full attention to be able to understand poor-quality audio. You want to make it easy for your listener to be able to concentrate on both tasks.

Often people listen to podcasts in noisy environments: on the train, while driving a car, or while working. Audio that has inconsistent volume levels is impossible to listen to in these circumstances.

Your listener might be using poor-quality equipment, or they might have a poor Internet connection. Its not uncommon for people to listen to a podcast using low-quality earbuds or out of the tinny speaker of their smartphone.

Podcasts are often played through the speaker of a smartphone. This can significantly reduce audio quality