How to Budget Your Podcast for the Year Ahead

Get your podcast budget into gear with these key questions, and create great content that serves your business.

Making a great podcast requires some pretty smart planning. If you’re working on your budget for next year, you might be wondering what items you need to factor in to create a quality podcast that delivers results. In this guide, we’ll give you the information you need to get started on budgeting for your podcast, to help you get buy-in internally and plan effectively. It’s very hard to plan ahead when you’ve got a lot of unknowns, so let us help you get started! Here are the questions you need to answer to achieve a clearer picture of your costs:

What format will your podcast take?

The format of a podcast impacts the production costs significantly - some formats are just more expensive to produce than others! If you aren’t sure what kinds of format a podcast can take, we’ve got a great blog to help you out. Start thinking about the type of story you hope to tell, and which format best suits it.

It’s important to note that it is often cheaper to produce podcasts that involve fewer speakers, for example, or which revolve around a dialogue, rather than those that involve journalistic research and/or the piecing together of multiple audio sources. The more complex the audio requirements, in other words, the more costly your podcast can become. However, it’s important not to lose sight of what you hope to achieve, as well as what format best suits your story and how this will impact your budget.

Don’t sacrifice your goals for the sake of a monologue podcast, for instance, if this doesn’t suit the engagement you intend to spark! After all, the podcast is there to augment your wider content strategy and complement your business goals — be that growing brand awareness or delivering leads.  

How many episodes will you create?

Making a decision about the length of your series is an important factor for your budget. There’s always a trade-off to be made between the length and depth of your podcast series, the results you want to achieve, and your budget. It’s a balancing act.

 A longer run of episodes can actually be a more cost effective solution in many cases — with clever production timetabling, you can record in larger blocks or make the most of a paid host or recording slots, and thus your overall costs are likely to be cheaper per episode. You’re also able to really build trust with your audience, as well as have more opportunity to iterate based on the data your seeing, with a longer run

What host will you use?

The host can make or break a podcast. Will you get external host, or have you got someone in mind to host, internally? External hosts can be expensive but they often come with an audience already, and are experienced in the art of podcast hosting. This can help maximise your efforts at audience-building and make for a smooth production experience.

However, in some cases, it’s more appropriate (and cheaper!) to use an internal host. For instance, if your podcast relies on insider knowledge of your industry, or is very brand-specific, it can make sense to use an internal host that can speak to this. For all first time hosts, we recommend training sessions - and you can check out our blog on how to become a great host here.

How will you produce your podcast?

You have a few options when it comes to producing your podcast: You can go at it alone, or you can utilise the help of a production company for a slick result. If you want the lowest cost option you can buy your own mics and editing software – this could be as cheap as a couple of hundred pounds, through to thousands of pounds.

 The better the gear, the better the quality. However, there is a significant degree of technical knowledge required to get the best out of your equipment, no matter how fancy it is! Without the right conditions, even the most expensive audio equipment will underperform. With expertise on your side, you can guarantee a much better quality, genuinely professional result. Additionally, using an agency or production company they can support you on the development of your format and concept, as well as researching and scripting the episodes, not just the delivery of the final product.

 It’s therefore important to understand how much you can spend on this endeavour, and the range of costs involved in hiring a podcast company to deliver your show. At Message Heard, we provide a bespoke service that can cover anything and everything from coming up with the core idea for your show; through format and sound design; through episode scripting; to recording, editing and polishing the final article. We know how to ensure you maximise the results from creating podcast content that aligns with your business goals, by working with you every step of the way.

How will you promote your podcast?

Creating a podcast is exciting, but it’s not enough to simply put together episodes - you have to promote it, and make sure it’s disseminated properly.

 When it comes to building your audience, you can use either earned promotion or paid promotion. Earned promotion is when your audience or customers help share your content, as a result of loyalty to or simply being fans of your content. Paid promotion involves utilising a third-party channel, such as sponsorships or buying advertising on other sites. This could be anything from social media advertising through to more traditional marketing efforts like print ads.  

Your marketing strategy will likely rely on a combination of paid and earned, but both have budgetary considerations. When it comes to earned, make sure to account for things like internal time, creation of promotional assets and any tools you might need like Headliner or a social media scheduling tool.

How to build the case for podcasting?

 We all know an important part of budgeting is thinking about the results and outcomes you can achieve. Next week, we will be publishing a guide to generate buy-in internally for your podcast. In it we lay out how to build the case around your budget, so stay tuned.

In the meantime, don’t hesitate to contact us at Message Heard to find out more about how to build the budget for your podcast — and how to get the balance right between the costs involved and the business goals you intend to achieve! 

Want to learn more? At Message Heard, we make podcasts that help your brand reach new audiences. Find out how we can help by getting in touch today!