Hello my friends. I have to admit that I was at a loss on what to write in today’s blog. My focus has been on my podcast lately, so I thought, why not take this time to promote it so that more people know about it. Starting a podcast is by no means easy. I’ve been struggling a lot with the editing process and I have, more than once, questioned if this something I still want to do. So, let’s go through the process and talk about my podcast.
Starting a Podcast – Script Writing
So, obviously I knew what kind of podcast I wanted to do before I started. And yes, I had brainstormed some ideas of what to start with. This had also involved me talking to others and getting stories from them. But, getting a story from a person and making it into a podcast means I need to get a script started. Sure, I may deviate a little bit, but the script is to help me stay on track. With my scatter brain, I could ramble on and on without getting to the point. My husband has accused me of doing this a few times. But writing up scripts is very different from writing a book or writing a blog. Something else that I learned; what looks like a long script on paper isn’t as long to record. Which makes things tricky when I try to think about time lengths.
Finding Editing Software
Software is probably the hardest thing to work with because the only editing I’ve done thus far is the basic editing of reels on Instagram. So, I have been playing with Audacity for a few days and then I was having trouble with it. With my ideal launch date in mind, I wanted to see if I could combine the episode with the intro and outro. And wouldn’t you know it, I couldn’t figure it out. So, I set to looking at how Spotify for Creators looked to see if I could finish the editing there. That’s when I found Riverside. It is currently what I’m playing with and so far I am happier with it. Let’s see if that lasts.
Starting a Podcast – Advertising
So, obviously I need to get the news out about the podcast. But how do you do that when you don’t have money to advertise it? Well, other than blogging about it on your blog, you open a social media account. Now, I only have a Facebook page for it at the moment. There’s a good chance I’ll add an Instagram account, but for now, I’m just trying to get my head around everything. Plus, I already have my personal Facebook and Instagram as well as this blog’s social media accounts. Now, adding one for the podcast and potentially yet another next year when I publish my book, that’s a lot of social media accounts to run. One social media account, with regular postings, is basically a full time job. Have I taken on more than I can handle?
Putting Everything Together
So, like I mentioned, I moved away from Audacity because I was having trouble putting the whole episode together with the intro and outro of the podcast. As I played with Riverside, I actually learned a lot. And, I was able to do somethings that I didn’t think that I would be able to do. I will admit, I had to use Google to help me figure out some things in the program because I couldn’t figure some things out on my own. In fact, I reached out to a friend that I know knows editing, to see if she was familiar with the program. Unfortunately she was not, so I’m glad that I can google things. If anyone reading this knows the program and has some tips and tricks for me, please let me know.
Starting a Podcast – Getting Content
Now, I obviously have stories of working in a hotel because I work in a hotel. And my coworkers obviously have stories. But, that limits the amount of content I have. It’s not like something mind blowing or content worthy happens every day. I know that there’s a reddit page where people who work in hotels share stories. But, if I understood things correctly, that is run by someone else who shares hotel stories, so I wouldn’t want to take their content. Especially without permission. So, I emailed the other hotels in the area asking if they would share stories with me. And I made a Google account for the podcast. I’ll share it at the end of this blog, as well as the link to my Facebook page if you want to follow it.
Second Thoughts
So, the second thoughts are always something that people are going to wrestle with when starting a new venture. For this, the second thoughts are if I’ll be able to keep consistent with it. When I start, I can’t miss a week, unless I make an announcement saying that I won’t be posting the following week because of some reason or another. I know some podcasters take a break around the holidays so that they can focus on spending time with family. But otherwise, I need to be on the ball. And, if you’ve been following me on this blog you’ll know that I go through seasons where consistency is tricky. Plus, I work 5 days a week at the hotel, and I want to stay consistent with my blogs. Can I stay consistent with the podcast?
Starting a Podcast – Is It Too Much
The more I think about it the more I worry about it. Now, this is not to say that I won’t push past the second thoughts and start it. After all, I have planned two months worth of stories already. And, where as my blog I’m trying to post twice a week, the podcast only needs to be posted once a week. But, I do need to make sure I’m getting new content, writing the scripts, recording, working on my editing. It’s so much. Am I making myself too busy? To be fair, I am trying to get myself into a situation where I can work from home full time. It would be amazing to tell you all next year that I am able to go down in hours at the hotel because I’m making money from the podcast and blog. And then eventually just do this, plus publishing books, full time. This is where I tell myself that a season of insane busy schedules is worth the reward.
Time to Get Serious
So, with that little pep talk done, it’s time to get serious. No more dragging my feet and just doing a little bit here and a little bit there. Typically, I have Mondays off from the hotel, so those are going to be dedicated to working from home projects; posting the first blog of the week, writing blogs, working on scripts for the podcast, recording episodes, and working on books. Mondays will also be dedicated to preparing the podcast episode that will get released on the following Tuesday. It’s easy for me to use days off to just veg out and play games on my phone or computer, watching TV, or napping. I do love a good nap. But I really need to spend some serious time on my projects if I want them to succeed.
Starting a Podcast is Scary
I have to admit that when I came up with the idea for the podcast it was a bit nerve-wracking. Would people be excited about the podcast? Will it succeed or flop? How do I talk to other hotels? How do I get the content? And will I make any money from it? These questions still haunt me. With not being established yet, it is going to be hard to get in touch with hotel employees that want to send me stories. Now, I did get stories to cover 2 months of episodes. Hopefully my podcast will reach the right people to send me stories. The encouraging part of this is people who don’t work in a hotel, and some who do, all think the podcast is a great idea and that it will do well. There are even some people who can’t wait for my podcast to launch. Hopefully the interest grows after this blog gets posted.
Follow Along
I will give the podcast a few months before I update how things are going. After all, the blog and podcast are separate. But, I do invite any of you who are interested in the podcast to follow and check it out. I am hoping to launch the podcast on September 1st. At first, it will only be on Spotify. Riverside does have the ability to post the podcasts on different platforms, but I don’t think that it’s available on the free account. And right now, I really do not have the money to get the paid version. Maybe if the podcast becomes popular enough to get regular money. So, if you want to follow along and keep up to date on the podcast, you can follow me on Facebook here:
https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61593128701896
And if you, or someone you know, works in the hotel industry in any capacity, and have some good stories for me, please send them. You can email me at frontdeskpodcast1@gmail.com and who knows, you might have your story featured on the podcast. Anything can happen, if you try.
