Wondering how frequently you should be publishing your episodes? We’ve got three ideas to put you on the right track
Successful podcasts are consistent. In tone, in content, but also with a release schedule. Most podcasts fit into three categories:
- Must listen – you’re excited for a new episode, you’re ready to play it as soon as it comes out
- Regular listen – if you’ve got the time, it’ll be played
- Occasional listen – there needs to be something about it to listen – maybe a guest or a topic you’re interested in.
Generally you want to try and move up the list. The way to do that is to deliver every time and make your show a part of a listener’s lives. You need to try and insert yourself into their routine.
To do this, you want to set realistic expectations and build up your trust by giving them a clear idea of when and how often they should be expecting new episodes. Figuring out what is right for your podcast however, is a bit of a trick.
Here are the three things we think you should consider when establishing your podcast’s release schedule:
- Your Audience’s Habits
Before settling down on a release schedule, think about your listener. We keep going on about how your listener should always come first when it comes to positioning and marketing your show, and this instance is just more of the same – your listener is king. Here are some questions that might help you figure out your audience’s listening habits:
- Are they listening on a commute to/from work?
- Is the show meant to be a companion to a certain activity? (E.g. it’s a cooking show that encourages you to cook while listening)
- Do they have to consume other content before they get to the podcast? (E.g. it’s a companion podcast to a TV show or a film with its own release schedule)
- Do they listen on weekends or weekdays?
- Is the show compatible to be listened to with children?
- Is there a specific device you want your audiences to consume the show on? (E.g. you have a lot of visual elements in the show links so listening on your phone while driving might not work)
And about 100 other questions that can help you figure out how your audiences could consume your podcast!
All of these questions will dictate not only the content of your podcast and how you market it, but also the release schedule. If it’s a news podcast for example, also have a think about what other shows come out on the same day so yours can fill in a gap rather than directly compete with other podcasts on their feed. Once you have answered all of the above questions, you will have a better understanding of what might make a good release schedule and then you just have to think about…
- Your Production’s Capabilities and Sustainability
Sure, a daily podcast sounds like a fantastic opportunity to get people hooked, but can you actually sustain a daily show? There may be ‘the perfect’ plan but if it doesn’t align in a sustainable way with your production schedule, you just have to think about the next best thing and make it work. Trust us when we say that a consistent but less frequent podcast is always better than a sporadic and confusing show that consistently breaks its promises with its listeners.
Weekly or bi-weekly releases tend to be more manageable than a daily show, but do give your listeners a dedicated commitment to fill their feeds. It is also worth questioning how many episodes you are willing to release on launch day. Especially for a serialised podcast, we do see more success with at least a couple of episodes released simultaneously as they would allow for people to binge part of the show and build up their listening habit.
Essentially, do not sacrifice the quality of your podcast for its quantity! But saying that… also do not let your feed sit idle and make sure you have a plan for any breaks, holidays or unexpected delays. Plan ahead to make sure you don’t run into any trouble. This nicely leads us to our next point…
- Your Overall Content Calendar
Filling your schedule with planned out episodes is key to keeping you sane and your audiences happy. Of course there ARE some podcasts that simply do not have the luxury of planning ahead as they are reacting to the news or current affairs, but if you have any say in what you are putting out – have an idea of your calendar for the year in your mind as you plan.
This calendar also doesn’t all have to be the same. Think about paid-for subscription content for your feed, minisodes or best-of eps to keep your feed alive as well as an occasional cross-promotion to engage your listeners (just make sure whatever you are promoting really does align with their listening preferences too, otherwise you might just be turning your listeners away).
Now that you have some ideas that will help you narrow down how you release your podcast, make sure to always communicate extremely clearly with your listeners. This could range from show descriptions to the ads that you ran, and all of your other marketing activity surrounding the show!