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The initial build of your website can be a tricky and expensive task, especially when you’re starting. After all, it must look good, sound great, and attract visitors.

People want to stand out from the crowd, to separate themselves from the “best-titled-podcast-ever” and “quirky people doing quirky things” podcasts that clutter up your iTunes or Spotify. But changing the look and feel of your website can be a headache. You don’t have time to be a designer, so where do you start?

It doesn’t require hours of searching or hundreds of dollars to make your unique podcast brand shine. Follow our guide for FREE and learn to create a show-stopping podcast website.

Hosting

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of choosing a podcast host, you should know a few things about what hosting is and why it’s necessary. Hosting is the service that allows you to put your website up on the internet. There are two main types of hosting: web hosting (the kind that most people think of when they hear “hosting”) and podcast hosting.

Hosting can be confusing because web hosts and podcast hosts are two different things—you’ll need to choose both, but they don’t have to be from the same place. A web host is a service that allows your site to exist on the internet. You could get a free one here or there, but really, you want a professional one that will enable you to customize your site to look and function as you want it to. On the other hand, a podcast host is where your recordings live (so it’s usually something like Libsyn or Podomatic).

Domain Name

A custom domain name is a website address that doesn’t automatically take the user to a designated site. The term “generic domain names” refers to domain names that are not unique; therefore, visitors to the site will be automatically redirected to another predetermined website. 

You should definitely have a custom domain name when you create a podcast. This is especially important if you plan on making money from your podcast in the future (which most people don’t initially consider). Google and Apple want to keep their search results as relevant as possible for their users, so they both started using mobile-friendly websites as a ranking factor when determining where your podcast shows up in search results. Having an accessible website for your podcast will increase your chances of appearing at the top of search results for potential listeners.

Content

Podcasts are a medium that has become increasingly popular in the past few years. It is the fastest-growing format for entertainment media. The reason why podcasts are so popular is because of their ability to engage their listeners. Podcasts can be downloaded, streamed, or listened to on demand, which makes them accessible anywhere at any time. But all podcasts are not created equal.

Think about podcasts like any other form of content: some are created with the sole intention of entertaining their audience, while others are made with a specific agenda. The best podcasts have entertaining content and an informative plan that engages the listener and encourages them to take action. Measure your podcast’s success by how well you can inform your audience while keeping it entertaining.

To accomplish this goal, your podcast website must be an extension of your podcast. Your website will serve as a place where listeners can learn more about your podcast and its topics, as well as a place where they can click play and listen to the latest episode(s).

When considering your website’s design, remember that its purpose should be to convert visitors into listeners and encourage them to subscribe to your podcast’s feed to experience new episodes.

Design

Designing a podcast website is much different than creating a site with multiple pages. We want to make sure it is manageable with lots of distracting elements. Still, we also need to provide enough information so people can find what they’re looking for. The first thing we’ll do is design a logo and make sure there’s space on the site for a show notes page and any other extra pages you might want (a contact us page, etc.). We’ll consider how much text your average podcast episode contains and leave some room for images or other design features. We’ll create a navigation bar to make it easy for listeners to find the information they need intuitively—the essential elements may be placed at the top level, such as your podcast cover art and show notes. In contrast, secondary factors can be tucked away under more general categories.

As with any website project, it’s essential to think about how your site will work on mobile devices. Suppose many of your listeners will listen on their commute or at the gym. In that case, you want to ensure they can access your content just as easily on their iPhones as they can on their laptops at home.

Jumpstart your podcast

With a podcast website, you can do more than provide information about your podcast. You can become a resource for your listeners to tune into and for potential new listeners to discover. Unlike the “breathing room” of a blog, podcasts are static by nature, so you need to ensure the information on your site is a practical tool. That means you can be creative, though! You should have some new ideas and concepts to play with. So don’t be afraid! The time is now to create a show-stopping podcast website. All you need to do is get started. Contact us immediately to start your podcast journey!

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