To be able to voice your opinion to a worldwide audience and make money out of it can sound a bit too good to be true, but honestly it’s just what a good podcaster does on a daily basis. Some of the greatest podcasters may seem like they are having a chilled out, casual conversation but, truth be told, it's a by-product of serious hours put into scripting the episode and practising the delivery. If you ever wonder how podcasters get so good at talking, you should know it takes effort; after all, Rome wasn't built in a day!
Just like your favourite reality show, a podcast needs to be scripted for it to work with the audience. Even if your podcast focuses on a topic that you have bucket loads of knowledge and experience about, scripting is a singular way to ensure you have touched on all the key points and presented them effectively from start to finish.
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Scripting ensures that you do not wander off topic, stall with filler words like ‘uhs’ and ‘ums’, and cut your guest speaker off while they talk (awkward much!). Not to mention the amount of time it saves you while recording and editing the podcast; you see, time is money after all.
Now that you know why it’s important to script, let us take you through 5 tips you can make use of while scripting your next podcast episode.
- Get your basics right:
This might sound like a no-brainer, but hear us out. Before you start talking, you need to know exactly what you’re going to talk about. You need to have a clear idea of your podcast theme, the motivation behind creating the podcast, and what you aim to achieve by releasing the podcast. Plotting the basic structural points will give you clarity on how to start a podcast. Basic points include the intro and outro, the main discussion points, guest intros, and advertisements or sponsor slots. Once these are on paper, all you have to do is bring them to life like a pro.
2. Keep it conversational:
No one likes to be schooled and made to feel dumb. When you are scripting your podcast, keep it simple, to the point and conversational, almost like you are talking to a friend or family member. Drop the jargon and use easy-to-understand words that listeners can relate to. You might lose your audience if you come across as preachy or bookish, so try to be as authentic and candid as possible.
3. Mind the time:
Once you have clarity on how long you want each episode of your podcast to be, your script needs to fit into that time frame. Always remember that it takes a shorter time to speak something than to write it in text.
Keeping that in mind, you can take a test to figure out how much you should be writing. Write down the introduction to your podcast episode and record it. This will give you an idea of how many words fit in a particular time frame. From here onwards, you will be able to script depending on how long you want each episode to be.
4. Let your creativity run wild:
You remember the excitement you felt when you came up with an idea for your podcast? You need to put that same energy and passion into your scripting. Aim at creating a mental image using your words, because that is exactly what the audience will visualise when they listen to you talk. Irrespective of the podcast platform, be as creative, emotive, and expressive as you can be, because your audience will feed off that energy. Also remember to take yourself less seriously and have fun while scripting the episode, so that it is evident in the way you share your story with the audience while recording.
5. Edit to perfection:
Always edit your script. Nothing is ever perfect, but that shouldn't stop you from achieving your creative best. If you have a simple script, detail it out as much as possible, right from the pauses to the segues. This will give you more control over the flow of your episode. Get as detailed as writing down which sound effect will be placed where and for how long.
Clever jokes and funny one liners in the introduction are awesome as long as you reach the heart of the episode soon enough. And how long should an episode be? Well the answer is however long you need to take to put your point across in the most effective and fun way, without repetition and straying away from the topic.
To summarise, scripting shouldn’t feel like a chore, but an exercise to improve your overall podcast production experience. When your script gives off a good, positive energy, your recording follows suit. You can get on your scripting journey today by joining Kool Kanya’s course, launch your podcast in 3 days. We will teach you how to start a podcast, guide you through scripting, recording, and editing your podcast, and leave you with tips to make it big in the podcast industry. Sign up fast to learn how to start your podcast today!
