Every one of us wants an audience for our show. Because if there is no audience then what use is our podcast. Isn’t it?
So in this episode, you will learn a simple3 phase podcast structure that you can put to your podcast which will help you to hook your audience and make them listen to the entire episode.
2 questions that I am often asked by my students are, how to make a listener listen to an entire episode and, why would somebody want to listen to an entire episode?
These are very valid questions and it can be difficult to hook and retain your audience, I agree.
But you can make somebody listen to an entire episode if you tell them at the beginning itself as to why they should listen to the episode.
And then, you need to keep pushing them to listen to the entire episode as they travel through the episode.
But then the question is how do you do it?
You can do it by following a structure for your podcast which is what we will be discussing in this episode.
Podcast Structure and How to use it to Hook Your Audience
I always emphasize putting together a podcast structure. It not only helps you in keeping your audience engaged but also helps ensure that your podcast is organized and follows a particular style.
A lot of times people avoid structuring their show just because they think that it curtails their creative freedom.
But keep in mind that a structure only provides a framework for your creativity and in no way cuts down your creative freedom.
Remember that even seasoned filmmakers follow a structure and that itself tells you the importance of having a structure.
Some of you might be thinking that putting a structure can make your show monotonous.
Here again what you need to keep in mind is that the podcast structure is not what makes your show unique or, interesting.
It is your style of delivery.
If you can narrate a story, then there is no reason why your show will sound monotonous. Definitely not because of putting together a podcast structure.
Now with that out of the way, let us look at a proven structure for your podcast and how this can help hook your audience.
The INTRO
This is where you need to grab the audience’s interest and guide them into your show.
Every episode needs to starts with a clip that tells your audience what they will learn in the episode and why it is important for them. This is a WIIFM at an episode level which will keep changing with every episode.
Then comes your show intro where the listener gets to know why they should listen to you and your show and what will they gain if they do.
This is interchangeable. It is entirely your choice on what should go first. I like putting the episode intro in the beginning so that my audience knows why they would want to listen further.
Another reason for doing this is because I believe that the listener has tuned into the show because he already knows that my show is something that can help him. So rather than making him listen to the podcast intro, I would prefer him to listen to the episode intro.
But if you are putting your show intro in the beginning, just ensure that you keep your show intro below 30 seconds.
The MIDDLE PHASE
Now that you have the attention of your audience, it is important that you keep their attention.
Before you start talking about the topic, give a little information on the pain points and the problems that you are going to address in the episode.
Then start talking about the topic. While you are doing it, just ensure that you keep teasing your audience with information that is coming towards the later part of your episode in a natural conversational style.
This will keep them engaged and they will listen to the entire episode.
Finally, close the topic.
The OUTRO
The outro usually has 3 parts though the 3rd part is completely optional. But I recommend that you keep it.
RECAP – The first part is a recap. Summarize what your audience learned in the episode. You can quickly talk about it in a few points. Don’t prolong this part.
CTA (Call to Action) – This is one of the most important parts of the outro and I see that a lot of podcasters miss out on this.
Add your call to action. Prompt your audience to take an action. It can be anything from visiting your website for more information to downloading a freebie or, even subscribing and reviewing your show.
Whatever it is, ensure that there is a call to action.
Tease your next episode – This is an excellent technique and I see the Marvel folks using it in most of their Avenger series movies. This makes people wait till the last to see what is coming.
In fact, you wait until all the credits have rolled to see that teaser. Just think of a time when you have done that.
This is an excellent way of generating curiosity.
You can use this technique to generate curiosity for your next episode.
But again, as I mentioned this is completely optional and can work only if you have a content calendar in place.
Another way of using this is to add it towards the end of the RECAP which can also do really well.
Conclusion
So that’s the simplest 3-phase podcast structure you can find and how this structure can help hook your audience.
Just to recap – the structure consists of 3 parts – The Intro (where you generate the audience’s interest and make them listen to the podcast), the middle phase where you give them the real information and finally the OUTRO where you recap, add a call to action and finally tease your next episode.
Follow this 3 phase structure for your podcast and you will see that your audience keeps coming back to listen to your episodes.
Resources that I recommend
Here are some of the resources that I use and recommend, if you are planning to start a podcast –
- Acast Podcast hosting – My podcast is hosted with Acast and I simply love their support and simplicity.
- Behringer Audio Interface – You will need an audio interface if you are using an XLR microphone. This is my recommended audio interface.
- Zencastr – Zencastr is the easiest option to record interviews, both audio-only and audio+video.
- Audacity – This is the best and the most feature-rich free audio editing software.
- Blue Yeti USB Microphone – My recommended microphone
Thank you for joining in
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