Growing your online business requires a platform where you regularly publish content to connect with your audience. The most popular platforms are podcasts and Youtube channels, but having to choose between both can be difficult.
You need to pick the one that will propel your business forward significantly. Before diving head-on into YouTubing or podcasting, figure out which one serves your needs.
Podcast?
Here is a little trivia; the word podcast is a blended word derived from the words ‘iPod‘ and ‘Broadcast.’
A podcast is similar to a television series with episodes; only they have audio episodes with no video attached to them. Podcasts are often focused on a particular topic.
YouTube?
YouTube is a Google-owned website used for sharing videos.
Being one of the most popular social media platforms, this source of entertainment allows its users to like and comment on their favorite videos and share and upload videos of their own.
Podcast Vs. YouTube; Which Fits You Best?
As said earlier, what you pick depends on your target audience. Where do they hang out the most? Do they prefer to watch a video or listen to an interview while doing other tasks?
To make an informed decision, you should consider the tools each platform requires and the perks. Here are a few things to consider when starting a podcast or a YouTube channel.
What Do You Need To Start A Podcast?
You should have access to a few things before starting a Podcast.
1. Good Content:
Your content must resonate with your target audience if you want your podcast to be relevant. You can focus on any theme for your podcast; however, ensure some people want to hear what you say and from whom you can commercialize that desire one way or the other.
2. Good Communication Skills:
Being a good communicator is essential because podcasts are all about talking to connect with your audience. Whether you are interviewing someone or simply talking to your audience, it is super important that you have a knack for communication.
Remember that in podcasts, your audiences won’t see any visuals, unlike on Youtube, so there is nothing to capture their attention except what you say and how you say it.
3. Good Podcast Mic:
Unlike YouTube, which uses visual and audio means to pass messages, podcasts only use audio. To start a podcast, you need a good podcast microphone for audio clarity and as a strategy for getting more listeners.
Apart from getting a good podcast microphone, you must also know how to record crisp and clear audio, as the podcast microphone can only do so much.
What Do You Need To Start A YouTube Channel?
Starting a YouTube channel requires more than starting a podcast. You don’t necessarily need to be an expert in the skills listed below, as you can hire someone to do the job for you. They are not something you can do away with. Here is a list of things you need to start a YouTube channel.
1. Access To A Good Camera:
Being a YouTuber means using audio and visuals to send your message to your viewers. Visuality is an integral part of the videos posted on YouTube. To start a YouTube channel, you need an excellent camera or high-tech smartphone to create high-quality videos.
The quality of your videos greatly influences how long viewers remain on your channel and if they will return for more. While your content may be great, people would only stay to watch what you have to show them if you show it to them clearly.
2. Video Editing Skills:
When you shoot your videos, they won’t come out perfect without any glitches, which is where video editing skills come in. Even with a high-quality video, you must edit it to be near-perfect; think of it as dotting the I’s and crossing the T’s.
3. Engaging Stories:
Having great visuals for your video is vital to succeeding on Youtube, but it doesn’t stop there. Your content has to be engaging. You should be able to tell juicy stories to keep your audience coming back.
Good visuals with lousy content give your audience the impression that you are not good at what you do and don’t want that for your business.
4. Designing Thumbnails:
Thumbnails are the clickbait that attracts audiences to your videos. After typing their search queries in the search box, the audience immediately looks for a video with the most attractive thumbnail.
Even if you don’t know how to design thumbnails, you can hire someone to do the job for you.
What Are The Perks Of Each Platform?
1. Discoverability:
If you are running a podcast, remember that the only way for people to discover your podcast is through your podcast title. When it comes to ease in being discovered, a podcast is more challenging. Therefore, a good podcast title is significant for brand awareness.
However, getting found on YouTube is much easier. YouTube is similar to a search engine (Google owns it); the user asks a question in the search box and gets responses from videos on that topic made by different YouTube channels. This means your content would be available to users at the right time.
2. Cost Of Starting:
Comparing the start-up costs of both platforms, starting a podcast is not as expensive as creating a YouTube channel. When starting a podcast, you need a decent microphone and choose a free or paid podcast host and recording software.
However, for a YouTube channel, there are several types of equipment you need to invest in various kinds of equipment to produce high-quality videos. These pieces of equipment include lighting, editing software, and cameras.
3. Competition:
Starting a podcast is not as tricky as starting a YouTube channel because podcasting is relatively new. The competition on YouTube is also higher than that on podcasts. YouTube has over 50,000,000 channels, and podcasts only have 2 million creators.
Conclusion.
If you are stuck on choosing between starting a podcast or a YouTube channel, remember that it all boils down to which one fulfills your goals in the long run.
Thankfully, the highlighted differences above enlighten you about each and can help you make an informed decision. Whichever you go for, ensure you give it your best.
Check out our free “Podcasting Mastered” course for a detailed walk-through on everything you need to know about starting a successful business podcast. And feel free to reach out for personalized guidance.
