How a Virtual Assistant Can Level Up Your Podcast

In the last couple of years, podcasting has become quite the game-changer for businesses and curious minds alike. After all, 42 million Americans listen to podcasts each week, but of course, listening to a podcast is much different than making a podcast come to life on the backend. When you’re a one-(wo)man team behind producing your podcast, a lot of the finer details can go overlooked—and the opportunity for burnout is huge.

A virtual assistant (VA) who specializes in podcasting can give you exactly what you’re looking for: more time to work on other projects without sacrificing the quality of your show. VAs are qualified to do more than basic research, social media scheduling, and responding to customer service emails. In fact, a specialized assistant, like a podcasting virtual assistant, often knows industry secrets you might not have heard of yet.

What Is a Podcasting Virtual Assistant?

A podcasting virtual assistant not only has experience handling the logistics around booking guests, but he or she will be well-versed in basic sound editing, creating a production quality episode, and might even know the basics behind graphic design in order to help with image templates for your show.

What Does a Podcasting VA Do?

The average podcast is 22 minutes long, and your VA works hard to make quality production a reality in that time. Producing a podcast is really like making a fancy mixed drink: combining various flavors into one tasty and digestible glass that makes you want to keep going and going. (Please podcast responsibly.)

To create an awesome finished product, here is a whole list of tasks your VA can handle for you so that you can focus on preparing for your interview and finding your next guest:

• Communication with guests: Schedule/reschedule appointments, collect headshots, and test equipment
• Organize the logistics behind each interview: Prepare the recording platform, brief the guest about the show’s format, and listen for the doorbell ringing delivering those Amazon Prime orders
• Post-production: Create a transcript of the show, stabilize the sound between each voice, edit out the “ums,” delete the doorbells and dogs barking, add intro/outro music, finalize everything into one pretty MP3, add tags and description notes for SEO purposes, and upload to iTunes and other platforms
• Create creative assets: Whip up quotable images, episode images, and Wavve files
• Write necessary content: Craft a corresponding blog post for the website, show notes for iTunes, and social media posts

Does this sound like a lot of work? Are there things on this list you’ve personally never done for your podcast before? All the more reason to get connected with a virtual assistant with previous podcast production experience.

How Can They Save You Money?

To create a great sounding podcast, you probably won’t need to supply your assistant with fancy editing software. In fact, I’ve produced three different podcasts using GarageBand, an application that came preloaded on my MacBook Air. With the right knowledge in their back pocket, an assistant can do a lot with very little which helps protect your bottom line.

Your VA will either already have the necessary software, or they will be great at using software already installed on their computer. A few free programs podcast producers can use are Audacity (for sound quality), GarageBand (for mixing and production), and Canva (for creating custom graphics).

Yes, there are some paid applications you’ll probably need, like Call Recorder for Skype or Zencastr*. But for the most part, I’m willing to bet your new podcast producer will know the ins and outs of many of the free apps.

*I recommend Zencastr because the platform separates the audio files (i.e. the host’s voice is separate from the guest’s voice). This feature helps your producer match the sound quality on both tracks and more easily cut out background noise. You also have the option to download a single file with both voices in one track, too, if that’s your thing.

How Can a Podcasting Assistant Save You Time?

It takes me, the assistant, about four hours to edit one episode for a show, but you, the host, only have to do two things: choose the guest and show up prepared for the recording. Done! Once you properly prepare for the interview, all you have to is have a normal conversation with them while I work my magic behind the scenes.

Podcasting virtual assistants seriously make your life easier and give you back hours of your workday.

A VA is also the perfect person to brainstorm ideas with and get feedback from. Who else has listened to every single episode of your show (multiple times!) and has a vested interest in your podcast’s success?

Let a virtual assistant with podcasting experience ease some of the pain of producing your show, and give you back the gift of time. Nothing will be overlooked, you’ll be able to focus on your business, and the extra set of hands (ears?) can spare you from burnout.

Contact Don’t Panic today to set up a discovery call and find out how a qualified virtual assistant can produce your podcast so you can focus on building the business you love!