How long should a podcast episode be?
A podcast episode should be as long as it needs to be. The most important thing you need to think about before you start recording your episode is who your ideal listener is. Where will they be listening to your podcast?
Some example questions you could think about are:
- Are they a busy time poor mum? If so, episodes over 20 minutes probably won’t work for her.
- Are they corporate and will listen to your podcast on their commute to work? If so, 45-minute episodes will probably work.
Understand your Ideal Customer Avatar (ICA)
Your ideal customer avatar (ICA) is your ideal listener. If you understand them and their habits, then you’ll know how long your episodes should be. You can read more about ICAs in my blog “The Key to Podcast Success; Nailing Your Niche”
What works for you?
As well as your ICA, you need to work out what works best for you. How much time do you have to work on your podcast?
When you have a podcast, you need to plan your content. You need to outline what each episode will be about. If you have guests on your show, you need to find the guests as well as write interview questions for that guest. This can take some time.
Then there’s the editing. Depending on how in depth you go into your editing process, a 20-minute podcast episode can take you 1.5 hours to edit.
Bear all this time in mind before you commit to lengthy podcast episodes and having guests on your show.
Check how long people listen to your episodes
You can test to see how long your audience listens to your episodes for. For example, you could start by publishing 30-minute episodes. Then check how long your listeners stay tuned. If, generally, they don’t listen to the whole episode and only listened to the first 20 minutes, then it might be worth cutting down the length of your episodes.
Get their feedback
You could even ask your listeners or clients for feedback. Ask them in your Facebook Group or via your newsletter what podcast length they like best before you start your podcast. You could do a poll in your Instagram stories too.
Your podcast format is up to you
There’s no one size fits all for the length of your podcast episodes. Always have your ideal customer in mind and works best for you, your time, and your budget.
If podcasting is taking you much longer than you anticipated, don’t give up!! Remember, I’m here to edit, write show notes, create social media posts etc. If you need support, simply click on the button below to book a free 15 minute call with me.