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How to be a good podcast host?

A good podcast host entertains your guests and engages them to speak their hearts out. They are one of the keys to a successful podcast as they are the voice, mediator and presenter of the show. Much like you as the host in your house is responsible for making your guests comfortable, a good podcast host has a similar job.

A good podcast host needs to use their exceptional personality, authentic self, humour and knowledge to direct the podcast. It is their responsibility to create a connection between the guest and the target audience to keep the listeners hooked to the show and want more.

Well! here are a few suggestions you can consider adopting to become the best host.

1. Tips to Become A Good Podcast Host

A good podcast host should focus on communication along with other aspects of podcasting, as mentioned below.

1.1. Excellent Communicator

A good podcast is always about making conversation on the selected topic to share valuable information. Being an excellent communicator brings you near to it. Remember, a good podcast host will always craft an open communication where the listeners, too, feel engaged.

For you to become a good podcast host, show excellent communication ability. It will make you feel confident to raise questions to the guests to share valuable information. This will meet the curiosity of your audience as their queries are answered creating an amazing listening experience.

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1.2. Be a Good Presenter and Story Teller

A good podcast host also shows quality presentation ability and a storytelling attitude. They always show a clear structure of conversation to ensure the information is shared in the form of a story flowing like a smooth stream. You can add your twists and turns in the storytelling attitude based on your target audience. Know that every nature of podcasts is not hosted in the same way.

For instance, when hosting a comedy podcast, your tone needs to be chirpy, witty, and full of humour. This tone changes to being suspenseful, sensational, thrilling and emotional for hosting a thriller or dramatic show. So, being a good podcast host, you will need to understand the different tones of the conversation to be followed and the structure of the storytelling attitude to be changed.

A common suggestion for being a good podcast host is letting the guest and audience speak while you become the key listener. Raise queries that vividly describe shared information to paint a picture in the minds of the listeners. Remain calm and composed while using a brief pause to allow the flow of emotion to make the audience perceive the information.

1.3. Understand Your Target Audience

As a fundamental rule, you need to know the preferences and choices of your target audience. Focus on the demographics, interests, age group, average education level and location to understand your audience.

A good podcast host always tries to be in the audience’s shoes to understand their nature of thinking and wishes from the show. The ideas are later implemented to create a relatable interaction with the guest, which ensures effective audience engagement. But you are not to ignore the preference of the guest at the cost of satisfying the audience.

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A good podcast host always maintains a balance between the preferences of guests and the audience. It helps them to create a friendly and relatable interactive session of sharing and understanding amazing ideas.

1.4. Research to Set the Stage

Research is the key to becoming and remaining a good podcast host. It’s your findings through enough search which guide you to identify key queries about trending topics selected for hosting the show.

Research is also necessary to understand how your selected guest wishes to be treated. It creates an opportunity for you to understand the way to maintain a conversation without creating awkwardness for the guest during the podcast session. Research also helps to create a strategic interview plan with key questions. It prepares to create a focused conversation with the guest about the topic and avoid rambling.     

Research helps to enhance your point-of-view regarding the topic as a host. It helps in creating a conversation that raises information which is interesting for the listeners. It drives more audience and gets you to be recognised as a good host who engages in great storytelling.

1.5. Learn from the Master

To become a good podcast host, you need to follow the best master. A few of legendary podcast hosts you can follow to learn are Joe Rogan, Alex Cooper, Roz and Mocha, Andrew Huberman and others.

Welcome to the Huberman Lab Podcast

Look at the way they speak, present information, interact with guests, set the tone of conversation and more. It will guide you to host an engaging podcast as you will learn the underlying tricks to be implemented by great people. Guiding the conversation without making it boring is one of the key responsibilities of a good podcast host.

You need to keep your conversation straight while making the guest feel comfortable. Learn from the biggie when and way to ask for more clarification while talking with the guest. Remember unnecessary interruption makes the guest feel uncomfortable and uninterested to speak. Never force any information to be revealed and maintain decency while cross-questioning to go on with the podcast as a good host.     

1.6. Be Interactive, Creative and Fun

A good podcast host needs to be creative and fun at the same level. Interact with your audience on online platforms and develop ideas to be creative in meeting their expectations on the podcast show. Look after other podcasts and brainstorm ideas to be unique on your show.

Do not cheat ideas by copying others and using them as your own. Show whatever creativity comes naturally to you and improve through learning. Engage in playing games, solving puzzles, creating crafts and others within the podcast. It helps to effectively interact with your guests without making them feel bored.

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Let your humour flow to make even the boring topic become the talk of the town. A good podcast host always shows extra effort to add small jokes and stories to create an enjoyable moment for the listeners as well as the guests. Being fun also helps you to vibe effectively with the audience and guests. Do not make fun look forced and focus on a smooth transition.

1.7. Prepare Your Guests

If you think being a good podcast host is about creating an excellent show while being live, then you are wrong. Your goodness is judged based on how you initiate interaction with the guest backstage from the point of contact till the end of the show. If you avoid knowing the guest before initiating the podcast, chances are your bonding will look fake on the show.

Being a good podcast host, you need to match the energy and expectations of your guests while retaining individuality. It helps set an effective stage of interaction that eases the live conversation on the podcast.

1.8. Care and Respect Your Guest

You should care for the guest as you would on your own. Look after their preferences and share common questions to be asked on the podcast before going live. It will help the guest inform their level of comfort with the existing questions and topics. They could ask you to avoid certain aspects of questions before the show. You can easily avoid them and be a good host who respects their guest’s choice.

You are not only responsible for treating your audience great but also your guests to create an amazing podcast show.   

1.9. Be Prepared to Modify

You need to understand everything cannot be predicted before your podcast. As a good host, you need to remain prepared to modify as required on the show to avoid any awkward situation. This is mostly an issue for live podcast shows where everything is not scripted and rather a discussion. In such situations, you need to remain calm and handle any problem to get the show going without any issues.  

1.10. Gather Feedback

Nobody is perfect. So, you need to know where you lack skills while trying to be a good host. Remember, getting negative feedback on your action is not a failure, but avoiding acting on it is.

Always ask for feedback from your listeners and guests on your podcast to learn the way to be a good host. Ask them to review your tone and approach of communication, humour, storytelling ideas, interaction ability and anything they wish to be pointed out. Actively analyze the feedback and develop strategies to improve yourself.

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1.11. Continuously Adapt to New Demands

The world of entertainment is continuously changing and evolving. Every day new demands are placed by the audience and remaining informed about them is one of the keys to becoming a good podcast host. This is because you need to adapt to their choices. You are required to have basic ideas about the topic being hosted so that you know what you speak.

2. Conclusion

So now you know that a good podcast host is something you make with practice and learning. Active listening and researching are two major skills to be looked after to become a good host. They help you draw information and tricks to be good. However, personal skills like storytelling ability, conversation tone, behaviour, humour and others are equally important.

Remember continuous development is the key to your success. It comes with acknowledging the feedback and working on them to improve themselves each day. There is no secret to being a good podcast host except for dedication, hard work and perseverance to grow.  

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What makes you a good podcast host?

A good podcast host must be authentic in their behaviour and express knowledge of the needs of their audience. They should be greater conversationalists and remain prepared to adapt continuously based on the needs of the show.  

2. How should a good podcast host interact with their guest?

A good podcast host needs to interact in a polite and chirpy manner with their guest to make them feel welcomed and comfortable during the entire show. They should respect the boundaries of the guest and share questions to be asked before the podcast to determine any queries to be avoided for the guest’s comfort.

3. Who is currently the best podcast host?

According to me, Joe Rogan is currently the best podcast host to follow to understand the tricks and bits of good hosting.

Last Updated on by rahuldey7417

Authors

  • Anindita

    An avid writer who have written content about academic and website article on various niches such as management, health, travel and others. I am here to share some of those content to help you get through all the queries about various topic raised in everyday life.

  • rahuldey7417

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