Whether its an audio podcast or video podcast, they are on a boom right now. If you want to know about different types of podcasts or their different formats, you are in the right place.
You can broadly categories podcasts on 2 factors. 1st, Based on the number of guest and host and 2nd, based on their genres.
Let’s learn about them in one by one with their pros and cons.
Based on the number of guest and host we have 4 different types of podcasts:
Lets go through these different types of podcasts one by one.
• Monologue aka Solo Podcasts
It’s the most simple form of a podcast. All you need is a microphone setup and skill to speak.
Pros:
- Editing is very easy because only one voice is present in the audio
- You can adjust your own time to record a podcast.
- It can be very helpful to create your personal branding.
- Financially it’s the cheapest form of a podcast
- You can connect with your audience on a personal level.
Cons:
- Whole responsibility to make podcast worthy to listen to falls on you.
- Tough to grab the audience in the starting
- No one to pull you up if the quality of podcasts goes down
- You can get bored after a time if you don’t get much audience.
Here are some good one person podcasts you can check out and learn:
• One on One interview podcasts
In this type of podcast, there is one host and one guest.
Pros:
- The popularity of your guest can help your podcast to grow
- Different guest in different episodes can keep the podcast fresh and interesting
- The podcast can grab huge attention if the guest is invited to talk about trending topics.
- A full-fledged script is not needed for the host.
- An overly complicated setup is not required.
- The conversation can carry on with some flaws and errors, that’s not much of editing is required.
Cons:
- Like a solo podcast, you can not record a podcast anytime you want.
- Good conversation skill is required
- There are lots of good interview podcasts available that’s why competition is high
- If a guest with entirely different thought frequency is invited, it can make the episode unpleasant
• Panel interview or discussion podcast
In panel interview or discussion podcast, more than one guests are invited and they get interviewed by one or more host.
Pros:
- You can introduce new talent to the world.
- Multiple brains involved in a conversation can make the podcast really energetic.
- Responsibly to uplift the conversation gets distributed.
- You don’t need to have much knowledge about the podcast topics, multiple people can carry the conversation effortlessly.
- The podcast can get a variety of audiences due to multiple guests.
- Listeners can tune in to your podcast with curiosity to check who is invited as the guests in the podcast.
Cons:
- t’s very hard to set a common time that is suitable for every guest.
- The recording setup for multiple guests discussion podcasts is very costly and complicated.
- The editing can is thought as the audio has multiple voices.
- It’s tough sometimes to stay on topic for the guests.
- Podcast listeners can get confused over the different voices if editing is not done perfectly.
If you want to start a YouTube podcast read this post – How to start a podcast on YouTube Easily Step by Step
• 2 people or co-hosted podcasts
In this format of podcast, 2 host of the podcast have discussions with each other on some topic.
Pros:
- It’s the best kind of podcast to do it you have a friend or someone with the same interests and energy
- Setup is fairly easy. Nothing overly complicated is required.
- Conversation podcasts grab higher audience attention.
- Any topic can be discussed with enthusiasm and energy.
- You can keep the casual like two friends talking over a normal conversation thus no script is needed.
Cons:
- If a topic is not decided beforehand, the podcast can become displeasing.
- If either of the people is not of the same enthusiasm level, it can dial down the energy of the podcast
• Hybrid or random podcast
As the name suggests, you can mix or combine multiple formats in hybrid podcast.
Pros:
- If done right, a hybrid podcast can reach big amount of audience
- Continuous changing of the podcast’s format keeps the podcast fresh and attention-catching.
- If guests or other hosts cancel, you can still record the podcast episode as podcast doesn’t stick to a single format.
- Then the number of people in a podcast can change depending upon the need for the topic.
- No need to stick to a script if needed.
- You can record a podcast episode anytime you want without any restrictions.
Cons:
- As the format keeps on changing, it’s very hard to maintain the setup for podcast
- There can be multiple guests at a time, that’s why hybrid or random podcasts can be financially challenging.
Types of podcasts based on genres
Let’s learn about them in one by one
• Interview podcasts
In this kind of podcast, you invite a guest or more than one guest and interview them.
Pros:
- Different guests come with their own audience reach which can help your podcast grow exponentially.
- You can help to introduce new talents to the world.
- You can invite multiple guests to interview which can increase the audience coverage.
- You can promote new ideas, strategies, passion, products, etc. over your platform.
- It can help you meet new people and to get to know them.
Cons:
- It requires good interviewing skills. Your presence of mind and way of conversation determines the number of podcasts.
- If you are interviewing someone about a topic or some issue, you need to research it thoroughly
• Conversational podcasts
As the name suggests, a conversational podcast is a podcast in which 2 or more people get involved in a discussion.
Pros:
- Conversational podcasts attract a good amount of audience.
- It can be started with a low budget.
- You can start a conversational podcast with your friends about some topic you both are interested in.
- Responsibility to make the podcast interesting is divided into multiple people so it’s not on one specific person which reduces pressure.
Cons:
- heavy setup is required If the number of people exceeds.
- High chances to go off-topic.
• Fictional storytelling podcasts
In this podcast, you can tell fictional stories to your audience.
Pros:
- Requires less setup because usually only one person is required for narrating it.
- Good fictional podcasts grab the audience’s attention and they become very addictive.
- You can use it to spread some good message to this world.
Cons:
- Requires a great amount of attention-grabbing voice and way of narrating.
- You should be creative as hell in your story.
- Takes time to develop the audience base.
• Non-fictional podcast
In Non fictional podcast, the real stories are told with insightful details. These audio podcasts are generally used by journalists.
Pros:
- It can be done in a one-person set up so it will cost you less and setup will be easy.
- Topics can be easily found. You can choose the trending topics on twitter.
- It can grab a higher audience in less time if the content of trending topics is worthy.
Cons:
- Immense information is required for making a true event’s or story’s podcast
- If the way of narration is not right, a podcast can be boring.
• Repurposed content podcast
In repurpose content podcasts, you take an already existing content and then edit and rework on it to make it reach a bigger audience.
Pros:
- No extra stress of thinking about fresh topics and creating new content.
- Can be done with a single person if needed.
- You can raise up the topics that already are in the market but they aren’t simplified enough to make everybody understand it.
Cons:
- Chances of becoming your content stale as it’s repurposed.
- It can sometimes require more energy to alter and modify already existing content than to create a new one.
- Your podcast channel can become a little dry and boring over time if you don’t select the right topic for re-purposing.
• Educational podcasts
The educational podcast, as the name suggests, is made for educational purposes. You can make the audio podcasts of whichever topic you like and have knowledge of.
Pros:
- It can be started with a simple setup
- Only one person can also start an Educational podcast. No need of a big crew.
Cons:
- Need a thorough knowledge of the topic you want to teach on your podcast.
- Your teaching way should be interesting and engaging. There is a quote from Walter Lewin – “Teachers who make physics boring are criminal”.
• Customized podcast
In a customized podcast, you can choose different styles and formats without any fixed number of people in the podcast.
Pros:
- No strict format can make the podcast sounds fresh every time a user listens to it.
- You can record it at any time. If a guest cancels, you can do a solo podcast. No boundaries.
- A large amount of content can be created as there is no limitation of time or no people involved or format of podcast etc…
Cons:
- The setup needs to be altered every time the format is changed. It can be a tad tedious.
- The cost of changing the setup every time can be a deal-breaker.
- If you stick on one format of Podcast, a routine is built which helps you fasten the process of content creation. In the random or customized podcast, that rhythm breaks every time the format is changed.
Conclusion
So these were the different formats and types of podcasts.
No matter which topic you choose, you should have a deep interest in it. Otherwise, over the long run, you’ll run out of enthusiasm to create the content. Remember, content is the king. If you decide on a topic, keep making content on it. The audience will come over time. Try reading your podcast analysis if you can, It will always help you know your audience better.