How to build a profitable podcast.
Perhaps the biggest decision in your life (apart from naming your children) is naming your podcast baby. Let's get it right...
Naming your podcast is a massive decision.
Like naming your children, it's a decision that has decades of impact and can be very hard to change.
After working hard to bring the idea for your show into reality, learning how to record, and podcast market your podcast, it's now time to nail the name.
In this post, we will explain how to come up with a podcast name… but first, what are the factors to consider?
Creativity
When thinking of a podcast name, you might want to have fun with words and make use of puns. This can make your name more memorable. Although, as much as you mat want to get creative, you don’t want to be too abstract, your name still needs to be somewhat descriptive of what the show is really about.
For example, if the name of your show was: “Platform 9 & ¾” a true “Potterhead” will immediately know what your podcast is about (Harry Potter for those that don't know what I'm talking about!)
Descriptivity
Probably not a real word... but the inverse of the creative naming strategy is the descriptive naming strategy. Here you simply make your podcast name as descriptive as possible. This can come across as a little boring...
But as long as your show is fantastic, who cares?
Your target audience would immediately identify what the show is about by just looking at it. An example of this kind of podcast is football weekly.
These kinds of podcast names are easy to find because they do well on search engines. Although, if you have found a creative name for your podcast show and still want to use a descriptive name, you can find a way to merge it. You have to take note of ambiguous words and exceptional long titles, to avoid “keyword stuffing.”
Using Your Own Name
It's a simple one...
You simply use your own name as the title of the podcast. This is typically a good idea if you already have a following before starting your show, as this will allow you to capitalise on that brand awareness. An example is The Joe Rogan Experience.
The name does not offer a hint on what the show entails. If you don’t know Joe Rogan, his show could be about anything. But in reality his show talks about drugs, life, sex, the mysteries of space, and the way people look at the world.
If nobody has heard of Joe Rogan, he would probably have to be more descriptive of his title. He may try naming his show with a combination of the creative/descriptive strategy: "A View Of Life" as this would have a greater chance of reaching his target audience.
Emotions
Another approach to naming aims to appeals to listener emotions: the tone of your show.
If your podcast is going to be a professional one, the tone of the name should portray the show expertise. However, if it’s a casual podcast show, the style of the name should give your audience that vibe.
Searchability
Whilst the best way to grow a podcast is through the word of mouth generated by awesome audio content... it still helps to incorporate keywords into your podcast name.
If you can rank #1 for your core keyword on Google Podcasts, Apple Podcast, Spotify and Amazon Music you will 100% find it easier to grow your show.
OK - they are the criteria to consider when naming your show, let's now move onto those strategies:
When potential listeners come across your podcast show, “they judge a book by its cover”. It is usually your podcast name that will lure them into giving it a try
Your podcast name has to communicate your persona and explain what your show is about in just a few words.
Podcast names crate the first impressions listeners will have about your show, it will determine whether they will keep scrolling or become your lifelong listeners
It is essential to take your time in coming up with the right name for your podcast as it will give potential listeners an idea of what they will be getting.
You can start by picking up a piece of paper and pen and scribble as much as you can, don’t judge what is coming out of your head
Podcast names are stressful to conclude on. When starting a podcast, getting the best name for it can keep you up at night, literally.
To make great use of your ‘up at night’ time, what should you consider to be a “good” podcast name? What would entice the customers and give them precise information on what the podcasts entail? How do you create such a name, in just a few words?
Don’t worry; I’m here to help. I have created seven strategic ways to make it easier for you to be able to come up with the great name your podcast truly deserves.
The first thing you need to do is: brainstorm.
First... imagine the audience, determine the subject you want to speak on, and what you want to achieve with your podcast. When you have a very clear picture of what your podcast is about, it becomes easier to brainstorm potential names.
Set a duration for yourself on when to come up with a name as constraints can breed creativity. It would help if you wrote every idea that flows through you somewhere no matter how uncreative it feels.
This stage is all about creative ideas; you should not get picky yet...
Websites like:
And a host of others have made it much easier to come up with podcast name ideas.
All you have to do is think about what you want your show to be about, understand your target audience, identify target keywords and then add them into these generators.
Most podcast name generators even go as further as helping you check out the availability of the domain name of your show...
First things first, you have to make sure there aren’t other shows using it already. You can easily find that out by searching on your podcast app; you can as well check other search engines like google.
Although, you might find out that the name you have chosen is not available but have become dormant and haven’t put out an episode in a long time. Please do not use it anyway; it could create confusion for your audience and potentially hinder the growth of your show
Your imagination must come into play here. You have to imagine what your podcast episodes will sound like in the future.
What topics do you want to talk on? What areas do you want to explore? Are you going to talk about one particular subject in every episode or you are going to talk about different topics. These factors should guide your podcast naming strategy
A right podcast name could be direct or abstract. The critical point is that it must portray the kind of content you are dishing out. Podcasts allow dynamic conversations; this means that the format for your episode and topic could change with time.
Thus, while picking a name on the initial idea, you must also leave room for growth. A rigid name could restrain you in the future.
Podcasting involves talking.
Therefore, any name you choose must be sweet to say. One way to determine this is by saying the name out loud.
The name you choose for your podcast should be easily recognized by people even if they are not paying attention. The pronunciation must be an easy one for people that come across your podcast name. One other factor to consider is when another podcast host wants to pronounce your podcast name. You wouldn’t want a name that sparks confusion. You also do not want a name that will get lost in recordings or different sentences.
When you choose a couple of names for your podcast, it becomes hard to narrow it down to one option. What will help in this type of situation is to get the opinion of others; after all, no man is an island of knowledge.
Moreover, it is great to get the opinion of people who know nothing about your podcast ideas from the start. They will judge based on merit rather than sentiments. You will ask them about their opinion of your podcast based on the name only. If you are stuck in a maze regarding the name, getting help from others will certainly help the ideas flow again.
When you crowd-source your podcast name opinions, it leads to feedback that will provide value, and you are likely to get a name that is easy to mention in everyday discussion.
Pitching the podcast name could also help you know if there is a name like that already exists as it could ring a bell to someone that has seen or heard it before. You should not limit these acts to offline only; an online survey could prove valuable.
After going through the process of eliminating names and streaming it down to a couple of names, you must have about two or more names that are your favourites.
Now, it is time to pick one. It can be fun and stressful when it is time to choose a name since we tend to overthink each name. Although if you obsess over it too much, it becomes procrastination.
What you need to do is to take time out and mull on the choices you have. You also have to set a deadline for yourself so that it doesn’t take forever before you decide on which name to pick.
There we go...
You now have all the tools you need to create an awesome podcast name.
Of course... there are podcast names that are exceptions to these rules and strategies set out in this post. It's just that they have made things slightly harder for themselves to grow.
We don't want that for you, so read through this post and start brainstorming your names... feel free to ping them to support@bcast.fm if you would like our feedback!
