How to Edit Your Podcast Like a Pro

After recording your first podcast episode, it’s time to make it sound polished and professional. This is where the important step of editing your audio files comes in. By focusing on these six things, you can create podcast episodes like a pro.

Remove Filler Words

Words like “um” and “ah” can be really distracting. But if you’re like me, and use filler words when you’re nervous, it may be hard to avoid saying these words when you first start out. That’s why editing your episodes is so important, it’s an opportunity to make yourself and your guests sound even better.

Edit Distractions

You’ll also want to edit out any distracting background noises that can take the listener out of the interview or story like, birds chirping, cars honking, etc. Conversely, pay attention to awkward silences which can also distract listeners. It’s also important to remove any content that doesn’t add value to the episode.

Reorganize Content

Reorganizing content can help you create a more compelling episode or simply fix your mistakes. For example, I once forgot to ask my guest to give me some background about themselves until I was well into the interview. When I realized I had forgotten, I asked them to give me the background and I added it to the front of the interview (where it made the most sense) in post-production. The final cut was more fluid, and it made for a better story.

Create Transitions

Adding a fade in and out from one section to the other is a great way to signal to the listener that the episode is shifting gears. For example, my intro fades out as my interview fades in. The effect leads the listener from one section to the next. Another way to create transitions, is to include a music track under your voice, or to fade music in and out between parts of the episode.

Improve Voice Quality

Most audio editing software has filters that can enhance the sound of your voice. Adobe Audition has a podcast voice filter I use to make my voice sound more ‘podcasty’. There are a variety of filters that can enhance your voice and give that intimate sounding quality so that listeners feel more connected to your voice.

Adjust Volume

Finally, it’s important that the sound level is consistent throughout your episode so that your listeners will be able to hear all of your show without having to adjust the volume because portions of your show are too loud or too quiet. This will definitely take them out of the episode and it may be so annoying that they’ll just skip it. In post-production, you want to aim for -16 LUFS (Loudness Units Full Scale).

As a podcaster, you want your episodes to sound polished but also natural, so avoid over producing your episodes by taking out too much. Leaving in some breaths and verbal ticks will help your conversations or monologues sound natural and more relatable. Post-production can be time-consuming but, now that you know what to edit and with a little practice, you can create clean, professional sounding podcasts in no time!