An article on why you shouldn’t edit your own podcast, published by a podcast editing company?
Okay, maybe we’re a little biased, but there’s a reason so many busy professionals trust us to do their podcast editing and other related tasks. It just makes sense.
While there are some instances where it may be ideal for you to fully or partially edit your own podcast, usually the opposite is true. Let’s take a look at some of the reasons why you shouldn’t edit your own podcast.
You Have Better Things to Do
When’s the last time you said to yourself “I wish I had more things to do today”?
Busy people understand the importance of delegating tasks.
Podcasting has countless benefits in terms of growing your brand and connecting with people in your niche, but it takes time to produce quality episodes. Editing, writing show notes, creating audiograms, and uploading episodes each week demands many hours from your precious schedule.
Most of our clients record their audio, upload a file to us, and never touch the episode again. Everything happens smoothly and automatically from there. What could be better?
You Think You Know How To Edit, But You Don’t
East Coast Studio is headed up by an honours graduate of Canada’s top audio engineering school.
Just like everybody has their own particular skillset, podcast audio editing is ours. Imagine telling your mechanic “I just watched a 20 minute video on rebuilding an engine, so I’m going to tackle this myself.”
The reality is that nearly every time we hear “I’m going to handle the editing on my own” the results are not good. Inconsistent volume levels, distortion, noise, pieces of words missing, long silences, too loud or not loud enough, and the list goes on…
All these things can reflect poorly on your podcast and help to ensure that listeners never return. And you likely wouldn’t even be aware of it! Having a professional team on your side will help to ensure your podcast sounds perfect.
Doing It Yourself Is Not Cheaper
Yes, hiring a podcast editor costs money. But what is your time worth?
If it costs $100 to edit your podcast episode, but you spent 6 hours doing it on your own (and doing it poorly), what else could you have accomplished in those 6 hours? The time surely could have been spent producing income! When you factor in the compound effect and opportunity cost, it’s a very short-sighted decision to insist on doing all your podcast work alone.
Don’t forget that as a business owner, hiring an editor can be considered a business expense!
Does It Ever Make Sense To Edit Your Own Podcast?
One case where it may make sense for you to do some editing work on your podcast is if you are heavily editing for content. This would include removing, rearranging, and replacing parts based on your own personal preference. We recommend against these practices as it can make your podcast sound very choppy, takes up a lot of time, and causes frustration.
However, communicating these changes to a podcast editor and doing countless revisions can be even worse. If you’re the type of person who insists on editing your podcast this way, it can definitely be helpful for you to make the content edits first, then pass the rough draft onto a professional for finalization.
But I’m a Perfectionist
“I need to have control over everything”. Can you imagine if every CEO of a Fortune 500 company had this attitude?
No successful business exists without a great team behind it. It’s simply not feasible for one person to handle everything. At least, not if you want the business to grow.
If you feel nobody else can edit or write show notes to the exact perfect standard you require, ask yourself how much it really matters. Could you outsource and get a result that fulfills 98% of your expectations?
Consider reading some books on perfectionism and business scaling. Look for ways to systematize your business. Seek opportunities to free up your schedule and assemble a trustworthy team to take tasks off your plate.
We get it. Outsourcing work can be a frustrating task. We’ve been there, done that. Seen the poor communication, low quality work, and vanishing freelancers. That’s why East Coast Studio is dedicated to being a trustworthy, “set it and forget it” solution.
You can reap the benefits of podcasting but with the weight lifted from your shoulders. Contact East Coast Studio to reclaim your time today!