Every podcast needs a trailer because it whets your audience's appetite. 

It gives your listeners an anticipatory taste of your podcast and makes your show easier to discover. 

Even better, it allows you to hook new listeners by giving them a sneak preview of what you have in store for them. 

However, before you can make an insanely excellent podcast trailer that keeps everyone looking out for the release of your podcast, it is pertinent that you understand what a podcast trailer is and what is to be contained in a podcast trailer. 

So, the first question you should ask is, what a podcast trailer is? 

What Is A Podcast Trailer?

A podcast trailer is audio of short length that introduces your podcast to the listeners and gives them an insight into what you have stuck for them in your podcast. It makes listeners have a sense of your podcast before even listening to it. It is used for advertising or promotional purposes, and it is also beneficial for making it easier for listeners to become familiar with your podcast before its release.

Do You Need A Podcast Trailer?

Yes! 

You need to create a trailer for your podcast. Having a captivating trailer for your podcast is of utmost importance because that's the only way you can have listeners anticipate the release of your podcast and have them rush for it once released.

So that you may understand well, imagine yourself on a happy weekend sitting in a cinema. While munching on warm, milky popcorn without forgetting to sip your favourite soda gently, the lights dim, and enticing trailers begin to roll one after another. With each trailer, you become stuck into different tales of conspiracy, betrayal, adventure, drama, or comedy. The exciting part of it is you're never served with enough to satisfy your curiosity. So, even Before beginning the main attraction, you are already thinking about when you next visit the cinema. 

You don't want to release your podcast without first releasing a trailer. This is because even if a listener is interested in your topic, you still need to hook them in from the beginning by ensuring you grab enough of their interest to want to listen to your podcast. Although you need an attractive podcast cover and a podcast title that sounds interesting to gain a listener, creating an intriguing trailer also makes it easier to gain loyal listeners that would be glued to your podcast. 

How To Make Great Podcast Trailers

The best podcast trailer is a teaser put together to give a taste of what you would get in the podcast, and of course, the inspiration to give it a try. It's designed to build anticipation. So, a podcast trailer maker must first put himself in the position of the listener. You should know those things that would make you want to come back or inspire you to listen to a podcast even when you are not planning to.

Your trailer will likely be the first thing listeners will listen to build interest in your podcast. So, it's worth spending the time to make a great trailer. Below is some information to include in your podcast trailer.

Ask Question

Asking questions, especially at the start of your trailer, can be nice and catchy for your audience. Starting with a question can be a captivating way to make your listeners look forward to listening to your podcast. 

Introduce Your Podcast

You mustn't forget to introduce your podcast to your listeners. State the name of your podcast, your name, the theme and value of your podcast, episode title, topic, and, if possible, the release date. Introducing your podcast will enable your listeners to know your name and podcast's name, as well as the episode information. This, in turn, would make it easy for your listeners to understand how to find the podcast, as well as the podcast maker and podcast anchor. Whether the listener to your trailer is new or has been a loyal audience For a while, your introduction will help improve brand awareness in your prospective audience. The introduction also ensures that listeners do not have to look at their screens before getting the needed information about your podcast.

Make A Trailer For Specific Podcast Episodes.

The content of each episode of your podcast is different. So, it's crucial to create a unique trailer for each of the episodes. Your audience is not interested in listening to the same intro every time they listen to your trailer. Listening to the same trailer for every episode becomes boring in no time. You can present similar information each time, but you must change what you say and how you say it as a podcast trailer anchor. A good podcast trailer grabs your listeners’ attention and informs them about the podcast—something like a sales pitch. 

Be Brief And Concise.

While you wish to introduce your podcast in your podcast trailer and present sufficient information in an exciting way, you also must ensure that you are very concise. If your trailer is too long, your listeners might become bored and, as a result, lose vital information that could whet their appetite due to loss of attention. Say all you need to say using as few words as possible. Be aware of how much information you are willing to present in your trailer so that it does not become overloaded with too much information.

Be Mindful Of Your Tone

Your trailer should set and align the tone for your podcast. The words you choose to use, the style of your voice, and the music you select should sink in and make so much sense for your podcast. If the theme of your podcast is centered around something light-hearted and fun, then the tone of your podcast trailer anchor should reflect that. If the theme of your podcast is centered around something very serious, your listeners should feel it in your voice by making your voice solemn, sinister, or spooky.

Write Out Your Script

Writing out the script for your trailer ensures that your podcast trailer contains all essential information in as few words as possible without leaving out anything unknowingly. If you do not write out your script, e your script, you might end up rambling. This, in turn, would not be entertaining for your listeners, thereby making you lose some potential customers.

Add Some Music

Adding perfect music that blends your content to your podcast trailer is a fantastic way to catch your audience's attention. You can start your podcast trailer with a jingle that aligns with the content of your podcast and then layer some music under the voice of your podcast trailer anchor. This will even make other people look for you and identify you as a potential podcast trailer maker. 

Use A Tagline

Creating a tagline for your podcast trailer and using it wisely can be a great way to quickly describe your podcast, summarise your mission and make potential listeners lookout for your podcast. Having a catchy tagline can also be instrumental in branding and increasing the brand awareness of your podcast.

What Should You Include And What Should You Not Include?

In the process of making a great podcast trailer, some essential details must not be left out, and some things should not be included in your podcast trailer if you desire to make it top-notch.

What Should You Include?

Below are some of the details you should include in your podcast trailer without even forgetting at all.

• Include the name of your podcast: Including the name of your podcast might sound so obvious that less attention is paid to it. This sometimes leads to it being overlooked, and you don't want to make that mistake. You should never forget that a podcast trailer has no visual aids to enhance your passing message. So, you must state the name of your podcast clearly at least twice in your trailer. 
• Describe your show briefly: Inform your potential listeners of what your show is all about and what they will gain if they tune in to your podcast. This can be done with a straight-up summary of your podcast, but it is always better to get creative in the way you share what your show is all about with your audience. Put yourself in the position of your audience and take the lead from them. What are they likely going to respond to hastily? Raw facts? Mystery? Story? A little comedy? Or news. Start the content of your trailer with any of these and create that perfect bite-size masterpiece that appeals to your audience's attention and aligns perfectly with the central theme of your show.
• State a location: It is essential to inform your listeners of where your podcast can be found. This can also be seen as your call to action. You must ensure that your potential listeners know where they can find your podcast and what they are expected to do when the podcast is found. For example, if you want them to subscribe, please state it expressly, and if what you want them to do is to share, please tell them to do so. You should also mention any other platform where listeners can connect and interact with you in your trailer. That can be on your Instagram handle, Twitter handles, YouTube channel, or website URL. This does not only help your listeners know that you are dedicated to your craft and have a notable online presence, but it also shows them that you have in stock a whole variety of exciting content to share with them. 

What You Should Avoid

As much as you continue to take note of the things you should do to make your podcast trailer great, there are a few other things that you should ensure not to do so that your podcast trailer remains excellent.

• Don't make your trailer too long: You must include a comprehensive description of your show, but you must also ensure that your trailer is not too long to avoid your listeners tuning away because your trailer is just too lengthy. Aim to make your trailer between 30 and 60 seconds long, nothing more.
• Don't congest your trailer: As much as it's essential to include in your trailer the factual information needed to keep your audience glued to you, you need to avoid overloading your listeners with information. You want to whet their appetite and make them want to get more; you don't want to make them feel as if they've been force-fed with more than they can stomach!
• Don't promote something else with your trailer: You have minimal time to advance your show. The time should not be wasted on something else because it would only result in a waste of precious minutes. Your trailer must point listeners directly to your show and to all that you offer within a few seconds.
• Don't make unrealistic promises: As much as you need to get listeners attracted to your trailer and be willing to invest their time listening to your podcast, your podcast trailer must display an honest reflection of your podcast. In other words, your podcast trailer should not promise something grand and, in the end, deliver something bland! A great podcast trailer should set up the leading podcast for success by allowing it to shine brighter. Even though you're doing all you can to catch the interest of your potential listeners, you must ensure to be very honest as regards what your show is all about and what it seeks to address because if your podcast does not address what the trailers promise to handle, it rips you the opportunity of catching potential listeners with your subsequent podcast trailers.

Steps To Follow In Writing An Insanely Great Podcast

As a podcast trailer maker, it is pertinent to ensure that the podcast you are producing is of the best quality to capture your desired audience and keep them glued and loyal to your podcast for as long as you want. To attain this quality, you must follow specific steps closely to create your podcast trailer, like a professional podcast trailer. The actions that can be followed to make the best podcast trailer is given below:

       1. Write an outline

Before creating your podcast trailer, you should jot out some ideas on what format you want your podcast trailer to take and how you want it to sound. Think about the style and tone you wish to have in the trailer. Jot everything you need, and create an outline before you go on.

       2. Brainstorm on intro and outro

After writing out your outline, you should think about the intros you would use, including the taglines. You should decide on what you want to start with and what you want to end with to make you get the best out of your trailer.

       3. Chose a highlight

After deciding what you want to use as an intro and outro, you need to choose some of the most exciting parts of your podcast as a highlight. These are going to be used as samples or clichés that would whet the appetite of your listeners.

       4. Write the script

Here, the memos in your outline would now be developed into a script. While writing your script, you must not forget to add your intro, outro, and highlights. Your script should be noted the way you want it to sound after being voiced. So, you should write following your tone and style.

       5. Record the script

Your script should now be recorded with the desired speed. You must ensure that your recording is not too slow, nor should it be too fast. If it is too slow, it becomes very dull in the ears of your listeners, and if it is too fast, your listeners will not be able to grasp the information you are trying to pass in the trailer. So, you want to maintain an average speed. You should also record any additional comments you might need for your podcast trailer to be great.

       6. Choose music for your background

The next step would be to choose a piece of music that aligns with your script as your background tone. This enables your audio to sound more soothing to your audience while also passing the required information to them.

       7. Produce your podcast trailer

After getting all of these elements ready, the next step is to put together all of these elements to produce the perfect podcast trailer you would love to create. However, before production, ensure to listen to the trailer yourself to correct possible errors.   

Best Podcast Trailer Length

While you are at liberty to decide the length of your podcast trailer, you can decide to make it extend up to two minutes, but keeping it shorter is usually better. Since your podcast trailer is just a promo for your show, you can decide to create multiple versions of it, ranging from 30-seconds, 60-seconds, or 90-seconds at maximum. The most extended trailer version should be used in your podcast feed, while others can be used for social media posts and promos on other podcasts.

Your podcast trailer should remain brief, concise, and informational while showing your personality. Before moving into the title, you should start with something very engaging and a rapid overview of your show. Make sure you include what your show is all about and who the show is meant for. You should also highlight what you had in the previous seasons and what's coming up in the next season. Don't forget to remind your listeners to tune in, subscribe, and share. You should also remember to state where listeners can find and engage with you.

How To Publish Your Podcast Trailer

Publishing your podcast trailer is the most crucial aspect of making your podcast trailer. If you make a top-notch podcast trailer and fail to post it, it is just the same as not making any trailer for your podcast. Some of the platforms that enable you to publish your podcast trailer are Headliner, Spotify, and Apple Podcasts. 

Headliner Trailer

Headliner allows you the opportunity to promote your podcast trailers easily. You can even make animated videos for social media with your podcast, making your trailer's sharing even greater. To upload your podcast on the headliner, you can go to the headliner.

Apple Podcast Trailer

Apple is another platform that makes publishing your podcast very easy. Apple added podcast types which include trailers, to its features in 2018. This, in turn, made it possible and easier for people who listen to Apple Podcasts to see which episode the podcast has been highlighted as the podcast maker as a trailer, and so on.

Podcast type is now an integral part of the RSS feed on Apple. These podcast types include: full, trailer, and bonus and are generally accepted in most podcast apps and directories. If used effectively, you would attract new listeners and keep them glued to your podcast. This facility is available for you on the Apple platform.

Spotify Podcast Trailers

Spotify has also added to its features the ability to upload a podcast trailer. The first episode a listener sees, the podcast would be marked with a 'TRAILER' tag. This makes it very easy to create an 'on-ramp episode' for new potential listeners. To access this facility, you can head on to the Spotify page.

Podcast Trailer Music

Podcast trailer music is the music that listeners hear before the voice over of your script begins. It's like a cue-in that prepares listeners to focus their attention on your podcast trailer.

The podcast trailer music sets the tone and emotion of your listeners as well as it is the first thing they listen to at the beginning of your podcast trailer. It can also be layered under your voiceover with a low volume that does not affect or distract your listeners from getting the message of your podcast trailer.

To get free music for your podcast trailer. Here's one of our posts on where and how to get podcast intro music. You will find an endless number of trailer music likewise you can use in your podcast. 

Podcast Trailer Script

Scripting is one of the most critical aspects of creating a perfect podcast trailer because it gives you structure and composure. It makes you flow better, sounds natural, and does you do away with excessive ramblings or pauses because you are not just thinking about what to say or how to say it.

To make your podcast script top-notch, there are some essential elements you must take cognisance of. Some of these elements are:

• Intro: Capturing your audience's attention is your goal, and this is precisely what the opening offers you. The introduction comes immediately after your music intro, which serves as a cue-in for you, and it must be something very catchy that would want your listeners to want to listen to what you have for them. If your podcast features a guest, it would be nice to tell your audience something interesting about your guest that would make them want to give him attention.
• Sponsor message: The sponsor message is the name of the sponsor of the podcast. This should be included in your script to help you get better timing and composure. The sponsor message is crucial because it would be included in your podcast and want your listeners to know that they are still on the right channel.
• Outro: An outro should come toward the end of your podcast trailer. This allows you to give a recap of what you have said within a very few seconds.
• Call to action: Call to action is the segment where you specifically tell your listeners what you want them to do. As a podcast trailer maker, it is vital that you request what you want your listeners to do when they listen to your podcast trailer.

Podcast Intro Scripts

There are several kinds of great podcast trailer examples. No rigid style must be followed strictly for each type of podcast whose script you are preparing. However, you must try every possible best to ensure that you are creative with the style you want to use. Below are the kinds of podcast scripts with examples for your perusal.

• The freestyle script: In this type of scripting, all you need to put down are a few questions that would enable you to flow well in your podcast. You do not need to write down everything you want to say. You just try to flow as you speak. This type of scripting is straightforward to write and takes very minimum time. No structure or rigid style is needed here. You can get a freestyle template here.
• A Co-Host Script: This kind of script is prepared for your podcast when you have a co-host. Here, you need a detailed outline of the episodes. Your script must include what you want to say and how many minutes you have to spend on each discussion to avoid being out of time. This kind of scripting is suitable for most podcasters and includes all that is needed of a podcaster. Here, you can get an excellent co-host template.
• Word-For-Word Script: This kind of scripting where you have to write down everything you need to say. This style gives you a better structure and composure because you don't need to think outside what you have written down.

Most hosts prefer to read their scripts word for word as it gives them less worry since they do not need to insert anything into the script. Download a fully scripted template for your podcast here.

• Solo Format Script: Writing a solo script for your podcast is also straightforward as you are not confined to any particular format or style. You may decide to create only the outline and flow with your podcast, just like the freestyle approach.

It is advisable to write down the outline and the relevant key points and data you might want to present. This saves your time and maintains a style for your podcast. You can go here to download a solo-host template for your podcast.

• Interview-Style Script: You must prepare well before an interview so that you don't end up deviating from the central theme of your podcast. Imagine you are discussing with your dream guest, and you end up having a lousy conversation because you don't know what to ask, when to ask, and how to ask. Ensure that your guest can get the outline of your discussion at least five days or a week before your recording to enhance preparation and a seamless conversation. Here is an interview-style template for your podcast.

To look at some more sample scripts, you can go here, and to listen to some of the best podcast intro examples, you can click on the following links.

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H-rryVnp1G8
• https://static.voices.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Goldspotters_Pod_AJ_Finelli.mp3
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UniLjUJF4o
• https://www.paisatool.com/podcast-intro-examples/

Before You Go

Remember that your podcast trailer is essential because it gives your potential listeners a sense of what they should expect from you and why they should be excited about what you have in stock for them. So, invest as much energy as you're expected to invest in it, ensure that it is top-notch, and you'd be glad to see it yield the required outcome.

Follow the steps given above, be mindful of the dos and don'ts, include everything you are expected to have, and leave out those things you are expected to avoid. 

This would ensure that your podcast trailer remains one of the best podcast trailers that would ever be made and equally make you one of the best podcast makers that would ever exist.