Is that really how I sound?

We’ve all experienced it at some point — the shock of hearing your own recorded voice played back to you. It can be, in a word, horrifying. 

Now you’re planning to make a corporate podcast? Not just a hobby podcast detailing your love of miniatures or backpacking. This podcast is for your employees, your investors, your customers. It’s important!

And when your company’s reputation is on the line, you want to sound your best. You’ve hired a professional podcast production company, you’ve studied how to engage listeners, and your spare bedroom is now a professional podcast recording studio. You’re ready for action.

But is your voice?

Some people are just born with the right kind of voice: rich tones, perfect pronunciation, a conspicuous lack of “uhs” and “likes.” The rest of us have to work a little harder for it. 

But you’re used to hard work, right? And you’ve got a growth mindset. I’m certain you do. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be where you are today, either in business or on this website learning how to improve your voice for high quality podcast production.

Read on for tips from a professional voice coach on how to make sure your voice is podcast ready.

1. Slow down 

When people get nervous, they tend to talk too fast. And, being new to podcasting, you’re probably feeling a little anxious yourself. Not to mention, there’s the fear that if we don’t say all the things in a torrent of words, we’ll lose our audience’s interest. 

But in fact, the opposite is true. The faster you speak, the more likely you are to mispronounce things, stumble over your words, and run out of breath. 

So slow down, and focus on quality over quantity, taking care to put emphasis where it will be most effective. 

Which leads to the second tip…

2. Pause

Not the recording, but your words. Using well-placed pauses is the verbal version of em-dashes — they emphasize what comes after. 

Well-placed silence is golden. 

Listen to your favorite podcasts and notice how the hosts use that negative space to their advantage: emphasizing key messages, transitioning to a new topic, or even giving their audience a moment to absorb and process what they’ve just said.

And it works!

Pauses are also a great way to introduce variety into your speech. If you speak at the same rate, at the same tone, without variation, it gets, well, boring. And that’s how you’ll lose your audience’s attention. 

3. Turn the volume up (or down)

Speak too quietly, and you’ll give off anxious vibes. If you’re hosting an internal or outward-facing business podcast, where your audience is your employees, shareholders, or customers, you want your voice to convey confidence. Don’t let a quiet voice paint the wrong picture. 

The converse can also be true. While you want to be assertive and command attention, no one wants to be shouted at. Like most things in life, the middle way is ideal. Not too loud, not too soft. If you’re unsure of how loud your voice will be to listeners, a mic check before recording should get you in line. 

The goal is to train yourself to use a natural speaking volume, which communicates confidence while, at the same time, being a pleasure to listen to. Once you’ve mastered that, you can toy with your pitch and volume to emphasize points and hold your audience’s attention.

The first rule is: don’t offend. Then focus on impressing.

4. Good vibes only

We all have bad days, low days, days when we’re just off. There’s nothing wrong with that. However, no one wants to listen to that podcast. 

When you show up to record, show up as your BEST self. People listen to podcasts to learn, be inspired, to be entertained. Audiences are much more responsive to speakers who are upbeat and positive. Low-energy vibes will make them switch off your podcast, or at least tune it out, faster than you can finish this sentence.

So, get your head space right by spending half an hour doing things to boost your mood (and confidence) before your record. Vocal warm-ups, power poses, rehearsing your intro with a friend — take your pick. They’ll all help.

5. Just breathe

But breathe with care. Your voice is your instrument, and your breath is what powers it. If you aren’t in control of your breathing, you’ll play your instrument about as well as I play the guitar. 

However, if you’re in control, the results will be having tone, pitch, and speed which are varied enough to hold the listener’s interest.

Imagine the most embarrassing moment in your life or a time when you were incredibly nervous. Pay attention to the change in your heart rate. It speeds up. And the faster your heart beats, the faster you have to breathe to supply it oxygen. 

If you’re new to podcasting, you’re likely to be nervous. And that means you need to be consciously aware of your breath, making sure it’s even and measured, regardless of how many butterflies are in your stomach. 

Take some deep breaths now. Practice. And before you know it, you’ll sound confident and collected, even if you aren’t.

6. Listen to Yourself

As painful as this is at first, it’s critical. And if you can’t do it, how can you ask others to?

If you listen to yourself enough, you will come to know your own voice, and self, in a much deeper way. 

Do you use a lot of filler words like “uh,” and “you know” without even realizing it? Do you tend to trail off, not finishing your point? Do you ramble when you’re nervous? Does every sentence end in upspeak, sounding like a question, even if it isn’t one? Are you an interrupter? Do you sound irritated or snarky, when you’re in a perfectly fine mood, thank you?

It’s nearly impossible to hear the quality of our speech from inside our own heads. So, take the time to listen to yourself before others do. You’ll have many opportunities to do so, especially during the editing process. And if you take some time between recording and listening, that space will give you a more objective view.

Interested in trying out your new and improved podcasting voice?

Reach out to us at [email protected]. We are an Austin-based, full-service podcast production suite and media company, eager to help you create client-facing podcasts as well as internal podcasts that will cultivate community and further your goals.