How to Start a Podcast (And Why I Use Riverside to Make It Easy)

Podcasting looks complicated from the outside, but once you understand the workflow, it’s one of the easiest and most enjoyable ways to share your voice, your ideas, and your creativity.

I started my podcast with almost zero audio production background — just curiosity, a vision, and the right tools. And truly, the entire process is so much simpler than people assume. Today, I’ll walk you through the exact tools and steps I use, including why I record on Riverside and how it streamlines everything from social content to show notes.

This post may contain affiliate links or sponsored mentions. Thank you for supporting my work.

What You Actually Need to Start a Podcast

It’s less equipment than you think:

A podcast concept or theme
A name
A way to record (I use Riverside)
A mic (optional at first — Apple airpods work great for my guests, and I personally use this Logitech microphone made for podcasting)
A place to host your episodes
Somewhere for your show to live (Spotify, Apple Podcasts, etc.)

That’s it. No big production studio required.

Why I Use Riverside (And Why It’s Easier Than Zoom)

Riverside is the platform I use because it makes podcasting simple, high-quality, and creative-friendly.

Here’s the quick breakdown you’ll want to know:

Riverside vs. Zoom — What’s the Actual Difference?

Audio & Video Quality

Riverside: Records locally on each person’s device → studio-level quality
Zoom: Records over the internet → quality depends on WiFi

Separate Audio Tracks

Riverside: Automatic multi-track recordings (essential for editing so you can adjust one person’s volume at a time)
Zoom: Single compressed track (harder to work with)

Guest Experience

Riverside: One click and they’re in. No downloads needed.
Zoom: Requires account + app.

Social Media Clips

Riverside: Auto-generates Reels/TikToks with templates (one of my favorite features!!!)
Zoom: Not built for content creation

Transcripts

Riverside: Instant AI transcript → perfect for show notes, blogs, social captions (copy/paste into chat GPT and you’ll have show notes and social media captions in no time)
Zoom: Limited or paid upgrades, often less accurate

Backup & Safety

Riverside: Automatic backups while you record
Zoom: Not optimized for this

Bottom line:
If you’re a creator, coach, creative, or entrepreneur, Riverside will make your life 10x easier than Zoom. It was designed for podcasting — Zoom wasn’t.

👉 I record all my episodes in Riverside because it genuinely simplifies the entire process. You can sign up for Riverside here to give it a try.

How I Record a Podcast Episode (My Simple Workflow)

This is the part people overcomplicate — but it’s so intuitive. Here’s exactly what I do:

1. Open Riverside and Enter My Recording Studio

I set up one “studio” and reuse it each time. No new links. No extra setup.

2. Adjust My Mic & Camera (Optional)

If you have:

A USB mic → plug it in
A camera → turn it on
Nothing → your computer mic + cam are totally fine

This is enough to start.

3. Hit Record

Literally just a button. It counts down from 5 and then you’re recording.
Riverside records you and your guest separately for max quality.

4. Stop and Export

When I’m done, I hit stop recording and Riverside:

Saves high-quality files
Uploads everything automatically (just watch the % upload at the top of your screen, sometimes one person’s takes longer than the other)
Shows me a clean dashboard to download the final audio/video

Stopping the record doesn’t cut you off live “Zoom” like experience from your guest, it just stops the recording. You can continue chatting as long as you like.

5. Generate AI Transcripts (My Secret Weapon)

This is my favorite part.

With one click, I get a full transcript of the episode. I use it to:

Create show notes
Write the episode description
Pull quotes
Grab captions for social
Use ChatGPT to summarize the episode

If you ever struggle writing descriptions or recaps?
This solves it.

6. Create Social Media Clips Automatically

Riverside will:

Auto-detect interesting moments
Turn them into Reels/TikToks
Resize for each platform
Add captions or adjust the visual style of the ones they automatically created
Add your branding colors/fonts

This alone saves you hours.

How I Publish My Podcast

Don’t let this part intimidate you — it’s also simple.

Here’s how mine works:

Publishing to Spotify

I upload the episode directly from Riverside → Spotify for Podcasters.
It’s built in, and it takes seconds.

Publishing to Apple Podcasts (via RSS feed)

When you first start your podcast:

Create an RSS feed in Spotify for Podcasters
Submit it once to Apple Podcasts
Apple approves it
After that, each episode automatically appears on Apple

You never have to manually upload to Apple again.

If you want, I can create a future post with screenshots showing the exact steps.

Tools I Use (And Recommend for Beginners)

These are simple, low-stress tools that make podcasting smooth:

Riverside — recording, transcripts, clips (affiliate link)
ChatGPT — generating show notes, descriptions, summaries
A basic USB mic (Blue Yeti, Maono, or literally any beginner mic)
A ring light (optional but helpful)
Spotify for Podcasters — publishing + hosting

If you already have a computer and an idea, you’re 90% of the way there.

Podcasting Doesn’t Have to Be Complicated

Most people never start because they assume podcasting requires:

Expensive gear
Complicated software
Hours of editing

It doesn’t.

If you can hit record, speak naturally, and upload one file, you can run a podcast.
And with Riverside handling the heavy lifting — social clips, transcripts, publishing — it becomes even more effortless.

If you’re ready to start your own podcast, you can explore Riverside here:
👉 Riverside Podcast Recording

The free version will work depending on how often you plan to record, but if you’re like me you’ll quickly realize you want the paid version, which is very reasonably priced starting at $24/month.