Episode 4 - Understanding Podcast Layouts and Show Flow

In this episode, Jon breaks down the essential elements of podcast layouts and the importance of structuring a show from start to finish. He explains the typical flow, starting with an intro sequence, followed by the main content, and wrapping up with an outro, often incorporating music and specific segments. Jon highlights the value of writing out the podcast layout as a guide for the production team and notes that layouts may vary depending on whether the podcast is narrative or content-oriented. This episode serves as a helpful guide for podcasters looking to create a well-structured, engaging show.

Takeaways

• A typical podcast layout includes an intro sequence, main content, and an outro sequence.
• Writing out the podcast layout helps streamline production and provides clarity for post-production.
• Layouts can differ based on the type of podcast, such as narrative or content-driven shows.
• Incorporating music and specific segments can enhance the flow and engagement of your podcast.

Chapters
00:00 - Introduction and Importance of Show Review
01:26 - Overview of Podcast Layout and Workbook
03:24 - Components of Podcast Layout: Intro, Main Content, and Outro
05:23 - Using the Podcast Layout as a Reference Point
06:36 - Adapting the Layout for Different Types of Shows
07:35 - Simplicity and Helpful Tips

Resources

• Download the Wayfare Podcast Strategy Workbook
• Need help with your podcast? CLICK HERE
• Need help starting your podcast? CLICK HERE

Versions

• Check out our video version of the podcast.
• Check out our audio version of the podcast.

Acknowledgments
A big thank you to:

• Kath - Creating the podcast artwork (You can find more of her work here)
• Anna - Wayfare's Admin Assist.
• Matt - Graphics creation for the show
• Dan - Post-production work

For any additional questions, please reach out through this link.

Thank you for listening!

Transcript

Jon (00:01.199)
Hello and welcome to another episode of the Wayfair podcast. This is John and you are listening to episode four of the show. before we jump into it today and talk about just podcast layouts and how your show is going to flow. I just want to do a quick reminder and say that, writing and reviewing the

the show is super helpful and subscribing. If you are watching this on YouTube, leaving comments, creating conversations, it's all part of, how we grow each other's show, build each other up. And, yeah. with that being said, let's get right into it. So, like I mentioned, it is all about podcast layouts today.

On the workbook and if this is your first time joining us, you can, we're going through a, workbook today or workbook through the series and, you can get that by following the links in the show notes. If you're watching the video or no description, if you're, I always get a really flipped in my head description. If you're watching this on YouTube or show notes, if you're listening to it, audio only,

but you can download it. There's, there's some links on however you listen to it and however you gather information on the episode. there are links to this and I'll try to make it fairly obvious. but if you're working through this series with us and you're working through the workbook, this is a quick one pager page 10. and it's just a list of open ended lines for you to fill out.

but it's podcast layout. And what do I mean when I say that? So if you're listening to any show, any podcast show, you'll notice that there's a pretty decent flow that they, that the podcaster goes through from start to finish. So typically a pretty good standard that you'll notice. And if you're watching the show, you'll notice too, that there's a, intro sequence.

Jon (02:25.97)
there's the main episode, the main content, and then there's the outro sequence. And most of those sequences are compiled of, and we'll talk. Audio only just for the sake of simplicity. there's the music with a, there's music with intros. so that can be like, you know, a formal intro, very segmented, like

Hey, thank you so much for checking out the show. This is such and such. And in this show, we talk about this, that, and the other thing. And then it segues into the main content and the main content's much more structured as far as like, you know, it's 10 minutes, 20 minutes. Information. Cool. And then it can transition into the outro, which is, you know, thanks again for listening. Be sure to subscribe, follow.

leave a review, share with a friend with music overlaying, then the episode's done. that's pretty well laid out. And if you're kind of writing this all out on the workbook, it'll be like, you know, section one music or line one music line two, intro line three, main episode line four, outro line five music.

and there's a little bit of layering to that too. I mean, you know, this isn't like a heart fasting, you know, line four could be, outro with music or whatever. but again, that's kind of the, thing is just to put it out in front of you and be like, this is what the show is laid out to look like hence podcasts layout. you know, and you know, for a stronger example for me with the show, I would say, you know, line one, and this is video, so it's going to get a little bit more nuanced, but line one is intro graphic in music.

line two is, show introduction or episode introduction. Cause I kind of like blur it a little bit with how I discuss and talk, you know, said earlier in this episode, before we jump into it, don't forget to do X, Y, and Z whatever. and then line three would be episodes content. So we're talking about, you know, podcast layout that would be episodes content. And then line four would probably be like,

Jon (04:53.295)
call to action, I would probably call it, which is, you know, again, liking subscribing, leaving a review, et cetera, et cetera. And then the next line would be outro graphic. and that's probably what my layout would look like. That's probably what my show flow would look like. And, I would say that this is a pretty important thing to also like write out and have on hand because, know, whoever you end up working with, whether it's yourself or with a post producer, when I have people fill this paperwork out.

And give it to me, I'll use it as a reference point to then go into our software and kind of like lay it all out and then start like piecing things together and merging things together a little bit more fluidly. So yeah, I'm trying to think of anything else that really is kind of well associated with this topic. I think it can be pretty intense if you kind of do more.

nuance details, like if you're doing kind of like a narrative show thing, like a true crime thing, and you're kind of doing start to finish, because it's kind of like, okay, when do I use, like, when am I going to write in here the...

Jon (06:06.947)
the outsourced audio material. and, really, I mean, it's, can be pretty nuanced if you want to have that written out for yourself. So you can keep track of what things look like. But again, that's all part of like the, main episode and you can probably write down like, you know, main content in parentheses, the sound, the other thing, but keep in mind too, that every episode for those type of material oriented.

content is going to be very different one from the other. Like there could be an episode where you don't have any outsourced, audio clippings again, true crime, you know, if you want to have like a court case document, I don't know, documented audio file inserted, you're not going to have one maybe for like every episode, but for some episodes. but I think, yeah, I mean, this is a very open -ended discussion point and it's really meant to help you. yeah.

think that's pretty much it for this episode. It's a pretty simple and straightforward one. know, I have eight lines on here. Feel free to make your own. This is not set in stone to eight. If you need 10, if you need 20 would be a lot, but, you know, again, it's for you. What do you, what do you need? I don't think I need for the show personally, like any more than four or five, but yeah, keep it, keep it simple. Keep it helpful.

Yeah, I think that's pretty much it. That's a shorter episode today. I'm kind of impressed with myself, but, yeah, if, if there's anything, if you have any questions on this, if you need any more guidance on it, if you need any more help, feel free to reach out. there's a link in the show notes description. don't want to get it super twisted like I did earlier in this episode, but,

There's a, yeah, in the, in the, description or show notes, there's the, there's contact information as far as like, you know, can check out my website, feel free to reach out. There should be, some emails on there for you to get in contact with us. again, if you leave comments in the, video form of this, it's kind of get a discussion going. That's super cool. Super helpful. yeah. And, again,

Jon (08:31.587)
This document is super open for whoever needs it. I'll be sure to be able to provide it for you if you want to download it and check it out. And yeah, thank you again for listening. please leave a review, share with a friend. yeah, until the next episode. Thank you so much.