Some of the best conversations happen when two people are nowhere near each other.
Maybe your dream guest is in another country.
Maybe your co-host is tired of getting stuck in traffic halfway across town.
Whatever the case, remote interviews open up a world of possibilities for podcasters (if you know how to do them right).
In this guide, we’ll walk you through exactly how to record high-quality remote interviews that sound like you’re sitting in the same room.
How to Record a Podcast from Two Locations
Recording a podcast from multiple locations is actually pretty simple, here's the steps you should take:
- Select your online recording software and ensure that it offers local recording with high quality audio and video. Local recording means even if your internet drops you won't lose the content.
- Ensure optimal internet connection - this might mean using a cable instead of Wi-Fi, getting a signal booster or upgrading your subscription. Local recording helps, but a good connection is always preferable.
- Set up your recording equipment at each location and do some test runs to make sure that everything is working okay. You might need to select your microphone and headphones as 'sources' in the software.
- Record your podcast - it might take some trial and error to make sure the quality is right and that your tech is working, but it shouldn't take long before remote recording is a breeze!
What is a remote interview?
As the name suggests, a remote interview occurs when the participating parties are not in the same physical location during the interview. In these cases, the interviewer and candidate are in different locations and join the discussion online. These interviews became especially popular during the Covid-19 pandemic when conducting an online interview was the only solution.
After the worst of the pandemic, podcasters, journalists, and other media creators realized that remote interviews were often more comfortable and convenient than traditional interviews, as they could be conducted from the comfort of their own homes.
Remote or not, interviews are a great way to make your show more engaging. So, let's see the main advantages of including an interview in your show.
Why you need interviews in your podcast
Suppose you're a solo podcaster who's comfortable with his current podcasting format. Is it worthwhile to go out of your comfort zone and start including interviews in your podcast? We say absolutely! And here's why:
1) Interviews bring a new audience to your show
If your interview is successful and your guest feels excited about it, they’ll most likely share it on their social media. This would bring many new listeners to your show who might not have come across it if it wasn't for the guest you're interviewing. And if the episode is engaging, they probably will come back to get more!
2) It brings a new perspective
Interviewing different people for your podcast makes your show more diverse and engaging for your audience. Your guests bring in different interesting opinions, stories, tips, and pieces of advice. In the end, they make your podcast content entertaining and take a lot of pressure off your shoulders.
3) You'll make real personal connections
Finally, by inviting a prominent guest to your show, you'll get a chance to actually get to know the person you're interviewing on a personal level. This way, you'll grow your network with notable specialists and celebrities, which is nothing but great news!
Record remotely with ease using reliable podcast software tailored for distance setups.
How to record remote interviews with Podcastle
There are two ways you can record remote interviews using our platform: from your iPhone or from your laptop. We'll start with the iOS version.
Recording remote Interviews with the Podcastle App
The mobile app of Podcastle is great when you want to record a podcast on the go. Here's how to conduct remote interviews from anywhere.
Open the Podcastle App and log into your account. Once there, click on the red button to open the remote interviews section. Give a title to your interview or toggle the Schedule an interview switch to plan your remote interviews beforehand. Here you can set the date and time of your next interview and also invite the guests. If you want to start the interview right away, just click Start.
Congratulations, you're live! Now invite your guests by clicking on the people's icon. Once you choose Invite People, select how you want to send the interview link to the participants. You can send it via email, Instagram, Messenger, or a range of other platforms.
Your guests can join the interview both from the app and the desktop version of Podcastle. You can invite up to nine guests to your interview, and as a host, you have the permission to mute them. There's also the fun "fire" reaction you and your participants can send to show approval during one's speech, or simply make the interview more fun!
And that's pretty much it. Hit End when you're done with the recording, and go to the web version of Podcastle to start editing your multitrack interview. Both your audio track and your guests' will be saved as a new project and appear in My Projects.
Recording remote interviews on Desktop
If you like to conduct remote interviews with your laptop, you should go for Podcastle's web version. Here's a quick recap on using Podcastle on your desktop.
Log into your Podcastle account and open the Recording Studio.
From here, choose the Interview a Guest option, and copy the interview link.
You can invite your guests by sharing with them the link or by selecting the Invite by email option.
Once your guest joins, you'll get a message asking whether to "Deny" or "Admit". Unless the wrong person has surprisingly made their way into your recording studio, you'll want to press "Admit".
When your participant joins the link, his icon will show up. If you're the host, you can mute or remove any of the participants during the interview.
That's pretty much it— enjoy the discussion and once you're done, you can either press "Stop" or "End" the recording studio session entirely!
Your interview will automatically be saved as a project, and you can find it in your Projects list. If you open it, you'll see that you and your interview guests have been recorded with separate tracks. This will help you quickly cut out the unwanted parts from one audio track without hurting the other.
That's how easy it is! Now you know how to conduct successful remote interviews no matter where you are. As we've covered all the technical aspects of interview podcast recording, let's take a look at some tips that can help you make your interview more engaging:
Some tips for successful interviews
1) Choose the right guests
When picking whom you want to invite to an interview, try to choose the most interesting people. It's not only who they are that matters for your audience; it's also how good they are at holding a conversation and making it engaging.
So before you invite your interview participants, watch some talks or discussions they’ve participated in before in order to decide whether they are a good speaker or not. Also remember it will be interesting for your audience to hear someone who has unique opinions on different topics and is not afraid to express them.
2) Do your research
Always do your research before the interview. Even if the interviewee is your best friend, you need to take some time to research their background and understand what their strongest and weakest points are.
Try to figure out which topics they most probably wouldn't like discussing during the interview so that you can avoid inappropriate questions and awkward answers. When doing your research, try to remember what they have already said online and which questions they’ve already answered. This way, your podcast episode won't sound repetitive.
3) Ask good questions
Simply put, be a good host and ask good questions. Try to avoid yes or no questions because with them, the answer will be way too short, and you'll fail to maintain a long and insightful discussion. Instead, ask questions that require your interviewee to expand on the topic. Also, don't ask multiple questions at once, as the chances are high that your interviewee will forget a couple of them and jump straight to the last one when answering.
Finally, the best tip to use when writing your interview questions is to focus on the "how" and "why" questions. These are the questions that incite the most insightful answers. So when asking, "What was the last movie you watched that impressed you?" don't forget to add, "Why was it impressive, and how did it change you?"
Final Thoughts
Conducting remote interviews for your podcast is really easy (and free) with Podcastle — you can record it literally from anywhere and with the highest quality possible. So no more excuses: open Podcastle and start creating right away!
