How do you feel about the idea of marketing your business doubling as a fun hobby? That’s what many business leaders and entrepreneurs have done by creating a podcast.

It takes skill to create content that engages and captivates an audience, as well as technical know-how to record high-quality audio, but if you get it right you could significantly boost the profile of your business.

Navigating the steep learning curve is a major challenge for many new podcasters, and that's why a growing number of creators are opting to use professional podcasting studios. Working with a studio can provide numerous advantages. Here’s the top five:

1. Improved audio and production values

The podcast market is increasingly crowded and competitive. If you want your show to stand out and attract loyal listeners, putting out high-quality content is essential. When comparing similar podcasts, audiences will usually gravitate towards the one with better production quality.

But setting up your own studio with all the latest gear and keeping it updated over time is very expensive. Most individual podcasters simply can't afford it and it doesn’t make financial sense for a weekly podcast.

Professional studios solve this issue by giving you access to state-of-the-art podcasting equipment and the technical expertise to use it optimally. You get amazing sound quality without having to make big upfront investments and studios are also continuously upgrading their gear to stay on the cutting edge.

2. Ability to incorporate video

While audio is the traditional format for podcasts, adding a video component opens up exciting new ways to grow and engage your audience. Different people prefer to consume content in different ways – some like listening to full podcast episodes during their commute, while others enjoy watching short highlight clips on social media. Having video lets you reach fans on any platform regardless of their personal preferences.

Video also makes your podcast more discoverable, since YouTube videos tend to appear higher in search results compared to audio content. What's more, major podcast services like Spotify and Apple Music have recently introduced video support, making it an increasingly important feature when trying to stand out in a crowd.

However, producing quality video alongside your audio adds a load more technical challenges that take time, money and expertise to overcome. You need to consider things like lighting, camerawork, set design, makeup and wardrobe. It also requires a whole other skill set for recording and editing.

Many podcast studios were early adopters of video and have years of experience with it. By partnering with a studio, you can tap into their expertise to create professional video content right from the start.

3. Consistency, week after week

Growing a dedicated following for your podcast is a marathon, not a sprint. Popular shows with large audiences often have hundreds or even thousands of episodes in their back catalogue. The key ingredient in their success is almost always consistency.

Establishing a predictable, reliable rhythm with your podcast assures listeners that your content will be there for them and is worth committing to. It's crucial to put out new episodes on a regular schedule and maintain a consistent format, production quality, host, and overall vibe.

Doing this requires coordinating a lot of moving pieces, both human and technical, to pull off each recording session without a hitch. And you need backup plans in place. What if a key crew member gets sick or a critical piece of equipment fails at the last minute?

Professional studios are set up to provide the consistency you need. They'll work with you to book regular studio time and handle all the logistics to make sure you're able to record your episodes like clockwork. And they have redundant systems and staffing so that if issues come up, there's always a solution to keep things on track.

4. Budget-friendly option

When you're just starting out in podcasting, it's natural to want to limit your spending. But getting the cheapest equipment will result in inferior audio (and video) that makes your show less competitive. As a result, your podcast is unlikely to gain much traction, wasting the time and money you put into it.

You might also try to save money by managing the various different roles yourself, thereby reducing staffing costs. But doing it all solo is also enormously time-consuming compared to what a professional studio can achieve. For example, a podcast editor can usually polish an hour of audio in about four hours. An amateur might take several times longer.

Ultimately, trying to save costs with a budget DIY solution will often result in wasted time, money and effort.

Studios, on the other hand, give you a way to test the medium of podcasting while controlling your costs and ensuring a high-quality product. Then, if your show takes off, you'll be in a great position to deliver consistent, engaging content that will hold your audience's attention for the long haul.

5. Valuable pre-production support

There's a lot more to a great podcast than just the technical elements. The most successful shows are carefully planned out well in advance of hitting the record button. If a podcast sounds (and looks) effortless, it’s because of preparation.

Some podcast studios provide pre-production support to help map everything out. They'll collaborate with you to develop questions, outlines and rehearse before your recording sessions. Having these planning meetings with experienced producers keeps everyone aligned and leads to a much more polished podcast.

The studio team will also be on hand during your recordings to manage all the little details, like keeping timestamps, identifying parts that would work well for ads or promo clips, and even doing live editing. This can dramatically speed up post-production and allow you to release episodes almost immediately after you record them, for a more timely, organic feel.

Additionally, by bringing a studio on board early in the process, you'll benefit from their knowledge of how to manage the production elements efficiently to minimise headaches, wasted time and budget while getting the best quality product from the outset.

Maz Farsani is co-founder of Outset Studio which provides full-service podcast and video production studios in London and Manchester. Outset specialises in pod- and vlog- casts, live streams and live shopping.