9 Benefits of Batch Recording Podcast Episodes (and 4 Pitfalls)

Recording a podcast takes a lot of time and effort. One way to streamline this process is by batch recording your episodes.

With batch recording, you can record 3-4 episodes in a single day.

There are tons of perks to doing this. I’ve personally used this strategy and seen it work well for my clients, too. 

That said, batch recording isn’t for everyone. Read on to learn more about the pros and cons of recording your podcasts in batches to figure out if it’s right for you. 

9 Benefits of Recording Podcast Episodes in Batches

In many cases, I think the pros of batch recording podcast episodes will outweigh the cons. These are the top advantages:

#1 — Consistent Publishing Schedule

The best part about recording podcast episodes in batches is that it ensures you always have a backlog of content to publish. So if something comes up and you’re unable to record a new episode that week, you can just draw from your backlog of what was recorded in the last batch. 

Keeping a consistent publishing schedule is crucial for building a fanbase and keeping them engaged. Once they expect a weekly episode, you can potentially lose those listeners by failing to deliver on those expectations. 

#2 — Less Setup Time

This is particularly true for podcasters who don’t have a full studio setup in their home and office. It can take an hour or more to set up a room for recording with all of the equipment. 

But with batch recording, you’re only setting up everything once for every episode. So if you can knock out three or four episodes in a single session, you just saved yourself three hours of work.

If you’re on the road, you won’t have to worry about bringing any equipment with you either. Batch recording can eliminate your need to record podcasts while traveling. 

#3 — Improved Productivity

For podcasters who have other jobs (like me), it can be tough to be productive when you’re constantly switching between tasks. I personally feel like I get less work done on days when I’m recording podcasts because my mind is just focused more on the episodes. 

Even when I’m done recording, I still feel like I’m in “podcast mode” and mostly end up replying to emails instead of getting quality work done. 

By batch recording, you may only need to dedicate one day a month to your show. So you’ll be more productive on other days without letting a weekly recording session derail your workflow. 

#4 — Better Listener Experience

I find that batch recording episodes forces me to plan ahead in a way that results in high-quality episodes. 

If you know you’re recording four episodes in a row, then it’s far less likely that those episodes will have overlapping content. This is harder to avoid when you have a week or two between recording sessions.

When you plan your podcast episodes the right way, it ultimately translates into a better experience for your listeners. 

#5 — Easier to Manage Your Schedule

I’m a busy guy, and I’m sure you are, too.

Sometimes it’s hard enough for me to squeeze in a 30-minute phone call into my schedule. So setting aside an hour or two every week to record a podcast episode isn’t always doable.

This becomes even harder if you have a co-host, as now you’re dealing with two different schedules. 

But I’m sure you can manage to pencil in a full day once a month for you to record episodes. Then you’re all set for the next few weeks, and you won’t have to constantly worry about weekly scheduling conflicts. 

#6 — Your Entire Post-Production Flow is Streamlined

As you know, recording your episode is just the first step. Then you need to put it through the editing process, get it uploaded to your podcast host, and publish the episodes across all of your channels.

Whether you’re doing this yourself or you have a production team handling it for you, it’s always better to have a backlog of tasks to work on instead of waiting on new episodes to meet tight deadlines.

Your editing team will thank you for this, as they’re not forced to wait on new recordings to do their jobs under tight time constraints. 

#7 — You Can Batch All of Your Podcast Marketing Efforts

Batching episodes also means you can batch all of your podcast promotional strategies. 

You can start cutting clips to run on social media and even run some paid campaigns to build hype for upcoming shows. 

I’ve seen podcasters promote an episode with a particular guest before they recorded the show. When the guest bailed last minute, it left their audience hanging, and it just wasn’t a good look for anyone. This type of scenario can easily be avoided because you’ll know exactly what’s being released in the coming weeks—it’s already recorded. 

#8 — Consistent Audio Quality

Again, this is another common problem for podcasters who don’t have a permanent studio. Sometimes you’re recording at home, other times at the office, and maybe you even rent studio time once in a while.

Your listeners can pick up on these audio inconsistencies, especially if they’re listening to episodes back-to-back.

But if you’re batching shows, then all of those episodes should have the same audio quality. 

#9 — Easier to Coordinate Production Teams

This ties in a few concepts that we’ve already covered, but it’s worth mentioning on its own because the benefit is uniquely different.

In addition to your schedule and your co-host (if you have one), you also need to consider the schedules of your production teams—not only for each recording but for all of the work they put in before and after an episode is done.

Coordinating these efforts every week is tough, and I’ve found it much easier to do this monthly. 

Top 4 Pitfalls of Batch Recording Podcasts

Despite the perks, there are a handful of drawbacks that can’t be ignored if you’re bulk recording podcast episodes. 

1. Burnout — Recording multiple episodes in one day can be exhausting, and you may not be at full strength by the end. This can hurt the quality of your show.
2. Topical and Timely Content — Batch recording doesn’t work if your show is largely based on recent news stories and events. Even if it’s not, it sucks if a guest mentions a recent news story if the episode won’t be published for another month. 
3. Coordinating Multiple Guests — Finding podcast guests for your show can be tough. But finding multiple guests who are all available to record on the same day (and at different times) is even harder. 
4. Meticulous Planning — In addition to planning out the structure for multiple shows in one session, you also need to plan out how everything is going to run on recording day. You need to account for things like lunch breaks, guests arriving late, and other factors.

I don’t necessarily think these pitfalls should prevent you from batch recording podcasts. But they definitely need to be taken into consideration before you just jump in and think it’s all smooth sailing. 

How to Batch Record Podcast Episodes

If you decide that bulk recording your podcast episodes is right for you, following these steps will make your life much easier.

Step 1 — Plan Each Episode

The first thing you need to do is outline the content you’re planning to cover for each episode. This should be the exact same process you’d normally go through prior to recording a show, but you just need to have three, four, or five ready to go.

Step 2 — Confirm Guest Availability Times

If you’re planning to have guests on one or more of your episodes, double-check what days those guests are free. I wouldn’t plan to book more than two guests per recording session—anything more than that gets too messy to manage. 

Step 3 — Lock in a Recording Date

Once you’ve firmed up your guest’s availability, lock in a date that works for you and your team. It should be far enough in advance that you can pivot if something comes up or a guest needs to cancel. But not so far ahead that you run out of content in the meantime. 

Step 4 — Schedule the Entire Day

Now you need to map out the entire day—from setup to breakdown and everything in between. Factor in breaks, lunch, and give yourself some buffer time in between episodes. The day shouldn’t feel rushed or like you’re trying to cram things in. So I recommend scheduling time windows instead of firm times. 

Step 5 — Have a Contingency Plan

What if a guest cancels at the last minute? How will you handle a broken microphone?

Be prepared with an extra episode planned out that you can use as a replacement. Conversely, know what episode you’re going to cut if an interview runs too long or you have delays caused by faulty equipment. Solo monologues are a good option for both of these scenarios. 

Step 6 — Rinse and Repeat

You can simply repeat this process for all of your batch sessions. Once you get into the swing of things, you’ll likely have a calendar of scheduled recording dates penciled in for several months in advance. This will give you even more flexibility and wiggle room when you’re trying to book new guests.

Final Thoughts: Is Batch Recording Right For You?

I like batch recording podcasts when possible, but it’s not for everyone. It doesn’t work if your show revolves around time-sensitive news or events. It’s also tough if you always have guests on every episode. 

I recommend starting small to test it out. Try recording just two episodes in your first session to see if you like it. Then try again recording two episodes but with a guest on one of them.

You can always scale up from there.