Podcast Playbook (Part 8): How to Launch Your Podcast the Right Way — Titles, Promotion & Momentum

Part 8 of the Podcast Playbook is all about launch day—the moment your podcast moves from planning to reality. In this episode, Kelly Kennedy stresses that first impressions matter more than almost anything else. He breaks down the steps every podcaster should take before hitting publish, including running a final quality check, ensuring audio is clean and professional, confirming metadata, and carefully selecting evergreen topics that will hold up long term. Kelly also shares his personal experience with equipment setbacks and lessons learned, underscoring that podcasting is an ongoing journey of problem-solving and adaptation.

From there, the focus shifts to promotion and momentum. Kelly explains that launching isn’t just uploading—it’s announcing to the world that your show exists and giving people a reason to care. He outlines how to create compelling titles and descriptions, stick to a reliable release schedule, and aggressively market your show through social media, groups, and promo clips. He emphasizes celebrating small wins, staying consistent, and avoiding common traps like bad audio, over-hype, or lack of content. Launch day isn’t the finish line, but the starting gun—and building long-term momentum requires consistency, resilience, and the mindset to commit to at least 100 episodes.

Key Takeaways:

1. Launch day isn’t the finish line, it’s the starting gun of a long marathon.

2. First impressions matter—your audio, presentation, and descriptions set the tone from day one.

3. Always do a final listen and pride test before publishing—if you’re not proud, it’s not ready.

4. Have a backup plan for equipment failures—never let tech issues stop your show.

5. Batch releasing 3–5 episodes gives listeners a reason to subscribe early.

6. Write short, powerful titles and clear descriptions—hooks and accuracy build trust.

7. Consistency is everything—your release schedule is a promise to your audience.

8. Promotion is essential—launching is telling the world, not just uploading quietly.

9. Celebrate small wins like your first 10 downloads or first review—they’ll keep you going.

10. Play the long game—commit to 100 episodes before you judge your success.

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