Despite a lot of the workforce working remotely at the moment and no longer commuting, podcasts have never been bigger.

According to a recent study from Edison Research and Triton Digital, 75% of Americans are now familiar with podcasting. That’s 212 million people and an increase of 10 million in just one year.

If you think you have something to say and you want to turn it into a podcast, there’s no better time to get started. Plus, the barrier to entry is low.

With tools like Anchor and an iPhone, you’re pretty much all set.

In a recent interview with fitness coach Jordan Syatt, he talked about using an iPhone to record all of his podcasts when he was first getting started.

“If you go back and listen to my first 50 podcasts, you’re going to notice a dramatic difference in the sound quality, and that’s because I was literally just recording them on my phone. My podcast still did very well with those episodes,” says Jordan.

“Regardless of how good the sound quality is…what matters most is what you’re saying, the message you’re getting across.”

With that being said, I’m guessing if you’re reading this, you have some sort of smart phone. And you also have access to free apps like Anchor. That’s really all you need to get started with a podcast.

Now, I also understand how awesome it is buying new gear. Even if you want a high-quality mic, it likely won’t break the bank.

Below are a couple mics that myself and a former colleague, Wallen Augustin, co-host of the Savvy Dialogue podcast, chatted about in a previous episode of K-Stream.

• Blue Yeti USB Mic: $129.99
• Rode PodMic: $99

And those are nice mics.

Wallen and his wife have two of the Rode PodMics, as well as the Rodecaster Pro, and their show sounds like it’s done in a professional studio, when it’s really done from the comfort of their own apartment.

They also use Anchor, which allows them to bring in guests, edit the audio, insert sound effects or music, and publish across platforms all from within the app.

This is just the infancy for podcasting, and I can’t wait to see what 2021 brings.