Episode 272 | Insider Secrets to a Top 100 Podcast | Courtney Elmer

Featured Guest: Joe Casabona
Joe Casabona is a podcast and automation coach who helps busy solopreneurs reclaim their time. With over a decade of podcasting experience, more than 15 years of teaching, and over 20 years in web development, Joe brings a wealth of expertise to his work. He manages three podcasts, earns $30,000 to $50,000 annually from sponsorships alone, and garners 60,000 downloads each month—all while raising three young children. His podcast systems save him 12 hours each week. Outside of podcasting and coaching, Joe enjoys spending time with his family, watching baseball, and talking too much about Star Wars.

How to Plan High-Quality Podcast Episodes in Half the Time

You’ve heard all the tips for saving time on editing, uploading, and promoting your podcast episodes. But the real time-suck for most podcasters? Planning the episode before you even hit record.

But what if I told you there’s a smarter way to plan episodes that cuts your prep time in half and helps you create episodes that connect and convert (without undermining your authority with AI)?

That’s exactly what podcast productivity guru Joe Casabona is here to show you. In this episode, Joe breaks down his proven framework to streamline your episode planning process and capture ideas wherever you are (yes, even mid-shampoo) so you can stop staring at the blank screen waiting for inspiration to strike and plan high-quality episodes in half the time.

Ready for a smarter, faster way to plan your podcast episodes and position yourself as the go-to authority in your niche? Here's what you need.

The Simple Episode Planning Framework to Cut Your Prep Time in Half

Joe’s framework, which he calls the "CALM Framework," is designed to make episode planning easy and fast. Here’s a breakdown:

• Capture: When it comes to episode planning, “You need to make it as easy as possible to capture ideas no matter where you are,” Joe says. He emphasizes the importance of finding a method that works for you, whether it’s jotting notes in your phone, using a voice assistant, or even emailing yourself ideas. The key is having a system in place so you’re never without something to work from — and all of your ideas live in one place. << This is essential.
  
  
• Articulate: The next step in the episode planning process is to take those ideas and turn them into episodes. “Once you’ve captured a bunch of ideas, pick the one that lights you up the most,” Joe advises. Outline your episode, noting key points or questions, so when it’s time to record, the content practically flows out of you. Joe says, “At this stage, you’re not just creating content — you’re shaping it.”
  
  
• Leverage: Most podcast hosts don’t realize that part of the episode planning process includes having a plan for promoting the content you create. Don’t just create content once and forget it. Joe suggests, “Leverage your content across different platforms, but remember to tailor it for each one.” He warns against simply copying and pasting: “Repurposing has baggage. Instead, think about how to reframe your content so it fits the platform you’re sharing it on.”
  
  
• Measure: The last step in a streamlined episode planning process? Tracking your results so it helps inform the content for future episodes. “Without measuring your content’s performance, you’re flying blind. Look at your analytics, but don’t stop at download numbers — check your consumption rates and see what episodes resonate most with your audience so you can create more of that kind of content.”

Here’s what it looks like to put each piece of this framework into action to create one, cohesive episode planning process:

Stop Waiting for Inspiration to Strike (Do This Instead)

“There’s nothing worse than sitting down at a computer, mic ready, and having no clue what you’re going to talk about,” Joe says. (And let’s be real, we’ve all been there.) He calls this the “waiting-for-inspiration trap” — and the pressure gets even worse if you’re not batching your content, because now you’re scrambling to throw something together last minute.

Joe’s solution?  Instead of relying on inspiration to strike, put a system in place for capturing ideas as they come, whether that’s during a walk, in the shower, or scrolling through Instagram. Joe’s got it down: “I’ve made it so I can talk to Siri on my phone or watch, which is a lifesaver when I’m wrangling kids and need to capture an idea,” he says. The key is making sure every idea ends up in the same place so nothing gets lost.

This way you’ve got a stash of ideas ready to go when it’s time to plan your next episode so you’re never left staring at a blank screen wondering what to say. Because like Joe says, “Inspiration is great, but having gas in the tank for those days when inspiration isn’t striking and you still have to make content is even better.”

Turn Your Ideas Into Action 

Once you’ve captured a bunch of ideas, the next step is to actually turn them into episodes. Joe calls this phase “Articulate,” where you take those raw ideas and flesh them out into something you can run with.

“I’m all about picking the idea that lights you up the most,” Joe says. This doesn’t have to be some perfectly mapped-out script — just get the main points down so you’ve got a structure to work from. “I like to outline my episodes with key points or questions, but you can keep it as loose or detailed as you need,” he adds.

The goal in this part of the episode planning process is to have a roadmap so that when you sit down to record, you’re not fumbling for what to say next. Whether you’re flying solo or interviewing a guest, having a plan makes the process smoother. As Joe puts it, “This is where the idea becomes content.”

It’s not about being rigid with your outline either. Joe recommends keeping it flexible so you can follow the flow of the conversation or your own thoughts. But with a solid framework in place, you’re freeing up more of your brainpower to focus on delivering value, instead of scrambling to figure out what comes next.

The Right Way to Leverage Your Content Across Platforms

After you’ve recorded and published your episode, the real work begins — making sure you market that content you created across platforms. But simply throwing your podcast transcript into an AI tool and calling it a blog post? That’s a fast track to undermining your authority. Instead, think about how to repurpose your content in a way that adds value on every platform.

Joe explains the difference between leveraging content and repurposing: “Repurposing is just taking what you already have and using it somewhere else. Leveraging is taking that content and reshaping it so it fits the platform you’re posting it on, so it’s valuable and engaging for that platform’s specific audience.”

“It’s not about copying and pasting,” Joe explains. “It’s about reframing your content so it fits the platform.”

For example, instead of just clipping a 60-second chunk from your episode for social media, Joe suggests creating a short-form video that shares a key takeaway from the episode and teases the rest of the episode content to drive traffic back to the show. “It’s not me pulling a random clip,” he says, “it’s me giving you the TLDR of the episode, tailored specifically for that platform.”

By doing this, you ensure the content stays fresh and relevant wherever it shows up. Is it more work? Yes. But is it a smarter way to grow your presence on other platforms using your podcast content? Also yes.

Measuring What Matters: How to Know Your Content is Hitting the Mark

Without measuring your content’s performance, it’s hard to know what your audience actually wants. That’s why measuring your metrics is a key — but often forgotten — step of the episode planning process. Joe compares it to navigating with GPS: “Before GPS, we had to use paper maps. If something unexpected happened, like a road closure, we’d have to figure out a new route on the fly. But with GPS, we get real-time updates and a clear path forward. That’s what measuring your content does — it guides you to what works.”

Instead of just focusing on download numbers, Joe recommends digging deeper into your consumption rates. “See where listeners drop off, which topics they’re engaging with, and which episodes have the highest completion rates,” he says. If you want to understand what resonates with your audience and how to adjust your content moving forward, this step is a must.

By putting Joe’s CALM Framework into action, you’ll not only save time planning your podcast episodes, but you’ll also create content that connects, converts, and keeps your listeners coming back for more. So if you’re ready to take control of your content so you can show up as the go-to authority in your niche? Start using this framework, and see how much easier (and more fun) episode planning can be.

And if you want more free advice on how to create a bingeworthy top podcast in your life, make sure to hit the follow button for Insider Secrets to a Top 100 Podcast on your favorite podcast app so you never miss a new episode.

Or if you’re ready to launch and/or scale your podcast and want our proven strategy to help you reach more new listeners and turn those listeners into leads and sales, book a free strategy call with our team to find out if you’re a fit for PodLaunch® — we’re here to help.

Up Next: 

In the next episode, Joe Casabona is back to share how streamlining his episode planning saved him enough time to bring in $50,000 in sponsorships each year. He’ll show you exactly how he did it, so you can do it too. If you’re ready to land sponsors without losing listener trust and learn the exact strategies to get deals that align with your audience, hit play on the next episode and let’s dive in.