Designing Tips For Your Podcast Cover Art

Creating a podcast is not just about recording your episodes and publishing them. It is also about visuals. Just like most people judge a book by its cover, listeners who will stumble upon your podcast will also form an opinion about your content based on how impressive your cover art is. The fact that it is the very first interaction listeners have with you and your podcast cannot be taken lightly. 

It takes just a few seconds to catch someone's eye and the same amount of time to lose that attention. To avoid losing potential listeners, you will have to put in some effort in creating your podcast cover art. Even if you are not a pro designer, with these designing tips for your podcast cover art, you can have a good start in your podcasting journey and stand out among your fellow podcasters. 

Before we dive into all the designing tips that you can use to create your Podcast cover art, let's see why designing a cover art is important in the first place. 

• Pointing out the obvious, your cover art is like a profile picture for your podcast. You don't take your WhatsApp display picture lightly, so you won't just create any generic cover art for your podcast either.
• You can't skip this part of the podcasting process since you need a cover art to submit your podcast on all the listening platforms. So take it as an opportunity and put your best foot forward.
• Listeners won't just start listening to your podcast out of nowhere. They need to know what your podcast is really about. That's where your cover art enters and conveys the message. 
• We are scrollers and getting our attention is a difficult feat. A good cover art will catch that attention among the sea of other unique and vibrant podcast cover arts.

Tips for designing your Podcast Cover Art

Know what's already out there

Before you start creating your cover art, make sure to check out the podcast covers that already exist on podcast streaming platforms. Have a look at what's out there and pick a few covers that caught your attention. Observe them and see what made them stand out. By looking at your competition you'll get a good understanding of different titles, images and visuals. This way you will be able to avoid similar cover arts and you might just end up getting inspiration from somewhere. 

Know the requirements

To design a good podcast cover, you need to know the format requirements for the same. Every podcast streaming platform has its own specifications for a podcast. If we talk about the dimensions, then most of them have the same specifications i.e. 1400 x 1400. Save your file in JPG or PNG format. Use colors that justify your podcast. The idea is that it should look good on every device, be it PC/MAC or mobile phone. 

The right font

Your title should jump out of the cover art at first look. Chose a font that's bold and in contrast with the background. A font like Amiko Bold will work just fine or any other font that compliments the overall look of the cover.  It should be clearly visible in the cover art as well as the thumbnail. Avoid using more than one font as it looks inconsistent unless your podcast is big and has its own fixed fonts. Also, avoid gimmicky fonts that attract too much attention and shadows the whole cover art and its motive. 

The visuals

You can choose a background image for cover arts. It could be from the platform's media library or your own. Whichever image you use, make sure it's of high quality so that it doesn't look blur when zoomed in. The image should also complement the title. Avoid using common visuals like microphones and mics or whatever visuals are most used in your podcast genre. You can also add your picture as the host if you are well known. You can also do it just to have a connection with your audience. Listeners bond well with podcasters when they know who's behind the mic. 

Have fun with colors

Without a splash of color, your podcast cover art will end up looking lifeless. It also depends on your podcast theme. If your podcast is about murder mysteries, then using lively colors might be the wrong choice. Similarly, if you have a comedy podcast, then using somber colors won't do justice to your podcast vibe. Try different palettes to see what works for you and have fun with it. 

Keep it simple

You might be excited to create your podcast cover art but don't overdo it. You don't have to fill up the space to make it look great or convey your podcast message all at once. Your title and image will give a basic idea of what your podcast is about. That will be enough for listeners to check out your podcast. If you fit too much in the frame then it might look cramped and unattractive. Just work with a few words that are simple to understand and easy to remember for the listeners. Find the right balance between simple and unique. 

With these designing tips, you will be able to create a good podcast cover art to match your podcast vibe. Keep in mind that it will be your first point of contact with your listeners so it should stand out in the crowd of other podcast cover arts. 

Create you podcast cover art with Hubhopper Studio. Here's a video tutorial on how to create a podcast cover art using Canva:

Happy Podcasting!