VIDEO PODCAST LAUNCH PLAN
Machine House | October 15, 2026
Guide: https://machinehouse.media/guides/video-podcast-launch-plan

Copy this file into your working document. Part A is a fictional example, not a
client result or a standard production turnaround. Part B is a blank worksheet.
No fixed number of recordings guarantees that a launch is ready.

PART A — COMPLETED EXAMPLE: AFTER CLOSING

Audience: people running small shops.
Promise: reconstruct one consequential decision with the owner: what they tried,
what it cost and what they changed afterwards.
Format: host and guest interview, with video and an intelligible audio edition.
Cadence: one full episode every fourteen days, on Days 0, 14 and 28.
Day 0 and release time/time zone: to be chosen after the readiness check.
Announcement condition: two complete episode packages approved by Day -7;
producer confirms which platform listings are available to link.
Pilot: separate private exercise with a shop owner who stopped Sunday opening.
It is not one of the three launch episodes. Finish its edit before Day -21.

People and scope
- Host: interviews and final editorial approval.
- Producer: guest research, bookings, permissions, consolidated feedback,
  publishing, listener checks and the release calendar.
- Editor: video and audio edits, caption correction and final exports.
- Producer drafts titles/descriptions and coordinates thumbnail delivery with
  the editor. Host approves the finished package.
- Guest checks: agree the specific factual review and deadline before recording.
  Full editorial approval is a separate commitment. Late responses follow the
  agreed process; silence is not assumed to be consent.

Pilot findings to carry forward
- A vague answer about sales needs a follow-up during the interview.
- Research brief must identify the decision, comparison period and details the
  guest can explain, plus any limits on what they can substantiate.
- Check all microphone recordings, sync, exported playback and audio-only sense.
- Log editing hours and elapsed feedback time; use these to budget the batch.

Episode status at the Day -7 announcement check
1. Bakery: stopping delivery orders during the morning rush.
   Recorded Day -21. Video, audio, captions, title, thumbnail and description
   approved by Day -7. Release Day 0. Publisher: producer.
2. Hardware shop: deciding which slow-selling spare parts to stock.
   Recorded Day -21. Full package approved by Day -7. Release Day 14.
   This is the finished reserve episode at the first release.
3. Salon: a weekday discount that filled appointments but reduced takings.
   Recorded Day -21. Waiting for the guest's factual check; NOT counted as ready.
   In the example the answer arrives Day 18. Editor corrects the cut and host
   approves the complete package by Day 21. Release Day 28.

Before Day -21: finish and review the private pilot; revise recording and research.
Day -21: record the three launch interviews; copy and check the source media.
Days -14 to -7: finish bakery and hardware; publish a short feed trailer and
  submit the feed early; check listings. Trailer avoids an unapproved launch date.
Day -7: confirm two approved packages, available destinations and next shoot.
  If the packages are unfinished, move the announcement and rebuild the dates.
Day 0: release bakery; open each published version as a listener and test links.
Day 14: release hardware; the salon factual check is still pending in this example.
Day 18: salon check arrives. Complete revisions and approval by Day 21.
Day 21: record the next batch with guests confirmed before launch. Reserve edit
  and review time for the next full release, Day 42.
Day 28: release salon. Continue work on the next batch.
Day 35: review production effort and the first seven days of each release.
Day 42: next planned full release, subject to the agreed production checks.

What would break a weekly version of this plan?
With releases on Days 0, 7 and 14, the salon factual check arrives four days after
its slot. Three recordings would not have covered three weekly releases.

Recovery owner: producer, with host approval for editorial changes.
Before announcement: move the launch if the two-package condition is unmet.
After announcement: use an already approved substitute if one exists; otherwise
communicate a revised date. Do not assume a fourth finished episode exists.
If the next shoot moves: revise the following edit/approval commitments and
communicate any affected release date before the existing buffer is exhausted.

Publishing choices for this example
- YouTube: full video episodes in a podcast playlist; clips kept separately.
- Spotify: full video through Spotify hosting.
- Apple Podcasts: the audio RSS route, submitted and verified separately.
- This choice does not mean Apple is audio-only. Apple video needs a suitable
  hosting/delivery arrangement. Spotify's external feed route supplies audio.
- Record the account owner, feed URL, show URL, submission status and release
  time/time zone for every destination in the private working copy.

Release package
[ ] Final video and audio exports play correctly.
[ ] Captions, title, thumbnail and description checked.
[ ] Agreed factual checks resolved and final editorial approval recorded.
[ ] Source media and permission records retained by the producer.
[ ] Correct export uploaded; availability and release time/time zone checked.
[ ] Published versions and destination links opened and checked.
Companion assets: one excerpt and a short written introduction per episode.

First review
Compare estimated and actual research/edit/review effort and locate delays.
Compare the first seven days of each episode within each platform; do not add
unlike view/listen metrics into a single audience total. Read audience responses
for the next interview questions. Record one production change and one editorial
change to test. Three releases do not establish a reliable growth trajectory.

PART B — YOUR SHOW

Show name:
Audience and the reason they would return:
Repeatable episode question:
Three distinct proposed subjects:
1.
2.
3.
What must each guest be able to explain? What access is still unconfirmed?

Private pilot date:
Pilot participant/topic:
Recording setup and location:
Production checks:
Editorial findings:
Actual editing hours / elapsed review time:
Changes before booking the first batch:

Owner names
Host:
Producer / person responsible for the calendar:
Research:
Recording and media copies:
Edit / audio edition / captions:
Title / thumbnail / description:
Guest review scope and deadline:
Consolidated feedback:
Final editorial approval:
Publisher and account owner:
Who decides a delay or replacement?

Capacity and launch decision
Chosen cadence and why it fits the pilot evidence:
Planned first release date, time and time zone:
Number of approved packages required before announcement:
Date to check readiness:
Next recording date, confirmed guests and edit allowance:
Extra assets included and their owners:
What will be reduced or moved if capacity is insufficient?

Episode status — duplicate for each episode
Subject / guest:
Research and guest confirmation:
Recording date:
Media copied and checked:
First-cut deadline:
Guest factual check / other agreed review due:
Consolidated feedback due:
Final approval owner and deadline:
Video / audio / captions / packaging status:
Ready to publish? State what is still missing:
Release slot and destinations:
Public URLs after listener checks:

Destination record — duplicate for each platform
Platform / hosting route / chosen audio or video format:
Account owner and access arrangement (no passwords in this worksheet):
RSS feed URL, if used:
Show URL:
Trailer or first episode supplied:
Submission / validation / review status:
Availability date, time and time zone:
Who checks the live release, and when?

Delay plan
Before announcement, what missing work moves the launch?
After announcement, which approved substitute actually exists?
If no substitute is ready, who communicates the new date and where?
Next shoot fallback and effect on later releases:

First review date:
Comparable publication window:
Production effort / approval delays to examine:
Audience questions and viewing/listening behaviour to examine by platform:
Decision for the next batch:

PLATFORM SOURCES — CHECKED OCTOBER 15, 2026
YouTube podcast setup:
https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/12751636?hl=en
Spotify-hosted distribution:
https://support.spotify.com/us/creators/article/distributing-your-show-to-other-platforms/
Apple show submission:
https://podcasters.apple.com/support/897-submit-a-show
Apple episode types:
https://podcasters.apple.com/support/825-how-to-create-an-episode
Apple video delivery:
https://podcasters.apple.com/support/3684-video-podcasts