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Want to hook your podcast listeners right away? Try using a cold open. And that’s not a pre-roll ad, by the way. A podcast cold open jumps straight into the action at the beginning of the episode. No intro music. No “welcome to the show.” Just pure, attention-grabbing content.
Here’s an example from my episode of “The Business Storytelling Podcast” with Paul Zak.
What exactly is a podcast cold open?
A podcast cold open throws listeners (and viewers) into the middle of a scene or story without any warm-up. It’s like opening a book to an exciting part and starting there. “Saturday Night Live” starts with cold opens. This technique grabs attention fast and makes people curious about what’s coming next.
Cold opens are also sometimes called “podcast teasers” or “hooks.” These terms all describe the same basic idea: a short, engaging clip at the start of an episode that aims to grab listeners’ attention.
It’s important to note that a cold open is different from a “pre-roll.” Pre-rolls are typically advertisements that play before the main content. Cold opens, on the other hand, are part of the show’s content, designed to tease what’s coming up or hook listeners with an intriguing moment.
Cold opens work for all kinds of podcasts. They might use a juicy clip from an interview, a surprising fact, or the start of a story. The goal is to make listeners think, “I need to hear more of this!”
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Why bother with a cold open?
Cold opens do more than just sound cool. They serve a real purpose. In a world full of distractions, podcasts need to give people a reason to keep listening, and a strong cold open does that job by hooking listeners instantly. Many podcasts start with intros and ads, but a cold open makes a show different, helping it stand out from the crowd.
Starting in the middle of something interesting creates curiosity. People naturally want to know how it all fits together, which keeps them engaged. It sets the tone, giving listeners a taste of what the whole episode (or show) is about.
Perhaps most importantly, cold opens can build trust quickly – but they have to look and sound a certain way. Just like the rest of the episode. YouTube podcast strategist Zach Michem, discussed that on Episode 548 of “The Business Storytelling Show.”
“On YouTube, there’s a certain level of expectation for production value. Video is one of them, and you have this barrier,” he said. “It’s good and bad, because I can see you, if you look professional, you sound professional, and then I’m going to listen to you on a professional topic. You have created trust with me way more than just hearing your voice on, say, a podcast.”
Read next: How to Publish Podcasts on YouTube and YouTube Music
How to pick the perfect cold open
Choosing the right content for a cold open matters. Here’s how to do it:
If you use a text-based video editor you can certainly keep an eye out for some good soundbites. Or you can listen to the raw episode and look for these elements:
- Surprising statements
- Funny exchanges
- Emotional moments
- Intriguing questions
- Powerful quotes
To speed this process up, I use Opus Clips to grab my initial clips. I then edit, add, and delete.
At the bare minimum, follow these steps…
Consider the audience: What will grab their attention? What speaks to their interests or challenges?
Keep it short and snappy: Aim for 20-40 seconds. The goal is to intrigue listeners, not give everything away.
Make sure it makes sense: Even without context, a cold open should be somewhat understandable on its own.
Zach offered a specific strategy for cold openings for YouTube, but it can be applied on any platforms really.
“Find a clip in the last third of the video that is just absolute gold. It’s just like, that’s one of the best moments. Put it at the beginning and have some sort of, you know, coming soon, 15-20 seconds, and then it goes right into the podcast over that.”
This approach creates a “loop” in the listener’s mind, encouraging them to stick around until they hear the clip again in context.
Creating a cold open: The steps
- Record/livestream the full episode as usual.
- While editing, mark potential cold open moments OR use Opus.
- Pick a favorite clip, preferably from the latter part of the episode.
- Trim it down
- Place the cold open at the very beginning of the episode file. Descript is one editing software tool that helps with that.
- Transition to the regular opening
The first 5-10 seconds matter, Zach reiterated.
“You kind of have to hop in faster, and that first 5-10 seconds of me seeing how good does your video look, how good do you sound, is going to create that trust,” he said.
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Try these to accomplish that:
Mix it up: Using the same type of cold open every time can become predictable. Variety keeps things fresh.
Test and learn: Pay attention to listener feedback and analytics. Do episodes with cold opens perform better?
Don’t give it all away: Tease just enough to make people curious, not so much that they don’t need to hear the rest.
Make it relevant: A cold open should connect to the main topic of the episode, even if it’s not immediately obvious how.
Consider the publishing platform: Some – like Spotify – now have video. Others have audio only. Does the opening work for both?
The “what comes next” factor
A great cold open leaves listeners thinking, “I have to know what happens next!” It creates a little tension or curiosity that can only be resolved by continuing to listen.
This doesn’t mean cliffhangers or artificial suspense are necessary. Even a thought-provoking question or an unfinished idea can do the trick. The key is to present something intriguing and then smoothly transition into the regular show format.
Cold opens are a powerful tool to make podcasts stand out and keep listeners engaged. Trying it out for a few episodes can show how listeners respond. Cold opens might just become a secret weapon for podcast success.
Zach’s YouTube advice really applies everywhere:
“Train YouTube that people don’t just come to your channel and watch one video.”
You’ll want to build that long-term relationship. And that can be done by using effective cold opens and consistently delivering value, podcasters can set themselves up for long-term growth and engagement.
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