Teenagers are a tough audience to please. With the current trends of short video entertainment (TikTok’s, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram Reels) long podcasts may seem like they’re „too much work“.
For this very reason, grabbing (and keeping!) the attention of the teenage audience has never been more difficult.
Still, however, as long as you choose topics they’re passionate about, getting teens invested in your podcast isn’t impossible!
Here we’ll provide you with a couple of topics that will keep those teens hooked to their earphones!
1. True crime
Whether you believe it or not, many teenagers absolutely love listening to murder mysteries. These stories aren’t just about shock value – they can be quite educational. They teach young people to trust their gut over strangers they meet online or in real life.
Now, of course, talking about murder and mysterious disappearances isn’t everyone’s cup of tea. If that topic seems a bit too bleak to you, perhaps you should avoid including it in your podcasts altogether.
In fact, as a rule of thumb, don’t talk about anything you’re not comfortable discussing – your audience will certainly feel the lack of enthusiasm.
2. Celebrity gossip
YouTube drama channels are as popular as ever in 2023 – teens love hearing about the latest celebrity gossip. The interesting part of these types of videos is that they’re usually not that visual – it’s mostly just the creator giving their opinion about recent Hollywood/influencer drama. With that in mind, celebrity gossip makes for an excellent podcast topic!
It does require some prior research, though. You shouldn’t be talking about something that happened months ago – you need to be up-to-date with the most recent events. If this is not something you’re usually reading about, it could all get quite exhausting very quickly. Therefore, you should pick this topic only if you’re generally interested in celebrity drama.
3. Anime
Anime is a type of entertainment that can be enjoyed by both adults and teenagers alike. There’s such a wide range of genres out there – and it never gets old! You can still talk about Naruto or Dragon Ball Z even though they’ve ended quite a while ago – they both have enormous fanbases that are still enjoying every piece of content related to their favorite series.
Now, like always, you have to be knowledgeable about anime if you’re going to talk about it. Make the simplest mistake and the nerds will call you out for it – anime fandoms are extremely passionate about their interests.
Again, targeted podcasting can be a bit complex if you’re a novice creator. You can learn a bit more about it at www.norrinradd.org, if you’re interested.
4. Consider your special interests
Are you a giant history nerd just waiting to share your favorite history facts with others? Do you enjoy traveling and want to talk about your intense experiences abroad? Do you love stargazing and are quite knowledgeable about everything astronomy-related? Well, there’s a large teen audience for all of that!
Again, you shouldn’t think of teens as a single-minded group of people sharing the same interests and passions. Whatever your talent or passion in life is, there are people willing to hear you talk about it. In fact, there’s hardly anything more appealing than listening to someone who’s truly passionate about the topic in question. It can be fun, educational, and extremely rewarding, so don’t ignore your own interests!
5. Work experiences
We all usually get our first job during our teenage years – it’s an experience everyone has to go through at some point. If you have any funny work-related experiences you’d like to share, don’t hesitate to do so! Teens are just starting to learn about the terrible world of making minimum wage and dealing with Karens and unreasonable bosses in the workplace.
Besides, since this is such a relatable topic, you’ll probably be able to attract a wider audience. You know what they say – the more the merrier!
6. Love & Dating
We all know how having a teenage crush feels – we’ve all been there. For this very reason, topics of love/dating can be extremely appealing to teenagers of almost all ages. You can talk about your experiences or invite different guests to share their own stories.
If you end up going for this particular topic, make sure you keep it relatable. Many teens are already feeling awkward around their crushes, so show them they’re not alone. Joke around and keep it light-hearted, and we’ll certain people will love it!
7. Advice
You can have your listeners submit their issues anonymously to get your advice. You can even bring in different experts to help them find solutions to their specific problems – it’s a type of podcast that engages your audience, which teens seem to adore.
Again, if you’re not comfortable giving advice to random strangers, especially when they’re such a vulnerable group of people, you can get psychologists and life coaches as your guests. This type of content makes people feel closer to you as a creator, which can bring in tons of listeners to your podcasts.
8. Gaming
Last, but not least, if you’re a passionate gamer, you can start including your gaming adventures in your podcasts. While teens aren’t the only people who enjoy video games, they make for a significant percentage of players worldwide.
Now, depending on the exact age group you’re trying to attract, make sure you pick the games you’ll cover carefully. Some video-game content is for mature audiences only, which is something you should keep in mind at all times. For example, if you’re trying to appeal to a bunch of 12-year-olds, you shouldn’t be talking about the Mortal Combat series. Instead, try talking about Fortnite or Minecraft instead.
The bottom line
If you want your content to appeal to teenagers, there’s a plethora of topics you can cover in your podcasts: celebrity drama, dating, story-times, gaming, or even anime. The key to success is that you show enthusiasm and knowledge about the topics in question. Remember: if you don’t enjoy talking about it, nobody will enjoy listening to it!
So, overall, choose something that resonates with your specific interests, but keep it relatable and teen-friendly!