How to Hire a Filipino Podcast Production VA (Editors, Show Notes, Clips)

Why Podcasters Hire Filipino Production VAs

Running a podcast well requires 8–15 hours of production work per episode: audio editing, show notes, chapter marking, clip creation, transcript cleanup, guest outreach, scheduling, and distribution. For creators and B2B companies publishing weekly, that's a near-full-time role — and it's the single function most podcasters underresource.

A Filipino podcast production VA at $7–$15/hour handles the full production stack for the cost of 4–6 hours of a US production agency. Independent creators, agencies running branded podcasts, and B2B companies using podcasts for demand generation are the fastest-growing segments hiring Filipino podcast VAs.

What a Filipino Podcast Production VA Does

Audio Editing

Using Descript (the modern standard) or Adobe Audition / Hindenburg for more complex workflows. Removing filler words, tightening pauses, normalizing levels, fixing room noise, and adding intro/outro music and ad reads. A strong editor gets 60 minutes of raw tape down to a 40–45-minute final episode in 2–3 hours.

Show Notes and Transcripts

Writing detailed show notes (summary, key takeaways, chapter markers, guest bio, links mentioned) and cleaning up auto-generated transcripts from Descript or Otter. For SEO-focused podcasts, show notes become blog content.

Clip Creation and Social Distribution

Cutting 30–90-second clips from each episode for Instagram, TikTok, LinkedIn, and YouTube Shorts. Adding captions (via Descript, Opus Clip, or CapCut) and scheduling posts via Buffer, Later, or Hypefury. This is where modern podcasts drive growth.

YouTube Video Editing

For video-first podcasts, multi-camera editing, thumbnail creation (Canva or Photoshop), YouTube metadata and descriptions, chapters, and end-screen setup.

Guest Outreach and Booking

Researching guests, sending pitch emails, managing the booking pipeline in Airtable or Notion, sending calendar invites, prep docs before recording, and thank-you sequences after. For podcasts that pitch guests consistently, this alone is a 10-hour/week commitment.

Distribution and Platform Management

Uploading to the host (Buzzsprout, Transistor, Libsyn, Podbean, Captivate), checking distribution across Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, and YouTube. Metadata consistency, artwork updates, and back-catalog cleanup.

Rate Ranges for Filipino Podcast VAs

US-based podcast production agencies charge $500–$2,500 per episode for full production. A Filipino podcast VA at $10/hour × 8 hours per episode = $80/episode for comparable output. Monthly cost for weekly podcast: $320 vs $2,000–$10,000.

Tools to Screen For

• Audio editing: Descript (industry standard), Adobe Audition, Hindenburg Pro, Logic Pro (for music-heavy production)
• Video editing: Descript (modern), Adobe Premiere Pro, DaVinci Resolve, CapCut
• Clip/short creation: Descript, Opus Clip, Riverside Magic Clips, CapCut
• Hosting: Buzzsprout, Transistor, Captivate, Libsyn, Podbean, Spotify for Podcasters
• Transcription: Descript, Otter.ai, Rev (human-transcribed), Happy Scribe
• Guest booking: Airtable, Notion, Riverside.fm, SquadCast, Captivate.fm, Calendly
• Design: Canva (episode artwork), Photoshop (thumbnails)
• Social scheduling: Buffer, Later, Hypefury, Publer

Screening a Podcast VA

1. Show their portfolio. Every mid-level podcast VA has 3–5 podcasts they've produced. Listen to one full episode. Quality is immediately audible — cut tightness, level consistency, music placement.
2. Test edit. Send a raw 30-minute recording and ask them to produce a cut within 48 hours. Pay $30–$50. This is the only reliable way to vet editing skill.
3. Show notes sample. Ask them to write show notes for an episode you already have. Writing quality, structure, and keyword awareness reveal themselves.
4. Social clip test. Ask them to pick the best 45-second moment from the test episode and produce a captioned clip. Creative judgment and technical execution in one task.

Where to Hire

Post your role on WorkFil for free. Candidates can be filtered by audio/video editing experience. Content writer, graphic designer, and social media manager profiles often have podcast experience.

Typical Staffing Patterns

• Weekly solo podcast (30–60 min episode): 1 PT podcast VA, 10–15 hrs/week at $10/hr = $450–$650/month.
• Weekly video podcast with clip strategy: 1 FT podcast VA, 30 hrs/week at $12/hr = $1,440/month — covers editing, clips, YouTube, distribution.
• B2B podcast with guest pipeline: 1 FT podcast producer at $15/hr + 1 PT editor at $9/hr = ~$2,400/month. Handles guest booking, production, distribution end-to-end.
• Branded podcast for agency/SaaS: 2 FT team — 1 producer and 1 editor. ~$3,500/month total. Competitive with a single US mid-level freelancer.

Common Mistakes

• Hiring on price, not portfolio. A $5/hr editor with no samples will produce unusable work. Pay $9–$12/hr and get someone with a portfolio.
• Unclear brand style guide. If you don't specify the intro/outro, tone, ad placement, and caption style, each episode will feel different. Document it once, reference it forever.
• Not using Descript. Descript has eaten the podcast production market for a reason — it combines editing, transcription, AI tools, and collaborative workflow. A VA who doesn't know Descript in 2025 is behind.
• Skipping the test edit. Portfolio quality and test-task quality can differ materially. Always test before committing.

The Bottom Line

Filipino podcast production VAs are one of the fastest-growing segments in remote creator operations. For any weekly podcast, the economics are overwhelming: professional-quality production at $80–$150 per episode, compared to $500–$2,500 from US agencies.

Post your podcast VA role on WorkFil today and start with a paid test edit. You'll hear the quality in the final cut.

Related: Filipino content writers • graphic designers • AI tools every Filipino VA should know.