BOLD CITY MEDIA

By now you have properly planned out your podcast. Now it’s time to get into the production phase. First of all you have to decide where you are going to record your show. Will it be in an office type setting, on location or perhaps a professional studio.  If it’s not in a professional studio, you will need to record in a location that’s as quiet as possible.

If your recording in an office type environment make sure it will be void of any distractions. Make sure the phone and any overhead pa announcements are turned off. If there are other people in the offices make sure they keep a low tone as well.  If your recording on location like a factory or outside, you can tell the audience that we are on location and that’s why you might be hearing these noises. Actually, being on location gives your podcast a more journalist appeal that could give your podcast greater credibility.

Remember any and all noises that are heard during the recording will not only be included but amplified as well.  Maybe you can decide to record when it’s the quietest time of day.  Maybe that’s before the work day starts or after.  Recording in a quiet environment will not only produce a better podcast, it will help you to focus on the subject matter.  If you have any guests or other people on the show it will help them to keep their attention focused on you too.  A quieter environment will help cut down time in the editing phase of your podcast and make the process run smoother.

Marc Krevo
BOLD CITY MEDIA
Dedicated to providing business solutions in social media in Jacksonville Florida

The publishing phase is another key component of your podcast’s construction. Not only will it be where listeners can find your podcast; but more importantly how listeners find your podcast that will make the difference.

Along with good content your podcast also needs good keywords in the publishing.  By now you have discovered what keywords will be important to your podcast. Now you need to include those keywords in your podcast episode title, description page and in the id tags of your podcast.

Including these keywords will provide your audience to find your podcast through search engines like Google, Yahoo or MSN.  These search engines are constantly looking for fresh content to these keyword topics.  When you supply these search engines with these keywords, traffic will start to flow to you. However, you should have done this keyword research already in the planning stage. If you haven’t don’t worry, it’s never too late to start. I recommend Nichebot. They provide a wealth of keyword research which will help you direct traffic to your blog page or website depending on where your podcast lives.

Publishing to a stand alone blog page makes this possible. Search engines love blog pages because many people include these keywords directly related to their topic; not only in the content page but in the id tags or keyword entry.

In the next issue I’ll talk about RSS feeds and how it provides your listeners with instantly delivery for every new issue you publish.

Marc Krevo
BOLD CITY MEDIA
Dedicated to providing business solutions in social media in Jacksonville Florida

This report from Arbitron/Edison Research is very encouraging for those interested in seeing the growth of Podcasting.  Just when we thought podcasting’s popularity was slowing down, this report shows quite the opposite.  You can watch the presentation which includes audio from Edison’s Vice President of Strategy and Marketing, Tom Webster along with the slides.

Here are the main highlights from their findings:

• Awareness of podcasting grew from 37% of Americans to 43%
• One in four Americans indicated that they have ever downloaded and watched/listened to an audio or video podcast
• The number one reason given for podcast consumption was time-shifting–the ability to consume content whenever the consumer desires.
• Podcast consumers continue to be attractive advertising targets; yet are increasingly unreachable through traditional, interrupt advertising.

You can watch the entire presentation below.

What message are you trying to deliver? Alright, you already identified who will want to listen to your podcast or other form of social media. Now that you have their attention, how are you going to present it?

A lot of companies tell their customers and audience what they are doing and what they have to offer. While that might be helpful that’s not going to engage your audience very well. Your best way to connect and engage your listening audience is to bond with their problems and provide solutions and answers. Provide experts on the subject of their problem or you can interview someone who has had a past experience with the problem. When you bond with other people’s problems you’ve got their attention. But now you need to provide the answers. And if you or your business can demonstrate that solution you’ve not only got their attention you may have a sale.

Hopefully this will help you come up with an idea for your social or new media strategy. For example a portion of my target market are individuals that care for aging parents I produce a show for caregivers of the elderly. The Informed Eldercare Podcast is devoted to helping caregivers of an elder. It has topics and issues that I personally have faced with family members. I have talked with other caregivers and researched other blogs to see what they are talking about. Whether it’s in home care, hospice, nutrition, medical issues like Alzheimers’ or many more, I solicit other people’s ideas and suggestions. This helps me stay in touch with my audiences’ needs. I also interview the experts in these areas to give the podcast credibility. This not only addresses what I am concerned about, but more importantly what I believe the audience is concerned about as well as my customers.

Your podcast or new media needs to have a message that not only educates but empowers your audience. By providing solutions to your audience’s needs you’re seen as a resource. That’s what people want today in their online searches. Be a greater resource and you will build a better message.

Marc Krevo
BOLD CITY MEDIA
Dedicated to providing business solutions in social media in Jacksonville Florida

How do you identify your audience or market? Think for a moment, ok that’s long enough. Who is going to listen to your podcast and why? How will your audience benefit by taking the the time to listen? Will it be engaging? Do you have stories for them to connect to? Do you have any real life examples to share with them?

When you think in these terms it will help you identify your audience or listeners. Maybe they are your employees needing in-house training on new initiatives, policies or procedures. Or, could it be your customers that would benefit from understanding your products and services better. What about your industry peers? Do you have something to enhance recent trends or to improve relationships?

I hope these questions are getting your creativity flowing. Try and put yourself in your listener’s position. Do that and it should give you a better idea of what they want or need. The next issue will be about developing your message.

Marc Krevo
BOLD CITY MEDIA
Dedicated to providing business solutions in social media in Jacksonville Florida

A lot of people are out there Podcasting with no clear direction. Just in any area of communication in business you need to have a plan to steer you in the right direction. Last April I gave a presentation on the 4p’s of Podcasting to the American Society of Training and Development here in Jacksonville.  Those 4p’s are planning, producing, publishing and then promoting your podcast

This is part 1 of a 7 part series. Don’t worry, I will keep each post short but it will provide a comprehensive overview of how to deliver a message effectively.

The plan is the first and most important phase of your podcast. It must identify your audience, define your message and the best way to reach them. If you don’t build this road map first your podcast will suffer a tragic death. When planning a podcast you need to ask your self some important questions.

- WHY AM I DOING THIS? IS IT TO:
-Support my marketing efforts?
-Build brand recognition?
-Develop and provide greater value with my clients?
-”My boss told me I had to do this”

These questions should get you thinking in the right direction.  The next post will be on identifying your audience.

Marc Krevo
BOLD CITY MEDIA
Dedicated to providing business solutions in social media in Jacksonville Florida

What method have you used to deliver your message? Do you find yourself saying, “oh we’ve made a video before, but after a while it just sat on the shelf.” Perhaps the video was dated and didn’t reflect the growth of your company.

Cost and long term effectiveness have been the leading issues as it reflects to video. Maybe that’s because of how your message was delivered. In the past your customers could only see it when they came by your office to see it or you sent them a copy. This distribution is very limited, kind of like a brochure; only so many people can see this depending on how many you produce or send out.

Maybe your video or message was great, but could only reach a limited audience. That’s unfortunate, not to mention frustrating. But consider this; years ago you could only get the daily paper in town or on street corners until someone came up with the brilliant idea of delivering it right to your front door step. Effective? Absolutely!

SPECIAL DELIVERY FOR XYZ BUSINESS! The good news is that now your message can be delivered to your customers front door step. Their front door step being their computer or mobile device (ipod, mp3 player, cellphone, etc.)

With video online and podcasting, most content is not only shorter and more effective, it remains current and fresh! By posting this message on your website it also connects with your audience through the human element of moving pictures and voice. But don’t stop there, because now your message can be distributed on iTunes, You Tube, Blogs, and other directories through RSS feeds. This is how you really reach the masses and in turn allow your audience to come to you through subscription. Now, doesn’t that sound like a good idea!

Marc Krevo
BOLD CITY MEDIA
Dedicated to providing business solutions in social media in Jacksonville Florida

I had a couple of meetings the other day with some potential clients about producing a podcast.  They asked me to explain what a podcast is. Technically speaking, it’s an audio file located located on server.  It’s appearance is a link that can either be listened instantly via a stream or downloaded to your computer or mp3 player for later playback.

Ok, what is the non technical description? Well a podcast is very similiar to a radio show on the web that helps the listener gain information about the topic they are interested in.  The most successful podcasts are those that help solve problems or challenges pertaining to the topic the listener is concerned about.  For example, you might be a caregiver looking for help in caring for an elder,  The Informed Eldercare Podcast helps caregivers with expert advice and resources.

Podcasts can offer advice from experts with solutions to your needs and challenges to your everyday personal, family and business life.

Podcasts also offer businesses an opportunity to greater serve their customers. When a company is seen as a resource, they rise above their competition. This creates awareness about what your company is really about. A podcast delivers this information by way of the human voice. This connects with your audience and customer on a personal level that ordinary text and graphics can not.

When you connect, solve and provide solutions to other people’s problems and needs you empower them to buy a product or a service or more importantly,  an idea.

Remember, people don’t want to be sold anything, but they love to buy. A podcast can deliver that for you in a much favorable light to your customers.

Marc Krevo
BOLD CITY MEDIA
Dedicated to providing business solutions in social media in Jacksonville Florida