A month ago, I posted an article on the basics of podcasts and podcasting. Judging from the DIGGs (was frontpaged) and the comments here and over at the DIGG entry, one could say that there is quite an interest for podcasts and podcasting. Of course, we should consider that the audience was primarily the geek/techie community–those that frequent FG and DIGG. And then there were those that thought otherwise–that podcasts are just a passing fad overhyped by people’s fondness for all things Web 2.0.

Since then, I’ve listened to a handful of podcasts, attended a blogging/podcasting summit, and produced several podcast episodes for a client, and I’ve arrived at one quite obvious realization. Not just anyone can produce a successful podcast. Among those that can get around to producing a podcast, there are different preferences in terms of content, intent, methodology, and technical set-up. And in many cases, it’s a good mix of these four factors that can determine if a podcast will be successful or not, in terms of sustainability–gaining and more importantly keeping the intended audience/listenership.

Content

Podcasts are essentially a grassroots-type of approach to audio programming. The low barriers to entry allow for anyone with access to even the most basic of recording and editing equipments (a.k.a., a computer) to produce audio content. So in this case, one can expect podcasters to come from various walks of life, and with a diverse set of interests. Hence, you can expect them to discuss just about anything that interests them. However, in terms of sustainability, a podcaster should consider that podcasts are also a listener-driven (much like blogs and websites are readership-driven) medium, and there will be no point to producing a podcast if your listenership is a grand total of 2 (your mother and yourself).

Podcasts are best as niche-oriented programming. If you start talking about everything under the sun, you will end up losing your listeners halfway into your show. But if you keep your discussion focused to a certain theme or topic, you are sure to attract listeners with the same set of interests as yours. Well, variety is good, but be sure everything you talk about revolves around a certain theme, which you find still consistent with the interests of your intended audience.

Intent

People who start podcasting do so for various reasons. For some, podcasting may be a hobby. Some do it to forward certain advocacies. Some do it to gain mindshare or to market ideas. Some do it for monetization and profit. And then some do it just for the heck of getting into the podcasting bandwagon. Whatever your reasons are, there is one thing that will ensure your podcasting activity is sustainable. And that is love for the medium.

There is a reason why professionals in the radio industry (i.e., show hosts and audio engineers, for instance) were among the first to venture into podcasting (whether in the content or technical aspects). And this is because they are the people who are very much familiar with voice and audio as a medium of communication. Radio and audio professionals are likely to have a passion for audio as a medium of communication.

In blogging, if you are not fond of reading and writing, then you will easily tire out and run out of things to write and blog about. Same goes for podcasting. If you do not have a fondness for the spoken word, and the nuances of audio, then you are likely to lose interest and abandon your podcast after just a few episodes. But if you love what you do–if you love speaking to that microphone and imagine you’re actually talking to your audience as you record–then you’re sure to be around the podcasting scene for a long time to come.

Methodology

I’ve always been comfortable with just recording my voice straight, editing out the imperfections (umms, ahhs, mispronunciations, background noises), and then mixing in the music and effect tracks later on. However, one thing I learned with working with a podcaster who had been a radio talk show host for a decade (his podcast is located here) is that for audio programming to sound great, it should have the right feel to it. And this right “feel” usually involves the flow of the show, and the intensity of the music playing as you speak. So unless it’s your thing, you will tend to get bored yourself if your practice in podcasting is like how I used to do it.

This is why you see radio show hosts wearing headphones as they talk into the mic. They usually listen to the programme live as it is aired or recorded, and this includes whatever is playing, such as the background music tracks, recorded interviews, and even advertisements. This is definitely better than having to just talk and talk, only imagining what the end-product of your show might be, which might stifle your wit and creativity while speaking.

Technical Set-up

It’s true that anyone with a basic set of recording equipment can do a podcast. You can have a laptop, mic, head/earphones, and mixing software, and you’re good to go. However, your listeners may not always appreciate poorly-recorded programming. Not everyone is an audiophile, but great-sounding audio would definitely be appreciated by any listener. The problem with some equipment is poor recording quality (pops, hisses along with the voice), and the noise from the computer itself, which might be recorded along with your audio.

So while it’s all right to use the basics when you’re starting out, it would be worthwhile to invest in a few more advanced–though not necessarily very expensive–tools, such as a good microphone (either condenser type or powered will do, as long as your recording equipment will not pick up any static or noises), good headphones (noise-cancelling ones are best), a basic mixer, and some cable.

You might also want to invest in a portable, flash-based recorder, should you want to record interviews while in the field, or if you want to do live commentaries while outside your home-brew studio. Most MP3 players already have recording functions, but many have crappy quality. So do opt for the better ones–those really aimed at voice recordings, or at least good enough to capture audio at stable and tolerable levels (not tinny, not too noisy).

If you intend to record your programme in the way I outlined above (i.e., while listening to your music tracks and other audio being mixed live as you speak), you would definitely need a mixer–even a simple one would do. Then you would need a dedicated machine to play the audio, and then finally another one to record. You might even want to record your voice and the audio mix into separate tracks for re-mixing later on, just to ensure you still get to keep that unadulterated voice-only track, in case you want to mix in something else later on.

Of course, it won’t be the end of the world if you can’t invest in better equipment right now, or if this is not your ideal setup. Actually, the ideal setup would be the one you’re most comfortable with. Heck, for some people, they just rely on professional studios or even other experienced podcasters to do the technical nitty gritty, and just focus on coming up with good content.

But as with blogs and websites, content is king and design is queen. For podcasts, your design aspect would be the audio and voice quality.

In conclusion, for one who loves the very concept of podcasts and podcasting, I can say that it’s not really as easy to come up with a successful podcast as I initially thought. There is definitely much more work involved as compared to blogging. But as I said, if you really do love the medium, you’d be willing to exert a bit more effort into developing your podcast into something that will be a regular and sustainable activity.

So what makes a successful podcast again? We can sum it up as essentially love of audio as a medium for communication. Everything else will naturally follow.

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