Part of the series of answers to students’ podcasting questions. For more about this series, read this post.

Question from Neha M.

My question is based on Trafcom News Podcast 82: Five tips for podcasting success. Apart from the niche and the use of proper sound recording gear, what does a podcast listener value and look for the most in a podcast? Is the main goal of a podcast simply to speak and take a stand on an issue, hobby or interest?

Quality above all

I’ll start by answering the first part as an avid podcast listener. Most important to me is high-quality content. That’s why I faithfully listen to For Immediate Release: The Hobson and Holtz Report (which I mentioned when I was a guest lecturer in your class). I learn from this podcast, and it makes my time on the treadmill or other torture device fly by quickly. Fortunately, this podcast has excellent production values so it doesn’t strain my ears or my brain.

I do listen to other podcasts in the public relations and communications realm, such as Inside PR, Marketing Over Coffee, Six Pixels of Separation and others. And from time to time I enjoy entertaining podcasts that are not related to work. Check out some of the offerings from CBC and NPR.

But beyond my own tastes in podcasts, my conversations with podcast listeners, and surveys I’ve been involved in, reveal that the majority of podcast consumers are looking for relevant content delivered in a way that’s easy to listen to.

Hobby podcast vs. business podcast

As for the goals of a podcast, I think there’s a big difference between hobby podcasts and podcasts that are produced to meet business goals. If you simply want a platform for sharing your views on your favourite TV show, political party, sports team, vegan recipes or whatever, then you can create a podcast and have a lot of fun with it. You might not be too concerned with listenership. Of course, if your passion shines through and your content is great, you may just find an audience anyway.

The podcasts that I produce for my own consulting practice and for my clients do have a business purpose. They are designed, for example, to demonstrate thought leadership, or showcase expertise, or spark a discussion about an industry topic, or highlight an event, or encourage donations to a cause. In this case, we do set goals for the podcast, and try to measure our success against those goals. And overall, we do want to podcast with passion and create content that our intended audience will consume with enthusiasm.

Let me ask you, Neha: What do you value in a podcast?

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Visit the Trafalgar Communications website for information about how we can help your organization to tell its story through traditional and new media.

Part of the series of answers to students’ podcasting questions. For more about this series, read this post.

Question from Austin W.: When reading a script for a podcast, or any sort of recording for that matter, I tend to sound like I’m doing exactly that – reading off a piece of paper. This probably has to do with the fact that I am not a very good voice actor. What are some tips or tricks you do for adding emotion to your voice while reading a script to make it sound more interesting?

Answer: Most people don’t realize that there truly is an art to voice acting. When I studied voiceover years ago, some of my friends chuckled at the idea of my “practising” reading. Then I encouraged them to try it themselves, and they stopped laughing. It’s not easy.

As you know, I don’t recommend routinely scripting all your podcasts, but there are times that we need to do this, whether we script lightly or fully. In some previous posts, I have outlined some of my methods for reading a script naturally:

• How to write a podcast script (blog post)
• How to read a podcast script and not sound like you’re reading (blog post)
• Faking it: How to read a podcast script and sound natural (audio)

Preparation is the key
You’ll notice that all these techniques can be boiled down to one word: preparation. If you’re scripting, you need to first ensure that your script is written for the ear, not the eye. Keep in mind that your listeners don’t have visual cues in front of them, so try to use devices such as numbered lists: “Let’s talk about the three ways to…”

Use the active voice when never possible and keep sentences short. Be sure to add transitions between your points, and a recap at the end, using your numbered list as a structure.

After you’ve drafted the script, you next have to practise, practise, practise. I begin by marking up the script so that when I read it, I remember where to pause, emphasize, slow down, speed up etc.

For more content like this, follow me on Twitter or GooglePlus.

Visit the Trafalgar Communications website for information about how we can help your organization to tell its story through traditional and new media.

Part of the series of answers to students’ podcasting questions. For more about this series, read this post.

Question from Hilary R: In Trafcom News Podcast 83, you list four things to get the best audio. One of the things you said was not using a built-in microphone to record your podcast as it doesn’t have the best audio quality, but you also talk about minding your surroundings and thinking about using noise and silence to your advantage. If you don’t have a microphone available and use a built-in microphone, but you take into consideration the room you’re recording in and the method of recording you’re using, do you think the podcast will be just as effective if the material and context is good? Do you think it’s possible to have a good podcast without having the best equipment possible?

Answer: Yes, I think you can have a very good podcast without using the best (i.e., expensive) equipment. You’ve already pointed out one factor: ambient noise. You definitely want to avoid recording in a noisy environment. Secondly, you want to make the best of what you have. For example, the built-in mic on my MacBook Pro is pretty good. If I experiment and learn where to position myself, and how loud I should speak, I will sound OK.

Before you decide to employ your built-in microphone, answer this: Do you have an iPhone? Remember that you can use the mic/headset gizmo that came with your iPhone, along with an app like iTalk or Voice Memo, to capture pretty good sound.  You must be sure to position the mic properly and speak at the right volume, but that’s true with any microphone.

Keep in mind that if your content is truly excellent, people will forgive less-than-sterling quality. However, as a listener I get annoyed when supposedly influential organizations publish podcasts that sound like they were recorded in a tin can. To me, this is akin to sharing your first draft with someone. It’s not polished.

So, overall, I believe that anyone who wants to podcast professionally should invest in decent gear, but I do realize that students don’t always have the resources to buy microphones. So make the most of what you have! You might want to check out this interview with voiceover pro Joe Cipriano on Trafcom News Podcast 46. He shares some great tips for capturing audio.

Related posts

Trafcom News Podcast 66: Sound check (comparing different types of audio)

Trafcom News Podcast 46: An interview with voiceover pro Joe Cipriano

Trafcom News Podcast 83: Why does my podcast sound so bad?

Last week I spoke at my friend Joan Vinall-Cox’s Documentary Scripting class at the University of Toronto (Mississauga). In the Q&A session, I answered many of the students’ questions about podcasting, but there wasn’t time to cover everything. So I’ll be answering the remainder of their very thoughtful questions here on the blog over the next couple of weeks.

For reference, here is the slide deck I showed the students last week:

By the way, you’ll find questions and answers from previous years’ sessions in the U of T question students Q&A category of this blog.

Question from Bethany R: In Trafcom News Podcast 100, you state that you read Ann Handley and C. C. Chapman’s book, Content Rules. Did you read it because of the interview with them? Or had you read it, liked it, and then decided your listeners would be interested in the content, and then did the interview?

I am also curious as to whether you three were all sitting in the same room. It sounds as if you are, but your show is based in Oakville, and they don’t live in Canada. If you’re not in the same room, how did you make the podcast?

Answer

I’ve done book-review podcasts in different ways. Sometimes I’ll read a book, enjoy it, and invite the author for a chat on the podcast. At other times, as in the situation with CC and Ann, I requested a review copy and then invited the authors for an interview. (Of course I also receive books unsolicited; I don't always review these.)

CC and Ann were both in the Boston area and I was in my studio in Oakville when we recorded the podcast. We spoke over Skype, and I used Call Recorder to capture the audio. I had to do some editing to clean up the sound. In the end, the quality was pretty good, eh? That’s the ideal for a podcast – to make it sound as though everyone is in the same room.

Please note the G-rated headline. ;-)

Unless you've been on Mars for the past few weeks, you've seen some entries in the "shit so-and-so says" meme, which began (as far as I know) with ShitGirlsSay (Twitter stream and then video). On a snowy afternoon yesterday, avoiding work, I started one of my own: #ShitCommunicatorsSay. Here's a Storify version of it. (There were LOTS more retweets, by the way; I've just grabbed some representative ones.) If you played along, thanks -- and feel free to keep it going!

My friend Sue Johnston explains these four communication styles in the 108^th edition of the Trafcom News Podcast.

Hop over to the site to grab the audio file and peek at the show notes. You’ll also find a very helpful illustration from Sue of the styles and how to distinguish one from the other. Which style are you?

Many of us have LinkedIn profiles, but are not taking advantage of all the capabilities of this business-focused social network. At the next meeting of the IABC/Toronto Professional Independent Communicators, we’ll learn tips to rev up those profiles. For example: why you should join groups and post events, how to use the concept of “six degrees of separation” to get to the person you want, and why it’s important to add skills to your profile.

To get a feel for what will be covered at this event, please listen to this 10-minute interview with our guest speaker, LinkedIn expert Anita Windisman of One of a Kind Marketing.

IndyCast 32: Optimizing your LinkedIn presence by donnapapacosta

The meeting is on Wednesday, February 1, 2012, 6 p.m., Metro Hall, Toronto, Room 310. Please register in advance at the IABC/Toronto website. This event is likely to sell out.

In edition 107 of the Trafcom News Podcast, we explore what curation is, how individuals and brands can use it, which tools make it easy, and how to get started. Much of the information in this discussion originated with presentations I did this month to the IABC Western Region conference in Whistler, British Columbia, and the IABC/Toronto west end group.

This podcast is just 19 minutes. So have a listen and let me know what you think. Also check out the extensive show notes, which are chock-full of links for you, including a link to the slides I used in Whistler.