After 91 years of providing marketing services to client companies (dog years, but that’s how hard we worked) my partner at Market Arts Creative, Susan Bachman, and I knew it was time for a change.

We looked into the future (metaphorically) and saw that we weren’t going to be part of it unless we embraced the social and interactive media of Web 2.0.  Happily, we were fearless and unaware of how much we didn’t know.  Now, after lot of work and a little suffering, we’re ready to share the 7 biggest secrets that we’ve learned about podcasting so you don’t have to do as much of either.

 Bumpy Beginnings

18-months ago we didn’t own a single iPod, knew absolutely nothing about how to produce a podcast and we thought social networking was something you did at a chamber of commerce meeting.  But we embraced technology with the complete confidence that any girl places in a product that holds the promise of a transformational makeover.

The buzz about new media can be intimidating, but we’ve learned that with a little (okay, a lot) of help from the Apple Genius Bar it CAN be learned. And (this is important) you don’t have to know it all to put it to work in your business.

Secret #1

Purpose.  Figure out WHY you want to podcast.  What do you want to achieve?  How will you know you’ve succeeded?  Who do you want to reach and why will your podcast be of interest to them? 

In our case, we wanted to re-focus the business around the creation of own podcasts, showing (not telling) clients that we can do the same for them.  We also wanted to celebrate and promote the practical application of creativity, equating ROI with return on innovation.

Secret #2

Structure.  Yup.  You heard it here.  Podcasting, like any creative endeavor, isn’t about freedom.  It’s about working within a constraint and using those boundaries to discover a fresh insight.  It’s about structure, not about freedom.

Our first encounter with structure was the necessity to decide on our podcasting format, choosing from: Narrator; Co-hosts; Host with guest; Host with panel (preferably no more than 3 panel members).

In our enthusiastic state of not-knowing, we captured (yeah, we started with video and that’s a story for another time) so much content that we spent light years in editing.  Let me be clear.  Don’t do that.  Decide on the format and length of your podcast first.

Here are a couple of podcast that I really like.  And they execute their formats well.

Mignon Fogarty’s popular Quick and Dirty Tips for Good Writing is a breezy, informative 5-minute show that works well in the narrator format.

Mike Duncan’s impressive narration on The History of Rome runs for 20 minutes. It’s so well done it seems like two.

The Mayo Clinic’s Medical Edge is a 2-minute podcast on subjects ranging from Arthritis to Hockey Injuries.  It’s good, but it would be even better if they gave you a personalized podcast visual to look at during the run time.

BBC Radio’s In Our Time, hosted by Melvyn Bragg is one of my favorites.  The show runs about 50 minutes with the charmingly quirky Mr. Bragg interviewing a 3-person panel on the history of ideas from Newton’s Laws of Motion to Marcel Proust.  It’s smart, lively and not at all stuffy or egg-heady.

With more than 125,000 audio podcasts available on iTunes in 2007, there’s plenty of material to explore.  Just let the clock help you decide on the length of your podcast because you’ll spend approximately 15 minutes editing every minute of audio capture.  

Secret #3

Audio Quality. YouTube has adjusted our video expectations downward.  Stuttering delivery and poor lighting are now acceptable.  But poor audio will kill a podcast.  We wanted to keep production levels high and our budget low.  Here’s what we did.

For solo narrator or two-person podcasts we usually work with a freestanding SnowBall microphone.  It provides good audio capture for an affordable $100.00.  While the SnowBall gives you a few options to reduce ambient noise, we learned that in noisy settings lapel mics are a necessity.  Also, some guests aren’t comfortable cozying up and staying close to a free-standing mic.  And if you have a combo of low and loud talkers, you’ll need the multiple sound tracks to equalize the voices in post-production. 

We invested about $1,000.00 in 3 wireless lapel mics, audio box and software.  We did learn one thing that you’ve got to know.  Wireless mics are great for reducing the trip and fall factor.  BUT if you’re in the vicinity of powerful microwaves or a passing long-haul trucker using a CB, you’ll get feedback.  LOUD FEEDBACK!  And your audio engineer will cry (or swear) depending on their personality type.  If you want to attract listeners, audio quality matters as much as quality content. After all, who wants a sonic boom directly in their ear bud, followed by an unintelligible murmur?

Secret #4

Big Picture to Pixel Thinking.  Even though we podcast, I wouldn’t advise a client to do so just because they can.  But there are compelling reasons to add podcasting to your marketing mix.  Actually, there are 18.5 million reasons.  That’s the number of people in the US listening to podcasts right now according to eMarketer. They project 65 million listeners by 2012, with $435 million spent on podcast-based advertising. 

We looked at the big picture and saw that podcasting was going to put down roots.  Like author Chris Anderson’s premise in his book, The Long Tail, when production costs are low, then custom content (like ours) can be a hit even if it only appeals to a very small audience.  In other words, thinking small might be big for your business too.

Secret #5

Re-purpose Content.  Yes.  Podcasting takes an investment of time and a commitment to continue for the duration of your marketing strategy.  It may sound strange, but once we started podcasting we found content all around us waiting to be re-purposed. It’s common for people to blog before they podcast.  Not us of course, because we wanted to put on a show (entertain and amaze, you know?)  Our interview podcast, Conversations with Creative Minds, inspired the Creative Juice audio podcast where we talk about our talk show.  That led to our blog, Conversations with Juice, where we write about what we talk about.  It’s a self-recycling center of ideas that grab us, technology we like (because it’s techno-idiot friendly) and our take on the business of being creative for a living. 

Look at existing material and resources and find a way to re-purpose them. If you’re blogging, posts can serve as the catalyst for a podcast.  If blogging isn’t your thing, take a look at white papers, articles or business presentations that already exist.  And don’t forget about your in-house resources; super sales people, new applications, technological breakthroughs and industry trends. Raw content is already there once you direct your attention to reinventing it.  Keep in mind that the best content is a conversation between you, your guests (if you have them) and your audience.

Secret #6

Search Engine and Client Optimization.  While search engines are still not adept at reading audio files, podcasting can boost your search engine presence if you post a written transcript online; preferably on your web site with links to selected social networks.  This is a really good thing to do if you’re not building your online presence with blog-based content. 

We also use our podcasts as a way to stay in touch with clients and colleagues, announcing the release of a new episode with a link back to our web site and social platforms.  Our page views always spike following the release of an e-newsletter.

Secret #7

Podcasting as PR Opportunity.  Our podcasts have been a great source for PR coverage.  Inside Mac Radio, OnineBizU, CommercialCreationCenter.com, Metro Chick Radio, and Crain’s Detroit Business have interviewed my partner and me.  Our conversations with guests have positioned us as knowledge leaders by association and interpretation.  And knowledge leaders are always in demand as sources. 

If don’t already subscribe to Peter Shankman’s Help a Report Out, do it now.  Many of our PR opportunities are because of HARO’s emails and Twitter alerts.

Is podcasting right for your business? 

Only you can decide.  But here’s a bonus secret as you think it over.  Don’t let a lack of knowledge be the only reason you don’t podcast.  It’s never stopped us and, let me state the obvious, we’re still learning.