Baby steps into podcasting
So you bought your $80 condenser mic, found a quiet room to record (or maybe built a makeshift sound box using egg cartons for walls) and you’ve got Garage Band or Audacity running in the background. You’re ready to podcast.
Now what? Those who’ve tried podcasting before may have realized how different it is from writing blog entries — and it should be, because podcasting, unlike blogging is a performance art. If you’re a bit lost in the art of intonation and enunciation, my suggestion is to go with baby steps.
1. Browse through your blog for one of your more interesting commentaries. Read it out loud. Read it out loud again. Repeat. Your podcast can be a weekly read of your column.
2. Doing this regularly — let’s look at once a week — instills a sense of confidence allowing you to venture into extemporaneous speaking later on.
3. If you stutter, clench your first. It helps.
The art of podcasting adds new dimension to your blog. But only if done well. Famous NYT columnist David Pogue reads his columns out loud for his shows so there’s nothing to be ashamed of. The trick is to do it regularly, just like like blogging, but never to appear gung-ho at the start by recording daily. It might turn off readers who still prefer your usual daily dose of posts.
Based On A True Story: My Foray Into Podcasting
In early 2007, I happened to come across a website called Talkshoe.com. This site makes it easy as one, two, three to put together your own podcast, recorded live in front of an audience that if they choose, can interact with you live through chat or by calling in, sort of like AM Talk radio. I’m a talk radio junkie so when I discovered that I could just as easily have my own talk radio show broadcast online without the need of licensing or FCC approval, I was stoked.
Even though the technical aspects of putting a show together were at a minimum on Talkshoe, my biggest barrier to entry was myself. I’ve never been a fan of speaking in front of an audience. I have proof of this considering I failed Speech class in high school! However, I did manage to do a few things to help ease me into having my own show.
Listen To Many Shows - One thing I did was listen to a wide variety of shows on Talkshoe.com. I was interested in knowing if everyone who produced a podcast on the site did so in a professional manner. I was quick to find out that this was not the case. While some shows did feature a host who apparently had some sort of radio experience, most Talkshoe hosts were made up of your average joe who thought it was fun to have a voice of their own online.
Establish Friendships - While listening to a wide variety of shows, I happen to come across a few that I really enjoyed. Each time they began recording, I hung out in their chat room participating in their conversation. Eventually, chat simply wasn’t enough for me, I wanted to chime in with my voice. Thanks to the kindness of the show hosts, they walked me through the various ways in which I could connect to the show and participate. They also showed me the ins and outs of the Talkshoe service.
Listen To Yourself - This is one of the tougher things for an individual to do. Just like some actors who hate watching themselves perform on the big screen, many people don’t like listening to themselves on a recording. I am one of those people. The first time I listened to a recorded show that I participated in, I cringed at the sound of my voice and how I presented myself. However, doing this has allowed me to tap into the perspective that my audience has and I have since improved my ability to present information as well as clarify my speech. Once you learn to relax and get over hearing yourself speak, take that opportunity to improve upon your spoken word.
Those three steps really helped me to start podcasting on my own. However, there is one last major hurdle that I had to leap over before I hit the record button and that is, my fear of speaking in front of an audience. Now even though I would be speaking from my room, not exactly in front of an audience, the feeling of fear and nervousness usually beat out my ambitions to do a show of my own. However, after dialing into a few shows and talking with other hosts and in front of other people, this really helped to put my fears aside and to just jump right in. With the help of a few friends and some words of encouragement, I eventually started my own podcast on Talkshoe and I’m still going strong.
Conclusion
Podcasting has enabled me to talk to my audience on a personal level while establishing connections with a greater reach. While blog commenting, sending emails back and forth, and tweeting 140 character messages are all fine and dandy, nothing beats communicating in real time through the spoken word. If you’ve been sitting on the fence trying to decide whether you should have a podcast of your own, I recommend going for it. This is a new age where you don’t have to be a professional in order to succeed. Also considering the barrier to entry is minimal, what do you have to lose?
Do you have a podcast that is either separate or part of your site? Link it to me in the comments.
Podcast For Web Designers/Developers
A few days ago, I caught wind of a new podcast a friend of mine was co-hosting called the SitePoint Podcast. As the name would suggest, the podcast is produced and hosted by some notable members within the SitePoint Community such as Brad Williams, Stephan Segraves, Keven Yanks and Patrick O’ Keefe. The four sometimes three get together every other week to discuss the latest happenings within the world of web design, web development, and more. I’ve just listened to episode 3 A Richer Web. Although the content was over my head, the audio was of top notch quality. In fact, it may have been too good as at times, I heard some low level bass being produced but nothing too distracting. Each member of the show did their part to produce a quality 30 minute recording filled with great discussions between the co-hosts.
Brad has been a friend of mine ever since he stopped by to help me out with my WordPress Weekly podcast and I’m glad to see him continuing to pursue his interests in podcasting. If you are interested in web development or design, you’d be foolish not to subscribe to the SitePoint podcast in iTunes.
Podcasting As Easy As 123 With Talkshoe
Talkshoe.com is an online web service that enables anyone to easily create, join, or listen to Live Interactive Discussions, Conversations, Podcasts and Audioblogs. The service has been around since 2005 and since then, has continued to make it as easy as possible for users to create their own podcasts. Membership to Talkshoe is free. Besides being free, what else do they have to offer?
The Host Page:
Although there are many other podcasting services around that provide similar functionality as Talkshoe, I have yet to leave the service based on a number of circumstances. For starters, show hosts can schedule episodes at any time they’d like. There are no specific time blocks which limit when you can produce a show. Talkshoe gives hosts the ability to manage an email list that is used to invite people to your show as it is scheduled. You can either maintain your own mailing list or direct Talkshoe members to click on the FOLLOW button that is registered to your show. This will automatically place them on the INVITATION list. Anytime you schedule an episode, an email will be sent out to these people providing the necessary information regarding the next episode.
Each host on Talkshoe receives their own dedicate show page. This page highlights a countdown to when the next episode will air, a media player for specific episodes that can be embedded into blog posts, various subscription options, and a list of scheduled episodes on top of a list of past episodes. This page also gives listeners a chance to review and then comment on your show.
Unfortunately, show hosts can not manage the FOLLOW LIST. If someone on the follow list ends up changing their email account or fails to remove themselves from the list, sending out invitations can result in bounce back messages polluting your inbox. This issue has been brought up to Talkshoe in the past but has yet to be corrected.
Maybe you’re not too keen on the audio quality Talkshoe provides but you are content with their distribution system. The good news is, you can upload MP3’s to Talkshoe which will take the place of your recorded show. This means you can use Talkshoe as a distribution channel while staying in charge of the podcast audio quality.
Interaction:
Talkshoe provides a myriad of ways in which people can interact with shows. The first method is similar to AM Talk Radio where listeners can call into the show via SkypeOut or a landline/cellphone. Talkshoe provides one central number to call but provides each show host with their own unique call ID. The call ID is used to differentiate the large number of shows being hosted on Talkshoe. Users can opt to configure a SIP Client as well such as Project Gizmo or my favorite, X-Lite. This allows me to call into Talkshoe with my PC similar to using SkypeOut, but for free. The last way of interacting with the show is through two different clients that Talkshoe provides.
There is the Talkshoe Pro client which requires installation on an end users system while the web client can be executed through a browser window. The pro client contains features that the web client does not such as color coded conversations, easier show administration, and more. However, the web client is fast to load and provides an IRC like chat interface. Those who are brand new to Talkshoe hate the fact that the chat in the Pro Client scrolls from right to left. However, after getting used to it, people begin to see why it’s setup that way.
The major difference between the web and pro clients is that the pro client has a built in SIP client called ShoePhone. However, anytime I have listened to someone call into a show using this SIP client, they have sounded terrible. It sounds as if the caller is speaking through a fan. Based on what I have heard through the grapevine, Talkshoe is going to be reworking the Shoephone from the ground up. Almost anything you can think of would be better than using the Shoephone, even tin cans and string.
Show Administration:
As show host, you contain access to some options that no one else does. Show hosts are not able to join their room until 15 minutes prior to the scheduled start time. Once you are allowed in the room, hosts are then able to click on a START button which will initiate the recording. Keep in mind that Talkshoe does not automatically start a recording, this is a manual process. Show hosts contain the ability to mute a persons audio while also being able to block someone from chatting in the room. Talkshoe does not contain the ability to ban users from entering a specific room. So although you can block their chat, and their voice, they can still sit in the room and listen to the show but I can only imagine how boring that must be.
When hosts are done recording a show, they can press the STOP button which will stop the recording but not terminate the call. This is great because after the recording stops, you can keep the show open for an after show where people can still call in and congregate. Only after you hit the TERMINATE button will the show and the room be terminated. Termination will hang up any caller that may still be on the line. You can still chat in the room however.
The Bad
While I am a big fan of Talkshoe, not everything is as great as it seems. For instance, Talkshoe has been known to suffer major outages from time to time thanks to power outages and other mishaps at their data centers. This can screw things up if your show happens to be scheduled during the same time Talkshoe goes offline. I must admit though, Talkshoe did a good job of getting things back up to speed in no time flat. Also worthy of note is that Talkshoe supports anonymous callers. A great idea at face value until you realize that there is no call screener. I’ve participated in a number of shows which have had a (podcrasher) or two show up and try to destroy the show. This is why I really don’t accept calls from anonymous users.
Talkshoe like many other web services that have a chat server appears to suffer from the same problems of connections timing out. This leads to increased frustration by everyone as you have to refresh the browser if you’re using the Web Client to reconnect or, you need to close the pro client and reopen it. This issue has seemingly become worst as time moves on.
Last but not least, you will not receive studio quality sound from your podcasts if they are produced on Talkshoe. But, calling into Talkshoe.com via X-Lite has enabled me to have great audio quality, at least thats what the listeners have told me. You can’t control an individuals audio quality so although I might sound great, the callers may sound terrible. However, if the show contains great content, I think there are many people who are willing to forgive the audio quality.
Conclusion:
I have been a member of Talkshoe since early 2007 and have never reached a point where I got up and left the service for something else. I have given BlogTalkRadio a look through but I am not pleased with their host page layout. Talkshoe has plenty of things it can do to improve its service as well as the site itself but only time will tell if they put these improvements into place. If you are looking for a service that practically does everything for you minus the talking, give Talkshoe a try.
Perfcast Episode 7
In episode seven of Perfcast, David introduces us to his new website, BrandingDavid.com. We get a report of what David learned at WordCamp Toronto. We dive into the b5 Media Rate cuts and discuss its possible impact while also highlighting the article published by ReadWriteWeb pertaining to the what the 20 top tier bloggers income levels are. Last but not least, we discussed an article which I believe provides a good amount of food for thought and that is, what is the most important blog metric. The answer may surprise you. All that and more in this gobblygook packed episode of Perfcast.
STORIES DISCUSSED:
Blogger and Consultant Pay
Big Blog Pay Cuts at b5media
Revolution Going Open Source
Most Important Blog Metric
WordCamp Toronto wordcamptoronto.pbwiki.com
Project Launchpad on Performancing?
LISTENER FEEDBACK – We cover reader feedback from the previous episode. You can give us your feedback by shooting us an email at, perfcast@gmail.com
BLOGGING JOB OF THE WEEK – Contributing writers for Devlounge, preferably on a weekly basis. Thord Hendergren is interested in posts and tutorials that goes well on a web development site. It could be content in any of these topics:
* PHP
* Flash
* WordPress
* Drupal
* vBulletin
* PhpBB
* Javascript
Interested? They pay $20 for every published post.
Get in touch with Thord Hendengren at: hi at tdhedengren . com
BLOGGING CHALLENGE ENTRIES FROM THE PREVIOUS WEEK: David and I are both eligible for the FAIL blog as we both failed to accomplish the challenge. The bar was set pretty high but this week, the bar is even higher. (Be sure to thank David for that!)
BLOGGING CHALLENGE – Might be difficult with the way things are currently, but good bloggers are like great debaters. They should be able to take any side of an issue and see things from all angles. So this week, I’d like to see people post, in a positive way, about the economy making sure to integrate it into your normal topic.
The blogging challenge is provided as a means of challenging yourself with a specific duty each week. David and I will be participating in each challenge and will be highlighting various entries from the previous challenge. To have your entry viewed by David and I, leave a comment with a link to your entry on this blog post. You may be the entry we review on the next episode.
LENGTH OF EPISODE – 1 Hour 2 Minutes
NEXT EPISODE – Thursday October 16th, 2008 at 7 P.M. EST
ITUNES – Click here to subscribe to the show via iTunes
DOWNLOAD THE SHOW: PerfcastEpisode7.mp3
LISTEN TO EPISODE 7 OF PERFCAST:
The Weekly Buzz: What Is This Thing? Podcasting, Bad Commentators, and More
The Hive, a Performancing project, was created to provide a community for those looking to increase the performance of their blog and network with the pros. The Hive still continues to grow, and there are many great things being discussed within.
What Is It?
Performancing Hive is a place where you can talk about blogging, advertising, writing, search engine optimizing, monetizing, and anything else related to this business we call blogging. It really is a place where professionals and those hopeful of going professional can bounce around ideas and talk about our passion.
If you have questions, we have the answers.
Newest Member
I’d like to welcome blabrmouth of Blabrmouth.com to the Hive. Thanks for being our newest member, and thanks for supporting the Hive!
Podcasting
Plenty of questions about podcasting have been arising. Questions about tools, plugins, hosts, and more. Podcasters, we got you covered in the Hive. Plenty of our members have podcasting experience, and a quite a few maintain weekly podcasts as well. If you need help with podcasting, join up and ask away.
The Know-It-All Commentator
One of our members had a problem with that usual I-am-gonna-screw-with-you-and-your-blog type person. We were able to help the person out.
If you have someone that is constantly disrupting your blog, try to reason with that person via email or by other means privately. It can sometimes be as simple as that. Do not provoke further action by insulting/annoying this person, but instead, ask politely for the situation to come to an end.
Also, be sure to modify or remove any content which is not true. I am of the opinion that comments should not be removed. There will always be those who are dissatisfied. However, there comes a time when something just does not belong. It is your blog—you run it, and you protect yourself.
Join Us Now
Joining Performancing Hive is a great investment. It is $10 a month, and that breaks down to little over 30 cents a day. If you are a serious blogger, it is seriously a worthwhile investment. Join the Hive.
A Beginner’s Podcasting Guide: Almost Everything You Need to Know to Start
Do you want to produce your own podcast, to supplement your website’s articles but don’t know how? Here’s a compact guide to get you started. With various Podcamps under way, or just completed, podcasting – including video blogging – is obviously of interest to an increasing number of people. Podcasting is a term used both specifically to refer to the publishing of audio content online, as well as to generically refer to vodcasting/vlogging (video blogging) and screencasting (video recording of live software use) as well.
Podcasting is simply fun for some people. For others, it’s serious web content production that can supplement articles or stand on its own. If you’re good at podcasting and you’re consistent in terms of quality and publishing schedule, you could build a loyal base of listeners/ watchers, who might turn into readers of your articles as well. Or if writing is not your thing, you might focus on the podcasting alone.
What to Podcast and Why?
Some people say there’s an overabundance of podcast content online, but there’s enough room for more good content, especially as a supplement to written content. Some ideas for podcasts:
- If you’re a tutorial/ how-to blogger, there’s a need for podcast/ screencast to supplement articles. You can always team up with someone that has a popular site but no audio/ video content. For examples of screencasts, check out Tubetorial.
- If you’re a news blogger (tech, politics, etc.), quality in-depth commentary is always valuable.
- If you’re an expert reviewer, consider a podcast. For inspiration, visit Reel Reviews Radio, Michael W. Geoghegan’s engaging, indepth audio reviews of new and classic films.
- If you’re a fiction writer, podcasts can offer audio versions of your stories. Short fiction can be produced in single episodes; long fiction as an audio serial.
- If you’re a musician or a spoken word poet, a weekly podcast can keep fans updated of your goings on, and used to preview upcoming or exclusive work.
- If you speak a language other than English, you can work with an English-only blogger to translate their podcasts. Or you could serve your own market with podcasts in both English and another language.
- If you’re an expert at something, a premium advicecast could be valuable. (Though be sure to make the necessary disclaimers, to protect yourself legally.) People will pay for high quality content. Visit Podcast Academy for an example. What they do is release a podcast file in each post, so you can go through their archives and listen for free. But if you want a convenient package of all the recordings all at once, they charge $99 via PayPal. If you consider the time and effort it would take you to surf their archives, the premium package might be worth it.
- If you teach language, podcasts are invaluable, especially to children. (Libsyn lists many language podcasts, and Mignon Fogarty’s Grammar Girl podcast is so popular that she has appeared on Oprah, as well as scored a big contract with a giant publisher.)
If you have, or can develop, a clear voice, podcasting might be a nice way to supplement your articles and win over new regular visitors. Not everyone works from home, and may want to download podcasts (using something like the multi-platform Juice Receiver) to listen to during commutes. Other people simply like to listen to expert content while they work on the computer.
How Long Should My Podcasts Be?
In answer to that, read Stefan Hendgren’s How I Like My Podcasts. The salient point is that unless you do a professional job, keep it short. For an example of an excellent series of long podcasts (10-45 minutes each), visit Reel Reviews Radio (mentioned above). Michael W. Geoghegan’s voice is very warm, clear and passionate, and he’s an expert on film commentary (as well as a pioneer in podcasting in general). I balked at first on finding how long his episodes were, but after listening to a few (even movies I didn’t think I’d care about), I didn’t think twice about the length.
If you are a expert on some topic and have a pleasant voice, you might be able to get away with longer podcasts. Otherwise, I’d say keep them to about five minutes per episode. For screencasts, you might be able to get away with ten minutes. However, if you can break up a screencast into parts, that makes it easier to consume. (When I have a long screencast in parts, I prefer to use SplashCast Media player, which acts as a slideshow of video.)
A Podcasting Toolbox
If you’re interested in producing your own podcast, check out 9 Podcasting Tips first, then come back here for a quick rundown of the tools that I’m using. (See further below for additional tools to consider.) You don’t need to spend thousands of dollars; you can podcast on a budget. (Note: This is not an an endorsement of any of these products.)
Basic Podcasting Toolbox
This is the very minimum tool set that I use, depending on whether I’m stationary or “in the field”.
- Samson Tech Zoom H4 portable digital stereo/ 4-track recorder. This unit not only looks space age, it packs a lot of features into an easy to hold size. The recording quality is superb, there are XLR inputs, files are easy to move to your computer, and there’s a clown-nose style windshield that can be placed over the stereo mics. Unfortunately, if you want to place this unit on a mic stand, the “adapter” for doing so is a flimsy contraption of a half shell and two velcro strips. For $325 ($Cdn), I’d figure they could come up with something better. Still, I’ve used this nearly every day since picking it up a few weeks ago.
- M-Audio Fast Track USB audio interface. This acts as a computer interface between my computer, Audacity (see above), and a microphone. While it’s designed for both (acoustic) guitar and vocals, I use it mostly for vocals. The device comes with audio sequencing software,Ableton Live Lite, which is similar to Cubase LE (mentioned above).
- Microphones. If you’re just starting out and not yet monetizing, you don’t have to get $400 microphones. But if you want a professional podcast that you will later monetize, the microphone matters. My mics range from $1 to $150, not including the mic that’s native to my Zoom H4. I use the dollar-store mic on an older computer, for tests now, though I did use it for many of my early podcasts. It produces a clear but very thin sound, so if you’re not up to adding effects to improve the result, start with something in the $50-100 range.
- Audacity multi-platform audio recording/ editing software. This is one of the easiest to use audio editors available, supports industry-standard VST plugins, and it’s free. I’ve also extensively used Sonic Foundry’s SoundForge (now owned by Sony), a more professional program. However, Audacity is really all you need for audio podcasts.
- Steinberg Cubase LE sequencing software – comes with the Zoom H4 recorder. Great for sequencing intro/ extro music, station id and various audio tracks for your podcasts.
- Apple iPod nano, Apple iPod shuffle, iPod clone on a USB memory stick. These were all gifts, though I loved the iPod nano (old style) so much that I’ve considered getting an iPod classic or touch for reviewing video work.
- PodPress. A WordPress plugin for embedding a compact media player for podcasts into your WP blog/ site. This plugin also produces the necessary changes to your RSS feed, provides download stats, supports paid premium content, and more.
So basically, if you want to start with a small podcasting toolkit, I suggest:
- A computer with Internet access.
- Recording setup – any of the following:
- A USB interface with normal mic.
- A USB microphone.
- A portable digital recorder.
- An audio editor program for trimming/ editing audio files. If the program supports live recording from a microphone, even better. This is why I recommend Audacity.
- Audio sequencing software, such as Cubase, ProTools, etc., to arrange all the parts of an episode.
- A media player such as an iPod or Zune, for reviewing your work while mobile.
- A media player plugin for your site/ blog.
- A means of testing your podcast feed, such as Juice Receiver (multi-platform desktop software). Juice is used to subscribe to podcasts on either a manual or timed basis, but can be used to test your podcast feed.
Any tools beyond those listed above are for advanced work, which also includes videos and screencasts.
Additional Tools I Use
Here are some additional tools that I use, or have used, for audio/ video/ screencast work.
- Canon DV camcorder. Used for web video work, though I’m hoping to switch to HDD through a local non-profit organization that offers affordable equipment rental to filmmakers and videographers.
- File format converters for AVI, FLV, etc., video formats.
- Moviemaker. If you have MS Windows, this will be hidden somewhere on your computer. If you have a Mac, you probably have iMovie.
- Nikon digital camera. You don’t need an expensive DSLR camera if you’re just looking to a few headshots for an online promo page. If you’re putting together a more professional print promo package, then either hire a photographer or get an SLR/ DSLR and set up a tripod and auto-timer.
- Propellerheads Reason. Reason is like having a huge rack of recording gear, synths, samplers, and drum machines – except in a convenient, customizable, expandable software format. It’s midi-controllable with instruments or midi keyboard, or you can manually “program” Reason to produce music and loops. I use Reason to compose ambient (a la Law & Order style) and electronica tracks (a la Moby), some of which are fine for podcast intro/ extro music.
- Propellerheads Recycle. For cleaning up and trimming audio for use in loop sequencing software (such as Acid).
- SonicFoundry Acid and SoundForge. These were sent to me by SonicFoundry back in 1999 – before Sony bought them out – for an article I wrote on digital music. I used Acid (sequencing, looping) and SoundForge (audio editing) extensively, using loop CD snippets combined with original guitar, synth and vocals. It’s great for producing certain styles of intro/ extro music. However, when it comes to sequencing voice tracks, I always run into BPM (beat per minute) issues, and sometimes get warbling or chipmunk voices, if there isn’t a music track down first.
- TechSmith Camtasia Studio. If you want to produce screencast videos of software use, for tutorials, this is an ideal tool, worth every penny. Free time-limited, full-functioning trial version available. As a starter, check out the less-featured but free CamStudio (Windows only, afaik).
- TechSmith Snagit. Great for quality screen snapshots by region or window. Free time-limited, full-functioning trial version available. Also see the free Wink (Windows and Linux x86 only).
- Video sharing/ hosting sites, such as YouTube and SplashCast.
Note that these are the tools I currently use, though they’re for podcasting, web video, and screencasting – not just audio podcasting.
Other Tools/ Gear to Consider
This is by no means a complete list. There are hundreds of audio-related hardware and software products available to consumers that might be of use in podcasting. What you pick depends on your functional needs and your budget.
- Adobe Premiere, for professional video editing.
- Alesis USB-Mic podcasting kit. This is basically a USB-driven microphone with its own mini stand. If you intend to do all your recording in one place (i.e., not “in the field”), this type of mic would save you having to buy an audio interface AND mic.
- Mic stands/ arms/ flex arms. Good for when you need to arrange mics but only have two arms.
- Mic windscreen/ pop shield. Strongly recommended, to reduce the hiss and pop produced by the recording of certain vowel and consonant sounds.
- ProTools, as a pro level audio sequencing tool, especially if you have to mix down multiple tracks.
- A few other digital portable recorder makers: (See Transom’s Tools section for reviews of some of these.)
- Sony Vegas (Pro). Formerly from SonicFoundry, Vegas is an industry-standard tool used to sequence multiple video frames and audio tracks, to produce finished video. Vegas is often used by soundtrack composers to marry video and audio.
A Podcasting Production Workflow
So now that you have an idea of the gear you might need, what does it take to produce a podcast episode? Here’s an example workflow:
- Consume content. That is, read a book, watch or listen to a show. Do what you need to to have source material to discuss.
- Write an episode script. Use as natural a “voice” as possible.
- Speak the script out loud. How natural is it?
- Revise the script. If it sounds awkward, or has factual errors, revise, then return to step 3. (Keep in mind that while it’s nice to be grammatically correct, the average person probably does not speak in grammatically correct language. We’re also generally more tolerant of grammatical errors in speech than in written form.)
- Use an audio editor such as Audacity to trim off long silences and extraneous sections.
- Use an audio sequencer such as Cubase or ProTools to arrange intro/extro, music, and audio tracks.
- Mixdown the audio. That is, export the arrangement to a WAV or MP3 file, depending on your hosting solution.
- Double check the “final” audio file by listening to it in its entirety in Audacity, or even in a soft MP3 player such as iTunes, Windows Media Player, Winamp, etc. (MP3 quality is always lower than WAV format. But WAV files are enormous, and your listeners won’t thank you for chewing up their Internet access bandwidth.)
- Upload/ publish your podcast.
- Offer a link to the podcast episode file from your website/ blog. Or use an embedded player.
This is only one possible workflow. I’ve never measure the amount of time it takes overall to produce each minute of finished audio, though I’m guessing it’s between 5-30 minutes of effort, not including step #1, consumption of content.
Should I Have a Podcast Series Logo?
If you’re producing a quality podcast, and want it to be part of your personal or company brand, then yes. Many hosting services allow you to upload a logo image for your entire podcast series. If you prefer to use YouTube or SplashCast, but only have audio content, here’s what you do to maintain a visual brand:
- Make your audio recording, edit it as necessary.
- Use a video sequencing/ editing tool such as MovieMaker, iMovie, Camtasia Studio, Adobe Premiere, Vegas Pro, etc., to combine a still shot of your logo with the audio track.
- Host the final audio with YouTube or SplashCast.
This way, you can avoid the extra effort and cost of a video series but still maintain a visual identity. (Video for the sake of video is a waste of effort. Sometimes, audio podcasts are more than enough, especially if you want end users to focus on the vocal content.
Hosting Your Podcast Files
As mentioned in the previous section, you can produce a pseudo “video” version of your audio podcast and host it at YouTube or SplashCast. You could also host it on your own web server, though this could destroy your bandwidth budget, or cause your host to shut your site down. (And it doesn’t take many site visitors for this, when it comes to audio or video files.) There are numerous free and paid podcast hosting services, some of which are mentioned in the Resources section later in this article. If you go for a paid solution, consider one that offers unmetered bandwidth and only charges based on how much disk space your podcast files take up. Libsyn is one example.
How to Podcast on Your Site/ Blog
Once you’ve produced your podcast file and selected a host, you want an easy way to present it on your site. What you use depends on your site platform, but there are various plugins out there. (The PodPress plugin for WP is mentioned somewhere in this article.) Worst case scenario: include a link to the hosted file somewhere in your article/ blog post.
Podcasting Resources, Audio Tools
This list includes podcasting-related sites, blogs, tools, and hosting services. Please note that for convenience to readers, some of the sites listed in 9 Podcasting Tips are listed here as well. This is by no means comprehensive, and you’re invited to add resources you know of.
- Alesis Podcasting Center. Tips and tools for podcasters.
- Audio Geek Zine. Home recording webzine.
- Audival. Podcasting tips and tricks, gear reviews.
- Blogger & Podcaster. This print magazine is now being promoted by USA Today. There’s also full-media online version that any once can view (usually only the most recent copy).
- Blogger & Podcaster Media Network (BPN). All bloggers and podcasters are eligible to join. There’ll be a healthcare plan and an ad network. (Coming soon.)
- Control Room. Articles slanted towards music production, but occasionally relevant to podcasting.
- Libsyn. Liberated Syndication offers podcast hosting and a directory. Hosting is unmetered, and charged by storage space.
- Michael W. Geoghegan. This is a general blog about podcasting by Michael W. Geoghegan, a pioneer of podcasting, who helped build several companies in this arena, and is currently involved with Podcast Academy and other endeavors.
- Podango. Podcast hosting and sharing.
- Podbasket. Creates an RSS feed for you out of disparate audio files you’ve published on your site.
- Podcast Bunker. Podcast directory.
- Podcast Central. Podcast directory.
- PodcastPromos. If you have a 30, 60 or 120 second audio clip to promote your podcast, this is the place to show it off. You can also pull clips of fellow podcasters’ promos and include them in your podcasts. (The motto is help promote each other.)
- PodPiper’s Digital Education. About the use of written and spoken words, in digital form, to teach. Especially see Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Podcasting But Were Afraid to Ask, for links to examples of podcasts for teaching.
- Podshow. Video and audio podcast sharing.
- Podcast Academy. High quality podcasts about podcasting, including recordings of industry workshops and sessions from PNME (Podcast and New Media Expo). If you’re serious about podcasting, these recordings are a must-listen.
- Podcast Solutions. A site to promote the book Podcast Solutions, by Michael W. Geoghegan and Dan Klass.
- Podcaster News. A collection of premium short audio content that you can subscribe to.
- ProToolerBlog. Discussions around ProTools software and pro audio.
- PRX – Public Radio Exchange. Non-profit service that aids in distribution, peer review, and licensing of radio pieces. They have numerous articles for stations and producers, as well as member tools.
- Soundhack freeware. Mac/Windows plugins of the VST/ RTAS/ AU variety.
- RawVoice PodcastFAQ. The RawVoice site also has a tools section, as well as a commercial tool for podcast content and network building, called Generator.
- Tech Podcast Network. A network of tech-related podcasts.
- Transom. Their tagline: “A showcase & workshop for New Public Radio” (not to be confused with NPR – National Public Radio). They offer shows about the art of radio as well interviews and gear reviews.
Summary
If you enjoy the workshop/ conference setting, check out the New Media Expo, Aug 14-16, 2008, at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. There’ll be workshops on podcasting. If you’re already a podcasting blogger, feel free to share your experiences below. If you have a podcasting-related product, blog, resource site, or hosting service, please feel free to add your URL in the comments below. Happy podcasting.
How to Podcast Using SplashCast or YouTube
In A Beginner’s Podcasting Guide, there’s a reference to using video hosting sites SplashCast or YouTube for audio podcasts. (See the section Should I Have a Podcast Series Logo?) Most podcast hosting sites offer free and paid plans, usually with unmetered bandwith. So plans are usually based on the amount of disk space your podcast files take up. But free or not, while you can upload a podcast series logo, audio podcasts don’t really convey your visual branding. (This is especially important if you’re on a podcast sharing site that syndicates content, and where members are encouraged to use other members’ content on their sites.) There’s a way to get around this, as I discuss below.
NOTE: This article makes the entire process look more complicated than it actually is. The article merely tries to give you as much information about your options as possible.
Alternate Podcast Hosting Approach
The alternative to typical podcast hosting is to use video hosting. “How’s that?, you say. Well basically, you are taking your audio file and attaching one or more visual elements that reinforce your visual brand. You’re not really producing a video, per se, but you will have images attached to a podcast, should a listener wish to view something.
Benefits
Here are the benefits in turning your podcast into a “video”:
- You’ll have a visual brand associated with your podcast. How you do this will depend on your requirements. Suggestions:
- Display a personal/ company/ series logo.
- Display a screenshot of your home page, with the logo clearly visible.
- Use one or more images/ illustrations relevant to the podcast in question, with a logo watermarked in one corner (bottom right is often best).
- If you use SplashCast, you get additional benefits:
- Higher quality audio/ video than for most video sharing sites, including YouTube.
- Automatic listing of an episode in their directory.
- An embeddable, brandable, borderless player.
- Dynamic updating. So if other sites embed your “shows”, any change you make to them will be automatically updated. (With YouTube, I believe you end up with a brand new URL, thus no dynamic updating.)
- Options for displaying an entire podcast series in the player’s menu. (It’s automatic, if you keep adding “shows” to a “channel”.) This can be a big plus, especially if you want to place your entire series in a single player in the sidebar of your site. (YouTube now has “related video” thumbnails at the bottom of their player, but I’m not 100% sure that you can filter out other people’s videos from the list.)
- Video sharing sites are generally free to sign up with and use. There are usually no limits on uploads and bandwidth usage. (However, there was talk last year of a premium plan for SplashCast. Not sure where that’s at.)
- Video embedding into your site/ blog is sometimes easier – but not by much – than podcast embedding.
Drawbacks
There are some drawbacks with this approach.
- Getting crass/ rude comments about your “video”, or lack of.
- Not giving listeners the benefit of using podcast downloaders such as Juice Receiver (multi-platform). Juice and programs like it make downloading podcasts to your MP3 players (iPod, Zune, etc.) relatively simple. You can even program them to auto-check podcasts you’ve subscribed to and then download audio files during “off hours”, which you define. After that, you offload the files from your hard drive to your media player.
Solution
You can’t prevent #1. There always “haters” who have miserable lives and need to vent. For #2, you could produce two versions, one for regular podcast hosting and one for video sharing sites. This allows you to embed a player for each episode in each associated post page. You can also use the video version to display a player in the sidebar, reinforcing your visual brand.
The image above is part of a screen capture of a sidebar that has a SplashCast player embedded. Unfortunately, the Flash player embedded in the post (for a single episode) doesn’t want to appear in the screencap, so you’ll have to see the page in action at Filmzee, to get the full effect of using both an audio hosting option and a video hosting option.
What You Need
This is a list of what you’ll need to produce a “video” version of your audio podcast.
- Recording equipment – any one of these:
- A portable digital recorder.
- A USB microphone.
- A regular mic and a USB audio interface.
- A regular mic, XLR cables, and a professional soundcard that accepts XLR inputs.
- You can also use a mic that connects directly to your computer’s microphone port, though they typically tend to be of lower quality.
- Audacity audio editor, or something similar.
- Audio sequencer [optional], to arrange intro/ extro, music, and vocal tracks. It just depends on how complex your arrangement is. If you’re recording straight voice, then Audacity might be enough.
- Video editor. You can probably get away with something like Moviemaker (Windows) or iMovie (Mac), but it depends on how each handles the integration of images with audio. If the end result is that your image is only visible for a few seconds before a blank screen appears, then you need different software. Other options:
- There are 30-day free, fully-functioning trials of Sony Vegas Pro and TechSmith Camtasia Studio available.
- The free Camstudio does not have the editing capabilities you need – at least not the last time I looked.
- Sony Acid Pro can function similar to Vegas Pro, at least for the purposes of this article, and there’s a 30-day fully-functioning trial available. However, because of BPM issues that produce voice warbling, only use a single final audio track. Do not use Acid to sequence/ arrange multiple vocal tracks, unless you have a consistent BPM across the music tracks.
- Other products to consider: Final Cut Pro (Mac) and Adobe Premiere.
- One or more images/ illustrations and/or a brand or podcast logo.
- A SplashCast or YouTube account, or whatever video sharing site you prefer. In terms of quality, SplashCast is better, but in terms of visibility, YouTube probably still has the advantage. However, since you’re after a way to “display” your audio podcasts on your site, it probably doesn’t matter.
If you are smarter than I am, you will not download all the video editor trials at the same time. Stagger the downloads so that you can go several months using free high-end software. (I’m not sure of how long Premiere’s trial is for, but if it’s 30 days, then you potentially have 90-120 days of free video editing software before you have to settle on one.) Just make sure you remember to export all your work into various file formats, so that you can reproduce the work in a different program, if necessary.
Process
After your audio recording has been trimmed and mixed down to MP3 or wave (see the Beginner’s Podcasting Guide), you have two main options for producing your video:
- Single image or logo.
- Open your video editor with a new session.
- Add/ drag’n'drop your final audio file (WAV or MP3) into your edit window.
- Add the image at the beginning of the audio timeline.
- Complete the action necessary (depending on which editor you’re using) to extend the rendering of the still image across the entire audio timeline. You do not want an arrangement that only displays the image for a few seconds, then displays a blank screen. Some software cannot do this, though I cannot at this time give you a blow-by-blow rundown, so you’ll have to try for yourself (beyond the packages I’ve mentioned here. I’ve tested in MS Moviemaker, Camtasia Studio and Vegas Pro.)
- Render (output) the “video” in whatever format is available to you, including .AVI or .WMV.
- Depending on the service you’re using (SplashCast, YouTube, Vimeo, etc.), convert to an acceptable video file format. I find that of .AVI, .WMV and .MOV, the .WMV format produces the smallest file sizes.
- Upload your file to the video sharing service.
- Follow the video site’s instructions for embedding a media player in your post and/or sidebar.
- Multiple images. Follow the process above, but place the images at different points along the audio timeline, as if producing a slideshow. The same caution applies as for a single image. You want any one image to show for the entire duration of the audio timeline, not “image, blank screen, image, blank screen, etc.) Again, how you achieve this depends on the video editing software that you’re using.
You can watermark multiple images with a smaller logo, if you want. A video screencast of the process in action using Vegas Pro is shown below.
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Summary
If you’ve watched the video screencast above, you’ll see that the general process of producing a “video” version of an audio podcast isn’t all that complicated. The only thing you might have to be concerned with is very high volume or branded-player use of SplashCast, for which I believe there’s a payment requirement. But this might only apply if you want to use a branded player. Their price structure is not spelled out, but you can contact them through the form on their Benefits page.]
9 Podcasting Tips – and a Few Good Resources
Now that the warm weather is coming back (at least) here, I’m getting back into podcasting work again, without concern for damaging my throat. (I find that I can’t do much voice work from about October to late March, due to throat problems.) Currently, I’m working on developing a handful of audio and video podcasting series for a number of people, and I’m in “resource collection” mode. So I thought I’d share a few of the resources I’ve come across.
- 901am is a SplashPress site that covers new media, which includes podcasting/ vodcasting.
- Audio Geek Zine covers gear for home recording, which podcasting could be said to fall into.
- Audival is a SplashPress site, run by Stefan “Stiff” Hendgren, brother of Thord Hendgren (who currently runs Devlounge and a number of other SplashPress and personal sites). Audival focuses on podcasting tips and tricks, as well previews and reviews of relevant software and gear. There are also gems such as Podcasting On a Budget, which has a list of various tools you might want to look into, and the Adding Music To Your Podcasts series (part 1, part 2, part 3). As well, have a look at the “Resources and Links” section of Audival’s navigation column. There are some new media-related sites listed, including audio hosting services.
- Audacity is a free, multi-platform audio editor reportedly developed by recording industry insiders, and compatible with a few audio plugin architectures. As I’ve said many times in the past, don’t let the free price fool you. You get a lot of bang for no buck.
- Podcast Academy is a blog that offers advice and tons of podcasts of industry sessions about podcasting. I’ve spent the last few days listening to hours of incredible advice from workshops and sessions at 2007’s PNME (Podcast and New Media Expo). Because the content is pure audio, you can playback podcasts while working on something else, or download to your computer and offload to an MP3 player. If you are serious about becoming a podcaster, you really should listen to these sessions about legalities, licensing etc.
I know this is a really short list of resources, but I’ll add more in the comments as I find them. You can add some as well, if you’ve found something you like, or are part of a company in the new media industry and have something that’s relevant to podcasting/ vodcasting.
Some tips on podcasting that I’ve picked up over the past few years, as well as from my minimal broadcast experience:
- Cost.
You do not need to spend lots of money to get started in podcasting. I’ve ranged from using dollar store mics on a good sound card, to $1800 professional sound cards, to a whole rack of recording gear and 44-channel hard drive mixers, to my present device of an Zoom H4 portable digital recorder from Samson Tech. It acts as either a stereo or 4-track recorder, or even an audio interface to certain types of recording software. Pricey, but worth it if you need something mid-range in quality. They also have a somewhat less expensive Zoom H2, which is the device recommended by the broadcasting department of regional college. - Effort.
Don’t strain your voice; speak naturally. If “naturally” is not clear enough, then work on improving your voice and control. You don’t need to have broadcasting lessons, but you should spend time working on inflection, pronunciation, enunciation, rhythm, speed, volume, breathing, etc. Not doing this means potentially having a monotone, boring recording, or something completely unintelligible. - Energy.
Don’t record when you’re tired. This will strain your vocal chords, and your voice may come across weak or even high-pitched. Being in general good health improves the quality of your voice for broadcasting purposes. - Environment.
Don’t record in a cold room, or when your body is cold. Warm up your voice before recording, to avoid stress on your vocal chords. Usually you can do this by doing by spending a few minutes chatting first. But if you work at home and only the cat is around, you might feel uncomfortable. If so, try putting on a hoodie or a sweater, or wrap up in blanket, to warm up your torso. - Gear.
Use a reasonably good microphone, though you don’t have to go overboard. Certain types of mics “warm” up your voice and make you sound better, especially if your voice is “thin”. Even though I use a dollar-store mic on occasion, it makes my voice thin. - Gear, pt 2.
Certain vowel and consonant sounds are magnified unflatteringly. Using a windshield/ pop screen over the mic can help reduce sibilant, aspirant and popping sounds. - Gear, pt 3.
If you use a pro mic, you might need an audio interface such as the M-Audio Fast Track USB, which is part of their podcasting kit. On the other hand, if you a good handheld recorder, it’ll have a good directional stereo mic and possible a screen. If it records to SD or Flash cards, you won’t need an audio interface. - Gear, pt 4.
A quality digital portable recorder is handy not just because it’s portable, but also because it’s then easier to upload your recordings to your computer and then web. - Health.
Sustained use of alcohol and cigarettes do affect the quality of your voice. I engage in some of the former and none of the latter. Of course, you might sound like the whiskey-soaked voice of Tom Waits, or the smokiness of Mark Lanegan of Screaming Trees on his amazing Whiskey For the Holy Ghost album (1993, SubPop). But I’m not sure I’d want to listen to podcasts by either of these great musicians (see videos below).
Like anything creative, podcasting is a learning process. Even with broadcasting lessons and some community radio experience, I’m still learning how to use my voice effectively. I do make the mistake of recording when I’m tired or cold, and that does not always make for a great recording.
