It’s probably safe to say that most – if not all – of the people reading this post have listened to a podcast. And since we are all in the learning and education business, odds are even higher that most of us regularly tune in to them as a way to support our own lifelong learning.
In fact, a recent release of a new edition of the Infinite Dial report from Edison Research confirms that podcast listening continues to be a growth medium and this is news that we, as learning business professionals, can’t ignore.
We’ve talked before about the huge opportunity that podcasting presents (see our previous episode, A Podcast About the Huge Opportunity of Podcasting!) but given the implications of this recent report, we are turning the lens once again, on this important topic.
In this episode of the Leading Learning podcast, Celisa and Jeff talk about why podcasting has seen so much growth, the tremendous opportunities this creates, and basic tips for how to get started.
To tune in, just click below. To make sure you catch all of the future episodes, be sure to subscribe by RSS or on iTunes. And, if you like the podcast, be sure to give it a tweet!
Listen to the Show
Read the Show Notes
[00:20] – A preview of what will be covered in this podcast where Celisa and Jeff discuss podcasting and why they feel it is an important channel for learning and education businesses to leverage.
[00:45] – Thank you to YourMembership, sponsor of the Leading Learning podcast for the first quarter of 2017. YourMembership’s learning management system (LMS) is specifically designed for professional education with a highly flexible and intuitive system that customizes the learning experience. YourMembership’s LMS seamlessly integrates with key systems to manage all of your educational content formats in one central location while providing powerful tools to create and deliver assessments, evaluations and learning communities.
[01:23] – The recordings from our recent Learning • Technology • Design™ (LTD) virtual conference (held March 1–3, 2017), are available through the end of May, and you can purchase access through May 15. We created LTD specifically for professionals in the business of continuing education and professional development and you can get access to all of the great content delivered at the live online event. Find out more at ltd.leadinglearning.com.
[01:50] – Highlighted Resource of the Week – Ultimate Guide to Podcasting – a comprehensive podcasting “how to” resource page put together by John Lee Dumas from Entrepreneur on Fire who publishes an interview with an entrepreneur every day of the week.
The Edison Research Report
[02:38] – The recent release of a new edition of the Infinite Dial report from Edison Research (the catalyst for deciding to talk about podcasting on this episode) examined Americans’ use of digital platforms and new media.
From 1/5/17 to 2/11/17, telephone interviews were conducted with respondents age 12 and older who were selected via Random Digit Dial (RDD) sampling. Interviews were 51% landline phones and 49% mobile phones.
Podcasting continues to be a growth medium – 40% of Americans 12+ say they have ever listened to a podcast, while 24% – an estimated 67 million people – say they have listened to one in the past month, up from 21% one year ago.
Some highlights include: podcast listening is more common than Catholicism in the United States and 42 million people listen to podcasts weekly which is five times more than go to the movies.
Smartphones, tablets, and other portable devices are by far the most prevalent means of listening (65%)– but the Edison data makes it clear that, surprisingly, most people are actually listening to podcasts at home, in spite of listening on these mobile devices (52%).
Another surprising statistic is that 85% of listeners listen to all or most of the podcast episodes they tune into.
Why Podcasting Has Seen So Much Growth
[06:50] – Reasons why podcasting seems to be so popular/had so much growth:
- They are relatively easy to produce.
- Consumers can find personalized content and listen to it while doing other things – perfect for multitasking and fulfills promise of anytime, anywhere learning.
- Getting podcast content is easier than ever—almost everyone has a mobile phone, which is all you typically need to listen to one. (A variety of apps, like Stitcher and Overcast make it easy to find podcasts, subscribe to them, and get automatic updates.)
- Quality of the content and the options has been steadily rising.
Opportunities From Podcasting
[10:29] – The kinds of opportunities that podcasting opens up:
- Allows you to reach people in places where you might not typically reach them – it’s potentially very powerful as a new distribution channel.
- Can offer a new way to work with, offer value to, and get value from your subject matter experts.
- A great medium for blending education and marketing effectively. The best podcasts are both entertaining and educational, and they can be very effective as a means of informing people about specific educational offerings. For example, we have used the podcast to promote our fall Leading Learning Symposium and the spring Learning • Technology • Design™ (LTD).
Key Technologies for Podcasting
[12:55] – It is relatively low cost to get into podcasting, at least from a technology standpoint. Below are some of the key technologies we use as well as some alternatives:
- Equipment and hosting basics
- Decent microphones –we use Audio Technica ATR-2100 – around $60-70 a piece – hooking two mics into a computer/mixer. We have these attached to simple boom arms to hold them steady and we have a wind screen on each of them to prevent popping of “p’s”
- For interviews we use Ecamm Call Recorder (for Mac users) or PC users can try CallBurner or Pamela
- We edit in Garage Band (Mac Users) but you can also download Audacity (free) or get Adobe Audition which has more options for editing
- We host the Leading Learning podcast on Libsyn but you can also use Soundcloud or Blubrry – these services also give statistics related to the podcast
- We submit the Leading Learning podcast to iTunes and Stitcher – others to consider are Soundcloud and Google Play
Tips and Best Practices
[17:06] – Below are tips and best practices we recommend:
- Have a few episodes up before you start promoting heavily
- Be consistent
- Structure
- Editorial calendar – have content/interviews lined up
- Really prepare for the interview – don’t just wing it. Think about the overall objectives of having a podcast and make sure your questions align with those objectives
- Produce show notes for each episode. (Each episode of the Leading Learning podcast has show notes that go with it along with links to anything mentioned)
- Ask for reviews – not just in the show, but also in e-mails, social media, etc.
- Include mentions of the podcast in ongoing communications. It can take quite a while to build up a following so you need to stick with it
Podcasts We Recommend
[22:45] – Podcasts that we’ve been listening to/recommend (This includes additions to our list since our last podcast episode on the topic of podcasting):
- Professional Pricing Society Pricing Podcast
- Marketing School with Neil Patel and Eric Siu –on the shorter side – 5-15 min
- Kind World – tells intimate stories about people whose lives have been changed by someone else.
- On Being – the unedited version
- The Showrunner – A podcast about podcasting from Copyblogger Media
[27:24] – Wrap Up
Thanks again to YourMembership for sponsoring this episode of the Leading Learning podcast.
A reminder that recordings from Learning • Technology • Design™ (LTD), our virtual conference we held specifically for professionals in the business of continuing education and professional development, are now available. You can get all the details and register for access to those recordings at ltd.leadinglearning.com.
If you are getting value from the Leading Learning podcast, be sure to subscribe by RSS or on iTunes. We’d also appreciate if you give us a rating on iTunes by going to https://www.leadinglearning.com/itunes.
Also, please tell others about the podcast. Go to https://www.leadinglearning.com/share to share information about the podcast via Twitter, or send out a message on another channel of your choosing with a link to https://www.leadinglearning.com/podcast.
[30:01] – Sign off
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