A year and a half ago I produced a podcasting series that went from zero to over 1,100 downloads daily in just three months. My Business podcast series had to do with real estate, it was ranked in the top 25 Business Podcasts on iTunes ahead of the Wall Street Journal and Rich Dad at the time, and I got up to #7 on the Business Investing category. My podcast was parked next to podcasts of multi-million dollar, even billion-dollar Fortune 100 firms. I did it without any "You-Tube" -like tactics like putting an attractive female on the thumbnail image. I just had a picture of a house. I downloaded the photo from Bigstock for two or three dollars. I can tell you how to podcast and how to create a podcast that outperforms other podcasts with a few basic simple tips.
And I forgot to mention; I did all of this on a complete shoestring budget. I spent a total of about $50 to produce a podcast series that received close to 40,000 downloads in three months. Oh yes, and I don't own an iPod either. I listen to iTunes through my PC. Hope Steve Jobs reads this; maybe he'll send me one. Ok, here's where you need to take notes. Most of this stuff is free:
- Sign up for Audioblog or Hipcast
as it's now known. I paid about $40-$45 for an entire
year of podcasting and audio blogging software use.
- Go get a free Blog on Blogger or
Wordpress to publish you sound files online.
- Sign up for a free Feedburner
account. This will help distribute your podcast.
- Download a free copy of the
Audacity sound mixing software to your desktop for
editing.
- Go to Free Play Music and sign up
for a free account to use their very awesome selection
of bumper music.
- Download Apple iTunes onto your
computer.
- Decide to produce a handful of shows two to ten minutes long to start, and then add at least one or two shows weekly.
As you can see, you don't need a ton of expensive podcasting software. I used Hipcast's Mo-blog which allowed me to use a phone to record messages to be used for the podcast. Don't like a part of the content? No problem, you can go to the Audacity program and edit, cut and paste. You mix in the bumper music, and presto, you're almost done.
What I really love about podcasting is that it is a medium that is in its infancy. By trade, I am an Executive Recruiter. There are thousands of Headhunting Firms in the USA where I live. Guess how many Staffing firms have podcasts? Shhhh. Not many. How about for recruiting firms that serve a niche industry like I am in? Well, the answer is that currently as I write this, there are two other "competing" podcasts in my niche, and both happen to be significant players in our industry. And then there is my $45 per year podcast chugging right alongside. There's nothing like setting up your own hamburger stand in the parking lot of Mickey Dee's.
The real secret behind successful podcasting is consistency, good content, and a sense of humor. Keep things simple, and unscripted. If you have fun doing the shows, they'll catch on. Want to learn how to make a great podcast? As they say in Tennessee, it's time to Put Up or Shut Up, turn up your speakers and keep it real. I'll catch you on the Pod.