Jeff’s Podcast Tips
Here’s top ten tips for podcasters from Jeff, a radio professional in the States. The link came to us via a comment on my own slightly negative spin on podcasting. I’m aiming to do something more possitive soon, but Jeff’s beaten me to it.
As regards Jeff’s interesting piece, I think I’d put the emphasis on the content tips, rather than the technical ones. But he is right about being concise and relevant. Too many podcasts, especially in the States, seem to ramble, even before they get going with the main content.
It’s true that rambling doesn’t stop the Dawn and Drew Show being mighty popular - but why beats me. But then I don’t understand reality TV either, so perhaps it’s not surprsing that I don’t understand reality podcasting. I suppose rambling conversation must be okay, if that’s the whole point of your podcast and people come to you for it. But if the point is to talk about a specific niche, - say about business, or pets, or movies - then you shouldn’t spend too long at the outset going on about yourself or your career in podcasting.
I know podcasters seem to frown on writing scripts, but perhaps it might help to write out who you are, what the show is about, and what is coming up in this edition in a few short sentences. You might aim to say all in say, 20 seconds, which is normally about 60 words. You’ll probably end up taking 30 seconds, but that’s not too bad. This is certainly what you do in professional broadcasting, and I don’t see any reason why podcasting should be different. Surely any type of creative work is about grabbing people’s interest, and then keeping it? That pretty much rules out rambling, unless you do it very entertainingly indeed.
