A Podcast is a digital audio or video series, typically released episodically, that explores a wide range of topics, from education and entertainment to news and personal storytelling.
What is Podcast?
A Podcast is typically a digital media file that consisting of an intervallic series of, an audio radio, video, ePub, or PDF files subscribed to and downloaded through streamed or web syndication online to a computer or a compatible mobile device. The term podcast has been derived from the two words “iPod” and “Broadcast”, it was first mentioned in “The Guardian” newspaper by Ben Hammersley.
A directory of all the audio or video files currently linked with a known series is maintained centrally on the distributor’s server as a web feed, and the listener or viewer utilizes particular client application software, known as a podcatcher, that can access this web feed, check it for updates, and download any new files in the series. Podcatcher is software by which one can subscribe to a series of files, or podcast. On an occasion of a subscription of any particular Podcast, the podcatcher periodically checks whether any new file has been published, and if so, it automatically downloads it onto your computer or compatible mobile device for you to listen to or watch, at any time of your preference.
What is the use of Podcasts?
Podcasting is an easy and powerful way to convey your messages and ideas to people. It makes you reach anyone that is using broadband connection and searching for podcasts and can subscribes to your show. In order to deliver the content in a series people start podcasting that elongates it over a period of time.
Podcast can be a great source of tutorial or information for visually challenged people.
Number of people use blogs, social networks, and forums to communicate with other spectators or listeners. Many a times, Podcasters start their shows in order to build an online community, eventually they plead for review and comments on their programs. The recent trend has observed that podcasting is a cheap way to advertise to a large number of groups with very specific interests with a view to market your business. Now that when they’ve realized many large companies have started producing podcasts for both to communicate with their customers and to their employees too.
The most popular format of a podcast is MP3.
“Wikipedia: MP3 is a popular digital audio encoding and glossy compression format. It was designed to greatly reduce the amount of data (10:1 compression is common) required to represent audio, yet still sound like a faithful reproduction of the original uncompressed audio to most listeners. In popular usage, MP3 also refers to files of sound or music recordings stored in the MP3 format on computers.”
How to Start a Podcast?
Podcasting has indeed a great positive influence over people that many people have being attracted to start podcasts. It requires a nominal start up cost with not as much of equipment, if you already own a computer. Starting a podcast kind of owning radio station as of anyone has ever dreamed by having a chance to broadcast their thoughts far beyond the reach of a radio transmitter.
The task of starting a Podcast explained below :
Blueprint of Podcast
The first Podcast certainly brings an excitement as well as anxiety to complete the entire task soonest possible though a little patience will earn you great reward by favorable results. Begin with the step for starting a podcast is to planning in a desired manner keeping audience in mind. Determining a blueprint for your podcast will create a concrete base for podcast that will keep you focused at all times.
- Podcast Topic
- Podcast Format
- Choosing a Group
- Selecting a Region
Once the task of planning completes, start working on making of the first episode of your Podcast.
Produce Your Podcast
Set yourself ready with all the podcasting gear and software before you turn on the mic and start narrating any particular topic. Make sure your Podcast is well-organized, here are some tips to make preparations :
- Record an MP3 File
- Create ID3 Tags
- Name Your File
- Upload Your File
- Write Show Notes
- Post Show Notes
Once the task of planning completes, start working on making of the first episode of your Podcast.
Publish Your Podcast
One of the biggest obstacles facing podcasting at the moment is the difficulty everyday Internet users experience creating a podcast. Recording, uploading, hosting and distributing podcasts require some level of technical proficiency that presently is beyond the average web surfer. Going beyond just the basics, to produce a podcast show of radio style quality with music, samples and effects is a daunting task for even experienced Internet users. Recently the new companies working to simplify the podcasting process and many are being heavily backed by venture capitalists so certainly the industry mood is positive and the things will become simpler in time.
Once the Podcast created, all you need to do is a preparation for its publishing and posting it to the internet. Check out for the options available to publish your podcast where you can host your Podcast and direct traffic towards the platform in order to multiply the audience. Follow these steps to publish your Podcast :
- Free Podcast Hosting
- Host Podcast on blogs, Web hosting, RSS Feeds
- Promote Your Podcast
Once the task of planning completes, start working on making of the first episode of your Podcast.
After the publication of your Podcast, you are willing to drive more listeners for your podcast. Dreaming about becoming an expert or an overnight celebrity on the internet by owning a show, but it does not end this way. Ask yourself an important Question..
How to Start a Podcast?
Podcasting is much like an internet as it allows you to choose your own content of your interest which actually attracts rather than the radio or television which broadcast pre-designed programs and you have to pick one out of it. It gives freedom to download and play whenever you want at your most convenience repetitively. Many people prefer the handiness of always having fresh material loaded on their iPods or personal music players, and listen to their podcasts throughout the day.
Podcasting can also be considered as a substitute to the commercial radio and TV, because of the low cost of producing a podcast allows more voices and viewpoints to be heard. Podcasts are produced for certain groups only who are looking for specific topic unlike the television or radio programs for mass consumption. Thousands of podcasts are available which target very specific niche interests, producing communities around topics which are too obscure for traditional broadcasting to cover.
What Makes Podcasts Different and So Popular?
It might seem like hype created for Podcasts as the MP3s have been on the internet for quite some time. Internet radio is nothing new, and audio blogs have been around for awhile, too. What sets podcasts apart is that they can be automatically downloaded to your computer and synced to your MP3 player without any hassle or stressing yourself at it. The easy and convenient way of delivering each episode automatically made it stand outstanding and so popular. You have to subscribe to podcasts much like you subscribe to the web blogs. Very often podcasts are distributed through a blog.
Why Business Require Podcasting :
An Innovative Approach: Podcasting definitely provides a novel way to stretch out to the potential customers. It certainly helps to communicate your passion and personality in a way that isn’t possible with the written words.
Precise Targeting: Technology provides a way for the quality of a message to rival the quantity of recipients in importance. You can use for tutorial purpose or to deliver an educational content to a narrowly focused list of people.
Leading Industry: Podcasting can help you position your company as a thought leader in the market. By talking about latest trends and discussing about the product or service you are actually advertising your product or service in a way of educating your listeners by establishing your authority. Stay one Step Ahead of your Competitors.
Halo Effect: The holistic approach creates a buzz in your industry with the involvement with podcasting and even interest in coverage by news media.
Podcasting Tricks for Business : Following the recent trend in every industry, it is utmost important to stay connected with the customers and attract the potential customers for the conversion. Certain tricks are given below in order to allure the customers through podcasting and turn them to opt your business or products.
Conclusion
With a perspective of future technology, Aetiyuel Williams further explains that Podcasting is a beginning of new era of a new media content revolution which will empower users with the global distribution of the ideas and to create a following of people with the same direction. It is impacting traditional industries such as journalism, education and entertainment allowing anyone to freely create and distribute news and media.