I’m fed up sat in the wings, ruminating and speculating.

I’ve been waiting way too long to make a serious play in podcasting. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve been having – and will continue to have – a ball working with established podcasters to help them achieve even loftier levels of success.

I’ve loved every second of being the UK Ambassador for the European Podcast Award. I’ll continue in that role. The podcasting industry needs me.

But where I’ve been lacking is in moving the needle for web radio among the 90%. Every business could do with its own web radio show, and very soon I’m going to be going big on this.

I’m not one for blowing his own bugle, but I’ll tell you this: I look around the world of podcasting and I simply don’t see anyone with the acumen, tools and tricks to match every business’ need to amplify their message and bring their brand to life – and build an incredible customer base founded on rock-solid relationships.

I hear podcasters complaining they can’t make money. People tell me they don’t know how podcasting is going to go mainstream.

I hear challenge, after challenge. I hear the same questions, hundreds of times over. The right microphone, the right software, which mixer you use, the right EQ for the job, etc etc etc.

Asking advice is the most generous act you can bestow on anyone. I love offering counsel when I can. But the problem is this: I rarely see any actual solutions being offered. I see a lot of snake oil being peddled, with products offering short-term fixes, and I see a lot of people falling for it. I even see companies offering to interview you for money, and I’m guessing because they’re still around, that people are falling for that, too.

I see mastermind groups coming together (believe me, I’m an expert on that, too – I ran The You Team and eight success teams for social media companies for two years). LinkedIn Groups bustling with enthusiasts. I see developments come in to focus, and fade away.

But nothing sustainable. Nothing that takes you from your present situation past the first few trees in the forest.

I don’t blame anyone

This is a world that thirsts for quick wins. Information overload reduces our attention spans to virtually zero, and yet we still expect success.

Podcasting is surely no exception.

In but the most exceptional of cases, podcasting and its story to date has been built on the passion of its proponents alone. I get and dig that. I mentioned in my last post how passion is a crucial component of popular podcasts.

Podcasting is all about that, it’s true. It’s equally about the long-range view, and knowing the part you play in your listeners’ lives.

Businesses to date have tangled with the concept. I’ve seen plenty of boutique businesses and mom-and-pop shops try web radio. Some of them even succeed, in their own small way.

And with that hard-earned currency of achievement they are poster children for a new generation of podcasters: Marketeers in positions of power across the nation’s corporations driven by customer-centric objectives. By they, I’m talking about the ones that mean it, live it, and don’t simply chant it because they’ve been brainwashed by the latest Social Media Success Summit or Chris Brogan post.

We the experts?

I love the work of some podcasting coaches and experts. But let’s get real: I’m no expert in podcasting. Not in the 10,000 hours sense – not by a long chalk.

What I am, is fascinated and obsessed by reaching out to customers using any methods and means possible: And I happen to believe that podcasting is one of the most powerful tools to crush the competition by showing you’re human and prepared to go the extra mile to add unexpected, remarkable value to your proposition.

And in that, I become a pivotal part of the evolution of podcasting as a realistic medium for big businesses, all of whom have suddenly realised that agility and client devotion are twin totems of their sustainability.

The game is changing

I’m a marketer, author, journalist and on top of this digital thing.

I have a truckload of things to learn. But one thing I know better than anyone in my circle is how content marketing when combined with incredible devotion to customers – and being nosey enough to know what matters – can change the fortunes of any business in any industry.

I’m able to show anyone, anywhere, how a web radio show can truly transform the way they do business. How a podcast can gain their business A-list status in their customers’ eyes, and how it can be the conduit to forming the most devastatingly-awesome relationships with employees, suppliers and influencers – whatever they do.

I’m shipping

Sharing Superheroes, my first book, is already hogging the eyewaves of many marketeers eager to understand the one thing that’s probably missing from their 2012 radar. Tick.

A totally new focus and form for this website is being planned. Tick.

I’m not stopping until web radio is as much a part of the visionary marketer’s toolkit as email marketing. Tick.

Your business is going to be rocked to its core by the prospect of a podcast in its midst. Ticking.

Enough talking. Let’s get to work.

Are you really in it for the money? Is that what this is all about? You’re all pimped out with the latest microphones and mixer, and all you can think about is the cheques flying in?

You’re in the wrong game, bro. This is no country for the money-obsessed.

Podcasting is marketing for people with passion.

Podcasting is for when you love your product, love the stuff you do, and love the people you want to tell about your borderline-obsession.

Podcasting is another channel at your disposal, a chance for you to harness theatre of the mind to get people as excited as you are about the latest hockey stick/movie by the Cohen brothers/pear varietal from the Outer Hebrides.

Yes, there is an almost-unlimited variety of subjects you can riff on as a podcaster. Yes, be judicious in your planning and preparation. Vital, to get at least a decent quality sound cranked out of your studio, whatever its shape and size.

But to hell with all that unless you’re engulfed in love for your topic. Because mark my words on this: You will podfade, you will lose momentum, you won’t last the course, unless you have a genuine passion for the products and people who will make your podcast a success.

I learned this lesson well.

When I started out, I was intent on emulating some of my podcasting heroes in producing a show about the mechanics of podcasting.

Jesus, was that a bad idea. Because let’s face facts: The engineering of a show is dull to most of us. Sure, we love the planning, digging into new themes and talking to our communities – but if you lose the passion for the subject you vowed to cover, it’s game over.

I concede: I podfaded.

But like Edison and Ant and Dec, my entrepreneurial career, too, has been founded on failure. Success doesn’t course naturally through the body of business, and only tenacity and perseverance actually get you from A to Z and over the numerous hurdles and hiccups that stand in your path.

Did you get what I just said, from the very beginning? If you’re obsessed with the money, and not the subject of your show, then your number is up, friend. Reality check: Only when you’re truly passionate, can you succeed as a podcaster.

But here’s the thing (I love that podcast by Alec Baldwin, by the way. You need to subscribe to that): There are dozens of examples of truly excited podcasters who have made money by being themselves, loyal to their cause, informative and – drum roll – passionate. No doubt about it.

Heard the one about avid podcaster Cliff Ravenscraft getting a $12,000 cheque in the mail?

How about Olly from the Answer Me This! podcast – a Sony Award-winner – getting a regular slot on national breakfast TV here in the UK as a broadcaster reviewing the day’s papers?

In a year, Brian and Mike have notched a million downloads of their fun show and are now negotiating some exciting projects with traditional radio stations.

How about the thousands of businesses developing amazing relationships with clients who would never have discovered them otherwise?

You can do whatever you want. When you start a business, you set out with good intentions and a burning desire to succeed. Think of podcasting as a litmus test of that continued passion every time you sit down with a buddy or solo in front of a mic. This is the way the web radio world works.

Passion. It’s what makes the world go round. And podcasting.

Is podcasting part of the bigger picture for you – or is having your own web radio show the only marketing you do?

Are you striving for perfection in your audio quality, or more focused on the content and nurturing your customer community?

What is your endgame for your podcast? Is there an endgame? And do you really believe there has to be a final show in mind, when you think that way?

While I’ve been beavering away writing Sharing Superheroes over at Word And Mouth, lots of thoughts have been crossing my mind on exactly what we can achieve when we work in silos. I know for a while back there podcasting was all I could think about – and when you can’t see the wood for the trees, dangerous things happen.

You’ll have read in my last article how, even when you’re totally concentrated on just one thing, you have to see the bigger picture.

You need to know that what you’re doing is contributing to the whole. Rare is it we do one thing and it’s enough, on its own. Chaos theory, cause and effect, Deepak Chopra – when you flap your wings, amazing things happen in ways you could never dream of.

Be focused, and cast your net wide

I used to worry that my audio quality was just so. It had to reach my ridiculously high expectations, or it was canned. So much time lost, so much valuable content shitcanned.

The fact is that there is no such thing as perfection. In anything – even your flash new iPhone 62. And it’s the flaws that make us human, allow others to empathise with us and want the stuff we do.

There is nothing worse than a crackly show, and in the early episodes of the Vergecast I used to shout at my smartphone every time one of the guys nearly blew out my eardrums with his plosives. But there has to be a middle ground – some place where you have clear, punchy vocals with minimum effort.

It should take you no more than 10 hours to get more-than-acceptable recording quality. Once you’ve figured that out, you need to spend all the time you can in planning and preparation mode.

Next, forget about obsessing over the odd umm. Seriously – this stuff is ridiculous. There hasn’t been a single president or prime minister who didn’t let a few erms and ahhs slip into their tightly-scripted speech. And the last thing you want is to sound like you’re scripted. God no!

So it all boils down to what you actually want from your podcast. Are you going to let it breathe and grow by focusing on other ways to promote it? Will it itself promote your other work?

What is your whole?

Before you hit record, and preferably at the start of every week, look at your goals for the year. How will that show contribute to your annual success story?

Are you going to finally audit your blog to see which articles really need expanding upon and complementing by future shows? Will you finish that eBook so you can record some web radio episodes to give that a boost?

How about building towards that sponsorship proposal for the big business in your niche who would just love to be able to talk to your listeners?

All I’m saying is this: Stop fretting about the show on its own, and start dreaming big. About putting plans into place to make your podcast swell your business, or start generating new excitement or money for your hobby, passion or profession.

Be who you deserve to be, and let your podcast play a huge role in that. But please – never rely on your show alone. The world is a big place, and you owe it to yourself to shine.

While you know as well as I do that I have a deep-rooted passion for audio content, I’m also realistic about what you can achieve with podcasting in isolation.

Which puts me in a tricky spot on a site such as The Podcast Guy (sounds kinda channel-exclusive, right?).

I’m a huge fan of podcasting and while you’re absolutely right that I’m more of a realist on the subject that some of the snake oil merchants who paint podcasting as a panacea, it definitely does offer the producer the edge – if they use it in tandem with other marketing channels.

I’m not denigrating podcasting – but I do believe it can only be properly leveraged if you create value for users who are also interested in content consumption through other channels such as blogs, white papers, video and forums (Quora and LinkedIn Answers, for example).

In my forthcoming book on content creating customer communities, I’ll be explaining more about how you need to be reaching out to your audience using whichever medium best suit their needs. So while podcasting works for the commuter, blogs may be more in tune with what the home worker wants to kill some time after lunch.

Am I off the mark?

And it’s true, I did have a spot of laryngitis over Xmas but that’s not the real reason for the dearth of impactful, on-the-button analysis and commentary on this site.

I’ve been evolving

Around October time last year it started dawning on me that while podcasting is a wonderful tool for marketing and communicating, it isn’t or shouldn’t be consumed or created in isolation.

About two years ago, wandering in the hills of Derbyshire, I coined the idea of creating a brand called The 3D Blogger.

A year ago I created a concept called The Podcasting Pyramid.

Last week I relaunched Word And Mouth, my communications company. The tagline:

Share Everything

Radio and listening is but one tool and method of communication and consumption. Video is another, as is this thing you’re reading.

So many people forget that everyone learns and enjoys information in many different forms.

So while podcasting stimulates people, others find it a turn-off.

It’s my job to make it easy to talk with your customers in the way they choose.

Do I move to Word And Mouth?

That’s a great question. Word And Mouth is going to be the staging post for businesses who want to squeeze the most value out of their content, and build the kind of relationships that last the test of time and lead to amazing word of mouth marketing.

I’m going to keep working here at The Podcast Guy to make it easy for you to get your radio show out there. I might put out a super-simple video guide, do a few webinars, and there’s a book to be finished like no other podcasting book that’s ever been written.

But more than that I need to know what you need to know to be more efficient with my time.

So fire away and tell me what you’re after – and let’s make this thing work!

That line Malcolm Gladwell came up with in Outliers about it taking 10,000 hours to master something – it’s such a truism. And who these days can devote 10,000 hours to just one thing?

I know my musical career was hampered by me giving up guitar three years in. But podcasting is getting more exciting and enthralling for me as each months go by. It’s a keeper.

But what I learned in 2011

is that to be successful on the path to 10,000 hours, you have to do it more than talk about it. Sure, I had some big fun on the Double D Guys show, and The Podcast Guy Show, was a blast. The European Podcast Award Show has been fun to make and educational, and the Today’s Timeshare and Fractional Focus programmes gave me depth of understanding when you apply web radio in a corporate scenario.

But the one thing about all this stuff is that I have been remiss in practicing what I preach. I advocate consistency, frequency, long-term commitment – and the truth of 2011 is that I haven’t stayed sufficiently focused to live by my own mantra.

Eating one’s dog chow

Double D Guys was insanely fun, but didn’t have a purpose. If we can figure out how to rebirth the concept with a mission, it will be a huge success.

The Podcast Guy Show lost its way a little as I concentrated less and less on monitoring what businesses wanted from web radio. Feedback is hyper-critical to any show – and though I knew it, I didn’t capitalise on my own teachings.

The two shared holiday ownership shows floundered because of a lack of communication between myself and my client, on whose behalf the shows were delivered. Together we didn’t give the podcasts due care and attention. The learning here is similar to the Double D Guys example: We didn’t have an objective or goal in mind with the creation of each and every episode.

2012: Focus, Simplification, Justification

Next year is slow, steady, methodical. Everything will be measured, everything will be rationalised, everything will happen for a reason.

Two shows will continue to be part of my life, and hopefully yours.

The Podcast Guy Show will be relaunched to share with you my experiences as a podcaster, including a rundown of the most effective ways to run your web radio show. I expect at this stage to produce The Podcast Guy Show monthly, though if there is call for it after the first quarter, I may increase the frequency.

The Podcast Guy Show will not only document my podcasting journey, but yours. I will be talking to you much more often to solicit your ideas and insight into what makes web radio work – and together as the podcasting community we can brainstorm ideas and look at new ways to do things better.

What are your three words for 2012?

Talknology

One of the things I realised was I needed to create a show that would consume most of my time in its production and delivery. I bought the Talknology.tv domain last year and have been conspiring on how it forms part of my business.

This week it all started falling into place.

The Talknology platform will be video-led. As someone who has spent three decades working with technology (ok, so I was 8 when I got my Spectrum 16k, but you get the idea) I feel I know a fair bit about how to make it work for you, so I’m going to be developing a concept that helps people who don’t yet get tech to start using it to better their lives.

As a result of pouring myself into Talknology you’ll be getting the very latest thinking into how to make podcasting work for you and your business.

Much more to come

This website will be transformed in the coming weeks to embrace better my mission and philosophy. Talknology.tv will be launched, and we’ll be taking things from there.

I wanted to write this to reassert my commitment to web radio and video, and the podcasting genre at large. We are in for some real surprises and treats in 2012, and I wanted to check you wanted to be part of Team Podcast.

Together we can all share in the success story of this medium. I can’t wait to get started all over again!

I was having a chat just now with a good friend of mine who produces podcasts professionally. She explained that it was difficult finding people to pay for her services as a podcast producer. And it’s hardly surprising: As a medium, podcasting is both immature and largely unproven.

Early adopters have always been risk-takers, whether trading stocks or buying 1st-gen products. Ultimately the ratio of satisfaction and delight to disappointment is high – but it takes a tipping point to get the mainstream interested in any new stuff, like podcasting.

Two of my words to live by trading as The Podcast Guy in 2012 are simplification and justification.

If we can’t make podcasting easier, most people will forego the huge opportunities of web radio in favour of a simple life blogging.

And if we can’t prove it works, who will listen?

It’s for that reason I want to share with you my year in review and my hopes for the future. Read on – and for more of this next year, don’t forget to subscribe and become a VIPodcaster by dropping your email in, stage right…

First of all: HAPPY CHRISTMAS!

Second of all – wow!

Wow because you’re reading this, for which I’m profusely thankful. I looked up profusely just in case I meant profoundly, but no – profusely apparently means ‘beyond appreciative’ and that’s exactly what I am that you’re here with me on this journey.

Web radio and video has really been stepping up its game this year and the fact that (as of this email hitting your tray) you and 29 other people have expressed great excitement in finding out more about how to do it yourself, gives me great joy. I almost want to open up another advent calendar window, ahead of time, to lick a chocolate in your honour. But that would not only be bad luck: It would mean one less chocolate to share with the last 11 days before the Big One, and then I’d be all sad.

After last month’s vletter which garnered roughly the same interest as my invitations to a wallpaper decorating party when we moved into our house last year, I decided to regain my senses and figure that since you probably just want the news in a tidy format with none of the bells and whistles associated with having to watch me, this would be an appropriate way to reach out to you.

What a year it’s been!

So as we stand on the cusp of a brand new year, separated from us by the act of shovelling baked bird into our wanting mouths, I wanted to reflect on how far we’ve come in 2011.

Podcasting has never been more popular or widespread. YouTube unveiled Live to its beta testers, the BBC just announced 1 billion podcast downloads (read http://www.thepodcastguy.com/blog/lets-celebrate-1-billion-downloads/), and in many countries smartphones – the single best way to stream or play back downloaded audio or video shows – have become ubiquitous.

As the Ambassador to the European Podcast Award I’ve been flooded with awe at the creativity and commitment of hundreds of podcast producers. That being said, being part of the award has demonstrated to me just how few people go into podcasting with clear motives and focus on long-term gain. In much the same way as you can’t rush pregnancy, when you start your web radio or video show you have to be in it for the duration to yield something beautiful. Where podcasts and babies deviate is in the nappy-change: Though you have to constantly strive to keep your podcast fresh, feeding it new content doesn’t mean having to clear up afterwards.

I was able to talk about the big picture for podcasting (with nary a Pampers in sight) with Anna Piazza when Spreaker, my favourite live broadcasting platform, called up asking for an interview. I hope you find time over Christmas to check in and have a listen – I think you’ll pick up some useful tips and hopefully get inspired to start podcasting or take your show to new levels of success:

http://www.thepodcastguy.com/blog/that-interview-on-spreaker/

What for 2012?

Here in the UK we have a big celebration imminent. In a few months time the Olympic torch will reach us and over 70 days, it will travel 8,000 miles in 16,000 hands (or thereabouts, subject to people with only one arm).

But it’s not fair that only London has the fun. I’m fully anticipating an Olympic year myself, helping more businesses, bloggers and brands than ever create staggeringly-great podcasts for their communities.

This month I’ve gone into hibernation – a productive hiatus, no less – to understand exactly which areas of web radio and video production need my attention. In any sector there are a great many people competing for your attention and while I fully understand the basics of podcast production are always useful to have around, right at this present time I’m thinking focusing on content is the most valuable use of my time.

One thing I can promise you is regularity and consistency. I’ve gone overboard in creating content this year, but on a schedule that can be best described as sketchy. I’m thinking I’ll be putting together weekly articles that carry more gravitas, and a monthly show all about web audio and video under the moniker of The Podcast Guy Show. I’m always seeking guest posts and guest appearances, so don’t hesitate to drop me a Tweet @thepodcastguy so we can have a nice chat.

I can also guarantee integrity and help you on your way with accurate and inspirational information. Having been a journalist for most of my adult life, and latterly working in a digital marketing environment, I can offer you a unique perspective on how to find the kind of content your listener community needs, and will love, and then give you strategies for making sure the most people possible are affected and inspired by it.

One more thing…

I can hallucinate on what you need, but I won’t know for sure unless you tell me. So irrespective of whatever stage you’re at with your podcasting prowess, I want to hear from you about the things you’d most like to learn about in 2012.

Drop me an email at dave@thepodcastguy.com and together let’s make your podcasting journey more exciting and meaningful than ever before.

2012 will be an incredible year for us all. The tightening of belts in an economic sense means we’ll all have to refocus our marketing efforts on what makes the most sense at the lowest cost, and the wonderful news is that podcasting inspires, educates and entertains customer communities in a way no other medium can. So if you’re looking to connect more deeply with your customers, to create meaningful relationships to last the test of turbulent times, now is the perfect time to start your web radio or video show.

Now loosen that belt and go talk turkey!

Have some fantastic festive frivolities.

Dave

But there’s no denying that’s an incredible statistic. Rarely is a metric announced that exceeds the number of Facebook users, apart from the US’ national debt.

The Best of the Today programme’s podcast, which collates the top highlights of the show, just beat The Archers, having been downloaded 41 million times since 2007 - The Telegraph

What that thunder-clapped summary tells me is that information-based content is hugely valuable to our listener communities – that they don’t just yearn for pure entertainment, but also out-and-out brain food when they’re commuting, jogging or doing the housework.

And that bodes exceptionally well not just for talk-based web radio shows, but any form of business or brand-related podcast demonstrating care for the listener and their needs into the future.

Which means if you have your own web radio or video show – or have plans to launch in 2012 – you should be feeling very excited, and smug, indeed.

Here’s to you joining the billion brigade!

Listen in to hear me talking with Anna Piazza at Spreaker about podcasting essentials…

What’s interesting about web radio today is that it’s a largely untapped medium. The geeks, nerds and comics have figured out its raw appeal, but as a business tool – it’s ripe and ready to be harnessed to create customer communities.

I could rant on about the myriad different ways you can connect to your target market through podcasting, but really I’d be teaching granny to suck her own eggs.

If you talk to customers in your day job, you’ll know how much they appreciate you being there for them. If you don’t, or can’t because you have too many clients or they’re living all over the world, you’ll doubtless understand how bringing your brand to life through podcasting can have a significant impact on your bottom line.

During the early days of The Podcast Guy my mantra was tell more to sell more. It still rings true today: Building trust, loyalty and engagement through web radio is what compels people to do more business with you.

I’d love to know what you think.

Space Boffins is a fascinating web radio show – now in episode 5 – hosted by husband-and-wife combo Sue Nelson and Richard Hollingham. The couple are passionate about everything extra terrestrial and their show is packed with fascinating facts guaranteed to appeal to both curious schoolboys and older NASAphiles alike.

Astronauts Tim Peake and Helen Sharman, acclaimed film-maker Chris Riley, and BBC science correspondent Jonathan Amos are among guests to have sparkled on the Space Boffins show.

You can listen to the latest episode of Space Boffins – hosted by Audioboo.fm – here:

Sue told the Liverpool Daily Post: “We knew that there were people out there like us who wanted to hear about what’s happening in the world of space and space science, particularly from a UK perspective. And we were right.” The grant, worth £4,400, will allow the Space Boffins to carry on recording and promoting the podcast, seek new sponsors and build its audience.

As podcasters look into ways to monetize their web radio shows, Space Boffins stands testament to experimentation, radical thinking and content promotion – essential elements of any successful, modern audio programme.

Space Boffins demonstrates how niche passion can translate into big-time recognition. We can all learn a great deal from the achievements of Sue and Richard who, despite the youth of their show, have already stamped their place as thought leaders into the genre of space exploration.

• Read the Liverpool Daily Post article on Space Boffins.

I’m the luckiest guy on earth.

I get to help you fine folks out with your web radio efforts, and to share my life with the most wonderful woman.

For me, the magic of Christmas means getting together with loved ones, having a fantastic nosh-up and finding 68 different ways to repurpose turkey meat (as a surprise I got a crown, rather than a whole bird, this year, because the missus wanted to be a Princess and this was my solution. I expect a black eye on Boxing Day.).

And frankly, not being in any way materialistic (I used to be a gadget god but now the thought of wasting hundreds of pounds on an iPad repulses me) I want others less fortunate to get the gold this year.

So instead of Amazon Wish Lists and to help people avoid stressing over creative presents, I’ve created my own Celebrate page at Cancer Research UK for people to pitch in with donations.

It’s the least I can do. And hopefully it’s the least you can do, too, if you’ve benefited in any way from anything I’ve done this year.

Enough of the blatant emotional blackmail. Have a fantastic Christmas – and look forward to some exciting new developments here at The Podcast Guy in January.

I asked myself what will happen after the Leveson debacle. I realised that if blogging is anything to go by – and there’s good reason why technology will play a more critical role in the near-evolution of popular media than ever before – then the future can be summed up in one word: “Voices”.

Being human: Because people ‘get’ people

Make your voice heard

Integrity of journalism lies in us learning from the journalist themselves. Anyone can hide behind a sheet of paper – but when you lend your voice to the debate, it’s real. If you’re a reporter, you can let your passion tell the story by creating audio packages – and your consumer will love you for your honesty and openness, a transparency that you could never hope to attain through the printed word.

Since I started working with Annabel Candy of SuccessfulBlogging on podcasting strategies for bloggers, I’ve discovered that something I reasoned theoretically for so long, is absolutely played out with veracity in practice. Bloggers, delivering their message with passion from behind a microphone, really do connect and engage with their audiences at a much deeper level. They already have the content – the microphone simply brings it to life.

Same rules will apply for journalists.

Here’s how it works

And today the modern reporter and the contemporary blogger have at their fingertips two powerful tools that make the process a ridiculously simple one to template and pull off quickly and successfully.

I’ve talked about Hindenburg Journalist before. Nick Dunkerley and his team from Hindenburg Systems have created a podcasting application so slick and efficient that you have to wonder how it could be bettered. Hindenburg Journalist is really the only audio storytelling creation software you’ll ever need.

That’s the software. Today I found and tested the hardware I’ve been waiting for – and it delivers beyond my loftiest expectations.

The Tascam iM2. Delicious.

The Tascam iM2 is a stereo microphone that sits on your Apple iPhone or iPod Touch.

Its two condenser microphones are powered by your iDevice, and since it requires no proprietary application to record you can use it with Hindenburg Field Recorder for all your sound-based needs – and also with the iPhone or iPod Touch’s powerful camera to create video with amazing audio.

It’s about £80 – accursed by parity in dollar to pound terms, as so many consumer electronics products are. But still a snip for what it offers – a way to broaden your personal brand, create intimate relationships with your communities and deliver a killer blow to your competition that still thinks email marketing is the way to grow their business.

These are incredible times for journalists, bloggers and podcasters alike.

And now you know what success sounds like, too!

But if you sacrifice passion for profit, or create content without value, your efforts are fish food.

The fundamental motive for everything you do has to be helping others with your knowledge and expertise.

I just finished recording the second live Talknology show over at Blog Talk Radio. That platform in itself is imperfect, but I further hampered the situation with a frankly atrocious internet connection.

That Manchester has its own tropical ecosystem, with respect to its abundant rainfall only and certainly not from a chronic excess of sunshine perspective, is bad enough. That the bandwidth squirted into my i7 laptop by the 3 MiFi is more variable than the performance of a Hadron collider in a maze, renders my efforts near-impossible.

Despite an all-star cast of guests including my stalwart co-host Dan Lyons, and the ever-ebullient Don McAllister of Appleboi favourite Screencasts Online, the show was riddled with hiccups. A spoof call I threw together from ‘Jenna in Kentucky’ didn’t even register with the other two.

Be the wizard. Thanks for the pic, pasukaru76

But despite the problematic audio, one positive element shone through: The content. Don and Dan were perfect foils for each other, wonderful guys and as knowledgeable and passionate in the tech space as anyone in this sector.

This indeed is the era of experimentation. Our listeners will forgive us our foibles in our pursuit of delivering quality and curated content.

And so will yours. So quite frankly you have no excuse not to get out there and launch your own web radio show. With your passion, and a devotion to mastering the art form, the success is there for you to cherish.

Or we can work on your podcast together.

Dan Lyons and myself have been discussing how best to take the Talknology brand forward. We’re both hugely passionate about technology, and know that when we’re together, we’re dynamite.

While we have YouTube Live we want to blood ourselves with web radio gold stars first, so we can ultimately offer the gamut of sensory experiences across any and every device.

We’re not yet ready to don body suits and let you buy virtual massages from us, but rule nothing out in our bid to be the most unusual, taste-challenged tech duo in the universe (that we know of).

Double Ds FTW!

After emerging relatively unscathed in a bid to attain fame through Double D Guys, we’re taking it to a live platform. It’s much funner and easier to engage our wonderful and wondrous friends when someone else is providing the call screening tech, and that’s where BlogTalkRadio really comes to the fore.

So, armed with a month’s free trial of the Premium service (the package I’m on is $99/month, which is about the same as my mortgage, ish) I took the plunge and started setting things up.

I have to say the interface is pretty wonky but BTR (that’s what I’m going to call it from now on) has its own University section which is basically a thinly-disguised set of live broadcasts podcasted. With that lovely and now-trademark AM sound that brings you in mind of the very first time you ever heard the radio, if you’re the great-great grandfather of a living octogenarian.

Go long

The guys have been at this radio thing for 7 years, and power to ‘em. They created an enterprise version called Cinchcast which lets big companies deliver firewalled radio broadcasts to pump up their sales team and have live Q and As and all that. Solid.

And what’s more, I’m being told that in the next few months they’re rolling out CD quality (128kbps) broadcasts, which will totally change the game.

My first broadcast was ok. The new Studio web app is dumbproof, giving you the chance to dial in as a host via Skype, and then either patch in your co-host on the same Skype call or have them call in as a guest. You can both monitor the switchboard and between you screen calls, either during music breaks or while the other host is talking.

I like how you preload music – it’s quite similar to the DeeJay web app from Spreaker. In fact did BTR not have a baked in audience community, and the call screening, I’d definitely be recommending Spreaker for talk shows. I wonder if there’s a hybrid opportunity?

How did I do?

I notched about 40 minutes’ showtime since I was flying solo (on the Premium version I had, you can broadcast for three hours a day), and only had a couple of songs preloaded to play. I didn’t encounter a single hitch throughout the broadcast, which was stellar – and used social networks to field some questions rather than use the inbuilt chat.

I verbalised a few gaffes, notably messing up in acknowledging John at @mcknut on Twitter with his incredible WhereDial gadget that sits on the cognoscenti’s mantlepiece and displays where your other half/children/captor is based on magic and Arduino tech.

What I like

• If you want your own talk show there’s no alternative right now, unless you mash-up some ninja Skype call screening that noone else but you knows about
• The effort these folks have gone to to create a learning experience through Blog Talk Radio University. Props – it’s a nice and personal touch.

What I don’t like

• It’s hella tough the contrived process of calling in as a guest. Sure, you can register as a listener (come on! This is ridiculous!) or go through a code-messy effort to extract an ID for your show instance that eliminates the need for people to register – but in this age of craving simplicity there just has to be a better way
• A lot of links are broken – especially from the freeflowing emails sent out. They have to rein in their emails.
• They’ve outsourced their forums to GetSatisfaction. Fair enough, it’s a decent enough platform but the idea of GetSatisfaction is to use it when you’re getting started and then bring your customer support efforts in-house. To do it this way – seven years after launch – is half-cocked.
• The audio quality is atrocious
• The name – Blog Talk Radio. It sounds amateurish. YourTalkRadio or TalkRadioNow (both have gTLDs available) would be significantly better, or one of those Web 2.0 names like UTalk or OuiListen or something.
• The premium service seems way too expensive – but if you want to be everywhere and you have a commitment to your listeners, when is price the guiding factor?

This is early days but I’m really warming to the live broadcast model. I love Spreaker if you’re not so bothered about having people call in. That’s not to say you can’t – but it takes a lot of work if you’re not technically aware. And the BlogTalkRadio audience is significant and established, so you have more chance of building a big listener base here.

Live show or podcast?

Recording in advance really does compromise on momentum and engagement, and if you skew your show to embrace community participation and have a buddy to help you field live calls, you’ve got a really nice concept on your hands.

Like any form of podcasting it’s a slow burn and you’re not going to have overnight success. Marketing is where the golden egg is these days.

That, and having the right leads. Because I’m living in a Travelodge just now being bereft of a micro USB jack meant I couldn’t plug the Zoom H4n into the right hole, so I had to suffer with a Logitech desktop USB mic.

A perfect ally to that AM sound…

Easily Create an Online Radio Show & Reach Millions Today! Get Started with BlogTalkRadio, FREE for 30 Days.

But what inbound marketing expert HubSpot has done in marketing itself through podcasting deserves to be given full credit.

You’ll probably know HubSpot from one of its almost-weekly reports covering the gamut of social networking strategies. A day after Google+ for Businesses was unveiled, HubSpot jumped on the bandwagon with one of its trademark how-to guides.

But the company was innovating long before, and not just with its ridiculous YouTube videos spanning the gamut of popular culture intertwined with savvy marketing discourse (I vaguely remember rabbits and characters from Star Wars, not wholly understanding the logic of their appearance but being impressed they in some way were metaphorical of some sales technique or other).

The one web video series that stands out in my mind, though, is HubSpot TV – the regular Friday panel discussion that always featured HubSpot’s CEO Mike Volpe and a changing bevvy of staffers talking over the week’s movements in digital and inbound marketing (it doesn’t matter how many times I mention it, the waters of inbound marketing are never less than muddied in my mind).

I’ve been told since being introduced to this impressive cavalcade of value-packed advice, opinion and commentary, that creating a regular web video has yielded some big gains for HubSpot.

The success is tangible: HubSpot TV, which has sinced morphed into Marketing Update and continues to feature regulars Mike and Karen, now has a dedicated site due to its rampant popularity. We’re on episode 176 and the content is fresh as a daisy, due in equal measure to the creativity of its hosts and production team and the ever-evolving digital landscape.

The benefits go beyond being recognised as a mover in your space. Word gets around when you’re crafting reputations of innovation – people of a certain regard want to be around you. People like Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, and a certain baggy-trousered rapper. A-list star turns on a marketing show?

Word gets around

A company wearing transparency on its breast like a badge of honour deserves nothing less than more customers. Here we see HubSpot naked, in effect its team talking and jesting in front of a global audience as it would in full operational workaday flow.

Not only that, but HubSpot was giving away some serious value for free. Week in, week out.

If you wanted to get ahead of the curve with your business you’d tune in for the inside track on some great marketing minds, and execute on their ideas without your nonchalant competition even skipping a beat.

It’s just business – done well

Of course the weekly HubSpot show-and-tell was just one cog in the marketing machine – that the sum of its parts was what drove significant inroads into inbound marketing growth, and that it would never have even transpired had management not seen genuine value in its being.

But what HubSpot teaches us with its video podcasts, its parodies and regular reports – all free – is that curation with implication, my buzzphrase for 2012, is a critical advantage-gainer for any business in ever-more competitive operating environments.

It’s proof that web video and podcasting should form part of any company’s marketing mix - any company with passion, the yearning to establish trust and impact its expertise on prospective customers in any demographic, and a tenacity to play the long game with finesse and confidence.

Nice work, HubSpot!

And if you’re anything like me, working with designers is a little like playing Chinese whispers. I tell them one thing, they produce another. It’s nothing bad on the designer’s part – it’s just we speak different languages, and neither of us have bought into the communal dictionary.

That’s why I’m one of the world’s biggest fans of Headway Themes. I find a site I like, I go into the Visual Editor, and I produce something that looks pretty similar but with my own special flourishes.

Headway Themes is powered by WordPress, a content management system that makes creating content for your site easy.

The only weak spot in the game at this point is finding the images to customise.

My pal Ileane (who supports Thesis, another great WordPress theme – but in my opinion all the sites you create on that framework look samey and unless you have advanced/ninja coding skills, you’re pretty much tied into that look) has a solution to your image, icon and graphics woes – right here.

Why am I telling you this stuff now?

The second most exciting thing to happen on the web in 2011 happens on Friday. The first was the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Nexus phone, and that was a monstruous disappointment. I feel bad relegating what I’m about to tell you to second place now, but the hype about the new Sammy smartphone was so great that I bought into it and ultimately got burned. Back to the Samsung Galaxy S2 – what I believe is the best phone in the world.

No, the second – and now first – most exciting thing to happen on the web is the launch of Headway 3. The Griffiths family and their team have been wracking their grossly-oversized minds to figure out a way of making web design even easier, and they’ve come up with some totally out-of-this-world grid technology.

Take a look at the video.

So it’s super-easy to use, but the customisation and control you get is unparalleled. You could use a free tool like Gliffy to draw up how you want your site to look, based on other websites you admire, and all you have to do is plonk the respective content containers where you want them and boom – your best-ever site is ready to be populated with all that incredible stuff you write and create.

And I’ll be building Talknology.tv on it – my most important project yet. That’s how confident I am that this is going to sing like a bird of paradise.

And it’s coming out Friday – November 25.

So why not tell me then?

Simples. The cunning Headway Themes team want to give loyal customers the very best deal. And so anyone who’s bought Headway Themes by the end of the day on November 24 gets unlimited support and lifetime upgrades.

Brand new customers dazzled by the allure of Headway 3, who buy in after the fact, will pay a yearly subscription for support and upgrades.

Here’s an Einstein-level equation to put that all into context:

If U = Logical, Buy It Now!

Or something similar. It’s a Sunday and I’m working on a netbook, so excuse my scantness of clarity.

Here’s what I said, anyway:

It depends on how engaged your readers already are with your blog – but by the same token, it’s important you don’t pigeonhole people as ‘readers’, ‘listeners’ and ‘viewers’ – and instead think of them at large as consumers, so you don’t get caught up in the detail.

Ok so people learn and are inspired in three different ways – by reading listening or watching. Unless you’re a wannabe chef, in which case your tongue also plays a part. But I wouldn’t recommend licking your computer screen, under any circumstances and no matter how tasty that photo looks.

By writing a blog you’re appealing to the segment that likes to read. That’s great – you’ve ticked one box. By producing a podcast that compliments your blog, you have a brand new audience – as well as those who like to indulge in your content any which way it’s presented.

If you produce a video blog as well – that’s amazing! And incidentally I also want to know where you get those tablets that turn 24 hours of everyone else’s day, into 48 for you!

A podcast is your chance to bring your content to life – literally. Grab a guest to talk over the day’s news in your niche with and you suddenly have a personality-packed, supercharged guest post people can engage with on their commute to work.

Of course you need to be creating different content for different media, but at the same time you should be promoting all the other types of content available on each of your platforms.

Think of podcasting as another mode of transport helping you get to your goal quicker. If your blog is a Lotus sportster, your podcast and blog combined is a smart, shiny chopper: It gets you there in style, in half the time.

Mark, Peter and Vance are three of the most passionate people I know in this sphere and it was humbling to be among them talking about how The Podcast Guy came to be, and most recently, my experiences at BVE North – a broadcasting expo held at Manchester Central Arena.

Since I seem to be spending much of my time these days in Manchester it was great to spend a while talking about the thriving media scene there, evidenced particularly by the BBC’s relocated to Media City in Salford Quays. Soon ITV, too, will become the BBC’s bedfellows at the thriving ground zero for broadcasting in the UK, and thankfully they won’t be bringing that annoying sod Adrian Chiles with them since he’s just resigned from Daybreak (I wonder if it’s any coincidence that Johnny Vaughan, darling of Channel 4′s The Big Breakfast of yore, also quit his job at Capital FM on the same day).

These are fascinating times for broadcasting in all its forms, and so it was timely to join the lads on Studio Tech Live!, part of the TTFN TV setup.

Without further ado, here’s the pic…

I’m like that all the time. I started bouldering the other week and got frustrated because I couldn’t climb like a cat and fly between clambering positions (you can tell I’m not too clever on the technical name for this concept).

We all want to know how to be the best, right away. But there’s a complex process involved in becoming incredible, and I’m going to break mastering podcasting down into 10 elements here.

• good family times. Essential for putting that smile on your face and injecting passion into everything you do
• good eating. Nutrition is everything. Beans, pulses, nuts, chicken, stay healthy – healthy body, healthy mind. Beer works, too!
• good exercising. It’s essential to stretch and be limber. If you don’t like running, get one of the console training ‘games’ and stay focused.
• good reading. Put a Kindle on your Christmas list. Devote an hour every day to reading. Be broad with your chosen genres. Expand your mind and your creativity will follow suit.
• good listening. Not just podcasts, though that’s essential for benchmarking and growing in ability – but music, to colour your day. Get Spotify.
• good interaction and community building. Use the meatspace and cyberspace to gather friends and fans, and hear what your people are saying about you, and about your passions.
• good marketing and promotion. Be active and available in whatever field you podcast about. Be the go-to. Be the expert. And if you can’t be the last two, yet – just be there, and you will.
• good preparation. Don’t ever rush planning a show. If you’re serious about building a devoted audience, you have to do as you would be done by. Don’t expect for a minute your listeners will stick around if you haven’t shown them how much you value their time.
• GREAT shows. If you can methodically stick to these elements week in, week out, you’re destined to be a big star and do your blog, business or personal brand no end of good. It’s not just a recipe for a web radio show, but for life.

I hope that makes sense. If there are any other areas you think are pretty crucial in developing ourselves to be great podcasters, pitch in below. And thanks for reading!

• The title for this post was inspired by Jim Collins’ Good To Great, a book about exceptional companies that go against the performance of their market segment overall to achieve unbordered success.
  

I’m going to refer to The Thinkers 50 Awards.

Semiannually the world’s most erudite collective of book publishers gather becloaked in darkened rooms, hushed but for the faint murmur of a bubbling cauldron to distract their ruminations. Probably. What they definitely do is raise a toast to the brightest cogitators in the world.

Afterwards they adjourn to a swanky two-day Awards conference where after much tugging of forelocks the best of the best are disclosed. I still haven’t got to the bottom of exactly why it says ’50′ because I looked at the shortlist and I could only count 43. That, however, could simply be a sad indictment of my mathematical (lack of ) prowess.

So about this definitive global ranking of management thinkers. What the heck does a web radio show have to do with the glitterati of cerebral acuity?

Well, imagine if there really were 50 thinkers.  And these thinkers happen to be among the world’s elite. And obviously they’re all entirely delighted to have been recognised by a power plant of crazy-good book publishers including Harvard Business Review and McGraw-Hill.

I don’t think it takes a genius to figure out that all these folks would be more than happy to sit down in a nice red leather (soft leather/hide, not of that faux PVC stuff you get these days) sofa and cogitate and wax on their inspirations, aspirations and achievements to turbocharge their listeners with hope and motivation.

Say you put together a Thinkers 50 web radio show, or podcast if you’re going to be purist about it. Every two weeks, a new guest, and a fascinating new take on a subject in which many have a deep, vested interest.

After show 6 or 7, the listeners really start to empathise with this show. You’re on a roll – and you’ve barely even scratched the surface. The PR machine goes into overdrive because these folks on your show – they’re all heavyweights in the management game.

You create a community based on the learning shared by these guys. You get people talking about their work – your books. The book publishers helm this initiative, of course, because not only do they want to sell more books, but they see this as an incredible opportunity to crowdsource ideas for future titles and prospective authors for their stable.

And here’s the killer line: Every time one of your authors comes on the show, which is riddled with kudos and prestige, they fill in a short form that tells them what to expect, and what the show expects of them. A few Tweets to their networks and communities reminding them to listen in to their latest appearance, on your radio show.

You literally expose your podcast to millions of new listeners. Many become loyal customers of your book publishing brand.

And Thinkers 50 rises in stature to such a degree that come 2013, the eyes of the media world are on you – and your shortlisted nominees.

All this with about 15 minutes of thought. Imagine what you could do with a couple of hours and a group of people all as passionate as you are about your trade or subject.

Who knows: Maybe I’ll be there in 2013!

• This year’s Thinkers 50 Summit took place on November 14 and 15, 2011. For more on this event, check out the Thinkers 50 Summit website.

That’s why I decided to halt my conventional enewsletters. People expected them. They were predictable, maybe ordinary.

So I’ve started video newsletters. This way, people can get to know me better, and hopefully at least for the first few episodes, they too will be surprising.

I like that. And that’s what I like best about podcasting: People expect you to write blog articles, but they’d never expect you to have your own radio show.

Experiment. Try different stuff. Don’t be afraid to fail. Because trying new things isn’t about failing – it’s about pushing your abilities to new levels.

And we all love different. Right?

Download audio file (009_DoubleDGuys_About-Bloody-Time.mp3)

While Dan’s been traversing the wilderness in search of great tales and speaking gigs aplenty, including a posh theatrical appearance fielding questions about life after Steve Jobs, Dave was lucky enough to be one of 300-odd souls who saw Dan stretched about 100 feet wide on a cinema screen at FACT, as TEDxLiverpool swung into town.

Dan and Dave have also been wayseering into the wilderness known as web video. Pioneering has never been an easy ride, and the boys were glad to avoid having arrows shot through their hats during the very first pilot of Talknology TV on the YouTube Live platform.

Finally we managed to snag a show under the 30-minute mark which is both a revolution and maybe even our salvation. Tell us how long you listen for and we’ll make sure to start conscientiously snipping away at our lengths, so to speak, to make it more bite-size for your delectation!

You can subscribe to Double D Guys on iTunes here.

Stop the thundertruck of negativity right there, blunderbuss. Put your negativity down, and step away from the pessimistic thoughts.

You can get on radio, you just need to be sassy about it. And pleading and begging just won’t help at all.

Want a job in radio?

Start your own radio show or podcast. Now. It’s what Jen Long did. Now she works on BBC Radio 1.

Here’s what Jen had to say about that, when I interviewed her for the European Podcast Award Show…

Download audio file (Jen-Long_EPA.mp3)

Podcasting is the easiest way to get recognised and start your journey in audio broadcasting.

Start by focusing on what you love. What’s your passion? There’s your podcast – that’s where you’ll shine.

Grab a bunch of guests who share your passion, and get hellbent on having them shout from the rooftops to the world about your show. Everyone loves being on radio – they’ll do it like a shot.

Next, get some press and PR coverage. Tell your local newspaper about your radio station. Thankfully newspapers are largely staffed by idiots who think internet radio is brand new and you’re the first person ever to do it. That’s where foolishness is an asset.

By this point you’ll have established yourself as an expert.

Next, show your philanthropic side and get some experience on hospital radio. There are hundreds of stations across the UK, and thousands across the world.

Tie the two components together and your radio-facing CV goes into overdrive.

Good luck!

Unless someone really, really wants to podcast, the learning curve of creating your own subscribable radio show is too much.

That message, so profound yet so deliciously simple, totally changed the way I view my service to you.

She’s right.

So I’m changing my plans. If it doesn’t work, well, that’s the beauty of the internet. If it does, we all win.

I’m going to imagine that for the majority of people, podcasting is a bridge too far. That’s not based simply on anecdotal evidence: Look around – the vast majority of long-lasting shows are tech-based, and/or produced by techs on behalf of major companies or famous comedians.

And the reason they have longevity is because the drive to succeed is borne out of experimentation and a thirst for creativity. There’s a tech audience hungry for any scraps of news they can get their hands on in the bid for first-mover advantage. Comedians – very good ones – are very thin on the ground and thus people naturally gravitate towards their wares any which way they can.

Cut to the quick and our 7 billionth person on earth and the long tail and Chris Andersen and it quickly becomes obvious there’s room on the virtual airwaves for all of us to succeed. It’s just that all of us don’t have the proclivity towards creating our own radio shows.

So I’m stepping up to the plate and offering anyone who wants training to break through that initial bout of hesitation, the chance to do exactly that.

And for those who quite frankly can’t be arsed, don’t have time, or are looking for something retainer-y, I can provide that service, too.

So get in touch and tell me what you want to do about your radio show.

Here’s my take.

What do you think? Am I on the right lines? Do you podcast?

She wanted the answer to a question asked by anyone who gives a darn enough to create their own radio show:

How do I grow my audience?

It’s a valid question. In a world of measurements and metrics, outcomes and objectives, numbers count.

But we have to take a step back before we pour forth with our predictions and predilections on the importance of audience quantity.

Because here’s the thing: With podcasting and online radio, your listeners come with more quality built in than those communities you reach using any other marketing channel.

When someone tunes in to your show, they’re already committed. They’ve made a decision to drop everything else and focus on your work. It’s poetry.

And so let’s look at the situation before proposing a solution:

The one thing to remember with podcasting is it’s fundamentally narrowcasting, not broadcasting. So it’s not about mass.

Once we get our heads round that we can really focus on the quality, not the quantity.

That’s not to say you can’t grow!

Here’s what I tell all of my clients when they ask me how to grow their audience numbers:

1. Be as specific as possible to the kind of people who will get the most value, entertainment, inspiration and motivation from your content, and focus like a laser on their communities.
2. Find the 10 most influential people in those subsets, and interview them on your show. Make it as easy as possible for them to share your show with their own networks, flatter them (ethically and legitimately), help promote them and their agendas (if they align with yours) on your show, and you’ll make a HUGE impact.
3. Then move on to the next community, rinse and repeat.

What was interesting about the question being asked on this occasion was that my curious prospective client was a smash hit on ‘traditional’ radio. It brought into sharp focus the fact that podcasting, and online radio, are absolutely distinct from their ancient forefather.

And my recipe is, simply, the best and easiest way to grow your audience – and make sure that the people who listen to you are matched perfectly to your content.

Now, Blubrry’s PowerPress is a great plugin to simplify creating a podcast feed. Before PowerPress, many people were put off making podcasts because there were very few ways to craft an podcast RSS feed if you wanted to keep control of your production operation.

One of the weaknesses of PowerPress is you can only show one style of player. I use the HTML5 player to be as futureproof as possible and so people on smartphones can stream the show from my site if they haven’t already downloaded it from iTunes.

But I know people respond differently to different styles of visual stimulus, and I want to use the celebrated One Pixel Out plugin as well.

Solution?

Install both PowerPress and the Audio Player plugin, and use the Audio Player shortcode wherever I want to insert the second style of podcast player in my WordPress shownotes posts.

Problem I had was it was displaying #Track 1 instead of the name of the show, and my name.
It took me lots of trawling to find the answer and I’m going to share it with you today.

Incidentally if you know how to show shortcode code on a WordPress post, drop me a line. Because I can’t do it!

Here’s a link to the FAQs page for Audio Player as referenced in the video below. You’ll find a solution to including track information in your Audio Player podcast player under How do I get the track information to show in the player? at the bottom of the page.