David Jackson - Podcast Consultant and Coach » Podcasting

Getting Your Podcast Kicked Out of iTunes: A “How To” Guide

David — Sat, 19 May 2012 14:32:26 +0000

I got a voice mail a while ago from a person who does an erotic stories podcast who had his podcast removed from iTunes. He had done fun stuff like D*ck for certain words, but he was removed anyway. Well I sent out this question to many people as I had never heard of such a thing. Special thanks and a Gold Start to jay Walsh from ProPodder.com for finding the official Apple Guidelines. They are:

The Submission Queue.

Upon submission, your podcast is placed in a queue for review by the iTunes staff. Your podcast may be rejected for a variety of reasons, including but not limited to:

Technical problems, usually the lack of episodes or the inability to download or play episodes. These problems can almost always be avoided by testing your feed using Subscribe to Podcast in the Advanced menu prior to submission.
Requirement of a login or password to access the feed or any of the episodes.
Strong prevalence of sexual content.
Use of explicit language in the title, description or cover art of the podcast.
Use of explicit language in the podcast when the tag is not set to “yes”.
Apparent misuse of copyrighted material or other violation of third party rights.
Inclusion of offensive material, such as racist content or child pornography.
Misrepresentational use of Apple copyright, including “iPod,” “iPhone,” “iPad,” “Apple TV” and “iTunes.”

In general, if there’s something that you want to convey about your feed, please do so in the summary field in your RSS feed, not in the content of an episode.

Normally, podcasts that are added to iTunes will appear first in iTunes search, and later in iTunes browse. Appearing in the browse category that you specified can take up to five days. The image associated with your podcast may also require additional time to appear, because images are edge-cached by iTunes and must propagate across the caching servers.

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PowerPress – The Best Just Got Better

David — Wed, 16 May 2012 19:55:49 +0000

Blubrry PowerPress 4.0 brings the latest essential features for media creation to WordPress, including the hottest updates to the new iTunes specifications.

“I am proud of this release of PowerPress, in supporting the latest iTunes podcast specs, additionally this update introduces innovative features first to market for the 10′s of thousands of media creators that rely on PowerPress,” said Todd Cochrane, CEO of RawVoice.

iTunes upgrades include:
An updated iTunes image requirement — RGB 1400×1400 — throughout the plugin for better cover image quality throughout.

“Feature Episode” that allow podcasters to designate a primary episode, which can be used to introduce the podcast or lead in to a new series.

An iTunes Order feature that allows a podcaster doing a series of episodes to have each listed in the desired order.

Other PowerPress 4.0 offerings include:
A new video player option: VideoJS HTML5 JavaScript player — a player that has its own plugin. By adding this plugin, the new player will be available as an option in PowerPress video players list.

A Feed Episode Maximizer “option” for shows with episodes in excess of what can currently be included in a feed. This feature allows the podcaster to maintain the latest 10 episodes in iTunes with all of the extensive episode data. The rest of the episodes are listed in a way that maximizes the number of episodes that can be listed on iTunes / Zune etc. Perfect for the serial podcaster with an extensive episode library.

Blubrry.com is a media community and directory that gives content creators the power to make money through advertising, get detailed audience measurements and host their audio and video. Blubrry PowerPress 4.0 brings the essential features for media creation to WordPress, offering full podcasting support, web audio/video media players and more.

Yes You Do Have the Skills to Podcast

David — Thu, 10 May 2012 11:56:44 +0000

You might be talking yourself out of starting a podcast. You’re convinced that you’re not a “Geek” and that you just don’t have the set of skills to create a podcast. I’m here to let you know you already have the skills.

You Need to Press Record

I bet you’ve press record on a VCR, a Cassette deck

I’ll never get all the steps

But yet every morning you measure out water, measure out coffee, pour a container of water into a small opening, and press the right button to create coffee.

I’ll have to manage all those sound files.

If you have attach a file to an email you have the file management skills to podcast. If you are uploading pictures to Facebook, you’re good to go.

I have no experience with Sound Mixing.

You adjust the volume in your car every day to where it’s not too loud, but loud enough to drown out the sound of your car.

It seems complicated
So did tying your shows when you first started. You got through that ok.

I’m not sure I can afford it.

You couldn’t afford your children when they were born, but you made it happen. However, a podcast won’t scream if you ignore it.

I have no mouse skills

Have a friend show you how to play solitaire on the computer. This is a game but at the end of a few games you will develop mouse skills.

I don’t know how to install software
I bet you don’t know how to make a cake. If you didn’t you would get feedback from your friends on which cake mix is the best, and then you would go to the store and buy the mix. Then you would follow the directions on the box. With podcasting you can ask what are the best software titles. Then you download the installation file (cake mix) and then follow the directions to install it.

Writing Show Notes

If you write email, or use a word processor then you already have the skills. The only difference is you will be doing it on your website. It looks the same except when you click “Publish” it is saved to the Internet instead of your computer.

Podcast Promotion The Jesus Way

David — Mon, 07 May 2012 19:07:24 +0000

People often ask me how to grow their audience. They say the best way to learn something is to find someone who did it well, and do what they did. When it comes to growing an audience, I think there is one marketing plan that sticks out above all others. No, not the “plop-plop fizz-fizz” Alka-Seltzer commercial from the 1970′s. That is the message of Jesus Christ (I’m a big fan and mean no disrespect). Even if you’re an atheist this is true. He had phenomenal, life changing content. He went to find his audience. He befriended them. He got to the point. After making friends with them, he told them his message. He made it easy. He loved his audience. It appears to have worked. How do we do this?

Go find your audience:
Twitter, Face book, meetup.com, comments on blogs, blogworld.

Make friends with them:

Avoid the need to spam twitter, Facebook, and get to know people on a personal level. Jesus did not show up going, “Hey people check me out I just did some kewl miracles check em out the whole town is talking about them.” He put out great content, and let his audience do that.

He Told Them His Message – and was himself.

Now that he had their attention and trust, he told them his message. He had LIFE CHANGING content (OK, my atheist friends may have a different opinion). He did not say what everybody else was saying. He stood out.

Jesus Got to the Point

If you read the scripture around “the Lord’s prayer” Jesus is saying, “God (the audience in regards to prayer) doesn’t want long drawn out content. Get to the point, pray like this – and then he gave a prayer that’s about 30 seconds long.

He Was Consistent

Jesus never changed his message. People relied upon him. When things got tough (like a storm when they were in a boat that was probably going to sink), his audience turned to him for help. With this in mind, plan a publishing schedule (weekly, daily, bi-weekly, monthly) and stick to it. It makes you a trusted, reliable, friend that people will turn to when they need help.

He Made Deep Relationships

He hung out with his audience (the apostles) who then spread his message through word of mouth. Be sure to answer every email, reply to every comment, and address every voicemail. These people who are listening/watching could be your disciples who help carry your message.

He Applied Relentless Marketing by Telling Everyone

Jesus spoke to everyone. EVERYONE. This included tax collectors, women, etc that in theory was “not cool” at the time. This goes back to him knowing his audience and knowing who needed to hear his message. Bottom line he told everyone. So have your business cards, your sample CDs, your posters and your website ready and after you make friends tell them all and give everyone your message. Give your business cards (that point to your website more than give contact info) to your family. They are dirt cheap. Put them everywhere. Tell the world. Make a flyer and save it as a PDF and let your audience hang it in their neck of the woods.

Make It Easy

The Old Testament had a gazillion rules on what not to eat, how to cook, when to do this and that, Jesus brought a message of EASE. You should do the same. Be sure to have iTunes links, and other RSS options that make it easy to subscribe. Have an email list for those who want it. Always think of your audience, and ask if there is a way to make it easier to consume your content. Is your message above the fold or below the fold on your website?

Love Your Audience

While the podcast may be inspired and started on your passion, in the end it should be about your audience. While I’m not crazy about being crucified for my audience (you will receive the occasional bad review in iTunes, etc), I will turn off the air conditioner in July to make it quiet. I will think about them and wonder if my topic is something they need to hear. It’s all about your audience.

Grow Your Audience the Jesus Way

Create life changing content

Go find your audience

Make friends with them

Tell them your message while being yourself

Get to the point.

Be consistent

Make deep relatinships with those who follow you

Be relentless about telling everyone

Make it easy to consume your message

Always be thinking of your audience.

CNET Closes Podcasts Due to Lack of Live Audience – Hello?

David — Sun, 08 Apr 2012 00:00:47 +0000

One of the key points about podcasting is it is time shifted. It is content on demand. I can have content delivered automatically to you, and you can listen to it whenever you feel like it. CNET has produced 1500 episodes of “buzz out loud” podcast. They have decided to podfade most of their podcasts. The reason? Their LIVE audience is too small. Seriously? This is like saying I’m not going to Rock concerts because the music is too loud. Hello? According to the article:

“But here’s the thing: we’ve closely observed over the past few months how our audiences watch video, and we’re finding that a truly tiny percentage of our podcasts are consumed live as they happen. The vast majority of you download and view our videos much later. So we’ve decided to break out of the small podcast studio and wind down many of our live podcasts.”

Later in the article they state. ”
The industry as a whole conducted a broad-ranging experiment, searching far and wide for the right format for online video. Some companies think that live content is the future (ahem, AOL). In the past year, we’ve seen glimpses of the future of TV, and we disagree. We believe that the future is a fully on-demand world — more and more, users are busy cutting cords and saving long-form video content to view it later.”

So you agree that live streaming is NOT the future, and that more content will become on demand. Great. Me too. But because there is a very small audience for live shows (something you just stated will be the norm) you pull the shows so that the people who WERE listening later don’t get any content.

I’ve been a big fan of CNET for a long time, and I can’t help but think there is more to this story as this doesn’t make sense.

Free Month of Hosting at Libsyn Using Promo Code SOPFree

David — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 23:49:01 +0000

If you’ve listened to my podcast about podcasting, you know I’m a big fan of Libsyn.com (it stands for Liberated Syndication). I’ve met the team and Libsyn, and they’ve had great customer service over the seven years I’ve used them . Now I have a special offer for you if you are in need of media hosting. When you sign up at Libsyn you can get your first month free by using the promo code sopfree. It doesn’t matter what package you choose, your first month is free. Here is how Libsyn works:

You get an allotted amount of space that you can upload a month. The it doesn’t matter if you have 50 or 5000 downloads you pay one price. If you compare this to Amazon S3 service, you’ll see that this is the better deal (as my Amazon S3 bills started cheap but I quit when they neared $50 a month). Plans start as low as $5 a month for those who only do (for example) a one short podcast a week. If you are a person who produces a daily video podcast and needs tons of storage they have a plan for you. You can also have your own iPhone app designed FOR FREE when you order they $30/month package (you can see mine at www.schoolofpodcasting.com/app )

Great Podcasting Stats

One of the things I love about Libsyn is they provide great overall stats so I can see if my show is growing or not.

They also provide detailed stats so you can see where your audience is coming from, and how they found you.

When you sign up at Libsyn.com enter the promo code sopfree to receive your first month free.

I Need a Soon to be Podcaster in Need of a Website

David — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 17:41:04 +0000

I periodically go through the School of Podcasting and update tutorials, and make sure things are relevant. I’m currently going through and removing any instances of recommending Mevio to audio podcasters (as they no longer do that). In the process of reviewing I see where I could benefit from redoing some of my WordPress videos (I love that WordPress updates itself on a regular basis – it means I get to update my tutorials multiple times thorughout the year).

Typically in a case like this I create a “Dummy” site and record videos of me updating my “fake” site. While this works, it would be more effective if I was working on a “real” website. At the moment, I’m just not in the process of launching any new podcasts for myself.

If you are ready to step into the podcast arena, and you wouldn’t mind if I worked with you to create you website (and the fact that your website will get some added expsoure to anyone who watches the tutorials) please let me know. All you have to do is order hosting through my affiliate link, and we can start working on the process. I want to follow your website all the way to iTunes (so you will need to actually create a podcast).

If you’re interested, give me a call. 234-542-0893

Kevin Smith Sings the Praises of Podcasting

David — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 02:35:23 +0000

If you were a SXSW you might have caught Kevin Smith, the filmaker, directory, and now Podcaster. In a CNN article titled, “Podasting Saved My Career” Kevin mentions that after doing the film “Zach and Miri Make a Porno” that he had kind of lost his passion for making movies. Instead he felt more like an artist and turned to podcasting. As he put it, first do something you love, then you find a way to make money at it.

His audience would contact him and say, “”People would tweet left and right: ‘You put out so many free podcasts; how can I pay it back?’ ” said Smith, who has more than 2 million followers on Twitter. “I was like, ‘Go buy a T-shirt’ and they were like, ‘Cool.’ “” Another way he is making money is by taking his show on the road. He and his partner Mosier are selling out venues and selling merchandise along the way. Smith now heads up a Sodcast network of funny and sometimes raunchy Internet radio shows.

He had started his website in the mid-’90s’ and before long, it had a message board with more than 200,000 registered users — a huge number on the Internet of the ’90s — and it established Smith as one of the first filmmakers with a major online presence.

Check out his podcast at smodcast.com

Dana Gould: No Better Way To Promote Yourself than Podcasting

David — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 13:56:38 +0000

Dana Gould has done it all in showbiz. As a comedian he’s done Conan, Kimmel, HBO, Comedy Central, he was a voice on the Simpsons for 7 years – I could go on. He’s done it!

Now he can add “podcaster” to his resume. In a recent article he stated, “If you’re a comedian, it’s not mandatory that you have a podcast, but I expect that law will be passed soon. There’s no better way to promote yourself, and what is appealing about it is the people who listen to podcasts are very active. They’re not what you would call “passive” fans. It’s a great way to connect with your audience on a more regular basis. ”

“I finally found a way to catch a break in show business. All I had to do was buy a bunch of equipment, write, produce and perform a show, edit it and then release it myself.”

Dana Gould Website

Dana Gould Hour in iTunes

Spreaker Vs Mixlr

David — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 21:03:33 +0000

If you’re looking to start podcasting to a live audience my first question is WHY? Yes you get immediate feedback, but in most cases it adds complexity that isn’t worth the ego boost of having that one live listener. You also need to have a set schedule so people know when to come listen to you podcast. For me that’s almost impossible. I know I create most of my podcasts on Saturday, but picking a time is like trying to catch a fart in a jar (its harder than it sounds).

Spreaker www.spreaker.com

I am aware of Spreaker, and they seem to be adding more and more features. You can now create a podcast with your smartphone, and they have an embed code that not only lists your last episodes, but will switch to your live stream when you go live (I found this to be cool). The nice thing about spreaker is they provide the mixer. You just need a microphone, and you can upload any music you’re going to use ahead of time. You have two lists of music that you can play, your microphone, and sound effects (you have no control over the volume of the sound effects). If you are using their free service your show can only be 30 minutes long. Spreaker is completely web based (so you will need a good connection). Spreaker also has built in stats and a comment section.

Mixlr www.mixlr.com

Where the recording software you use on Spreaker is on their website, for Mixlr you download and install it locally (both Mac and PC). It is simply broadcasting whatever you choose as your input device. If you were to choose a mic input you would need to have a mixer plugged into with your music and such going into a mixer with your voice. If you are on a Windows machine, choosing what use to be called the ‘Wav out mix” is still an option (you have to dig for it), but when I try this, its usually a train wreck. Microsoft really screwed up their audio in my opinion. Consequently, when I use mixlr, I load my intro and outro on my iPod and run it into my mixer and send the mixer into my computer’s input. Once I start broadcasting I can go as long as I want. No time limits. I’m streaming at 96 kbps (where spreaker is 128). If I upgrade to their premium service I can stream at a higher bit rate, and download my recordings.

Mixlr also has a widget that you can put on your site that engages when you go live. If you’re not on, it just sits there (although people can go to your page on their site and hear past episodes).

Summary

Let me state again. I use neither of these as I believe one of the greatest benefits of podcasting is TIME SHIFTED material. You don’t have to be there with me live to get my content. However if you are mesmerized by being an “Internet DJ” here are my final thoughts.

For me I like the features that Spreaker provides. I love that if I needed to I could podcast live from my phone. I like the stats, and their mixing console makes things easy to produce a podcast. I wish they had a way to save our layout once you get all the music setup. If your show never goes over 30 minutes, this is a great option. If you need more time you can purchase different options (45 minutes costs $4 a month).

If you need to hold longer sessions, mixlr is the better option I would go for. In the past mixlr had a better widget that played your live broadcast. When spreaker added this feature, it pretty much put them ahead of mixlr.com

I believe both can be configured to work with SAM Broadcaster software (a powerful mixing software live streaming).

In regards to blog talk radio, I hate their service and their audio quality and would only use them if a gun was put to my head. If you can keep a schedule, you should be bale to build up an audience.

Spreaker Comes to Android (davidjackson.org)

Wizzard Officially Launches Paid Subscription Service For Podcasters

David — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 14:26:44 +0000

If you’ve wondered about the specifics about Wizzard’s premium service, I went over to Marc Maron’s podcast to see what he’s offering through this service.

You can purchase his phone apps (both iPhone and Android), and you can sign up for the premium website (if you don’t have a smart phone). Wizzard announced they launched a paid service this week, and this enables you to have a “Net Flix” type of setup where people pay a monthly fee to access your content. You can specify which content is free, or you can specify if its “premium” and Libsyn’s system blocks that content (Libsyn is owned by Wizzard media).

When I looked at Mar’cs site he has set his pricing at $1.99 a month, or $4.99 for 6 months, or $8.99 for a year of access to premium content.

Wizzard/Libsyn has all of this built into their system, so if you are using them for your media hosting. They’ve made it pretty easy. What you can do is use your WordPress website to promote your free items, and use the Libsyn blog (that comes with your hosting) for your “premium” content area. I also see where people who have purchased the smart phone app for Marc Maron can put in their premium membership details and access the premium content through their phones. If you’re looking for a quick and painless option, this might be it.

While you can’t offer smart phone apps (unless your a developer yourself) like Wizzard, you can offer a premium site without adding a middle man (if you are using a WordPress site) by using a membership plugin called Magic Members ($97).

Indie Podcasters “Anfield Wrap” Beating the BBC at Local Sports Podcasts

David — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 04:56:40 +0000

According to an article by Vergard Gart, a group of people form Liverpool are topping the iTunes charts ahead of people like the BBC. Their goal is to ” Give the best independent views and information around Liverpool FC from the world of media, The Anfield Wrap members have quickly found their way towards the top of the sports podcast charts in the UK.”

Two months ago, the Liverpool-based show won the People’s Choice trophy at the NOPA football blogging and podcasting awards.

Libsyn Importing Back Catalogs For Free

David — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 00:08:53 +0000

Ex-Mevio Audio Producers looking for a home for your back catalog?

I just got an email from Rob Walch who states, “We are offering up a free import of your back catalog and the rest of Feb for free. Use the promo code mevio12.”

It’s hard to argue with Free.

Mevio Dumps Audio Podcasts

David — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 02:36:34 +0000

I just got this email

Mevio has delivered emails to all of our registered and active producers informing them of the current change in direction Mevio has taken from audio podcasting to online short form video entertainment. We sincerely apologize if you did not receive the email.

We have had the great pleasure of working with all of you and wish everyone continued success with their audio podcasts. Your Mevio account is now activated in order to ensure you can download and move all of your content. As we’ve stated earlier, no content has been lost or deleted. For producers who are migrating to another hosting site, Mevio will also redirect your RSS feeds.

Once I get my stuff moved, I’ll explain more…

Once again the free business model does not work

Premium Podcast Content – Cut Out the Middle Man And Keep the Pie For Yourself

David — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 15:41:29 +0000

In the last year podcasting media hosts have been providing tools for podcasters to sell their back catalog, or premium content. Blubrry recently launched, (um and then unlaunched – it appears to have gone back to the drawing board), Cuetoo.com which allows you to sell your content on a monthly basis. I just found out about MYLibsyn from libsyn.com with both of these solutions have you splitting some of the profits with the companies. The bonus of these is these companies help with the setup. The grandfather of all premium content is premiumcast.com which charges $99 a month for their service)

Let me say up front, I love both of these companies and I’ve been using Libsyn since 2005. With that said, you don’t need these companies to sell digital content. There are great membership plugins that make it easy to sell premium content. I just started working with Magic Members and I’m loving the interface, and the flexibility. You can sell a membership, or make a single post for sale. Very cool. Best part? it’s only a ONE time fee of $97 for a single site license.

Each member gets their own RSS feed. If they end their membership, their RSS feed no longer gets new content. While this does not provide the App support that mylibsyn does, if you’re looking for a way to sell premium content, or make your back catalog “premium” you can do it with the Magic Members plugin. Once things get going, you can start your own affiliate program with their magic affiliates plugin.

If you’re looking for the “no hands” on approach, then things like Mylibsyn, or Cuetoo (when it comes back) may be the way to go. For the record, magic members you simply upload the plugin, active, configure some settings (lots of video support, and their teach support is very attentive if you need help), and you’re good to go.

Bypassing Traditional Media

David — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 16:08:59 +0000

I just read an article that showed a group that – once again – can’t get any love from the main stream media (although Chaz Bono on Dancing with the Stars is pretty main stream in my book).

The Rainbow Radio Philippines podcast startedas a radio show. The programme arose out of the need to educate the public,” said Maica Lagman, a volunteer who served as the host. When we produced the show, we always made it a point to represent the LGBTs… because in commercial or mainstream media, they aren’t really given space.”

In helping people podcast, I’ve helped Christians, Atheists, New Age, Law of Attraction, Yoga, and many other niche topics. If you can’t get your message or voice on mainstream radio, take the time you spend banging on their door and go through the open door pof pdocasting.

1.64 Billion Podcast Downloads For Wizzard Media in 2011

David — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 19:49:03 +0000

In a recent article about Wizzard Media, it was report that, “ In 2011, the Wizzard Media Network received well over 1.64 billion podcast requests from approximately 50 million people worldwide through iPods, iPhones, iPads, iTunes, Blackberrys, Windows Phones, Zunes, Windows Media Center, Androids and many other devices and destinations.”

Keep in mind this is just ONE podcast host. How much of that 50 million listener pie are you going to capture?

Mevio Refocuses According to Ron Bloom

David — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 23:19:06 +0000

I’ve been a Mevio producer almost since day one. I use other services such as Libsyn.com and Blubrry.com but I used Mevio, and they found affiliate deals that were in some cases better than I could get on my own. This weekend things went weird. Many producers explained how they couldn’t upload new files. I know I couldn’t upload the latest episode of the Jillian Michaels Podcast. The Google group used to communicate internally has grown a bit to quiet except for people asking “What’s going on.” I’ve always enjoyed my time, and checks, from Mevio.

According to a report on tech crunch, “he company recently announced a move to “unify” channels that could explain their lockdown:

“By unifying our previously independent online channels, Mevio is now able to more accurately represent our significant growth, and underscore our increasing value to brand advertisers,” said Ron Bloom, Mevio’s CEO. “Our top 15 ranking on comScore reflects Mevio’s focus on building a true entertainment network that combines the reach and frequency of traditional television with the interaction and accountability of the Internet.”Mevio has been increasingly attracting large brand advertisers and management expects the company’s explosive growth will enable it to better serve brands that are interested in advertising on entertainment sites that deliver TV quality, original content.”

Mevio was started in January of 2004 and has received 38.9 million in funding.

Could this be another example of a “Free” business model not working? I hope not. Stay tuned.

Corey Deitz Has His Head Up His Ass When it Comes to Podcasting

David — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 03:43:41 +0000

I was at about.com and looking at their articles about podcasting. Their expert is radio veteran Corey Deitz. I have respect for radio guys who can be entertaining and creative while having their hands tied behind their backs by program directors who force them to hit time markers. Radio is not easy. However, “radio personality” does not equal podcast guru. Heck this guy graduated from Kent State which is in my back yard. Corey you are killing me dude. Corey with his Radio Partner Jay are a successful morning radio show in Arkansas (voted “Best Morning Show in Little Rock” in 2001 – 11 years ago). They have audio on their website where you can “listen to their podcast.” By that they mean you can click and listen, but THERE IS NO RSS feed. When I searched for them in iTunes, I see where all their segments have their own podcast in iTunes and NONE of them have album art (Corey watch my Skank video). You know why? Because this guy may know morning radio in Arkansas, but his advice about podcasting is just crap.

He doesn’t even understand what makes a podcast a podcast.

Here is what he put in an article (I added the boldness).

Podcasts are easy to do whether you DIY with an audio editor and your own website or use a third-party to create it and host it. A Podcast allows you to create a “chunk” of audio programming which can be accessed on-demand. The original idea of subscribing to Podcasts has become diluted. Sure, thousands of podcasts can still be “subscribed” to and the audio is automatically delivered to your computer.

But, now, just placing an audio file online at your website and informing users to “click to listen” to your “Podcast on-demand” is sufficient. Most browsers know how to handle and stream an audio file that is clicked on.

If it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck – it’s a duck.

WTF? OK then if this “duck” rule is true: Because I drive on the expressway every day – I’m a Nascar Guru. I drive. I can turn left. I drink Mountain Dew. Therefore I am a nascar driver.

You can buy a B.B. King Guitar, and dress up in a suit to play it. It doesn’t make you B.B. King.

Let us consult the book of Knowledge (Wikipedia).

“A podcast is a type of digital media consisting of an episodic series of files (either audio or video) subscribed to and downloaded through web syndication. ”

When you put audio on a website for people to click and listen to, you have AUDIO ON A WEBSITE. To tell someone, “audio on a website is a podcast” is just wrong. You say, “the original idea of subscribing to Podcasts has become diluted.” If this is true it’s because douche bags like you are telling people lies. I have players on my site that you can click and stream like a radio station. Do you know why I can create those? Because I have a syndication feed that makes it easy! If you want to make a streaming radio station with advertising, listen to my “More Podcast Money” Podcast. How about this: The original idea of one plus one equals two has been diluted, and I know say it’s four.

Some poor soul is going to put a link to an mp3 file on their website and then wonder why their “podcast” isn’t in iTunes.

He later goes on to recommend Blog Talk Radio, Podbean, and Podmatic. Three services that I’ve made a fair amount of money helping people leave.

Telling someone, “Placing audio on a website is the same as a podcast” is like giving them the Amazing Chef basket and having them only use it as a pasta strainer when it can be used as a deep fryer, and vegetable steamer and more!

I followed the website link that is listed in iTunes for them, and it took me to a page that DIDN’T HAVE A LINK TO ITUNES. BUt wait there is more! He is paying myrsscreator.com a monthly fee to create an RSS feed when he could be using WordPress for free. Talk about Head Up Your Ass. myrsscreator.com seems like a fine site. When I clicked on their affiliate link it brought up a bunch of SQL errors. Classy.

All of his episodes have the same name. I understand that its a bit, but why not give me a clue as to which episode has what topic. After all I’m sure tons of people are searching Google for “Head Up Your Ass Headlines Tuesday 5/16.”

When you get done following Corey’s advice please contact me for some coaching sessions and I will help undo all the crap that has been poured into your ears.

If it looks like a douche and quacks like a douche – it’s a douche.

Wizzard’s Record Setting December

David — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 16:30:24 +0000

Here’s the latest from a recent Wizard Media Press Release

In the fourth quarter of 2011, the Wizzard Media network averaged over 20 million unique audience members per month. Wizzard Media reached another milestone with an all time high for unique audience count in December 2011. Additionally, substantial growth in download requests continued with the fourth quarter numbers topping October’s all time high. And while Wizzard stopped publishing download request numbers in 2010 due to a change in algorithmic reporting metrics, download requests for 2011 would have clearly exceeded 2010′s total of 1.64 billion.

Wizzard reported ongoing increases in new podcast client account sign-ups and corresponding revenues throughout 2011 with a focus on higher margined monthly accounts. The fourth quarter brought additional all-time highs for average weekly account sign-ups and incremental revenue. That trend continues in 2012 with the first week of the new-year beating out even the best week of 2011 for new account growth and incremental revenue.

“We are thrilled by the upward trends we continue to see and are confident that the hard work of our team and our podcast producers in 2011 will continue to expand the entire podcast ecosystem,” said Laurie Sims, President of Wizzard Media. “Our Q4 results are encouraging with all time highs in our network statistics and greater distribution for our producers with broad support across various app marketplaces and mobile devices. With the popularity of the Kindle Fire and loyalty of iOS users, we are excited about prospects for 2012 expansion.”

The company has been focused on its stated plan of increasing reoccurring revenues by attracting new podcast hosting and App customers. Additionally, marketing and social media efforts to support hosting and audience growth have demonstrated success in 2011 and will be further leveraged in 2012. Wizzard’s full subscription service is expected to launch in the first part of 2012.

Keep in mind that the audience of 20 million in one month is a statistic only ONE podcasting network. The number is actually higher. So the next time someone says, “Podcasting is Dead,” or “It’s a fad,” point out how in 2010 and 2011 the trend is going upward.

Podcast Clicks Closing in on 300K Clicks to Podcasters in 2011

David — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 00:00:26 +0000

Podcastclicks.com is a free Podcasting Promotion Site where you place a banner for your podcast on the system, choose what categories of banners you are willing to display on your website, and when you show someone else’s banner, they are showing yours (a banner exchange program strictly for podcasters). I just went over to see how things are going and we are appraochign 300,00 clicks sent to podcaster’s websites this year. This is up from 142,000 in 2010.The service is free. Sign up at www.podcastclicks.com

What was you favorite podcast of 2011?

David — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 12:07:01 +0000

I have a segment on my podcast called “The Last 5 in 5″ where you list – not your favorite podcast – but the last 5 you listened to (along with a brief description, and their website) in less than 5 minutes. Today I’m looking for something different.

Thinking back to all the podcasts you listened to in 2011, which one was your favorite.

For me this was hard. I get great information from No Agenda. I listen to a lot of podcasts about podcasting (The Podcasters Studio is a good one), I love the stories from The Bitterest Pill. However, the one that made me laugh, while informing me about stuff going on in music, and turning me on to great music, and great interveiws was Micahel Butler’s Rock and Roll Geek Show. It’s the longest running podcast (started in 2004) and the original music podcast.

Its tough (I am subscribed to 43 podcasts at the moment). So what was your favorite podcast of 2011 (THAT’s NOT YOURS), that you were so happy to see come into your podcatcher? Leave a creative and interesting comment below.

End of Year Production Music Blowout.

David — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 23:13:20 +0000

Footage Firm is a website that lots of video footage for video podcasters. They also have a lot of great “free” music on CDs. This “Free” music collections have an $8 shipping fee. Well now this week only they have lowered the shipping feed to $5 if you use the footage firm coupon code ENDOFYEAR2011

Spreaker Comes to Android

David — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 14:01:14 +0000

I’ve been playing with Spreaker to see how it works, etc. It’s a pretty cool service that makes it easy to do a “live” podcast. Now you can use an android phone to record your podcast. This is nothing new (anyone remember the now dead Gcast?). There is a version for iOS as well.

I went over and downloaded the app, and did a quick test. It works. I could see musicians, or any kind of entertainers who want to update things from the road using the feature. It does sound like it was recorded on a phone. In terms of ease of use, it doesn’t get much easier. You can listen to it by clicking on the player below.

The service is free as the place ads on their player when you listen online (and if you download the episode there are ads added to the beginning of the show). If you are looking for a way to ad advertising for those who listen online only (not downloads) check out my latest version of More Podcast Money.

Mom Said To Not Play in Traffic – It’s Working for Jeff Roney

David — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 20:50:32 +0000

Jeff Roney just put out a blog post stating how he started a podcast with this wife about a television show called “Once upon a time.” I know nothing about the show (I don’t watch TV), but I know when you start a podcast you’re nt sure if there will be an audience for your topic.

One way to eliminate the “Is there an audience for this” is to start a podcast about a television show. This provides the audience of that show a place to gather while waiting for the next episode. I have done this with the Jillian Michaels Fan Cast.

The “Happy Ending” of this show is that Jeff has landed as a “New and Noteworthy” podcast in iTunes. Actually it’s not the ending, it’s just the beginning. What it does show is that you don’t have to be on NPR or a high-profile comedian to be “New and Noteworthy” in iTunes.

Congrats Jeff! Find out more about this podcast at http://onceuponatimepodcast.com

(sorry I got the URL wrong originally Jeff)

Average Weekly Podcast Sign Ups Show 30% Increase of 2010

David — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 03:52:28 +0000

Wizzard Media, the world’s leading podcasting network, today announced it is seeing a 30% increase in average weekly signups in 2011 vs. average weekly signups for 2010. In addition, Wizzard’s premier podcast distribution and monetization platform Libsyn.com has seen average weekly client account revenues increase 29% for 2011 vs. 2010.

The company has been focused on its stated plan of increasing reoccupying revenues by attracting new hosting and App customers. Additionally, marketing and social media efforts to support hosting and audience growth have demonstrated success this year.

Full story

Behind the Scenes Always Makes for a Good Podcast

David — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 15:28:56 +0000

I recently got a notice in my RSS feed, that a podcast that features a reporter following a pizza driver for a day. I’ve always thought about what its like to deliver pizza. Now this podcast let’s me know. My favorite is that the guy has to start his car with a pair of scissors.

If I had some pointers for this “podcast” (this looks more like a “audio” on a website), and there is no way to download this podcast, or play it in a new window (so when I first listened to it, and clicked on another, I lost my website).

Meta Mark – Cool New Feature Coming to PowerPress

David — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 13:25:26 +0000

Todd Cochrane and the boys at blubrry.com are coming out with a new feature for their powerpress plugin. I love the PowerPress plugin. I realize that PowerPress has a fair amount of features that not everyone uses, but in their latest newsletter they announced a new feature coming called ,”Meta Mark” which to me sounds like a character on a Saturday Night Live Sketch. What this feature will do is allow you to specify certain actions to happen in your media when played on your website. Here are some examples:

Example 1: At 2:33 you Meta Mark the media, so that it pops up a window within the media player asking the listener to comment on that segment of content. When acted on, the comment will get pushed back to you, increasing engagement.

Example 2: At 4:44 seconds you Meta Mark the media so that it pops up a survey window for your listener to respond to. This allows you to embed survey links or simple surveys within your media.

Example 3: At 10:29 seconds you Meta Mark the media at that precise location to insert an advertisement by a third-party partner.

Example 4: At 11:55 you Meta Mark the media to pop up a URL associated with the topic you are discussing. When clicked on, it will launch a new window to that content.

They’e also released the Cuetoo product for selling digital products (which I will be checking out right after I post this ). Special thumbs up to Angelo Mandato who is the main man behind PowerPress.

Making Sure Blog Talk Radio Still Sucks

David — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 03:47:44 +0000

Back in the day when podcasting was still just a gleam in the eyes of geeks two companies launched to give people the ability to do live radio shows. One was TalkShoe and the other was Blog Talk Radio. I have NOT been a fan of either one for a very simple reason. Their audio blows. I mean it sucks out loud, and by that I mean it’s bad.

If you look at the graphic to the right you will see the details of a file I downloaded from the Blog talk University (so an “official” BTR file) and you will see that the sample rate is 11. The typical CD quality sample rate is 44. Think of it this way, how many times a second do they take a picture of your sound wave. Another great way of thinking of this is by using the analogy of paint. How much paint do they put on their brush? 1/4 of what most people use.

Then you get to the Audio Bit Rate. Back in the day when people were worried about bandwidth (a worry that is almost obsolete) people would publish at

64 Kbps = Am Radio Quality
96 = FM Radio Quality (I still publish at his rate for some of my podcasts)
128 =CD Quality

You can see that after barely putting any “paint” on their paint brush they then publish the audio with HALF of the quality of an AM Radio station.

As I was listening to this show, I thought, “I’m going to write a blog post about it.” I didn’t want to lose my place so I clicked the “Play in a new window” option and well. I’m still waiting. I get this a lot when I go to help people who want to move away from Blog Talk Radio. I finally had to click on pause and start to get the player to work.

With this in mind, as it is my job to know and understand all podcasting tools, I will be using BTR in the future to make sure I know what I’m talking about. If you want to be notified you can follow me on twitter at @learntopodcast and I’ll let you know. Right now I’m set for this Wednesday at 10 AM.

Maybe the thrill of having a live audience will offset the lack of audio quality. I’m also going to pay CLOSE attention as to how and if they submit a feed to iTunes as a “favor” for me.

There may be hope for BTR in the future as I saw this on one of their forums.

And another one’s gone, and another one’s gone…

David — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 12:22:52 +0000

Another One Bites the Dust. Remember Podango? Well we can add another free podcast hosting company to the list.

That’s right. Another completely free podcast hosting company is closing its doors. In this case its mypodcast.com. This website offered recording software online (kind of like spreaker.com).

Here is their memo:

Hello MyPodcast.com Broadcasters -

We must regretfully inform you that effective December 1, 2011, MyPodcast.com will cease all operations. Due to the current business climate, our current revenues can no longer cover the operational costs associated with hosting and serving the large amount of podcasts available on the site. We would like to thank all our podcasters and listeners for their years of support in making MyPodcast one of the most popular podcast hosting sites on the web.

Effective December 1, 2011, all podcasts currently hosted on the site will become permanently deleted and unavailable for download. For this reason, we strongly encourage all of our podcasters who do not have locally stored copies of their recordings to please take the time to download and save them from the site. Unfortunately, we will not be able to provide ANY recordings on or after December 1, 2011, as they will have been permanently deleted from our storage servers.

Once again, we would like to thank everyone for using the site over the years, and wish you all the best of luck with your podcasts in the future!

–
Regards, MyPodcast Team

If you are not familiar with mypodcast.com they had a platform where you could record your podcast right online. When I went to their site, here are some of the nuggets that I found:

When describing their service, they explained their benefits with this:

The next problem is hosting. You need server to upload your podcasts on. You have to learn about RSS feeds, webpage updates, FTP, backups. And good software does not come cheap.

MyPodcast.com does EVERYTHING for you at absolutely NO COST. That’s right, everything is FREE. Besides, you can earn some money, even if your podcast is not yet popular.

You will start earning when a first Listener will hear your podcast. As your podcast increases its popularity, each podcast will bring you more and more income. Eventually you will receive advertisements offers from individuals interested in your podcast and you will be able to make some exclusive deals.

Apparently, eventually they didn’t. In my travels you have to go after the advertisers (they don’t come to you).

My favorite is from the FAQ:

Can I turn off the advertisements? I can pay for my podcast bandwidth.

There are plenty of services, which offer podcast hosting for money. The easiest to use is: Mac service from Apple. At the moment we do not provide this kind of subscription.

Maybe they will figure out how to accept money next time.

The company is owned by First Beat Media which (apparently from their website) creates niche dating sites.

Congratulations on showing us that once again a “Free” business plan supported only by advertisements doesn’t work (apparently). I just wonder who is going to be next?

Did Your Free Podcast Hosting Save You Any Money Really?

I tried to find out when mypodcast.com started. The earliest report of it was in 2007. With that, let’s say it was 1/1/2007. That’s 48 months (4 years). If you had a Libsyn.com account for $15 (the one I use) that would be $720 for four years. As they are going out of business you now decide to do what you should’ve done in the first place, and get a paid podcast hosting solution (libsyn.com or blubrry.com). If you had produced a show every week over the last four years you would have 208 episodes. That’s going to take probably an hour to upload all those megabytes of files. Then you are going to have to go to each of those 208 posts and replace the link to your mypodcast.com file to your Libsyn.com if it takes you 5 minutes to do this for each episode you will spend 17.8 hours (remember, you’ll have to go through all the pages of posts, then edit, then go to your media, copy, paste, save, rather, rinse, repeat). If we combine that with the hour of uploading and we will round things up and say that it’s going to take 19 hours to update your website. This means you are making $37 an hour ($720/19 hours). This is not a “want to” thing, you have to update your website or your podcast will have no media attached to it (at least any live media). The question is, you just lost an entire Saturday with your family. How much is that worth to you?