Help... our podcast sucks!

[DailySplice]

Hey guys, just wondering if I could get some quick tips about how to make my podcast a bit better?

Here's our situation:

We want to have a DAILY podcast that is under 10 Min for a bunch of legitimate reasons that I wont get into. We really don't want to change the theme, which is "7 podcast reviews in 7 minutes" because this is really relevant to what we are trying to accomplish with our business. We're also really busy with a zillion other things (as you can surely sympathize with if you've tried to start up a little online company out of your garage) so we try to keep the workload to under an hour from recording to uploading. We're a typical starving two person company, so hiring a more talented personality is not an option for the time being.

We had up to 70 subscribers in our second week, but the numbers quickly dwindled even as I try to promote it. It's obvious that people listen for a few days then unsubscribe... which means our podcast sucks.

If anyone has a hint or two about what we're doing wrong we'd be really grateful! My skin is think, so you can let loose if you like, just hoping you also have something constructive to say if you do.

Here's a link to an episode of our show that clearly scared off users (we lost like 70% of our subscribers by the next day):

http://blog.dailysplice.com/podcast/08-04-18-the-dailysplice-podcast-2/

Thanks a million!

[mastermind1429]

Hey
I have a similar podcast, where you review other podcasts. Although I only have 200 listeners, I think the problem is that you have too much content in too short of a time.

[EndGamePR]

I listened to the episode of your show where you reviewed Startup BizCast. As was said by the other poster, I think you're trying to cram too much into a short podcast. You're really not doing in-depth reviews. There are other shows out there doing reviews, and they're digging more into the shows. Maybe the answer is to spend more time on the show (maybe 20 minutes per episode) but only release episode twice a week?

None of this is to say I didn't appreciate the review ... I did. I just didn't see anything in there to keep me subscribed.

[Yotto]

I hate to "me too" but... well... me too.

The single biggest problem with your show is the premise, which you stated you will not change. Therefore, the idea is broken to the point of not being fixable.

Sorry :(

[spiderwing]

I'm going to come out against what everyone else is saying... I'm sure there is a potential audience for the lightning fast mini-review. Think about who is in that niche and try to pitch it to them.

I've thought of a few things you can try.


1. Come up with a stronger 'branding' - musical stings at beginning and end. Have a punchy, two sentence intro right now you spend a minute introducing the podcast each episode. One minute out of twenty is fine, one out of seven is a lot. Try a two sentence, punchy introduction and put it over you musical sting.

2. Group podcasts by 'theme' rather than just what you've happened to find? It will take a little more planning, maybe a decision of what you'll be reviewing over the next seven days, and then you can say 'today we've got fitness podcasts', 'today we've got music podcasts'...


3. Try to make the style of your reviews punchier, less chatty. If you're going for the ADD crowd, really go for them. Try to write a 'bullet point' review of each podcast, and zip down the list as fast as you can and still keep things clear. It definitely won't appeal to everyone, but, as others have stated, you're not going to get the listeners who want in depth reviews.

Good luck with it.

[WyethDigital]

I agree with everything that Spiderwing just said -- especially the bit about the opening preamble of your show... In fact, I'll go one step further and get a little Simon Cowell on you: I don't think the concept is wrong -- but your content is.

Let's look at the Start-Up Bizcast review. You spent the entire review talking about a contest that just ended. What service does hearing about an old contest do for your listeners? Why not review the actual show? How is the sound quality? How is the advice? How easy is it to follow? I'm not usually a fan of number, letter, or star rating systems, but for a format like yours, I think it would help.

Now, before the audience starts booing me and I'm forced to throw another veiled homosexual reference at Ryan, let me also say that for what should be a short and snappy podcast, it has the energy of a bowl of cold oatmeal -- on a cruise ship (I don't know! It just sounded like something Simon would say)! For a short podcast with a lot of ground to cover, it seemed tedious. Probably because it sounded like you put it together before your morning coffee kicked in.

Look, no one can make you a pro overnight. That would be unrealistic. I don't expect my FM Morning Zoo Crew out of a podcast (thank goodness!), but I do expect a serviceable knowledge of your subject and some enthusiasm when you're talking about it. To me, this episode sounded like you were obligated to do it because your business plan says this is a good way to promote a business. Here's the rub: That's only if you produce a show with the same passion as you have for your business -- or if you can find someone to do it for you.

My advice: Stop promoting the show and worrying about subscribers until you get your kinks worked out and you feel comfortable talking to a microphone. By promoting your show right now, you're only promoting yourselves as mediocre. Best to wait until you have a firmer handle on this so people will say, when asked, "yeah, I heard of that show. They're pretty good!" You're not there yet, but you can be. You just need to practice before showing off.

Eric

[EndGamePR]

I agree with Eric. He said essentially what I was trying to say ... just in a much better, more complete, and more "Simonish" way. I enjoy review shows and subscribe to one already. I just didn't get enough information to stay subscribed to this one.

One thing you should also think about with your review podcast -- you need to have high quality production and delivery with this type of program. If you put yourself out there as knowing enough about podcasts that you can say what's wrong with other shows, you have to sound good yourself. Otherwise, you're opening yourself up for a LOT of criticism ... not all constructive.

[WyethDigital]

I agree with Eric. He said essentially what I was trying to say ... just in a much better, more complete, and more "Simonish" way.
I guess you could say they were "Simonized?"

Just to be clear for the original poster: I don't like being critical of other people's work, but I will be honest if asked. I also am admittedly a bit harder on shows and blogs that do reviews, because, well, Steve said it best:
If you put yourself out there as knowing enough about podcasts that you can say what's wrong with other shows, you have to sound good yourself.

I don't think anyone expects an art critic to paint a Picasso, but they should experience the painting before critiquing it and they should demonstrate that they know something of the process. Putting together a good sounding show (doesn't have to be great) not only makes it easier on your listeners, but also gives them confidence in your reviews.

Eric

[EndGamePR]

I guess you could say they were "Simonized?"

(insert audible groan here)

[DailySplice]

Guys this is great feedback, thanks! :D I certainly don't mind being Simonized. We'll get better because of this advice so I hope you'll tune in after a month or so and see if we're doing something more interesting. We'd invite you all up for Canadian beers too if we could!

We didn't originally intend on being a "review show" (since we don't claim to be qualified critics)... we set out to talk about some cool stories we were hearing about in the podosphere in hopes that more people would want to incorporate podcasts into their DAILY lives. Now the were throwing around the word review, and I can see that may be one of our mistakes (of many).

As I said before, we want a quick show that we can put out daily. We also want it to encourage people to listen to more podcasts, and we want to really push the idea that podcasts CAN be a part of your routine. Consistency with duration and predicable schedules is something we believe in strongly and probably wont change, but we could mix it up a bit in terms of what we do on the show every day. Say, Monday's we do an interview, Tuesday's a batch of quick reviews, etc. I like the idea of maybe doing some interviews because, as you can tell, I have a voice for newspaper. hehe.

I can't really ask for anything more in terms of advice because you've already given us more than we hoped for. That said... we never miss an opportunity to get more opinions and tips if you have them and want to share!

Cheers,

[EndGamePR]

Actually, the show you mentioned sounds like it could be interesting if done well ... sort of a newscast or entertainment report for the podosphere! Maybe you could even bill it as "Today in Podcasts". You could pick out three shows each day and talk briefly about their upcoming episodes. You could ask podcasters to send in updates. I would think they'd be happy for the promotion.

[WyethDigital]

Maybe you could even bill it as "Today in Podcasts". You could pick out three shows each day and talk briefly about their upcoming episodes. You could ask podcasters to send in updates. I would think they'd be happy for the promotion.

Except there's already a show called "Today in Podcasting." Not quite the same, but similar enough to be too close for my tastes.

All-in-all, though, I'd say the podcasts-as-entertainment idea is probably an attractive way to go. If I was giving advice on your format (which I don't usually like to do, since each podcaster must satisfy their own niche), I would avoid the trap of being a podcast about podcasting. There's already enough shows out there in love with their own reflection (or the reflections of their podcasting friends), and not enough podcasts focusing on the incredible and diverse content that the medium (and hard working producers) generates. I think you have a great opportunity to develop a show that not just focuses on, as you say, the cool stories in the podosphere, but the great entertainment and information that they deliver.

Just my 2 cents

Eric

[EndGamePR]

Except there's already a show called "Today in Podcasting." Not quite the same, but similar enough to be too close for my tastes.

Hrmph. Thought that sounded familiar!

[DailySplice]

Well maybe there IS light at the end of the tunnel for us... keyword=maybe. :)

Thanks for the suggestions and the encouragement. For now we're steering our way back to be more focused on the stories and the content then the podcasts themselves, and we're working on a few other ideas based on your guy's tips. We also cut it down to 4 stories + 1 song. If we ever DO get more than 3 subscribers, I'll have to send you all some Canadian beers. haha.

Check us out again in a few weeks and let us know what you think!

Cheers

[evilproducer]

You're doing a daily show? Are you recording it daily? If so, I would spend a day or two (depending on the process) pre-recording your show (or portions of your show) for the upcoming week. Then all you have to do is upload your shows.

If you're worried about being topical about current events, then leave space to insert the current events of the day that you would like to discuss. If something comes up that you feel you need to do a whole episode about, then save your pre-recorded episode for the next day, or whenever. It may relieve the stress of trying to do the podcast and your other business duties all in one day. Also, the energy you have will sound more level and consistent day to day throughout the week. Other things like sound levels and editing also may be more consistent.

There's nothing wrong with pre-producing your episodes. I believe Eric (Wyethdigital) and Madeline (How-To Girl) develop a theme to run for about a month, and then film all the episodes for the upcoming month ahead of time over the course of a weekend. They then edit the episodes together the week they upload. Sometimes if the stars are in alignment, they may actually get further ahead in the editing. ;)

Just my .02 worth.

Later,
Evil.

[DailySplice]

Thanks! Actually, we agree with you and based on this idea and all the other's generously donated from this community we've come up with a new format. We used to be concerned with giving current stories every day. That's why we had to do it daily so that the stories we were covering weren't old by the time they came out. Now we'll be recording all 5 episodes once per week. We're also going to go with the theme idea, with a new theme each week. This weeks theme is "bite-sized music." Every episode will still be consistently 7.5 minutes and released a 1am PST.

If your interested here's what our weeks are going to look like:

Monday - "lightening fast mini reviews"
Tuesday - an interview with a podcaster (podington bear is the first one coming up tomorrow)
Wednesday - a spotlight on the interviewed podcast
Thursday - more in depth discussion about a 3 podcasts from our week's theme
Friday - a look at some of the most interesting episodes we heard during the week.We changed our name to Podcast Guide, to try to capture that "podcasts as entertainment" idea. Our first one is up now, along with a new little "audio signature"... I'm not a wiz at creating these things so we'll make a better one later.

Anyway, give it a few weeks and we'll be a lot better I hope, so please do stop by and check us out... and thanks you all! Make sure to check out the P. Bear interview tomorrow anyway just because he's awesome and has some cool stuff to say about his motivations and future plans.

http://blog.dailysplice.com/podcast

[WyethDigital]

If your interested here's what our weeks are going to look like:

Monday - "lightening fast mini reviews"
Tuesday - an interview with a podcaster (podington bear is the first one coming up tomorrow)
Wednesday - a spotlight on the interviewed podcast
Thursday - more in depth discussion about a 3 podcasts from our week's theme
Friday - a look at some of the most interesting episodes we heard during the week.We changed our name to Podcast Guide, to try to capture that "podcasts as entertainment" idea. Our first one is up now, along with a new little "audio signature"... I'm not a wiz at creating these things so we'll make a better one later.

Just to build on Evil's suggestions, and your schedule: be sure to allow some time for audience participation. You probably won't need to worry about it right away (it can take a bit before you get your first unsolicited feedback), but if it's something you want to encourage, provide a way for them to leave it for you right away, and provide an opportunity for it to be heard. The one draw back to our schedule (taping once per month) is that we aren't always timely with viewer feedback (I can't tell you how many times we've gotten an email from some desperate teen looking for fashion advice yesterday!). So keep feedback in mind as you make your recording/release schedule. Be willing to adapt to it when you begin getting regular feedback.

Eric

[evilproducer]

And just to expand on WyethDigital's advice, ...Ummmm... I got nothin'. :confused: Heh. Yeah... :mrgreen:

[DailySplice]

I think we're a ways off from getting unsolicited anything... but will keep that in mind for when we get there. Thanks Eric

[WyethDigital]

I think we're a ways off from getting unsolicited anything... but will keep that in mind for when we get there. Thanks Eric

That may or not be true. You never know. The first email we ever got out of the blue came from Japan, which was the last place we expected anything from. It just never hurts to plan for something, even it seems a long way off. "If you build it, they will come," and all that.

Here's a little helpful deception that can make it easier to get emails. Fake one or two and read them on the show. It's kind of like starting off a tip jar with your own buck -- your audience is looking to you for direction with your dialogue. just as people hate to tip when they don't know how much to give. People will feel encouraged to respond to you once they know you will. The first email Madeline ever read on the show was one that we made up -- and we haven't been able to stop the floodgates since (not that we would want to)! Another tip would be to set up a conflict that people can take sides on (ala Crossfire). It shouldn't be too acrimonious, but something that gets people inspired to respond.

Eric