The New Rules of Podcasting

1. Networks are a losing business model.
2. Signing away the exclusive rights to your podcast is a stupid thing to do.
3. Speaking at conferences does not qualify as an accomplishment.
4. Statistics and demographics are meaningless and useless.
5. Ninety percent of podcasting news is worthless. Yes, it's true. The signal to noise ratio in podcasting is poor at best. There are a few reasons why this true.
   
   First of all, anybody can distribute a press release over the internet in this day and age. There are a variety of services that will assist you with creating and syndicating a press release on the internet for little or no cost. So people see that it's quick and easy so they feel the need to publish useless information to let folks know they exist. So most press releases related to podcasting are basically cries for help from people who aren't sure of any other way to spread the word.
   
   The second reason why me must wade through a ton of garbage "news" on podcasting is because of automated news services like Google News that slurp up information without considering the source or the content. This situation is continually exacerbated by tech websites that regurgitate press releases and as a result the same garbage press releases get picked up several times by the auto news services.
   
   The mainstream media doesn't help either. Most stories on podcasting are shallow or poorly researched. I recently read a story where the writer referred to "U2" as a video podcasting website. I think the writer heard YouTube while recording (or not recording) the interview, but probably had no idea what YouTube was so assumed that the rock band U2 had started a video sharing website. I also read an article recently where the word podcast was split into two words, like "pod cast." Either the editor, the writer or both of them had no clue that podcast is one word. So if they don't have a clue about that how could they have a clue about podcasting as a medium?
   
   The final and probably the biggest problem we face is the fact that so many people who have no idea about business or marketing think they do know about business and marketing. These are folks who write press releases with mispelled words, incorrect references and no discernable point.
   
   This press release is a great example of a waste of bytes. The word Adidas is spelled "Addidas." I'm sure the shoe folks love that. That's followed by a reference to Dixie Cups. Problem is that the Dixie Paper Corporation should have been referenced. Dixie Cups are simply one of their products. That's like saying that Air Jordan is getting into podcasting when Nike is who you really meant. Finally, there's just no point to this except to say, "I'm Here", and obviously desperate. This is just one example of the stuff that fills up what should be links to something NEW!
   
   So the combination of an uneducated media, unintelligent news distribution bots, and inexperienced podcast entrepreneurs leads to a flood of information that can only confuse folks interested in the podcasting industry.
   
   So what's a podcast enthusiast to do?
   
   First of all, ignore all press releases. Most of them are a waste of time because they are simply advertisements disguised as news. Second, forget any mainstream media source as a source of information on what's new in the world of podcasting. Even if they do get it right they will probably be three months late anyway. Finally, you should find a handful of bloggers/podcasters that you respect and use those avenues for your sources of information.
   
   Two of my favorite sources of information are Geek News Central and For Immediate Release. These are two blog/podcast sites that deliver objective news and analysis on what's happening in the world of Social Media, which is the umbrella of functionality that podcasting falls under. You can find other blog/podcast sources by going to see who those two folks are linking two. You can also ask friends you know who are into podcasting where they get their info from. If they're well informed, chances are that they are not getting their info from mainstream media or press releases.
   
   For those of you in a position to make news on podcasting, take heed. If you've got a product or service related to podcasting, use press releases only when something is new. This would include when you launch your company, launch a new product, or land a big client. All the rest should go in your blog or better yet, YOUR PODCAST. (I take no firm involved in podcasting seriously unless they actually produce a podcast of their own.) Fans of what you do can then subscribe and decide if they want the regular updates. And for heaven's sake, proof read and fact check what you write when you do send out a news release.
   
   I've had my say. Now go forth and disseminate in a healthy manner!

Part IV Coming Soon...

The New Rules of Podcasting

1. Networks are a losing business model.
2. Signing away the exclusive rights to your podcast is a stupid thing to do.
3. Speaking at conferences does not qualify as an accomplishment.
4. Statistics and demographics are meaningless and useless. That's right, I said it. Your stats are useless. Why? Because there is no real accurate measure to determine the true reach of your podcast. Can you rely on file download stats? How about page views? Or accesses of your RSS feed?
   
   The right answer is that the reach of your podcast is some wild combination of all three. But no one has any algorithm available to tell you what you want to know. Take the volume of downloads for example. You can't just divide the MB of download in a day by the size of a file. That's because many downloads result in partial requests where the full file is never delivered. And it's very difficult to distinguish a complete download from a partial one. But you should probably count partial downloads that result from partial streams. How do you know which ones those are. You don't. And of those people who do get a complete download of your media file, how many consume the whole thing? Do they trade the files on peer-to-peer networks? Do they burn them to CD and share with friends and family. You have no way of knowing. So all the available metrics are useless.
   
   And what about demographics? Solid demographic data is considered a holy grail to traditional advertisers and the podcasters who love them. Demographics (i.e. age, education, sex, income, etc.) are general stereotypical guidelines for people's habits. Traditional advertisers live (and most of the time) die on demographic data. But there's a problem. In traditional media, the audience can be tightly controlled by the method of distribution. For example, magazine subscribers can be tightly targeted based on the content of the magazine and the location of their home. If someone knows that you like, say cooking for example, and they know your zip code they can then find out the cost of housing and the general affluence of an area. From then on they go wild making assumptions about who you are and what they can sell to you. This model in itself is flawed, but when applied to podcasting it simply gets ridiculous.
   
   Only a handful of podcasts, like the DRM infused Ricky Gervais podcast can exert any control over their distribution. Exerting control over the distribution channel is counter to the whole idea of podcasting anyway. So your show goes to an IP address which tells you as much about a person as their grandmother's maiden name. You just don't know who these people are. "I'll use the PodTrac Survey or Survey Monkey," you say. Great. Let's assume that 90% of the people that actually consume your show will not only take the survey, but answer the questions truthfully. And I'm being very generous with these percentages. What do you then do with that information? Do you make wholesale changes to your show if you find out you haven't captured the almighty 18-34 age group? Do you sulk if 60% of your subscribers are students from Sweden? No offense to the Swedes intended. And do you keep analyzing the survey weekly as new people subscribe to your show? So now you're in the demographics business. Just where you wanted to be I'm sure.
   
   Face facts. It's not worth your time to sweat numbers. It's nearly impossible to hit a moving target in the world of media. Any good show takes root and grows in audience based on a number of factors. You need to have unique content. You need to have content that people can't live without. You need to produce it well and on a reliable schedule. You need to interact with your subscribers. And you need to do all you can to promote your show. Download stats and demographics be damned. Focus on the content and selling your show. Ignore the numbers and the numbers will continue to rise. You're never going to know all the specifics and if you did you'd probably do something stupid like change a format that really energizes you.
   
   Every network TV show is built from the ground up based on ratings and demographics. What percentage of new shows these days last past a single season and find an audience? So much for the holy grail of stats and demographics.
   
   If you really want to get a feel for your audience, take steps to truly connect with them. Encourage your users to comment on your blog. Create a forum as an extension of your website. Include their comments and suggestions in the show. A strong bond with 200 subscribers is worth a lot more than 1000 subscribers who you never interact with. Good interaction takes effort, but it's worth it if you really want to know who's out their consuming your podcasts.
   

Part III coming soon.

There's so much happening with podcasting these days I just had to write a post to get my thoughts out on what I'm seeing. Much of what I see is not good. At least, it's not good in terms of my general perspective on the world.

So what makes me think what I've got to say is worth taking to heart? In short, I've been around. It's been fifteen years now since I graduated from college. Since then I've had at least a half dozen careers (by my own design) including small business owner and military officer. I've explored good portions of this planet above and below the surface of the water. And a year ago I welcomed a new being into the world as part of my family. If you want to know the details of these exploits, just ask me (but buy me a beer first.)

I'm hearing a lot of static these days in the buzz around podcasting. The signal to noise ratio is getting worse every week. There are a lot of lost people. A lot of people who think they can get a free ride on someone else's train. Even worse, there are a lot of people who are simply full of it. They do next to nothing, proclaim themselves leaders in the medium and then sell themselves on the lecture circuit. These folks will be in a town near you soon. And you'll be asked to pay to hear them talk in circles. These are just some of the ailments that threaten podcasting as an independent medium.

Are there good things happening? Lord Yes! Every day folks are jumping in with all the right intentions in mind. But every day the voices of the charlatans get louder too. So someone's got to tell it straight. And why not a guy born in Brooklyn and raised in Queens.

So without further fanfare, here are my new rules of podcasting.

1. Networks are a losing business model. The economics of media are subject to the same forces as any commodity. Winners benefit from great demand and constrained supply. Let's throw in the additional factor of originality just to keep ourselves honest. Podcasting has a such low barriers to entry that the market is already flooded with a supply of content. Ninety-nine percent of that content is not affiliated with any kind of network. Podshow has somewhere around fifty podcasts under contract. The Podcast Network has about sixty-five shows. There are other networks like PodTech, PodcasterNews.com and TechPodcasts.com.
   
   Add up the shows in all the aforementioned networks and you've got hardly a drop in the bucket compared to the 15,000 plus active podcasts in existence. In traditional media networks can work because growth of new outlets is constrained. Not so in podcasting. No one can constrain the growth of podcast shows. And with growth comes alternatives to everything that exists today. Listened to a few music shows on your favorite podcast network? There are a thousand others available for the ears of every potential new subscriber. Just watched the new video podcast with the chicks ta ta's hanging out? There's plenty of raunchy podsexy content available from other independent producers.
   
   Add to the mix the fact that advertising dollars are trickling in to the medium. You watch as advertisers make an end around and start producing their own podcasts instead of taking their chances on a rag tag bunch of indie media producers who night just screw up their message. The dollars that do flow in will get real thin by the time they get to the working stiff who signed away their podcast for the possibility of $400 a month. And those folks will be none to happy.
   
   If you want to start or join a network, only do so in the spirit of aggregating like content so that subscribers can more easily find your genre of show. Do so in order to build a community and gain subscribership. The Culinary Podcast Network (no VC money needed here) is a great example of such an endeavor. But don't think the economics of that network will ever truly support your lifestyle.
   
   
2. Signing away the exclusive rights to your podcast is a stupid thing to do. If you think you have any talent you should never sign away the exclusive rights to anything you own unless you get paid nice $$$ up front. The guy who wrote the Good Will Hunting script (and no it wasn't Matt and Ben) got paid a huge six figure sum to walk away from his original work. That was a smart move. Signing away the rights to your name, likeness and any podcast you are involved with for nothing up front is the same thing as saying, "I know I suck and I'm hoping that someone else's name on top of my podcast will make it better and more marketable." Remember when Michael Jordan owned the Washington Wizards? Didn't do a friggin thing for that team.
   
   "But I wanna make some money!" you cry. Then do this. Produce your podcast for at least a year. Find your voice. Hone your craft. Develop a mini brand. And after you've done that take step back and ask yourself if you're proud of what you've done. If the answer is yes then that's something worth money up front. If the answer is no then sign away but it's still gonna suck even with a shiny new logo on your WordPress pages.
   
   If you're proud of your podcast and think it's worth money, do the following. Hook up with people who deal in non-exclusive agreements that don't include the right to youre name and likeness. Even if they don't pay something up front you'll have a lot more freedom and options. Create a sales pitch and spend some time pounding the pavement to find sponsor and solicit their business directly. The worst thing anyone can say to your pitch is "No!" And if you do snag a client you'll get 100% of the money instead of the much smaller percentage paid by the folks rolling up all those podcasts for nothing.
   
   
3. Speaking at conferences does not qualify as an accomplishment. Some of the folks that speak at conferences are very knowledgable people who do a lot for the medium. There are others who do little more than well...speak at conferences. The real accomplishments involve practicing the medium in such a way that you deliver quality content and empower others to create and distribute quality independent content. There are people I know who bust their tail and create great, inspiring podcast shows. They don't happen to be part of the freshman class or the self appointed podcasting glitterati. But these are the people that I would pay to hear speak on podcasting.
   
   So if you want to be a cocktail party podcaster who puts out two shows over a six month period and then starts promoting yourself as an 'expert' then go ahead. But the real podcasters will know you're full of it. And sooner than you think everyone else will too.
   
   And that's not to say that you can't be knowledgable and speak on podcasting if you rarely publish a show because there are some very smart folks speaking out there. But there are just as many arrogant, elitist types who are dabbling in the medium.
   
   If you want to be an accomplished member of the truly respected podcasting vanguard, do the following. Do your best to create a quality show. Be knowledgable on the latest podcasting tools and techniques then share that knowledge as much as you can. Treat your subscribers like friends, rather than a demographic. Listen to what your subscribers have to say and always reply to their emails. And ALWAYS thank people for subscribing to your show.
   
   If you're an individual looking to get podcast knowledge, your first choice for development on the topic should be folks in your local area who are already practicing the medium. Meetup.com has been out on the forefront in bringing groups of podcasters together. And associations like Podcast MN, Britcaster and the NYC Podcast Community are some examples of places where you can find and connect with podcasters from a local community.
   
   So before you spend your hard earned money on travel costs and entrance fees, consider connecting with the locals to find out all you need to know about podcasting.
   

Part II coming soon.

I've found an interesting discussion on Podcasting going on at the Make You Go Hmm blog. The conversation started with a report that Mick Stantic, co-founder of The Podcast Network with Cameron Reilly has walked away from that venture.

The writer continues in his post to discuss the viability of certain business models in Podcasting. The comments get interesting so read more than just the main post.

My thoughts are these. There are no leaders in Podcasting right now. The network is distributed. PodShow is the leader in generating meaningless press. After all, press don't pay the bills for a fancy SanFran office with a kitchen. And neither do link referrals to GoDaddy. Odeo is still trying to find their footing, but at least they're moving their service forward in a meaningful way. Podcast Pickle is my favorite underdog. Their community is kitschy but undeniably vibrant. And they're the only one of the three mentioned here to really embrace video podcasting.

Plus, more comers are getting into the mix. Pluggd just went into Beta. And Podcast.com is now in Alpha mode. Let's not forget that iTunes is still the giant in Podcast distribution. And Yahoo! Podcasts are quietly upgrading their service as well.

So who wins here? Apple has already won in a sense. They had the legacy, benefitted from a friendly name and ran with it early. Yahoo! has the capital to do whatever they want for as long as they want so they will always be there in some form. The rest are left to slug it out in the mud.

Some will be bought by larger players looking to leverage the brand and technology. Some will outright fail. And probably one of the current crop of small players will survive to become something larger.

Hilary reports that ID3 Podcast magazine, the folks who took subscription money from people, have now decided not to go to print because they can't afford it.

So it was okay for unsuspecting podcast junkies from around the world to gleefully send cash, but the founders of this magazine weren't willing to take an initial loss on their own venture.

Always begin a business plan with a reality check. For starters, any real entrepreneur would know that you can't expect to make a profit in your first year in the magazine business. If JFK Jr. couldn't make a profit in the magazine business then what made these guys think they would make a profit right off the bat?

Smells like Silly-Con Valley circa 1999. I won't go there in this post.

Unfortunately I think that this situation underscores the hype problem happening in Podcasting.

Here you have people that have no idea what it takes to produce a print magazine, yet somehow they feel like they can promise to deliver and collect subscription money to boot. So the money sent to them for subscriptions basically amounts to an interest free loan to their venture. It's the same thing as floating a check when you know that the money is not in the account to cover it.

They will return the money I'm sure but the black eye to all podcasting related ventures will remain. People will look at podcasting related start ups and think, "It's all just hype."

I'm sorry but anyone who knows a thing about business knows that you don't take a cent from a customer unless you know that you can deliver on your promise. And these people took money without having a completed plan for their business.

Perhaps I'm being a bit hard on the ID3 lads. But people who want to make money off of Podcasting and Podcasters need to be serious about their trade. And that means crafting a common sense business plan prior to hyping what you've got to offer.

I'm definitely picking on the ID3 Mag now but there are other podcasting "start ups" that haven't done squat since they launched a press release and web page. And please let's not count speaking at conferences as accomplishments. But as far as I know they haven't taken money from people and failed to deliver.

So all you prospective Podcast entrepreneurs take some advice to heart. Knowing technology does not mean you know a thing about running a business. Partner up with someone who has a good deal of business experience. And write a thorough business plan that includes realistic financials prior to sending out a press release or launching a website. Make sure that the cash in your pocket can get you through at least six months of business before you take a cent from your customers.

By doing so you won't make a fool of yourselves and the people who put their trust in you.

The Odeo Blog is reporting that Odeo has spun off their Odeo Studio to a new site at http://studio.odeo.com. So the main Odeo website will be the place for finding and listening to podcasts while the new Studio website will be the place for content creators and publishers.

The move makes sense to me because it prevents confusion about whether Odeo is a tool for podcast producers or a place to find podcasts. Producers go to one place and consumers go to another.

Video podcasting just got a whole lot cheaper! According to this post from the folks at PodServe, they now support upload of .MOV and .MP4 files of up to 100MB.

Don't ask me how they do it. But they do it and it works. So if you've been on the fence about whether or not to start a podcast then you can't lose by trying out their free service.

Have you ever noticed that the site called Podcasting News rarely if ever includes external links to information sources or relevant websites in the items posted to their blog feed? I have and it really pisses me off. So much so that I'm unsubscribing from their useless feed, much of which is culled from press releases that are regurgitated as "news.' Not news, just regurgitated PR hype.

And when Podcasting (Not!) News links to podcasts in their (Not!) news posts they rarely do a favor of linking to a podcast producer's website. Users are sent on to Podcasting (Not!) News' lame feed reproduction pages, which don't include links to the feed owner's websites.

Oh wait! They do include external links to a site called Video Podcasting News. I did a little check on the Who Is for both sites. Turns out that both "news" sites are registered to the same individual, although you would never know that the two sites are connected.

So why am I so miffed? There is a thing in the world of blogging called etiquette. Proper blogging etiquette dictates that you link relevant sites that you mention as well as linking to the proper information sources. Based on the practices of Podcasting (Not!) News you would be left to assume that they are the originating source for all of this information. Alas, they are not.

You know who you are over there. And you've been doing this long enough to know that you should give credit where credit is due.