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Exactly What Is Podcasting?

It took me a few hours of reading to figure it all out, but I think I have it now. First of all, you do not need a pond, or even a fishing pole for podcasting. I'll explain what you do need in a minute, but first let me explain what podcasting is...

When using the Internet, do you simply visit different sites in order to get the information you want? If so, you're a lot like me.

But what if that data came to you instead, without the need to visit the site that provides it? Wouldn't that save you a lot of time surfing the web?

Well, that's sort of what podcasting is all about -- the scenario where you receive the data directly from the originator, rather than visit the website to get the data.

So, what is a podcast? Think of the word "broadcast". What do you picture? Perhaps, you see someone listening to the news on a radio. Or you might see someone watching a baseball game on TV. You may even see a PC on a network transmitting packets of information.

So, broadcasting is the process of sending out information to an audience. These audiences, with the right equipment, will be able to receive and decode the signals being transmitted. There is one source and, normally, many recipients.

Similarly, with podcasting, digital files are being sent out from a server to people who subscribe to them. Although it is a form of file-sharing over the Internet (like direct downloading or streaming), podcasting is distinguished by its ability to be syndicated, subscribed to, and downloaded automatically when there's new data added. This is done using an aggregator or feed reader, such as RSS or Atom, that can read feed formats.

Don't worry if those technical terms scare you, it's really pretty simple as you'll see below...

How Do You Listen To Podcasts?

First you need one of those gadgets... such as a iPod or a Microsoft Zune.

When you connect your gadget to your computer a podcatching client will load. This is software that makes full use of the features of the podcasts' syndication. Examples of these podcatching clients are Apple's iTunes, Microsoft's Zune Marketplace, Juice, and Podget.

Via your podcatching client, programs, or episodes, received from podcasters can be played on the computer or transferred to a portable media player, such as the iPod. You can then take the iPod anywhere you want and all your favorite podcasts are there for your listening pleasure.

(If you're curious where the word "podcast" came from, I found two explanations of the etymology of the word, "podcasting." One explanation is that it is a combination of the words "iPod" and "broadcasting". The other explanation is that the root of the word comes from the acronym for "personal on demand," which would be pod. Personal on demand broadcasting becomes podcasting.).

So what types of programs are available via podcasts? Just about anything you can think of. And if you have the right gadget, you can even get video podcasts.

Some examples of content available include music, audio books, school lessons, conference meetings, public safety messages and more. Most of the content is free, though you'll also find content with paid subscription fees.

More after this important message...

How Can You Broadcast Your Own Podcasts?

This is a little trickier than simply listening to podcasts.

The first thing you need is a domain name. This will provide your subscribers the location where they can get your media files. Try to select a name that is easy to remember and tells the type of podcast you are publishing.

Next you will need is web host. There are several companies that you can go to when looking for a web host, just be sure to consider getting lots of disk space since you will be storing a large amount of media files. For example, a 2-minute mp3 file may be 2 MB in size.

Also consider the amount of bandwidth the company is offering. This is the amount of data that can be transferred to and from your host every month. Since you will have large data files, having just a few subscribers can use up all your bandwidth in a matter of days. 100 GB of bandwidth may be enough, but be sure to increase this once you get a lot of subscribers.

Once you have your website setup, download a program called dircaster at dircaster.org. This is an opensource podcasting script that lets you start podcasting from your site. Configure this program to reflect the details of your domain then upload it to your site.

The next step is to record the media file, called an episode, that you will podcast. One software that you can use is Audacity. This is a free, open source software to record and edit sounds.

Record your episode from a microphone, a CD, the computer's sound card, or even a VOIP conversation. Edit the file, such as mixing tracks (voice and music), cut segments, or add segments. You also should be adding tags and descriptions on your episode.

Upload this media file in the same directory as the dircaster.php. The dircaster will then generate a RSS feed telling your subscribers about the new file that they can download.

As you can see, creating a podcast can be pretty simple and inexpensive if you're willing to go through a small learning curve. The software needed is free and if you have something to share, podcasting is a great way to provide your information to the Internet.

So that you can see how podcasting can be used in business, here's an example of how a local ski area used podcasts to promote their business...

The target market for a typical ski resort includes young professionals in their 20s and 30s, with an adventure-loving attitude to recreation, and plenty of disposable income. That's right on target for the core market that buys iPods and other high-tech gadgets.

Marketing Sherpa reports that New England ski area Killington Ski Resorts recently tapped into this useful convergence of market niches to create a Podcast-driven marketing campaign.

The challenge was to reach the ideal demographic of young urban professionals, who are typically hard to get at through traditional ski industry marketing media such as radio, TV and magazines. Their lives are cluttered with a blizzard of conflicting media, their attention fragmented and hard to hold.

Killington Resorts communications manager Tom Horrocks recognized that one unifying factor of this demographic is their almost cultish love of iPods and portable digital audio. He decided that Podcasts would be an ideal way to connect with them on their own terms.

Here's how he put the campaign together:

1) Bought software and digital microphones that his team could use right in the office to create Podcasts.

2) Hired a "snow reporter / media writer" to act as a personable and enthusiastic character, to become identified as the Podcast voice of the resort.

3) Developed and produced 3 separate Podcasts: a 3-minute "Snowcast" of daily weather and snow condition reports; a 12-minute weekly "Driftcast" that delivered interviews, tips and stories from the mountain; and a 3-hour weekly music production, more like and FM radio segment, with music appealing to the target demographic.

4) Delivered the Podcasts regularly, on schedule, through popular distribution services including Apple's iTunes online music service, Podcast Alley, and Yahoo!, as well as through the Resorts' own Web site.

The results were impressive. Over a period of 2 months at the beginning of 2006, the Podcasts were downloaded nearly 30,000 times. The downside of Podcast marketing is that it is hard to track results. Once the audio is downloaded, there's no built-in way to measure how the listener responds or takes action.

However, Tom Horrocks is sure the Podcasts delivered a good return on investment. He credits the campaign's success to the flair of the resort's Podcast personality, known as Anna of the Mountain. "She epitomizes Killington: young, passionate, crazy about skiing."

Maybe you can find a way to use podcasting in your business...

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