In this episode of The Podcast Reporter, we ask ourselves the perpetual question of: “When do we approach the ‘twilight years’ of podcasting?” or “Have we reached our twilight years of podcasting?”
This theme was approached once before in 2018, but it is certainly an important issue for those of us who have been podcasting for the last 15 years, as I have. In fact, I started my first podcast when I was in my mid-50s, and I am still continuing to produce podcast episodes for my two main podcast shows, PodcastReporter.com and 2030Podcast.com — as well as adding a newer podcast series called The Struggling Biz.
As you will hear in this audio episode, although there is a lot of personal perspectives and my own history in this episode, it is important for us to reflect that we owe the benefits of podcasting to those who did pioneer the path for us today from the beginning of the podosphere in 2004. Their names are mentioned in this audio episode.
But, as for the senior podcasters involved, the question that has to be answered is: “Are you in your own twilight years for any type of reason?” and “Are you approaching your own twilight years for podcasting?” I hope this provides some food for thought.
Thank you for your attention.
Copyright (c) 2021, Matrix Solutions Corporation. All rights reserved.
In this episode of The Podcast Reporter, we deliver some thoughts from an old benefit of starting a podcast. Initially, you were told by such pundits in podcasting like Dave Jackson of the School of Podcasting that podcasts can help you grow your sphere of influence (as well as grow your audience).
Well, after some thought, I have a case study that proves to new and aspiring podcasters, that podcasting can help your sphere of influence to GROW YOU.
Case study is a podcast show that has been around since 2014 — The 2030 Podcast. And, as a short story, this podcast had absolutely NO promotion or marketing or sales calls-to-action. In fact, there was not even a SUBSCRIBE button on the web page of its latest episode, or on the web pages of its prior episodes.
This podcast show grew when its episodes were picked up anonymously by a current podcast show, Grumpy Old Bens, by one of the co-hosts (Sir Ryan Bemrose) and included on a 24-hour online stream (noagendastream.com). It was played as a published episode in which the producing managers found value in what was said and knew that the current audience of noagendastream.com would find it as having great VALUE to the current stream audience.
Now, I myself, as a subscriber to the Grumpy Old Bens show, had heard during various hours of this 24-hour stream my episodes being played and broadcast on the stream. What a wonderful surprise it was to me — and I quickly informed my co-host, Matt Cox of the podcast show called Brunch with the Brits, of that activity. He was surprised and glad of that activity.
But again, there was NO marketing, no promotion, no sales, no bumpers, etc. of any sort to try and increase our audience, and thus to GROW OUR INFLUENCE.
The results: well, since that time, over several months, our download numbers have grown — sometimes to 3,000 downloads per week per episode or more. And all this due to like-minded listeners receiving the stream and hearing our podcast show episodes. And they, then have downloaded the episodes and listened to them.
So, as Dave Jackson said in a recent podcast episode of his School of Podcastingshow: “podcasting can help grow your sphere of influence…”
And now, we have seen that, in our experience, podcasting can help your sphere of influence grow the PODCASTER and the SHOW.
As you will hear in this audio episode, we have included a recent small clip from a show, Grumpy Old Bens, that describes the VALUE of our 2030podcast.com show, in which the co-hosts actually promote the show to their fan base of listeners (that is, to their own sphere of influence).
So, as you can see, there is no absolute rule that your podcast must have a plan to drive listeners and increase your audience numbers by growing your sphere of influence. There is always a situation that defies conventional wisdom by having your sphere of influence grow YOU.
We hope that this episode could give you another proven method for you, as an aspiring or new podcaster, to improve the results of your podcast show and episodes. And we wish for you the best in podcasting.
Thank you for your attention.
Copyright (c) 2021, Matrix Solutions Corporation and Grumpy Old Bens. All rights reserved.
In this episode of The Podcast Reporter, we discuss a case study in which a podcast show can gain discovery and popularity within a podcast network — and how serendipity can occur to help grow the podcast show to possible success. And this is with a current podcast show called 2030podcast.com . This is a show that has two co-hosts — and I am one of them, along with Matt Cox, a podcaster of his own show, Brunch with the Brits.
First, we review a bit of the background of this show.
In 2014, I myself had a meeting with Adam Curry (aka The Podfather) in Austin, Texas. The meeting saw us actually do 3 interviews and have a lunch while discussed various topics in motion pictures (e.g., For Greater Glory and We Were Soldiers, etc.) and podcasting. And one of the interviews that I was able to record with him was concerning the theme of a podcast show that I had recently created and announced — the 2030podcast.com show. While Adam Curry initially gave me the idea for this show on his No Agenda podcast show, he was glad that I was able to take action to produce this show — and our interview served as the first episode of this show. called 2030podcast.com.
While I tried to get the podcast show off the ground, family and personal medical problems (along with the dementia and death of my mother) kept me out of podcasting. But later on, I resurrected the podcast show, and then I included a co-host named Matt Cox (a podcaster from his own podcast show of Brunch with the Brits) to share the mic with me in creating our thoughts on what would be our vision of the world of 2030 — including many of the ideas discussed by Adam Curry and myself in the 2014 interview.
The Current status of 2030podcast.com
As Matt Cox and myself created and published our episodes starting in October of 2018, our teamwork, dialog, banter and reciprocal respect increased — and, in my opinion, so did the value of our content for the intended audience (which were the producers of the No Agenda podcast show, along with the listeners of the Grumpy Old Bens show and the Randumb Thoughts podcast).
And so it was around episode # 14 in 2020 that I was able to hear that particular episode of 2030Podcast.com being broadcast on the NoAgendaStream.com. Now, neither myself nor Matt Cox had been actively seeking promotion for our show. But someone who valued our content was able to promote our show and have it actually be published and broadcast on the stream. In fact, in one episode of the No Agenda show (# 1276) during the live broadcast, the ending of the episode has Adam Curry state that what would follow next on the stream would be the 2030 Podcast episode. And it did, in entirety.
Now, what could I have thought about this?
Serendipity? Yes, insofar as how Charlton Heston described it as a random act of positive activity that delivers fortunate results. Or, as the wikipedia definition states: “…a happy accident…Serendipity is an unplanned fortunate discovery.”
And so what can serendipity mean for the podcaster?
Well, if you encounter serendipity in your podcasting career or show or business, you may end up with a happy accident — one that you were NOT pursuing, but that landed “in your lap” to cause a fortunate result for you and your show.
For myself and Matt, this means that we can grow our listeners, our audience and our show by being on a network (a stream) of engaged listeners that can only help us to increase the VALUE of our show to them.
For you, as a podcaster, we recommend that you, too, can be available for events and activities that can deliver serendipity to you by creating the best content that you have and being the best, consistent and value-based podcaster that you can be.
How can this be a preparation for serendipity?
Well, the final example cited here is from an introduction to the movie Day of the Jackal by the late Robert Osborne from his TCM channel. This situation had Fred Zinnemann (the director of the film) see a play (which he said was not very good) with an actor named Edward Fox, who delivered a performance which really impresssed Zinnemann. And thus, Fox was cast as the lead role. And the reason: a performer should always deliver his best, “because you never know who is watching.”
And, thus, a podcaster can never know who is listening — and which results may occur from the “performance” of delivering great value in the podcast show. So we hope that you can receive serendipity in your environment to have your show succeed.
Thank you for your attention.
Copyright (c) 2020, Matrix Solutions Corporation . All rights reserved.
In this episode, we focus on Adam Curry, the previous VJ from MTV in years past, who is known as the Podfather — since he and Dave Winer are the creators of podcasting. In today’s environment, Adam is the host of a podcast show, No Agenda, along with John C Dvorak, his co-host.
In particular, we include a prior repurposed episode when I interviewed Adam Curry in Austin to speak about the upcoming podcast show, 2030podcast.com. In fact, as you will hear in this audio episode, it also has been included as episode 1 of that show, 2030podcast.com.
Thus, this repurposed episode (it was episode # 97 of this show, podcastreporter.com) can give you an idea of how another podcast show was spawned with the suggestion and creative thoughts of Adam Curry.
So we hope that you will enjoy this repurposed episode from the live interview in Austin with Adam Curry and myself — especially when we discuss how his suggestion has actually resulted in my podcast show that will discuss the possible coming issues and environment for the year 2030 (and events leading up to that time).
[Editor’s note: the reference to the hardware solution for Podcaster Pro from Adam Curry was canceled, due to the inability to get the minimum order in crowdfunding. Adam delivers the details in several episodes of his No Agendashow.]
Thank you for your attention, and we shall see you next time.
Copyright (c) 2020, Matrix Solutions Corporation and Adam Curry and 2030podcast.com. All rights reserved.
In this episode of The Podcast Reporter, we focus on podcasting with a co-host. We also refer to an article in themedium.com that was written by Joseph Anderson and deals with issues of co-host podcast recording.
Several points refer to respect for, and planning with, your co-host for best success — especially if both of your are employed or if distance keeps you quite distant from each other.
And finally, the topic of co-host issues was addressed very successfully by podcaster Daniel J Lewis of The Audacity to Podcast in his back catalog of episodes. I heartily recommend that you may wish to review this content, for his detail is great in trying to cover all the angles that you may examine.
We hope that you can have a great working relationship with any potential co-host and have a successful podcast with great content and a great following.
Thank you for your attention.
Copyright (c) 2020, Matrix Solutions Corporation and themedium.com and 2030podcast.com and Joseph Anderson. All rights reserved.
In this episode of PodcastReporter.com, we discuss the increase and growth of podcasting during the crisis of the Chinese Wuhan Virus (aka covid-19 or corona virus).
From this repurposed episode from March of 2020, we noticed the surge of new podcast shows being created, as well as the amount of new episodes being published.
This discussion is timely and attests to the situation that stared all of us podcasters in the face during the period of March, 2020.
Thank you for your attention.
Copyright (c) 2020, Matrix Solutions Corporation. All rights reserved.
