Lately, I’ve been browsing the interweb to see what else is up in this media niche that I’m here being a part of. Lots of great people are doing great things, a lot of which overlap with things that I do, or want to be doing. An easy first reaction is to toss up my hands and despair that I don’t have any original ideas – which is frankly, a load of crap. All the same, if you then go and make the same exact kind of product, you flood the “market” and reduce the value of everyone’s productions – particularly your own. It’s basic market theory, and one that independent hobbyist media producers can learn a lot from.
One, there is no competing on price (for most of us). A small handful of podcasts charge for premium content, but most are available for free. This means that in as much as we “compete,” we have to differentiate ourselves to grab the ears of potential listeners.
Two, realize that bringing your own ideas, goals, prejudices, and personality to the content you produce is in itself a method of differentiation. I’ve won listeners based on the simple fact that my show generally runs 20 minutes long. This makes it easy to digest during many more people’s commutes; so even if my show is completely elastic with another, longer show – I can still win the air time.
Three, the rate of podcast turnover, aka podfading, continues to be pretty high. Making content and keeping on making it is also a way to gain airtime; long-running shows are frequently given more implicit trust in terms of quality than a show that is still only in the single digits. I wouldn’t call it a deal breaker, but I feel that my first dozen shows kinda suck – and personally tend not to listen to anything less than #10 from a podcast I’m sampling.
All of this analysis leads to my inquiry: what do you (dear listener) want from the show? Interviews, video, travelogues? I’m thinking about trying out some voice work and maybe recording some audio stories. I’m wondering if you would be interested in classes about cooking skills – techniques and science, more than recipes. More photos? More creativity chatter? Shout out, here or on Twitter!
