Show #12: Don’t Even Think About Selling Podcasting Short
I’ve been in medical podcasting for close to 2 years now — about half the duration it’s been fairly popular as a new medium. (That’s not me in the pic, BTW, it’s an older gent, courtesy of iStockphoto, embodying today’s theme: maturity is a good thing.)
I started out as an interested rank beginner who knew squat about recording and Internet dissemination of audio, but who was totally taken with the possibility of getting my own shows out there.
Besotted, I met some wonderful folk, asked tons of questions, and went to my first Podcast and New Media Expo.
And I noticed something. And thank God I only slowed down instead of stopping.
If you’re not careful, you’ll notice it, too — and be tempted to make a potentially crappy decision.
The Thrill Is Gone — And That’s A Good Thing
It’s hard to see if you haven’t rubbed shoulders with a number of folk doing this, but podcasting — and by this I mean audio podcasting, as opposed to vidcasting or video podcasting — had a certain buzz that has faded over the past few years.
Today’s show explains why that’s not only a good thing; it’s an inevitable thing. I hope I never lose my enthusiasm for this medium that’s been a labor of love, emphasis on the labor, but I’m glad it’s still around, and myself with it.
Because when you’re into something for the long haul, there had better be more to it than first-sight thrills.
The Podcasting Medium Is A Happy Medium
Podcasting is still the best choice for medpros wanting to reach out to their patients and pull them in by the jugular.
There’s no reason you have to limit yourself to blogging, or podcasting, or videocasting. Do them all, and you’ll reach more people; we all respond best to different means of communication.
But if you have to keep yourself to just one medium, today’s show describes how audio podcasting hits that sweet spot between effectiveness on the audience end, and efficiency on yours.
3 comments
This is an interesting show Peter. I agree that the ‘newness’ (is that a word?) has worn off of Podcasting for the hobbyist. In the early days, it was a tight knit group of people and everyone knew each other. Now, the word Podcasting is being used by large entities and media outlets, which means the medium is no longer unique.
The inevitable Goldrush syndrome will no doubt be repeated with Podcasting and New Media in general. However, just because the mania has fallen a bit doesn’t mean we’ve stopped buying gold. It simply means the market has stabilized.
This cycle can be associated with any new phenomenon over the decades. Podcasting and New Media are here to stay. The names may change and there will be many tweaks along the way, but the idea of on-demand information is here to stay. No longer are we content to listen and view information at the whim of a programming executive.
Keep the information flowing and they will come.
Best,
Mark
You should know, Mark! Great hearing from you!
I specifically recall a fellow MD, already deeply into blogging, who after careful consideration, decided against podcasting a communications medium for his material.
I had to respect his reasoning: it is easier and quicker to blog, as well as to read blog posts. But there’s really something so deeply ingrained in us as a species: the almost hypnotic quality of a good story, when spoken aloud. I’m convinced it’s a hard-wired thing.
As you and I have discussed, that’s why “radio,” in one form or another, will never disappear. Podcasting harnesses economies of scale in reverse to work for individuals, removing traditional barriers to broadcasting one’s passion. When people hear that passion and it matches their own, you have an audience, riveted.
Speak your passion to theirs, and they will stay.
Great Podcast, Peter. I really like your professional intro, which is something I’m still struggling with.
The new media is here to stay, just as new technologies in medicine, such as EHRs, are here to stay. How we’ll use them, and how our patients will use them, will be the debate!
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