Sigh. I’d be one of the last ones to admit it, of course.
But I guess it depends on what you mean by “dead.”
The cart software platform that I use on my PC to record and produce my shows — Podcast Station — is no longer being made or supported by its manufacturer, despite being pretty much the only such product in its affordable price range that I’m aware of.
Then there’s the news about one of the major podcasting networks possibly heading for the Long Kiss Goodnight. It’s a little premature, but the degree of caution put out by the higher ups at Podango (to their eminent credit, btw) is signaling a certain chill in this neck of the woods.
At least, from an ad revenue point of view.
And for years now, that’s been where most of the attention has been, among podcasters: monetizing your shows. For a few shows, like Grape Radio, it has worked spectacularly. Ask A Ninja and French Maid TV come immediately to mind, as well.
Not coincidentally, all 3 have strong video content. Everyone loves sight as well as sound, and if you want to generate bucks, you have to do what it takes to appeal to everyone.
Dolts That We Are, It’s Never Been About The Money
Of course, from a medical podcasting standpoint, garnering major income from the audio programs themselves has never really been the prime directive.
Not that it couldn’t — hell, yes, ad folks would be interested in the average physician’s trusted headlock on his or her few thousand patients. But the appeal of medical podcasting for practicing physicians has always been more about potentially shoring up their practices:
- retaining existing patients, by providing additional, personalized, in-depth content
- attracting new, desirable patients, by “broadcasting” what the practice does best and likes best to treat
- possibly providing additional income via premium podcasting of special educational programs
The Podcasting News story goes on to cite that “the number of podcasts and podcast listeners is growing at an amazing rate”; it’s just that web-hosting services specific to podcasting (like Podango) may be in danger, with the ubiquity of free or low cost web hosting services and blog/podcasting software. Certainly, there’s no shortage of podcasts on iTunes, and you can listen to audio podcasts on your Apple TV, iPhone, iPod, or TiVo.
The medium itself isn’t going to disappear anytime soon.
Is Podcasting Going To Disappear, Ever?
Never say never, but until such time as it’s no longer valuable to listen to a point of view (i.e. humanity evolves beyond social primate-hood), or to listen to material while you multi-task with your eyes, audio-only podcasting will never die.
Medical podcasting for medical practices will always be oriented to those 2 particulars unique to audio podcasting:
- Lots of concerned patients multi-task; it’s dangerous watching a video while driving to work.
- And few patients need to see you boogie in a video to convince them to trust you; they already trust you, seeing as how you’re their doctor.
Plus, as I’ve alluded to before, it’s a heck of a lot easier to produce an audio show than an audio + video one.
Check out some of those successful podcasts I mentioned, in particular Grape Radio, which is based on a model that most medical practices can identify with (few stunts and no flesh). It utilizes all 3 modes of modern communication to connect with its audience — video, audio podcast, and blog texts — so there’s no one it can’t reach, unless they’re blind, deaf, illiterate, and off the Internet.
Not coincidentally, being a triple threat works for you as a medical professional:
- If you’re motivated and creative, video is hard to beat.
- If you’re feeling thoughtful, conceptual, and mentor-like (as most doctors do), audio never grows stale.
- If you’re pressed for time or still getting your podcasting and video production skills up to speed, you can dash off a blog post.
Any which way, your patients will appreciate the added value of your time and thoughtfulness, in the modern digital age.
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