Starting your own podcast is not difficult. Knowing where to start can be. What though, are the benefits of having a podcast for your own wedding or portrait photography business? These are the topics covered in this episode with my guest Dave Jackson from The School of Podcasting.

Having Dave on the show was bizarre for me – I felt like I knew him very well… even though we've never met. Dave and I have spent hours together, literally scores of hours, in my car. I've been listening to Dave via his podcasts for a long time in the lead up to starting this podcast. During those long drives I feel as though I know him very well  – sure he taught me about starting my own podcast but I also know about his wife recently being sick, his other job as a business trainer, that he has struggled to lose weight over the years; you get the idea.

Point is, I feel like I have a connection with Dave because of his podcast.

You can create that same connection with your clients. Get it? Can you see the power of a podcast?

With your own show, you can become the baby portrait expert in Adelaide, the documentary wedding photographer for Boston or the best photographer in Cairns. You will be seen as the expert. The go to person.

Not only that, with a podcast, you'll see improved Google rankings through the “SEO juice” of having a podcast – remember, iTunes is another big search engine. Each episode is another link to your site, another lot of helpful content and more clients benefiting from what you know.

Interested is getting started or finding more?

Here's some of what we cover in the interview:

  • Equipment (not as much or as expensive as you might think)
  • What is a podcast – as opposed to audio on your site?
  • The benefits of having a podcast
    Dave Jackson, podcast coast

    Dave Jackson is the “go to guy” if you need any help kicking off your own podcast.

  • Recording your first show
  • Getting into iTunes
  • Intros and outros
  • Getting your podcast found in Google, ie; getting ranked
  • Do you need a radio voice?
  • Benefits and downfalls of having transcriptions done
  • Album artwork – what you see in iTunes
  • Getting listeners to your show
  • Content and topics to cover
  • RSS feeds – what are they and why they matter
  • Software for editing – you probably already have it
  • Using music in your show
Once you start your own podcast, doors will open, opportunities will present themselves. The difficult part is starting but I know that once you do, you'll be glad you did.

Oh yeah – you will not like the sound of your own voice when you start. Nobody does. It passes… I promise. You don't actually get to like it, you just forget about it. 🙂

Subscribe to the Podcast for your listening pleasure

I received a letter from Glen about his frustration when iTunes didn't remember his place when coming back to a previously listened to episode. Here is his letter:

Hello,

I was actually really liking the first ever podcast I started listening to although I needed to pause it to do something… turns out you can't pause a live podcast in iTunes, so I then tried the player on this photobizx website… but you can't fast forward to were you were up to. (Unless you slowly wait for it to load up to where one previously was).

This is very annoying and I know I will leave this site back to where I was before I discovered it.

I am telling you this as I'm sure many other people have this same annoying issue.

I really appreciate the message from Glen and cover the best way to listen in the show but here is my reply to Glen:

Hi Glen

Thanks for your email – not sure I have the perfect solution though.

The only way you can pause in iTunes is if you have the podcast downloaded to your iTunes app on your computer, you have to subscribe to do that (which is free by the way) – as you found, it can't be done when listening directly from the web – annoying, I agree.

I can't change the way the player works on my site either, sorry.

If you think you may listen again, to my podcast or any others, the best thing is to download a podcatcher app for your phone – I use “iCatcher” which works great and remembers where you were up to. Other really popular apps are pocketcast and downcast – or the iTunes podcast app for your phone. These are all pretty similar.

The other cool and popular way to listen to podcasts is Stitcher.com – definitely worth checking out. You can download the app for iPhone or android or listen from your computer.

Hope that helps and definitely hope you come back for another listen.

Speak soon

Andrew

If you're in the same boat, hopefully you'll subscribe and get yourself a podcatcher app to make listening much easier and user friendly.

Items mentioned in this podcast:

Dave Jackson's – School of Podcasting

Weekly Web Tools – One of Dave's other podcasts

Blog Talk Radio – Dave advises NOT to use this service

Audio Technica ATR2100 microphone

Photo Biz eXposed podcast

Get the right app to make listening to podcasts a pleasure.

Heil PR-40 Dynamic Studio Recording Microphone

http://schoolofpodcasting.fm – Dave's podcast for absolute beginners to podcasting

Podcast Album Art – Podcast Designs

Mac software to edit audio – Garage Band

Free software to edit audio (windows & Mac) – Audacity

Free music resources – Triple Scoop Music

Podcast Media hosting Company – Lybsyn

Podcast Media hosting Company – Blubrry

You can email Dave at: dave@schoolofpodcasting.com

iCatcher – podcatcher app

Downcast – podcatcher app

Pocketcasts – podcatcher app

The podcast app from iTunes

Special shout out

Big thanks to Glen Moret for adding his rating and review in iTunes! If you'd like to give an honest review and rating of the show, it'd be helpful to me and appreciated. Should take you less than 2 minutes and helps others find the show. Click here to go to iTunes and leave your review.

Thanks again for tuning in, hope you have a fantastic week!

Speak soon

Andrew