1. Neville Hobson
Podcasting for Business
• How-to?
• Engagement and community-building
Neville Hobson
@jangles
Like Minds Exeter
May 25, 2012
#likeminds #fir

2. Neville Hobson

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4. Neville Hobson
What is a Podcast?
 Digital audio file, Optional:
typically MP3  Auto-sync with
 “Radio show” format portable digital player
◦ Time-shifted – listen ◦ Detach and go – listen
when you want where you want
 Delivered via RSS  Complemented by
show notes
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5. Neville Hobson
Delivered by RSS
 Delivery channel
 A way to get website content when you want
◦ No spam
◦ No need to visit sites – content comes to you
 Discoverability
◦ By iTunes and other sites
◦ By people who want to listen
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Why Podcast?
 Easy and complementary extension of existing
communication, PR and marketing activities
 An appropriate channel to market
 Reach niche audiences otherwise (financially)
unreachable
 Attract new, younger customers
 Create buzz, build viral marketing effect
 Be perceived to be at the leading edge
 Be seen as a leader with a new medium
 …
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8. Neville Hobson
Why Podcast
Marketing Communication Financial PR
 A new product  Investor relations produces a
announcement that weekly review of activities
accompanies traditional and events of interest to
communication investors and financial
 Includes informal analysts
conversations between, say, ◦ Within the limits of regulatory
a customer and one of the requirements
employees from the factory
who made the product
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9. Neville Hobson
Why Podcast
Employee Engagement Customer Engagement
 A weekly 15-minute business  Occasional podcasts discussing
update for employees topics of interest to specific
◦ Perhaps by the CEO or other customer groups
senior executive  Provide customers with
 Employees worldwide subscribe exclusive information, but which
to the podcast via the company complements other
intranet communication
◦ Or from the CEO‟s blog ◦ Reinforce brand loyalty
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10. Neville Hobson
Growth Drivers
1. It‟s easy
2. It‟s inexpensive
3. It‟s portable
4. It‟s available

11. Neville Hobson
10 Rules for Business Podcasting
 Be relevant  Be mindful of your
 Stick to the point audience‟s time
 There are no
 Avoid fluff
competitors
 Practice infotainment  Don‟t advertise or
 Build and engage sell
community  Be authentic
 Integrate into the
community
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12. Neville Hobson
Producing Your Podcast
About
 Basic gear: £20
◦ USB microphone
◦ Free recording/editing software
 Audacity for Windows/Mac/Linux £300 -
 Intermediate gear: £1,000
◦ Cartioid or condenser microphone
◦ Mixer
◦ Higher-end software, eg, Adobe Audition (Windows),
GarageBand (Macintosh)
 High-end gear: £1,000
◦ + digital mixers, compressors, pre-amps… and up
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At the heart of engagement
COMMUNITY BUILDING

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Community: A Definition
 Since the advent of  Prior to the internet,
the internet, the virtual communities
concept of community were far more limited
has less geographical by the constraints of
limitation, as people available
can now gather communication and
virtually in an online transportation
community and share technologies.
common interests
regardless of physical
location.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community

19. Neville Hobson
Engagement: A Definition
 The process of  Equally created by the
forming an attachment perceptions, attitudes,
(emotional and beliefs, and
rational) between a behaviours of those
person and a brand. with whom institutions
and organizations are
communicating or
engaging with.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brand_engagement

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Can‟t
 You can‟t be a friend of a brand.
Can
 You can be a friend of a brand manager.

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How Do I Go About Actively Engaging?
 Why are you engaging?
 How, what, where, when?
 Set objectives
 Tools and frequency
 Interaction plan
 Reporting, analysis, optimization
(Joanne Jacobs, Like Minds U, February 2012)

22. Neville Hobson
„The Hobson & Holtz Report‟
 The Hobson & Holtz Report podcast
first episode on January 3, 2005
 Co-hosts: Neville Hobson (UK) and
Shel Holtz (USA)
 60-90 mins weekly every Monday,
recorded via Skype
 Average monthly downloads: 30,000
 Global audience: USA, UK, Canada,
continental Europe, Australia, China
 Three sponsors: Lawrence Ragan
Communications, CustomScoop,
TemboSocial
http://www.forimmediaterelease.biz/

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How it Works
 Offer compelling content
 Ask for listeners‟ opinions
◦ Include those opinions in the next show
 Suggest frequent commenters might want to be
reporters
 Talk about what listeners say
 Provide a platform for listener comments: the various
web places and the show itself

25. Neville Hobson
How it Works
 Encourage “3 Things Customers Like To Do Online”
 Make it easy for listeners to get hold of the show
 Ask friends to talk about it
 Offer compelling content
 Build community

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3 Things Customers Like To Do Online
1. Share Ideas
“Let‟s improve the next product or service together”
2. Share Product Knowledge
“Here is what I know; hope it helps you”
3. Help Peers Solve Problems
“I had the same problem, here is what I did”

27. Neville Hobson
Building Community
 Integral sponsor
participation Jen Zingsheim
Jenny Fukimoto David Bator

28. Neville Hobson
Building Community
 2 on-the-ground
regular
correspondents
◦ Dan York: New
Hampshire, USA Dan York
◦ Michael Netzley:
Singapore
Michael Netzley

29. Neville Hobson
Building Community
 Live call-in episodes
 Occasional
contributors
Heidi Miller
 Listener comments
Ike Piggot

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Building Community
 Twitter handle
 Friendfeed Room
 Google+ page
 Facebook page

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What Are Other Podcasters Doing?
Jay Baer
Mitch Joel
Gini Dietrich
Joseph Thornley
Donna Papacosta
Martin Waxman

33. Neville Hobson
Business podcasts
 Customer service
 Your superfans
 Knowledge/thought leadership
 Example: Evernote

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Promoting FIR
 Us
◦ Tweets and status updates
◦ GaggleAmp
 Listeners
◦ Likes, retweets & +1s

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Mixing it up

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Easy to share

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FIR Today Is a Podcast Series Brand
 FIR: The Hobson & Holtz Report
 FIR Live
 FIR Cuts
 FIR Interviews
 FIR Book Reviews
 FIR Book Club
 FIR Speakers
and Speeches

38. Neville Hobson
How To Reach Us
 Neville Hobson  Shel Holtz
◦ www.nevillehobson.com ◦ holtz.com
◦ @jangles ◦ blog.holtz.com
◦ neville@nevillehobson.com ◦ @shelholtz
◦ +44 7757 977 222 ◦ shel@holtz.com
◦ +1 925 864 2249

39. Neville Hobson
Website
 www.forimmediaterelease.biz
Community
 twitter.com/fir
 friendfeed.com/fir
 plus.google.com/10587745153326
2296645
 www.facebook.com/pages/For-
Immediate-Release/8679965700
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