Tuesday, 28 June 2011

Podcasting Technology and Where It is Headed




For many years, people who wanted to listen to music and not be annoyed with commercials played on the air had to rely on the Walkman or the Discman. Many models came out which became smaller and lighter for the person to have around.





The only drawback from such a device, it can only play 20 songs or even less. The individual will have to change the tape or CD to hear another album being played. This changed when Apple Computers developed the Ipod, which can also carry files, photos, videos and music up to more than 4 GB in one unit.





But did the Ipod create podcasting? Initially, it did. But the new definition of podcasting is any device or software that allows users to download and transmit data by using a computer.





Podcasting has evolved and has other uses.





Universities can transmit data to students enrolled in distance learning programs. Companies who have offices worldwide can transmit and communicate with each other. People are able to broadcast views and opinions on the air without the threat of censorship or danger.





The creation of RSS feeds makes this even better because people who are interested get hooked even more as updates are automatically added into the system. It is like having the paper delivered to the doorstep rather than going to the store and getting a copy.





Such examples can be seen in search engines, news websites and online retailers who do business using the same technology that were initially used to transmit and receive audio files.





Software companies have also installed this special feature so that updates can be uploaded instead of buying another program from the store. This makes the computer more efficient and less prone to spyware and viruses.





Clicking on the icon, selecting from a category and becoming a member allows the user to receive these websites. As a result, the computer has become more personal which was perhaps the idea when it was invented many years ago.





Podcasting is easy to learn and almost anyone can do it. With the proper equipment, the person can join millions who have also started on this endeavor and made it big.





Soon, everyone will be reaping the rewards of podcasting. This just goes to show its potential is limitless until of course, something better comes along. For the time being, people can use this in a variety of ways to transmit and receive information.


Saturday, 25 June 2011

What is a Podcasting Tag and What It Can Do for You?




Experiencing the most advanced technology can be amazing. Whether you just want to upgrade your tools or revolutionize your work or your business, advanced technologies can really do wonders to every day living.





For this reason, the technology continues to revolve and develop fresher ideas that will help the consumers build bridges instead of walls. That is what technology should be doing in the first place.





Thankfully, innovations like podcasting have tremendously created a large array of information compressed into fully usable, executable, and downloadable files. In this way, the distribution is easier and faster.





Among all innovations and development in technology, podcasting is the newest fad that hit the electronic waves. Since its inception, podcasting has significantly revolutionized the way people access and distribute multimedia files to a wider range of audience.





Podcasting works through RSS feeds. With this process, multimedia files are organized, syndicated, and made ready for distribution.





In creating podcasts, tags or podcasting tags are used to carry information about the multimedia file, such as the title, the album (if it is a song), the artist, track number, or any kind of data that will help the audience recognize the identity of the file.





Podcasting tags are included on the file. These tags hold the other files needed to identify the concerned multimedia file.





Since most multimedia files are in “.mp3 file extension,” it would be hard to attach files that have different file extensions. To do so, podcasting tags are used to accommodate these items.





The Benefits of Podcasting Tags





Many people fail to maximize the potential of podcasting simply because they don't have podcasting tags. Survey shows that nearly 60% of podcasters don't use podcasting tags effectively.





Podcasting tags can provide various functions for a particular podcast. Aside from identification, podcasting tags can also boost your business’ sales performance if ever you use podcasting on your website.





How? It is simple. In most cases, you would probably delete old podcasts to give way for newer files. In doing so, podcatchers will no longer include those files in their lists. This will create an impression that you are a newbie in podcasting due to the small number of files that you have in your podcasts.





With podcasting tags, you can easily attach episode or version number to your files. Your audience can easily understand that you have existing files prior to the current lists.





In as much as identification tag works to distinguish a certain item, podcasting tags work the same way. So it is best to create podcasting tags along with your multimedia files.


Thursday, 23 June 2011

Simple Tips on How to Improve Your Podcasting Skills




After making your first podcast, you must be truly giddy with joy. The next thing on your agenda is to find out how to make your podcasts better. Since there are the hundreds, and even thousands, of podcasts available on Internet, you will want to make your podcast stand out. You can do this by making podcasts of better quality, and have more interesting content.





1. Better quality. To make your podcast exude an aura of professionalism, you will need to make your podcasts of optimal audio quantity. To do so, look at the following tips.





First of all you will need a good recording device. If you are recording from home, you'll at least need a high-quality microphone. Make sure that your microphone doesn't result in a muffled, garbled audio input.





You don't have to invest in very pricey microphones; just make sure that the microphones you use are of sufficient quantity. You can check your quality by playing back what you have recorded.





After this, if you have an audio cleanup utility you may want to use it to remove unwanted noise and to enhance the quality of your recording.





Also, try to balance between quality and size when converting your recording to MP3 format. Larger sizes are better for quality; however it makes it also more cumbersome to download. To try to find a good mix of both.





2. More interesting content. Plan your content so that it doesn't become boring to those subscribing to your podcast. You will need a little creativity here, and some planning. Don't forget to get feedback from people who are subscribing to your podcast. They could very well spell the difference between your success and your doom as a podcast.





It would also be wise if you were to constantly browse other podcasts for good ideas and how to make your podcast better.





3. Keep your content updated. The best way to keep people interested in your podcast is to keep your content constantly updated. Make everyone know that your podcast is regular and that your organization is alive and kicking. Also, don't forget to update your RSS feed so that people are always aware that you have new content available.





If you are a regular in your posting of new content, interest in your podcast could eventually wane. This is because the excitement revolving your podcast is eventually defused since you are unable to capitalize on their expectations and excitement involving around your content.


Monday, 20 June 2011

How to Prepare for a Podcasting Service




Not all organizations and companies have the technical abilities to jump on the podcasting bandwagon. Some organizations lack the manpower, the finances, or the know how to set up their own information technology department. It would seem better for these people instead of outsourcing their broadcasting and podcasting needs to podcasting services available today.





There are many services today that offer to take a company's podcasting needs and perform them for them. This takes most of the burden of having to create their own podcasts from the organizations themselves. However, outsourcing is never a simple task, plainly because outsourced podcasting services tend to be less under the jurisdiction of the sponsoring company itself.





If you are looking to outsource your podcasting needs to be podcasting service provider, make sure you take note of the following tips so that you can make the most out of your podcasting service without getting burned.





1. Make sure you have the terms of agreement on paper. Most services will ask you to sign a Memorandum of Agreement. Make sure you acquaint yourselves with the details of this agreement. You should generally be able to understand the scope of the job you are to expect from these people, the quantity you should be expecting, and the accountability of the podcasting service themselves.





If you aren't happy with the details you find in their memorandum of agreement, make sure you have them amended to your liking. If this isn't possible you may want to shop for other podcasts service specialists.





2. Assign people to work with the podcasts service. If possible, you should have people who are well acquainted with the organization’s goals and objectives regarding podcasting. Your podcasts should always have a goal to meet. This is something you have to make clear with the podcasts; that they are only to develop content that forwards these goals and objectives.





Their online content should be enjoyable, informative, and directed. Mix this with a clear understanding of what your podcasts are supposed to achieve and you have a sure formula for success





3. Go for continuous development. Your podcast development is a continuous service. You should subject it to regular inspection and quantity improvement. Only then can you be able to continually refine your podcasts to reflect your objectives. Simply sitting down and planning your podcasts properly, and opening up each episode to constructive criticism can go a long way in making your podcast service worth its money.


Friday, 17 June 2011

Educating the Users Through Podcasting Conferences






What is a podcasting conference? It would most probably refer to something like the Podcast and Portable Media Expo, of which this annual event would be in its second year. This event brings out the most influential of podcasters, media personnel, computer manufacturers and software developers, and many more in various industries. Why is there the need for a podcasting conference? Podcasting, since its inception in 2000, has risen dramatically from being nothing to one of the most popular Internet services in a little over a year. As such, the demand for podcasts has been high and business has been growing in this industry. Those looking for additional profit have been turning into podcasting to help them grow financially. However, many venture into this without really knowing about how it works and how to maximize it. This is the main reason why there is such a thing as podcasting conferences – education.







There are different programs offered at podcasting conferences. For example, in the Podcast and Portable Media Expo, there are programs for both beginners and advanced users of podcasting. Participants will get to choose their desired track, all of which offer different focuses ranging from using podcasting as a business tool to podcasting as a form of hobby. The tracks, and the entire event, for that matter, have expert speakers in the fields they specialize in, so participants will really be able to learn a lot by attending this conference. Remember that in spite of its current popularity, podcasting can be considered to be fairly new. Many Internet users know about podcasting, but they don’t optimize it. Attending a podcasting conference such as this one would be to your benefit.







Remember that technology always advances as the years go by. Podcasting is no different. There are many additions and some subtractions in podcasting that goes on each day, which many people tend to overlook. It would be good to keep updated on the things going on, especially in a technology such as this. Podcasting conferences offer exactly that, and more. These events also tell you how to make the most out of the new advances in podcasting technology. In the next few years, there is a big possibility that more categories and tracks will be added the conferences to address these advancements.







Podcasting conferences offer a special kind of education designed for those who often use podcasts. If you are such a person, participate in a conference in order to increase your knowledge and to optimize the technology you have in your hands.


Wednesday, 15 June 2011

A Rough Guide to Podcasting Sites




So, you're excited about jumping on the newest rage-podcasting but you can't seem to find where these podcasts are hiding. Where's the best place to find these podcasts? Well, the practical answer is: everywhere. Podcasting has so clearly descended upon the online world that it is hard to find a site that doesn't provide podcasting services.





It still pays to know the different types of sites available for those looking for good podcast syndication. Here are a few categories you may want to look at to find the podcast you are looking for.





1. Search engines. Google has totally revolutionized the search engine industry. Today there are hundreds of other search engines catering to every whim and need. This also applies to podcasts. There are hundreds of search engines dedicated solely to finding podcasts of interest.





It may seem hard to index podcast files since they are in audio format-leaving little for people to index in the first place. Thankfully, the search engines can at least find the topics of these podcasts files through their Meta information.





2. Major organizations. Most major organizations are hopping on the podcast bandwagon. Major newspaper sites, manufacturing sites, organization sites, and other online destinations of note have employed podcasting as a site service to attract more visitors.





Famous columnists of these newspapers offer weekly or even daily podcasts for the pleasure of their audience. If there is a particular web site you are fond of, try exploring their web site to see if they already offer podcasts.





3. Entertainment sites. Even the movie industry has realized the potential of podcasting in promoting their films. They realize how much media mileage a movie can get through free podcast advertisement. Believe it or not, there are even shows that are being developed for podcast alone.





And to compound matters further, these multimedia files are being offered for free-with only a few advertisements within the shows to generate revenue. It has podcasts becoming more popular, more and more organizations are turning to its popularity for market audience.





The power of podcasting is that they are usually free, can be downloaded and played at any one’s leisure. And with this increased popularity comes the opportunity for better advertising. So there you have it, more organizations are sprinting for podcasts because they are popular and present a great opportunity to advertise.





Many up-and-coming musical acts are distributing their works on the Internet as well. It is a cheap and effective way to get recognition even without a major sponsor. If you are on the lookout for the next big thing, podcasts are a great way to find them


Monday, 13 June 2011

Podcasting as a Business




Podcasting is now recognized as an important tool in Internet marketing businesses. It made its mark in the new genre of Internet marketing. With the new technological advancements of the new podcast, it created an easy and inexpensive way to transmit messages to targeted customers via the Internet.





The Podcast RSS feed is the latest feature added to podcasting. You may deliver and receive audio files automatically to your client. For some businesses, it has become a great Internet marketing strategy to promote a product and service. This Internet marketing strategy has helped many businesses to generate income using only a minimal cost of capital.





For other businesses, they use podcasting to allow consumers to get their needed exposure in promoting their product or service. In this way, they create added interest and appeal to a targeted customer. Sales is expectedly to increase and create a customer base niche that will patronize your product or service.





Now that you have built a credible podcast for your customers, it won't be a surprise when you become a favorite podcaster to a wide audience. Many businesses actually hire expert podcasters who specializes in a particular field. Because of the big demand of the Internet in podcasting, they provide expert podcasters with good compensation as long they serve as effective tools in promoting products and service.





Podcasting brings many opportunities to the Internet-marketing world. Because of the power of voice, messages can be transmitted to targeted customers in an instant. Transmitting messages through voice is the easiest and fastest way to communicate and make transactions.





For many Internet marketers, monetizing the podcast can provide opportunities to develop marketing communication skills with the proper use of voice and emotion to a targeted customer. Here are possible aspects of communication that you may consider.





1. Public relations should be properly initiated using an audio content press release to business firms, company executives, and material related tools that are transmitted to a broadcast medium such as the Internet.





2. You should know how to directly sell and promote products or services.





3. Know the proper way in promoting and selling a particular product or service.





4. You have to optimize your podcast to incorporate messages to relate audio content.





5. Know what are your listeners expect on your podcasting.





These aspects in podcasting will certainly increase the popularity of your Internet marketing business. Listeners have their own choices of what podcast they will listen to. Try to make your podcast unique and have a different approach that can appeal and attract listeners.


Friday, 10 June 2011

Podcasting 101




The Internet offers so many interesting and a variety of new technological advancements for the convenience of users. Podcasting is one example of the technological advancements the Internet has to offer. It is becoming one of the most popular online tools in demand for many users.





In podcasting, you may save radio archives with the exact location and time of the transmitted audio content. You may also broadcast audio information and have its own publication name. It is easier for more listeners to achieve their specific needs by listening to their transmitted audio files with their preferred time and place.





In fact, podcasting is making its mark as a useful online media that has the capabilities in emerging as the most used and most effective online marketing tool for many computer users nowadays. You may use podcasting in retaining your audio archives and listening to it at your own convenience. Podcasting may sound difficult to grasp for new users. However, you may use it as your tool in listening to radio programs and online magazine subscriptions.





There are many ways on how you can easily understand and break down information to less complicated sound bites intended to most non-technical users. Here are some easy ways on how to make podcasting more convenient to its users with the use of a specific software.





1. Sound files should be published on a particular web site so that users may have an easy access in downloading the audio content on their own mp3 player or their personal computer.





2. Specific date and place should be exactly recorded to transmit results for the comfort of listeners. Listeners may have the luxury of listening to sound files to their preferred time and place.





3. Make sure that podcasting isn't being used in transmitting real time information to its listeners. Unlike the traditional broadcast media, podcast information is transmitted with time-shifted intervals. Listeners have the luxury to rewind, pause and fast-forward the sound bites of podcast information.





4. Podcasting is an excellent media tool for people who would like to save music files on their iPods and personal computers. You may have the luxury of listening to any kind of music you wish to hear and enjoy.





You may find a variety of great deals in podcasting. Listeners may have the option of listening to audio contents on their desired place and time. You may listen and play audio files the same way you listen to your video recorders. It won't be surprising if in the near future, podcasting becomes more widely accepted in the world of technology.


Tuesday, 7 June 2011

At your convenience: The beauty of podcasting news




News can now literally be sent straight to your pocket with podcasting news. Depending on what type of ipod application you are using, you can now access the news feed of your choice via podcasting news which sprout in the internet like daisies. With just one click with keywords in your trusty search engine, you will find yourself bombarded with news feeds on anything and everything under the sun.





The best thing about podcasting news is that they will give you the latest news feeds as soon as they possibly can. Not only that, this system not only allows you to check on the latest news, but also links you to other websites, URLs or downloadables which are directly or indirectly related to the news feed you chose to view.





If you are a businessman and technologically inclined, it would also be small surprise if you find yourself wanting to join this impending podcasting boom and create your own podcasting news. It is definitely the best online marketing ploy at this point in time, given that it will be built up properly and become exposed more as an option for people who are into technology and always on the go.





Podcasting news actually allows any marketer to have direct contact with people who are technologically inclined and can afford to get the services you might be offering along with the news feed.





Just like any marketing object, a good podcasting news item must have catchy and concise text which will keep the potential customer coming back for more.





Having sponsorships with more popular online links are also an option for beginner investors in the podcasting news industry. This will help generate more listeners in the initial stages. As the listeners increase over time, there will be more avenues to focus on directly connecting with the customer than there will be in expanding the network.





Having a posted schedule of media streams can also help build a consistent pool of listeners. Being able to produce high quality podcasting news material without being able to put them in a defined schedule won't make them accessible to people.





A good way to gauge how your podcasting news material is doing is by checking regularly on frequency of downloads, direct answers or responses from customers, listener inputs and on how much of your invested money you are gaining back and at what rate.


Sunday, 5 June 2011

The Simple Guide to Downloading a Podcast




Podcasting is all the rage nowadays. It is a great way to keep track of syndicated audio shows without having to go out of your way to tune in to a particular station, or a particular show. All you have to do is download each episode and listen to them at your own leisure.





If you are new to the podcasting business, you might be at a loss for what to do to get this seemingly new and intimidating technology. The fact is that podcasting is pretty simple; all you need is a computer, an Internet connection, and ideally, a mobile audio device.





Here's a step-by-step guide to take advantage of podcasting by downloading online content, and making sure you are up-to-date with the latest episodes in syndication.





1. Search for online content. The first thing you have to do is search for the type of content you would like to download. There are numerous podcast search sites that can help you find the content you're looking for. There are hundreds, and even thousands, of podcasting sites that offer content of every ilk.





Most major sites also have podcasts, so if you already have a site which has content available in audio form, you can go straight to their site. Now, once you are at their site all you have to do is look for their podcast download page. It will typically list all of the available podcasts episodes available.





You can now click on any of them for download.





2. Download. Downloading is as simple as clicking on a particular podcast link and saving that file to your computer. You may also want to use a download manager software to make your downloading tasks easier. These applications make it easy for you to download multiple files at the same time.





3. Save the file to your mobile audio device. Once you have the files, you can then move them to your mobile audio device. This involves a simple file transfer from your computer to your device. After this, you can enjoy your online content on your own free time.





4. Keep track of the latest content from your favorite sites. RSS, or Really Simple Syndication, makes it easy for you to keep track of all the latest content available from your favorite sites. All you need is an RSS tracking software to inform you of all the latest content available from all your favorite sites.


Friday, 3 June 2011

The Layman’s Guide to Developing Great Podcasts




Podcasting is easy. However, not everyone is successful in podcasting. Most successful podcasters have fixed routines that help them churn out broadcasts in a successful manner. If you are only starting to produce podcasts for your web site, it would do well to stick with a successful routine in developing your podcasts.





Developing good podcasts doesn't just involve sitting down at your computer and working on content to post. It should involve a great deal of planning, and thought. It should also have to have a good objective of what you want accomplished.





Here are a few tips so that you can learn to develop good and successful podcasts without having to fall into the trap many podcasters run into.





1. Objective. Your podcasts always need an objective to fulfill. Every episode has to have a goal to reach. If this isn't so, then your podcast could be meaningless, and may be dismissed as nonsense. So, whenever you create online content take a good look at sure objectives for that particular episode.





Look at your company's profile, and objectives. This is your guide towards creating successful and meaningful podcasts. If you are able to match your organizations objectives with your podcast, then you have a podcast that not only is entertaining but pushes the goals of your organization as well.





2. Planning. Trading online content shouldn't be something you do on the day you are to post that same content. Good podcast development involves rigorous planning, which could even start days or even weeks before it is published.





That it should always involve evaluation of past episodes, monitoring of podcast efficacy, and the evaluation of goals to be pursued. From here, you can now brainstorm and develop content that is effective, and entertaining.





It would be good, the schedule production periods for the podcast. For example, you could set the day for recording, evaluation, refining, and postproduction. Being effective is a great way to create successful online content.





3. User input. It always pays to get input from those that are listening to your podcasts. Their criticism and suggestions are important for the development of your podcast. Remember, that if you stay stagnant in your style of content, you could very well lag in the podcast race. Always go for constant development, and constant improvement in your podcasts. This way, you become effective and competitive in the podcast world.