Speaker:
Hello, podcasting person.
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I hope you're doing well.
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I just been to the
podcast show London:
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The podcast show London describes
itself as the biggest international
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festival for the business of podcasting.
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350 plus world-class speakers,
130 plus panels and sessions.
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Global industry brands,
networking and a whole host more.
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So why did I go well, I've been editing
and treating audio for a couple of
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podcasts clients for a while now.
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So I feel like networking within
the industry would be a good idea.
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I also wanted to collect soundbites
from visitors and exhibitors for
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a bonus episode of podcasting
people links in the show notes.
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I wanted to see people in
person through the podcast.
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I've been lucky enough to get to
know a few people in the industry.
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And there's nothing like in real
life to get to know people better.
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I also wants to have chats with
fellow independent creators.
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So the creative village, the
addition of the creative village
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this year was a welcome one.
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Well-placed as soon as you walked through
the entrance, it included the creator
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stage with loads of talks and a creator
advice lab, where you could register for
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advice and be matched with an expert.
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That genius bar idea was something I
called for in a guest blog interview
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I did for, We Edit
Podcasts a few weeks ago.
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Uh, that link is also in the show
notes for you to have a read.
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If you like.
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Uh, so I'm delighted that the podcast show
organizers were thinking similar thoughts.
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It worked too.
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I had a lovely half an hour with an
industry professional chatting about
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how to build community around podcasts.
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There was also a create a hangout away
from the village in inverted commerce.
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I'm not entirely sure
it was effective though.
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Designating a tiny area for
creators to relax together.
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Didn't entice me in the slightest really?
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If I'm totally honest, it felt
a little bit like a créche.
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Uh, a larger area for independents
to meet and staff to facilitate
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conversations would have been much better.
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I can see what they were
trying to do, but the creator
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village was way more effective.
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I actually met with a few
independent podcasters in the
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meeting gallery, which has separate.
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And by simply bumping
into people on the floor.
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So an area for that wasn't really
necessary, one idea would be to extend
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the creator hangout and physically
move it into the creative village,
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making a creator meeting point
could give it a bit of clarity
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and less of a créche feel.
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So the sessions and talks,
there were so many sessions that
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first day was exhausting because
there was so much to take in.
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And for that, I actually commend the show.
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I think, as a visitor, it's really
important to set your own agenda, to avoid
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being overwhelmed and achieving nothing.
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Uh, the edition of the podcast
show plus is a brilliant idea.
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Uh, knowing that I can stream the audio
for the sessions I wanted to attend,
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but missed is a very good thing.
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Uh, and it meant I could relax more
at the show and not worry if I missed,
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or I got turned away from sessions
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I really wanted to attend.
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If there's one personal
criticism, it's this that don't
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like to criticize too much.
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Um, I searched for any sessions with
the word community in and found one.
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And reading the description of that.
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I discovered it wasn't specifically
about community after all, but
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more about building a show.
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Um, how on earth over two days,
there was not a single session about
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building community around podcasts.
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I don't know.
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For me, community is at the heart of why
I produce podcasts and to not include
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it at all in one of the world's biggest
podcast conferences is utterly baffling.
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Um, speaking of community, uh, one of the
highlights of the show was on the fringe.
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Podcast
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host Captivate, one of the user-facing
companies at the show put on a
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get together at the end of the day
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with tickets allocated on a
first come first serve basis.
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It was lovely spending time
with fellow podcasters and
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reflecting on the show with them.
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Hands up.
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Yes.
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I'm a captivate customer, but
credit where credit's due.
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They're company doing more for that
sense of community than a lot of
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companies in the podcast space.
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Um, another community focused
organization with a presence this
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year was the UK audio network.
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Uh, or you can to be clear this isn't
the music library audio network you
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can is the UK's largest community
of audio producers, commissioners
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and creators, distributing work
opportunities, via a shared email list.
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And their aim is to link
commissioners to talent.
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And give all those working in audio,
an equal chance to pitch for work.
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Their award ceremony
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at the end of day two was a
real highlight and it felt like
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recipients were well-deserving of
the awards and the recognition.
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So is there room for improvement?
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Like I said, it's hard to be
publicly critical for an event like
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this, where it's clear, so much
effort has been poured into it.
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I enjoyed my time there over two
days and feel like I can only
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suggest small improvements from an
independent creator point of view.
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Uh, so my suggestions for improvements
would be to include community
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building as a serious topic next year.
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Uh, extend the creates a
hangout and physically move
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it into the creative village.
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Uh, and make it a creator meeting point.
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Like I said, um, the app was great
for booking meetings, but I think
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the UI could be improved a lot.
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So those are my suggestions
for what they're worth.
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Uh, key takeaway.
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Well, I guess the key takeaway was
that there were a few provisions
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for the Indies, but considering how
many independent podcasts there are
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I'd expect to see more in the way of
engagement on the independent side.
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It's not necessarily the case that
the podcast show London is the
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right arena for that to happen.
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But I can tell that it was really
trying to include us independents.
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And with a few small tweaks
it could really succeed.
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So there we go.
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Those are my thoughts on the
podcast show London:
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What did you think?
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Let me know.
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My links are in the show notes.
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So until next time, take
care and happy podcasting.
