PODCASTING TO ENGAGE YOUR AUDIENCE

Hello!I am Colleen CookI get to tell great stories at Mansfield, Ohio’s Renaissance Theatre.

THIS

IS M

ANSF

IELD

Journey to Inbound

▪Prior to 2015, 100% traditional outbound strategy (with almost no digital marketing)

▪Grant funding in 2015 to invest in digital marketing

▪November 2016 launched Renaissance Podcast (bi-weekly) and Blog (weekly)

WHY PODCAST?

You’ve already built your audience.

Who’s Listening to Podcasts

▪ Age: 18-44▪ Equally male/female▪ Affluent and well-

educated▪ More likely to take digital

media with them in the car▪ (rather than on a

computer)

▪ Exhibit strong social (and brand- following) behavior

▪ Active on social media▪ Two-thirds listen to

podcasts on a mobile device

Houseworth, A. The Experts’ Guide to Marketing the Arts, Third Edition, National Arts Marketing Project, Americans for the Arts, 2017

It costs virtually nothing.

Expenses for Podcasters

▪ Hosting subscription

▪ Equipment*

▪ Editing software

▪ Theme music

▪ Website integration

Even a low number of listens can bring high return.

Why Arts Orgs Should Podcast

▪ Deep level of recurring audience engagement

▪ Donor cultivation

▪ Public relations

▪ Artist development

It’s your story, and it’s evergreen.

PODCASTING TIPS“Press record!”

“ What do you wish your audience knew?

What do they want to know?

Sample Content Schedule

Software

▪ Audacity▸ Free, open source, many free plug-ins, free tutorials on YouTube

▪ GarageBand, ProTools, Adobe Audition, Amadeus Pro

▪ For Skype recording: Ecamm Call Recorder

Equipment

▪ Microphone (1 or more) and a way to connect to your computer

▸ ADK A-51 Condenser Mic – XLR which connects to iConnectAudio 2+ audio interface (I prefer the sound on this setup)

▸ Blue Snowball (~$50) – USB plugs right in to computer(This setup is easier)

▸ Lots of people recommend the Blue Yeti microphones – USB (~$130)

Equipment

▪ Digital RecorderWe have an M-Audio Microtrack II - memory cardAdvantages: Simple, mobile, compact Disadvantages: battery life, limited memory

▪ Hosting subscription Generates an RSS feed, which you submit to iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play. Submission takes about a week.▪ We use PodBean (www.podbean.com) ($108/year)▪ Many also recommend Libsyn

Tips & Resources

▪ Take notes as you record, and edit from the end to the beginning

▪ Record in a quiet space with good acoustics

▪ Keep a recording of 20s of silence in your recording space for noise reduction

▪ Be consistent

▪ Podcasting Groups on Facebook:

▸ She Podcasts▸ Podcast Growth

Mastermind▸ Podcast Community

Thank YouColleen Cookcolleen@mansfieldtickets.comSlides & resources:rebrand.ly/namppodcast