One of the great things about podcasting is that it can be done on a very low budget. In fact, many of you may be able to get it all done for free. That's right many of you can produce and publish a podcast for free. But there is always a catch when things are free, isn't there. This podcasting tip is going to go through the basics and give you a rough outline of a small, medium and large budget podcast. I will give you some ideas on what it will cost in terms of equipment, software, etc. and then you can take that information and determine what your podcasting budget will be. Keep in mind what we are talking about here is the basics. What it would take, bare-bones, to create a podcast.
Microphone
Let's start with what I think makes the most sense. At some point you are going to record a podcast episode, right? So you will need a microphone.
Free
Many laptops and computers nowadays come with some form of built-in microphone. If you already have a computer with a built-in microphone then you have the recording equipment necessary to start your podcast. Now keep in mind, the sound quality that you are going to get from a built-in microphone is going to be marginal at best. Your listeners are not going to be sticking around for long if you don't have good sound quality, so while it is free, this is not the route I would recommend.
$15 - $60
The next category of microphone falls into one of two categories, you can go the USB headset/mic route or for this price category you can get a low-end desktop microphone.
When I first started podcasting, I bought a USB headset/mic for $29.99. Believe it or not I got great sound quality for the prices. My listeners were happy, I was happy, there was just a lot of happiness going around at the time and for a price like $29.99 you can't really beat that.
Over $250
If you have decided to go for studio sound quality, then you are looking at a price range starting around $250. What does that $250 get you? It gets a studio quality microphone with a desktop mic stand, a mixer with a USB output that connects to your computer and a microphone cable.
This will give you superb sound quality, but you pay for it.
Software For Editing
Unless you are a master podcaster, you probably will have to touch up your podcast in post production. Editing out spoken missteps, pauses, coughing, etc. For that you will need some editing software.
Free
Audacity is a free software package that allows you to edit your podcast. The functionality is there to do everything you will need to produce your podcast. I have briefly toyed around with Audacity and it looks like a nice package but I don't use Audacity because I am lazy. I have a Mac that I use for my recording and editing. My Mac comes with GarageBand, which is what I learned to use first. I don't use Audacity because then I would have to learn the ins and outs of a new software package and like I said, lazy.
$49.99
Propoganda is a software editing package that gets very good reviews and is widely known. I have never used the software but at a price of $49.99 it is a pretty good bargain.
$349
At the top of the food chain is the Adobe Audition Suite. This is your studio quality software editing tool. If there is a bell or a whistle, Adobe Audition has it.
$2000
Buy a Macbook so that you can get GarageBand, which is what I prefer. OK, that's kind of a ridiculous option but I threw it in there anyway.
Website For Publishing
Free
There are a couple of routes you can take to have your podcast published to the Internet for free. You can start your own WordPress Blog on WordPress.com, or you can use a service like Libsyn or PodcastMachine.com, which hosts your podcast episodes for you and provides you with a feed that you can submit to iTunes.
$20 - $30
Register your own domain, and select a webhost. Setup a WordPress blog and host your podcast episodes on a domain dedicated to your podcast.
Above $200
If you are willing to spend the money, you can get your own domain and web-host, then hire a design company to create a site for you. The more you are willing to spend, the more you can outsource the daily functions of your website so that all you have to worry about is recording your podcast. These prices grow exponentially so this really is for when money is relatively no object.
So those are the three core areas that you must have to get started podcasting. If you ride the hard line on the small budget podcast, then I have shown you that it can be done for free. The medium path comes in between $60 and $110 depending on whether you use Audacity or Propaganda. If you want the Manhattan penthouse of podcasts then you are looking at probably over $800. Before any of you go into sticker shock about the $800 podcast, let me assure you that there are many levels in between for these categories. You can buy a $30 headset, get a free website, download a WordPress template and you are off and running with your podcast. For probably 95% of you, you will be up and running for $60 or less. Yes, it takes a little investment but it is better to invest a little bit of money so that you can attract new listeners with great content and great sound quality.
School and College Radio Internet Marketing - Using Podcasts Six Benefits of Podcasting The Benefits of Starting a Podcast Podcast Transcription: Converting the Spoken to the Written
0 comments:
Post a Comment