Recording on location used to be such a huge pain in my ass.

I’d have this big carry case with my trust Zoom H5, Rode lapel microphones and clips, wind socks, XLR adapters for the lapels so that they’d connect to the Zoom and then a huge amount of leads to make sure all my bases were covered.

And then a few brands started bringing out wireless microphone options that could connect to your phone. 

Some of them were okay, but most of them weren’t good enough for me to switch from my bulky setup. I was capturing much better sound doing it my way. 

As the technology improved, so too did the wireless microphone options that were brought to the market.

Again, I was still dubious, but I decided to bite the bullet and put the Rode Wireless Pro to the test. I’d looked at some reviews on YouTube, reviewed the sound quality and inclusions and decided it may be a viable option for myself and our clients.

For the tests that I conducted, I was focusing on how the Rode Wireless Pro system handled a diverse array of recording environments. I tested in a quiet hotel room, at the beach, on a train, in the park and using the included lapel (wired) setup vs the completely wireless option.

I’ve been using the system now for almost three months, and I’m ready to give you my recommendations.

After recently watching Happy Gilmore for probably the twentieth time, it got me thinking about how we present ourselves as creators.

I found myself reflecting quite existentially on the impact that Adam Sandler’s character had on my view of where the world of content creation currently sits. 

And I honestly think it’s all a little boring. 

Overwhelmingly people are presenting as the “professional” version of themselves, especially on LinkedIn. This makes sense as we predominantly put out content to draw the viewer/listener into ultimately buying something from us. 

We present as the authority.

We present as a leader.

But are we showing enough of ourselves to keep our content interesting?

I think we could stand to be a little more ridiculous. Let loose a little more and present more in the way you might present to a friend.

Currently, the global creator economy is valued at around $155 billion.

By 2030 it’s expected to surpass $525 billion.

That’s a lot of wig wams.

And I know it might seem like every person and their pet is a “creator” these days, but it shouldn’t stop you from exploring this option for yourself too.

Being a content creator can mean many different things and encompass a variety of industries. It’s not all about selling the latest products, jumping on the newest trends and vlogging about your latest dental checkup.

There is nuance to this industry. It’s fun, creative, explorative, educational and thinking of yourself as a creator will open you up to delivering more valuable content for your audience.

No doubt you’ll also make more money as a result.

But the first step needs to be answering the all-important “why”.

I’ve got some practical tips to help you answer that question in this podcast episode.

Here at Bamby Media, we’ve been producing podcasts for clients for almost a decade and I’d say at this point we’ve worked with almost every podcast hosting platform out there.

From Omnystudio to Simplecast, Podbean, Libsyn, Blubrry, Acast there is no shortage of hosts.

But do we really need that many podcast hosts?

Don’t they all largely do the same thing?

The short answer is yes, they do all largely have the same basic functions.

But I do feel that not all podcast hosting platforms are created equally.

From the hundreds of podcasts we’ve worked with, I’ve seen the value of a long-standing podcast and I know that a proper plan goes a long way.

Our role here at Bamby Media is to help podcasters launch and produce their shows and grow their influence. It takes time, strategy and a significant investment to create the type of podcast that will create engaged listeners.

Today, I’m running through the full step-by-step of how I recommend you start a podcast in 2024 and beyond.

When you’re listening to a podcast episode, do you notice the technical aspects of the edit?

If you said yes, I’m going to bet you’re either a very avid podcast listener, or you’re an editor yourself.

The truth of it is that most listeners don’t notice the editing on a podcast (unless it’s particularly bad).

The listener doesn’t hear the original raw audio. They haven’t seen the hours it has taken to craft a conversation into a compelling story, or the subtle use of silence to heighten emotions at key points.

What they hear is a polished episode that (hopefully) is a pleasure to listen to. And the podcast editor has therefore done their job.

Our role is to make the edit so seamless that the listener accepts that it was recorded that way to begin with. But the editor knows better.

The editor has shaped the story, got to know the host and/or the guest on a granular level down to every vocal tic and they’re invested.

I recently spoke to Matthew Bliss at MB Podcast Services about the role of the podcast editor and I’d be thrilled if you checked it out.