Podcast Imaging: The Sign On Your Front Door
by Ed LaComb
So, you’ve decided to take the plunge. You’ve heard about podcasting for weeks…maybe even months. You have a great idea for a show that doesn’t exist yet. You’ve bought the equipment. You’ve created a concept. Maybe you’ve even done your first few shows. Now…you play the waiting game. Waiting to see how many people find your podcast compelling enough to actually subscribe to it... and then STAY subscribed to it. Sound familiar?
Real radio stations face this dilemma every day. How does one stand out in a crowd? Even every day businesses face this question. How do I get people to walk into my store?
Audio Imaging
One way to dramatically improve the interest in your podcast is to include audio imaging. At first hearing the term, you may find it somewhat ironic to refer to ANY kind of imaging with the word “audio,” but it has been a radio industry term for many years.
Simply put, audio imaging is the “fancy sign” that hangs out in front of your business. If your business is audio, then that sign is a highly (or at least creatively) produced show introduction, some “sweepers” which introduce other elements within the show, or transition from one topic to the next, and perhaps even a show outro. Properly designed and produced, audio imaging can attract listeners to your podcast…and when used creatively throughout your podcast, it can keep them listening from beginning to end.
What goes into making great audio imaging? The first thing you need is solid, creative writing. As an imaging producer, I can tell you that I’d take a great script long before all the whistles and bells that we, as producers, can add to a piece. Great copy has to inform, entertain, and be compelling all at the same time. Take your podcast’s introduction as an example: This is the first 30 or so seconds that a new listener will hear of your podcast. How will you “grab” them and make them interested enough to give you a listen? A great introduction boils down to the very essence that which your podcast is all about. Think of it almost as a “promo” or advertisement for your podcast. Put yourself in the listener’s shoes. What should you say to them in the first 30 seconds to compel them give you 30 minutes of their time and a few megs of space on their mp3 player?
The next thing that makes imaging great is the “ear candy” that you put around it. Here, you must be very careful. You need to think about WHO your podcast is talking to. Are you hoping to attract young males between 12 and 24 years of age? If so, you’ll want to have very aggressive-sounding production quality throughout your imaging. However, if you are producing a financial show where your audience is men over 40 years of age, then you’ll want to consider imaging that is more conservative in nature. The best shows in the world pick one key “demographic” to zero-in on and really speak to them as individuals and reflect their tastes. I don’t think you’ll find many things in common with a 50 year old male and an 18 year old female. So think about your audience as you begin to produce your elements.
Next, consider your sources for imaging production effects and music. There are many companies that specialize in selling production music and sound effects libraries that they will license to you for their use. DO NOT make the mistake of stealing music or effects from any source to produce your imaging. You can, and most likely will, end up in a legal entanglement if you do. In our business, Ed LaComb Audio Imaging, Inc., we have over 50 different libraries of music and effects that we use to creating imaging for our clients. However, as a podcaster, you can easily settle on buying one library that will probably more than fit your need for quite some time to come. Libraries are generally sold in one of two ways: Annual or multi-year leases; and buy-outs. If you’re on a budget (and who isn’t), you should consider the buy-out option. With a buy-out, you own the library forever. You pay once and you’re done. With leases, you pay a monthly fee forever (or at least as long as the Term of your Agreement). Leased libraries do offer some advantages over buy-outs in that they usually have regular updates to the library that you receive at little or no cost. You can also get some degree of exclusivity in it’s use…which I’m not sure yet how podcasters would fit into this model since the medium has a global reach.
Put Forth A Great "Image"
So, now you have a great script and you have the music and sound effects you need to produce your imaging. The next thing you should do is listen to the other podcasts…and even commercial radio…to see how they image their programs. You’ll find some common threads in all imaging and perhaps you should consider modeling your initial pieces with some of those common threads. For example: You should always mention the name of your show in your imaging pieces to reinforce to the listener just who they are listening to. You may find some of your pieces are designed to give key information, such as email addresses, websites and/or phone numbers for listeners to interact with you. You may want to introduce a specific element within your show…a contest maybe. And your show outro will want to certainly invite feedback and ask them to return to listen again in the future. Beyond that, your creativity in WHAT you say and HOW you say it is completely up to you. Above all, BE CREATIVE. Don’t simply regurgitate what someone else is doing. That has been the downfall of commercial radio as of late. Podcasting is a new chance at creativity…take advantage of it.
The real beauty of audio imaging for podcasts is that the sky is no longer the limit. You are limited only by your imagination…so give it a good stretch and see what you come up with.
If you would like to learn more about imaging, give our podcast, Pod Heads Radio, a listen. You’ll be able to see how the Pod Heads use imaging to enhance our show. Good luck and good producing!
Ed LaComb is President of Ed LaComb Audio Imaging, Inc. A Syracuse, NY and Daytona Beach, FL based audio production company that specializes in imaging and commercial production. You can learn more about audio imaging at the Ed LaComb site. If you've come up with a great example of imaging, you can forward it to Ed, and he'll consider it for featuring in his podcast. His email address is eman@podheadsradio.com.
