Welcome back to the Podcast Academy blog! As a refresher, this blog will follow the journey of our six projects within the workshop. Each week, our class will engage with industry professionals, mentors, and one another to produce their very own narrative podcasts. During Podcast Academy’s Live Pitch Event (September 26th), our participants will pitch their podcasts to industry professionals and a live audience (join us!). Wow only two weeks left until the big day! Let’s catch up on what the Academy learned during our Sunday session.
An Intro to Wix
This week, the class met with Caitlin Murphy of our sponsor, Wix.com, to discuss marketing their podcasts and the innovative functionality of Wix’s website builder. Caitlin Murphy touched on how Wix’s customizability works perfectly for promoting podcasts, like through Wix’s “Podcast Player” application and website templates specialized for audio projects. Wix also has SEO capabilities integrated into its website builder, alongside its very own Logo Maker platform, to enhance marketing efforts for your projects and website. Wix is one of the best platforms to create a website to promote your work, and the Academy is incredibly grateful for the chance to meet with Caitlin Murphy to talk about marketing, website building, and how Wix integrates these two disciplines effortlessly.
Major Takeaways from the Discussion:
I) Developing a website can help foster build a community around your podcast.
II) Define your goals for the website and do research on other landing pages to determine how to design an effective and engaging page.
III) Consider creating site map navigation to help organize and clarify your website.
An Intro to Being An Independent Podcast Producer
The Academy then talked with Sam Dingman of “Family Ghosts” to discuss his journey as an independent producer and the lessons he learned along the way. Sam spoke about the importance of listening to one’s own heart when deciding a career path, the power of persistence in an industry as volatile as podcasting, and the joys of crafting a story that resonates with many others.
Major Takeaways from the Discussion:
I) If you stay on the path of what you want to do, you’ll find others with similar pursuits.
II) Consider your happiness when pursuing careers. Do you have a life purpose or are you prescribing to a traditional definition of success?
III) Be aware of the terms and negotiating practices in creative content contracts. When in doubt, retain legal representation.
That’s all for us here at Podcast Academy! Thanks for following our journey. Stay up to date with the blog for a glimpse into how to produce your own independent podcast. Remember to pay close attention to our blog because there may be a special prize given out during our Live Pitch Event for those of you learned with us along the way! We’re kicking it into high gear as September 26 creeps up ever so quickly. We hope to see you again here at NYU’s Podcast Academy!