I think they and many others have helped to turn what is potentially a useful, empowering medium into a pimpable, trashy, empty commodity. I thank them for their podcasting bible – it helped me get started and understand a few things, but as soon as the endless junk afiliate marketing emails started, I lost all respect for their approach.

I think podcasting has a future as a specific solution to a specific problem in a specific context.

The problem for business podcasting as I see it is that very few businesses see podcasting as a solution to any of their problems. It also doesn’t clearly add to their bottom line and – even if it did – for most, the prospect of performing in front of a mic / camera is an ordeal in itself.

We’re finding that businesses are not eager to podcast themselves – but they are interested in how podcasting techniques can solve certain problems. With that in mind, we’re trying to create the very simplest ways for them to ’speak’ leaving us to ‘publish’. The ‘get-rich-quick-with-information-products’ approach has soured the whole podcasting field and the quicker it loses the ‘podcasting’ name, the better in that respect.

Two divergent themes emerged about podcasting this week. Neville Hobson noted the cancellation of two podcasting conferences. Neville wondered if businesses had lost interest in podcasting, and whether this was specific to the UK? A few comments sugges…

Because podcasting is so precisely aimed and because so much business podcasting is proprietary, the fact that, as an outsider, you don’t see it is not an accident but is intentional. Sometimes people forget that podcasting isn’t advertising. You don’t have to reach 100,000 viewers if your audience is 500 and they and only they can get your podcasts.

Indeed, the National Podcasting System has been producing most of its podcasts for selected eyes and ears only. When the audience are your employees, partners, distribution chain, trainees, sales force, retailers, or legal department, the last place you’ll host your podcasts are on iTunes. Only our clients and the intended recipients know of the podcasts.

This feature not only gives podcasting an advantage of broadcasted media but is a downfall as well. The masses don’t see a prevalence of business podcasting so they believe it’s not a proven medium or isn’t well-known enough to use themselves. Unfortunately, that type of thinking works against businesses. Especially those whose competitors are exploiting all the benefits, especially the covert ones, of podcasting.

Surely, open podcasting has a place to supplement or even replace advertising and marketing mixes and my company has produced several for a variety of companies. And those overt or open-to-all podcasts are playing an increasingly important role for business. But to only regard those as the only podcasts being used because they’re the only ones that can be accessed freely disregards the huge number of covert podcasts that are being made and being watched and heard.

And while businesses might be interested in producing their own podcasts, many are turning to businesses that specialize in professional podcast production. Therefore, a seemingly disinterest in podcasting when, in reality, the medium is booming.

regards,

Dave Burckhard
National Podcasting System
http://www.nationalpod.com

Firstly thanks to Alex for sharing those links to the corporate podcasts. It’s good to know that there are at least some.

Overall in Europe there are far fewer corporate podcasts than we might like – but then that’s the same for the whole area of social media communications.

I believe that there is still alot of work we need to do to engage the communications, marketing and HR communities to show them how they can include podcasting and other social media platforms both to engage with clients, prospects, business partners, prospective employees, current and past employees.

In Ireland we’ve only just started to see business podcasting being referenced in the media this month for the first time to a significant level in the major press.

To the point of people not registering to attend the programmes you mention, don’t overlook that at a time of economic uncertainty, the one thing that most organisations look at is discretionary spend. I know that is what I would have been doing had I still been in my SVP role in a FTSE top 20 company.

Yes I know podcasting is inexpensive and can help build and sustain brand engagement and employer brand engagement during an economic downturn, but implementing new ideas and strategies when financials are under pressure is not at the top of the list for many leaders in large corporates.

It’s taken some time to see the seeds we’ve been planting about social media starting to grow in Europe but I’ve received more enquiries from organisations interested in social media in 2008 than ever before and have been running a number of workshops and providing consulting on social media strategies including podcasting.

It’s incumbent of all of us who are first movers in the area to continue to raise awareness of the benefits social media can, share case studies and I am sure that eventually we will see more companies adopting podcasting and social media in their marketing, communications and engagement strategies.

There’s something, though, that’s a blocker for more companies to get involved with something that has almost no barriers to entry (as we well know).

Maybe it’s just a lack of imagination.

Alex, thanks for that list. I’m aware of most of them. Many financial institutions as I mentioned in my post. But I’m asking where are the Whirlpools, the GMs, the BMWs, etc.

Anna, I recall intense interest in business podcasting here in 2006 and early 2007. I presented at conferences on the topic, gave workshops at a number of companies about social media including podcasting and how it fits into traditional communication.

Yet little progress. With one exception, none of the companies I’ve talked to directly have started a podcast, internally or externally, in spite of very clear expressions of desire to do so.

In those cases, I know of many hurdles they still have to jump (mindset shifts mainly) so maybe it is all about time lags as you noted.