CHRISLEYDON.COM

People have often asked me “what makes a successful podcast?”. Why they’re asking me I have no idea. It could be to do with the little success that I’ve had with The Podzone, or even the soon-to-be hit The Glitch; either way it feels my ego and I’m often happy to answer the question.

I personally define a successful Podcast by the amount of listeners that it has. The next question, of course,  is how many listeners defines a successful podcast? I can answer that question incredibly easily. It only takes one listener to have a successful show. Not one hundred, not one thousand, just one; one listener who enjoys the show and keeps coming back for more.

A few of you may now think that I’m clinically insane and need to be sectioned under the Mental Health act, but let’s think about this. Why do we create content in the first place? Some do it for money, but the majority of us create content to be creative. We like to express ourselves and if other people enjoy it then that’s a bonus. This is why it only takes one listener or viewer to have a successful podcast. One person who enjoys your creativity is all we need to feel fantastic about what we do.

That’s the secret to making a successful podcast; what makes a good podcast is a completely different question altogether and one that will be answered in a future post.

Chris Leydon.

The second of my three posts today is concerning PodShow, more specifically, the rumours circulating about PodShow’s current state. I’m not allowed to go into much detail about this, due to contractual reasons and moral obligations, but I shall try to clear the air a bit.

It has been reported on Valleywag that PodShow are making radical changes to their company. First of all I’d like to point out that Valleywag is a rumour blog and nothing more, there are no quoted sources and most of it is speculation. Second of all what should it matter IF PodShow is making layoffs, IF it needs to downsize, let it.

Adam Curry, President of PodShow, has contacted PodShow producers today to inform them of exactly what’s happening within PodShow. As an independent PodShow producer myself, I too have been informed of these changes; they are not as radical as certain “publications” and fabrications are making them out to be.

This is a typical example of a rumour snowballing. Valleywag has no evidence of these layoffs and there has been no word from PodShow itself. PodShow is still committed to creating fantastic content and supporting its producers. Version 2.5 of its site launched this week and this sees a whole fresh look on PodShow itself. 2008 is set to be a big year for PodShow and I for one support them 100%.

My 12 month agreement with PodShow UK Ltd is up for renewal within the next few weeks, I have no plans not to agree to an extension; and as far as I’m aware, neither do PodShow. My experience with PodShow has been fantastic and I think that we are great partners together. The Podzone isn’t a huge internet sensation, but it is indeed great content that many people do want; PodShow and I see this and hopefully we’ll continue to produce fantastic content with each other for another 12 months. The money hasn’t been that bad either.

Blogs such as Valleywag exist to spread and fuel rumours. This is just PodShow bashing, it must PodShow’s time again. After all there’s no Apple news in sight to wank over, so it must be a slow “news” day.

Chris Leydon.