VisionWeaver Media Innovation Celebration
Effective Use of Podcasting in the Corporate Environment
Introduction to Podcasting - An effective, efficient and compelling means of communication.
Audio is one of the most powerful ways of communicating effectively on a variety of levels. The new medium of Podcasting has taken the world by storm and has clear advantages over prior methods of delivering information. Podcasts are audio messages recorded as digital files and delivered as enclosures (similar to email's attachments). They can be downloaded at any time and listened to on either a desktop computer or on any of the portable media players, such as an iPod. Listeners can also subscribe to your podcast “station” – when new programming is available the files are automatically downloaded when and where the listener wishes. Whether for frequent or infrequent communication, podcasts can always be delivered in your secure RSS feeds behind the firewall.
We will be highlighting the potential benefits of incorporating podcasting as an integral part of your business. Visitors will have the opportunity to learn about the underlying functionality of podcasting and the many ways to apply the technology to enhance both internal and external business communications. Creation and delivery of compelling communications through this new media technology requires both technical and creative expertise in the application of best practices that can only be garnered through experience – VisionWeaver Media has this experience.
Multimedia presentations will be utilized in the booth to illustrate the potential benefits of podcasting and how it can be applied to meet organizational needs.
Challenge
What was the opportunity/challenge that caused the creation of the idea?
Workers are time-strapped. Even when presented in an engaging way, information in document form may or may not get reviewed. Delivering this same information through podcasts gives workers the ability to reduce information overload by listening to the information they need when and where it is most convenient. This type of information is often time sensitive and becomes stale very quickly. Delivering it through podcasts enables the most recent updates to be instantly available to everyone who needs them.
Podcasting in the consumer world has grown at an incredible rate and business utilization is poised to take off. However, the sometimes-quirky nature of these productions (mostly completed in the producers basements) coupled with lower quality of output hasn’t exposed the true potential for the business community. VisionWeaver Media sees great opportunity in helping its clients effectively employ this technology to meet business needs by assisting in all stages of production, from planning and organizing the podcast to sending out high quality productions.
Imagine
What was the idea that was generated to meet the challenge? How was the idea developed from conception?
VisionWeaver Media has constructed a stand alone, fully outfitted studio dedicated to podcasting for business. The studio takes advantage of the latest technologies and provides a quick, efficient, turnkey production facility. Space and equipment is provided for interaction among multiple content experts (both local and remote) in a communal environment that promotes compelling content. Additionally, as podcasts evolve to having more video content, VisionWeaver Media is ready as an established full-service video production facility.
The potential of this facility is coupled with a strong understanding of the strengths and limitations of podcasting and the best way to develop program formats to exploit the media. Every program is different based on the information to be communicated – VisionWeaver Media will tailor fit each program with a custom developed program format. Additional attention has been paid to the production process – a web-based application has been developed to facilitate all stages of the pre-production process. Services include:
- Turn-key project management
- Voiceover/host talent
- Driving content meetings to identify stories and story angles
- Scheduling interviews with subject matter experts
- Pre-interviewing subject matter experts for content
- Developing content flow and scripting
- Recording audio
- Directing for delivery and content during recording
- Editing content for clarity
- Delivering finished audio files
- RSS/feed management (if necessary)
Deliver
How did the idea generate results for the company?
VisionWeaver Media has always been on the forefront of technology – focused on understanding the deeper issues of the media, not just the bells and whistles. Podcasting has opened new markets for us by providing new benefits to our existing clients and allowing us to serve new clients.
