Heading into my 6th year in the podcast industry, there’s a lot that I’ve seen and there’s more I would love to see especially when it comes to…you guessed it – Caribbean Podcasting.
I love Track & Field and I also love the NBA. For this article – let us focus on the NBA for a minute. There’s a whole ecosystem in the NBA other than the players and coaches. Sure the players and coaches get the lime light but basketball fans know, there’s operations, analysts, statisticians, the medical team, etc. that are essential to supporting the roles of the players and coaches.
The same applies to podcasting. While I’m excited that there are new shows and hosts, I would love to see more people in roles that support the industry.
And while Caribbean Podcasting is still in the nascent stage, I don’t it’s too early to begin exploring opportunities for entrepreneurs and roles beyond hosting in Podcasting and Audio.
2 Immediate Needs
What roles would I love to see? Well I’m going to selfishly address my pain points over the pass 6 years.
AI & Software: There are a lot of AI tools and software for transcription. I’d love to see a technologist or entrepreneur of Caribbean Heritage attempt at creating a product that is trained to recognized our voices and accents. Check out this article I wrote a few years ago about why diversity in these AI tools is important.
Music: Finding royalty free music that represents the diverse discography of the Caribbean is hard. Most of what’s available is a touristy/cliche version of Calypso and Reggae. Options are limited that people like me who are native to the culture feel is truly authentic. So for years I’ve settled on the closest thing. A few months ago while working with a client – they were looking for a particular type of music but I couldn’t find anything suitable. The client was disappointed but they also understood the landscape. Aspiring Caribbean beat makers can take advantage of the many platforms like Audio Jungle or Premium Beat where they can create music that can be used in podcasts and other mediums for a reasonable price. There just needs to be more royalty free music Caribbean creators selling their work!
Hope for the Future
As the larger podcast industry continues to develop and grow, I’m always hopeful about the possibilities for the Caribbean Podcast Industry. And once I discover quality service and tools, I will definitely share.
Discoverability and growing podcast listenership are top priorities for podcasts and rightfully so. With the growing number of podcasts, how can podcasts stand out or find more listeners (and get more downloads)?
A dedicated website for podcasters is highly recommended and important in the reaching a wider audience.
With a website and a blog you:
Increase the chances of people finding your show,
Provide your audience with more content outside of the podcast and
Are able to promote products, services and more to your listeners.
Blk Pod Collective: The Podcast is a podcast for podcasters, that provides insights, resources and instruction to those looking for guidance in starting, growing and sustaining their podcast. Take a listen.
Resources Mentioned in the episode:
Google Analytics – A free tool that gives you insight on your website traffic. Google Analytics allows you to analyze in-depth detail about the visitors that come to your website. This includes the most popular content on your website. This information can be used to help you send trends and create content that can help with increasing podcast listenership.
Google Search Console – Another free tool that can be used to track your site’s search performance within Google. It will also give you alerts if there’s any index issues that Google is having with your site. Google Search Console gives you insight into some of the searches your website ranks high for. Meaning the searches that were used that led visitors/traffic to your website. This is also valuable insight on the type of content that listeners and potential listeners are interested in which can lead to increased podcast awareness and listenership.
Yoast – This is a WordPress plugin that is used to help with Search Engine Optimization (SEO). It operates with SEO best practices and shows you real time the SEO grade of your post.
Spotify’s quest for more podcast market share is resulting in questionable approaches to podcasting all in the name of trying to control the market and control ads.
A checklist is a great way to keep track of things to do whether the task or project is repetitive or a one time thing.
There’s a lot of things that podcasters need to do before, during and after a podcast is recorded. Without a clear list of reminders it’s easy to overlook what seems to be a minor thing – but in the grand scheme of things is a major thing.
Through Carry On Friends, I’ve been podcasting for over 5 years and I still follow a checklist of things to do before pre, during and post record. And I’ve shared with my clients through Breadfruit Media the same checklists
This Podcast Recording and Editing Checklist is a high level overview of things to consider before you start recording your podcast and after you’ve finished recording. With the variety of software and tools available, the list is a more general list and will not go deep into specifics.
The checklist is intended as a starting point for you. and I encourage you to add items specific to your needs as wells as the various tools and software that you use.
For the past 3 months we’ve been busy growing the Caribbean Podcast Directory – a hub to discover podcasts created and hosted by people of Caribbean Heritage whether they live in the region or in the Diaspora.
How the Directory began
CPD started out in February 2018 as an article on Carry On Friends called 10 Podcasts Hosted by Caribbean Americans. In May 2018 at the launch of Breadfruit Media the article was updated to a directory and given its own page. Now over a year later Caribbean Podcast Directory has its own website dedicated to the discovery of Caribbean Podcasts.
According to the 2019 Podcast Trends Report, the biggest challenges facing podcasts today is Podcast Discovery. This is especially true for small and niche podcasts. Finding shows isn’t always easy as smaller shows are competing with more popular shows and networks with bigger marketing budgets. As of Oct 10th Apple has over 750k podcasts with this volume of podcasts, even with good content it’s going to be harder to get noticed or discovered.
The first and key promise is to the listener – that when the listener goes to the directory, they are finding active and current podcasts to listen to.
In order to fill that promise, the podcaster plays a very important role. Podcasters can submit to the directory for free however they have to meet certain criteria before shows are added.
The promise to the podcaster to provide a platform where they can be featured as well as resources and opportunities that might get shared with us.
Directory Criteria
The first criteria for submission is at least one host must be of Caribbean Heritage. This means born in a Caribbean country or have parents, grandparents who were born in the region.
The second criteria requires that the podcast must be active for at least 6 months with a new episode every month for the past 6 months. Why this criteria? Well this criteria is helpful in fulfilling the first and key promise to the listener. A podcast that is not current or inconsistent reflects poorly on the directory and the other podcasts listed in the directory.
Think about it this way – imagine going to a supermarket and every other item or two you pick up in the store is expired; you would start to question ‘what type of supermarket is this?’ Let’s say you give supermarket another chance and go back on a different day but the same thing happens. You then make a decision not to go back right?
That is why criteria two is important. The submission details outlines how the Directory plans to support podcasters who seem to be podfading. Now for new podcasters who are less than 6 months old it doesn’t mean that they can’t be celebrated and supported for being launching a podcast. The submission details also outlines the Directory’s plan that new shows.
Our Commitment
Breadfruit Media is invested in Caribbean Culture and committed to elevating the stories and voices of the Caribbean one podcast at a time. Through the Caribbean Podcast Directory we are focused on transforming the way people discover podcasts hosted by people of Caribbean Heritage.
Podcast Movement was epic! And the Breadfruit Media Team aka Breadfruit Media Collective share each of their experiences from the conference.
Rachel’s Recap
Podcast Movement 2019 did a few things for me. It reminded me that there is power and responsibility in being a storyteller, that patience is for people & narratives but technology moves quickly, and it was also a moment to step back and marvel at how communities form themselves in the midst of shared experiences.
Audio Fiction Lack Diversity
My debut to podcasting is as the co-creator/writer/producer of the audio drama Parade. So, I chose select sessions on the Fiction Track to attend between introductions by Kerry-Ann to folks in our community and dropping in on marketing sessions.
In The State of Audio Fiction, I walked away with a new layer of the reality of the lack of representation of people of color in scripted productions. The panel spoke about how white actors often portray black characters in audio dramas. We see other instances of this in film, with specific cultural representation. Shifting this imbalance only comes with more creators of color in these spaces. So, the weight of what it means to be helming a Jamaican show in the podcast world landed squarely on my shoulders. Beyond the story, beyond the technical production, is the opportunities more of us in the fiction podcast world will create for the hard working talent who portray our stories.
Other gems I collected from the Fiction Track is that even Lauren Shippen and her peers go through the same creator blues I’m experiencing now. Their anecdotes gave me permission to be a little softer and patient with myself in this production journey to the debut of Parade. The story matters, the cast matters, I matter, but most of all, great collaboration and the meshing of the parts is the key to success.
The Technology
Podcast Movement had great representation for the folks in the industry that support hosts and productions with their ever changing tech solutions. I was wildly surprised at the variety of audio options, the leaps and bounds Zoom mics have taken since I first used one in 2011, and the possibilities that having a Shure MV88+ Video Kit opens up for someone like me who loves video for journalistic projects. I was also happy I could lean on Kerry-Ann to make the decisions about tech and hosting for my show based on her experience. It was really great to have her as a guide to the conference for Mikelah and I.
My Voice Matters
Which brings me to our fireside chat From Patois to Kreyol: The Power of Niche in Podcasting. This chat was a growing moment for me, a milestone that reminded me that my voice matters. The highlight though was what people who attended got from it. Being able to meet people after the chat and learn more about them. This is where I got to see that through the shared experience of trying to carve a space for ourselves in podcasting, through servicing our niches, everyone in the room was a part of an unofficial community. We’ll grow by being resilient, collaborative, and visible – within our small groups, then on the larger stage.
Kerry-Ann, Mikelah and Rachel
Kerry-Ann’s Recap
I was able to share my recap and conference strategy on this episode of the BuzzCast by BuzzSprout.
In addition my interview on Buzzcast, other highlights of Podcast Movement include:
The Edison Research Keynote. I noted that Tom Webster kept using “show” instead of podcasts. The reason? Podcast is being redefined because people are listening to them differently. If it’s on YouTube only is it a podcast? It’s also interesting because we still use the word “podcast” although we no longer listen to them on iPods. Which brings me to an article I wrote about it’s time to consider renaming podcasts. And while we are not completely there yet it’s something to consider.
Podcasters of Color are GROWING!!! When I attended PM17 there were not a lot of Podcasters of Color but in 2019 it is clear that there’s more in the space and it will continue to grow.
Apple and Google still lead the way in podcast discoverability. Although how people listen differs by demographic and niche.
…stay ready so I don’t have to get ready.
Mikelah
Mikelah’s Recap
Going into Podcast Movement I really had no expectations beyond soaking in the atmosphere and meeting a few people. I came away inspired by what I learned, which affirmed that I’m on the right track. As a niche within a niche you could get lost in the sauce, but it was the small gems and networking opportunities that made Podcast Movements exceptional.
Coming back I only have a few things in my “to-do list” which are focused on growth. To date, I’ve been good at maintaining consistency, but to keep growing I’m planning to survey my listeners, look for alternative income opportunities and clarity around Breadfruit Media as a collective. Podcast Movements affirmed that I’m off to a good start my first year and it seems like there’s a lot more growth in store for podcasters of color, I just need to stay ready so I don’t have to get ready.
Breadfruit Media
We are in the know so you can create the best podcast experience for you and your audience. Ready to get started?
Here’s is a list of podcast recording tools that I’m using, the reason I use them and in some cases, possible alternatives. The podcast recording tools are organized into three categories:
The Afros & Audio inaugural festival held in Brooklyn on June 22-23rd, 2019 is the first Black Podcast Festival for Black Podcast Creators and Audio Digital Tech professionals. The theme for this year’s festival was Community & Collaboration.
As a niche indie podcast producer distribution and discoverability is key but at the same time we don’t want to confuse our audience. When promoting shows the best to offer options but keep it simple.
