Last week it finally happened! When I say finally, I mean the day was suddenly here and I was a little in disbelief as we began recording our first We Are VIP Podcast! (I will provide links to the official landing page as soon as live and you will also be able to access here.)
It has been a rollercoaster ride to get to this point and I wanted to share a few things to expect if you decide to engage a professional studio for your podcast. This is absolutely not required to get started, however, we chose this route for marketing purposes. Our podcast studio is also a PR firm (check them out here) and will leverage their network, as well as all the podcast platforms, to increase our exposure immediately.
There are so many decisions to be made prior to recording and I was surprised how emotionally attached I was to each one. First, music. It is amazing how you can hear several tracks and not feel a thing and then suddenly….magic. It was important to include all stakeholders in the decision process and it took several rounds of back and forth before the official track was selected. Still, after you make the decision, it is normal to question if it was the right one. At some point you have to go for it.
Second, graphics. Oh boy! We really wanted to get this one right. You want a graphic that embodies your message and grabs the attention of the podcast listener. One of the great benefits of utilizing the services of a professional studio are they have creatives on staff who can turn your concepts into a beautiful graphic. We sat around the production table and talked about who we were as a company and our vision for the podcast and the creative team turned our idea into a reality. Once we had the initial concept, we were able to tweak until we had exactly what we wanted. Be prepared for a little frustration as you make these decisions.
Next, intros and outros. Do you want an official intro or outro or both? If you chose to go with one or both, who will perform? We decided to go with both to bookend the show. Our production team would have provided the voice over, but we decided to use a professional Voice Over Actress, Miss Melanie Murphy, since we were very aware of her work. We were not disappointed! Wait until you hear her speak! (By the way, Melanie is also a Voice Image Coach and has trained my sales team how to properly project your voice, specifically over the phone. I highly recommend her!) The next step is to integrate the voice over so it is perfectly timed with the music. Whew!
Since we are doing a video podcast, now we needed some animation to introduce our show. Again, much of this is extra and made easier because we are using a professional studio. The studio provided the initial concept and once again we tweaked from there.
Scheduling a regular time in studio is extremely helpful for planning your content calendar. It makes it easier to schedule guests if you know in advance the studio time you have available. That is not to say you will not have one-offs where you will need to adjust your schedule to meet the needs of your guests, but in general, this will make your podcast life much easier to manage.
I am sure I am missing several key steps, but these are the biggies. The final, most important step is to build your content calendar. We developed the idea for the content for the show prior to booking the studio and now that we had a regularly scheduled time, we needed to book guests.
As I have said many times before, I am so grateful the managing partners at VIP are so forward thinking and are sponsoring this podcast. The podcast is devoted to bringing value to your career and candidate search. Each week, we will bring you insights from thought-leaders, company profiles, and team chats with our Exective Recruiters to provide tips and tricks on landing your dream job.
Join us the first week of August on your favorite podcast platform. Search for the We Are VIP Podcast!
