11. Mic Set-up to be a Podcast Genius

In this season finale our host Andrew Keith Walker records a show live in one take, running through the summary of season 1 and previewing the subject for season 2 - which is live streaming and moving your podcasting set-up to the next level. We'll be talking about workflow, streamlining your process, learning how to present a streamed show and dealing with the surprises you can get from live shows and live interviews.Plus - because this is the last HTBAPG show of 2021 - we also wish you a really early Merry Christmas. There. We did it. Yup. For real. Wow. Merry Christmas and see you in 2022.

This week Andrew has been forgetting his mic craft and moving around too much - so he's doing a refresher on how to get better results from your mic - getting it the right distance from your face, how to breathe, and how to noise gate out any issues. 

This week we're doing a live presentation tune-up special workshop with podcaster and Andrew's new best buddy Gary Tickle from EMPWRD.Radio. Together, they work through a series of fun exercises to develop control of the 4 Ps of podcast presenting - Pitch Power Pace and Pause. Don't miss it - and don't forget to visit our LinkedIn Page to download the workshop so you can try it yourself at home. 

This week Andrew adds his 2p into the debate over which is better - podcast or webinar. Well, one is a really effective way to:Reduce the costs of producing content for marketingCreate really targeted communications materialImprove the quality of your content outputMake your content more sharable with your audienceOverall increase the ROI of your marketing and PR budgetsThe other is a webinar. 

In this show Andrew Keith Walker talks about the 5 tips and tricks he uses to make interview guests feel relaxed and deal with their nerves. It's all about using positive psychology to put people at their ease, which means they can give their answers and sound more authentic. It's not just about getting a great interview, it's about avoiding that embarrassing moment when a guest stops speaking and feigns death to escape from the interview once they realise Andrew isn't putting on an act,  he really is determined to show them the Lego Death Star he keeps in the recording studio whether they like it or not.  (It is a first edition with the original Emperor Palpatine mini-figure though, so fair play to him).

This week Andrew Keith Walker talks about editing and why it's essential to make your show more engaging and fit more content into your runtime. Plus, he deliberately left loads of mistakes in this show for comic effect, but just in case you think it just sloppy editing, it was totally on purpose. No, for real. That's what he told us. We didn't argue with him at the time because he was blind drunk and brandishing a Samson Q2 XLR mic, then he passed out. But we think it was deliberate. Or at least we are willing to give him the benefit of the doubt because it's his company. Save us. Working here is a living hell.

This week Andrew explains 5 simple podcast hosting hacks to make yourself sound more Authentic. He also explains what authentic means when it comes to presenting skills and hosting a show. Also he talks about how to be a more authentic guest in interviews as well. The five tips are:Don't read Don't shoot from the lipDon't try to be funnyDon't try to steer the conversation too muchImprove your psychological safety with islands. Does any of that make sense? He thinks so. We weren't so sure until we finished the episode. But it did then.

This week our regular host Andrew Keith Walker has been replaced by a younger, more competent model called Avery Trotter. Avery is the first graduate of the How To Be A Podcast Genius course, and in just 48 hrs has gone from a mild mannered intellectual sixth-form work experience student to a cocky smart-arse with awesome editing and mastering skills who has written and produced this hilarious sketch show almost entirely on his own. Andrew pretends to be happy about it, but deep down he's livid and horribly jealous. No really, he's on the edge because everyone here much prefers Avery and wants Andrew to leave so Avery can replace him full time. For real. 

This week Andrew Keith Walker sets himself an impossible challenge - he records some really awful noisy audio of himself and tries to clean it up and master it to improve the quality. Can he use EQs, compressors, de-essers, de-reverbs, noise gates and limiters to turn a messy clip into something half decent? Find out in the show. Plus thoughts about how to approach producing a show where you can't always control the quality of the audio. This one is actually quite good. I mean, the others were good, but this one has a "hmmmm wow" element to it as you hear all the stuff going on behind the scenes. At least, that's what Andrew told us to write, honestly, some of the team in  the shed were a bit meh about it. But, you know, they got fired so. Whatever.

This week Andrew Keith Walker tackles the big questions about podcasting for yourself, your brand or your organisation. Sure, you can make one, but should you? The answer is yes, no, maybe and probably. Also. Who knows. We're not going to say in the description like we did last week, you actually have to listen to the show to find out. If you have the time and the skills, podcasting is very doable, if you don't, maybe not. This description is vague. Sorry. The show is much better. No, really it is.