Recording Phone Interviews And Taking Live Calls During Podcast Shows

Please note, I do sell all of the pieces of equipment mentioned in this blog post. If you would like know pricing details, please contact me at Cliff@Ravensraft.org.

Please watch this video first and then see the information below the video:

Up to till this time, I’ve been using the JK Audio Broadcast Host to get from my phone line into my mixer. This device allows me to take a single analog telephone line and patch the audio to and from that phone line to my mixer. Basically turning my mixer into the “handset” of the phone. Been working great!

Here’s a diagram of the setup…

Today, I just got a question from a customer who wanted to know if he could use the Broadcast Host to hook up to his ISDN line. The answer is “no” because it is not an analog phone system. I called JK Audio and asked them what they have for this and they told me about the JK Audio InKeeper PBX.

It turns out that the InKeeper PBX is “exactly the same” as the Broadcast Host except that the connection to the phone line happens at the point of the “handset connection” of a standard telephone. This means that the phone is doing the translation from digital to analog signal and the InKeeper PBX plugs in where you would normally plug in the handset and the handset plugs into the InKeeper PBX. (See Diagram) (Note: this does not work with phones where the “dial pad” is in the handset).

Now, what is awesome about this is that with the handset being the point of connection, this means you could have a “multi-line” phone system, hence the name PBX, where you can switch back and forth between multiple phone lines, just like you were do if you were simply using the phone’s handset switching to another line. This is going to fill the need of many of my clients who want to be able to use multiple phone lines to allow for a queue of callers waiting. This also allows for someone on another extension to “pre-screen” those calls as well.

Here’s the diagram of the setup:

Please note, I do sell both of the above pieces of equipment. If you would like know pricing details, please contact me at Cliff@Ravensraft.org.

080 Podcast Answer Man – Google Analytics ScreenCast

In this video screen cast, I share how how to install Google Analytics on your Worpress based website.

Never heard of Google Analytics before? No worries, I also show just how much useful information you can learn about how people find your site and what they do once they get there. Best of all, Google Analytics is absolutely free.

EQUIPMENT SALES: Please consider purchasing from me when making your next purchase for audio gear to improve the sound of your podcast. Email me at Cliff@gspn.tv or call me. My phone number is on the top of the the Equipment Page.

Don’t forget to call in your questions for the show at 859-795-4067

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My Favorite Wordpress Themes Go Open Source!

It is no secret that I love Wordpress not only for blogging software, but for content management all together. Since the beginning, I’ve helped many of my podcast consulting clients set up some of the best looking and easily navigable podcast sites available.

While I am able to take an existing Wordpress Theme and modify it to meet my client’s needs, I must tell you that I can not take credit for the original designs that I’ve used. I’ve been an affiliate with Revolution Themes for quite some time. And as such, I’ve recommended several clients to use these great themes as the foundation for their online presence.

Effective this morning, my favorite themes are going Open Source with a brand new site named RevolutionTwo.com. What this means is that these themes are now going to be made available for free to the public.

My first thought was how in the world was the team behind these awesome designs ever going to make a living and to continue to be able to provide support for those who use the themes? I learned that they are now offering either a one year or lifetime membership to full support on all their themes.

As a long time customer of theirs, I can tell you that their support for these forums are second to none! Personally, I know the cost of getting a decent web site designed. It would cost no less than $1,000 and likely much more to have a site that looks as good as these themes. For only $99 you get unlimited access to all the Revolution Two Themes and you get full support for 1 year. For only $149 you get a lifetime membership allowing you unlimited support and access to all themes.

I would like to point out that I’m available to help on a one on one basis in learning how to customize these themes to meet your needs. I charge $95 per hour for my services. So you can see how much of a good deal the theme support membership can be!

If you choose to use the Revolution Two themes and/or membership, I’d love it if you would be willing to come to PodcastAnswerMan.com and click on the banner that links to them in the sidebar so that I can get the affiliate commission on the referral.

Podcasting Is Dead? Dead Wrong!

A few week’s ago, I was browsing through one of my social networking sites and saw a friend post a message that he was about to attend a session titled “Podcasting Is Dead.” I happen to know the person who gave that talk. Since I was not there to listen, I’m not going to comment on what he actually said against or in support of podcasting as a medium for delivering content to niche audiences.

True be told, there is no shortage of bloggers that are suggesting that “podcasting is dead“. I’m here to shout from the mountain top that this simply is not true! Podcasting is not only alive, it is thriving!

When I started podcasting in 2005, I didn’t know anyone locally who had ever heard of a podcast. Today, almost everyone I know is aware that their local church “podcasts” their weekend sermons, that their local news station makes the evening news available via podcast, or that their favorite tv show is likely to have an “official podcast” put out by either the creator, wriiters, or producers of their favorite tv show.

For those of you who do not know this about me, I left a very successful career in insurance after 11 years to pursue a career in podcasting full time. I’m now entering my eleventh month and I’ve not experienced a single dime of debt from day one. I’m consistently contacted by people who hear about me via word of mouth and who want to be consulted about how to start their own podcast.

I’ve fallen in love the the medium of delivering content via rss technology that I’m working on a business model that will allow me to earn a majority of my income from producing my own content alone. Just a few short months ago, I decided to take my podcasts to a partial premium content model, charging $10 per month. In just a few short months, I’ve already have already had one 163 people join up as gspn.tv Plus Members, with new members added daily.

I introduce the fact that I was an insurance agent for eleven years to explain to you that that the insurance industry as a whole is an industry that is always the last to embrace the latest technology. Many insurance companies still do not accept credit card payments on their websites. Most of those that do, still charge you up to five dollars for the convenience.

A majority of insurance agency offices today are still filled with up to 10’s or 100’s of four drawer letter file cabinets full of manila folders with years worth of paper copies of client policies. You’d laugh if I told you the number of agents I know that have an email address, but have no idea how to check or send an email. This is an extreme example, as most agents do use email on a daily basis. However I bet that less than 10% would know how to scan a document into pdf format and email it as an attachment. Being as technology driven as I am, the fact that the insurance industry simply could not keep up with my taste of early adoption was one of many factors that led me to make the switch to my new career.

I share all this background to share the following email I got from an insurance industry continuing education company. A quick look at their website will prove that they haven’t done a refresh of their web design in the past five years. However, this insurance related company has adopted the technology of podcasting.

With the trend that I’ve seen in the adoption of new technology, the following email is an early indication that your grandmother may be asking for an iPod for Christmas so she can subscribe to the podcast for AARP radio.

CEUNEWS

CEU.com Adds Downloadable Course Audio
Continuing education podcasts allow students to take material on the road

You’ve come to expect the best in convenient, high quality continuing education courses from CEU.com. After all, you just need a computer and an internet connection, and you can get the courses you need any time, day or night. What could be easier?

Well – what if you could study the course material when you are away from the computer? When you are driving, riding the train, or even working out at the gym? Now that’s convenient!

CEU.com is happy to announce that we now offer downloadable podcasts of our course audio. This means that when a student signs up for a course, he or she can save the audio to an iPod or other MP3 player. Then the course can go with the student on the road, to the gym, while doing housework – wherever an audio player can go. He or she can review the material as many times as necessary without having to sit at a computer the entire time.

Audio learning is a great way to conveniently incorporate brief study sessions into your daily routine, and this can actually improve your ability to learn. In his book 400 Ways to Stop Stress Now and Forever, G. Gaynor McTigue emphasizes that frequent, short study sessions are the best way to keep information fresh in your mind. Using this method of learning allows you to better understand and retain the material on a deeper level, and it is far superior to trying to “cram” all the material at once. You are also less likely to procrastinate, since these short sessions fit so painlessly into your schedule.

“At CEU.com, we pride ourselves in using technology to its greatest advantage,” said Bruce MacMillian, CEU’s president and CEO. “Making the audio from our courses downloadable makes perfect sense, and it’s a great use of the technology. Freeing our students to take the audio with them to review at their convenience will help them to retain and utilize the information to enhance their careers, and that’s what continuing education is all about.”

Downloadable course audio is now available at www.ceu.com.

gspn.tv Podcasts Recieve Six Podcast Awards Nominations!

Many of you are aware that I do podcast consulting and sell podcast equipment. However, not everyone is aware that I personally produce, with my wife and a few friends, twenty of my own podcasts which I have formed into the Generally Speaking Production Network (gspn.tv).

This year, we received one of the greatest honors a podcast could hope to receive as it relates to the fourth annual People’s Choice Podcast Awards. This year, 81,000 individuals came together and nominated a total of 1,874 podcasts for 22 categories for the 2008 People’s Choice Podcast Awards!

Out of those nominated, only 10 podcasts for each category make it to the actual voting round. With 22 categories, this means that of the 1,874 podcasts nominated, only 220 are eligible for this year’s 15 day voting period.

I’m very honored to announce to that SIX of the 220 podcasts nominated were gspn.tv podcasts!

Below are the podcasts that were nominated and for which category:

About The Church – Education
Weekly Lost Podcast – Entertainment
Full Time Mom – General
Musically Challenged – Podsafe Music
Almost Daily Devotional – Religion & Inspiration
Podcast Answer Man – Technology & Science

I’m not practicing false humility when I authentically tell you that I believe this has a lot more to do with the power of an engaged community than our ability to produce content.

I want to thank everyone who nominated the gspn.tv podcast lineup above!

079 Podcast Answer Man – Isolation – Absorbtion – Podcast Stats – Condenser Vs Dynamic Mics

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In This Episode, I answer questions about noise reduction, mic choices, and so much more. I talk about Isolation, Absorbtion, Podcast Stats, and Condenser Vs Dynamic Microphones.

EQUIPMENT SALES: Please consider purchasing from me when making your next purchase for audio gear to improve the sound of your podcast. Email me at Cliff@gspn.tv or call me. My phone number is on the top of the the Equipment Page.

Don’t forget to call in your questions for the show at 859-795-4067
You can also post questions in the Podcast Answer Man section of the gspn.tv Community Forum.

Right Click Here To Download

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