I came across 3 services that provide all-in-one podcasting solutions for all you aspiring podcasters out there. And I don't mean a place to upload your files and host them for free. These services provide hosting, editing/mixing, blog templates, the whole works. They even give you a tool that you can use to record with (although nothing beats my Plantronics headset).
I'll give you my bird's eye view on these 3 and will provide a more in-depth analysis once someone pays me to do these things.
Effective Podcasting
A UK-based company that will help you produce, promote and publish your podcast. Hosting of your podcasts and script writing are also included. The service seems geared to large companies because on their contact us form, Effective Podcasting asked for advertising budget.
I wanted more details, but I had to fill out their online form or download their hyped-up marketing brochure in a PDF (oh boy). And I didn't know that only attractive, young women are listening to podcasts (take a look at the pictures on each page)?
Evoca
This one seems more geared to the average consumer. Big buttons, bubbles, very Web 2.0. You can sign up and use your telephone to record up to 60-minutes for free. Anything longer than that and you have to pay $4.99 per month for the professional version. They also integrate Skype into their platform so you can use it to record your interviews.
So far, I haven't found anything wonky, but will continue playing with it and provide an update.
WildVoices
Yet another service geared to the average consumer. What's neat is they have an online tool that you can use to record, edit and mix in music (supplied by WildVoices).
A minus is that their player only works if you're using Windows XP. Also, it's difficult to navigate through the site once you sign-up. I didn't understand what some of sections were for, eg. channels and how they related to what I was trying to do in the system.
My Take
They're getting there, although they still have a ways to go. What Evoca and WildVoices are doing right is creating a community for their podcasters.
Effective Podcasting seems to be geared to a more corporate audience, however, I would suggest that they build a community too. Just because their target market is higher up the employment food chain, doesn't mean they're not interested in interacting with other podcasters that share their interests. They put on their socks the same way I do each morning (well, maybe not now because it's 45-degrees outside).
Do you have any pluses or minuses for these services?
Hello Leesa,
Thanks for including WildVoice in your list. Let me just take a moment to clarify a few points about WildVoice and our service.
WildVoice actually provides two recording tools for creating Podcasts or Audio Comments. WildVoice Studio is a free tool for creating Podcasts, it is a Windows-Only application (we figure most Mac users already have Garage Band anyway). Users who want a quicker way of recording Podcasts or posting audio comments can use the WildVoice ‘Shout’ in-page recorder. This also is Windows only, but we are hoping to provide a Mac version in the future. So, presently our recording tools are all Windows only. Playback however is multiplatform. We use Adobe Flash for our players and it should work on all major systems.
WildVoice Studio includes a library of Sound Effects. Presently, we do not provide music for users to use in their shows. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podsafe provides a number of excellent resources for finding Podsafe music.
We are continuing to improve our navigation and ease of use for our users. One reason that is a bit complex today is there are some unique features made available to subscribers. Each user gets a site within WildVoice that they can customize and use to publish content. Each user gets a main channel for creating Podcasts, we call this the “Spotlight Channel”. A user who simply wants to post shows to a single channel can simply use their Spotlight Channel. However, Theme Channels let users create multiple channels and control the Podcast content that is displayed in their Channels. We have two types of Theme Channels. List Channels let users specify a list of Podcasts to include in their channel, Smart Channels let users create a filter or set of rules and the server will find Podcasts that match their specified criteria. Both Smart Channels and List Channels allow you to include Podcasts from other users within WildVoice in your channel. These features give users very unique capabilities, and we’re still working to make them easier to use.
Please visit us again and take another look. The site and tools get better each week.
Michael Levy
http://www.WildVoice.com
Posted by: Michael Levy | August 1, 2006 5:06 PM | Permalink to Comment