Courtney Carthy left the ABC a year ago to dive deep into producing and managing podcasts. In early 2017, he co-founded Nearly Media with mate and fellow radio producer Andy Bellairs. The network of quality podcasts includes Dan O’Neill, The Clappers and 10 Questions with Adam Zwar – taken from his experience with producing Agony Uncles for the ABC.
The marked difference between radio and podcasting is the time you have got. “The main difference that I’ve noticed is the clock. Everything live radio is timed to the second or near about,” he says.
“With podcasting, you’ve got an almost unlimited amount of freedom to stop, start, do whatever you want, publish a little bit down the track, rather than continuously, immediately.’
The uptake on podcast consumption is growing, that’s for sure, and that’s what makes the industry exciting for ex-radio producers to dip their toes in the podcasting space.
“If you go by the statistics, I think most people have heard the word podcast. Maybe 92% or more. I think 60% listen regularly. It may be one or two episodes a month.”
Carthy says podcasting can be particularly attractive for advertisers. “It’s attractive because you can reach a new audience. There’s a flow-on and lasting effect of having that conversation with a listener as a brand. Plus, you’ve got the host that they trust probably reading your ad as well, so it’s the brand speaking through them.”
Carthy is upbeat about where the industry is heading. “I think the quality will improve in terms of the content production. If the overall quality lifts it might mean that we have sort of fewer overall regularly produced shows, but a better quality for the audience, and that would probably drive some more adoption.”
Courtney was interviewed on BE Podcasting – Engage Your Audience, Episode 17.
