Podcasting has become an established and highly effective communications format.  MP3 sound files can be placed on any website and downloaded and played on any MP3 player.  They can also be auto-downloaded via the subscribe to podcast feeds facility on iTunes, Zune, Libsyn, AudioBoo etc.  With the right equipment and training, anyone can produce broadcast quality audio packages.  As well as playing on MP3 players or mobile phones, MP3 files can be converted to standard audio CDs to play in the car or on a HiFi.

The purpose of this course:

This course covers everything you need to know about recording and editing audio packages or podcasts in-house.  Podcasts can be used for external and internal audiences.  They can be put on websites, company intranets, or promoted via social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin or YouTube.  Audio files can be burned to CDs for training, mailshots or other uses.

Who this course is for:

This course is aimed at communications teams who want to produce their own audio material in-house. It will also benefit internal communications, HR and organisational development teams who want to produce training materials, CEO messages and other communications for internal audiences.

Benefits for your organisation:

Communicate better

• Use the full power of audio story-telling to reach out to your audiences
• Produce broadcast quality audio clips (audio news releases) for use by the media
• Create podcasts for download via iTunes, YouTube or Vimeo as well as directly from your own website

Save money

• Just 20 minutes of audio produced in-house will recoup the cost of the equipment and training needed to get up and running. Hiring an external production company is both expensive and unnecessary.
• Even if you still commission external companies to produce your audio, at least you will know how the whole process works, so that you, the client can demand a better product and better value for money.

Be in control

• You will have complete control over your own material
• Take advantage of impromptu opportunities to record speeches, interviews and conversations by having the right equipment and properly trained staff in-house

Professional development for individuals:

Remember the days when desktop publishing software was in its infancy?  Those who learned to use QuarkXpress, Pagemaker and the like have prospered. Those who did not fell by the wayside.  The same applies to audio production and podcasting techniques.  Understanding the language, techniques and technology of how audio is produced is becoming a necessary skill for communications and marketing professionals.  Isn’t it time you future-proof your skills?

You will learn how to:

• Choose the right equipment to achieve highly professional results
• Tell a story using interviews, voice-overs, sound-effects and music
• Use techniques that are used by all radio producers, the world over
• Co-ordinate and direct a production so that everything goes smoothly
• Choose the right editing software and computer hardware
• Edit audio in a way that makes it exciting and dynamic to listen to
• Convert your edited audio package to a range of formats

Course content:

• Equipment overview
• Scriptwriting and planning your narrative
• Recording, interviewing and voiceover techniques
• Directing interviewees, recording ‘wild sound’ and continuity
• An introduction to audio editing software
• Editing techniques and conventions for a seamless narrative
• Polishing your work, adding sound-effects, and removing glitches
• Creating CDs, broadcast quality WAV files, MP3 and other formats

Duration: 1 day
Format: Workshop
Level: Beginners / Foundation