Saving Time and Organic Growth

I had my first meeting with my mentor Aaron (from Boards Alive) and as I mentioned in my last blog post, I really wanted to focus on three things: Improving the sound and content of my podcast, improving my reach, and reducing my editing time.  With Aaron's help, I've already started to work on all three of these!  

Let's start with reducing my editing time, which has become my #1 priority.  This was taking up much of my free time, as I was averaging between 8-12 hours to do as single hour long episode.  With a full time job, this was cutting into my time to do other things (not to mention playing games to generate content for the channel).  Aaron gave me the advice to "let it go".  I was deleting every single "um", "but yeah", and other crutch words that I frequently use.  Part of the process is trying to not say them so much, but the other part is to let a couple slide occasionally, which actually helps the podcast sound more organic and not over processed.  I've also started to use the sound visualization much more in Audacity much more to identify those words and spaces and delete them preemptively.  Using the tips and advice Aaron gave me, I cut my editing time IN HALF on my most recent episode, which I consider huge progress.  This will be an ongoing process, but undoubtedly that advice helped and gave me the confidence to not have to erase any little interruption.  It should be interesting to see the reaction of people to the new workflow and how it affects the quality of the podcast.

Speaking of quality, let's talk about setups for a minute.  I want to preface this by saying that there is nothing wrong with using inexpensive equipment, especially when you're starting out.  If you have a unique voice that you want to get out there, there's plenty of good options that won't break the bank, so don't be afraid to use them!  I started off using things I had laying around from my previous Twitch streaming career.  My setup before talking to Aaron was an Audio-Technica BPHS1 broadcasting headset into a Behringer UMC204HD, plugged directly into my computer.  It's not bad hardware by any means, but I thought it could be improved (at least on my end).  The headset is good for not picking up background but seems to lack a little "oomph" in audio fidelity (Probably would be great for recording live at a convention with a group someday, I've got four of them).

Aaron showed me his setup which uses a Shure SM58 into a Zoom H4.  Making the decision to upgrade, I utilized a Zoom H6 that I already owned and invested in the SM58, a pop filter, and a desk mount.  I recorded episode 9 of the podcast a couple days ago and used both methods just to give myself reassurance that I would have usable audio one way or the other.  After listening to both, I could hear a HUGE difference in the audio between the two.  I'm still dependent on my guests/cohosts having good audio, but I'm definitely sold on this method and I hope my listeners notice the difference as well!

Lastly is growth.  As content creators many of us begin with similar goals: We want to see our creations grow and flourish with a large audience while giving back to the community that fostered our love for the hobby.  It's easy to lose sight of that second part while trying to achieve success, and Aaron gave me some really good advice in this area, which was to just reach out on social media and comment, even if it is something small.  I had become so absorbed in putting out content that I wasn't reaching out to the community to help others grow their content.  I even made a Twitter account, which I had been avoiding for a long time.  I started scheduling time (Even 15 minutes a day) to interact with and discover other content creators.  Even simple comments like "Oh, I really enjoyed that game" or, "Nice picture!" are helpful in driving engagement.  I also sometimes share my own stories if a game that had a significant impact on me is featured.  I've found that I've been finding some games to check out by doing this as well, which is always great!

My second meeting is tomorrow and I can't wait.  One of my main goals for this session is to improve my show notes and how to better use them to organize the show.  Looking forward to making another update soon!