Merry Christmas from Swindon.
What? It’s the 11th of October.
I know, but I live in Swindon, and this week they put the Christmas lights up. But they’ve only turned on one set, on one lamppost. So you can stand under that lamppost, opposite my office and wish everyone a Merry Christmas.
Also, I accidentally played Heart Xmas on the car radio. I could have flicked over, but it was Wizard, followed by Bing Crosby, so I just sang along. And then I went to Costa coffee and, do you know what? I had a mince pie.
None of this is a lie. So Merry Christmas from Swindon. Only 74 sleeps.
Want to be President? Get on a podcast
Where did Kamala Harris pop up this week? Call Her Daddy – the multi million dollar podcast juggernaut presented by Alex Cooper, whose hard hitting interview technique was to read out a statement or a quote and then ask ‘How does that make you feel?’ OK so she’s no Fiona Bruce, but she does have 5 million listeners a week so that counts as a win. Madam Vice President also popped up on ‘All The Smoke’, recorded in her house, and lasting 47 minutes for their 2 million followers. Where else will a politician even stand a chance of getting 7 million young people to stick with them for 47 minutes at a time? Nowhere.
Do you want an hour and twenty minutes of Donald Trump? Alright then, you weirdo. He was on the Flagrant Podcast – it’s here.
Weight Loss 360
A new podcast, you say? Yes siree.
Since July, Oli – Head of Looking Too Young to be Served in an Off Licence – has been working on a new series for Boots Online Doctor. It’s called Weight Loss 360 and is an audio/video podcast giving fact-based advice for anyone who’s looking to lose weight sensibly.
Hosted by ‘Scummy Mummy’ presenter Helen Thorn, it brings Boots’ expertise to a topic that’s so often mired in myths and misinformation. Authoritative, in-depth trusted content from people who know what they’re talking about, and delivered in a way that means you can really get your head around it. That’s podcasts for you. It’s filmed in our lovely home at TYX Studios, so it looks as good as it sounds.
The Economist Knows What it’s Doing
Last year, we all worried that The Economist had gone mad. After building itself up as one of the leading publishers in the podcast world, it suddenly put almost all its audio content behind a subscription paywall.
It was bold. Would people really pay to hear their stuff? Or would they just go somewhere else? Well, John Shields, their Head of Podcasts – has told Media Voices that 80% of the audience have stuck with them and huge numbers have enthusiastically parted with £4.90 per month. They hit 30,000 subscribers a month within the first half of the year and they’ve no intention of going back. My quick maths makes that £1.7 million a year.
There’s no question that most podcasts will stay in the free world, and that most shows would be hard pressed to persuade their audience to pay, but for those premium publishers who are wondering whether continually giving their journalism away for free, this is a welcome confidence booster. Keeping the daily ‘The Intelligence’ free is a great move, providing a gateway to the other content, combined with a distinctive tone of voice that rewards listener loyalty. They’ve not gone mad – they’re pointing the way for other smart shows with a dedicated audience to follow.
If Carlsberg Made Podcasts
The latest episode of MAD//Pod, recorded in our beach hut at this year’s MAD//Fest explores the brand building of Kronenberg’s premium lager – Blanc 1664. Global Marketing Director of Carlsberg, Nikola Maravic discusses how you blend an elegant beer with fashion, design and art. Alongside Nikola, we get the agency perspective thanks to Haines McGregor’s Brand and Innovation Partner, Jamie Holtum, and take a look at the episode artwork to see just how short Michaela really is.
Rashy bits
Weight Loss 360 isn’t the only health-related podcast we’re discussing at the moment, and this can lead to some illuminating zoom calls. This week, podcasting’s ability to cover topics that other media don’t explore led to Richard – Director of Pressing Send on the Email – and I finding ourselves in a conversation about ‘sweaty under-boob’. The women on the call all nodded sagely while the two of us stayed quiet, both fascinated and slightly awkward at the same time. Luckily, we have the kind of work culture where health and wellness of all kinds can be openly discussed without embarrassment. Just don’t ask Martin where that doctor put that camera.
Anouszka Tate explores past print journalism…
Full disclosure: I’ve worked with Mag Hags co-host Franki Cookney on sex and relationships documentaries in the past, so already really rate her journalistic nous. On her new show, she and fellow journo Lucy Douglas get nostalgic for the good old days of proper print women’s mags that made them (and me!) want to get into journalism in the first place. They’re finding old copies of magazines like Cosmopolitan and Marie Claire from the 70s, 80s, and 90s, flicking through the pages to dissect the stories women have been told about their lives for decades… How was the pill being talked about in 1982? How were modern women pleasing their man in bed in the nineties?? And please! We must know! How to lose that awful stubborn belly fat! This is a genuinely fascinating and robust exploration of the history of feminism with the brilliant fun light touch you’d hope for from your fave glossy mag!
Martin Poyntz-Roberts is straight outta Staffordshire…
I truly believe that Americans are way better storytellers than us Brits. I just do. Sure, we’re good at ‘gritty’, but you know, that’s all a bit too close to home to believe, too much dark humour and mundanity for me to take them seriously. No, I’m far more at hiome listening to big, brash stories that are beyond belief.
Disgraceland has been telling these stories for years. Tales of musicians, movie stars, mayhem and murder. If it’s bad behaviour you want, it’s here. But the stories are too true to be made up, and sure you’ll have heard snatches of the tales, but this goes deep.
I’ve been listening to the NWA episodes. Little known fact about me: whilst I’m a fat, grey middle aged white man, I am a fan of hip hop and rap. I should just end this here as it sounds truly embarrassing. But the story of NWA is a well told, yet brilliant one. A group so sick and tired with racism and being downtrodden that they insighted riots and changed the world. Well, at least they should have done. Sadly, black kids are still being killed by police in the USA, but one day it will end.
Anyhow, listen to this series. It’s got a great back catalogue to dip into as and when you want. A lot of podcasters in the UK could learn a lot.
What we’ve been listening to this week
Steve Pratt.
Steve Pratt is the godfather of branded podcasts. He built his company – Pacific Content – into the leading producer of podcasts for brands in North America. He’s got a new book out – Earn It: Unconventional Strategies for Brave Marketers – and so he’s this week’s guest on Fresh Ears with me and Michaela – Director of Content and Head of Loud Nose Blows. He talks about his mission to help brands become media owners, and his philosophy of how to win fans for your brand by giving them content as a gift. He’s great.
This is the second episode of the revamped Fresh Ears, with Michaela and me playing co-hosts. A couple of years ago, you’d have called us the ‘Holly and Phil’ of podcasting, but that no longer feels right. I like to think of us as the Anne & Nick. [quickly Googles Nick Owen to check for scandals]. In episode 1, I was aiming to sound cool and laid back in a John Peel type way, but ended up just sounding a bit bored and grumpy while Michaela sounded like she’d eaten a whole packet of refreshers in one go.
This week, I had a sherbert lemon before recording and it seemed to do the trick. I hope you like it.
What we’ve been doing this week
Humming into Google.
You might know this already, but I didn’t and it blew my mind. If you’ve got a song stuck in your head and you don’t know what it is, you can hum it into your phone’s Google app. And, blow me down, Google will tell you what the song is.
To be filed under ‘stuff my daughters taught me’, along with a number of TikTok dances, the meaning of rizz, and what on earth that bit of the hairdryer is for.
