Review: The Podcast Show London 2024

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Hello, podcasting person.

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I hope you're doing well.

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I just been to the

podcast show London: 2024

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The podcast show London describes

itself as the biggest international

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festival for the business of podcasting.

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350 plus world-class speakers,

130 plus panels and sessions.

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Global industry brands,

networking and a whole host more.

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So why did I go well, I've been editing

and treating audio for a couple of

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podcasts clients for a while now.

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So I feel like networking within

the industry would be a good idea.

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I also wanted to collect soundbites

from visitors and exhibitors for

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a bonus episode of podcasting

people links in the show notes.

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I wanted to see people in

person through the podcast.

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I've been lucky enough to get to

know a few people in the industry.

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And there's nothing like in real

life to get to know people better.

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I also wants to have chats with

fellow independent creators.

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So the creative village, the

addition of the creative village

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this year was a welcome one.

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Well-placed as soon as you walked through

the entrance, it included the creator

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stage with loads of talks and a creator

advice lab, where you could register for

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advice and be matched with an expert.

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That genius bar idea was something I

called for in a guest blog interview

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I did for, We Edit

Podcasts a few weeks ago.

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Uh, that link is also in the show

notes for you to have a read.

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If you like.

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Uh, so I'm delighted that the podcast show

organizers were thinking similar thoughts.

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It worked too.

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I had a lovely half an hour with an

industry professional chatting about

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how to build community around podcasts.

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There was also a create a hangout away

from the village in inverted commerce.

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I'm not entirely sure

it was effective though.

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Designating a tiny area for

creators to relax together.

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Didn't entice me in the slightest really?

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If I'm totally honest, it felt

a little bit like a créche.

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Uh, a larger area for independents

to meet and staff to facilitate

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conversations would have been much better.

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I can see what they were

trying to do, but the creator

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village was way more effective.

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I actually met with a few

independent podcasters in the

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meeting gallery, which has separate.

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And by simply bumping

into people on the floor.

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So an area for that wasn't really

necessary, one idea would be to extend

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the creator hangout and physically

move it into the creative village,

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making a creator meeting point

could give it a bit of clarity

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and less of a créche feel.

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So the sessions and talks,

there were so many sessions that

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first day was exhausting because

there was so much to take in.

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And for that, I actually commend the show.

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I think, as a visitor, it's really

important to set your own agenda, to avoid

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being overwhelmed and achieving nothing.

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Uh, the edition of the podcast

show plus is a brilliant idea.

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Uh, knowing that I can stream the audio

for the sessions I wanted to attend,

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but missed is a very good thing.

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Uh, and it meant I could relax more

at the show and not worry if I missed,

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or I got turned away from sessions

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I really wanted to attend.

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If there's one personal

criticism, it's this that don't

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like to criticize too much.

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Um, I searched for any sessions with

the word community in and found one.

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And reading the description of that.

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I discovered it wasn't specifically

about community after all, but

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more about building a show.

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Um, how on earth over two days,

there was not a single session about

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building community around podcasts.

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I don't know.

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For me, community is at the heart of why

I produce podcasts and to not include

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it at all in one of the world's biggest

podcast conferences is utterly baffling.

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Um, speaking of community, uh, one of the

highlights of the show was on the fringe.

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Podcast

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host Captivate, one of the user-facing

companies at the show put on a

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get together at the end of the day

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with tickets allocated on a

first come first serve basis.

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It was lovely spending time

with fellow podcasters and

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reflecting on the show with them.

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Hands up.

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Yes.

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I'm a captivate customer, but

credit where credit's due.

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They're company doing more for that

sense of community than a lot of

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companies in the podcast space.

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Um, another community focused

organization with a presence this

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year was the UK audio network.

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Uh, or you can to be clear this isn't

the music library audio network you

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can is the UK's largest community

of audio producers, commissioners

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and creators, distributing work

opportunities, via a shared email list.

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And their aim is to link

commissioners to talent.

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And give all those working in audio,

an equal chance to pitch for work.

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Their award ceremony

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at the end of day two was a

real highlight and it felt like

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recipients were well-deserving of

the awards and the recognition.

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So is there room for improvement?

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Like I said, it's hard to be

publicly critical for an event like

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this, where it's clear, so much

effort has been poured into it.

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I enjoyed my time there over two

days and feel like I can only

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suggest small improvements from an

independent creator point of view.

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Uh, so my suggestions for improvements

would be to include community

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building as a serious topic next year.

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Uh, extend the creates a

hangout and physically move

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it into the creative village.

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Uh, and make it a creator meeting point.

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Like I said, um, the app was great

for booking meetings, but I think

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the UI could be improved a lot.

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So those are my suggestions

for what they're worth.

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Uh, key takeaway.

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Well, I guess the key takeaway was

that there were a few provisions

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for the Indies, but considering how

many independent podcasts there are

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I'd expect to see more in the way of

engagement on the independent side.

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It's not necessarily the case that

the podcast show London is the

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right arena for that to happen.

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But I can tell that it was really

trying to include us independents.

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And with a few small tweaks

it could really succeed.

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So there we go.

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Those are my thoughts on the

podcast show London: 2024

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What did you think?

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Let me know.

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My links are in the show notes.

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So until next time, take

care and happy podcasting.