What Goes Into the Toronto Mike'd Podcast
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I produce podcasts for several people, including myself. My podcast is called Toronto Mike'd and I've been recording episodes since the summer of 2012. As I type, there have been 1742 numbered episodes, and there are exactly 1800 episodes in the Toronto Mike'd podcast feed.
I had a Toronto Mike'd guest in my recording schedule for today at 2pm, but I just learned this guest needed to postpone. I had another famous American singer scheduled for Monday, but earlier today I learned she needed to postpone. I ended up giving today's guest the Monday slot and will move Monday's guest to late August. This kind of maneuvering is just part of the deal. If you heard the excellent Colin Cripps episode from yesterday, you learned that was our third kick at the can. So it goes...
I don't have a team working on Toronto Mike'd. There is no chase producer or social media manager or technical producer. That all falls to me. That's all what I do for clients. By the way, if you're thinking of starting a podcast, reach out!
For fun, here's a list of what exactly goes into the Toronto Mike'd podcast.
- Chasing and scheduling the guest
Guests of Toronto Mike'd sometimes pop into my mind when I'm biking, sometimes they're suggested by other guests and listeners, and sometimes they're literally pitched to me at mike@torontomike.com. Unless it's an inbound, I then need to figure out how to get an invitation to them, then I need them to agree to visit my home studio, then I need to get them in the calendar. Those 1742 episodes include over 1000 unique people, and in many ways, chasing and scheduling the guest remains the toughest part. Managing my calendar is a full-time job! - Research
I spend time preparing for every guest. Depending on the guest, or the subject matter, this is either a quick task or rather time consuming. For Colin Cripps, as an example, I had a bullet point list of questions from listeners and specific topics I wanted to ask him about. For example: Spoons, Crash Vegas, Junkhouse, Bryan Adams, Kathleen Edwards, Blue Rodeo and vintage guitars. In addition to the list and relevant research, there were specific pieces of audio I wanted to obtain and load into my soundboard to play during the chat. - Hosting Duties
Once the guest is booked and the research is complete, I actually need to record the episode. For Toronto Mike'd, I decided long ago that it would be an unedited presentation. So everything from the opening theme and intro to the closing theme and outro is "live to tape". That means, in addition to having a compelling conversation for 60-90 minutes (or more!), I'm fading in and out audio elements and doing everything you hear on the podcast live. I wouldn't do it any other way, because I find this method rather enjoyable. There is no safety net. - Technical Production of Audio
I'm hosting the show, but I'm also solely responsible for recording the audio. Without a pristine audio recording, there's no podcast. That means ensuring the guest is on the mic and the levels are correct. Once I have that sorted, I record the feed from the board. - Technical Production of Video
In addition to recording the audio for the podcast, the TMDS studio is outfitted with two HD webcams so I can live stream the recording at live.torontomike.com and record the video to later share on the Toronto Mike'd YouTube Channel. That means making sure the cameras are in the right spot and pressing the right buttons in OBS. - Procurement of Sponsor Giveaways
During the conversation, I give my in-person guests gifts from sponsors. Currently that means fresh craft beer from Great Lakes Brewery, a large frozen lasagna from Palma Pasta, a book on the history of Toronto Maple Leafs baseball at Christie Pits, and a Ridley Funeral Home measuring tape. But that means I need to ensure I have this product on-hand. That's an easier task with the books and measuring tapes, but I can only hold 4 frozen lasagnas in my freezer at any given time and it's important my cans of GLB are always fresh. - Partner Management
Speaking of sponsor giveaways, it's also my job to manage sponsors, although I prefer the term "partners". That means generating an invoice, understanding the messaging, and ensuring the TMDS studio wall is up to date for live streams and recording videos on YouTube. Oh, and the odd appearance on CNN. - Post-recording Tree Photo
Once I've finished the recording, I'll take a selfie with my guest by Toronto Tree. This has been the tradition for the past 1600+ episodes. The Toronto Tree pic will accompany the episode's permalink on torontomike.com and will therefore be attached to all social media shares. It also just so happens Google loves my blog and there's a good chance you'll see a guest's Toronto Tree picture when you search their name in Google Images. - MP3 Upload
After the tree pic, I say goodbye to the guest and they leave with their beer, lasagna, book and measuring tape. Then, I head inside to upload the MP3 file. Because the recording was "live to tape", there's no editing required, so I simply export the recording to MP3 with my preferred settings and upload that file to my robust web server. - XML Update
Once the MP3 is uploaded, I edit the Toronto Mike'd podcast feed, which is actually an XML file. I literally edit it in a macOS text editor called CotEditor. Once the XML is updated with the new episode info (MP3 location, title, description, guid, episode number, date, length, etc.) I overwrite the old version with the new one and, since my feed is already indexed by Spotify, Apple, YouTube, Amazon, Podcast Addict, etc. the new episode is automatically pushed to Toronto Mike'd subscribers. I aim to have this done within 10 minutes of saying goodbye to my guest. - TorontoMike.com Article
With the feed updated, I publish an article on my blog to promote the new episode. This article will include the aforementioned Toronto Tree pic, an audio player, and love for sponsors of the episode. This is the link I'll share via social media. - Social Media Posts
I'm currently sharing the torontomike.com link for new episodes in the following places: Blue Sky, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn. This list, obviously, is subject to change. I will complete this task immediately after posting the TorontoMike.com article. - TMLX Events
Three or four times a year, I like to host a gathering for listeners that takes place in the real world. Yes, we physically collect, and have now done so 19 times. These events are called Toronto Mike'd Listener eXperiences, or TMLX for short. There's an exclusive TMLX event happening in September at the GLB Brewpub, and a bigger one for everyone at Palma's Kitchen in late autumn. I don't charge for these events, but I do ensure all attendees get free beer and food. You're welcome! - The Secret FOTM Whatsapp Group
I've already said too much. - Everything Else
I try to reply to comments / feedback left on social media sites, as well as YouTube, and especially TorontoMike.com. I also reply to every such email received at mike@torontomike.com. Then there's the exercise of listening back to learn from mistakes and the pursuit of unattainable perfection. I've come to appreciate that the imperfections are part of the charm, but I am keen to constantly improve. Of course, there's always room for new partnerships, and a very neglected Patreon account. And finally, there's hardware, software and gear to maintain. Not to mention the web server hosting these 1742 episodes. I have to pay that monthly invoice. Oh, and I do try to promote upcoming episodes, and the live stream. And if I have a spare minute or two, I like to carve out a little of the video for social media, particularly Instagram.
Having your own podcast is a lot of work. I used to call Toronto Mike'd "a weekly podcast" in the introduction, and if you listen to the opening theme, an original production by iLLvibe, he refers to it as a "weekly podcast", because that was the idea. In reality, it's 3-5 episodes a week, meaning all of the above happens 3-5 times a week.
AND THAT... is what goes into the Toronto Mike'd podcast.