For a lot of people the thought of doing podcasts is a daunting thought but the truth is, it doesn't have to be as we will see today.So What is Podcasting as it Relates to Internet Marketing?Podcasting is a fancy word that simply means publishing audio and/or video over the Internet. And more recently, now you can syndicate these audio or video files via RSS feeds, just like you can with text.If you sell something online that fits the criteria of being able to create a "short, free demo" of your product or service then audio and /or video will fit the bill perfectly. And it will have a much bigger impact on your prospect decision towards purchasing your product or service than just a ordinary text report.Some of the ways you can use audio and video in your web business include:> An audio introduction or sales pitch on your site> A video infomercial style sales presentation on your site and on video publishing sites> A recorded tele-seminar that visitors can access for free on your site> A free audio and/or video mini-courseWhy You Need To Be Podcasting for Web 2.0When you boil down what is involved with "Web 2.0" it is this: The use of interactive social networking sites and the incorporation of audio and video into your marketing mix. I don't want to get any more technical than that because as marketers this is all we really need to know.That said, let's say you teach people how to spend fifteen minutes a day performing effective yet easy firmimg and weight loss exercises at home, without requiring any equipment.Well, you can have a series of free mini-courses (podcasts) in audio & video, say 5 minutes long each, demonstrating some of these easy to perform exercises. If your prospect enjoys and benefits from these free videos, there is a much greater chance they will buy the whole product.Now compare this to just sending them a brochure or free report. Can you see the problem with this as opposed to creating the podcasts?Most likely, they won't do a thing with the text information but a series of quick and easy videos is a whole different thing. They will, in most cases, watch these videos and potentially gain some of the new benefits they're looking for...immediately from you!By doing this, they are literally trying risk-free, before ever buying! Just like car dealerships let your take a new car for the day to test it out. What happens? The person gets attached to the car and making the sale becomes a lay down. The car demo makes the sale for them.Human nature dictates that if someone gets to experience a part of their sought after benefits from your free audio/videos they'll want the whole package to get it all and achieve the full level of benefits they're seeking.Can you begin to see how using podcasting can quickly and easily increase sales by 2,3,4...10 times your current sales level.Now let's show you the basics steps to creating your audio and video podcast.How to Create an Audio Podcast Using Free SoftwareGo on over to download.com and type in audacity in the search box.Download this free software and save it to a folder on your hard drive. You will see that this is for the most part a self-expalnatory tool. Also, you can search the web and find free tutorials on this software along with other freeware software for audio and video.So now you open it up and set your input and output levels. If your not sure, leave them at the default settings. Now pop on your microphone, press record and start talking. When you're done edit it and save it as an mp3 file. If it's going to be played on your web site you'll need to produce it as a flash file (FLV).Make sure before you save this file you add in your title and author's name, or your website. It will show up in the display window when playing. Free advertising!If your file is going to be strictly an mp3 file then you can record from a portable MP3 player/recorder. It's that simple.Now go over to feedburner.com and publish and post your RSS feed (this new audio file).Alternatively, you can use a free RSS feed generator at TDScripts.comPresto! Yo've just created and published your audio podcast.Creating a Video Podcast Using Free SoftwareAll the fundamental marketing principles and reasons why for audio apply for video as well, so we won't repeat the information here.Let's jump right in to creating your first video, quickly and easily.If your using Windows, open up Movie Maker. If you're on a Mac, use Quick Time.First, we make a short, 3 minute video using your favorite digital camcorder, or a webcam. Remember, they must be capable of capturing (downloading) the file to your computer. Also, for video, your computer must have an IEEE interface card(firewire card)installed so you can plug the firewire from your recording device into your PC.Then capture the file onto your computer, using either Movie Maker or Quick Time.Edit it if you wish then save the file. If you plan on having it sit on your website then it needs to be produced as a Flash File (FLV)The set of files created for the flash, whether it is audio or video, must be uploaded to your host for it to function and the SWF file must be inserted into your webpage. For this short article, I will assume you know how to accomplish this or your webmaster can do it in minutes for you.Now use the same feed resources I mentioned in the audio section and perform the same with your video. Additionally, you will definetely want to use the big name sites that house videos such ad Google Video, Yahoo Video, Youtube, Myspace, MetaCafe, AOL Video, iFilm, to name a few.Now you have created and published your very own video podcast.In conclusion, if you are looking to purchase higher grade equipment, here are my personal favorites:>Logitech Pro WebCam>LogiTech or Plantronics Microphone Headset. >Adobe Premier Elements>Video Studio 10Now you have the basics for creating audio and video for your web business along with why and how to use them as powerful online marketing tools.To your success
