Friday, June 16, 2006

Podcasts are Perfect

Over the past couple of months, I've seriously immersed myself in the world of podcasts...and I love it! I listen to podcasts now throughout good chunks of my day and I've even begun to look forward to certain casts as I do my cadre of much beloved TV shows.

There is sooo much wonderful, interesting, captivating, or just plain funny podcast content out there and if you've yet to embrace this medium...well, it's time to dive in.

You do NOT need an ipod in order to listen to podcasts (though I would highly recommend you get one if you don't have one, but that's a separate topic). All you need is a computer, so if you are reading this post right now, you are podcast ready!

A great place to start for podcast newbies is itunes. You'll need to download itunes (which can be done for both mac and PC users), but they have a fairly easy interface and its also a great way to store music on your computer, so its a win win. Itunes has a "music store" in which there is an entire section dedicated to podcasts with categories, suggestions, featured podcasts and a fairly robust search engine. Anyone can post a podcast here, so there is a pretty rockin' selection.

Another favorite of mine is The Wedding Podcast Network. The WPN is a MUST listen for any brides-to-be out there who are in the midst of the craziness of wedding planning. They have podcasts tackling subjects such as getting in shape (Wedding Workout), expert interviews (Meet the Masters) and even a groom-centric show (Grooms With a View). I listen to these awesome wedding-centric casts just about as much as I can. In fact, you can hear me on their latest Bridal Scene Show being interviewed at The National Stationery Show.

For those out there in the stationery biz, you MUST check out I *heart* paper's Paper Pods. Super savvy businesswoman Dawn talks about all sorts of important topics that are relevant to anyone in this business from copyrights, to following trends, to mistakes new biz owners need to avoid. These Paper Pods are amazing for those starting out, but even if your biz is in full swing and raking in the cash, these are topics that everyone needs to stay on top of.

Another awesome podcast for crafty peeps is Craftcast with Allison Lee. Allison talks with all sorts of other crafty biz owners (and is pretty darn crafty in her own right), so there is always lots of great information here too.

You really will be blown away by the topics that people are podcasting about these days. I listen to podcasts on my fave TV shows, news roundups, small business casts, comedy casts and everything in between.

If you are not yet podcasting it up...well, you're missing out. Come on in...the water's fine!

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