The 'Podcast Publishing' event was organized by Üsküdar University, Faculty of Communication, Department of New Media and Communication. Rıfat Özcan, Founder of Podcaster App, Podcast Publisher, and Entrepreneur, was a guest at the highly attended event. Özcan made evaluations about the past, present, and future of podcast publishing.
The event, held at Üsküdar University South Campus Fuat Sezgin Conference Hall, was moderated by Research Assistant Dr. Sadettin Demirel from the Faculty of Communication, Department of New Media and Communication. Dean of the Faculty of Communication, Prof. Dr. Süleyman İrvan, also attended the event.
Rıfat Özcan informed the students, noting that people actually want to listen to podcasts but cannot decide what they want to listen to in their specific field.
"The word 'podcast' is foreign, but its consumption is not."
Rıfat Özcan, Founder of Podcaster App, Podcast Publisher, and Entrepreneur, stating that the rise in the podcast listener profile promises hope for the future, said; "Podcasts actually provide an opportunity to make our time more efficient. We can say that people listen to podcasts while doing other things. For example, you can listen to podcasts while on the road, on public transport, or exercising. In such situations, podcasts don't take your time; on the contrary, they save time. Of course, with the exception of some podcasts. Actually, podcast consumption is not a type of consumption we are unfamiliar with, because we consume televisions like podcasts, with the mindset of having background noise at home. The word 'podcast' is actually foreign to us, but its consumption is not. There has been a noticeable rise between the beginning of the pandemic and today. In fact, there's a general increase in the podcast listener profile.'"
"Artificial intelligence will eliminate the language barrier in podcasts."
Özcan noted that he observed podcast listeners primarily want to hear entertaining information, with some exceptions, and stated; "A podcast is a space where you can find anything you want to listen to on any topic. And if there's no language barrier. With AI support, if you like the topic of a podcast, a different language won't change anything. Artificial intelligence will eliminate the language barrier in podcasts. Today, psychological content is incredibly prominent in podcast publishing. People are turning to such podcasts for their brain health. This is very important at the decision-making point. The target audience is mostly students and those under 25, which promises a lot of hope for the future.'"
"Time is very critical in terms of not distracting the listener."
Rıfat Özcan underlined the importance of time management in podcast planning. Özcan said; "Time is very critical in terms of not distracting the listener. It is very important that it does not exceed 20-30 minutes. For example, you open a podcast when you get on the subway, and 20 minutes later you are at your destination and your podcast is finished; utilizing wasted time makes a person feel psychologically good. In this context, preparing the topic flow and informing the guest about the topic flow is also very important for the time flow.'"
"I recommend everyone prepare a minimum of ten episodes."
Özcan, stating that one should first ask themselves certain questions when planning a podcast, said; "You should determine a topic. Then you should ask yourself questions like: 'Are you the right person to cover this topic, who are you addressing, is there a need for this podcast?' At least globally, we need to think about what podcasts exist and how we can differentiate them. It is very important to identify similar ones, decide on the format, and create a sustainable content plan. People generally start with a goal but do not continue consistently. I recommend everyone prepare a minimum of ten episodes. When these are not done, it gets interrupted at some point, and after producing sustainable content, I recommend having a stock of at least three to four episodes. Life can be unpredictable.'"
Sound quality is more important than content…
Özcan, emphasizing that sound quality is more important than content in podcasts, listed mistakes that should not be made in podcasts. Özcan said; "Not making podcasts longer than forty minutes, not using copyrighted music, expecting to be listened to by many, which might even be the biggest mistake, because the podcast field is not like that at all. Therefore, forty or fifty people will listen to you, but you will have an audience that listens to you. If a podcast is not started with this perspective, there can be a decrease in motivation. Expecting to earn income from podcasts and sharing the program without editing are also among these 'sins'. First and foremost, you appeal to the ear, and our ears can be bothered by very detailed sounds. Sounds like coughing need to be cut. Recording audio by reading a script is also quite problematic. Mastery of the topic is lost, and moreover, recording a podcast when tired and unprepared is also quite problematic. Because you cannot hide your voice. If the sound is bad, no matter how good the content is, that podcast will likely be turned off.'"
After the Q&A session, the highly attended event concluded.
Reporter- Photographer: Ayşenur Özdemir