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Buzzsprout. If you use this link and
purchase a service from Buzzsprout you may qualify for a $20 Amazon gift card
and Heather Murphy may receive compensation.}
Share Your
Family Stories Through Podcasting
Ask anyone what
they love most about family history and most often the answer will be learning
the stories of their ancestors. In
today’s fast-moving world it is difficult to gather multiple generations to
hear those stories, let alone keep everyone engaged for an hour, or sometimes
more, as older generations reminisce. Podcasts are a great way to share your
family stories across generations and can be listened to in almost any
circumstance. Here are 5 tips to help
you start your own family history podcast.
Tip #1: Find a Podcast Hosting Service
Podcasts work
best when you have a podcast hosting service to hold all your episode audio
files. This is where you will upload
your audio files, graphics, and show notes.
Even if you have a family website, those websites often come with limits
on how much data you can transfer. Self-hosting
your podcast may cause you to exceed those limits. Many of the podcast hosting
services include a webpage for your show, one less thing to do if you don’t
already have one.
Podcast hosting
services range from free to about $20 per month if you upload 4-6 hours of
audio a month. There are many services
available; I recommend Buzzsprout
(affiliate link) or Libsyn. Buzzsprout has a free option with a cap of 2
hours of audio each month. There is a
completely free service, Anchor, but the trade-off is that technically the
company will own what you produce.
Tip #2: Good Audio Quality Does Not Have to Be Expensive
Most people
listen to podcasts through headphones which makes good audio quality
important. To record you can use a
headset with a microphone, even some earbuds have a microphone feature or
purchase an external microphone with a USB connection. It isn’t a good idea to use your computer’s
microphone as it generally is not good quality and it will pick up more of the
background noise of your computer running.
To test a microphone you already have, record audio and then listen back
using earbuds. Find a quiet place to
record where there isn’t much of an echo.
Some people record in their closets because all the fabric absorbs the
sound resulting in a nice clean recording.
Tip #3: Use Free
Software for Recording and Editing
Audacity is free software you can use to record
and edit your episodes. Save yourself
the headache of learning new software by finding an introduction video online
before you get started. Use the free
version of Zoom if you want to interview another family
member. Make sure the recording setting will
record a separate audio file from the video file and then you can put the file
into Audacity to edit.
Tip #3: Batch Content
Putting out
podcast episodes every week can quickly get overwhelming. It can feel like recording/editing/posting is
always on your to-do list and if you miss one episode it can quickly snowball
into missing more. Batching content
means setting aside time to do batches of work to help you get ahead. This is especially easy if you are recording
the family stories yourself. Choose one
week to record a certain number of episodes, another week to edit, and another
week to create show notes and upload.
You can produce 1-3 months of content in one block and your podcast
hosting service will post them according to your schedule.
Tip #4: Keep Episodes Short and Focus on the Story
Your episodes
can be any length or frequency you choose, but keep in mind who you want to
listen. Do they have time to listen to a
45-minute episode or would 15 minutes be a better fit? You are more likely to keep your listeners,
especially younger ones, engaged and coming back if your episodes are short. Keep your dialogue focused on the story of
the ancestor. For instance, telling how
old they were at a certain event is more relatable than telling the audience
what year it happened. You can put the specific
biographical dates, places, and relationships in the show notes.
Tip #5: Make it Easy to Find
When you have
2-3 episodes finished is the time to submit your podcast to directories like
Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, or many others. This is where people can find and listen to
your podcast. Listings on these
platforms are free and you only need to set it up once. Then, each time you publish an episode in
your podcast hosting service these platforms will grab the new episode and add
it to their directory. After you are
listed share with family members and encourage them to subscribe on their
favorite platform. If they subscribe new
episodes automatically pop up in their podcast app and make it easy to catch
every episode.
Share Those
Stories
Podcasting is a
great way to share those family stories genealogists gather over the years. Many people multitask as they listen to
podcasts on their way to work, clean house, or ride the bus. What stories will you share?
Heather Murphy
is a genealogist, family history coach, speaker, and host of the Stories in Our Roots Podcast. She helps people gain clarity and
strength by learning not just names, but the stories of their ancestors. To
learn how researching the stories of your ancestors can guide your life, head
over to heathermurphygenealogy.com.
Such good tips, Heather!
What podcasts do you listen to? Have you ever thought of starting your own?
We'd love to hear from you!
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