Content VS Production Value For Content Creators And Podcasters

[@ilblues]

My mom taught me how to peel potatoes. Years later, I helped my mother-in-law prepare supper. She observed me digging out every eye and bruise to render a perfect potato and said kindly “Jack, it’s OK to leave some character”. The end result was the same, tasty white mashed potatoes that everyone enjoyed. Her advice proved the difference for me, a change in mindset from “defect” to “character”.

[@jesse.mccune]

I like this. It really does come down to mindset and how we view things. Not every imperfection is a distraction that needs to be removed.

[@xyzmedia5161]

This is very true. I sometimes have to have conversations about this with people who buy editing services. They are often obsessed with nonsense and details for which the ROI is very low. You could do a million things, but should you?

[@jesse.mccune]

Too many people make decisions based on what they think people care about or what they like. It's one of the most difficult aspects of offering creative services to others. Obsessing on details that come and go in a fraction of a second makes me scratch my head. Often, the things clients obsess over are the things that don't matter, but they ignore the things that are causing people to stop listening. There's only so much we can do, though.

[@AllanLoboVST]

Hi Tansy, I’m impressed that KZbin recommended me this video, since this channel is yet so small. I mostly agree with everything that you said, and I’d like to share my experiences as you asked. My channel is focused on synthesizer sound design, I’m currently at 2k subs and I have been improving production and content in my own pace over the last 5 years, and the subscriber’s response has been very nice. I spend a lot of time on KZbin watching content on how to improve production, branding, design, etc… It might be just a personality preference but one of the main things that turns me off on a video is when the person is trying too hard on the rhetoric side of the content, when they have that yippity-yappity influencer tone of voice, trying to be funnier than they actually are. I can comfortably sit through a great content / poor production video, but I know that this is not the case for most people. I have a video format where I teach people how to make a specific classic synthesizer patch from scratch, and when I started, the video was around 20 to 30 mins long, but then in trying to improve retention I shrunk it down to 5 mins, following that advice to make videos as quick as possible, which resulted in the video becoming robotic / dehumanized like you mentioned. This was a big eye opener for me. Recently I posted my first “personal” video (a 2023) retrospective opening up about my personal life / struggles / successes / journeys / experiences, since so far all my videos were strictly technical about synths and keyboards. I got less views than I’d get from a technical videos but I got many warm responses via email. It seems people connect a lot more when you are actually a real person and not just a deliverer of value that doesn’t have a history / struggles. One recent video that really helped me understand this formula of “good content, good quality, faithful to yourself” format is Rick Beato’s video talking about people quitting KZbin. So far I learned that we try to follow these formulas people share, that go against our own instincts, and that’s a “self betrayal” at least to some extent. It hurts our own feelings about our own content, and it “selects” a different kind of audience than the one we actually want. By sticking true to ourselves we select the exact audience that resonates the most with our content. Even if it takes a little longer to grow a channel than following formulas, ultimately building the right audience over a longer a period of time is a better choice.

[@AllanLoboVST]

You didn’t ask for advice, but I would like to share it anyway. I’m not sure if it’s the case that you’re reading from a teleprompter, but it seems to be so. While it makes the recording easier, it does feel a little flat / too much like just reading (at least for me). I just found your channel via a regular KZbin recommendation and I appreciate your content. In addition to what you said about not editing so much to make the videos more human, I think if you spoke more freely / in your own voice (even while following a script) it can make your content better. A little more speech articulation. Looking forward to seeing your channel grow.

[@jesse.mccune]

@AllanLoboVST I completely agree. As someone who has watched a fair number of synth videos, one of the first things that makes me stop a video is if they record the audio coming from their speakers instead of directly from a DAW. This is less of an issue these days, but I still see it. Same thing with demos of guitars/amps/effects, etc. I can't tell what it sounds like when you're recording your speakers with your camera. I'm definitely on the more picky side, but I'm not expecting studio quality, but I have a lower tolerance for poor quality audio than most people. Not from a judgmental place, but from a literal, it hurts to listen to more than 30 seconds type place. People will definitely connect on a personal level when you're saying something that resonates with them or that they connect with. One thing the viewers of my channel will always get is the real me, for better or worse. That's all I know how to be.

[@jesse.mccune]

@AllanLoboVST What you're hearing has nothing to do with reading off a teleprompter. It doesn't matter if I record from scratch, am reading off a teleprompter, or speaking to you in person, it's going to sound the same. As a neurodivergent content creator, prosody is not something you're going to hear from. It just isn't. When I record off-the-cuff, I have the same flat speech patterns and lack of inflections as I do if I'm reading from a teleprompter; I'll just ramble more and not be as clear as I'd like. While I appreciate your feedback, please understand that not everyone who speakes with little articulation or excitement in their voice is doing so because they are reading from a teleprompter. For some of us, it's just the way we speak.

[@AllanLoboVST]

@@jesse.mccune pardon for my ignorance and prying with unsolicited advice, I hope you understand I did so in good will

[@jesse.mccune]

@AllanLoboVST It's no problem. It's not the first, nor will it be the last time I hear a comment like this. I'm just hoping to help the world better understand that sometimes people naturally talk without a lot of emotion or inflections in their voice. Like you said in your original post, I'm here being my authentic self and I know my lack of prosody may be a turn off for some. There's nothing wrong with that. There are bound to be channels out that better align with those preferences.

[@joeffl9]

You make a good point and I agree. There's a point where high production value is lost on the audience. Did you ever listen to a network news broadcast with decent headphones? You hear the room many times. It has been that way in some TV productions for, well, forever. Podcasts aren't much different. I listen to podcasts either in my car as I drive down the road or with marginal quality ear buds in an environment that's less than ideal. I don't like unintended echo or reverb. I don't like hum. I don't like noise gates. I don't want to change the volume every time someone speaks. Otherwise I'm there for the subject matter. If I'm not overly distracted by the sound I don't care if the 4K could have been cut or boosted 3dB. I don't care about the occasional "um." Content creators should do the highest quality recording they can. Editors should remove distractions as much as they can. Get rid of the noise, but not to the point of introducing their own distractions such as heavy artifacts. There have only been a few podcasts I've stopped listening to because of the production value. Most of them had content, or presentation issues too. Like you said, it's a balance of the two qualities. A couple of podcasts I listen to have distortion/clipping issues. Not horrible but I hear it. But the content is important to me so I'm still subscribed. The cream will rise to the top.

[@jesse.mccune]

@joeffl9 Thanks for your comment. Would you consider yourself a content creator, content consumer, or both? Anything mixed to be listened to with speakers like broadcast TV tends to have a lot of imperfections we don't hear until we listen with headphones. All those imperfections get lost in the acoustics of our own space. What I'm hearing you say is good enough is enough for you. As long as it's produced in a way that the content and production aren't a distraction. I agree that content creators should aim to learn how to get quality recordings. It's not difficult, but I run across so many podcasts where no effort is made to produce something someone would want to listen to. Then they ask "How do I get listeners?"

[@joeffl9]

@@jesse.mccune I'm a long time podcast consumer and someone who recently started learning podcast editing. I'd hate to think that as I learn my goal is to be "good enough." But I think good enough is relative. As good as I can make it is what I'm aiming for, with the hope that the quality of the audio surpasses the limits of the delivery system, whatever that may be. That's why I mentioned TV audio as an example. TV News studio audio is good enough for how it is usually consumed. It could be better, but would anyone notice? it's not distracting unless you listen through headphones. That audio is different from podcasts through earbuds, car audio going down the road, or even phone speakers. Those are the main ways I consume podcasts. As a podcast consumer I've heard various production levels as we all do. My interest in the content usually determines my tolerance of the audio. But practically, I don't usually think about it much. At least I didn't until I started to really learn about noise reduction and other audio manipulation. Now, for better or worse, it makes more of a difference to me. But the content of the podcasts I enjoy is still my yard stick. There aren't many noise reduction tutorial videos that start with a great recording. It's already as good or better than the delivery system. That should be a lesson to the creators of how much they can and do influence the ultimate sound of their podcast. But not everyone has the ability or the means to hit Record and produce a perfect audio file that only needs to be uploaded and celebrated. That's why editors are needed. Sorry to be long winded. I'm thinking about this stuff a lot lately, trying to find the quality level that's, uh, good enough. 😁

[@jesse.mccune]

@@joeffl9 Thanks for that background. You have a unique perspective because you have recently transitioned from a podcast consumer to an editor. What I mean by good enough isn't to do the bare minimum; it's about not spending time on the things that don't really matter to the audience. It's one thing to edit for oneself, where you may feel the need to chase perfection (hint: it doesn't exist). If you start editing and bring that approach with you, it will lead to frustration, burnout, and low profitability. Try to remember how you are hearing things right now, because this should be your measure. You have an appreciation for good quality audio now, but little imperfections won't make you press stop. Good enough simply means producing content at a high enough quality that the creator is not going to lose anyone due to quality. This doesn't need to take a lot of effort, but it does take some. Very few shows are capable of producing something live that doesn't benefit from post-production. Those, again, are the shows with big budgets, teams, and pro level equipment. There's a lot to take in when you're starting out. It can take some time to find where that balance is between good enough without spending hours longer on the post-production. Especially if you're working in a silo. This is one of the big selling points of my Podcast Editing School community. You can get feedback and guidance as you go to know where you're doing things well and what things you might be spending too much time on that provides no ROI.

[@Gongtopia]

One of my favorite bands released a KZbin interview for their new album that was shot outside. There is so much background noise that I just can't listen to it! A $50 noise reduction plugin could have cleaned that up in a few minutes and made it listenable. The content may have been great, but the sound was awful. Come on people, A.I. noise reduction software is getting better and less expensive all the time. Invest a few dollars into it and improve your audio!

[@jesse.mccune]

@Gongtopia That is the worst. This is the content that is churned out without consideration for the audience. It wouldn't have added a significant cost or effort to spend a couple minutes cleaning it up so it's listenable. I'm sure it was filmed well. Too many videographers underestimate the importance of audio, so it's usually a secondary concern compared to the video side.