Podcamp Toronto 2007

Posted by Kathryn Lagden, AIMS Canada...

Kudos to the Podcamp Toronto organizers as they held a very successful event this past weekend. It was a jam-packed unconference with sessions all day Saturday and Sunday and social events in the evening. I'm not a podcaster (yet) but I certainly got a lot out of attending and met some interesting new people.

First session I attended was 'What to podcast' led by Jim Milles and Connie Crosby. We talked about lots of content ideas: interviews, commentary, how-to's, reviews, music (podsafe friendly of course!). We also talked about the difference between doing a personal podcast and business podcast. Like most things it was agreed that you get better as you progress and a few practice podcasts that never get played can be useful, especially for business podcasts.

I really enjoyed the session about building community led by Mark Blevis, Bob Goyetche, and Chris Brogan. It's a bit of a blur as I was also in the chat room (set up for the event) talking with a few others attending the same session and one person who was watching the live video stream at home. We talked about how the need to feel connected has always existed. That part isn't new. But the ability to connect and reach other like-minded folks continues to grow. Great story of how the Canadian Podcast Buffet (a podcast about Canadian podcasters) built a community.

A quick lunch with some fellow AIMS members and volunteers. Pictured from left to right is Gillian Hatton, Michelle Tampoya, and Eden Spodek.

I didn't attend the social in the evening at C'est What. But I did listen to Uncle Seth perform thanks to the live audio steam into Second Life. Sounded like they were rocking the house!

Comments

[Chris Brogan...]

Hi Kathryn--

I'm really glad you came, and sorry we missed you at Uncle Seth's performance. It was lots of fun. (Really loud). But all around, thanks for coming and sharing and giving your help and participation to PodCamp.

--Chris Brogan...

[Mark]

Hey Kathryn!

Thanks so much for being a part of our presentation on community. As you can tell, we are extremely passionate about our efforts and the importance of community.

I am always happy to talk about Podcasting, social media and community. Feel free to ping me if you have any questions.

Mark

[Eden Spodek]

I second you in congratulating the organizers! PodCamp was an information-filled event attended by people passionate about podcasting.

Some of the highlights for me were:
Mitch Joel's inspiring presentation, "Building Your Personal Brand Through Podcasting";
Sabita Singh's excellent case-study "Podcasting Adds Personality to Employee Communications"; and, the panel discussion, "Should Your Company Be Podcasting?"

I also learned about two exciting projects:
Julien Smith's Listen to Your Kids and Hugh Mcquire's LibriVox.

Like you, I'm not a podcaster...at least, not yet but I certainly was inspired.

[AngeWayne]

Kathryn,

Thanks for a great time, i know that it was a great session. All of the things you talk for is full of information, i think you will enjoy that session if you don't missed the performance.