Who is Joe?
Joe runs a professional recording studio in York UK that offer a wide range of audio production services for every company and individual, big or small for any type of use. This includes stuff such as podcasts, audiobooks, training resources, online courses, music and everything in-between.
Key Takeaways
1. Outsourcing your podcast recording can take the strain away allowing you to concentrate on content
Podcasts are just business conversations and nothing to fear - anyone can start one!
Valuable Free Resource or Action
https://innersoundaudio.co.uk/podcast-studio
A video version of this podcast is available on YouTube :
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Transcript
Note, this was transcribed using a transcription software and may not reflect the exact words used in the podcast)
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
podcast, people, business, joe, microphone, studio, recording, customers, suppose, world, brainer, b2b, thinking, realise, conversations, camera, documentaries, question, company, audio recording
SPEAKERS
Stuart Webb, Joe Graves
Stuart Webb 00:25
Hi, and welcome back to it's not rocket science five questions over coffee. I'm here today with Joe, Joe Graves who with his brother, I think it is Joe isn't it runs in York, you do things like podcasts, audio books, training materials. So it's like, and Joe's got a huge amount of experience in this recording business. So he knows a lot more about how to record things than I do. So I'm sure we're gonna learn a lot from talking to Joe about how to go about making your podcast etc, better. So Joe, welcome to It's not rocket science, five questions over coffee.
Joe Graves 01:00
Thank you very much for having me.
Stuart Webb 01:01
I hope you've got a cup of coffee in front of you. And I hope you're
Joe Graves 01:05
it's too late in the day for me to have coffee. And I'm like,
Stuart Webb 01:09
Joe, tell us a little bit about who it is you help with your recording studio and the sort of problems they've got when they come to you.
Joe Graves 01:16
So at the minute, it's, it's funny, it's changed massively over the past year or so for 10 years, actually a little longer. It was we were recording bands and music. And we were in that world for a long time. To the point where we're even living in in Arizona for a while I like working straight for labels and stuff. But as time has gone on, I'm like I'm 31 now, stuff has changed. Since I've got into the game. You're you become passionate about different things. And obviously as you as you run a business, you become heavily interested in how you run businesses and you start learning you reading books, reading books on running a business and all that and speaking to people like yourself and your calibre take a massive interest in that. So that's when we started taking a bit of a turn into a set of public services, as opposed to recording music and mixing music, such as podcasts, you know, work and do more b2b stuff. So yeah, now we focus a lot on that. And I would say 90% of our customers are of our businesses. And they're not really restricted in what kinds of businesses they are, for example, we do. Like say we produce audiobooks from top to bottom for some of the largest publishers in the world, such as Strathmore, like St to Audible stuff, you know, things like that we do a lot of podcasts for companies, such as Federation of small businesses, who are, you know, some of the biggest business consultants in the entire UK you know, as well as some smaller companies like we have gyms, you know, sort of professional athletes come in, they interview other professional athletes on mindset, things like that. So, then the game is quite wide. And you know, how you can use podcast to grow your business. And it's really just about connecting with your audience, which is, I suppose the angle we take on it, because that's what I believe podcasts do. And this is kind of like what we're doing now gives people an opportunity to see or hear Yeah, learn from you. That just allows you to feel like you know, people have when you know, people, it's easy to do business with them. So that's the route we think
Stuart Webb 03:18
it's that no, like, trust thing, isn't it? I mean, you hear your real real conversations with real people, you realise that they've actually got a life beyond the sort of the business, that sort of thing. It helps to build that connection.
Joe Graves 03:31
Yeah, massively.
Stuart Webb 03:32
So one of the sorts of things that people have tried to do before they come and see a real professional like you Joe, what did you inject into their, into their podcasting or audio recording, which, which, you know, the rest of us are still struggling with? So I mean,
Joe Graves 03:47
it can be a lot of things, it does vary up. I was amazed actually, when I started doing podcasts how how difficult that can be to produce you know, from top to bottom, when you factor in, obviously, the audio recordings, the video recordings, particularly video of Meeks it was all audio before, so learned about video has been a massive learning curve for me, everything down to, you know, camera seven record limits, stuff like that. So how do you bypass that and then, wow, it costs a lot of money to do so. Stuff like that. So I suppose reverse. It's the quality, I think is one of the major factors because you can you can do podcasts like this, you know, I'm here on my laptop right now. And it's still it's still a great way to do a podcast you know, if I was feeling fancy, I could have brought like a camera with me and plugged it into a 4k camera plugged into my computer or brought a microphone and whatnot. But it's not always necessary you know, you can still create great content without it but for some customers while our customers at least they've goal, they have the belief which I suppose I do agree with on many levels. Is that the quality helps. helps the customers suppose they can enjoy it more if they're watching some it maybe Yeah, maybe 4k, whatever it be, it can be a bit more immersive. So there's benefits to doing it in the studio, not to mention the fact that it's totally out their hands, it's done for you. They can come up with a concept come to us, we'll set up all the microphones, do all the recordings of the cameras, do all the editing after chop up the social media snippets, great thumbnails, it's done for them and handed to want to play. So I suppose that's where we come in. When it comes to podcasting.
Stuart Webb 05:28
Yeah, yeah. Brilliant. Okay, so I guess you have a lot of very valuable advice that you could give to some of the audience. So give us give us the pearls of wisdom, Joe, what is it we should all be thinking about when we're doing these things that will just help us improve just that little bit? And bring some of that professionalism you've got?
Joe Graves 05:47
So you talk in purely in terms of production? Are you talking in terms of why should we even be doing a podcast? Or
Stuart Webb 05:53
you Well, yeah, it's a really great questions on it. I mean, yeah, I was thinking in terms of production, but I mean, you know, the, why should you be doing a podcast? We all know that podcasts are the the up and coming thing. And, and frankly, you know, I was talking to somebody about this. And, you know, I'm launching, you know, I think you've got a similar sort of offering, why should you do a podcast? At this stage, you know, with some 600 million blogs out there. Although there are a lot of podcasts, there's only about two, 2 million of them out in out in the world. And to be honest, you're you're a much bigger fish in the podcast world than you are sort of trying to be a blogger, aren't
Joe Graves 06:28
you? Well of that, and it's just it's, it's incredibly easy to digest. Yes, I'm watching. I don't know about yourself. But if I have a question of what to learn how to do something, I'm gonna go straight to YouTube instead. You know, and again, if it's, if I'm driving, it will be like, there's certain podcasts I listen to, it's great company, there can be educational depends what kind of thing you're going for, quite frankly, a no brainer. Like, I think if you're a company, it's the perfect entry point. No matter what you're doing, it's a way to demonstrate your authority and your niche, it's a way to, like I say, the big one is connect with your audience. Because it really is if people understand the people behind your business, and they do agree with you about many things, they're going to think about you instead of your competitors, when they're ready to buy the kind of thing you sell. So in my eyes, it's a no brainer. And you can have one conversation like this and chop it up into 510 pieces. And then you've got regular content for a week, a month, or whatever you want to distribute it. It's an absolute no brainer. And here's the big hidden benefit that a lot of people don't know about. And I think I might have spoke to you about this, when we last them first spoke the networking aspect of it. But particularly if you do an interview style things, you know, podcasts, it's such a great way, like more people than you can imagine. They're happy to come and talk about themselves and what they do. And this is the thing, it's such an easy sell. If you are of course it's free, it costs anything. But you know, if you say it's one, I offer this, you know, are you interested? They might look at it, they might go talk to me, you know, but if you say you want to come talk about yourself for half an hour 80% of the time, the answer is yes. And you know, we've all been sly about having an ulterior motive. You know, it doesn't have to be that they become your customer, but maybe someone they know, might be interested in what you do, and you ultimately just building a network. It's a fantastic way to do it. It really is. Because well, first of all, I mean, in my case, I'm demonstrating what I do. Yeah, sir. And I tell you in a very short space of time, we've filled our studio with this kind of, you know, we spent a while thinking we want to go to music, how do we do it? How do you get into the b2b world and it really was a perplexing situation for me my brother like how do you do it like you do speak to what do you do? And then it was from a customer we had a total fluke podcast customer who came in said, Oh, we're trying to do a podcast you do it. We're like, suppose weekend, that we quizzed them on it and explained exactly this to us, like, yeah, we're meeting all the best people. And then we're getting referrals. We're getting work. And in a very short space of time, like I said, we've gone from music to this. And it's, it's just been the greatest way. And all you're doing is having conversations with people. It's fantastic. It's fun. It's easy. It's a no brainer.
Stuart Webb 09:11
Do you know it's brilliant. You put it like that? Actually, Joker? You're absolutely right. Too many people think podcasts are something special, but they're not. They're another form of content. And they're a conversation and you know, we have conversations all day, every day. And nobody ever thinks of the fact that those conversations can actually be quite meaningful. They can actually be interesting. Most people are you know, they don't they go into conversations just you know, on thinking or you got to do is sort of switch on that. And suddenly they become something else, don't they? And you know, you're right. We're here we met we met because while I love, great, great, we connected over podcasting. We're talking now about podcasting because we really enjoy it. I actually agree with you and present. I think one of the best things I ever did was start up a podcast because I've met some really, really interesting people and And then I put on my network. So when I want something, it's a really warm introduction to reach out to them and say hi again, you know, remember, remember that great episode we did? Oh, by the way, if you know anybody else who'd like to have exactly the same thing that I'd love to sort of talk to, and there's a warm introduction, they immediately turn around go, yeah, that was a great conversation. It was great fun. My mate bill would like to go at that. It's such a such a quick way to build your network.
Joe Graves 10:23
You couldn't have said it backwards. That's exactly what it is. Yeah. You reentering with a, you know, a warm, warm connection. And, you know, as much as that can be a tactical thing, in business, or life or whatever, that's really all the world is it's, you know, it's relationships, you know, that's all anything is. So this is the perfect way to do it. Like I say, worst case scenario, if you meet 100 people, and not one of them, are anyone in their network needs your services or anything like that you've at least created a hell of a lot of content that you post in all over the internet. And if it's the right kind of content, for the right people, that's going to be promotion, and all cost nothing. You know, I mean, motocross something if you come and do it versus you know, because we have a full studio, so but if you did it like this, where it's like I say it's great contents a great way to do it, you can do it for free, you know, maybe unless you want to invest in a microphone or whatever. But other than that, it cost you time. Yeah. Fantastic way to do it.
Stuart Webb 11:27
Yeah. And today's Internet means that you, you can do and we are, you know, I'm in a different part of the country to you, we've saved all that sort of, you know, carbon by not travelling, but at the same time, we're still connecting.
Joe Graves 11:40
Absolutely. It's one of our customers the called factual America. And they so a factual America is the podcast wing of the main company, Halima pictures, and they're, they're a film company, they do documentaries about America. And then they were the company actually, that we got this idea of. And they in their podcast, they interviewed directors of documentaries. And they're all well, not all but most of Oscar winning directors, Grammy winning directors, all the right people, it's all the documentaries you'll see on Netflix, Disney plus Amazon Prime. So just like that the meeting all the right people, and it's it's helped them massively grow the business. Yeah. It's, it's just a genius idea, really, when you think about it, but so simple.
Stuart Webb 12:30
So is there been a particular? I mean, you obviously you've gone into podcasting, after after being a sound engineer and working with musicians? Was there a, was there a particular book or a course or something like that, which helps you to sort of shift or you just think would be an interesting sort of pick to be able to tell people about and get them to start thinking about some of this in their own lives?
Joe Graves 12:51
Podcasting, not specifically, that was just the road I was down. And, well, I mean, I'd have an interest in listening to them for a long time before we started doing them. And when I realised they were a great way to get into, for us the more b2b style of things, because I think one of our major goals was like, How can we get more retainer style clients and get some stability in the business? And this was a great way to do it for us. But in terms of like I say, not not really when it comes to podcasting. But I would say in terms of business in general, which I suppose kind of relates to podcast, it's about communication really was Donald Miller. So the first one I listened to was marketing made simple. And then, yeah, there was a listen to start building a storybrand After that, and actually got the online university. What's What's the online university called? I can't remember, but I got a year subscription for that. And it was all fantastic. Yeah, again, it all boils down to communication, how you speak to people, you know, rephrasing the way I suppose I do podcasts, you know, I help you connect with your audience. You know, that's, you know, just flip it around the approach on what it is. Because a lot of people don't realise that a podcast is a way of doing that. But everyone is, of course, interested in connecting with their audience while because who doesn't want to be thought at first, you know, who doesn't want to be the go to brand, when when someone's looking to buy the kind of thing you sell, you know? So I suppose that that was a book that really I spent a lot of time I didn't just read it over and over again, I listened to it audiobook form actually, I've not really read and listened to. But that was a book where I really dwelled on the concepts and then skew in my head for a while. And I've gotten to a point where I feel like it's second nature for me now. The concepts of the book
Stuart Webb 14:43
are great. Yeah, you're absolutely right. And if you're one of those people that learns by listening, learn by listening because that's what podcasts and audiobooks and those sort of courses are about now, aren't they?
Joe Graves 14:52
Absolutely, yeah, that again, that was another reason we got into I was like, Well, I do this the amount of audiobooks I have on business. You are podcast I've listened to on business. If I couldn't believe it was maybe a couple years after I was like, why don't I do this?
Stuart Webb 15:06
So, listen to this. There's been, you know, I've been asking you the questions here, and you've been generous enough with your time to talk. But there must be a question that you're currently thinking, I wish you'd asked me about such and such. So I'm gonna give you the opportunity now to ask that question. And then obviously, it would be great if you answered that question having asked Yeah,
Joe Graves 15:24
yeah, sure. Okay. Well, I'm about to jump in and ask myself the question, something like that. Okay. Well, like you say, you can do a podcast like this through zoom. So what's the difference in doing it studio? Why is it worth it? Like says a lot, a lot, a lot of reasons why it's worth it, it's not always necessary. But if you were to take the jump, it's higher quality. It's, you know, a lot of people find it more digestible, it stands the test of time, things age, you know, it's gonna be more evergreen, by a longshot. And the problem is, it's, it's nowhere near as easy to do, as you would think. I know, like I say, when I first jumped into like, Okay, we're gonna start recording podcasts with people. Cool, give them a mic, give them a mic, put a camera on this guy camera on that guy. Cool. What What else is there to it? I mean, I was so wrong, I can't even begin to explain the variables. The the challenge is, it's every time you do want, it's different, you know, little things like I mean, in my world, it's common sense, I have the microphone directly in front of here are maybe half a foot, but be consistent, because the total inconsistencies when you move in relation to the microphone, things like that, that are all common sense to me, and you explain it to your customer, and then they'll move around anyway. And then it's like, hang on, you're gonna explain all this before, and then keep an eye on them. It's there. It's like monitoring the entire session, then, like I say, since we started doing podcasts, the amount of money we spent on camera gear, recorders, microphones, boom, arms for the desks, line boosters, because it's quiet. You know, before this, we were recording people screaming and shouting, and you know, so you don't need a, you don't need to worry about like a low noise floor and the microphones is endless to get him to that pro level that the amount of things you just couldn't imagine. Like I say it for a lot of people is worth it. And obviously, I'm in a lucky position where I can do my own, you know, with my decent cameras and microphones and got various rooms at the studio in which we can do them for different sets, and whatnot. So yeah, I would say if you want to step up the production, don't be fooled into thinking you'll be able to do on your own. I've had over a decade of audio experience working for some massive companies are doing albums for Sony, you know, I've recorded songs that I've been on Xbox games, you know, all sorts, but this was a challenge as well, you know?
Stuart Webb 17:53
Yeah, it was that is a really good lesson, somebody with that sort of experience is one of this. This is challenges. He's brilliant. I put the name of the studio down at the bottom of the other screen if you if you go to inner sound audio.co.uk forward slash podcast hyphen studio. So it's inner sound audio.co.uk forward slash podcast hyphen studio, you'll find all sorts of details there about Joe and his brother, what they're up to. Great, great person to know, when it comes to this recording stuff. You'd need experts like Joe, on your side, when you're sort of doing something like this. Joe, thank you so much for spending a few minutes talking to us really appreciate you spending a few minutes out of what must be a busy day, because I know how busy you get with this sort of thing. So I really thank you very much for spending a few minutes with us and really appreciate your time.
Joe Graves 18:44
Thank you so much for being great.
Stuart Webb 18:46
No problem. Listen, people if you would like to get onto our newsletter list so that you get an email from me on Monday about who I'm interviewing, at this time most weeks, you need to go to TTA dot FYI forward slash subscribe, that's TCA dot FYI, forward slash subscribe that gets you on to the newsletter list. You get an email from me giving you details, who's going to be on you can listen live and you also get details of the recording and how to subscribe and also details of how to become a guest yourself if like become a guest. So get on to the newsletter list and if you know somebody who'd like to be a guest, find out how to become a guest and subscribe to the video. So thank you Joe very much for being with us. Really appreciate it. I'm gonna give us a quick shout out and and we all see each other again very soon.
Joe Graves 19:31
As you
Stuart Webb 19:38
know I need to actually press the right button down I need some of your skills on this job.
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