AP 0093: Why Do You Use Audio Instead of Video? Which Is Better?

AskPat 93 Episode Transcript

Pat Flynn: Hey what's up, everybody? Pat Flynn here. Welcome to Episode 93 of AskPat. I'm here to help you by answering your online business questions five days a week.

Today we have a question from Maurice over in the Netherlands, about audio and video. Let's hear from Maurice right now.

Maurice: Hi Pat. This is Maurice from the Netherlands. I have the following question about your podcasts and interviews. I would like to know what your reason is that you only use audio instead of video, like YouTube or Skype? Thanks for your time and effort to answer my question. Bye.

Pat Flynn: Hey Maurice. Thank you so much for your question. It's interesting, because I actually do use video, but I use it in a strategic manner and for certain things. Now, I know that I could produce a show, like AskPat or like my other podcast, The Smart Passive Income Podcast. It could be produced on YouTube or as an iTunes video podcast, for example. However, I feel that audio is very special, because it can be taken anywhere with you and can be consumed anywhere as well. One has to, for the full effect of video, actually watch the video. That can be hard to do and you don't want people doing that when they're driving. You know people are listening to audio conveniently on their walk, on their commute, at the gym, wherever they may be. Audio is nice. Also, people are downloading the audio, which is a much smaller file than a video would be, and able to listen to it wherever they want. In that way, with an audio file or a podcast, like with AskPat or Smart Passive Income, I'm able to inject my brand and have people consume my content anywhere they want, at any time they want, right there on that device. As opposed to video, which has to be in a certain spot; they have to be watching it. It has to be convenient for them. It's less convenient for them to watch videos, is what I meant to say.

That's why for content like AskPat and content like my Smart Passive Income Podcast, I choose to use audio. Yes, I could repurpose that content and also place it on YouTube. I know a lot of people who take podcast content and put it on YouTube. Either put it onto of a slide deck or just one slide, and just have the audio playing. I find that I love and have better success with not syndicating the same piece of content on different types of content. I'll syndicate a show, an audio show like a podcast on multiple podcast directories. I think that's okay. However, shooting a video, ripping out the audio, putting that in a podcast. Then, ripping out the text and putting that in the blog post, I mean, it's the same content the whole time. Yes, you could get more SEO as a result, you can get more listens all sort of consuming that same content. I feel that in order to be a compete authority in a niche, I like to have unique content on each type of platform. Unique content that is audio specific. Unique content that is video specific. There are types of content that I create that lends itself perfectly for video, which would be terrible in audio. Those are oftentimes my video tutorials for step-by-step how to do things, especially if it requires somebody actually doing something on a website, or on a web application of some kind. Having them being able to follow me step-by-step, exactly where my mouse cursor clicks on a video is so much easier than trying to explain something on audio.

For example, if I were to say, “Okay, this is how you edit a podcast on this audio file.” I'd say, “Okay, make sure you go to File at the top, and scroll down, and click on Save As. Then, you'll see a window pop up. Then, make sure that you have the button at the bottom clicked on, not the second one from the top.” You know, it's like really hard to describe all that. Whereas, a video I can just be like, “Just do this. Here. This is is exactly what you have to do.” It's so much faster and quicker to consume. It's easier and more valuable for the audience, which makes it more authoritative for you, because you're the one teaching that.

That's why I feel like for a show like this, video might not be necessary. I mean, there might be one or two episodes where I could walk somebody through something which it would make sense for video. That particular question would probably be better suited for a video only. My interviews on Smart Passive Income, which often run between 45 minutes to an hour, I mean, I don't really see as a consumer somebody who would want to consume that type of content on video. You know, I'll see talking heads for 45 minutes or just the same screen the whole time, I'd probably just move away from that screen anyway and go on and do something else. Yes, I might be missing out on a few views here and there. Again, I like to keep things pretty much set on the type of content and where it is, or what type of platform it is.

I hope that makes sense, Maurice. That's why I don't do video with this show and Smart Passive Income, as opposed to a lot of my tutorials. If you go to PodcastingTutorial.com, it's actually a blog post that has incorporated six videos in it which walk people through the different equipment, how to use software and tips for things like that, which is just better suited for videos, especially for something that requires a lot of very specific things to do in order to setup a technically challenging thing like a podcast.

I hope that answers your question, Maurice. Thank you so much. Oh, and going back to that one question, I sort of added onto yours. Which is, which is better, audio or video? I think both are great. A lot of people know me as being somebody who has what I call The Be Everywhere Strategy, which is putting your brand on multiple platforms. Now, that doesn't necessarily mean be everywhere. It just means be everywhere you need to be. To take that to the next step, it's be everywhere your audience is. For me and my audience, they are on the web reading. That's why I have a blog. They're on podcasts listening, which is why I have a podcast. They're on YouTube watching to learn how to do certain things, which is why I have video. Typically, that's the sort of three pillars of types of content. I'm not on every social media platform. I don't choose to spend time on LinkedIn or Google+, because that's not where my audience is. I typically focus on one or two social media channels per brand. That's it. I'm not literally everywhere.

Note that I didn't start all of them at the same time. I started with the blog. Then, I started with videos after that, actually. Then, it was audio after that. You can't be everywhere all at the same time, all at once. Once you start to build your brand over time and start to explore these other channels and put content specific for those channels, again, that's perfectly suited for those types of channels, you begin to build out this sort of empire of brand that is more than just a blog. It's more than just a podcast. An overall brand that is able to deliver content in all types of ways, that is perfect for whatever that type of content is or for whatever that content is. Sorry, that's probably a little confusing. I said, “Type of content” like a hundred times there.

Which is better? It depends on what you're talking about. I would use both, if possible, over time. Start with one, then get comfortable with it, then branch out. That's what I really want people to realize, is being everywhere is great, but starting everywhere is not.

Thank you so much again, Maurice, for that question. You'll get an email from myself or an assistant to get your information to get an AskPat teeshirt headed your way. If any of you out there have a question you'd like featured here on the show, just simply head on over to AskPat.com. Check out the widget there from SpeakPipe, you can ask right there off of your computer, on your headset or your internal mic, whatever the case may be.

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Thank you so much. I appreciate you. Of course I'm going to end with a quote, like I always do. This quote is from William Durant. He says, “Forget past mistakes. Forgets failures. Forget everything except what you're going to do now and do it.” Peace out. I'll see you in the next episode.