Quick quiz. Pod-casting is:

A. The practice of throwing snow peas
B. The archaic practice of fishing for marine mammals
C. Broadcasting multimedia content via the internet

If you answered A or B, you may want to check out the recent SMH Icon article – a good entry-level overview of podcasting.

If you answered C, you are a master-caster.

Beyond giving a voice to frustrated radio personalities via the world wide web, podcasting is a powerful communication technology within organisations. Companies with a remote or mobile workforce have access to an economical engaging medium that is packaged in a convenient form. The ability to listen to a podcast while travelling or on the road via a laptop, PDA or mobile phone means that there is flexibility for the listener.

A few rules apply to podcasting within organisations:

• Be interesting! Consider the kind of radio that engages you as a listener.
  
• If the CEO is not a great speaker, don’t make them the main voice – use a professional interviewer or ‘host’ and incorporate other speakers as interviewees.
• Break up content into shorter sections, and limit the number of different segments.
• Don’t use podcasting for detailed information or instructions.

Links
SMH Icon Article
http://www.smh.com.au/news/home-audio/the-voice-of-pod/2006/06/21/1150845243193.html
IABC NSW podcast on podcasting
http://www.corpcoms.com/db/IABC.shtml
Wikipedia on podcasting
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podcasting