Recently on May 24, 2024, Dr. Paula Billups’ Introduction to Business Class received a special opportunity to tour Life University’s (Life U) state-of-the-art Podcast studio, where the flagship Living Life at Life U podcast and various audio and/or visual projects are recorded. Given that it was the Friday before Memorial Day Weekend, the group was small, but that allowed for an intimate atmosphere to learn and answer questions. As the students and their professor entered the first section of the podcast studio space, they were greeted by Kelsey Asher and Dr. Veronica Garcia-Chapparo.
Asher is an Integrated Content Creator with Life U Marketing and Dr. Garcia-Chapparo is the on-screen host of Living Life at Life U, in addition to her role as a Faculty Clinician at the University. Both ladies have been involved with the growth of the podcast since its inception in December 2022. Asher showed off the impressive motherboard that allows for one trained professional to record audio and video podcasts or projects with up to five different camera angles to choose from. This comes in handy, to be able to have different trained marketing professionals able to step in and man the controls as the need arises.
“I never originally saw myself as someone who would work in podcasting, but that is the nature of Marketing, being open to new skills, experiences and people,” Asher told the group.
“But I always say Veronica has the tougher job here by far. Being able to interview people on camera, to get good conversation out of them as opposed to merely interviewing a person for print to get a few good quotes. It is a gift and a skill that not everyone has.”
Dr. Garcia-Chapparo is now a renowned chiropractor by trade, but she once dreamed of becoming an anchorwoman and even worked in that field for a while before exploring other paths. Yet that experience, coupled with her vibrant professional and social media presence as well as her obvious passion for her beloved Life U alma mater, culminated in the opportunity to host Life U’s premier podcast.
When the class came in to see the studio and how it works, Dr. Garcia-Chapparo quickly slipped into instructor mode, showing off all that it takes to make a new episode from a recording perspective.
“Podcasting is a beautiful way to get to know all kinds of people, and I love that today we have been interviewing all newbies that have never been interviewed for a podcast before. That makes it so much more interesting!” Dr. Garcia-Chapparo said.
To best demonstrate the full capabilities of the studio, two student interviews were conducted with their very own classmates, which will be posted soon. Adrienne Gardner, Associate Web Developer, was in attendance capturing photos and video of the tour.
Hopefully this short field trip of sorts helped spark ideas for new projects and professional opportunities for the student participants. At Life U, we strive to provide students with every possible chance to engage with the real-world applications of what they are learning in the classroom and how to impact the world with Lasting Purpose. Successful marketers must always seek to cultivate new skill sets and explore new media to help connect with the public. Podcasting has quickly become one of the fastest growing media sources to create long-term connection and brand awareness with target audiences. In fact, podcast revenue is forecasted to reach $4 billion in 2024, according to reports from the International Advertising Bureau.
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