Remote recordings are an easy way to keep an always-on podcast going, but they can look a little lo-fi. Here is how we created a solution for a rugby show that works.
Podcast marketing is constantly evolving. There are still SO many problems out there to solve, but one of the biggest challenges that has been bothering our whole team has been remote recording of popular podcasts.
Video podcasts are a huge part of how shows get discovered, and bad web cam footage just doesn’t cut it. So, we created the Podcast Discovery Virtual Studio to bridge the gap between professional studio recordings and the simplicity of home interviews.
Since its creation, we have helped multiple shows, from Red Bull’ How to be Superhuman to Today in History with The Retrospectors, integrate the virtual studio solution into the production… And one of the shows we want talk about in this blog is Crowd Network’s For The Love of Rugby. Now dubbed as ‘The Rugbyverse’ (patent pending!), it is a visually consistent and professionally designed virtual world that perfectly matches the real life studio where contributors film their in-person podcasts.
How does the Virtual Studio help For The Love of Rugby?
The For The Love of Rugby pod is one of the top rugby podcasts in the country. They often feature high-profile guests and it is led by two sports legends, Dan Cole and Ben Youngs. All of these features have already earned the podcast thousands of dedicated listeners, but what made it all difficult is the coordination of all of the elements that make the podcast so great. Sometimes, guests and hosts just couldn’t physically be in the same studio to record the pod!
This meant that the high-quality recording of the beautiful locker room-like set that Crowd Network has so expertly built became redundant in the remote recordings. The virtual studio simply made it so that no video ever felt out of step with the professionalism of all of their in-studio episodes. ‘The Rugbyverse’ helps to maintain a polished and brand-consistent look for all video.
So how did we make the Virtual Studio happen for Crowd Network?
Our biggest priority for a studio built is the instant recognition that comes from a consistent backdrop. Whether you see Ben Youngs at home or on set, you will always instantly know the podcast he is on because of the brightly pink set surrounding him,
So what we did was:
- Deliver Professional Equipment to the Team – after discussing it with the production team, we have put together a bespoke Virtual Studio gear kit that included everything from cameras to lights and a green screen.
- Set up the Cameras – our team then spent time going over all the gear with the hosts and positioned their camera angles so that they would resemble an in-person studio shot, rather than a home recording. This is key to help us make it seem like the contributors are in the same space.
- Built the 3D Studio – we then tailor-made a replica of their in-person studio in 3D modelling software. This bit of magic also included things like placing branding in key locations of the virtual set and ensuring all video formats (for socials, i.e. vertical and for long-form, i.e. horizontal video) had the right backdrops to show off the set and the branding of the relevant sponsor.
- Integrated with the Production Team – Once we have set up the contributors and created the set, we set out to seamlessly integrate with the existing workflow of the production team. We didn’t want to change any processes as they were already so well established, so instead we ensured the podcast team could simply plug in our virtual studio solution into their current systems and enjoy the major video upgrade.
Ta-da! The Virtual Studio is now live – so what?
The results for the studio are truly stunning. There is now no compromise for video quality, no matter where the podcast is recorded. The virtual world serves as an extension of the physical, and all listeners have been eagerly stepping into ‘The Rugbyverse’ to follow the podcast with a virtually cohesive identity throughout.
Plus, this solution has driven even more dynamic sponsor integration. We can swap out sponsored items in the backgrounds, change banners and depending on sponsorships, adjust angles of the hosts. This opens up even more opportunities for sponsorship for the podcast and we love to see a podcast we are obsessed with grow even further.
This is all just one example of how our Virtual Studio has helped transform a podcast. There is so much more that we can do with it and we want everyone to know that your podcast CAN and SHOULD look good, no matter where or how you record it. Your audiences matter – and the thumbstopping factor of a virtual studio could make a difference between acquiring new listeners or being left behind in podcast charts.