► Tell us about you and your podcast
Hosts are Chris Frank, Billy D'Ettorre, and Tanya Metras. Podcast is called FC3 Monkey Business. We're a talk show about pretty any geek topic out there (and sometimes not so geeky). Sometimes we have interviews, but usually it's just us talking about the topic of the moment. A lot of our listeners are local to Rochester, NY. But we do have a number from around the country.
► Why & how did you start this podcast?
We started this podcast because we also run a comic convention, and we wanted to expand our reach. It has however gained a life of its own and we love doing the podcast. The podcast was started in 2016, and we now have around 175 episodes.
► How'd you find the time and funding to do this podcast?
Time is sometimes difficult, especially with three main co-hosts. We try to release episodes weekly. An episode takes about 3 hours to complete from recording to post-production and scheduling for release. We usually record the podcasts on weekends (sometimes 2 in a day depending on the length of the episodes). With the pandemic we started using Zencastr which has made things easier because we can record from our homes and adds more flexibility. We have a Patreon where we get a small monthly amount which helps to pay for our monthly hosting.
► What do you gain from podcasting?
We do not get much financially at this point (besides paying for the podcast itself). We are open to sponsors to try to expand, but do not currently have any. We love podcasting because we love talking about pretty much anything, and we are all friends IRL.
► How does your podcasting process look like?
We currently use Zencastr to record the podcast, then use Audacity for post production. When we do get guests we reach out to them and try to arrange a time to do the interview. We have a group chat on Facebook Messenger where we decide the next week's topic and everything else to do with the podcast. We've had in person interviews in the past, but a lot are remote, and now we'll use a combination of Zencastr or Zoom, depending on the guest.
► How do you market your show?
This is an area where we typically struggle. We do announce on our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter channels. We are currently trying to find new marketing channels to hopefully extend our reach.
► What advice would you share with aspiring (new) podcasters?
We learned that it's a lot of work producing a podcast weekly. You have to love what you're doing, and have dedicated people to help you do it. By listening to us you'll learn quite a lot about us, and we're always available via social media.
► Where can we learn more about you & your podcasts?
Our main Facebook is facebook.com/fc3roc, emails for individual hosts are chris@fc3roc.org, tanya@fc3roc.org, billyd525@earthlink.net. Instagram is fc3rocofficial. Our patreon is patreon.com/fc3roc. Paypal is paypal.me/mightymonkey