VOICE COMMUNICATION IN THE POST-PANDEMIC ERA: THE RISE OF PODCAST AND CLUBHOUSE

Sandy Lin （China Productivity Center Incubation and Entrepreneurship Services Department ）

The breakout of Covid-19 has caused severe damage around the world and brought huge impact on human lives. People wear masks and maintain social distance when they go out and have to face one after another synchronous/asynchronous remote conferences. The restrictions on face-to-face communication have caused psychological pressure and burden and people are hoping for an online interactive platform to engage in chat and discussion, which leads to the emergence of new media. This article is on two emerging media, Podcast and Clubhouse.

"Podcast" is a combination of "ipod" and "broadcast." Podcasters present their audio files, videos, or radio programs in the form of RSS feeds (Really Simple Syndication) for listeners to subscribe, download and listen. Its operation is similar to broadcasting, but with no time limitation. The pre-recorded programs are listed as episodes on a website so the audience can download and listen at any time. The audio and non-visual programs are like programs on radio stations and Youtube, with the advantage that they can be enjoyed offline, with no need for visual attention so they can be used for leisure or learning while driving or exercising. In short, Podcast is an asynchronous, subscribed, and downloadable audio program.

Popular Podcast programs include international news, investment and financial management, technology trends, English learning, discussion of current issues, etc. Some media or celebrities that already have reputation on the Internet have also entered the Podcast market, such as Gooaye, Guaji and Bailingguo News. The analysis by Firstory and related studies indicate that the Podcast audience is relatively young and most of them are women. It is a popular choice for busy office workers who are used to multi-tasking operation. The profit model, according to the analysis of the author, include direct and indirect revenues, as follows:

The current Podcast market is mainly led by Spotify and Apple Podcast. The former is catching up quickly, and the latter has the advantage of being built into the iOS system. In addition to the top two, Google and Amazon have also followed suit. In Taiwan, local players such as SoundOn and Firstory have emerged.

The emergence of Podcast provides people with another choice to receive information. However, it is mainly one-way communication, and additional interaction only occurs in extensions such as small sponsorships and offline activities. Those who urgently need more interaction now find Clubhouse, a competitor that just emerged for Podcast.

"Who has the invitation code?", "I can invite 2 more people!" These are probably what people most often hear these days. The meaning of Clubhouse is self-evident. Emerged in the Silicon Valley, Clubhouse is like private clubs or parties that one can join only by invitation. This increases the sense of mystery. In Clubhouse, users can play three roles--a moderator, a listener or a speaker. The listener only listens but does not speak, and can simply listen while doing other tasks; the speaker clicks the "hand up button", to get the consent of the moderator to begin to talk.

The operation of Clubhouse allows the users to chat, make friends, hold lectures, etc., and switch roles at any time. When the chatroom is closed, no record is retained so that everyone feels free to say anything. Features such as the invitation system, no records, real-time voice interaction, etc., make this APP rise up quickly and attract many people to scramble to enter the chatrooms of celebrities.

Podcast is a non-synchronized audio program obtained through subscription and downloading. Clubhouse, on the other hand, is a synchronized audio medium built on interpersonal relationships. It features real-time (synchronous) voice interaction that enhances social connection. In addition to recreation, we can also imagine the uses in enterprises.

1.    Business meetings: A virtue venue is provided where the moderator (chair) can maintain the focus on the topics and the members (attendees) can listen and speak. The participants can manipulate the data displayed and converse without showing their face (like in a conference call).

2.    Corporate training: The lecturer and trainees interact with each other in the chatroom with data displayed, which can break the limitation of distance. This is a form of distance learning with much higher efficiency than correspondence education.

3.    Public relations marketing activities: Low-cost, high-mobility, and readily-adjustable activities in the chatrooms can develop new customer groups and increase traffic. The invitation function can help achieve market differentiation. The retrospective data analysis based on the invitation codes can be used to plan for accurate marketing.

4.    Celebrity or KOL (Key Opinion Leader) lecture hall: Chatrooms can be opened to increase adhesiveness of fans/members, and lead to use of strategies such as brand cooperation and placement marketing.

The rapid technological development, in the specific time and space background, has developed Podcast, which incorporates the features of Youtube and broadcasting, and Clubhouse, which features real-time voice interaction. Both of these have met the needs of modern users. We are pleased to see the emergence of new technologies and media, which not only enriches human life, but also adds more diversified channels of information dissemination. The rapidly developed technology has conquered technical obstacles but also brought about more issues on privacy, politics, and ethics. Whether this is a sustainable trend of development remains to be seen.

This article made very simple introduction of two emerging media--the Podcast and the Clubhouse APP. It is hoped that enterprises understand the basic concept of their usage, market development, and related issues and concerns. Thorough planning is the key to success. Enterprises can be pioneers with emerging media or technologies. The premise is, however, to clearly understand their functions and characteristics so as to maximize the effectiveness. Simply jumping on the bandwagon may not lead to success but even cause unpredictable losses.