What To Look For In a Professional Podcast Studio
Not all podcast studios are created equal. Learn how to differentiate a true podcast studio from a place that's faking it, what questions to ask, and why the details matter for your content’s success.
The Problem: Not Every “Podcast Studio” is a Podcast Studio
Podcasting is booming, and with it, the demand for studio spaces. But not all studios claiming to be “professional podcast spaces” are what they seem. In Episode 2 of The Skutch Media Podcast, they tackle why some so-called studios fall short, and how their philosophy sets them apart.
Many “podcast studios” are actually multi-use event spaces, transformed music recording studios, or even poorly lit closets with the bare minimum equipment. These spaces may throw up a camera, plop down a microphone, and call themselves a podcast studio The result? Clients wind up with subpar experiences, terrible audio, unusable video, and stories of disappointment, sometimes even difficulty getting their content files at all.
What Sets Professional Studios Apart?
Focus & Expertise
The core difference, as Pete and Marnie highlight, is focus. At Skutch, the entire space is designed and maintained for podcasting and content creation, not as a side project or afterthought. There are no comedy nights or unrelated events taking over the setup; it’s content, all the time, at the highest level.
Purpose-Built Equipment and Design
A real podcast studio invests in quality equipment and intentional design. As the hosts explain, it's more than just having a mic and a camera. Look for:
Quality Lighting: Are you seeing cheap ring lights or professional-grade lighting that adds depth and dimension?
Camera Setup: Are they using webcams, or do they have proper multi-camera angles and quality lenses?
Acoustics & Sound: Is the room designed for optimal audio? Are microphones carefully selected and is the sound treated to have clarity and warmth without echo?
Preview & Approval: Do you get to approve your shots and sound before you record, or is it a one-size-fits-none process?
Why Sound Still Reigns Supreme
With the rise of video-focused podcasting, it’s easy to ignore audio quality. But as Marnie and Pete remind us, sound is still king—most people consume podcasts by listening, not watching.
A professional studio should have deep knowledge of sound production: the right mics, cables, and mixing, an environment that avoids echo, and technicians who know how to make your voice sound its best. Little touches, like encouraging guests to wear headphones, can dramatically improve delivery and clarity—something many newcomers have never experienced before stepping into a true studio.
The Human Touch: Service, Coaching, and Accountability
What truly differentiates a top-tier studio is the human element. At Skutch Media, the philosophy is to get the absolute best out of every client. This means taking the time to coach nervous first-timers, helping them feel at ease, and giving actionable advice for on-mic performance, such as mic technique, vocal clarity, and conversational flow.
Accountability is also key. When a studio cares about your final product as much as you do, they strive for results that reflect well on both parties. The process should never feel rushed or impersonal.
Critical Questions to Ask Any Podcast Studio
If you’re looking to book a studio (especially if you can’t make it to Atlanta to visit Skutch), Marnie and Pete suggest you ask:
What equipment do you use? Make sure the gear is professional, not just consumer-grade.
Are there dedicated techs on-site, for both audio and video?
Is the space designed for podcasting, or is it multi-use? Is the setup permanent or thrown together for each client?
Where do my files go after recording? Who handles the editing—trusted in-house talent, or random freelancers overseas?
Do I get to approve my camera shots and audio before recording begins?
Will the studio’s branding appear in my content, or is it all about my brand?
The Bottom Line: Invest Wisely in Your Podcast
A real podcast studio gives you more than a recording, they deliver a full experience, ensure your content is high-quality from the start, and become a partner in your podcast journey. It doesn’t need to cost a fortune, Skutch’s own packages start at just $250 for a 3 camera angle video podcast shoot with an edit. Most importantly: do your research, value expertise, and work with people who care about your success as much as you do.
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Marnie Joseph [00:00:00]:
Hey, everybody. Welcome back to the Skutch Media podcast. I'm Marnie.
Pete Joseph [00:00:04]:
And I'm Pete.
Marnie Joseph [00:00:05]:
And we are the owners of Skutch Media. And we're going to talk to you today about why a lot of professional podcast studios aren't really podcast studios at all and what makes us different.
Pete Joseph [00:00:16]:
But first, do me a favor like and subscribe if you're listening to us or watching us on YouTube and if you're listening to us on any of those audio platforms, Spotify, Apple, Podcast, leave us a review. It really, really helps a lot. Do us that favor. Thanks. Thank you. All right, let's jump into this because we've been seeing a lot of clients coming to us just with absolute horror stories.
Marnie Joseph [00:00:37]:
A lot of professional podcast studios, at least from what we see here, and we're in Atlanta, aren't really podcast studios at all. And they are multi use event spaces or in some cases, you know, music.
Pete Joseph [00:00:53]:
Recording studios that have been transformed. That's a big one we're noticing.
Pete Joseph [00:00:57]:
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:00:58]:
That have been transformed into podcast studios. Meaning they put up a couple cameras and go from there. Yeah, exactly.
Pete Joseph [00:01:05]:
Just kind of sits you in there.
Marnie Joseph [00:01:06]:
Yeah, yeah. So I think one of the things that we hear a lot is like, I booked what I thought was a podcast studio. I show up, it is a closet with some cheap equipment and a ring light.
Pete Joseph [00:01:22]:
You're seeing people that think that they can just throw up a camera and a microphone and say it's now a podcast studio.
Marnie Joseph [00:01:28]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:01:29]:
And it's not.
Marnie Joseph [00:01:30]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:01:32]:
Anybody that has space, we're seeing it in co working spaces. Audio studios that have been transformed, event spaces, they always have podcast studio.
Marnie Joseph [00:01:42]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:01:43]:
It's a second or third thought.
Marnie Joseph [00:01:45]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:01:46]:
By far. At Skutch, this is our primary.
Marnie Joseph [00:01:50]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:01:51]:
This stays like this. We don't throw parties, we don't do comedy nights. We don't do any type of hey, you want to learn to be a comedian? Or we don't do any of that. All the stuff we do is content driven and at its highest level.
Pete Joseph [00:02:05]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:02:06]:
So that's what a lot of people out there need to watch out for. Because I feel it's kind of making our. It's down, kind of. It's making our industry look bad.
Pete Joseph [00:02:15]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:02:15]:
Cause a lot of our clients are going into things with or people were coming across with these grand ideas of what they're gonna get and they're sold this bag of goods. And then when they get their files back, if they get their files back, that's my favorite. They're either out of frame, out of focus, Too hot, too dark.
Pete Joseph [00:02:34]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:02:35]:
Nobody really takes the time to really kind of focus. Cause like I said, it's their second or third focused. It's not really what they do.
Marnie Joseph [00:02:43]:
Right.
Marnie Joseph [00:02:44]:
They're just trying to maximize the use of their space.
Pete Joseph [00:02:47]:
Absolutely.
Marnie Joseph [00:02:48]:
Right where we're actually making podcasts.
Marnie Joseph [00:02:51]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:02:51]:
That's what we do.
Marnie Joseph [00:02:52]:
So what is the difference in the studio space? Like, what do we have that they don't have? Why don't we clarify that a little bit?
Pete Joseph [00:02:59]:
Well, a lot of places you're going to go into are going to, you know, they're going to say they have podcast views. So you see microphones, you're going to see some lights. You know, look at what these lights are. Are they ring lights? Are the same lights you could buy on Amazon.
Marnie Joseph [00:03:11]:
Right?
Marnie Joseph [00:03:12]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:03:12]:
Are your cameras just webcams?
Pete Joseph [00:03:15]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:03:15]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:03:16]:
How are they? Are you shoved into a tiny room that there really aren't decent camera angles? Is your set not lit correctly? Is it not giving types of like dimension, Other types of things? These are all things to look out for. When you're looking at like a big name podcast, you notice the set had some thought put into it.
Marnie Joseph [00:03:34]:
Right?
Marnie Joseph [00:03:35]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:03:35]:
We've seen one of our good friends, you know, come in and he showed us some of the footage that he shot. It's them sitting on like benches.
Pete Joseph [00:03:42]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:03:43]:
Like they just like, oh, there's three people here. Just throw a mic in this guy's hand. One guy's half in frame. It was so bad. And you talk thousands and thousands of dollars for this stuff. A lot of people, it's a guessing game. They don't even know what they're getting.
Marnie Joseph [00:03:55]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:03:55]:
They don't see it.
Marnie Joseph [00:03:56]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:03:57]:
Like we preview our stuff with all of our clients, they know what their shots going to look like.
Marnie Joseph [00:04:00]:
Right.
Marnie Joseph [00:04:01]:
They approve their shots before and their sound roll.
Marnie Joseph [00:04:04]:
Right?
Pete Joseph [00:04:04]:
Yeah. Like so. And it's. These are the little things that, you know, are these people caring about. Like, we've noticed this too. What's this content being used for?
Pete Joseph [00:04:14]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:04:15]:
Why am I shooting this?
Marnie Joseph [00:04:16]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:04:17]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:04:17]:
Is it because I'm using it for Instagram? I'm using it for TikTok. I'm just putting it strictly on YouTube, actually. This is all for in house for our company, whatever that is, it changes how you do it.
Marnie Joseph [00:04:29]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:04:29]:
Changes how you shoot it, how you light it, what the. The post production could be, which we also do too.
Marnie Joseph [00:04:36]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:04:37]:
It's these little questions that change how you attack and approach a podcast or studio content.
Pete Joseph [00:04:44]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:04:45]:
I Think that's a really good point that you bring up, because I think a lot of people think that to record a podcast, all you need is to set up a mic and a couple cameras and sit down and just start shooting the shit with your friend. And the reality is that it's garbage in, garbage out, right?
Pete Joseph [00:05:01]:
Absolutely.
Marnie Joseph [00:05:02]:
So you gotta. You gotta have that strategic lens going into it. You. You gotta. You gotta, you know, know what you're doing going into it. And to your point, it changes. It will predict how it comes out afterwards based on how it goes in.
Pete Joseph [00:05:21]:
Absolutely. I remember being back in the day when we were. We would record, my band would record in a studio. We first went in and the producer came and saw us practice and said, you guys aren't ready to record yet.
Pete Joseph [00:05:32]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:05:33]:
And we're like, what do you mean, man? We're going to the studio and you can fix everything. It'll all look great. He's like, garbage in, garbage out.
Pete Joseph [00:05:38]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:05:39]:
If it's not tight, if it's not in time, if everything's not perfect, it will sound amplified worse.
Marnie Joseph [00:05:44]:
Right, right.
Pete Joseph [00:05:46]:
And if I took that basic principle and kind of looked at all the stuff and said, we can't do that, like, we have to simplify the process for people that. They know they're getting the right stuff. They know it's going to look good.
Pete Joseph [00:05:58]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:05:58]:
And it's letting them know from. I don't expect everybody to walk in here to be a cameraman and a sound guy and lighting tech, and they need to have approval and know I care. We care.
Marnie Joseph [00:06:09]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:06:10]:
How that finished product comes out. Because in the end, I think a lot of businesses now have forgot that it really reflects on them.
Pete Joseph [00:06:16]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:06:17]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:06:18]:
I think that's a lost art of, Of. Of actually being accountable for what you put out.
Marnie Joseph [00:06:22]:
Service.
Pete Joseph [00:06:23]:
Yeah, Service. A lot of people now just like, I don't care.
Pete Joseph [00:06:25]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:06:26]:
Well, we. We hear that a lot from people who come in and shoot with us, is that they went someplace else. They went to another studio and they just kind of were like, okay, you guys are all set here. Record, go.
Pete Joseph [00:06:37]:
And.
Marnie Joseph [00:06:39]:
And they really didn't care what came out. And the story that you just told about the producer, like, that producer could have just continued to take your band's money.
Pete Joseph [00:06:47]:
Yep. He could have done it. You know, it was up to him to come and see us. For the pure fact of. He's like, you know, you guys are in your mid-20s, you're young. God, the days. But I don't want you to just. He took that little bit of.
Pete Joseph [00:07:01]:
Just a little bit of time to come out and go. And actually, the funny part was, we recorded where the studio was, so the man literally walked out a door and walked into our. It wasn't like he was going across town or anything. He just took a second to go.
Pete Joseph [00:07:13]:
You're right.
Pete Joseph [00:07:14]:
You might want to take another couple months.
Pete Joseph [00:07:15]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:07:16]:
Before you blow 20, 30 grand right. On this.
Marnie Joseph [00:07:18]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:07:19]:
You know, that's what we try to tell people when they first come in. They have these grandiose ideas, and they want to do it so big, and I want four people, and I want this and that. I tell them all the time, start small. And to your point, like, a lot of people just think it's a camera and a mic. You know, some people could start out that way, and that's great.
Marnie Joseph [00:07:37]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:07:38]:
Like, you. That's you controlling. But if you come into my universe and you give us money to produce something for you, it will be a top quality.
Pete Joseph [00:07:47]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:07:47]:
But I can only do as well as you give me.
Marnie Joseph [00:07:49]:
Right, right.
Pete Joseph [00:07:50]:
And that's kind of what I think the heart of Scooch is, is I want to let you know, I just don't want to. I'm not here to just take your money.
Marnie Joseph [00:07:58]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:07:59]:
Because if it comes out bad, that. That's pretty much a loser for me.
Marnie Joseph [00:08:02]:
Right.
Marnie Joseph [00:08:03]:
It's. I think what makes us different is our philosophy is we really. We want to get the best out of you. Absolutely. Like, we want to make you look. Absolutely. We want to make you look as great as possible. And I think I was thinking about the young kids.
Marnie Joseph [00:08:23]:
I'll call them kids. The young gentleman and his girlfriend who came in here and shot with us. And it was the first time that they had ever done anything like this. And they came in and they were incredibly nervous.
Pete Joseph [00:08:34]:
Oh, my. I've never seen they were so nervous. And he's a professional athlete, too.
Marnie Joseph [00:08:39]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:08:39]:
And he, like, he's been in front of hundreds of thousands of people playing, and he was just very nervous.
Marnie Joseph [00:08:44]:
And, you know, you sat down with them. You know, you. You want some. You want some coaching here? Like, here's some advice. Let's talk this through. This is what you want to do. You want to. Look here.
Marnie Joseph [00:08:53]:
You can move your mic around here. Gave them all the etiquette.
Pete Joseph [00:08:57]:
Look here to this. You know, feel free. How do we get in? That was the. How do we start?
Pete Joseph [00:09:01]:
Yep.
Pete Joseph [00:09:02]:
Start.
Marnie Joseph [00:09:02]:
Just start.
Pete Joseph [00:09:03]:
Have a conversation. Talk to each other.
Marnie Joseph [00:09:05]:
And they fell right in.
Pete Joseph [00:09:07]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:09:08]:
It's just. And it's like, I'm not saying we're miracle workers. I'm just saying we give a shit.
Marnie Joseph [00:09:12]:
Right.
Marnie Joseph [00:09:12]:
And that's what's different.
Pete Joseph [00:09:14]:
I care. Like, I just. And I can't. You know, we've had this conversation a lot because it also comes both ways. You know, you feel. You get kind of, you know, people push towards sometimes, like, wanting certain stuff and. And, you know, you get to weed out who really wants to. To work.
Pete Joseph [00:09:27]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:09:28]:
On stuff and.
Pete Joseph [00:09:29]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:09:29]:
But it really comes down to I want to put out the best product for someone.
Pete Joseph [00:09:33]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:09:34]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:09:34]:
Because I really do think that that reflects on us, and that's how Scooch was built. It just. Why does your studio look different? Why does your studio. Because it's. We. I kept. We kept kicking that level up.
Pete Joseph [00:09:44]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:09:45]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:09:45]:
We kept noticing stuff and go, boy, that would look great. And then we do it.
Pete Joseph [00:09:49]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:09:49]:
And it looked great. Or, boy, that would sound. And we do it.
Marnie Joseph [00:09:51]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:09:52]:
Does. And people notice when they come in.
Marnie Joseph [00:09:55]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:09:55]:
And it's just. It's a very unique space. It's unbelievably welcoming. You know, everybody seems to love it. We've never had a problem with anybody coming in. They've been like, I just. I don't feel. In the beginning, it's a bit odd.
Pete Joseph [00:10:08]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:10:08]:
Right. It's weird because, like, it's in. It's in a house.
Pete Joseph [00:10:11]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:10:11]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:10:11]:
It's in a. It's in this weird house. And nobody can kind of, like, put it together. But once you kind of settle into it, you know, I like to think of ourselves as like the Sound city.
Pete Joseph [00:10:22]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:10:22]:
Of. Of podcast.
Marnie Joseph [00:10:23]:
Tell everyone what Sound city is.
Pete Joseph [00:10:25]:
Sound City was a studio that was in, I think, California somewhere. And it was very unassuming.
Pete Joseph [00:10:32]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:10:32]:
Like, the way it was built, it was very. It's like it was built like a warehouse. And the way the. That the studio designed it wasn't supposed to sound good at all. Like, it's just the design of it. Like, everybody. All audio engineers, like, this should not sound, but it just had this unbelievable sound. Like, apparently when they recorded the drums there, it's like the drums were just like a sound city drums.
Pete Joseph [00:10:52]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:10:52]:
And I kind of modeled us after. In the sense of, like, how do you. It's such a unique space, but everybody in there, you know, Fleetwood Mac recorded there. Like, all these big bands recorded. Because it had this allure and this mystique that it could. Of what it was. And it wasn't like. Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:11:08]:
Built to be a sound studio and professional, but it just happened to weirdly Right. Work.
Marnie Joseph [00:11:14]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:11:14]:
It was just like the stars aligned. And that's kind of how. That's how I feel about Scoot Studio.
Marnie Joseph [00:11:19]:
Sound is very important in podcasting, and I think that now that podcasting has become so video focused, which it's. Video is incredibly important. Every podcaster needs to use video. We know this. But sound can sometimes be overlooked now. And it's definitely something that we see and hear from clients that they. That they, you know, that they've had trouble with elsewhere. It's like people can get the video.
Marnie Joseph [00:11:48]:
The sound is harder and it is more important. I think most podcasts are still just listened to the sound audio.
Pete Joseph [00:11:59]:
Oh, yeah. We have friends that tell us all the time. Oh, you guys sounded great.
Pete Joseph [00:12:02]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:12:03]:
Did you like how it looked? Oh, I didn't watch it.
Marnie Joseph [00:12:05]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:12:06]:
No, it's. Sound is a lost art and it's. We run into people all the time that'll tell us. I could do the camera stuff, but this.
Marnie Joseph [00:12:13]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:12:13]:
And you're just like. Like, it's a. It's. So what's old school?
Marnie Joseph [00:12:17]:
So what's the difference with our sound?
Pete Joseph [00:12:20]:
The difference with our sound is I know what I'm doing, and I don't mean that rudely, but in the sense of I took a lot of my old school knowledge of, you know, miking things and being in bands and working with, you know, different stuff for years and just kind of applied it right. We treat the studio to just give just enough kind of reverb response that it sounds real, you know, but we're not getting big, giant echoes.
Pete Joseph [00:12:48]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:12:50]:
You know, running it, you know, the right microphones, the right cables, setting things correctly.
Marnie Joseph [00:12:55]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:12:55]:
You know, just running right good levels. It's just. It's being on top of it. The problem with audio for a lot of people is it's not as plug and play as cameras have become. Like, we try to keep it as real and robust as possible. Like, I want you, when you. When you hear our podcast, want to be like, wow, wow. I can literally hear that guy's.
Marnie Joseph [00:13:14]:
You can tell the difference.
Marnie Joseph [00:13:16]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:13:17]:
And it's also from a lot. We try to encourage people that come in, especially first timers, use headphones, like a lot of people. Like, it's like, just trust me, you're gonna completely. You talk more, you emphasize you are talking clearer. You can hear your voice. And a lot of people, you could see them kind of be like, it's going to mess up my hair this. Then, hey, whatever you want to do. But get used to yourself.
Pete Joseph [00:13:45]:
Like, I Can kind of do it now without headphones in the sense. I still would much rather.
Pete Joseph [00:13:49]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:13:50]:
Same.
Pete Joseph [00:13:50]:
I think I go into a different. My voice sounds different. I drop into it. I. It feels. It's like putting on the equipment to play a game.
Marnie Joseph [00:13:57]:
Right.
Marnie Joseph [00:13:57]:
And. Well, that's the advice that we give people. Starting out too. Right. Like, do it with headphones because you. You. It changes the way you speak. You pay attention to how you enunciate words.
Marnie Joseph [00:14:08]:
You're very much. It allows you to be very dialed into the conversation. More so than when you don't have.
Pete Joseph [00:14:14]:
Absolutely.
Marnie Joseph [00:14:14]:
On.
Pete Joseph [00:14:15]:
Absolutely. I mean, it puts you in the. In the game.
Pete Joseph [00:14:18]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:14:18]:
In the arena.
Marnie Joseph [00:14:19]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:14:19]:
Like, it's not like it's a true transparent. It's like going in and seeing imax and you're like, geez, I'm in the experience. When you put the headphones on, it just.
Pete Joseph [00:14:27]:
Yeah, yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:14:28]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:14:29]:
You have the illusion because you can hear your voice in that sense. You're getting a little bit of processing on the back end. So everything's warm and fat and like buttery. And it's just kind of. It takes you just like with everything else. Like, play good, feel, look good, feel good, play good.
Marnie Joseph [00:14:43]:
Right, right.
Pete Joseph [00:14:43]:
It's the same thing. Like, if you can. It just puts you in that.
Marnie Joseph [00:14:46]:
It's like the difference between watching a movie in the theater versus watching one on your laptop.
Pete Joseph [00:14:51]:
Absolutely. Yeah, absolutely. But like, put it. Put a movie on to the sound down.
Marnie Joseph [00:14:55]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:14:55]:
It's kind of almost comical. Remember we saw the Titanic thing where the guy put. He put funny music. He put the Benny Hill thing. Da. Behind the scene of Titanic where everybody drowning. And it was comical.
Marnie Joseph [00:15:12]:
And it. It just proved that the music just completely change anything.
Pete Joseph [00:15:17]:
Can change anything.
Pete Joseph [00:15:19]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:15:20]:
And it's the same thing with audio.
Marnie Joseph [00:15:21]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:15:22]:
Like, if we don't. If your audio. And that's a big thing. I'll say to people at home. You see a lot of people at home on their computer shooting, and they have their earbuds. In majority of time, they're only hearing the guest.
Pete Joseph [00:15:35]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:15:35]:
They're not hearing themselves back.
Marnie Joseph [00:15:37]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:15:38]:
That's some of the things like, oh, my podcast. Get an inner audio interface.
Pete Joseph [00:15:42]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:15:42]:
Get one that can. Now you can hear yourself and the guest.
Pete Joseph [00:15:46]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:15:47]:
Your. Your. Your whole perspective will change.
Pete Joseph [00:15:49]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:15:50]:
And it's a lot of things that they don't. They never thought about.
Marnie Joseph [00:15:53]:
No. Because why would. Why would they?
Pete Joseph [00:15:55]:
We literally. We had a kid committed. We put the headphones on, we started talking. He was like. Like his mind was just we're like, wow, really? Like. But it's not his fault. No one's told him.
Marnie Joseph [00:16:07]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:16:07]:
This is why.
Marnie Joseph [00:16:08]:
Right, right.
Pete Joseph [00:16:09]:
And it's. It's that I think we just kind of hit on what makes good different because we have no problem explaining to you why.
Marnie Joseph [00:16:15]:
Right, right.
Pete Joseph [00:16:16]:
We have the time, right, to tell you this is why it's different. This is what's going to make it. And you see people go get it.
Marnie Joseph [00:16:24]:
Well, and when we tell you this is why it's different and this is why you should do that, you get better results, get way better. So again, it goes back to our philosophy of we just want to get the best out of you, and that's going to get the best out of you.
Pete Joseph [00:16:36]:
Well, it's. We want to get the best out of you and I want you to come back.
Marnie Joseph [00:16:39]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:16:39]:
Podcasting isn't something you do once. Right, Right. You want to do it multiple times. So how do we keep enforcing that? We keep enforcing that by giving them great sound, giving them a great experience. When they come in, it's turnkey for them. Their stuff set up, they're pretty much done. Also, it's our post production. So once it's shot, then what? We've been running into all these people that say, yeah, I got this stuff shot.
Pete Joseph [00:17:05]:
And it's just sitting there. You're like, well, yeah, right. So even on our most basic packages, we give you an edit.
Marnie Joseph [00:17:13]:
Right.
Marnie Joseph [00:17:15]:
So that's another thing. That's another differentiator for us, big time. Right? Because I. Yeah, to your point, it's. It's the timing too, right? Because we get a lot of. We hear a lot. We hear this all the time.
Pete Joseph [00:17:31]:
All the time.
Marnie Joseph [00:17:32]:
I mean, it took me like five weeks to get an edit or I didn't get an edit at all, or I can't get my files back from these guys in. In Pakistan that have them or whatever it was.
Pete Joseph [00:17:46]:
Qatar was the one. It was actually two story.
Marnie Joseph [00:17:48]:
Sorry, wrong country.
Pete Joseph [00:17:50]:
Nothing against Qatari. No, just a lot of people farm their stuff out. They just do. It's a thing fiverr. And it's become common and we hear from our clients all the time. I didn't get my stuff back or I told them to do it this way and this is what I got. And my favorite comment to that is, well, what did you expect? You have no recourse. You've never even been in the room with this person.
Pete Joseph [00:18:13]:
They're sitting in Pakistan. You know how far they could just be like, f you.
Marnie Joseph [00:18:17]:
Right?
Pete Joseph [00:18:19]:
Like, take it or Leave it.
Marnie Joseph [00:18:20]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:18:20]:
And a lot of these people keep taking it and giving more money than you're just like.
Marnie Joseph [00:18:25]:
Well, and it's not just. It's that. It's that. Yes. But then also it is the frustration about the constant back and forth with a freelancer that they found on Fiverr or Upwork or whatnot. That, you know, you can have the tightest brief forms. Form or sops or whatever. You know, you have to instruct the people that are doing your post production.
Marnie Joseph [00:18:52]:
But there's still that, that tug, that kind of back and forth.
Pete Joseph [00:18:58]:
I'll say it as it is. They don't know American culture.
Marnie Joseph [00:19:00]:
Right?
Marnie Joseph [00:19:01]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:19:01]:
Like we get. We work with people on stuff. We don't shoot. We just do their production for them.
Marnie Joseph [00:19:06]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:19:07]:
But we're here, right? We understand. If you said to us, hey, this is what I'm going for. This is the look or this is the sound of the. We get it.
Marnie Joseph [00:19:15]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:19:15]:
And if not, you can pick up the phone and call us.
Marnie Joseph [00:19:17]:
Right?
Marnie Joseph [00:19:18]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:19:18]:
It's not three days between an email, right? Oh, I'm sorry. It's whatever. We were getting bombed. That was one we actually heard. No joke. I swear to you. Like here, you pick up the phone, you call, it's us, right? And like even, like I said, our most basic package comes with an edit. Because I don't.
Pete Joseph [00:19:37]:
Who buys something it doesn't. It's not put together.
Marnie Joseph [00:19:40]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:19:40]:
Unless you're a model enthusiast where. But this stuff, you want to see it, right? You want to go home, see what you paid for and get it right. And most of the time we can turn. If you shot with us, you have an edit within 24 hours. Yeah, it's not incredible. It's not a bunch of. But it's a basic edit, basic color.
Marnie Joseph [00:19:58]:
Audio, camera angle switched, Everything you need, everything you need. If you want to take it from there and chop it up or whatever you want to do with it, you can do it. You can do it, but it's.
Pete Joseph [00:20:09]:
It's in enough form to where then you can then show everybody what you just spent your money on.
Pete Joseph [00:20:13]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:20:14]:
I think that's a huge. Everybody's always said, wow, I get it. You know, I, man, I got all these raw files. I don't know what to do with it. They. They bring them to us sometime. You're like, man, this is gonna be more expensive than this is worth. You know, some of our friends coming by today, right, they.
Pete Joseph [00:20:26]:
They're sitting on piles and 36 episodes of worthlessness.
Pete Joseph [00:20:29]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:20:30]:
It's like Man, I have to charge you more to put this all back together again than if you just. And. And you see that the light come on. They're just like, oh, man. And you just. And I'm so passionate about this because this is our industry. You know, people are making. They're making this stuff look bad.
Pete Joseph [00:20:45]:
And it's not as easy, guys, as just finding a kid with a camera. Trust me.
Marnie Joseph [00:20:51]:
So what are some questions then? People should ask studios if they're looking to run a studio and they're not in Atlanta, so they can't come to us.
Marnie Joseph [00:21:01]:
It's true.
Pete Joseph [00:21:01]:
Because.
Marnie Joseph [00:21:02]:
Because if you're in Atlanta, you're coming to us.
Pete Joseph [00:21:03]:
Should be coming to us, period. So to me, first thing you gotta ask is equipment they're shooting on. Are there techs on site for everything? And not just like, oh, yeah, we got like a camera guy, but he isn't. No audio. We got an audio guy, but he isn't. No lighting. They shouldn't be able to know all of it.
Marnie Joseph [00:21:24]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:21:25]:
You know, a lot of stuff, to me, I look at when I walk in, is this a fly by night? As in, is a lot of the stuff mounted? Yeah, we working with, like, something that was. That looked like it was put together or looked like it was thrown together.
Marnie Joseph [00:21:37]:
Right, Right.
Pete Joseph [00:21:38]:
There's built and then there's thrown together.
Marnie Joseph [00:21:41]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:21:41]:
And so when you come into Skutch, you can tell you're walking into a place. Like, we have a separate control room. We're not in the room with you. Like, a lot of these things that, you know, do. Here's my favorite. People will sit there and they'll. They'll book a studio and go in and go, oh, yeah, we don't have the cameras. Or it's just a raw, empty space.
Marnie Joseph [00:22:01]:
Right.
Marnie Joseph [00:22:02]:
You have to bring your own.
Pete Joseph [00:22:02]:
You have to bring your own equipment, your cameras, your back, your light. And then it's like, oh, my God. And I'm paying to set up at this time. Yeah, it's the one stop. It's making sure all the equipment is there. And I understand people won't know, but if you're afraid to show or tell what it is, more than likely there's an issue.
Pete Joseph [00:22:21]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:22:21]:
I also think another one that people need to ask is where are your files going afterwards? So if you're.
Marnie Joseph [00:22:27]:
If.
Marnie Joseph [00:22:28]:
If they're editing for you, like, where. Where are they going? Are they using just talent off of Fiverr or, you know, people around the world, or are they doing this in house with trusted and vetted talent?
Pete Joseph [00:22:45]:
It's Big. It's big. It's so big. It's almost the most important thing where these go when I'm done.
Marnie Joseph [00:22:51]:
Also, do they let you, do they let you approve your sound and your shots ahead of time too? We get that approval right on camera. But that's something that they should ask.
Pete Joseph [00:23:04]:
So.
Marnie Joseph [00:23:05]:
Right.
Marnie Joseph [00:23:05]:
If you're renting a podcast studio and they don't have you approve your shots, it's terrifying. It's a problem.
Pete Joseph [00:23:14]:
Yeah, it's a big problem. And guys, it really comes down to just do your research.
Pete Joseph [00:23:19]:
Yeah, right.
Pete Joseph [00:23:20]:
And don't look at, don't look at reviews as much. Take the time, pick up. If someone's not willing to talk to you, then you got an issue.
Marnie Joseph [00:23:26]:
Right?
Pete Joseph [00:23:26]:
Like, yeah. And if it's. We, we do a lot where people book straight through the, the website and they don't even talk to us, we go, why is that? Because our website gives them every single thing they need. Frequently asked questions you can go through. And if you want more, by all means.
Pete Joseph [00:23:41]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:23:41]:
I've never turned down anybody that wants to talk to either of us. Right. About post production, production, pre production.
Marnie Joseph [00:23:47]:
Right, right.
Pete Joseph [00:23:48]:
It's. It's just knowing that there's someone there and if, if you're right, if you're with the right team, everyone out there, and if you go to the right producer of your podcast, they will become by default pseudo family. Because you're going to see these people a lot.
Pete Joseph [00:24:04]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:24:04]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:24:05]:
So ask yourself this too. Do I want to work with these people? Because I'm going to see them twice a month. Do I really want to work with these people? Do they have my vision and my best interests at hand? And if they don't.
Marnie Joseph [00:24:21]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:24:22]:
Like that to me is the big thing and it's.
Marnie Joseph [00:24:25]:
Do they at least act like they care about the type of content that I'm putting out, about what the content is doing for my business, about how I'm using it?
Pete Joseph [00:24:35]:
It's very hard.
Marnie Joseph [00:24:36]:
These are all important things.
Pete Joseph [00:24:38]:
If you're not asking these questions, you're wasting your money.
Marnie Joseph [00:24:41]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:24:41]:
And frankly, guys, I don't want to take money to fix somebody else's mistakes. I just don't like. I mean, we will, I will, I'll take your money all day long, but you're not going to like it. Like when I, when you see what I have to do to repair something, that's. So it just comes down to make your choice. Because if you do it right, it can be, it can be rather affordable.
Marnie Joseph [00:25:01]:
Yeah, it absolutely can. I Think that's a good point to bring up, like very, very affordable.
Pete Joseph [00:25:06]:
Our.
Marnie Joseph [00:25:08]:
Package that we have for creators, business owners, whatnot, our basic package, you know, you get a one hour rental, beautiful three camera shoot just like this and a full edit, coaching, pro, sound, lighting, audit, technicians, running, doing everything. $250.
Pete Joseph [00:25:33]:
Find a better deal.
Marnie Joseph [00:25:34]:
Find a better deal. So if you, you can do it affordably, very affordably. It is just finding the right place.
Pete Joseph [00:25:45]:
Well, it's finding the right place. And then in hand in hand with that, it's coming in prepared. Yeah, right. Like we get some people that come and go, oh yeah, we're just winging it. And I'm just like.
Marnie Joseph [00:25:57]:
Well I think that's what we like to take. We, we want to take all of that work off your hands so that you can come in prepared, you can come in focused on your content and you don't have to worry about, worry.
Pete Joseph [00:26:11]:
About any of the, any of the bs, right?
Marnie Joseph [00:26:13]:
Is the sound good? Is the lighting, you know, are the shots in focus? Like you don't have to worry about any of that. Like how am I going to edit this? You don't have to worry about any of that. You just come in focus on your conversation and in 24 hours you have your content back.
Pete Joseph [00:26:28]:
You have your content back and then you can batch it and do whatever you want. And it's what I mean, be prepared. Take just, it's not. Take 30 minutes.
Pete Joseph [00:26:35]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:26:36]:
40 minutes. Like sit down, schedule out your podcast, look for your pillars that you're going to hit on whatever that information that you want to get out is there, put it into something that is just be bullet points. Bullet points that you can read on your phone. Yeah, just make sure your phone's on, you know, airport, just so we don't get any weird signals. But like that's something that's. We have, we have clients come in all the time and read from their phone.
Marnie Joseph [00:26:59]:
Yeah, right.
Pete Joseph [00:26:59]:
And they're not, they're just cuing themselves. What's my next.
Marnie Joseph [00:27:02]:
Watching their notes.
Pete Joseph [00:27:02]:
Yeah, what's my. And it's. It to me is the biggest thing that I think a lot of people just think that they can come in here. Yo, everybody says I'm so funny and I can just sit down. I don't give a shit if you don't have some type of schedule. Like we were working on this before, right before we started this. Like we had to. Where, where was this going?
Marnie Joseph [00:27:19]:
Right, right.
Pete Joseph [00:27:20]:
What was. Here's the bullet points we need to hit and go and you do stuff like that and you're going to end up with. Because it's all really about the shorts and the reels, right? So if you're not going into this.
Marnie Joseph [00:27:31]:
Well, at least for growth.
Pete Joseph [00:27:32]:
Yeah, for growth.
Pete Joseph [00:27:33]:
But if you're not going into this for any type of looking at that, going, what am I, Am I placing myself to get these good reels? Am I placing myself out of this hour podcast to get at least, you know, seven or eight.
Marnie Joseph [00:27:43]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:27:43]:
Decentral.
Marnie Joseph [00:27:45]:
Have I set myself up?
Pete Joseph [00:27:46]:
Have I set myself up for success?
Marnie Joseph [00:27:47]:
Right, Right.
Pete Joseph [00:27:48]:
And if you tell yourself no.
Pete Joseph [00:27:51]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:27:52]:
Then you have a serious problem.
Marnie Joseph [00:27:53]:
Right?
Marnie Joseph [00:27:54]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:27:54]:
Not a serious problem, but then you shouldn't be here. To my point, you guys need some more time before you come in. Garbage in, garbage out.
Pete Joseph [00:28:00]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:28:00]:
And it doesn't take much. Guys, like if you, whatever your concept is, pop culture, this or that. But we had a, we had a couple postmen that want to do one Going postal. Who knows what it's going to be called, but to the point, have your stuff. Crazy stories, this and that, news in, you know, news and whatever it could be, right. Like upcoming, whatever. It's very, very simple.
Marnie Joseph [00:28:22]:
Right?
Pete Joseph [00:28:22]:
Just organize your thoughts because sitting in that control room, we know we could tell if it's going to pop or not. You just know. They hit on certain things and they just know. And it's something you grow into. Honestly, it comes with practice. But if you don't schedule and actually put out some type of a. We call it a run of show. Yeah, you're.
Pete Joseph [00:28:43]:
I'm not saying it's not possible, but.
Marnie Joseph [00:28:46]:
Oh, it's possible.
Pete Joseph [00:28:47]:
It's possible to do it. Anything possible you could do it.
Marnie Joseph [00:28:51]:
Exactly.
Pete Joseph [00:28:52]:
But you just want to keep burning money. I mean, if you want, I'll take it.
Marnie Joseph [00:28:58]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:28:58]:
But like I much rather see you do real well.
Marnie Joseph [00:29:00]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:29:01]:
So that's. That to me is the big stuff. It's like, do they really care?
Pete Joseph [00:29:06]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:29:06]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:29:06]:
Does somebody really. And it's like nowadays, man, you're lucky if you get anybody to care at the hospital. No one gives a. About anything. Like, so, like, how is it, how do you get people to actually care about.
Marnie Joseph [00:29:19]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:29:19]:
What you're doing? And it's, it's. You have to have someone that, that truly loves what they're doing. We love what we do. Right. Nothing makes me happier than watching people show.
Marnie Joseph [00:29:26]:
I love this.
Pete Joseph [00:29:27]:
I've learned new stuff all the time.
Marnie Joseph [00:29:29]:
Yeah, right.
Pete Joseph [00:29:29]:
I get to see comedians, I get to see people that build houses. Athletes, like plumbers. Plumbers, roofing Guys, Multif family, housing development. People like lawyers. Lawyers, doctors. Doctors what? Reality TV stars.
Marnie Joseph [00:29:48]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:29:48]:
Like we've had them all. We've had a lot. And it's, it's just comes down to. That's what, that's what's great about our job is you never know what we're gonna watch.
Marnie Joseph [00:29:58]:
Right.
Marnie Joseph [00:29:58]:
We get to watch other people. We get to listen to other people's.
Pete Joseph [00:30:00]:
Stories at its origin.
Pete Joseph [00:30:04]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:30:04]:
Which is pretty unbelievable.
Marnie Joseph [00:30:06]:
It's super cool.
Pete Joseph [00:30:07]:
It's the neatest thing ever. Like, it's just like, it's like watching. It's like watching TV firsthand, like watching something happen firsthand and you're just like.
Marnie Joseph [00:30:16]:
It is.
Pete Joseph [00:30:17]:
It's unbelievable. And if you don't get that feeling from the people you're shooting with, go shoot somewhere else. Come shoot here. If you also are shooting with people that seem to want to put their logo in your stuff, shoot somewhere else.
Pete Joseph [00:30:31]:
Yeah.
Pete Joseph [00:30:32]:
This is your time. This isn't about their logo in the background or their studio or their brand. This is about your brand.
Pete Joseph [00:30:40]:
Yeah.
Marnie Joseph [00:30:41]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:30:42]:
So just remember that too. If, if it's. If someone wants to be all up in your video, if they want to.
Marnie Joseph [00:30:48]:
Be, I'm gonna fight. I'm gonna find that clip.
Pete Joseph [00:30:50]:
They want it in here. They want to be dancing all up in the video.
Marnie Joseph [00:30:54]:
If you don't want your producer, you.
Pete Joseph [00:30:55]:
Don'T want producer dance up. Come on over to. Come on over to Skutch media. But that's just it.
Marnie Joseph [00:31:00]:
Putting that clip.
Pete Joseph [00:31:01]:
We should. But look for that. This isn't their time.
Marnie Joseph [00:31:04]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:31:05]:
So be careful of that. If you see somebody trying to throw their logo into something or you know, hey, shoot. You might have. Yeah, no, Right. This is very non discreet. You could change it your way. Do what you want to do with it. We have three or four different set designs, chair colors, different things.
Pete Joseph [00:31:20]:
You can piece it together, make it yours. You can bring in different stuff to do signage to make it look almost like a complete setup.
Marnie Joseph [00:31:26]:
You can kind of brand it for yourself.
Pete Joseph [00:31:28]:
Yep.
Pete Joseph [00:31:28]:
But if anyone is trying to shove in their logo, get out.
Marnie Joseph [00:31:32]:
Not a good sign.
Pete Joseph [00:31:33]:
Run immediately. Like, it's, that's, that is not their point. That is not their place. You don't go to a wedding and the caterer is sitting there putting up signage going, hey, I put the food out. Just eat it. Right, Right. It's, it's, it's just not about you, caterer. It's not about you.
Pete Joseph [00:31:48]:
And that's what. Not about you people out there shooting these podcasts.
Marnie Joseph [00:31:52]:
Right.
Marnie Joseph [00:31:52]:
Not about You.
Pete Joseph [00:31:53]:
Other than this, we really, we don't, we're, we can do podcasting, but this isn't our, our places. And I'm very, very happy to be a producer.
Marnie Joseph [00:32:01]:
I love being a producer.
Marnie Joseph [00:32:03]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:32:03]:
Like this is. We do this for the business. But we went to an event one time and we heard overheard a guy going, oh, you have this. This is your studios. Like what podcast you have? Which one? And it's like, well, how do you have time for anyone else's.
Marnie Joseph [00:32:15]:
Right, right.
Pete Joseph [00:32:16]:
How do you have time to focus on like I.
Marnie Joseph [00:32:18]:
Right.
Pete Joseph [00:32:18]:
My focus is that. And like I said, I'm, I'm bashing some of you guys. I don't care. And that's where people need to, to know. Spend your money wisely because there's a lot of scams out there. Really there just is. Kids with cameras, fake places, you know, it makes it look all, you know, lot.
Marnie Joseph [00:32:36]:
A lot of podcast studio cosplay out there.
Pete Joseph [00:32:39]:
Just be very careful.
Marnie Joseph [00:32:41]:
Yeah, I love it. Before we get out of here, everyone do us a favor. If you're watching this on YouTube, hit the subscribe button. Ding. If you are listening on Apple podcasts or Spotify, please leave us a review. Follow the show.
Pete Joseph [00:32:56]:
Check it out.
Marnie Joseph [00:32:58]:
You can Visit our website www.scmedia.com Skut.
Pete Joseph [00:33:03]:
C H media.com Follow us on social media.
Marnie Joseph [00:33:09]:
We're at Skutch Media. Let us know like what, what if. What has your experience been? Have you tried to. Have you rented a studio before? Have you looked for professional production help before and gotten less than what you wanted? Send us a dm. Leave it in the comments. Shoot us an email info@skutchmedia.com. Let us know what questions you have, what experiences you've had and maybe we'll use it on an upcoming.
Pete Joseph [00:33:39]:
Sounds all sounds pretty awesome. Awesome guys. Thanks so much. We'll be talking to you soon.
