A Real Look Into Appalachia
In 2020 we got to add Appodlachia to our list of clients! Appodlachia is an Appalachian podcast started in 2019 by Chuck Corra and Big John Isner. This “shrewd, witty, comical, sometimes irreverent, and always honest podcast” is writing a counter-narrative about a misunderstood region, covering everything from politics and history to weed and rural broadband.
We were big fans of Appodlachia even before we started working with them, so we were thrilled to get a chance to help. They’re our favorite podcast to listen to over at the Starry Eyes office. If you’re passionate about our mountains and socioeconomic issues, check out Appodlachia! They’ve created a podcast full of stories and conversations about Appalachian issues and what makes our part of the world unique.
Amplifying a Voice
The job we had to do for Appodlachia was pretty simple. They were already doing great work, so we just had help more people hear them. To make that happen, we created a plan to build a new website and offer marketing advice. A modern website creatively combined with social media and podcast platforms can be a powerful tool to broadcast the podcast to more people and form a larger audience.
They’re one of the few companies who represent Appalachia in all aspects of business.
If you have a business or organization you’re looking to grow; they’re the people for you. Whether it’s website design, print media, or pretty much anything else you might need; we recommend them. Go check them out!”
Appodlachia
Invite More to the Table
Appodlachia has a vibrant audience community and Patreon is an important feature of that community. Because of this, we created a page giving information about their different support levels and inviting listeners to officially join as a patron. The podcast and their audience together have created an amazing range of art and t-shirts available on TeePublic. Another goal of the website was to provide easy access to their web store. Finally, the website displays the Appalachian organizations who sponsor the podcast (like ourselves!) and several custom contact forms for anyone who wants to get in touch, become a sponsor, or come on the show for an interview.
There’s always a lot of behind-the-scenes work that goes into making and maintaining a smooth website. One of those tasks is constantly keeping website content optimized according to the latest standards and techniques so it loads quickly and effectively. Appodlachia had dozens of banner images and artworks to decorate each of their episodes. We optimized all of these to reduce page load times and keep a quick and responsive user experience. This work combined with continued search engine optimization (SEO) ensures that the podcasts keeps finding new listeners.
