How is Tech Cocktail 2 different from the first one?
I think the difference is that there are more women here. That s a big difference. What is really cool about it this time around is that the vibe is still the same, it feels a lot like the first one where a lot of the people were happy that we coming together to talk about our projects, a lot of the networking things. I am more of a solitary guy. I like being in front of my monitor, but it is good to get out and talk to the people who are doing a lot of the projects that you are seeing in the community.

What is it that you do?
I work a day job, but on the side I have a podcast production company called PaleGroove Studios. It is available at palegroove.com. I have produced podcasts for MTV networks. I currently produce podcasts for four NFL pro bowl players. I produce for two Nascar racing teams. We also do some other stuff for drink companies and a lot of other pilot consulting.

What would be an example of a podcast you have done?
One of the really cool ones I would have to say would b e our MTV work. That was really cool because when they contacted me, I realized very quickly these guys don't need me. They are huge, this is a fortune 500 company. But they wanted somebody who had a pulse on what was going on with podcasting. That was in February of 2005. What was really interesting was they were trying to really unique stuff and try to get people out of the mode of being interviewed. What we did was we would take the talent, whoever it was, any of these famous musicians and we would throw them in a limo with a camera. They would put their buddy in the car with them, we would give them a list of questions and they would drive around times square. Then I would get the video from the, maybe they went shopping maybe they did something else. We would get a little footage, but we would just strip the audio out of it. It was really helpful to get that feeling of what podcasting was, not so much as a medium, but as a genre.

How do you make money at podcasting?
I got really lucky at it, I worked really hard at it, I did my own podcast, Kromcast for a long time. I am nearing 300 episodes so I make money indirectly. A lot of the work that I get comes from major agencies. Companies like webber shandwick, Cambell Leewall, These companies get approached by the people who are paying them and they say I really want to do this how do we do it? Everybody says yes and it starts to filter down because they can't produce it, at this point. I am the end of the food chain but I am the guy that makes it happen. I do a lot of the production, I consult with them, I work with the sports agents to help them get the athletes prepared.

What do you do for your own podcast?
I do a show with my wife, my wife is really funny. She has been selling things on ebay for a long time, so I have her blogging and on affiliate programs to make a little money. We just share our lives with people and it is genuine, it follows that podcasting model of being open and honest. It works out. It is kind of creepy though because when I meet people they know more about me then anyone on the street. They have a tendency of saying do you remember when you said this. No I do three shows a week, I don't remember so it is kind of strange.

Does your personal podcast help out your business podcast?
I spoke at portable media expo, two weeks ago, which a huge event for podcaster. I spoke on leveraging your knowledge as a podcast consultant, and I was really speaking from the heart. I took it from the basis that to be successful in podcasting you need to know how to do it. But you also need to know what to charge. And that is the thing if you charge too little the company will leave you. MTV left me, I learned a lot from that experience, learning how to charge and saying you know I can't charge this little because I am going to teach you how to do it and I am not going to get anything out of it. So you learn a lot.

What tools would you recommend for people who are just getting into podcasting?
Starting form ground zero I recommend one website to go to which would be podcast rigs. It is run by a guy named paul Figgeone. He does a great job at spec'ing out equipment, talking about hardware software. Personally I use sonic foundry, which is now sony media software products. So I edit in sound forge, and I master in Vegas. And I do a lot of my other maintenance thru itunes and a lot of the other free software that is out there. I strictly do audio, but I can do video. But I prefer audio because I understand the medium and it is what I really like to do.