It’s the Adam and Jon show!
The PR Hub Podcast – comms, marcomms and public relations chat (agency & in-house)
For those who haven’t listened before, the PR Hub Podcast has been running for 23 episodes across two seasons, starting life in March 2019.
Jon Wilcox: PR Hub Podcast
Described as a “conversational PR & marcoms podcast with special guests discussing the world of communications” with the caveat of '“sometimes sweary, always insightful”, the pod has evolved through the episodes, picking up increasing numbers on socials and pod platforms.
The format is an open, honest and often enlightening chat, looking at modern comms and PR practices.
Adam Tuckwell: PR Hub podcast
Picking the brains of both agency and in-house practitioners (with more in-house folk in the pipeline – don’t worry folks, the team are listening) reveals frustrations, ideas, trade secrets (ish) and campaign experiences to make us feel not so alone and inspired
Enough from me – here’s Jon Wilcox and Adam Tuckwell in their own words, on The PR Hub Podcast, comms and podcasting in general.
Full disclosure – they’re friends of mine from Cambridge-way and I’ve guest intro’d for one of their interviews (listen to the Andrew Bloch episode here – great intro IMHO 😉).
Who are you?
Adam Tuckwell: Well, I’m Adam – the smooth-sounding one from the podcast with a slightly posh voice and a habit of asking long-winded questions.
Jon Wilcox: And I’m Jon. The Welsh one. I'm a reformed journalist, which means that I - unlike Adam - actually make notes during our interview recordings. I try to think of deep questions and chipping in with my thoughts… when my esteemed colleague takes the occasional pause for breath.
What is PRHub?
AT: What is PR Hub? What a question. Some may see it as a PR podcast, but at its heart it is an excuse for us two to stay in touch, have a beer (virtually now, of course) and speak to some fantastic guests. We used to work together, so PR Hub actually started as a local networking do (again involving a drink) for PR pros in Cambridge. But this idea quickly grew, developed and morphed into a podcast, and before we knew it we were two seasons in!
JW: What's unexpected is that what started as a means for us to keep in touch has now grown to become something so much more. We were definitely finding our feet in so many ways during the first season, but with last year's follow up we loosened up and had fun with the podcasting experience.
We've been working on season three for a little while, and it definitely builds on what we produced in 2020.
When did it begin?
AT: Our first episode was back in March 2019. To tell you the truth, we had little idea what we were doing – as you can tell from the production quality – but we soon found our feet.
JW: It's so true, the first season is very different - we did some comms news, which obviously ages those shows, and we had numerous technical issues… not least that somebody (ok, me!) was speaking into the back of the mic by mistake for the first couple of episodes.
That's a matter of embarrassment to this day for me!
Why did it start?
AT: (laughing) There really wasn’t ever a grand plan. We just felt that there was a gap in the market. Most of the other PR podcasts were really bland, a little corporate and, to tell you the truth, rather generic.
We wanted to do something different, something that reflected us, our personality and to create something that would genuinely be of interest to people and help them grow and develop.
JW: I think what helped was coming up with the pod's strapline, 'Sometimes sweary, always insightful'. It sums up the pod really well!
How did Season one compare to Season two?
AT: Well, we were finding our feet, so I recommend you start with season two and work your way backwards chronologically. The committed will be rewarded with some genuine insight for some stellar and some surprising guests - but you’ll have to forgive our editing skills in the early days.
JW: And not just the editing… the format, the recording levels, the technical issues. Honestly, I think we should just transcribe the interviews from those episodes and publish them on a PR Hub website! At least that way people interested in the insight can avoid the dodgy production values of season one!
Season two is much improved!
What are your most memorable moments from the past two seasons?
AT: Interviewing guests from my garden shed was pretty memorable, but seriously, we had a blast recording these interviews. I’ve personally been really overwhelmed by how many guests have approached us, keen to share their stories and advice with others. I could list off countless funny stories, anecdotes shared once recording stopped, but instead the piece that resonates most with me is the episode we recorded with three stars from the PR Week 30 under 30.
It was truly humbling and inspiring to hear these young guys and girls speak about how our sector needs to change, grow up and tackle challenges like inequality, diversity and education head on. Trust me, if these three are anything to go by then our sector is in very safe hands.
JW: My most memorable moment was when Penny Mairoudhiou, the comms lead at Costa Coffee, called Adam out for what she described as a particularly strange question! There's also the epic two-part roundtable we recorded this past December with five returning guests from the second season - It was a lot of fun and so, so interesting!
Thoughts on podcasting ?
JW: Podcasting is radio on demand, it's incredibly accessible for audiences and it's equally accessible and cheap to produce. That's why it seems like everyone has a pod these days!
What programmes/software have you used?
AT: We’ve tried a few. We use Audacity (free) for editing, and have used Squadcast and, more recently, Riverside FM for group calls and guest recording.
JW: We use Anchor.FM as our hosting platform, which again is free, and we're also exploring how we can use YouTube as a delivery platform.
What hardware (mics)?
AT: We both have Blue Yeti mics and work computers - the kit can get crazy, but the basics do the job well enough for us.
JW: And pop shields. Do not forget your pop shield!
What was the most surprising thing about podcasting?
AT: Less about the medium for me and more about the people. Wow, I’ve been blown over by how open PR A-Listers and big names have been to share their wisdom with others. Oh, and by how many bigwigs get their account execs or juniors to reach out on their behalf. If you want to come on the podcast, at least have the decency to reach out in person.
JW: I think to add to what Adam said, it's been a surprise to realise just how much it is to do. I think we both enjoy the interviews as well as the post-production.
What was unexpectedly hard?
AT: Cutting down the episodes to a manageable time. We want the episodes to fit in a commute, run or walk - we could easily publish hour after hour but we know we need to be short and snappy.
JW: I think the hardest thing is to try and maintain a pipeline of interviews. Sometimes the gap between recording an interview and distributing an episode is a little too close to comfort!
Two top podcasting tips?
AT: Only do it if you have something to add, there are far too many ‘Me Too’ podcasts on the market. Don’t underestimate the time it will take to do, so you want to be sure people will actually listen.
JW: Yes, make sure you are talking into the correct side of the microphone! In all honesty I think my tip would be to try and have fun with it - and be brazen with who you want in your podcast (if you want to hold interviews and not to an episode-by-episode podcast discussing and dissecting a TV show.) We've interviewed people we never thought we'd speak with!
Where can we find you on Twitter & LI?
AT: You can follow us at @PRHub on Twitter or LinkedIn. I’m @AdamTuckwell and Jon is @JonWilcox_ (Jon has a blue tick and everything!)
JW: It's true, I'm a verified person on Twitter. We also have more followers on the hellscape social media platform than Donald Trump now, so that's huge! 😅