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National CORE, the Rancho Cucamonga nonprofit that builds affordable housing throughout Southern California, is using its own podcast studio to get its message out.
But the facility at the organization’s headquarters at 9692 Haven Ave. isn’t talking much about building houses that lower-income people can afford, according to Jeff Burum,National CORE’s board chair and co-founder.
Instead, the two-year-old studio is producing video podcasts that promote the organization’s broader message: encouraging people to deal with adversity and never give up up on their hopes and dreams.
“People need more than a place to live, they need to believe there will be a better tomorrow,” Burum said during a telephone interview. “They need to believe they can dream again, even in bad times. We’ve gotten some quality people telling their stories, and we’ve gotten a good response. The idea is to create a story that can relate to anyone who is looking for inspiration, no matter when they hear it.”
Last week IE Business Daily sat down with Jill Van Balen, National Core’s senior vice president of marketing and communications, and Andrew Morris, camera and audio engineer to discuss the studio’s programming, how it fits in with the nonprofit’s overall message and their plans for the future.
The following has been edited for clarity and length.
Q: When did you first decide to build a podcast studio?
JVB: It was the idea of our chairman Jeff Burum. The goal was to do our own video podcast productions. We started it three years ago.
Q: Who else gets to use it?
JVB: It’s available to the public. We usually try to find people who have a vision and a purpose similar to what we’re doing. A lot of our content is inspirational. We do content for our residents that we offer it to the larger community. And we do a lot of work with the Empire Strykers, the professional indoor soccer team in Ontario.
Q: Can you talk about your FYI podcast? That is your best-known production, correct?
JVB: Yes, it is. We drop one episode a week. It’s an inspirational show that’s hosted by one of our residents. It’s an inspiration show with all kinds of guests, actors and actresses, athletes, Eric Dickerson (former NFL running back and NFL Hall of Fame member) did an episode recently. We’ve had Gabbie Walsh, the actress, and Ira Matthews, another NFL player.
Q: How often is the studio used?
JVB: We use at least a couple of times a week. The idea was to use it to promote what National CORE is doing and then offer it to the larger community.
Q: Can you describe someone you would partner with who is doing something similar to what National CORE is doing?
JVB: One person would be Erin Runnion. She founded the Joyful Child Foundation, which works to prevent crimes against children. We use the space to promote other nonprofits and other business leaders in the area.
Q: Why is a podcast a good way to promote things like that?
JVB: Because you can put so much content into a podcast. When we do our podcast, we usually do the full podcast and then make three or four smaller snippets of it. That’s a good way to promote positive message on other platforms.
Q: Andrew, what is your role in all of this?
AM: I’m the technical producer, which means I do all of the lighting and camera work, and I do most of the editing in post-production. I also make the small podcasts from the larger ones.
Q: That sounds like a lot of work.
AM: It is, but what we’re doing isn’t just a podcast, it’s a video podcast. It’s a personal conversation, but visually it has to be dynamic. We get into different forms of media that can go on all of the channels. All of our material is long-form, but we also have highlights on Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, LinkedIn, and on our website,
Q: Do you enjoy your work ?
AM: Oh, yes. I love it. It’s a mix of technical and creative work, which is perfect me. That’s right where I thrive.
Q: Although there are similarities, a podcast and a radio talk show are not same thing. A podcast has a much narrower focus than radio programing, and it’s aimed at a narrower audience. A podcast can also contain more information than a radio program. Are those some reasons they’re good promotional vehicles?
JVB: I think so. A podcast can be very engaging, and it’s a chance to build a very strong following. When you start watching one you know what you’re going to see, and you know it’s probably going to affect you emotionally.
Q: How long does one of your podcast episodes usually last?
JVB: It depends. Our sweet spot is usually 20 to 30 minutes, and from there we break it up into three distinct pieces of content, and they aren’t necessarily video. We can do video or just audio.
Q: How effective do you think it’s been getting National CORE’s message out?
JVB: I think it’s been really good. It’s a great way for us to start conversations, and for people to get to know who we are. Most of the people who have been on our podcasts have been partners with us, in some form or another. A podcast is a nice way to bring everybody together.
Q: What was it like when you started? Was it difficult getting started?
JVB: Originally we were doing our podcasts at other studios. That gave us an idea of what we want to do here. We used to do it for an hour, which was way too long, Sometimes 23 minutes is too long. We try to give people the five minutes they want to see.
Q: Any significant changes?
JVB: We’ve changed the way we format. We’ve gotten more structured with our questions and who our guests are. We’ve learned a lot in the three years we’ve been doing this.
Q: Do a lot of people call up wanting to use the studio?
Yes, we’re getting more requests, but it takes time. I will say that when we call someone and ask them if they want to be on the show, it’s easy to get them to say yes. It’s a lot easier than it used to be.
Q: What about renting the studio?
JVB: We’re getting more requests, but we’re still a little bit of a secret. A lot of people don’t know about us and what we have to offer. That’s why we’re trying to get the word out that it’s a great facility with top-of-the-line equipment. We can do all of the audio and mixing.
Q: What about the future? Any expansion plans?
JVB: Well, we can’t expand because we don’t have the space. We’re hoping to get more partners who will use the space. We’re like the library. People know where it is but they don’t go there very often.
Q: How many hits do you get?
JVB: Our FYI podcast has more than 30,000 subscribers.
AM: On each video, we get between 10,000 and 20,000 views for the long form. On some of the short-form videos we’ve had 50,000 views.
Q: Are people still learning about how effective podcasts can be?
JVB: Yes they are. I don’t think they understand their power.
Q: How do you compete with other podcasts?
JVB: There’s plenty of space, because every podcast has its own audience. They’re all a niche, but it’s not like we’re competing with anyone. The next phase for us is finding podcasts that are similar to ours and trying to cross-promote with them, and have them on our show.
Q: How would describe your first three years?
JVB: I think the first three years have been about trying to establish ourselves, getting our name out there and developing a steady audience. We’ve been able to drop an episode every week for three years. I think that’s pretty impressive.
AM: All of our guests believe deeply in the mission of our show and what we’re trying to do. We’ve been able to leverage them on social media, and that allows us to reach their fan base. Their viewers become our viewers.
Q: Do you have any sense of how the next few years will play out?
JVB: Hopefully, we’ll do a lot more podcasts. I think FYI, which is our main podcast and is made up of inspirational stories, is starting to come into its own. We’ve met some amazing people over the past three years. The podcast has opened a lot of things that we never considered doing.
