Behind the Scenes of the South African Podcast Awards: Insights with Gavin Kennedy

In this episode we have a conversation with Gavin Kennedy from Solid Gold Podcasts and Audio Books. We wrap up the first South African Podcast Awards, talk about what makes a podcast awards-worthy, get Gavin's feedback on his judging experience, and more. We also talk about the challenges and opportunities around expanding our categories, giving creators feedback on their shows, and the dangers of awards-chasing. The conversation wraps up with thoughts on the future of podcast awards and how to better support podcasters in South Africa. I hope you like it. 00:00 Introduction and Host Banter 00:49 Solid Gold's Award Wins 02:27 Podcast Quality Essentials 04:03 Judging the Awards 07:13 Challenges in Podcast Hosting 14:44 Engagement and Innovation in Podcasts 17:43 Awards-Worthy Podcasts 19:21 Evaluating Podcast Hosting and Creativity 20:01 Challenges in Defining and Categorizing Podcasts 22:01 The Role and Impact of Awards 23:14 Feedback and Judging Criteria 24:41 Reflections on the Awards and Future Plans 26:37 Addressing Category Specifics and Challenges 29:10 Sustaining and Growing the Podcast Community 34:21 Concluding Thoughts and Future Engagement Full list of SAPA winners · The South African Podcasters Guild