NPR - A Case Study Of Podcasting In Australian Dairy Extension (p10-13)

In August 2009 Industry & Investment NSW launched thirteen podcasts on its web site. Since August 2009 the counter system on this website showed 14,481 total hits to the thirteen dairy podcasts. The effectiveness of the podcasts as an extension medium has been evaluated since the launch of the podcasts. The preface for this evaluation of the podcast series was that any new medium must be as ‘good as’ or ‘better than’ the existing system in which an organisation is already prepared to invest time and dollars. In the case of podcast, the comparable existing system was the web based delivery of extension material as PDF files. The analysis of web site traffic revealed that over a thirteen month period the thirteen dairy podcasts generated 3.65 times the downloads of the top thirteen publications in PDF format. The skill set required to develop and deliver podcasts is one that can be readily acquired by most extension officers with minimal training. With a low start-up and ongoing cost, podcasts will quickly become a mainstay in the toolbox of many extension officers.

Keywords: Podcast, Extension, Dairy, Farm Business Management