INTERVIEW // Outside the Box with Becky Ives

When Becky Ives decided to take all of the social media questions she receives about getting into sports broadcasting and turn it into a podcast, she certainly started off strong. After pairing with sports podcast production company Pomodo, Becky brought Jules Breach on for her first episode to kick things off right. We chatted with Becky about how the podcast got started and where she hopes to take it next.

POD BIBLE: You mention in episode 1 that you were inspired to start this show because so many people were messaging you on social media to ask about getting started in sport. How did you decide that a podcast was the right medium to address these questions?

BECKY IVES: What I find with Twitter and Instagram, they’re great platforms, but so transient….which is a blessing and a curse! You reply to things instantly and see it in your feed for a short amount of time before it’s moved on and suddenly something you want to look at again, you can’t find! On Twitter you have a limited number of characters you can reply with and as someone who loves to talk and help others, believe me, 280 characters isn’t enough! Thats why podcasts are so great. They give you a solid amount of time to talk about whatever your subject choice. Its more in-depth, helpful, you can reply to tweets with a link to the podcast to give a through answer and it’ll have bigger reach. A great podcast can also stand the test of time. You can listen to it again in 2 months time and it’s still as relevant as it was when it was recorded! It’s an instant tool, in your hands, any time you need it!

PB: Outside the Box has a really fun atmosphere to it, and you’re not afraid to shout out other members of your team. Can you tell us a bit about them and how the group of you create each episode?

BI: Sure, I lucked out when making this podcast! I worked with a new sports podcast company called Pomodo to produce this. I had the idea, I had the guests and the content, but I didn’t have a clue how to record it, market it, or launch it on to Podcast platforms, it’s no lie when I tell you I’m one of the least technically gifted people you’ll meet! Haha! Luckily for me the team at Pomodo were there to guide me through every step of the way, so I could just concentrate on the bits I knew how to do. I recorded the whole series with their brilliant producer called Adam. I think it’s important to keep the same producer throughout, as it helps with consistency throughout, they understand the sound you’re going for, the angle you want to achieve and we edited each episode together. It was a real collaborative effort, I honestly had so much fun recording this series with the Pomodo team, so I’m glad you think it shows in the final product!

PB: Where did the idea for the games come from? They really encourage that fun and casual tone that the discussion in the beginning of the show sets.

BI: Ah thank you! Well I always try to make content that I feel I would enjoy listening too. I felt like 40 minutes of straight talking was an awful lot for someone to fully digest, sometimes you just need a bit of light hearted relief! I worked in commercial radio for 4.5 years and playing games with guests or listeners was always one of my favourite things we did! When I’m driving in the car and listening to the radio, it’s the bit I like most listening too sometimes, it’s funny, an escapism if you will, so I wanted to bring that element to the Podcast! But I hope that it makes you, the listener, feel like you’re included, you can play along wherever you are and however you’re listening and you’re apart of the jokes!! Alongside that, I think it brings out a totally different side to a guest that you can’t get just from chatting. Its always nice to see that guests are human, just like us, we all have the ability to laugh at ourselves, so playing a few games and loosening people up, I find, makes for a better chat!

PB: What do you hope people take away from listening to the first episode – besides wanting to hear the next one!

BI: It sounds a cliche, but I hope people realise that anything is possible. In life, it just takes hard work, commitment, sometimes it’s a long winding path when we want to take a straight motorway, but anyone can absolutely achieve what they want to! I hope it it makes people potentially think about starting a career in Sports Media, it gives ideas to certain job roles that perhaps some hadn’t even thought about! But broken down more simply, I hope Outside The Box gives someone 40 minutes or so of learning, laughing and smiling.

PB: How do you find podcasting to be different from other types of presenting?

BI: You know, it’s interesting! In TV and radio broadcast it’s very rare that you wold have 40 minutes of straight chat, it’s almost unheard of. There’s video clips to watch, adverts, songs get played, anything to keep an audience engaged and to keep them hanging on, trying to make them listen longer or watch more. In telly there’s a Director and Producer in your ear, talking to you the whole time, telling you how long you have left on a certain topic, where the show is going next, someone is counting as to how long you have left to speak, you have to be able to process a number of different voices in your ear, pick out what’s relevant to you as a presenter and ignore the rest, whilst carrying on chatting to guests or presenting a show like nothing else is happening! In radio, the show producer will talk to you when the songs are played and you chat through collectively how the next ‘link’ will run. You have to be mindful of the time of day it is and be relevant to what a listen maybe doing at that point in time. Podcasting isn’t like that, they’re stand alone episodes which can be listened to anytime, anywhere. They’re calmer. It’s you, your mic and a guest. You have the freedom and expression to say what you want without the restraints, you can push a lot further with questions, fun, it’s probably a more open and honest chat. It can be very raw and real without all the fancy production to make it shiney and expensive looking. One thing that is the same, whatever medium you present on, is the language used. You’re always asking open, forward facing questions, making them feel involved in the chat and hopefully provoking thoughts from with-in them.

PB: Why was it important for you to have Jules Breach on for your first episode?

BI: Jules and I have known each other now for 4 or 5 years now and we met through work. We were both on the verge of making the ‘break’ that people speak about into the mainstream media and she’s become one of my very best friends. Over the last few years her rise to the top to work with some of the best broadcasters from around the world has been incredible and I’ve been lucky enough to have a front row seat. She sort of epitomises everything I wanted Outside The Box to be. She’s open and honest about the struggles she faced and how long it’s taken to get to the point she’s at now, she’s fun so threw herself into the games and well, I knew that she would be a great talker! She’s just a normal girl, who has worked hard and is achieving amazing things, so I was super pleased when she said ‘Yes!’ to doing the podcast before I even finished pitching it to her!

Discover Outside the Box on Spotify and follow @beckyivesofficial on Instagram and @becky_ives_ on Twitter.  Also follow @PomodoPodcasts for more great podcasts.