After a few years hiatus, the Renegade Conservatory Guy website is back up and running, albeit in a much different format and style to the previous version. And yes I know it’s been up a few weeks but I’ve only just had time to get round to writing about it!
All about podcasts
The old version of RCG was very much a blog based opinions site, the template on which DGB was formed on. Matthew Glover, the creator, would post on a fairly regular basis his musings on the UK window and doors industry, often ruffling feathers in his early days.
This format however focuses less on the written word and more on the spoken word. Although the introductions to each podcast are both spoken and written.
At first glance the website looks well put together. Motionlab are the guys behind the website, so you would expect a high level of quality when it comes to any website they put their minds to. The only thing I’m not sure about design-wise is the right hand image of Matthew staring at you – it’s like he’s asked you a question and he’s waiting for his answer!
The podcast format is a totally different take. It’s interviews with well know industry figureheads rather than vocal musings and rants as per the previous version. Make sure you have enough spare time to listen though, five of the six podcasts published so far are around the hour mark, so you need to invest some time to listen to the interviews in full.
The evolution of blogs
Whether you’re a fan of podcasts or not, the new RCG site is a pointer to where blogs are going to have to in the future. There will always be the typed word on websites for people to read, that will be something that will never change. But to keep things moving forward and more engaging, new media like podcasts and video are going to be important for keeping the attention of regular readers.
I know that before long DGB is going to have to start adding new features like video to keep things fresh and ahead of the competition. And for me that is where the future lies, in video. Podcasts have been around long enough to become an established and trusted medium, but video is where the really engaging stuff is going to happen.
You only need to look at how YouTube has grown into an enormous internet power to see how engaging video really is. And our industry now seems to be finally tuning into the idea of video and understanding the benefits and engagement video genuinely brings.
There were a handful of companies in this sector that saw the advantages of video before everyone else, MyTradeTV being one of them. Now others are following suit with their own video efforts.
As for RCG is wish Matthew the very best with it. Perhaps snip the podcasts down just a tad, but it looks like a good start and hopefully will give this vibrant and vocal industry another outlet in which to interact with. As I’ve written before, for such a big industry, there is a distinct lack of sites like this, like RCG, for people to read and listen to independent analysis and opinion. Hopefully with the resurrection of RCG and a friendly rivalry between this and RCG, it might spawn a few other sites like these.
