Business View Magazine l January 2023

10 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 9, ISSUE 12 federal level,” Pierce said. “…for example, one of our most recent episodes, we talked with the head of fraud prevention at KeyBank, and she’s based in Georgia with a bit of a nationwide focus, but the content of the conversation was tailored to local county officials. “We can cast that wide net of a topic of nationwide concern, or certain topics in the legislative process that are similar across different state associations.” Podcasts have created a platform to share information to even wider audiences than intended and keep counties informed on successful initiatives across the country, Pierce said. The Maryland Association of Counties’ podcast, “Conduit Street,” has cross-published NYSAC episodes, including its interview with three+one CEO Joseph Rulison on the 2022 economic forecast, and has also featured NYSAC Executive Director Stephen Acquario as a guest. NYSAC is always open to collaborating with other state associations on the podcast, Pierce noted. “County Conversations” launched in 2018, but wasn’t streamed on a regular schedule until the pandemic, when the association started to release episodes weekly, Pierce said. Fairfax County’s “The County Conversation” is released bi-weekly, but Person’s advice to any counties looking to launch a podcast is to upload as often as possible. “Consistency is key,” Person said. “I think if you really want to get any traction and have any real value to it and make it a valuable asset for the community, you need to do it at least every other week— if I were starting over again, I would go for weekly.” The podcast has been a great resource for James City County and she thinks any county that is considering creating one should not be daunted by the process. “We’re really filling a void — there’s nobody else that’s talking about James City County news on a radio or podcast show, so it was just starting it, stepping off the curb, giving it a shot and getting feedback from our listeners and adjusting as we go along,” Dallman said. “That would be my biggest tip for counties — to not hesitate for too long if it’s something that you’re interested in.”