Sunday, 30 May 2021

Joint Session Bonus Show | Healing, Brown Greys, & Brown’s Gas

A strategic overhaul of the podcast archive aims to fix broken audio players while streamlining the delivery of premium content to the THC Plus community.

RSS restructuringTHC PlusGreg CarlwoodPodcast logisticsJoint SessionPremium content
By The Higherside Chats Free Show | 7m listen | 3 chapters
Joint Session Bonus Show | Healing, Brown Greys, & Brown’s Gas cover

About this episode

The Higher Side Chats host Greg Carlwood implements a significant RSS feed restructuring to resolve technical glitches affecting free listeners and Plus members. This administrative overhaul addresses empty audio players on the THC website and aligns the archive across mobile podcast applications. The transition replaces the previous Zoom-based call-in format with a standardized monthly broadcast designed for the premium community.

Technical updates include a new placeholder system for the free feed to maintain chronological parity with the full-length Joint Session episodes. These monthly installments feature responses to THC forum queries, listener voicemails, and behind-the-scenes insights into recent guest interviews. The restructuring ensures that the second hour of content remains a distinct incentive for the Plus membership tier while providing a seamless experience for those on the standard feed. Community contributions drive the narrative through trip reports and specific theories submitted by the audience.

A musical montage featuring listener-sourced lyrics signals the start of the interactive segment. This transition highlights the shift from administrative logistics to the core mission of the Joint Session. Greg Carlwood emphasizes that the program serves as a dedicated space for the most engaged members of the THC ecosystem to influence the show's direction.


CHAPTER 01 / 3 Discussion

The Higher Side Chats Joint Session Bonus Show Overview

The Higher Side Chats host introduces the Joint Session, a monthly bonus show designed specifically for Plus members. This candid program features responses to questions from the THC forum, listener voicemails, and behind-the-scenes updates regarding recent interviews. Originally launched as a Zoom-based call-in format, the show transitioned to a standard podcast feed to accommodate members using mobile podcast applications.

the higher side chats· joint session· plus members· thc forum· community feedback

00:01 Hello, Hireside Chatter! Serenity now. How the hell are ya? You know I hate to do this sort of thing but what i call the monthly joint session bonus show for plus members is a fun little extra where I can talk a little bit more candidly to the inner circle. I can read and respond to questions and comments left in the THC forum. Forum access being a lifetime bonus for plus people by the way even if you cancel your membership And I can play the audio messages people leave for me at TheHigherSideChats.com slash voicemail Always open if you have a cool story or weird experience, or want to sing us a song which oddly has happened a couple of times already

00:43 I also get to talk about THC news and updates that don't really fit on the end of a random interview. I get to talk about the feedback i've gotten for the latest round of shows, which is usually interesting and sometimes pretty surprising based on people's reactions to the guests and topics of the month Sometimes things you wouldn't want just floating around out there if you were in my shoes especially when reading the harsh negative stuff And I also sometimes get to bring up parts of a guest's work that we didn't get into in the actual interview. Or stuff that was maybe sent to me afterwards, that relates to something in a particular episode So it really is just an all-around community driven hour or so of behind-the-scenes stuff

01:26 It's called the Joint Session not only because it is a coming together of me and the THC audience, but it's also actually a triple entendre. And that's sort of what I built the brand on around here and all that We actually started doing the joint sessions as a Zoom room, open line sort of call-in thing. But it wasn't in the RSS feed at all! So many Plus members were like hey man I listen to the show on a podcast app on my phone... ...I don't want to have to go to the website just to get this other thing is there way you can just put it in the feed with the rest of the stuff? so I changed the format for that reason and a couple others and made into another podcast

CHAPTER 02 / 3 Discussion

RSS Feed Restructuring and Free Listener Placeholder Strategy

A change in the RSS feed structure addresses organizational issues in the podcast archive and technical glitches on the website where free listeners encountered empty audio players. A new placeholder system now occupies the Joint Session slot on the free feed to maintain alignment across platforms. This strategy serves as a reminder of the additional hour of content available in the second half of interviews, which is typically hidden from free listeners to maintain a seamless listening experience.

rss feed· podcast archive· plus membership· user experience· content strategy

02:06 But after doing a few of them this way, it's become pretty obvious that it throws things off for me on the back end. It disorganizes my archive and throws off the alignment of everything because for so many years I release something and there is a version that goes on each of the podcast feeds That works very well when I'm looking at them side by side for stats or whatever even just my own organization. I want everything clean and easy But putting a monthly show in one feed that doesn't go into the other has thrown some things off for me and I get irked. I don't want to be irked, and it would only get worse as more and more months go by Not only that but the way the site is structured for these types of dual posts It leaves free listeners who visit the site with an audio player box That doesn't play anything! I don't like that either And it's proven difficult to remove

02:59 So now I have this placeholder that you're listening to now. It's not actually a joint session episode, but it goes in place of them on the free RSS feed But it comes with an offer for a free week of plus if you use the coupon code JOINT so it's not exactly nothing! It's another solution I've had mixed feelings about but I gamed out everything else and this seems like the long-term solution that will work out best Five episodes Joint Session Another five episodes Joint Session And free listeners who click on any one of these will then know that they're just to be skipped once you've heard it. But it's also a reminder that you're leaving a lot on the table. Free listeners don't see the bonus content page, and I structure the interviews in a way that is not super noticeable if there isn't extra hour

03:44 I don't tease you with that kind of, and we'll get your answer to that question right after the break sort of stuff that you hear on other shows. So i'm thinking some of this is out-of-sight out-of-mind and it might be easy to forget that as much as you like The First Hour The Second Hour is at least that but usually more because we've already laid the conversational base for whatever the guest is about this week So I guess just know that this would be a joint session show if you were a plus member. I love what i do, but can I really do it forever? Honestly... If you were me wouldn't you feel a little uneasy about the way things are going lately and being a public figure in this kind of space? Look! I made my bed and I'll lay in it but I'd be stupid not to try to insulate myself a bit and take the opportunity to try to turn more people on to the full show while my platform is still fully operational

CHAPTER 03 / 3 Discussion

Joint Session Theme Song and Listener Contribution Intro

A musical montage introduces the start of the actual Joint Session content, highlighting the role of listener contributions. The lyrics emphasize the variety of community inputs, including forum posts, voicemails, theories, queries, and trip reports. This segment marks the transition from the host's administrative update to the interactive portion of the premium broadcast.

theme song· listener feedback· trip reports· voicemails· joint session

06:21 Welcome to the monthly joint session on THC. Yes! Where Greg will find some foreign posts and stuff that he can read And there's that voicemail too. On here to write something this show depends on you More lead message Theories, queries, trip reports Weird thoughts and bad reviews I bought this song out of order Straight stuff Insides you've got scabs that you fall down in the joint cessure. Strange stuff, you see? Insides you've got scabs that you fall down in the joint cessure