POD PEOPLE
By Chris Wadsworth
Content. It’s become a buzzword in so many areas of the business world. It seems everyone needs content – whether it’s streaming shows on Netflix, video clips on an influencer’s social media pages or an article like the one you are reading in this magazine.
Now, a studio has opened in Ashburn that aims to help area businesses create the content they need to market themselves and rise above the competition. It’s called Pax Podcast Studios.
“The idea of creating a podcast doesn’t always feel accessible,” said co-owner Derrick Robinson. “Knowing that there is an emerging audience for podcasts, I saw a business opportunity.”
Pax Podcast Studios is the brainchild of Robinson and his wife, Estefania Luna-Hernandez. The couple live in the Broadlands and set up their studio in an office at Ashburn’s One Loudoun center.
Robinson worked in the Obama White House and with the Democratic National Committee before launching a communications firm, Pax Consulting, in 2020. Hernandez was born in Mexico but grew up in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley before attending George Mason University. She has done social work and worked with unaccompanied minors in the U.S. immigration system.
But with four children between them – two teenagers, a grade schooler and a toddler – they jumped at the opportunity to work together and build something from the ground up.
“We want to help people that want to have a voice,” Robinson said. “News and information are more democratized than ever. We want to be the medium for people who want to create their own platform.”
As the name of the company states, a primary focus of Pax Podcast Studios is podcasting. It seems everyone – from big-time celebrities and sports stars to local real estate agents and maybe even your neighbor down the street – has a podcast. And there’s a reason for this – marketing.
“It’s a great way to connect with people and get your message out to the world and establish trust with the people that you are trying to serve,” Kaylee Tanner said.
Tanner, who lives in Ashburn off Riverside Parkway, works with a firm out of Nashville called the Brand Builders Group. It helps people elevate their reputation and personal brand and turn that into revenue. She says a great way to expand reach is with a podcast.
“I’m developing a podcast as part of my own personal content strategy,” she said. “I have to do for myself what I tell my clients to do.”
She’s been working with the team at Pax Podcast Studios and has already done a test episode in anticipation of launching a regular podcast series soon about being a successful mother and entrepreneur at the same time.
“It was amazing,” she said about her experience at Pax’s studio. “They got me all set up. They were so helpful. It was really seamless.”
One of the key elements in podcasting these days is video. Gone are the days of just listening to the audio of these interviews and discussions. Robinson says today the visual is just as important as the audio.
“YouTube is helping redefine what a podcast is,” said Robinson, referring to the mammoth video platform. “The Millennials and Gen Z – we are video first. I have to see [popular podcaster] Joe Rogan on the screen. I don’t just want to hear him. I have to see his facial expressions.”
To this end, the couple is putting their clients’ comfort front and center. They have decked out their Ashburn studio like a miniature lounge – all dark walls, vibrantly colored furniture, even foliage and mood lighting. This relaxed, chill vibe is calculated.
“It can be nerve-wracking when the camera goes on in front of you,” Hernandez said. “The lights, the ambiance – it’s all just to make people feel comfortable being themselves. Because that’s how they are going to be fully authentic in front of the camera.”
Robinson and Hernandez say they can help anyone from an experienced podcaster who just needs some production assistance to a novice who needs help with the equipment, the topics, the scripts, the website, the hosting, the marketing and more.
And Pax can help clients create other types of content as well.
“Instead of sending a prospectus, you can send it with a welcome video. Instead of static images on social media, we can help you produce video content that looks really good,” Robinson said.
CourtFinder.com, a Tysons-based digital platform that helps people secure sports fields and courts on demand, worked with Pax to promote a 3-on-3 basketball tournament earlier this year.
“The content they produced, especially the short clips and reels for social media, significantly enhanced our visibility,” said Ted Thomas, CourtFinder.com’s CEO. “Their efforts not only captured the excitement of the event, but also effectively conveyed our mission to foster community spirit through sports.”
Robinson and Hernandez know they have a hill to climb. They describe Ashburn as a bit more relaxed compared to places like Washington and Arlington where content creation is more understood and accepted by local businesses. But their hope is that there are enough people – wannabe podcasters, people marketing a business, and maybe that neighbor down the street – who want to start a podcast and create content and be part of a wave that shows no sign of slowing down.
“We want to look back and say we have built a community of creators in Ashburn, Virginia,” Hernandez said.