New York Magazine calls it a renaissance, the Washington Post describes it as resurgent, but for many small businesses and nonprofit organizations, podcasting has been and continues to be one of the most cost-efficient marketing tools around. Podcasting is an effective way to brand a business, build reputation and educate prospects, customers, donors and volunteers. If you’re sitting on the podcasting fence, we’ve compiled a few compelling reasons to get on the Internet airwaves.
Forbes.com contributor Dorie Clark underscores the opportunities of podcasting in the article, Here’s the Future of Podcasting.
… podcasting hasn’t suddenly emerged from a slumber, Harbinger [Jordan Harbinger, podcast host/producer since 2007] points out. In fact, it’s been steadily growing year-over-year. He believes it’s the adoption of the channel by traditional radio celebrities like Alex Blumberg that’s fueled a new round of hype. …“Why? That’s because it wasn’t new anymore, so nobody was talking about it. But if you look at the statistics…podcasting has been growing steadily, in great numbers.” Indeed, Rob Walch of the podcast hosting service Libsyn agrees, noting that “Smartphones, and specifically the iPhone, have really been the driver of growth the last few years” because they make podcast downloading and consumption easier.
The next frontier is your car. By next year, one industry group estimates, 50% of new cars sold will have Internet connectivity; by 2025, it will be all of them. “When that happens and there are podcasts in everybody’s car, it’s not podcasts anymore,” says Harbinger. “It’s just the radio.” At that point, the playing field has been leveled and podcasting is likely to grow dramatically, as it reaches an audience without smartphones or who haven’t yet clued into the process of downloading podcasts on their own.
Go niche. Because of the heightened competition, says Harbinger, “Stop trying to think about ways to get more listeners [overall] and think about trying to crush it in your niche.” He cites the example of one podcaster who “records a podcast in his car on his way to work on his iPhone. It sucks and it’s awful, but he has a ton of listeners” because a certain demographic is interested in his discussion… “As long as you can dominate a particular niche, it’s not too late to start a show,” says Harbinger.
Publish frequently. Two or three years ago, Harbinger decided to get serious about his podcasting schedule. He vowed to “start releasing every single week on the same day, at the same time, and my audience kind of doubled overnight.” So he decided to up the ante. “If I’m doing multiple downloads per week, maybe I’ll be keeping [listeners] engaged instead of them searching for other shows. So I started to release two times a week, and the downloads didn’t just double, they more than doubled. I was getting audience growth from more people talking about it and sharing it more frequently.”
Read the article at forbes.com.
In this episode of Podcasters’ Roundtable, you’ll find a lively discussion of 2015 trends.
If you’re ready to venture onto the Internet airwaves, check out LGK’s guide to podcast basics, Behind the Screen, Podcast Pitfalls: Planning, Preparation and Promotion. We also recommend visiting Blog Talk Radio. It is an easy-to-use and budget-friendly platform for those just starting out.
Do you have a podcast or have plans to podcast in 2015? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.
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