Marketing and business industries are raging these days with the innovating technology of today’s generation. There are undeniably several strategies present in line with developing such businesses, either on a physical or virtual approach. One of the most popular ways known to dominate these strategies is podcasting – a kind of digital audio broadcast made available on the internet as a way to deliver and produce content.
According to recent studies, there are over a hundred thousand podcasts with over a million episodes circulating the internet as of January 2020. These statistics show how podcasting is slowly going mainstream and dominating the digital business landscape. The recent estimation shows that more than half of the US population has listened to at least one podcast episode with an overall average listening time of more than 15hours a week. This is a pretty startling growth, considering that there were just less than twenty-five percent of the US population known to be familiar with podcasts in the year 2006.
Why are podcasts so darn popular?
In the world of visual culture and rapid technological advancement, it is not
shocking that podcasts have become so popular nowadays. As our daily lives get busier, most people barely have the time to get on televisions or even read a book or a newspaper to keep updated on current events or certain topics they are invested with.
But, with the availability of podcasts, it gives you the ability to multitask – dive into your desired topics while doing other things like household chores, exercising, or even driving your way to your workplace. Podcasts are easily accessible and the vast majority of it is free – listening to one requires no stressful process.
Anyone with a smartphone or a personal computer can listen to any kind of podcast they might be in the mood for on any given day. Hence, podcasts offer a wide variety of topics you can choose from and will spare you the time of listening to discussions on the radio or television that you don’t have interest with.
Another important thing you must consider in engaging with digital media is the value of intimacy – developing a personal level of connection with its audience. And podcasting as one of the most popular broadcasting platforms in the industry is highly known for its authenticity which builds a good relationship with the listeners. Even if a podcast has many listeners, most people listen by themselves, thus, speaking to the listener as an individual makes a podcast feel more real and intimate.
Why a podcast is perfect for reaching your desired audience
Podcasting is truly an opt-in medium that develops listener trust and foster intimacy which is the key to the growth of your community. The large variety of podcast topics is one factor that contributes to reaching an episode’s desired audience since it allows advertisers to reach the consumer markets composed of highly engaged listeners.
Most people who are caught up in the flow of an episode don’t want to get interrupted by an unfamiliar and repetitive voice promoting their products. Hence, having advertisements in a form of a host-endorsed message is an incredibly effective method in maintaining the interest of your listeners. Some podcast hosts even conversationally curate their sponsors and endorsements based on their personal use and experience of the products and services.
Earning Through Podcasting
As podcasts continue to explode in popularity, people often get their curiosity to bother their minds on how much money podcasters make. Earning money through podcasting isn’t as easy as uploading an episode and instantly getting paid. Creative works in the multimedia world don’t make money until people choose to watch or listen to your piece.
On the other hand, there are several ways to monetize a podcast. First is sponsorship, which is the most common way for podcasters to earn money. This is a way of promoting products or services in your episodes to get potential customers. How much you earn from a sponsor usually varies on the number of downloads your episode gets. Next is, affiliating your sales, this is slightly similar to sponsorship but instead of getting paid by the downloads, you get paid based on what you sell for another company. Engaging in complementary products is also one strategy to monetize your podcasts – selling merchandise, consulting services, courses, books, or even access to live events.
Harbors Community Through Podcasting
Many of the successful podcasts up to this date have built a wide range of loyal listeners across the internet – a community that serves as your best PR team aiding a word of mouth promotion. The people who already enjoy your episodes will surely keep wanting for more, making them your potential loyal followers.
A growing community enables you to build a connection with your listeners – giving them access to several aspects of your life. In return, they can help you boost your audience by creating groups or pages on the different social media platforms. Since many people are mostly on their phones when they listen to a podcast, it is convenient for them to head to their social media accounts and engage with other listeners, which makes your community intact.
Podcasts have a wide range of topics, and listeners love to connect with others who are intrigued by the same topic as theirs. Hence, this can serve as a reinforcement in developing the foundation of a community – beneficial to both parties.