Do You Need a Podcast? What to Know About the Latest Marketing Trend

I recently wrote a blog about how creating effective content marketing is a great way to grow your business. When people think content marketing, they often think primarily of blogging, since most websites come with a blog built right into the site architecture and they are easy to post.

As technology and digital trends evolve, visual media like video marketing has become more popular, especially on social media. One of the largest growing media to add to your content marketing strategy is podcasts.

If you are not familiar, podcasts are digital audio files that are available on the internet for downloading. Think of it as a radio show segment that’s available to you on-demand that you can download and stream on your mobile device or computer.

Podcasts have also risen in popularity in the last 12 months. In March 2019, the New York Times shared a story stating that the “number of podcasts listeners has increased sharply this year.” According to the article, more than half of the people in the United States have listened to a podcast, and one out of three people listen to at least one podcast each month.

With statistics like these, it can be hard to ignore podcasts. So, should you include podcasts in your marketing strategy? Read on to learn more.

Easy Listening for Your Audience

Audio is a different kind of medium that makes it easy for your audience to consume. Think about how most people’s days are structured and how they’ve consumed content in recent years.

People might scroll on their phones for a few minutes when they have some free time here and there, but they might not always have time to sit down and read an 800 to 1,000-word blog post, even if they are interested in the topic.

Many people prefer to listen to things rather than read because it’s more of a passive activity that they do while multi-tasking. By having a podcast, you allow your audience to listen to it on their commute, during their workout, while doing chores, or sitting at their desk at work. Not to mention, many people consider themselves “auditory learners” and simply absorb information better when they hear it rather than read it. Also, podcasts don’t require listeners to opt-in, give their email, or sign up for anything – which can turn off some people who are concerned with privacy. They can simply be downloaded or streamed in a web browser.

Inexpensive and Easy to Produce

Not only are podcasts easier for the audience to consume, but they are easy for you to produce! You most likely already have a computer and a set of headphones to use, which will you will need. Besides that, the only equipment you really need is a decent microphone and a program for recording and editing the audio.

While there are high-end options for microphones, you can find a good quality microphone for as low as $50. There are free options for editing software and more sophisticated ones that can be around $200. As long as you have a quiet area in your home or office to record the audio, you don’t need a professional studio.

Not only is it inexpensive to produce the podcast itself, but it is also less time consuming and simple to do. As a digital marketing agency, many small and medium-sized businesses that have a small (or non-existent) marketing team that come to us are often struggling with producing marketing content. Even if you’re not a writer, graphic designer, or professional marketer – you can most likely talk about your business for days. Many people will feel a lot more comfortable and confident in the audio medium to create and share useful content with their audience.

Build Trust & Stand Out from Competition

Are your competitors sharing useful content with your prospective customers through a podcast?

Even though podcasts are an increasing trend, there’s a decent chance you might be the first in your industry or in your region. This is a great way to differentiate yourself from the competition and promote your business at essentially no cost.

Also, it’s a great way to build trust with your audience. Hearing your voice and getting a sense of your personality and authenticity when you passionately speak about your business creates a much more personal connection than reading copy on a website. This will create a sense of trust that will make your audience much more likely to work with you over competitors.

Increase Your Reach & Grow Your Audience

Some other popular forms of content marketing, like social media and email newsletters, are likely going to reach people who have already interacted with or are familiar with your brand in some way.

Producing well-written, SEO-driven blog posts can drive new traffic to your site as well, but podcasts are a great way to grow your audience and get organic exposure.

By publishing your podcast to streaming platforms like iTunes, Stitcher, or Spotify (most of which are free), you expose your content to thousands of potential listeners. Even if they don’t know your business, they might stumble across it while they are searching for podcasts on the topics you talk about. Also, if you have guests on your podcasts, like other experts in your industry, partners, and members of your network, they will cross-promote it to their audience as well and give you more exposure.

Stay Tuned for Atilus On The Bonita Springs Chamber Chat!

While I personally listen to podcasts all the time, this topic was top of mind because Atilus recently recorded our first podcast! Our Director of Sales, Jennifer and I recently were interviewed at the Bonita Springs Chamber of Commerce for their upcoming “Chamber Chat” podcast series which is all about providing useful content for small businesses in our area. We talked all about what a website really costs. The podcast will be premiering in January so stay tuned to hear more!

As a professional digital marketing agency, we help businesses grow through web design & development, digital marketing, and more. If you are interested in working with Atilus to develop a custom content marketing strategy that can include podcast, blogging, and everything in between, contact us today!