When podcasts appeared on the scene in the early 2000s, they were a niche format for hobbyists and techies. Today, podcasts attract 104 million listeners every month and the numbers continue to rise. One of the biggest changes to podcasting since their inception is the emergence of brands as podcasters. It’s no longer a media channel dominated by entrepreneurial and solo podcasters. Instead, savvy brands are using podcasts to share thought leadership, increase visibility, enhance credibility and reach new audiences.
Whether you are considering starting your own podcast or appearing as a guest on an established show, here are five reasons to add podcasts to your content marketing mix.
1. They reach a captive audience.
Podcast listeners spend an average of
6 hours and 37 minutes listening to podcasts every week. Unlike written blog content, which has to be read, or even videos that require audiences to sit and watch, all a podcast listener has to do is hit play and listen at work, home, in the car or on the go.
2. They have little competition in the B2B space.
As any marketer knows, the content marketplace is extremely competitive. Successful brands enjoy big wins with their outreach when they find a content type or topic with high engagement and low competition. That’s exactly what podcasts provide. While there are around 60 million Facebook business pages, there are only one million podcast channels available. Although that number still seems like a lot, it shrinks dramatically when you search by topic. There may be only a handful of other podcasts discussing the topics relevant to your business, with hundreds or thousands of potentially interested listeners. With this low competition, it’s far easier to have your podcast stand out and gain their attention.
3. They are growing in popularity.
More than half of all Americans have listened to a podcast and 16 million people in the U.S. describe themselves as avid podcast fans. In 2008, there were 48 million weekly podcast listeners and this audience is expected to grow to 160 million by 2023. With figures like these, marketers need to consider podcasting as an essential component of an effective content arsenal. More businesses are going to begin to create this content and develop their audiences, so now is the time to get started, beat the crowd, and establish a following before the heavier competition sets in.
4. They provide a mobile-friendly content option.
Part of the low-effort, multi-tasking richness of podcasts is due to how mobile-friendly the medium is. In fact,
69 percent of podcast listeners are on their mobile devices. As we increasingly choose mobile devices over other technologies, offering mobile-friendly content types is important.
5. Their audiences are extremely loyal.
Podcasts listeners are loyal to their favorite programs and subscribe to an average of
six shows. Over time, they establish relationships with the hosts and check back each time there is a new podcast episode. If you can establish a strong audience before the podcast boom, it will be hard for your competitors to attract those listeners to their own shows. This loyalty also translates to other marketing channels. For example, podcast listeners are
20 percent more likely to connect with a brand on social media where they can continue conversations and interact with your business after the episode ends.
Added value: use podcasting to demonstrate thought leadership
Aside from offering customers value, one of the primary reasons that we develop content is to establish credibility and a reputation as a thought leader in the marketplace. This is why blogs, bylined articles, case studies, white papers and other forms of content are so valuable. Podcasts are an effective form of thought leadership marketing because audiences get to hear it right from your own mouth. While attracting a large audience isn’t immediate, podcasting can be a powerful medium to communicate a range of ideas, products and information to an extremely targeted audience. To learn more about how to incorporate podcasts into your marketing strategy,
contact Trade Press Services today.
