How to use podcasts to market your business
Nowadays, a lot of people consume their media through the internet, and as such businesses have been looking for new ways to promote themselves. The best way to do this is now through podcasts. Podcasts are “a digital audio file made available on the Internet for downloading to a computer or portable media player.”
You can make your own podcast by simply creating a Microsoft Word document with your content and then emailing it as an MP3 attachment. There are also many providers that will help you create a podcast – just search online!
Though there have been several apps released recently which allow consumers to find, subscribe and automatically download new episodes of a favorite show directly onto their devices – allowing them to listen at convenience – the easiest way is still to use a website.
Once your podcast is online, you will have the opportunity to promote it using social media, and this will help to increase its success. People often share links to their favorite podcasts on Twitter and Facebook – so getting a high number of downloads for each episode can bring a significant amount of traffic back to your site.
Once you have listeners coming back to your site, they can be encouraged to subscribe via email as well as follow you on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. You should also consider setting up an RSS feed that people can subscribe to as well as adding “subscribe by email” buttons wherever appropriate. This way if people like the first few episodes they listen too, they will be automatically notified when new ones are released.
In addition to social media, you should also consider promoting your podcast in loads of places where you have a presence – such as your blog and website. You can even use an online service like Storify to tell the story behind each of your episodes by linking directly to YouTube videos, images, and blog posts that relate to it.
One way which podcasts have been successfully used recently is to record “live” podcasts – these are recorded in front of a studio or theatre audience and then edited for audio listeners. This will give you a great idea of how a finished product might sound, but more importantly, it’s live content so it doesn’t need editing! It’s also easier because recording live engages with people who are there on location, something which you won’t get through podcasts alone.
Live podcasts are often recorded in front of an audience to make them more engaging
The other important factor with podcasting is knowing how to find topics for your show – especially because many podcasts are episodic (released on a regular basis) and so will require new “episodes” rather than just one long recording that gets released all at once. There are several ways to figure out what people want to hear, including:
– Asking your Facebook fans or Twitter followers what they would like to see talked about.
– Surveying existing listeners using Google Docs, Survey Monkey, or another online tool. – Watching popular YouTube videos/listening to successful radio shows/podcasts and taking note of what they cover. – Using a content site such as AllTop or its more popular cousin, Reddit – to find out what topics are already trending and which people want to know about.
Podcasts can be an inexpensive way to promote your business but they are worth the effort if done well. They should ideally incorporate humor, conversation, advice-giving, or some other entertaining element along with your product information for best results. If you use the above tips, you will soon see improvements in your online marketing!
Nowadays, a lot of people consume their media through the internet, and as such businesses have been looking for new ways to promote themselves. The best way to do this is now through podcasts. Podcasts are “a digital audio file made available on the Internet for downloading to a computer or portable media player.” You…