In the past year, the way we work has changed in ways we would never have thought possible before.
Pre-pandemic, about 4.7 million people were already working remotely from home, according to the US Census Bureau. When stay-at-home orders began, that number skyrocketed, with 88 percent of organizations worldwide moving to mandatory work from home orders.
Of course, those statistics are still changing daily. Not every business will continue remote working. But a lot of companies will.
That changes the way we market our products and services, and the way we reach out to potential businesses. If we don’t network in the same ways, if we rely on the internet more than ever, how can we stand out from the crowd?
If you’re looking for new business, now may be the best time to start a podcast.
Starting a podcast is easy, and it won’t break your monthly budget. You can start simply, and rev it up with lots of bells and whistles as you continue to grow. You can structure it any way you like, from short 5-minute talks, to full-blown 60-minute interviews.
This is about conversations, not sales. This is about education and entertainment, not marketing.
With a podcast, your goal should be to inform and engage, giving your target audience a unique look into your world.
Think podcasting is for you? What can you expect if you start a podcast?
Increase web traffic
A website only works if you get people to look at it. That means driving traffic to it from all different types of resources. As you’re growing your business, that can be a struggle. It’s a daily activity to move people from various drivers online, back onto your site to dig into your pages.
Having a podcast gives people another reason to visit your site. It allows people to come back to your pages and find your latest episode. It gives them a reason to peruse your pages and dig into the meat of what makes your company tick.
A podcast episode is about one specific topic, and lasts for a finite time frame. You can refer people back to the notes as you speak, and put your resources directly into the post you create to host specific episodes. Work the two together – your podcast episode and written content. Many hosts provide a transcript right on their sites in order to allow people easy access to the material. It gives them another reason to visit your site, expanding why they stay in touch with you.
Traffic is all about action. The more they visit, the better chance you have of completing a sale.
Low cost marketing
With a podcast, you control every aspect of the channel. You create it. You produce it. You control what you say. You control where it resides.
As your podcast grows, you have an audience that consistently returns to listen to what you have to say. You become a leader in your field by default. Even if your podcast is designed for entertainment, you control every aspect of production. Want to place an ad in every episode leading them directly back to your site? It’s your podcast.
Because there are only a handful of podcasting platforms out there, you’ll host them on something like Apple, Spotify, or Stitcher. The more viewers you have, the more you’ll move up the rankings. Depending on your niche, your competition may be relatively easy to penetrate.
Like any type of marketing, if you’re ready to start a podcast, be aware that it takes time. Your best course of action is to start it and stick with it. Let it grow slowly over time. Only then will you reap the rewards because of your continual effort.
New income potential
What’s your purpose for starting up a new podcast? For many business owners, it’s for the potential of reaching new customers.
Many podcasts stick with that as their underlying goal. They educate and entertain, and drive people back to their sites to take further action. But there’s another way people are using podcasts, and that’s as a revenue source itself.
Imagine you have a top-rated podcast on a platform like Spotify or Apple. Hundreds – thousands – of listeners flock to each episode you produce. This could give you new opportunities to create a revenue stream from each podcast episode you create. Why not allow other businesses the opportunity to advertise? You can collect a health revenue stream from ad revenue alone. Companies are always looking for ways to reach new target audiences – why can’t it be yours?
Your podcast is all about building your online reputation. Do it well, and it might just change the way you look at your business.
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It’s not just for advertising
If you have a company with employees worldwide, keeping them connected can be difficult at best. Keeping them well informed maybe even more difficult. Why not create an internal podcast exclusively for your team members? It’s a great way to get out relevant information in an easy way.
In addition, it also allows you to get deeper into developing your business culture. It sets the tone for what people at the top of the company expect, and the way they communicate with their team members. It’s a perfect way for the president of the company to talk informally with every member of the team. You can even divide and conquer, giving different managers and team members a way to participate. Get creative with it – it can be something every person in the company looks forward to.
Creates a larger, stronger customer base
As you build and grow, you know one of your best customers is always someone who’s purchased from you before. But it’s easy to lose touch with those past relationships if you’re not diligent in the way you connect. Are they aware of your latest offerings?
While they might not pay attention to a postcard, an email, or a newsletter, if they make a conscious effort to listen to your podcast, they’ll be fully engaged as they listen to your updates. Podcasting can be a great way to create engaged fans. They know you. They love you. And they consistently come back from more.
Are you ready to learn more about how starting a podcast can help your business?
