Podcasting is slowly becoming a top digital marketing channel for brands. This is supported by the NP Digital data showing 92% of companies increasing their podcasting budget in 2023.
In today’s time, when businesses need to be active on social media platforms to remain competitive, podcasts should not be overlooked.
Why Do People Listen to Podcasts?
Podcasts have evolved from simple audio files to ones that can be incorporated with special effects and storytelling techniques. The development and growth of platforms where consumers can easily stream have made podcasts a significant part of people’s daily lives.
People listen to podcasts for various reasons:
- Entertainment
- To relax
- To keep up to date
- For inspiration
A significant portion of the podcast audience listens for informational purposes.
In the UK, 46% of UK podcast listeners use podcasts to learn more about a topic of personal interest, and 39% aim to learn something new.
In the USA, 74% of consumers listen to podcasts to learn new things. 71% responded, “to be entertained.”
This trend of podcasting becoming a channel for learning new things – both in terms of current events and timeless subjects – makes it a useful medium for exchanging knowledge.
Podcast marketing allows brands to deliver their brand story, demonstrate their expertise, and establish credibility and trust.
How Podcasts Can Help Promote a Brand
With today’s mobile lifestyle, having podcasts accessible on-demand gives businesses and brands the freedom to share their story whenever and wherever they want. Content marketing podcast is an ideal strategy for any business that aims to produce high-quality content in a more personalized way.
Podcasts can be utilized for brand exposure, lead generation, and customer acquisition. They also help build authority and trust in the long run. Here are how podcasts can achieve these benefits:
Accessibility: Listeners can access podcast episodes on various platforms and devices. Podcast listening can fit into busy schedules and be multitasked at any time of day.
Promotes Brand Recognition: Podcasts can assist in tying a brand to particular subjects, authors, and viewpoints.
Showcases Expertise: By concentrating on a subject or region related to your line of work, podcasts can help build content authority.
What You Need to Know About Podcasts for Marketing
Market Growth
The podcast market is rapidly growing, with 464.7 million listeners worldwide as of July 2023. The industry expects this number to reach 504.9 million by 2024.
This growth indicates an opportunity for marketers to use podcasts as a channel for advertising, influencer marketing, or content marketing. However, it also implies increased competition, so brands need a well-defined plan, a standout value offer, and a thorough grasp of their audience to be successful.
Visibility
Unlike other digital media, podcasts are not as easily searchable or discoverable by keywords, tags, or algorithms. To identify podcasts that interest them, listeners often rely on word-of-mouth, recommendations, reviews, and ratings.
To overcome this difficulty, brands must optimize their podcast for distribution and discovery by:
- using relevant titles and descriptions
- incorporating graphics
- applying consistent branding
- Promoting the podcast on other platforms
Monetization and Sponsorship
B2B podcasts are becoming more profitable and alluring for marketers because they generate income through monetization and sponsorship. Brands can monetize or get sponsors through subscriptions, donations, merchandise, live events, and advertising.
But monetization and sponsorship involve various challenges:
- finding the correct sponsors,
- negotiating pricing and terms
- developing content
- upholding the podcast’s quality
To overcome these obstacles, brands need a distinct value proposition, a devoted and engaged audience, and a good monetization and sponsorship strategy.
Podcast SEO
40% of podcast listeners find new content using the podcast listening application’s search bar. 13.6% search on Google. If you aim for a broader audience reach, you need to optimize your podcasts for search.
Podcast Marketing and SEO Strategies
You won’t generate a large audience by simply creating a podcast and putting it online. Podcasting is just like blogging. You will receive more downloads or listens if you release an episode on a topic people care about. Additionally, you need optimization and promotion strategies to make your content more discoverable.
Plan Episodes Around Specific Keywords
Keywords are a key factor in making podcasts valuable and searchable. By planning episodes around keywords that your target audience uses, you can bring your episodes in front of users who are inclined to listen to them.
There are several tools to help you find content ideas, trends, and keywords for the podcast. Use these tools to evaluate the keywords’ search volume and the SEO difficulty and develop a keyword strategy to generate the maximum advantage. One ideal approach is using a keyword with a high search volume and low competition.
Brands can work with an SEO expert in the Philippines to optimize their keyword optimization.
Optimize Episode Title and Description
Make the podcast title compelling. This is the first thing that will determine whether a potential audience will listen to an episode. The title should be clear and descriptive but within the limits of the allowed number of characters.
Do not skip adding a description to every episode. Use the first 20 words of the description to hook in listeners. Do not repeat information from the title and jump into the episode’s topic or guest. You may also include related episodes to keep your audience interested.
Promote Podcasts on Social Media
Leverage social media to let users know about your podcast. Brands can contract social media outsourcing companies to help make a video or story for the podcast’s release to notify people about it.
You should consider paid adverts if you have bigger funds for promotion. Paid ads immediately increase traffic by reaching your target audiences and attracting more listeners to your podcast channel.
Influencer Marketing Strategy
Influencer marketing aids in establishing trust with your audience. It is a successful marketing tactic because it allows the brand to borrow the trust of someone who already has sway over your target demographic. An episode featuring a conversation with an expert or individual with direct experience on the subject gives the podcast a sense of reliability and relatability.
Partner with a Digital Marketing Company Philippines
Podcasts are an expanding industry that offers brands numerous advantages. With the right approaches and support from a top SEO agency Philippines, companies can foster stronger brand connections through podcasting.
Find out how our digital marketing experts at Digital Marketing Philippines (DMP) can help with your podcasting endeavor by contacting us at info@digitalmarketingph.com.
Explore other digital marketing trends through these articles:
- Where are Marketers Spending their Budgets in 2023?
- What is Social Listening and Why Your Brand Needs to Do It?
- Recommendation Media Reshapes the Social Media Game
References:
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-makes-podcasts-playable-in-search-results/320449/
https://sendpulse.com/support/glossary/podcast-marketing
https://baremetrics.com/blog/what-is-podcast-marketing
Jomer B. Gregorio is a well-rounded expert when it comes digital marketing. Jomer is also known as a semantic SEO evangelist and practitioner. Check out our Digital Marketing Services today and let us help you in achieving positive and profitable results for your business.