Whether you’re a business, a school, or a non-profit organization, a podcast can be a very effective way to engage with your patrons. However, podcasts won’t work for every organization. How do you know if your organization is ready to launch a podcast?
Launch a podcast to grow brand affinity
Typically, we advise organizations to use podcasts as a way to deepen an existing relationship with customers and fans, not to try and win people over for the first time. In other words, podcasts are better at growing brand affinity than brand awareness. If you are a brand new organization that needs to get word out about its existence, podcasts will be less effective than other marketing tactics. However, if you are an organization with passionate patrons that only engage with you from time to time — for example, a museum that most people go to once a year — then a podcast can be an effective way to keep your organization top of mind among your fans.
One of the biggest challenges new podcasters face is growing their audience. This hurdle is a lot easier to overcome if you already have an audience and you simply need to bring them over to your podcast. With that in mind, here are some signs that a podcast could be an effective way to engage your audience:
1. You have a robust email database that you can use to launch a podcast.
Email newsletters are a great way to promote a podcast. They provide a convenient way for your customers to keep up with new episodes, and they can also be customized to include show notes, highlights, and other information about the podcast. You can also use an email newsletter to promote your podcast to people who may not be familiar with podcasting; by simply including a link to your podcast in your email newsletter, you can introduce your podcast to a whole new audience.In addition, email newsletters offer a direct line of communication between the podcast host and the audience, which can be used to solicit feedback, announce new projects, and build relationships. For these reasons, an email newsletter is an essential tool for promoting a podcast. If you have one, you’re ready to podcast.
2. You have a physical location with foot traffic where you can promote a podcast.
If your organization has a physical location that receives a steady stream of visitors throughout the year, you are well-positioned to launch a podcast. By displaying signage at your venue, you can drive fans to that podcast. Depending on your particular organization, there may be any number of other ways to promote your podcast to people who come to your establishment: on the backs of tickets, at the bottom of menus, through announcements over the loudspeakers, through in-house promotional videos, on the bottom of receipts, etc.
3. Your organization has a strong following on social media.
If your organization has passionate fans on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, a podcast is an excellent way to further engage with them. Social media is a great tool for promoting a podcast. It allows you to reach a large audience quickly and easily, and it’s a great way to connect with potential listeners. You can use social media to promote your podcast in a number of ways, including sharing links to your episodes, posting about upcoming guests, and sharing behind-the-scenes content. You can also use social media to connect with other podcast fans and build up a community around your show.
4. Your website gets steady traffic.
If your organization regularly publishes new content on its website — through a blog, for example — and as a result, the website consistently attracts visitors, then you’ve already got a strong content marketing game going on. A website is a great tool for promoting a podcast because it provides a central location for listeners to find new episodes and subscribe to the show. A website can also help to build buzz around a podcast by providing a platform for sharing episode trailers and show notes. You can also use your website to build an email list of subscribers, which you can then use to promote new episodes.
5. You have a mobile app that could include a podcast.
Not everybody knows how to listen to a podcast, but most people know how to download a mobile app for their smartphone. By including episodes in your organization’s mobile app, you can make them easily accessible to people even if they don’t have a lot of experience listening to podcasts. As a bonus, you can promote your organization’s app and podcast at the same time: “Download our app to listen to our podcast!”
It’s not necessary to have all five of these components in place to launch a podcast, but the more of them you have, the more effective a podcast will be as a fan engagement tool. On the other hand, if none of the statements above describe your organization, you may not be ready to podcast… yet. Reconsider the medium when you’ve built up your fanbase.
Is your organization ready to launch a podcast? That’s great, because podcast production is what we do!
Seth has produced and hosted eight of his own podcast series, including CES for Radio, The Worldwide Radio Summit podcast, and Bad Marketing Advice. Seth is the Vice Chair of the Michigan Association of Broadcasters Foundation.
Seth regularly speaks about podcasting and industry conferences around the country. He has spoken at The NAB Show, Podcast Movement, Podfest, The Radio Show, The Worldwide Radio Summit, The Nielsen Audio Client Conference, Morning Show Boot Camp, Talk Show Boot Camp, and numerous state broadcaster association conferences.
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