The Reality Of Podcasting: Why Do It?

Being in the business of providing a platform to help others share their messages globally, many people still do not understand what a podcast is or how it can benefit a business when used properly.  Podcasts are becoming more popular and the topics available are limitless.  In today’s post, you will learn about the business of podcasting from Myra Smith Frye:

With technology comes new terms.  Podcasting is relatively a new word.  Do you even know what it means?  According to Business Dictionary, “Podcast” is a digital recording of music, news or other media that can be downloaded from the internet to a portable media player.  The term originated from “P.O.D.”, meaning Portable On Demand, “cast”, relating to the term broadcast.  Simple enough to understand, right?

 Many reading this article are probably no less a listener of this great past-time.  Others of you help to create them and share them on a daily or weekly basis.  So, is this just something to do?  Or is this an activity that cannot only be informative to the listener and increase the ability of speaking skills for the podcaster but can also have a positive impact on one’s business, ministry or influence in every industry?

 If you are a business owner, you probably want to consider Podcasting.  If you are a minister or thought-leader or inspirational speaker, you too probably want to consider Podcasting.  I daresay, if you are a parent you too might want to consider Podcasting.  Customers and Clients are on the go.  Congregations are on the go.  Children are definitely on the go.  They still have a need for information and podcasts are a great downloadable means to answer the need.  According to podcast market research 2016, in 2013 iTunes subscriptions passed 1 billion for the first time.  Data shows that the size of the podcasting audience continues to grow (https://www.thepodcasthost.com/monetisation/podcast-market-research-2016/).

This is a growing medium of listening.  100% of people do not even know about podcasts.  Although only 49% of people even know what a Podcast is, the percentage of people who have listened to at least one podcast increased to 36% which is a 3% increase from 2013 (https://www.thepodcasthost.com/monetisation/podcast-market-research-2016/). “In 2016, 64% of Americans age 12 or older who have ever listened to a podcast said they were listening “most often” on a mobile device, compared to 55% in 2015.” (http://www.journalism.org/2016/06/15/podcasting-fact-sheet/)

 Content Marketing is a must but content in print has a lot of competition.  Customers, Clients, etc. they are looking for content that wows them (engages them).  Words on a page can only do so much.  By opting to talk to your audience via Podcasts, you begin to build a relationship with your audience.  They will begin to feel and believe that they know you (intimately; personally)

 “The business and analysis side of Podcasting is expanding.  Nielsen announced in April 2016 that before the end of the year (2016) they would begin measuring on demand audio and podcasting.” (http://www.journalism.org/2016/06/15/podcasting-fact-sheet/)   Seems like if Nielsen is getting into Podcast business it must be something to the business of Podcasting.

A return on your Podcasting efforts.  Is that anything that a podcaster should be concerned about?  Is that something that you as a podcaster has thought about?  I have attempted to get feedback from actual podcasters to include in this portion of the article.  Responses have not been rolling in as I would have hoped.  Therefore, I will post findings based on internet research, with the promise to write an addendum to this article to share the findings. 

Business Benefits of Podcasting (Actual)

We all suspect that Podcasting must have some benefits and that revenue could be one of those benefits.  Just ask Pat Flynn, of The Smart Passive Income Blog.  Most astounding of what Podcasting can do for you can be found in the results from a survey he put on his blogsite.  He asked them how did they find him.  The largest percentage found him via Podcasts (19%).  http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/proof-that-podcasting-will-benefit-your-business/

Even more astounding are the outcomes for …NPM, NPR’s sale arm. NPR — the leader in podcast audience — earns more than $10 million in podcast revenue and owns a double-digit share of the market. “We’re getting in business from Wells Fargo and Dell and Target — big Fortune 100 brands.”