Podcasting has become a force to reckon with in the digital marketing world. Edison Research discovered that about 41% of Americans listened to a podcast in the last month and podcast listeners increased by almost 30% since 2018. If you are responsible for your company’s brand, it’s likely someone has asked you to consider starting one.
Should my company start its own podcast?
The Cost
It’s a great question. Podcasting can certainly be a great way to connect with potential customers. And it’s true that starting a podcast is easier than ever before. Recording equipment is less expensive and the technical bar to entry has never been so low. Major podcast distribution platforms like Apple Podcasts or Spotify are free for creators to use. However, breaking through usually requires investments in branding and marketing your content. The total cost depends on the content strategy you deploy and how quickly you expect results.
The Time
In most cases, starting a podcast does not require a high degree of technical skill but it can require a substantial time investment. The production process comprises a significant chunk of that time. Think of the character “Ross” on the classic 90’s TV show, Frasier. If you have seen it, the producer, Ross, was responsible for everything behind the scenes of Frazier’s radio show. Podcasting is similar to radio and producing one can be just as difficult. Producers are responsible for anything that could impact production like technical set-up and sound engineering. Producers can also have a hand in post-production tasks like uploading the show to its broadcast platform and designing episode cover art.
Podcast Marketing Strategy
Considering all the work that goes into a successful podcast, is starting one worth it?
When approached strategically, it can be. But given how much time you must invest, having a planned content and marketing strategy is a must. Planning a content calendar and preparing to launch episodes at least a week in advance is essential to achieving ROI.
The audio from podcasts can then be repurposed for additional marketing channels. These episodes are seen as an all-in-one content source by organizations that do podcasting well. Text, audio and video can all be rendered from the original podcast content.
The Production
When planning a podcast marketing strategy, you may want your existing content calendar to align with your episode topics. Each episode is planned out in advance with a topic, guests and script to reference during the recording. During your recording, you’ll want to capture the audio with compression microphones. You may also want to record live video using multiple cameras.
Post-production, the video is edited to create a polished full-length video episode along with a few pre-roll teaser clips. The audio of the edited podcast removes anything a guest insists can’t be made public. Inserting intro/outro branding and/or sponsorship messaging must also be done as well as tagging the episode for syndication. The audio file is then transcribed automatically through a software platform or can also be done manually.
The Publication
Below is a publication timeline that also includes some key strategic points that can be included in podcast processing and distribution.
- The podcast audio is pushed to all the major platforms through a syndication platform, such as Libsyn.
- The video is published to YouTube or an in-house video platform.
- The text transcription is posted to the website as a blog post.
- Posts are published on each social media channel to announce the new episode.
- An email is sent to all of your current subscribers.
- As your content library grows, you can post to its own unique website that lists all of your past episodes.
Then it’s rinse-and-repeat for the next episode!
Parkway can even build you a custom platform to archive and play your podcasts, complete with branded graphics and interactive content.
Is it worth starting a podcast?
A well-executed podcast promoted by a thoughtful marketing strategy can deliver powerful results for your business. But results won’t happen overnight. As we mentioned, there may be value in reappropriating podcast content for use over other channels like social media or email while your audience grows organically.
Parkway can help you develop content and promotional strategies that are in line with your brand and your goals. We would love to discuss ways to help you launch your company’s podcast!