Podcasts are an excellent and fun tool to use in your marketing and management efforts. Podcasting alone may not instantly get you the large fan or customer base that you desire, but you should see positive growth to both your traffic and conversions if you use them on a consistent basis. A major benefit to using podcasts is that there is not much to them. Podcasts are essentially verbal blog articles. They are cheap and easy to make and they can be used for a variety of purposes. Below are three simple podcast ideas to add to any digital marketing strategy.
Use your podcast for educational purposes.
If you want to gain the trust of the consumer, do not simply toss advertisements at them. To create verbal or written content that will actually grab people’s attention, you must prove that you are a trusted source for information in your niche.
It just so happens that podcasting is a great channel for proving that you are an expert in your industry. A good practice would be to record one 30-minute long podcast per week. During the podcast, discuss industry trends or provide tips and advice. Keep the advertising chatter to a minimum. Promote the podcast through other marketing channels (social media, paid promotions, your webpage, email, etc.) and you will start to acquire listeners. Once you have some regular listeners, start taking questions. You can answer a few listener questions at the end of your podcasts. Your listeners will appreciate the interaction. You can then throw in a little advertising talk at the end (for example: “if you need help with _______, feel free to contact me to set up an appointment.”)
Make a video podcast
If you have considered podcasting, you are probably thinking of recording audio. Well podcasts can be done via a visual format as well. Film yourself giving the podcast and put it on YouTube. YouTube is a major search engine and adding your podcast to it will extend your reach significantly. You will put a face to your company and that might make viewers eager to contact you. Make your podcast short, fun and informative. Do not go into details about the subject matter but instead offer enough information to get the viewer thinking. If they decide they want more answers on the subject that you discussed, they may reach out to you and become a customer.
Request interviews with industry leaders.
Interviewing authority figures in your industry can be incredibly useful if they are established and have a large following. Although you are a marketer, you will act as a journalist in this endeavor. Not only will you spark the interest of your followers, you will get the attention of your interviewee’s fans and followers as well who will learn about your organization.
The interview itself will prove that you are personable. Ask them relevant industry questions but hold conversations with them as well. Include small talk about light or humorous subjects. Once your listeners see that you are personable, they will begin to trust you and will be more comfortable contacting you.
Once the interview is over, do not forget to ask your interviewee – an influencer – to promote the podcast as well.
These three podcast ideas should get you started in podcasting, but what other ways could you make use of a podcast in your marketing strategy?
For more marketing information or to implement a marketing campaign, feel free to contact our experts.