Are you interested in podcasting; well, here is everything you need to know about podcasting.
Before we narrow down to the details of successfully podcasting, let’s first discuss why podcast is important for business and why you would want to podcast.
A podcast can be defined as a digital audio or video file that is posted for users to download it to their digital devices such as computers, portable media players, etc. Podcasting gives your audience a convenient and easy way to consume information. In fact, once they are subscribed to your podcast feed, you subscribers’ devices will automatically download the podcast in their computers once you post them.
They can listen or watch the podcast at their convenience, whether using their personal media players such as iPods or their computers. This means they can listen to them while making dinner, driving to work, doing their workouts, etc. It has become an easier way of reading guides and books as they fit into your audience’s schedule; and they are more convenient than eBooks.
Podcasts enable you to personalize your message because you are able to communicate directly to your audience, rather than trying to come up with a tone through the written word.
With a podcast, you can make a greater impression and therefore, create a better connection with your audience because you will be speaking directly to them. You will be able to emphasize your key points through tonal variation, body expression such as the use of smiles, laughs, surprised faces, gestures your make, as well as any other ways you can emphasize your points.
Written text normally loses the subtle meanings, but audio and video formats can precisely and succinctly convey the exact message you want to pass to your audience.
In addition, creating a one hour podcast is far easier than writing a 60 page eBook. You may take a couple of days or even a week to create an eBook while it can take as little as 20 minutes to create a podcast of the same eBook.
Now that you know what a podcast is and some of its benefits, we can go on to give you tips on how to maximize the benefits of podcasting.
The first thing to keep in mind is content. The same effort you would invest in coming up with great content for your eBook is the same you should invest in creating a podcast. No amount of marketing will push your content if it’s not up to par.
This means you have to come up with great and interesting content that will attract and keep listeners. Even if you have a podcast landing page that has 90% conversion rate, you are going to lose 88% of your potential listeners if your content is not up to par.
Secondly, you need to become aware of bad RSS feeds. We won’t get into the technicalities of this, but what you need to know is that an inferior RSS can make your podcast unusable to your audience.
The simple solution is to use Feedburner. Feedburner acts as your editor; it makes corrections and alerts you when there is a major correction that is needed for your podcast so as it can be usable in most podcast listening software. It also cleans up your podcast’s RSS feed. Feedburner also enables you to use your own URL’s, brand, and so forth.
Third, optimize your podcast by making it super easy to find. This is because the search engines cannot listen or watch what is on your podcast. Therefore, you need to consider getting a domain just for your podcasts to reflect exactly what is on your podcast. For instance, if your main website is HowToMakeMoneyOnline.com, your podcast site could be at HowToMakeMoneyOnlinePodcast.com. Also, make it clear on your website on where your audience can get your podcast.
Fourth, make it easy for your audience to subscribe to your podcast feeds. Most people do not know what an RSS feed is, so you can give them an option to subscribe by email. You can do this by asking them to subscribe through your opt in form.
Finally, request your existing listeners spread the word about your show to their friends. Every episode of your podcast should have a call-to-action to remind your listeners to visit your website and share your podcast with their friends. You can have multiple sharing options for doing this; Facebook, Twitter, or other social sites.
