GOT A PODCAST? HERE ARE SOME TIPS TO USE IT EFFECTIVELY
Marketing strategies keep on evolving. As a savvy entrepreneur, you should seize on the new promotional tools to get the maximum leverage. For example, whenever a new social media platform pops up on the scene, every brand rushes to make the most of it. In the like manner, podcasts’ current popularity among the masses forces companies to invest in this medium.
According to a credible finding, the global podcasting market plans to expand at a staggering growth rate of 27.5 percent in the next seven years. The figure gives you a clear hint about podcasts’ unbound traction. However, creating a successful podcast takes more than coming up with a catchy name or lengthy content. It would be best if you tapped into the following factors to turn your podcasting venture into a success story:
1. Focus On Sound Quality
A vast proportion of podcasts fail because podcasters rely on low-quality equipment. The biggest drawback with mediocre equipment is that it dents the audio quality big time. As a result, listeners do not stick around for too long. You could be an excellent researcher or orator, for that matter. But when it comes to engaging the audience through a podcast, audio quality takes precedence over everything else.
Not to advocate that one should invest in a lavish studio as it is not a budget-friendly option, especially if you are a small business owner. However, you must purchase special tools, including a headset, microphone, and editing software. Apart from that, you may also take the following measures to improve the sound quality further:
· Go for the test recording: Most listeners find additional sounds generated through mouse-click or computer fan very annoying. That is where test recording could make a big difference. It will help you detect any unwanted voice(s) right off the bat, accounting for an improved listening experience.
· Consider a standing position while recording: Standing up ensures better air support. It further reduces the chances of distractions that the desk could trigger.
· Ask remote guests to send the recording: Inviting guests for an onsite interview or conversation is not ideal due to the ongoing epidemic. That said, talking to a guest via VoIP services is likely to give you a compromised voice quality. Although adding designrr podcast transcription reveals everything guests say, you should still prefer the best audio quality. Therefore, you are better off asking guests to record the file at their respective location and then send it to you.
2. Be Consistent
Consistency is instrumental in doing well in various things. Podcasting is no exception. If you post episodes randomly, the listeners are more likely to lose track. Moreover, inconsistent posting also reflects your lack of professionalism. It could have a devasting impact on the overall engagement rate. Unlike the past, the public has so many quality podcasts at its disposal. So they will switch immediately as soon as they get the impression that you are taking them for granted.
Now the burning question is how often you should release a new episode? Well, it depends on various aspects such as your niche, the target audience’s attention span, nature of the content, etc. It is pertinent to mention that you must set the publishing cycle realistically. People often get carried away by limitless enthusiasm initially and pledge to share an episode regularly. But they typically fail to do so in the long run because they get burned out. The point being, you should give yourself enough gap for research and editing.
3. Nail the Right Length
Podcasts subscribe to different lengths, ranging from 5 minutes to 2 hours. There is no such thing as a one-size-fits-all duration. One of the best ways to assess the optimal podcast length is to determine your listeners’ commuting time. The reason behind this is a whopping 79.8 percent of people have a knack for listening to podcasts while traveling.
So if your listeners are frequent travelers, longer podcasts might be more productive for you. At the same time, we would recommend you avoid dragging the content just for the sake of time. The modern-day audience is very particular about allocating time. People will tiptoe their way to another podcast if they sense that you are buying their time for no apparent reason.
4. Learn To Make An Engaging Conversation
There is no shortage of podcast formats. Solo commentary, storytelling, co-hosted; the list goes on and on. But none of these formats comes close to the popularity of interview-oriented podcasts. When you invite a guest who possesses expertise in a specific field, the audience will find his/her views more credible. But the success of this format greatly hinges upon your conversational skills.
Here are a few tips that are handy to master the art of conversation:
· Be a good listener: It is tempting to stop a guest in the middle of a discussion and toss up a question to him. Listeners, however, do not appreciate that. Ideally, it would be best if you held any query until the guest completes his point.
· Do proper research: Being a podcast interviewer, the second thing you would want to do is to walk into an interview with lackluster preparation. Your research is what steers the condensation. Conducting comprehensive research will enable you to ask more intriguing questions.
· Break the ice before the interview: It is common to get nervous when a famous personality shows up for the interview. But you can’t allow the nervousness to hold away on your personality. Thus, it would help if you talked to the guest before the interview to cut the first turf.
The final verdict
Podcasts have been existing for quite a while. But they had not become mainstream and hit the peak until lately. If you already have a podcast that does not yield the desired results, you must incorporate the aforementioned ideas.
