Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Putting Podcasting to Work for Your Company


Image by miss_rogue
A podcast is a series of prerecorded audio or video files stored on your Web site that users can subscribe to and receive on regular intervals. For a business, a podcast provides the unique opportunity to increase your reach and visibility in promoting a brand, product, or service, as well as building customer loyalty. However, podcasts are only useful if you have something of value to say or show and are willing to dedicate the resources to produce high-quality content.

Whatever your business, a little careful thought (and some inspiration) will help you find creative, attention grabbing, and interesting ways to present your topics using audio and video podcasting, which can help you promote your business. For example, if you sell nuts (the kind you eat), you might create a video podcast series that begins with the care and quality that does into growing your delectable treats, followed by podcasts showing the processing and then the colorful packaging of your assortments. Be sure to make the video (or audio) podcasts fun as well as informative.

The following resources provide suggestions for using podcasting to promote your business, along with examples of the best podcasts:

23 comments:

  1. All I can say is I LOVE PODCASTS. I listen to many different podcasts all the time because I love all the new information they tell me. I listen to IGN, PTI, and also the battlefield podcasts. If I don't have anything going on I'll sit down and listen to one.

    I think that companies should really try out having a podcast. It keeps people coming back and even brings new people to your website. Having them available on Itunes is another thing to do to get more people to listen to it and get people to subscribe.

    Greg Gourlie

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  2. Hi Greg,

    I love podcasts too and they are valuable tools for helping businesses promote their products and services. Unfortunately, they are not as popular as other social media, at least not yet. ;-)

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  3. I am a huge fan of podcasts. They are so accessible and very informative. I listen to them while I drive and while I run. My favorites are set to update every day. iTunes is how I first found out about podcasts. They do a good job organizing them and making them easily accessible and there are so many of them.

    I think your idea is a good one. If businesses put out a podcast their information would be getting out there to millions of people and maybe more if they went through iTunes. The ideas you have about getting certain media across to certain age groups is very good. You can really reach a wide genre of age groups by just changing a few things that would appeal to certain groups. I think that podcast are definitely a way of the future for businesses.

    Adriana Maier

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  4. Hi Adriana,

    Great suggestion to target consumers based on age. For instances, baby boomers would be far more interested in a podcast about retirement information than teenagers. ;-)

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  5. Very true! I use pod casts as much as possible to promote new songs, show dates, and other updates for my band In Deeper Oceans. It can be a very useful and powerful marketing tool. Especially giving the fact of how popular youtube is.

    In podcasts however, keeping interest by your audience can be very difficult at times. You need to know who it is your targeting with your product and base your video's message, humor, physical and verbal language around that audience's preference.

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  6. Very true! I use pod casts as much as possible to promote new songs, show dates, and other updates for my band In Deeper Oceans. It can be a very useful and powerful marketing tool. Especially giving the fact of how popular youtube is.

    In podcasts however, keeping interest by your audience can be very difficult at times. You need to know who it is your targeting with your product and base your video's message, humor, physical and verbal language around that audience's preference.

    Jake Malet

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  7. Jake--podcasting sounds like a great to create a buzz for your music. And you are quite right about know who and where your audience is. You can then target those social media hot spots with links to your podcasts!

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  8. I had never thought of Podcasting to promote a business before I read this article. Podcasting makes sense though because you can hit your target market all over the world, which in turn can grow a small business into an international business.
    With constant updates on new products you will be sure that your costumers will always be updated so long as you keep up with your broadcasting. When customers are able to receive the updated data through media in an entertaining way they may become lifelong customers, obviously good for your business.
    My husband is an audio engineer so I definitely see the benefits of creating a podcast of good quality to attract customers. Even though Podcasting is a new idea, technology growth ensures that podcasting will be the next big way of advertising. http://www.bnet.com article on Podcasting tells entrepreneurs “before distributing podcasts, you must analyze the needs of your listeners to ensure that you are producing something that they will want to receive” I agree with this. Because blogging and podcasting is growing you don’t want customers or employees feeling lost by making them sift through too many posts or podcast’s. Having a quality podcast and being imaginative really are key when creating any advertising product.

    Thank you for sharing the links for the articles on Podcasting. I think Podcasting will really boom in the future.

    Pauline Johnson

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  9. I think podcasting will definitely grow over the years. Many people are on the internet all the time and if you wanted to promote something then its a great way. I think you should know what kind of age groups are on different sites and put a podcast on one of them with something that they like. Something that will interest them and get their attention.

    Like if you were to put one on Myspace or Facebook it should probably be about ways to talk to your friends or get ahold of them if that was what your product was. It would all depend on what your product is then all you have to do is find the right age group and then podcast away. =)Merinda Madsen

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  10. Podcasts are a great idea for a business to get the word out on your brand, product, service or whatever you are trying to promote. Personally I used to download podcasts that were about video games. I would put these podcasts onto my IPod and watch them whenever. I liked seeing what video games were a must buy and others I could do without. Podcasts can be great tools for business’s looking to increase consumer interest.
    I would say that you would need to be very creative and informative in these videos just so that you can grab the consumer’s attention. Podcasts are a good way to link the product to the person in an easy viewing experience.

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  11. Podcasts are something that I have found very useful. A computer networking class I took last year used Podcasts integrated into the material to use as a learning tool. As far as using them for your business, they can be used as commercials for your business. The Internet and websites are amazing tools in this day and age and the possibilities are limitless.

    People today are very visual. Whether it is learning or observing, a video is a great way to get a message or lesson across.

    David Chin

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  12. A Podcast was once an unknown in the business world. With the huge arrive of YouTube PodCasting has gotten bigger and I think businesses have seen the power of free advertisement both verbally and through images.

    Podcasts allow the person/company to show off what they have to sell along with information. Showing off a product or service pretty much sells itself because it will either interest people or not. Showing off information is an underused technique in podcasts. By this I mean the person/company makes a podcast to show off their skills and showing other people how to do these skills. This can build trust with their viewers along with showing off how efficient they can do work.

    Jesse Neil Holford

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  13. Jesse--my favorite application for podcasting is providing product information. I really like the reviews of product I am considering buying. Imagine how effective these can be selling products for a business.

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  14. I absolutely love the idea of using podcasts to promote a business. I have seen podcasts before, but only in the context for pleasure and free-time. I think that using podcasting to promote a business is incrediblly innovative, and rather genius.
    There are limitless possibilities to how this could be used to the advantage of a business. As you mentioned, you could use a podcast to depict the process a farmer must go through in order to grow his products. Also, podcasting could be used for product demonstration. Another way podcasting could be brilliant in promoting a business is by allowing those that have used the product to provide testimonials about the product or business.

    ~Thessaly Nicolayse

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  15. This is a really good idea. I have a jewelry business and we have monthly meetings. We have a video that goes out to everyone regardless if they were there or not. It is great for the people who missed the meetings so they can still get the information, but also for the people there to be reminded of certain points they might have forgotten.

    This would also be a good idea for some corporations that have certain things they want their employees to do, but they missed the meeting, or have several branches, so they could make a video and send it to them.

    Kaitlyn Kinzer

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  16. I have used many podcasts from iTunes, they are free, and offer tons of good insight. They keep you up to date on whatever you are listening to and whatever you find most interesting. I listened to alot about sports and news last summer, I just put them on my iPod and listened as I worked.

    Podcasts would be a great thing on a website to have to show people what you are all about. You can keep customers up to date, and show them what is up and coming. If I owned a business and had a website, I would surely put podcasts on it. I would make it as fun and exciting as possible.

    James Fisher

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  17. Kaitlyn and James--glad you found this post helpful. Your ideas for using podcasting as a means to promote a business are great. It does take a real commitment to attract and keep an audience using podcasting, but as you point out, they payoff can be equally significant.

    Melissa

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  18. I, like other people, love podcasts! I found them first on iTunes when I was scrolling through stuff. I actually started listening to a church sermon that was done by my old high school pastor through iTunes, and that is what got me hooked.
    I never thought about using a podcast as a business tool, but I think that it is a great idea! If a company were to post podcasts about what they were doing, upcoming events, how they started or any other information people would listen and want to be a part of it. A pastor at my old church uses podcasts and posts them on Facevook to advertise what they will be doing at youth group that Wednesday. It is a great way to get information out.

    Carlyn Boyle

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  19. I think that podcasts are a great marketing tool and they perfectly fit into the busy, multi-tasking lives of today’s population. I am constantly juggling my son, homework, laundry, making dinner, and errands so I don’t have time to sit and read a lengthy newsletter. If I can get the same information through a video, I am more likely to take the time. Another benefit of podcasts is their automatic distribution. I probably won’t remember to go back and check a website or newsletter but if it’s automatically sent to me, and it’s a podcast I signed up for, I’ll be much more likely to look at it. Businesses must adapt with how their clients lives change and I believe that podcasts are the next step in product marketing.
    However, these podcasts can be just as damaging as they can be helpful. If someone decides to send out a podcast, they must make sure the podcast is good quality or else your associated company/product will be considered poor quality too. You pointed out that it needs to be creative and interesting and I couldn’t agree more. The first step it to get your viewers to open the podcast but then you need to keep their attention until it’s over. The podcast also needs to be short and to the point. Again, we have busy lives and if I’m going to watch your entire podcast, it needs to either be VERY interesting or short and sweet.

    Courtney Dohnal

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  20. Before reading this I was not completely sure what podcast were, but now after reading up on them, I realized I knew what they were but not what they're called. It is interesting to see how the technology has evolved and people can share information.
    This is a new form of expression and I find it unique how it is so personalized and and in return the poster's feel really important and have the chance to really say what they feel or believe.
    Sean Michael Coyle

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  21. Using a podcast to get information out about a product or service is a great new way to communicate to our technology based world. Especially with the use of smart phones, and all of the other ways you can access media in a pocket sized device. Pod casting definitely provides another creative way to communicate.

    I completely understand that using podcast can be a valuable tool in getting a message out to a larger market, however I wonder about content. There are so many people and companies that put so much garbage out there that I wonder if my advertisement, if I were to create one would just be lost in the mix. I guess I wonder, other than making the ad stand out, what makes people shuffle through so many others to find mine?
    Stacy Kloth

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  22. Sorry this is twice but I forgot to put my name at the bottom...
    Hi, this is my second post ever to TWITTER and it has indeed been very interesting. This is for a course in Business Administration and we’re studying social media marketing right now. So, I looked through the various posts and when I saw this one, I had to check it out.
    First, because I’m one of your “mature” customers, (I guess that’s the new okay term for the “over the hill gang”), I had to look up the word ‘podcast’. Wow! There’s a lot of information on this!
    After reading how easy it is to get unrestricted, unsolicited, commercial free content on your personalized radio station podcast that you can put right on your mp3 player (which I do not have, but my kids do) and other devices, I can’t believe everyone doesn’t go for it! If people don’t like all the media that big corporations are in control of-- they can customize their own media.
    Thank you for the post!
    Janice Faber

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  23. I believe that podcast is a way good idea. I want things that are really informing and easily accessible. I am a mother and wife I don’t have a lot of time to be on web sites looking through pages and pages so to go right to a video and seeing and hear what the site is about would make things a lot easier for me. I have really found that a lot of business don’t have websites and if they do it is really confusing half the time.

    I am going to one day open a restaurant. I will be having a web site for the restaurant for customers. To have a video of the food and prices I think it would really help me to get more customers. I would of never even thought of it if I didn’t see this website.
    Jennifer Baker

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