I’m an English major. I love to read. I consume a ton of media – business books, fiction, articles, blog posts, tweet streams, e-Books, pretty much anything I can get my hands on. So the idea that video and audio work as marketing tools better than the written word scared me. I don’t watch many online videos. I don’t listen to many podcasts. So the rest of the world must not either . . . right?
Wrong!
About two months ago, I started doing video blogs, just to see what all the ruckus was about. Turns out, our blog traffic quadruples when we post a video. So I stopped being cynical and began podcasting, too. (You can hear my podcasts at InsidePR, where Martin Waxman, Joe Thornley, and I wax poetic about how the web is changing the PR industry.)
I tell you this not because I want you to listen (well, I do, but that’s not the point), but because it’s important to understand that podcasts work for marketing your business. There are many people who podcast, but a couple of my favorites are Computer Explorers CEO Deb Evans and Tasti D-Lite social technology officer BJ Emerson on Social Geek Radio and Clockworkers Nancy Lyons and Meghan Wilker on Geek Girls Guide.
The audience for podcasts is growing . . . and it is set to explode. eMarketer projects growth will continue through at least 2013, when there will be 37.6 million people downloading podcasts on a monthly basis. This is more than double the 2008 figure of 17.4 million.
People learn in different ways. Some people (like me) like to read. Some are visual and want to watch videos. But we all like to listen, which is why podcasts are becoming so popular. I mean, how cool is it that you can exercise, drive to work, or whatever else you want to do and learn while you listen to a podcast?
Want to try creating your own podcast? Follow these steps:
1. Choose your topic – make sure it’s one that has longevity, meaning you can speak on the topic weekly for a long period of time.
2. Download Audacity or other audio editing tool.
3. If you’re on a Mac, upgrade to QuickTime Pro. If you’re on a PC, buy a podcasting microphone.
4. Write a script.
5. Keep the podcast to 20 minutes or less.
6. Record your podcast in a noise-free environment. I wear my Westone headphones to reduce additional noise.
7. Apply the noise-reduction filter in your audio editing software and save the podcast file.
8. Upload the podcast to iTunes, your website, your blog, your newsletter, and to all of your social networks.
9. Then submit your podcast to ibizradio or another podcast directory.
Soon you will have an audience of people who really love what you have to say, will subscribe, and will help promote you in ways you never thought possible. And you got all of them with a tool that you recorded in 20 minutes or less.
What other tips do you have for those creating podcasts?