Brand authority can be defined as the level of which consumers see a business as an expert in a specific industry to which it belongs. Earning an “authority” status also makes a company stand out from the competition. With this reputation, customers are more likely to place their trust in the business. The outcome is increased sales conversion and revenue even with a few marketing efforts.
Developing a strong identity as a company requires a carefully planned and calculated brand awareness strategy. One of the most practical ways to let your brand be known is by taking advantage of what the Internet has to offer.
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Podcasting by the Numbers
A lot of people go online every day. In the United States alone, nine out of ten adults use the Internet, according to the latest research of the Pew Research Center. Additionally, Statista’s records show that about three-quarters of the country’s population, or 233 million Americans, are often engaging with social networking sites.
As of July 2020, there are 4.8 billion internet users globally, as indicated by Internet World Stats. The largest group of Internet users come from Asian countries, comprising approximately half of the percentage of these statistics. The Global Digital 2019 report also relates that people spend more than six hours per day online mainly for the purpose of communication, information, or entertainment.
All of these figures point to one thing: the power of digital marketing. As the number of people going online and the average time they spend using the Internet increases, businesses can effortlessly market their brands, attract customers, and if successful, earn more.
One of the main activities individuals perform on the Internet is downloading podcasts. A podcast is an episodic series of audio shows. According to Podcast Insights, there are currently more than 1.5 million active podcasts and over 34 million episodes. All of these programs discuss a wide variety of topics and are available in different languages. The latest estimated number of Americans listening to a podcast monthly is at 104 million, as reported by the Infinite Dial. On a similar line, Voxnet also disclosed growth percentages of podcast listeners in countries like Chile (83.95%), Argentina (55.28%), Peru (49.1%), Mexico (47.84%), and China (43.62%).
Indeed, the industry is growing steadily, making it a perfect platform to strengthen a company’s brand authority and reach. You might think that creating and running a podcast is a laborious task, but think about the benefits it can give to your business. If you don’t have the time to oversee a podcast for your business, some companies offer podcasting services on your behalf.
Creating a podcast can be relatively easy but you might be startled by the process. To ease the feeling of overwhelmingness, you can rely on podcast service companies. They can help you start from scratch until you get the hang of it. As an entrepreneur , you may even continue working with them while you focus on the other factors of your business.
Priceless Benefits of Having a Podcast for Your Business
Podcasting is in the rise! More listeners tune in and businesses are taking advantage of its popularity. So, why won’t you?
If you’re wondering if a podcast will really help in business growth, the answer is a resounding yes. During the start of the podcasting era, businesses have already begun utilizing the industry for ad placements. Today, brands or businesses produce their own podcast channels.
Let’s find out the benefits of creating a podcast for your business.
Establishing a Relationship with Your Customers
Podcasting is instrumental in building a relationship with your customers. It can pave the way for more avenues of communication between you and your consumers. It’s like inviting them over for a chat and giving them more opportunity to get to know you on a deeper level.
People listen to podcasts because they feel like they can identify with the person conducting the program. Sharing value on this level creates trust and encourages listeners to feel connected with the brand. As a result, people are more enticed to buy something from your business.
Boosts Traffic Generation
If you used to target a certain demographic group in your business, podcasting allows you to widen your range. This is because podcasting can reach anyone in the world. Podcast listeners can later convert into consumers. Plus, they may even recommend your podcast to other people, attracting another set of potential customers to your business. Therefore, be prepared if you get many customers out of your expanded demographic reach.
Alternative to Video Marketing
Showing videos is an effective digital marketing strategy. One survey relates that 89% of businesses who applied video marketing to their business strategy have reported a good return on their investment. However, not all businesses may have enough budget to produce videos.
Shooting video ads requires many tools and equipment, which can be expensive. Should you proceed with a low-quality video ad, your business can be branded as cheap. Podcasts, on the other hand, make for a great alternative. Likewise, companies offering podcasting services make the job much easier to handle!
Easy and Quick to Produce
It’s easy to create a podcast, even if you don’t possess the technical skills. There are even podcast-making apps you can download on your smartphone so you can easily record, edit, or host a podcast, such as Spreaker Studio, Alitu, and Anchor podcast apps.
The basic things you’ll need are a microphone and a computer with installed editing software. You can also use a pop filter to get rid of those popping sounds from your speech. Wearing a headset is not much of a requirement, but it will help you hear yourself more clearly.
Editing software programs like Audacity and GarageBand are free and work very well. This is a technical aspect of running a podcast that can make people intimidated by the process. Thankfully, you can hire podcasting editing services to help you and provide a peace of mind!
Effective Brand Awareness Tool
A good podcast channel can captivate listeners to stay loyal to their program. To ensure that listeners will stay tuned to your podcast, you must always produce quality content and provide value to your listeners. You also have to make sure to publish it regularly.
While it is your goal to generate sales, it will be awkward if you’re just simply promoting your products and/or services on your podcast. That is why you should also discuss your business’ advocacy or other themes related to the service or product you provide. You can even invite guests that can discuss topics relevant to your business.
Talking about trends and hot topics related to your niche will make your podcast stand out. Strive to be always up-to-date so you’ll be the first source where your audience will get their information. Also, don’t be afraid to share your thoughts. This is an opportunity to direct your listeners to your brand and position yourself (or your podcast) to be an industry expert.
Overall, this will boost your company’s credibility and grab the attention of your listeners even more. By consistently producing quality content relevant to your business, your audience will most likely engage with your podcast and share the episodes with the people they know. As your podcast reaches more people and your client base expands, this will generate more leads and revenue for your business.
How a Podcast Boosts Your Authority in Your Niche
Podcasting is not only effective as a brand awareness strategy, but it also helps to make your brand stand out as the authority in your niche. Here’s how:
Social Proof
Among all the businesses competing in a similar niche, what makes a certain business prevail? It’s the uniqueness of the brand. Imagine if you’re the only one hosting a podcast show, then you’re already one step ahead of everyone else. People can have the perception that you have more industry knowledge compared to those without podcast channels. Aside from that, other podcasts or media may even invite you on as a guest to discuss relevant topics in your niche. Hence, having a podcast is akin to possessing a global calling card that can help you attract the right customers, offset competition, and influence the whole industry.
Demonstrate Your Expertise
Starting a podcast can be your avenue to show your authority in your industry. Once people start to listen to you and see that you are well versed in your niche, they’ll start to see you as an expert they can turn to. It’s a win-win situation. Not only are you able to share your knowledge with a lot of people, but they can also become potential customers for your business.
Know, Like, and Trust (KLT) Factor
The key to converting a customer to patronize your products or services is through the KLT formula. First, people should know your business. Next, they have to like what you offer or what your company stands for. Lastly, they have to trust that your company is the right venue to patronize particular products and/or services. To be an authority in the marketplace, you should check the box on all three of these factors.
The Know, Like, and Trust factor is a depiction of the journey that a potential customer goes through whenever they discover a certain brand.
Knowing is letting consumers know that you or your band exist. This is a crucial step because if you’re not successful in introducing your brand, then all else will fail.
Liking is when you’ve already grabbed their attention. Your job is to retain their focus on your brand.
Trusting is the hardest part but it’s worth it. This stage is when the customer is already willing to invest their time, money, and resources for your brand. Trust is a foundation you can create between your customer and business, given that you’re successful with the first two steps of the KLT formula.
How to Start and Grow a Podcast for Your Business
Choose Your Niche or Topics
Since you’re podcasting for your business, this will be easier. Focus on topics related to your products and/or services. Also, think about ways on how you can integrate your passion to your podcast content so that you’ll have more fun during discussions.
Know Your Audience and Set Your Podcast’s Format
Determine your target audience and then know what their preferred format looks like. For example, if your target market is the youth, you may want to consider a simpler type of format or one that leans more on casual storytelling. Meanwhile, if you will be targeting those who are already in the workplace and desire to gain more skills, perhaps it would be more fitting to provide them technical narratives or go with a more knowledge-based approach.
Prepare Your Equipment
Podcasting requires high-quality audio. So, invest in the right equipment. Make sure that you have them all tested before proceeding with your first podcast recording.
Plan Your Episodes
Create an outline of what topics your next episodes will focus on. You can choose a specific theme for a week or a month. Planning ensures a smooth flow of your podcasting journey.
Edit and Publish
After recording, you need to edit your audio files to make them sound professional. Having an intro and outro will make listeners remember your podcast easily. There are audio editing software programs you can install on your computer for free. But if you want to get your hands on to something more advanced, there are also paid programs with added features.
Editing may take some time so be prepared to sacrifice an hour or so just to make your podcast sound professional. If you think you don’t have enough time for editing and publishing, you can also rely on companies offering podcast editing or podcast distribution service. They have an expert team that can edit and publish your podcast on your behalf.
Key Takeaway
Clearly, having a podcast for business has fruitful benefits. The challenging part is how to start and maintain the podcast channel. Thankfully, podcasting services can assist you in the podcast creation itself, including drafting of scripts and episode planning.
These companies offering podcast service on your behalf can help you with a lot of things. Podcasts usually have their logos. Here, you can incorporate your brand to make listeners become more familiar with it. These companies can create graphics or artworks that will make your brand’s style shine
They can also help with creating show notes. You’ll find this at the podcast’s website or whatever platform the podcast creator is using. Show notes may include transcription of the episode, as well as link to articles mentioned or information about the episode’s guests. Additionally, they contain calls-to-action that are helpful to your business.
Furthermore, they have experts who can edit your podcast, as well as distribute and publish it on different audio hosts. Hiring a podcast service professional is a big help, while you manage all the other elements of your growing business.
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