6 Ways to Use Podcasts to Elevate your Brand Awareness
How much time would you spend watching a commercial?
If it’s a billboard, probably seconds. A few more seconds if it pops up on a website. Probably a minute or so, if it’s a television or social media advertisement.
Did you know that an advertisement has to stay on a webpage for at least 14 seconds for people to look at it for one second.
Now imagine you have a product or service that you want people to know about. Would you rather have them spend mere seconds looking at it and making a judgment?
Or would you want to sit down with your target audience for an hour and discuss the nitty-gritty nuances of what you offer?
Most of us would want the second option, but the essential nature of advertisement makes it impossible. It costs a huge sum to put up even a single billboard or video ad. That is how advertisements have worked from their earliest days.
Initially, it was a few square inches on a newspaper. Now it is a few seconds on YouTube. But you know it is not possible to summarize everything you have to say in a picture or 30-second video.
Then, how do you get the chance to spend an hour or so discussing your services and products? The only answer that ticks every box is podcasts.
Top 6 Ways to use podcasts to elevate your brand awareness
Take for example, The Sauce by McDonald’s. Through this podcast, the fast-food giant reaches out to thousands of people and talks about everything they are up to. The brand awareness of McDonald’s skyrockets when so many people spend their valuable time listening to their newest ideas, services, and offers.
In the present scenario, podcasts are emerging as the next giant of content marketing. More and more brands are realizing the importance of having one. The results speak for themselves. With a podcast, you can take your brand awareness to a different level. Here are six ways you can elevate your brand awareness through a podcast.
1. Understand that it is not all about your brand
But you thought that the point of a branded podcast is to sell your brand? You are right.
Now imagine sitting in your car for two hours and listening to two people talking about network security solutions. Chances are, you would switch stations in less than ten minutes.
If you have heard of Hackable, you know what we are talking about. Though it’s a branded podcast by McAfee to promote its cyber security products, it does not restrict itself to cyber security only.
The essence of long-form podcasts is digressions, stories, conversations, and more. It makes the listening experience worth coming back for.
24% of the US population listens to podcasts every week. That wouldn’t be possible if the podcasts solely talked about their products.
People keep coming back to podcasts because it is not all about a brand or a product. They come back for the stories, for the insightful conversations, and the quality of the content. In the process, they learn more about your brand. It’s a win-win situation on both sides.
2. Market your content effectively
We do not need to reiterate the importance of content marketing. ‘Content is king’ still holds true, and chances of it not being so in the future is slim to none.
While social media and blog posts are the go-to medium for content marketing, podcasts open up a new avenue. It is also not as saturated as the other options.
Content marketing through podcasts is even more effective because it is available to people no matter where they are or what they are doing. A tiny percentage of people might read blog posts while running on the treadmill, but an overwhelming majority do not. What they do, however, is listen to podcasts.
We listen to podcasts when we drive, do dishes, exercise, commute, and more. It is simply not possible with the other content marketing options.
Content marketing through podcasts is not all about audio. Many podcasts have a written summary of the key points discussed. You can even double up a podcast episode as a blog post. With easy-to-use audio to text transcription tools, doing this is easier than ever.
3. Reach new audiences
The common expectation when you start a branded podcast will be that of people landing on your podcast through your brand. The reverse is also possible, even likely. If your podcast has valuable and relevant content, people will discover your brand through your podcast.
Think of it this way: instead of you reaching out to people, people will reach out to you. That is the beauty of any valuable content, podcasts more than the others.
Avid listeners are always on the lookout for the next great podcast. It is pretty much like movies and TV series. People do not watch the same movie over and over. When they find a new one that captures their attention, they stick to it for a while. The same rules apply to podcasts. All you need to focus on is creating valuable and interesting content. The audience will find your podcast themselves.
4. Tell the story of your brand
Every business has a backstory. Some are inspiring, some are accidental, and some are downright thrilling. Regular advertisements will never give you the opportunity to tell people your story. As a result, your brand will never be humanized. It will remain a corporation that just wants to sell its products and services. The human touch will remain missing.
With a podcast, you have the chance of telling your side of the story. It can be many different stories of all the different people working with the business in different capacities.
Humanizing a brand is very important to make it more relevant. By talking about your story, you will be inspiring and motivating people without even knowing it. These people will develop an attachment to your brand on an emotional level. You won’t even know it, but you will be the inspiration of someone in some corner of the world.
5. Build a network
As we said earlier, a podcast cannot and should not be all about your brand. To run a successful podcast, you will need guest appearances, special episodes, Q&A sessions, and much more. Through these events, you will be effectively networking with other brands and entrepreneurs.
We commonly see this phenomenon in the most popular podcasts. They have guests coming over all the time. They would also partner with other businesses to talk about their products and services. You expand your network through these events and as a result, more people get to know what you have to offer.
Every entrepreneur knows the importance of having a wide network of connections. Through a podcast, these networks will be mutually beneficial. On top of that, it gives you an opportunity to create more valuable and interesting content.
Having variety in your podcasts is a recipe for success. A podcast will not only help you expand your network but will also strengthen your existing networks.
6. Delve deep with long-form podcasts
It takes months and years to conceptualize a product or service. It takes more months and years to materialize the concept. How is it even possible to wrap up years of thought and ideas in a 30-second ad?
Podcasts make sure you have the chance of delving deep into the nuances of your business. Theoretically, there is no time limit to a podcast. You can run it for how long you want.
In this age of fast communication, where every second of attention is worth thousands of dollars, a podcast gives you breathing space. You can talk about your plans, vision, successes, failures, and more. With a podcast, you are not trying to pack as much information as you can in a limited time.
The great thing about podcasts is that they are very flexible. You can even have two, three, or more episodes on a single topic. You can even touch on ten different topics in a single episode. Since you are dictating the time constraints, you have the freedom of delving as deep as you want. It gives value to your listeners and makes you happy at the fact that you could get the message across without cutting yourself short.
Conclusion
Podcasts are also relatively inexpensive to get started with. You do not need much more than a studio and two people who can have a good conversation. A podcast is an intimate form of entertainment in the sense that it has no script or storyline.
In a world where everything is staged, podcasts have their own charm. That might be the reason the number of people listening to podcasts is on the rise.
If the current trends are to be believed, then the popularity of podcasts will continue to grow at an explosive pace.
If you ask us, the best part about podcasts is that the benefits come while two (or more) people talk casually while sipping on your coffee.
Author bio
Atreyee Chowdhury works full-time as an Instructional Designer and is passionate about writing. She has helped many small and medium-scale businesses achieve their content marketing goals with her carefully crafted and compelling content. She lives in Bangalore, India with her husband and parents. She loves to read, experiment with different cuisines, travel, and explore the latest content marketing and L&D trends in her free time. You can reach her on Linkedin or write to her at atreyee.c@gmail.com for any content writing/marketing requirements.