Ronn Torossian, CEO, 5WPR

The podcasting world is increasingly proving itself to be the unsung hero of the online communication world: at a time when many outlets are struggling to connect with users, podcast listenership continues to grow annually. According to research, 40% of Americans aged over 12 years old say they have listened to a podcast, while 24% say they have listened to one in the past month. This latter figure is a whopping 21% increase on the year previous. 

But what does this actually mean to the everyday business owner? 

Learning how to start a podcast should be, at the very least, a key consideration when forming your communications strategy. With an expanding audience, this presents an opportunity for you to tap into new groups and grow your business. 

Indeed, if you understand the value of creating content, such as keeping an active blog or maintaining a robust Instagram feed, then you are already most of the way to understanding the value of podcasting as a marketing strategy. By creating a podcast, you are opening a whole new world of potential customers who might never have otherwise consumed your content because they prefer the audio format. 

With over 21.1 million hours of listening per day, there is a wealth of opportunity in a number of niches. If your industry is currently underserved by the podcasting world, this is your chance to be an early adopter and trailblazer. 

Already on iTunes, there exists a number of categories and subcategories where listeners actively seek new content, meaning your podcast content will be highly targeted. In other words, users interested in your topic will seek you out. 

Furthermore, starting a podcast gives you the chance to position yourself as an authority on your topic, and the chance to make your product or service synonymous with your brand. This way, you’re building an audience and making it easier to sell your own offering at the same time, just by affirming your authority. 

Starting a business may seem technical, but looks are deceiving. At a bare minimum, this is what you need to start your business podcast: 

• Devise your concept (a topic, name, format and projected length for each episode).
• Design your artwork and fill out a description to appropriately “brand” your podcast.
• Record and edit your audio files (such as MP3s). The purchase of a microphone is recommended.
• Find a platform to host your files (think of a file host that specializes in podcast hostings, such as Libsyn or Podbean).
• Filter these audio files into an “RSS feed” so that they can be distributed through iTunes, as well as downloaded or streamed on any device on-demand.

So there you have it. While it may seem niche and/or daunting, adding podcasting to your marketing mix is in fact neither. Instead, it may offer a key to a new world of users waiting to hear about your brand.

About the Author: Ronn Torossian is CEO of market leading PR firm 5WPR.