Podcasts are a popular way for a company to distribute audio and video information to its target audience.
Any topic that will be of interest to the audience can be the subject of a podcast. When you listen to podcasts, they sound a lot like radio shows. The topics are unlimited from fashion to travel to hobbies to business to government. Audio podcasts are often used while driving, exercising on a treadmill, or working on a spreadsheet at work.
You’ll usually hear one or more presenters discussing that topic, and occasionally you’ll hear interviews with guests. Higher production value podcasts often have theme music, background music during the podcasts, and sound effects in between interviews or sections sound fantastic, but they take a long time to make.
And as Insider Intelligence put it, by 2022, there will be 424.2 million podcast listeners worldwide, accounting for 20.3 percent of all internet users. Podcasting ad revenue is expected to reach $2B in 2023.
Podcast usage is increasing, with more listeners and marketers spending a larger portion of their marketing expenditure on the audio channel.
As a result, both huge advertisers and media conglomerates have increased their involvement in the podcast sector, and this trend is projected to continue in the coming years.
In 2022, podcasts are still popular. Every day, the number of active podcasts and podcast listeners grows. As of April 2021, there were 850,000 active podcasts with a total of more than 48 million episodes. In just three years, the number of podcast listeners has increased by 29.5 percent. In 2018, 44 percent of adults in the United States aged 12 and up have listened to a podcast, compared to 57 percent in 2021.
The global podcasting market is expected to reach USD 94.88 billion by 2028, growing at a 31.1 percent CAGR between 2021 and 2028. The key element driving market expansion is the growing popularity of audio-on-demand platforms. Other elements that contribute to market growth include low entry hurdles for creators and easy accessibility for users, who can listen to podcasts while cleaning, walking, gardening, traveling, or exercising.
The 25% of Americans who listened to podcasts in the last week listened to an average of 6 hours 39 minutes’ worth. 22% percent of podcast fans listen to over 22 hours of podcasts a week! 35% listen to more than 10 different shows per month.
According to The Podcast Host: 30.3% of listening takes place on Apple Podcasts, with 26.4% on Spotify. Google Podcasts are a distant third at 2.7%. 51% of downloads come from the USA, with 6.8% from the UK, and 5.2% from Canada. Mobile accounts for 88.8% of all podcast downloads, with 63.1% of those coming via the Apple iPhone.
1. Become a podcast host
Like a blog, anyone can launch a podcast. If you are the host, you will be the speaker for a portion of each program. As the host, the burden of planning, hosting, editing, and marketing will be on you. Plan to do at least 30 shows in your first year.
2. Get booked on a podcast
Connecting with podcast hosts and producers may be as simple as clicking a link on the show’s homepage. If the procedure for the Guest opportunity is not obvious or included in the podcast documentation, you have to dig a little further to determine how to approach the host or producer’s will. This may be included on their website, or you may have to connect via their Contact Us page. Then pitch yourself and the topics you can cover.
3. Sell the value you’ll provide by being a guest
Most podcast hosts and producers want to expand their audience and provide premium content. A large number of relevant social media or blog followers can be a huge selling point when approaching these people. They accept you as a guest in the hope that you will promote their show, website, etc. to your fans. If you don’t have a significant following (yet!), you need to pitch how you’re going to deliver value to your audience through what you say.
In the last several years, the number of advertisements and sponsorships on podcasts has skyrocketed. This is because the number of individuals who listen has nearly doubled in the last nine years and is anticipated to continue to rise.
And, as the popularity of podcasts has grown, a growing number of advertisers are capitalizing on the trend to promote their products and services.
1. Create high-quality content
Producing high-quality content is the first step in learning how to generate money from a podcast. Specifically, useful content is defined as excellent content that meets the demand of those who consume it.
But how does this connect to podcasting as a source of income? As a result, it’s critical to provide content that not only adds value to the audience but also distinguishes you from the competitors.
So don’t be afraid to put your money into obscure or niche themes. After all, the podcast is the ideal platform for delving into esoteric topics.
2. There should be a place for advertisers
Audiences who listen to podcasts regularly are willing to pay for products and services mentioned on the show.
So, look for businesses that cater to a similar demographic as your podcast listeners. Present audience statistics, encourage discussion and make your idea more appealing.
3. Offer a combination of paid and exclusive content
Offering unique information to interested listeners is another effective technique for anyone who wants to generate money from a podcast. And believe me when I say that they are eager!
4. Look for sponsors
The most popular podcasts receive fixed sponsors in addition to ads.
These sponsors are businesses that are interested in the people who listen to a podcast and have the potential to become meaningful partners. This is, without a doubt, the dream of any content creator looking for a steady income.
Step-by-step instructions on how to make a podcast
You need to be organized when producing a podcast. The reason is that it’ll help you to develop a high-quality output with a defined communication goal.
The following are the main steps in creating a podcast:
Android and Apple IOS each have about 50% of the US smartphone market, but Android devices outnumber Apple devices by about 3 to 1 worldwide. The operating systems and you will want to distribute your podcast in at least three places:
As noted above, 30% of listening is done via Apple Podcasts. It is one of the options for people looking for a solid platform to post their content and audio, with exclusive access to iOS systems.
The software is free to download and listen to whenever and wherever users choose, despite the restricted access.
When it comes to streaming audio, Spotify is currently one of the most popular sites at 26% share.
It also makes it simple for individuals to publish and listen to podcasts, despite their popularity in music.
With the free version, you can use the app on devices that run on the Android or iOS operating systems.
Google Podcasts is an option for posting podcasts but has a surprisingly small share of downloads at 3%, with a somewhat different and more comprehensive concept.
The portal offers unique features such as news highlights from previous years, television series, and podcasts on a variety of topics such as culinary, sports, and stand-up comedy.
1. Create a podcast publication schedule
Maintaining engagement with your audience requires a high level of frequency. Hence, decide if you’ll do it daily, weekly, bimonthly, monthly, or as often as you’d want.
However, stick to this publication schedule to the letter, since if you don’t, your fans will become dissatisfied.
2. Consult a couple of your most ardent supporters
Even if your podcast is modest, you’re bound to have a few dedicated listeners who you’ve met through social media or other means.
These dedicated listeners are a terrific place to start when you need your first few evaluations. You can ask them if they’d be willing to leave you a rating and review, and they’ll most likely be pleased to oblige!
3. Create an appealing podcast cover
Although we all know that a podcast is an audio file, when it’s published on its own or through a partner site, it is frequently required to have a prominent cover to attract listeners.
This cover image is crucial in determining whether or not a user will click to listen to your content. As a result, pay attention to your podcast cover design and visual message.
4. Offer a bonus to those who post a review.
This is permitted within iTunes at the time of writing, but I often recommend double-checking.
If you can offer customers a monetary incentive to leave you an honest review, they are considerably more inclined to do so.
5. Make contact with individuals
Hopefully, there are a few people who listen to your show who you regard to be your core fans. People you know who never miss an episode and with whom you have regular conversations.
You might reach out to these individuals and ask if they mind posting a rating and review. You’re still asking your audience if they’re regular listeners to your podcast.
They’d most likely be delighted to assist and support you in this way.
When determining your podcast’s publishing frequency, consider the type of your podcast, the length of each episode, and how long it takes you to edit each episode.
Here’s a quick rundown of popular publishing frequencies and how they’re applied to different sorts of podcasts episode schedules.
So, based on the above explanation, you can choose to publish daily if your topic changes frequently, such as news, current events, and so on.
If you’re reporting breaking news or have an interview-style or storytelling-style podcast, publish once a week. If you publish on a semi-regular basis, then you should publish biweekly.
Finally, if you’re planning to release a podcast with episodes ranging from 60 to 90 minutes in length, you might consider doing it monthly. Monthly programs frequently feature many hosts and special guests, and they delve into topical issues and well-reported stories.
Top hotel podcasts tend to be aimed at hoteliers and discuss the business trends and drill in on management of the properties, design, green practices, operations, and marketing.
Top banking podcasts cover the latest in traditional banking, fintech, digital payments, the economy, crypto, staffing, automation, regulation, and marketing.
Top retailer podcasts also focus on retail managers and focus on customer experience, point of sale, inventory, merchandizing, pricing, ecommerce, the economy, and marketing.
Top healthcare podcasts also focus on managers and cover, care, technology, patient satisfaction, and outcomes, and some focus on personal health and wellness for the consumers.
The key metrics are: Subscribers, Downloads, Streams, Listens, Minutes Listened, Reviews, and Ratings.
Your podcast hosting platform will provide many of these stats for you. Each of these metrics can indicate the health of your podcast and provide feedback on how to optimize.
Like any content you publish, you will want to increase audience, engagement, and appreciation. This starts with making great and useful content and then actively promoting it through earned, owned, and paid media channels as part of your content marketing strategy and mix.
Podcasts can be a productive part of your omnichannel marketing strategy, but don’t underestimate the resources that it requires to build a catalog and following.
Milestone increases acquisition by enhancing digital experience and increasing content visibility. Contact us at sales@milestoneinternet.com or call us at 408-200-2211.
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