News
James Ashe, Managing Partner
Podcasts Are Still a Sound Marketing Tool
Given that video is one of the highest forms of web traffic, this may come as a surprise, but interest in podcasts continues to grow in the UK, with 3.6 million Brits having tuned into one in the past month.
Although video makes up a huge percentage of all web traffic today, with social networks like Facebook encouraging the use of autoplay and silent videos, audio isn’t quite dead yet.
Podcasts are making the leap from a niche online platform to becoming part of everyday life. Whether they’re telling compelling stories, making us laugh, teaching us new things or letting us catch up on our favourite radio shows, millions of us are tuning in.
A recent study has shown that 3.6 million of us are listening to them, mostly within the home or while travelling. The study also revealed that podcasts are being used by people to make the most of their time rather than just passing the time, listening to podcasts while doing household chores, walking or exercising.
Most interestingly, though, out of the 2,000 people surveyed as part of the study, two thirds said that they listened to most of each podcast, if not all. Considering that podcasts are often 30 minutes long or more, this demonstrates that podcast listeners are involved with what they’re listening to, as opposed to a video that’s targeted to them on social media – according to Facebook, only 45% of viewers will go on to view 30 seconds or more of a video.
With regards to advertising in podcasts, 61% of people surveyed said that they would be happy to hear adverts within a free-to-download podcast. For clever marketeers, that provides a wealth of opportunity to engage with a captive audience, either via advertising or sponsorship. Some podcasts even change their advertising depending on the region that the listener is from – for example, the Sky Sports podcast uses geotargeting in both the UK and US to ensure the most effective advertising is being delivered.
Rich media is becoming increasingly important as part of a marketing strategy – for example, 77% of consumers are turning to video to help them make a purchase. But, with so many of us adding podcasts to our weekly listening as well, it could be time to start shifting some marketing budget onto audio. If you think your business would benefit from its own podcast, then it’s good to know that costs are considerably lower than a video – to get started, all you need is a laptop, your phone’s voice recording app and a free audio editing software like Audacity.
To inspire you to get started, here are three of our favourite podcasts, filled with great marketing tips and trends.
The Entrepreneurs by Monocle offers a weekly insight into some of the most inspiring people in business.
SiteVisibility’s Internet Marketing Podcast is full of fantastic SEO, social media and digital marketing advice.
#ThisOldMarketing brings you all the latest marketing news, along with brilliant ‘rants and raves’ about the industry’s most current trends.
Enjoyed this post? Why not check out some of our other blogs:
- The 2016 Chateau Impney Hill Climb raced ahead thanks to help from us!
- Is your marketing suffering from The X Factor syndrome?
- How video could remedy your ailing Facebook reach
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