They say a picture tells a thousand words. Podcasters pride themselves on their ability to paint a compelling and detailed image of a topic with their voices. Podcasts are a powerful canvas for spoken word. But choosing images for your podcast does not pose a dilemma of visual vs. audio. On the contrary, a picture exemplifies the richness of your content and those thousands of words. Here’s how to start embracing image use in your podcast.
Think about it: when you hear a good story or conversation, it sticks with you much longer than a Facebook post you glanced at does. This is because we engage with audio in a different way than we do with written content.
As Emma Rodero, a professor at Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona, told The Atlantic,
“Audio is one of the most intimate forms of media because you are constantly building your own images of the story in your mind and you’re creating your own production. And that of course, is something that you can never get with visual media.”
Audio content involves the audience in the narrative; it entices them to imagine the people, places, and situations they’re listening to. This can help your brand create a deep and meaningful connection with potential customers.
Here are five reasons why you should start podcast for your brand:
Ask yourself: how accessible is your podcast? Can listeners follow your story, or get through your content in one sitting? Could they more fully appreciate your podcast with extra background information or references?
Accessibility isn’t just about making sure your podcast is available on every listening platform, or blowing up people’s social network feeds. It also lies in the structure of your content, how well you tell your story, and the marketing strategies you use to hook listeners in; your podcast needs to be easy to consume for listeners.
Spreaker is now giving you the ability to add chapters to your episode through our CMS. With chapters, you can delineate a clear outline of key points and favorite moments that listeners can get to easily, and create new ways to share your content.
It’s a podcasting renaissance, as we already know. I won’t reiterate how it can be affirmed, there’s already very looong literature available on that (sources here, here, and here).
Besides its general increased use, podcasting has also landed on new content landscapes in the past two years, becoming a medium that content marketers can turn to when it comes to building relationships with potential clients. Marketers and consultants – the entire marketing sector, even – have started using this “new” tool as another way to stay in touch with the communities that follow them.
As part of my job at Spreaker, I study what can seem like a heterogeneous podcasting ecosystem to find common patterns that can help me with my daily struggle in understanding this fast growing market. One of the most interesting things I’ve noticed in the last months is the use of podcasting as a main platform in content marketing strategies.
Podcasting doesn’t end when you hit “Publish.” Your content needs to get to your listeners’ ears, and effective distribution means sharing your content quickly and looking good while you do it. But when your podcasting to-do list is already inundated with different tasks – mixing, editing, uploading, describing, tagging – some of the process risks falling by the wayside.
That’s why we’ve been focusing so much on the new CMS, to offer you a dashboard full of quality tools and features to help you every step of the way. Today, we’re eager to show you the newest addition: the ability to auto-share “camera-ready” episodes to all your social networks.
Here’s what we mean:
Podcasting is a valuable asset to bloggers. It offers the opportunity to grow your audience and expand your influence. However, podcasting is more than just the latest trend.
In 2013, Apple’s podcast subscriptions through iTunes reached 1 billion. RawVoice, a podcast analytics company, noted that the number of unique monthly podcast listeners tripled to 75 million from 25 million in five years.
NPR veteran Alex Blumberg, the former host of “This American Life” and “Planet Money” raised $1.6 million for his podcast venture “Gimlet Media.”
From print ads to Facebook, entrepreneurs desire a way to reach more people. Podcasting is another option to accomplish that goal.
Podcast listeners are fanatics. They love new content that will distract them from a long work commute or an airport layover.
Listen live or catch the recording. Podcasting has created a culture of on-demand information that gives the listener the option to choose.
Moreover, as a podcaster, you possess the control. You’re not limited to a particular topic or time limit. You can decide what works best for you and your audience.
