How to Leverage Podcasting
to Quickly Grow Your Personal Brand
Podcasting is all the rage. No, really. It is. Podcasting is rapidly growing in popularity with consumers while very few brands are taking advantage of the unsaturated market.
Photo Credit: theilr
Social Media Examiner has reported that a mere 3-5% of all marketers are using podcasting now, while upwards of 24% plan to join the podcasting frenzy in the coming year.
What does this mean for you? This is an opportunity to grow your brand in a way that just can’t be done on other platforms or with other forms of media. It’s time to leverage podcasting.
A Little Podcast Success
I started my blog and personal brand website two years ago. I wrote hundreds of blog posts on various topics and grew a small audience in the first 18 months.
Then, I jumped on the podcasting bandwagon. Thanks to a few key mentions on other popular blogs, my podcast jumped from nonexistent to the number one business podcast in Apple Podcasts (and number 20 overall) in just 11 weeks.
My audience size exploded and my blog readership went through the roof. Why? Because podcasting connects with people in the right way, at the right time, and with the right information.
As soon as I discovered the power of this widely underutilized technology, I was hooked and not looking back.
1. Meet Celebrities
Have you ever wanted to call a celebrity on the phone and just chat for 30 minutes? You know, have a little one-on-one time with the most wildly popular person in your industry.
That’s what podcasting can bring you. I frequently send emails to very popular bloggers, podcasters, speakers, coaches, New York Times bestselling authors, self-made millionaires, and mini-celebrities. I ask them to be a guest on my podcast and, on average, over 90% say yes!
That shouldn’t be too surprising considering I am offering free marketing of their brand on my show and we will spend the entire interview talking about them!
Don’t forget that if you are dying to spend a few minutes asking key questions to the movers and shakers in your industry, wouldn’t your audience love to listen in?
2. Reach a Whole New Audience Base
If you currently have a blog on your website, you are probably reaching an audience who loves to read. They are likely to be people who check their email often and buy plenty of books.
But what about all those other people who might love your brand if they had a more convenient way to consume your content? Podcasting provides a unique outlet to listen on the go.
In order to read a blog post or watch a movie you would have to be planted in front of a screen and giving your whole attention to the post or video. With podcasting, listeners can take your message on the go, in the car, to the gym, the office, on the plane, or anywhere else they are heading.
When I opened up my brand to podcasting, I reached thousands of new people who now prefer to only listen to my podcasts instead of reading my blog posts. That’s the power of intimacy and a close personal connection with portable audio content.
Read my post, Podcasting 101: How to Launch Your Own Professional Podcast
3. Super Easy Networking
One of the first benefits many new podcasters experience is a rapid increase in their audience size, followed closely by new business opportunities.
Once you establish yourself as a premium content producer through podcasts, you put yourself on the map of trustworthy and credible experts. Other podcasters may reach out and interview you on their shows. Magazines could ask you to write for them. Celebrities may even ask YOU to be a guest on your show.
If you take the time to produce a professional podcast, it really is only a matter of time before opportunities will come knocking.
4. Practice Public Speaking Skills
This is a key insight that I only learned after months of podcasting: you don’t have to be an extrovert or a radio DJ to confidently speak into a microphone.
If you consider yourself an introvert or the idea of being on stage frightens you to death (like it does to most people), consider podcasting the premier introduction to your future speaking career.
Audio and video podcasting present an opportunity to hone your speaking and presentation skills. From writing scripts and investing in equipment, to recording your voice and publishing an episode to the world, podcasting offers the chance to enter the world of professional public speaking in unique and exciting ways.
5. Chance to Be More Personal
No matter how professional your brand may be, people like to connect with people. Humans are relational creatures and we thrive on emotion. Podcasting is both highly personal and highly emotional.
As a general rule, err on the side of the informal. In other words, most podcast listeners would prefer it if you talked to them like a friend instead of an audience member. When you open up yourself and risk being a little vulnerable, you very quickly built trust, loyalty, and respect that is hard to earn anywhere else online.
It’s Worth the Effort
There are over 450 million English language blogs on the Internet and only about 250,000 podcasts. Why? Because the barrier of entry is much higher.
Podcasting is harder. It costs more money and requires more technical skills. It takes more time and can cause more headaches. At the same time, the work pays off. Podcasting can take you places that blogging and video production never will.
If you want to stand out from the pack, make a name for your brand, and connect with your audience in a whole new way, make podcasting your most important branding goal this year. Believe me. It’s completely worth it.
