New Podcasters Ready to Promote Shows? A Look at Facebook Advertising

With social technology expanding every day, it has never been easier to connect with your customers and clients. For content creators, the era of social media allows small content providers to effectively promote and market their podcasts in an economical way to a very targeted demo, ultimately incrementally growing your listener base.

For independents, entering the realm of content creation, Facebook advertising has provided a powerful marketing platform to deliver their content in front of their exact demographic.  Targeting via likes, interests, hobbies, age, demo, etc. provides a broad target to choose from.  If you’re ready to experiment in expanding your podcast into uncharted territory, then Facebook advertising may be your answer.

Are you ready to have others discover your podcast?

The first thing you have to ask yourself is ‘are you really ready’ for others to discover your podcast?  For the new podcaster, it’s important to have a number of shows already ‘on the books’ as well as a consistency on when you will push out your next show. Obviously, one of the most important goals is to get more people to listen to your content, but until you are fully prepared with a consistent plan of distributing new content, don’t bother investing in a marketing strategy.  Before you can start any marketing campaign (podcasts or otherwise), make sure to quantify exactly what your goals are. A generic goal such as “get more listeners” will invariably lead to failure because you won’t be able to move forward afterward if you don’t have a consistent plan on distributing future shows. Be overly prepared before attempting a marketing strategy.

Are You Going to Measure ROI of Your Advertisement?

What is the cost-justification of placing a Facebook ad to promote your podcast? Are you setting a target goal for new listeners to subscribe to your email list or RSS feed? Facebook ads are an analytics dream, as you are able to monitor and track how well your ad does. Facebook allows you to experiment with targeting, and you can easily track your progress. But you need to set measurable goals to justify the opportunity cost of investing in Facebook ads.

Facebook ads easily track how many visitors clicked through to your site after your ad went live. For podcasts, the primary way of measurement is to track daily downloads. Be sure to monitor your average daily downloads prior to your ad so you can make an assessment of success. This way, you will have reliable data from which you can analyze the success of your campaign.

Why Not Set Up A Trackable Landing Page?

To get a clear understanding on measurement, we recommend setting up a campaign to a vanity url where your podcast can live. In this case, it will be “clicks to website.”  On your landing page, you can have detailed information about your podcast, scheduling, opt-in emails, and a link to iTunes. This way, by having a landing page and driving your ad to a specific URL, you can easily track the success of your campaign.

Facebook provides you detailed reporting on clicks you to your site. You can then create a metric based on web visits & contract it to the number of downloads. For example, if you have one hundred people clicking on your podcast URL and 35 downloaded the show, you can measure success as a 35% download rate. From there, you can tweak your content or your ad targeting, based on the success of your campaign.

Mobile vs. Desktop Ads

When creating a new marketing campaign, it’s important that you know where to reach your audience. While desktop ads can be effective, far more Facebook users are accessing their feeds on a mobile device. Think about it, do you normally check Facebook on your computer or your phone?

Similarly, podcast listeners will usually listen to content when they’re out and about, on-the-go…while waiting in line, riding the bus, etc. So that means that it’s imperative that you reach out to your new customers where they are swimming. That means focus on mobile ads, not desktop. Additionally, you can go one step further and limit your ads to iOS or Android devices, depending on who hosts your podcast.

Targeting Your Audience

Back in the old days, you would run an ad campaign that would target as many people as possible, with the hope that a certain percentage would pay attention and act on the ad campaign. These days, however, you can target specific demographics in a way that was not possible before. Thus, depending on the content of your podcast, you can potentially find everyone who would thoroughly enjoy it, thus creating higher conversion rates.

For example, if your podcast is about the aviation industry, you will want to target people who have interests within that industry. If you talk about movies, then you will want to target cinephiles and movie buffs. No matter how niche your content is, you can find a market for them. That makes Facebook ads so appealing…the targeting aspect.

If you want to cast a wider net, then Facebook will allow you to market to people based on a vast array of interests. If a specific episodes covers a unique topic (or interest), you may change the targeting based on the episode & the target.

Ad Type & Images

So now that you know who to target and how to track your progress, what do you do about the ad itself? There are two options available to you: image and video ads. Both of them have their strengths and weaknesses, so let’s break them down.

If you have a logo for your podcast, then be sure to use it for branding purposes. However, a logo is not enough to grab people’s attention. You can use images of yourself, your podcast setup, and possibly your guests if you interview other people. If you manage to get a high-profile guest, then use a picture of your guest embedded with your logo.

For the most part, though, image ads have to be bold and captivating to get your audience’s attention. You may want to have a graphic designer create a Facebook ad that elevates your messaging.

Video

As far as advertising goes, video ads are becoming much more popular on Facebook. Perhaps the prevalence of clip-based media such as Snapchat and Instagram is helping to drive this trend, but nonetheless, videos are hot right now.

The best way to create a video ad is to follow this simple formula.

  • Keep it short (10-15 seconds)
  • Talk to your audience directly
  • Pitch your podcast as if you’re selling it as a product
  • Show some behind the scenes footage
  • Make yourself the star

Overall, as long as you can make your video ad engaging and compelling, then your audience will be more apt to tune in. If you are boring or unimaginative, then you will turn people off, which could wind up hurting you more as you become more infamous than famous.

Conclusion

When it comes to making sure that your podcast stands out from the crowd, Facebook advertising can help drive a new loyal audience, and it can help put small independent podcasters successful. At the very least, it will provide you online relevancy…which won’t hurt!  However, the most important thing to remember is that your content has to be ‘ready-for-the-public’, and must have consistency in distribution to provide sustainable value. If you have a terrible podcast or don’t consistently upload fresh content, then no amount of advertising will help you.

In short, produce excellent content on a regular basis, and your audience will grow naturally while using Facebook as a marketing tool.

Welcome to Version 2.0 of TopPodcast.com – Your ‘At Work’ Podcast Listening Network

What a great first year it’s been for TopPodcast.com. Thank you to the 125,000 users of our site…something we are grateful for. Our site continues to incrementally grow in a way that even has surprised us. Apparently Google loves us when it comes to organic podcast show discovery…and ultimately, our goal is to drive discovery to the podcast medium and be one of its biggest advocates.

Helping first time users embark on a journey of discovery, both for the podcast listener as well as the new advertiser looking for the right shows for their brand.

Your Listen At Work Station

We also want to be your “Listen at Work” Podcast Network…no iTunes, no app, no problem…your source for 1-click listening! No need to surf around from network to network. Just come back daily, see what’s hot…and take the show for a test drive. If you like what you hear, subscribe to the show on your smartphone via your favorite podcast app, of which you can discover here: Top Apps

Our initial goal was thee-fold:

  1. Make it simple for you to discover & listen to the top podcasts in the marketplace, particularly for those of you that never listened to a podcast.
  2. Provide a single-source hub where you find all the top podcast networks, publishers and content creators (and apps too)
  3. Help advertisers and agencies navigate a fragmented podcast industry, aligning their marketing objectives with the right shows for their integrated strategies…in an agnostic transparent manner.

As you become comfortable navigating the podcast industry, we want you to eventually ‘fly away’ and discover a network or app that you’re comfortable with and become a heavy podcast user. We’ll continue to help ‘newpods’ discover the medium & help businesses place their podcast advertising buys, agnostic and unbiased to any one publisher or network.

 

What’s New with Version 2.0?

  1. The site has made it easier to view that Top 25 podcasts of the day, directly on the homepage
  2. Shows now have categories highlighted in bold (light blue) under each podcast
  3. We’ve added more categories to our new Top Podcast Picks for easy discovery based on what you enjoy listening to
  4. For podcasters, we now are featuring ‘Independent Podcasters’ not beholden to any one network. They can stand out from all the white-noise in such a fragmented industry by showcasing themselves within our TopPodcast Independent Network, sharing the link directly to their shows
  5. Coming Soon – The TopPodcast Local Streaming Network (Creating Local Radio Stations with Top Local Podcasts in major markets for regional discovery)

Podcast Advertising Center is Open For Business

Businesses and brands looking to advertise within the medium, we are here to help make it easy for you. No other agency works the way we do, acting as a ‘podcast broker’, with you still being billed directly from the publisher…creating 100% transparency. No agency/publisher/ kickbacks, the way so many operate in today’s un-transparent world of media buying!

Check out our Podcast Advertising Center here…and let us do the work for you! We work with all the major podcast and digital audio networks and look forward to being your conduit to the podcast industry.

Check out the Top Picks Tab (pictured below) as well as categories highlighted in blue:

Click on TOP PICKS, to discover the Top Podcast by specific categories – Useful for first-timers!

Thanks again for a great first year! We can’t wait to see what happens next.

Kurt

The Rise of Native Advertising Bodes Well for the Podcasting Industry

Native advertising, sponsored content marketing, and branded content are used interchangeably within the digital advertising industry. It’s a powerful form of advertising that drives consumer reaction and drives activation. But how often are you hearing podcast advertising interchanged within this digital portfolio pool? The answer…not enough!

The rise and embracing of native advertising should provide a boon to the podcasting industry as it’s a natural extension to what the platform already organically delivers. But how many sales professionals working within the podcasting industry truly understand the meaning of native advertising vs. content marketing vs. branded content, specifically when we are speaking with potential advertisers?

We must be able to clearly make the distinction; so here’s a closer look at each of the terms, from the perspective of a digital marketer:

We must be able to clearly make the distinction:

Native Advertising:

“A form of paid media where the ad experience follows the natural form and function of the user experience in which it is placed. Communication about a brand or service that is defined by sharing two or more of the form, context or functionality of its host media platform

Content Marketing:

A strategic marketing approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly-defined audience – and ultimately, to drive profitable customer action. Communication by or about a brand, service or corporation that is not advertising and which shares all of the look (or manner), context and functionality of its host media or platform.

Branded Content:

Where media companies are becoming producers of brand content, yet they typically do not allow this content to be distributed on other platforms beyond their own. Contrary to embedded marketing, where the brand is placed within the content, branded content places the content within the brand

It’s imperative – and unforgivable for those of us that sell podcast advertising –  to not be able to clearly articulate how podcast advertising organically syncs up to native advertising budgets. It’s dismissive and arrogant not to understand the difference between the three advertising arms, as we cannot allow digital advertisers to continue to discount the power of podcast advertising campaigns. It’s time to control the narrative, especially when communicating with brands and digital buyers. We must speak their language, in order to sell ours.

So how does podcasting sync up beautifully to Native Advertising?

  1. Organic host-read ads are embedded into the fabric of a show deliver amplified engagement with the audience
  2. Podcast hosts typically choose and approve their advertisers, as they understand the content and attitudes their audience has – so, a host-read ad must align with the show organically
  3. Authenticity Matters: As hosts read a sponsored ad, the audience feels a unique kinship to the brand. Many hosts go to great lengths to makes sure new brands have on-boarding calls in order to align messaging that is clear and concise, yet natural and organic.
  4. Hosts Like To Use Products They Pitch: Typically, the hosts would have already tried out the product prior to doing a live read. The listener can hear it in the hosts voice when ‘they love a product’. This creates the unique charm between the host, the brand, and the listener.
  5. Activations and customer reactions can be clearly measured through vanity URLs and sales results, allowing clients to validate the ROI

Consumers desire quality, engaging content. This is exactly what podcast advertising provides, in an authentic, organic manner. Authenticity is imperative to native content and brand publishing programs.

While extending existing digital native campaigns to the podcasting world makes sense for advertisers, we must do a better job to further educate digital buyers (and companies) on the value and responsiveness of podcast advertising.

Podfluencers are Brand Amabassadors

Digital ‘Influencer’ campaigns require ‘in-sync coordination’ to ensure messages are consistent and amplified on multiple consumer channels.  More often than not, the podcast medium has not been recognized by digital buyers as one of these channels. Bought, earned and owned media must be integrated for maxim effectiveness. That’s why podcast advertising along with the explosion of native content positions the podcast industry favorably. The power of a ‘podfluencer’ and the impact they have on their audience can’t be underestimated.

The Industry Must Be Better Advocates & More Savvy At Digital

At the end of the day, we as advocates for the podcast industry must make sure we are a part of the native advertising conversation. This only comes with consistent education and advocacy while demanding that your podcast sales teams have a clear grasp of digital terminology and integrated strategies.

Our industry must understand the complex data-driven strategies being executed by our digital brethren. If we act as a ‘one-trick pony’, only focusing on audio delivery, we are doing the podcast industry (and our clients) a huge huge disservice.

Let’s forge a united front and make sure podcasting advertising becomes a part of ‘every integrated digital conversation’. In my eyes, Podcast Advertising is the purest form of native content!

INTERESTED IN PODCAST ADVERTISING? INQUIRE TODAY via our PODCAST BUSINESS CENTER!

 

Advertise on a Podcast Today!

How A Podcast Will Make Your Small Business Stand Out

Whether you’re a lawyer, an accountant, or someone that’s simply selling widgets via an e-commerce site, it’s imperative to be relevant, both online and within the industry you work within. Building relevancy, as an authoritative subject matter expert is contingent upon how you market yourself.

And remember, perception is reality!

A Consistent Podcast Adds Immediate Relevancy

Small business owners compete against those that are utilizing powerful integrated marketing strategies to drive people to discover them. But once the ‘prospective consumer’ discovers you, they ultimately will conduct additional research, especially for those that have a ‘service based’ business.

Educated consumers will review your blog, check your Linked-In, look for publicly posted reviews and feedback, and even possibly call your clients, asking for a referral.

But there’s another way that you can stand out from the crowd, once someone discovers you…it’s producing your own Podcast.

A Podcast Adds Another Touch Point to the Consumer

A Podcast, curated specifically for your business, will not only amplify your message across another touch-point, it adds credibility to your overall market position.

If produced effectively, here are the advantages of having your own business podcast:

  1. It Personalizes You To the Prospective Client: When someone listens to your podcast, the topics you are discussing are of interest to the listener. An engaged listener ‘opts-in’ to a podcast. It’s important, early in the podcast (possibly in the opening slate) to express the benefits of listening and what your company provides. Grab their attention by highlighting other businesses you’ve helped…and then, move on to the specific topic for that episode.
  2. An Introspective They Can’t Discover in a Blog or a Banner: Provide detailed insight about your brand or product to the listener. Consider interviewing a client as it adds depth that no other advertorial can provide. By adding a level of intimacy, this will drive listeners to activate or seriously consider buying
  3. Expand Your Network of Connections: A podcast affords you the currency to invite someone to participate in your show, providing an access point and connection that you may not have had prior to producing a viable podcast. An interview expands the intimacy with your audience while expanding your network. It is an indirect  yet masterful way to solicit future business.
  4. Public Perception as a Subject Matter Expert: Perception is reality, right? By having a podcast, and doing it consistently, no matter how many people listen to it automatically elevates your credibility (as long as your podcast sounds clear, concise, topical and professional). Expanding your message beyond blogs, newsletters, and web content will go far in how you are perceived in the marketplace, especially by your competitors.
  5. A Podcast Is Free – Your Product Is Not: By having a podcast, you are providing ‘free information’ for consumption of those interested. It’s a way for you to demonstrate you are here to help those that listen, based on your professional trade. If they ‘want more’, you have the ability to offer your services. Just as important, you can add revenue streams inside your podcast, adding incentives and discounts to those listening.

Conclusion: A Podcast Can Validate You As a Subject Matter Expert

Yes, a consistent podcast can be a valuable tool to the small business owner. It validates your position as a subject matter expert, and most importantly, allows you to create an authentic connection with a prospective consumer…who may one day need your services.

Bottom line, it expands your reach to another touch-point…providing you enhanced relevancy!

If you need help starting a podcast for your business, give us a call…we can help guide you in the right direction!

The Instersection of Digital Marketing & Podcast Advertising – Not an Oxymoron Anymore

Do opposites attract? Psychologists say that couples who are too similar to each other are less likely to last. When it comes to digital marketing and podcasting, the collision course has been very complicated.

Why So Complicated?

The digital buying community, more often than not, perceives podcasting as the opposite of the digital medium…associating podcast advertising too closely to the terrestrial audio world.

Analyzing this pre-conceived notion more closely, it’s time to change this mindset. Here’s why:

Podcast Ads are the Purest Form of Native Advertising

The characteristics of podcasting ads– to the novice advertiser dovetail with terrestrial radio. Many view it as a spoken-word format. But a deeper dive assessing the true characteristics of podcasting advertising drives a new narrative…one that advertisers must understand. Specifically, podcast advertising is the purest form of native advertising.

Beyond native advertising, many companies are now creating podcasts as a form of branded content, using it as a marketing platform for their organization.

Native Advertising Walks A ‘Fine Line’

In regards to native advertising, podcast personalities walk a fine line when it comes to host-read ‘advertisements’ vs. actual personal ‘endorsements’. It’s this murkiness, if you will, that has led many direct response advertisers to successfully find a home within the industry. Ultimately, digital marketers love native advertising, and there’s nothing more native than an organic live-read embedded into the fabric of a podcast.

Digital Buyers Typically Stick With What They Know

Generally speaking, birds of a feather flock together. Digital advertisers stick to what they know: SEO, PPC, video, banners, traditional native digital ads, e-mail, social, mobile, etc. However, podcast advertising is aggressively knocking on the digital door. We want to come in. We want to swim in your $70 billion advertising pool.

But because of a lack of clarity and advocacy, it’s been tough to get the respect we deserve, specifically from digital buyers.

Why is this? Because we have failed to aggressively demonstrate that we deserve to be treated on the same level of digital advertising. 

A Lack of Education Has Allowed Others To Control the Narrative

Because of the lack of education, specifically within the digital buying community, podcast advertising has not been readily accepted as a pure digital product. Despite the fact that podcast industry revenue continues to grow at a double-digit clip, it is a mere blip of digital’s massive $70 billion annual advertising take.

Just look at the typical ad agency. Many audio buying teams still manage podcasting buys for their clients. Digital buyers aren’t reallocating dollars to podcasting as aggressively as they should. Remarkably, many advertising agencies don’t even have podcast experts within their ranks, which again, creates a disregard for podcast advertising as a legitimate digital offering.

The segregation of podcast advertising needs to change, specifically for national clients focusing on direct response campaigns and storefront businesses that have capitalized on e-commerce strategies.

Podcast Advertising Delivers Multiple Digital Properties

Within the podcast industry, listener retention is high & engagement is exceptional. Podcasting Advertising is unique on the digital spectrum because:

  • Podcasting Ads are the purest form of Native Advertising
  • Podcast Ads deliver Content Integration
  • Podcast Ads can be Branded Content

While all three digital strategies are used interchangeably, it’s imperative that those of us that sell podcast advertising can tell them apart. If publishers & their sales teams fail to understand the distinction between native advertising and content integration and native ad placements, then we will fail to articulate how podcasting advertising can be integrated into any complex digital strategy.

Bottom line, it’s an integrated world we are living in and we must as educated as our clients…digitally.

ROI Is What Really Matters

Digital advertisers, much to their displeasure, are held to higher standards than traditional ad mediums when it comes to attribution and measurability. And measurability has been a crutch that has held the podcast industry back too.

While the podcast industry is challenged because of our lack of ‘internal’ measurement, it’s time to amplify the success stories podcast advertisers have when it comes to delivering actual results.

After all, it’s the ROI that matters to a client, not external third-party spreadsheets that highlight viewability, video-to-completion rates, impressions, and click-throughs.

Activation & Results Trump Pretty Spreadsheets

What does podcast advertising do best?: ACTIVATE!  While our self-inflicted limitations in failing to embrace an ‘industry-accepted delivery method’ inhibits advertiser participation, podcast ads deliver direct results that trump any industry prejudice. We must do a better job amplifying this narrative with new advertisers.

After all, how much noise did the industry make when comScore and Wondery released a study last summer saying:

Two-thirds of podcast listeners have engaged in various research and/or purchase related behaviors as a result of advertising exposure from podcasts. Among all forms of advertising on mobile devices, podcasts create the highest improvement in perception. And among all forms of digital advertising, podcast ads are considered the least intrusive.

Now that’s a powerful statement that most digital advertisers have no clue about!

comScore Says People Prefer Ads in Podcasts Over Any Other Digital Medium

We should have been screaming on the doorstep of every digital agency, in a unified manner, what this study means. Every publisher should have sent press releases to every agency, highlighting the message that this study uncovered. Yes, Ad Week headlined the fact that “comScore Says People Prefer Ads in Podcasts Over Any Other Digital Medium’ (June 3, 2016), but it’s not enough to rely on others to tell our story.

Podcasting & Digital Advertising – Not an Oxymoron Anymore

TopPodcast.com is here to Advocate, Amplify, and Educate! We will knock on doors to make sure that the digital buying community clearly understands what is occurring on this side of the digital-audio universe. But it’s high-time that the industry decides to unite together in becoming more digitally savvy, allowing us to communicate the power of podcast advertising more effectively.

Bottom line, when viewed through a digital lens, podcasting advertising is not incongruent, let alone an oxymoron anymore! It’s one of the purest forms of native advertising in the marketplace.

Interested in exploring Podcast Advertising? Contact us through our Podcast Business Center!

 

Turning Your Business Blog Into A Podcast…It’s Transferable!

While podcasting is not the newest marketing platform on the block, its growth trajectory is explosive — and interest in the platform continues to grow. It is catching the eyes of business & brands. Inviting colleagues, leaders, and influencers to speak on a business podcasts is common practice. You’ll find everything from parenting and religion to engineering and comedy to politics and conspiracy theories covered in the hundreds of thousands of podcasts broadcasted each day.

Podcasts intimately entertain us, educate us, and, if done correctly, always engage us. Bottom line, podcasts are an authentic way for brands and businesses to create a connection with a loyal audience. As a result, many businesses and marketing leaders are finding that podcasts are an ideal way to expand their audience reach, having their brand speak for themselves. And now, Companies watching from afar are beginning to want in. But does it really make sense to invest in the resources to create a podcast for your brand? Yes…especially if your business has had a successful blog…the transition can be seamless. 

Your Blog Holds the Keys To A Seamless Podcast

I know what you are thinking, especially as a business owner. How complicated is it to create a podcast, let alone advertise on one? In addition to elevating brand recognition, a comprehensive podcast advertising campaign will complement any integrated digital marketing strategy. You just need an expert to guide you on making the right show selections based on your target market (that’s where we come in). But what about creating your own podcast? What advantages could this have?

Creating your own business podcast, promoting your products or services, provides another touch point of content distribution. Not only are you pushing your product out to a targeted audience, but a business podcast delivers additional relevancy, especially when executed with a clear, targeted message.

We all know how important editorial content is, via blogs, especially when it comes to being discovered organically by Google. Many businesses use blogs to push out news & information to their target audience.  But image turning your blogs into audio platforms, via podcasts, creating another point of consumption and relevancy? You’re basically taking editorial content, and converting it into audio story-telling.

Maybe you regularly publish case studies, white papers, weekly newsletters, or even books, all of which give readers a detailed, in-depth look at a certain subjects, services, or products. But imagine pushing this content out with a consistent podcast, in the same manner you push out your editorial content?

Whether your blogs share industry trends, product information, a behind-the-scenes look at your business, or instruction on a lesser-known facet of the company, your readers appreciate the value that you provide them. It builds an authentic trust with your buyers. By pushing out content on a new platform, such as a business podcast, it drives a new narrative of credibility while also creating a powerful connection to those that opt-in.

Business podcasts are focused, like a blog, and create another touch point for your audience. As long as you provide something of value, your business podcast could become a powerful marketing asset. It also could be used as an internal resource for your employees, driving the narrative of your corporate culture.

The goal, with any business podcast, is not necessarily to grow a huge following, but rather focus on providing a feature or benefit appealing to the listener, or better yet, drive sales and activations. Those that read your blog, following you on social platforms, or receive your newsletter are more likely to listen to your podcast. It’s simply another form of content distribution, allowing you to harness the power of a multiple-touch point strategy.

Authenticity is the key and listeners appreciate that the business podcast publishers are focused on providing information and services that directly impact things that interest them.

Taking Your Already Existing Content & Making It Transferable in a Story

A Business Podcasts can take your valued content and make it easily transferable, creating a story line. The same subjects that you discuss in your blog can be moved to your podcast — and added to your marketing plan. But first, make sure you answer these questions?

  • Can you provide a consistent commitment to push out a valuable message to your customers?
  • Set a clear objective of what your goals are?
  • Will you provide an inside look at your company and brand?
  • Where can you distribute your podcasts? (Social Platforms, Newsletters, Emails, Employees)
  • Will a podcast make you stand out from your competition?

How Can A Business Effectively Dive Into Podcasting?

  • Use your already existing blog content to create podcasts
  • Provide authoritative content that your audience demands
  • Integrate & Highlight Success Stories
  • Provide unique offerings only available on your podcast (Customer Codes, etc)
  • Highlight corporate partners or employees that are making a difference with your business

The Final Verdict: Podcasting is a Good Investment

Podcasting is a fantastic way to amplify your companies message. If effectively produced and managed, it will be worth the investment. But your podcast isn’t going to be an overnight solution to a wider reach. It requires patience, planning, and consistency. It also requires you to work with an integrated marketing expert, like TopPodcast.com, who can help guide you on executing a strategy.  Our Podcast Business Center is open for business!

 

Entercom’s Pact with ‘Cadence13’ Changes Podcast Trajectory for CBS Radio’s Talent

It will be a new day for CBS Radio and their podcast platform, pending final Justice Department approval (expected November 17) with their merger with Entercom. And let’s just say it’s an unprecedented opportunity for Entercom to harness the personalities and assets CBS Radio delivers. With iconic spoken word stations across the country, formats that align organically to the podcast industry, they’ve admittedly struggled in driving podcast ad revenues despite a vast roster of shows.

Their top executives (I know, because I used to work there) will be the first to admit that they’ve had a limited ‘podcast strategy’ and have yet to allocate enough resources to thrust the platform forward. Understandably, there’s been a wait-and-see attitude until the merger goes through to figure this ‘podcast thing’ out. <Full Disclosure: I turned down the opportunity to oversee the Podcast Sales Division at CBS Radio in April 2016, leaving to start TopPodcast.com and have massive respect for the current Digital leadership at the company> 

In what was a bold ‘pre-merger’ move, Entercom invested in Cadence 13 (formerly DGital Media), a move that will surely change the podcast landscape for the new company, bringing in an experienced team that accelerates podcast curation and surely revenues.

Entercoms Partnership With Cadence 13 Is A Big Deal For CBS Radio Talent

Entercom executives have been aggressive in shaping the future of the new company. The move (announced in August) in acquiring a 45% stake in the company for $9.7 million sent shockwaves throughout the podcast community.

Click To Visit Site

Not only does Entercom see an obvious opportunity to drive podcast advertising revenue, it is an acknowledgement that a vast media organization like CBS Radio provides a seamless transition to the podcast evolution. Why it has taken this long for radio to make a dominant move into the space (other than NPR and more recently iHeart Radio) is surprising…but better late than never!

A couple observations:

  • The partnership sends a clear signal that the podcast platform is one that Entercom and their executives takes very seriously
  • Entercom’s $9.7 million investment highlights a realization that they are salivating over CBS Radio’s unlimited podcast revenue potential via their spoken-word news & sports stations (and the powerful personalities within)
  • The move is a clear signal that Entercom is willing to invest in the podcast platform the that way NPR & iHeart have done (iHeart made big moves a year ago, bringing in SVP Chris Peterson to lead their aggressive podcast strategy)
  • Cadence 13 brings the experience necessary to control all facets of execution, from content curation, to production, to marketing…and most importantly, experts in the podcast field to help steer the strategy
  • CBS Radio made their own preemptive move, scrapping their confusing Play.it podcast network (thank god), and completely overhauling their Radio.com website and app (a great move by current CBS Radio Digital execs who have made tremendous strides over the last year prepping for the merger) – check it out by clicking on the banner below.
Check it out!

NPR Is The Perfect Podcast Mentor for the Newly Merged Company

In the same capacity that NPR is a news-gathering organization, CBS Radio is also a premier ‘news-gathering’ organization with their aforementioned iconic spoken word format (News, Sports, Politics)

An analysis of the success that NPR has had, with limited resources, turning their ‘news-gathering’ organization into a revenue-generating podcast powerhouse, must excited Entercom executives in regards to the assets they now control.

Even what was once considered an ‘old-school media outlet’, the New York Times has reinvigorated their digital properties, along with successfully capturing a massive loyal audience through their podcast “The Daily”.

Click to Listen

Why has NPR cracked the code in driving a tremendous podcast revenue strategy, one that other Radio publishers have yet to capture?

Click to Listen!

Here’s a few reasons:

  • NPR has been able to significantly monetize their podcast platform, using a formula that allows their ‘reporters’ and ‘spoken word’ formats to thrive in a new age of on-demand digital consumption
  • The podcast platform is one that is embraced at every level within the company, from programming to sales to marketing…it’s an all-in strategy 
  • Most importantly, they’ve significantly invested in the platform, nurturing and testing shows, all of which align with their audience…and they’re not afraid to have a bogey once in a while.
Click To Listen!

In my article “NPR: An Authentic News Gathering Organization That Has Always Leaned In”, I highlighted just how exceptional NPR has been on the podcast side of the table and why other Radio organizations could have mirrored their formula earlier.

NPR has clearly figured out the podcast formula & the execs at Entercom must realize the untapped opportunity CBS Radio delivers with their talent of on-air personalities.

Entercom Sees Significant Value in Spoken Word (especially Sports)

What does CBS Radio have that most Radio brands don’t? News reporters & sports radio personalities scattered across the country that come with their brand! They also partner with The New York Yankees, The Philadelphia Phillies, The Philadelphia Eagles, and the Chicago Cubs, to name a few of the powerful Sports Radio Networks they have.

The combination of news and sports stations provide an unprecedented opportunity to curate new custom podcast content, not just re-purposing current popular radio shows, of which CBS Radio primarily relies on.

It’s apparent that ENTERCOM  sees a major opportunity to drive podcast ad revenues. And that means that the best is yet to come for CBS Radio & their on-air personalities. 

The question will be how fast can Entercom capitalize on the reach and power of local personalities that dominate local conversations, curating content beyond the limitations of traditional re-purposed radio. And can they get their sales teams  to execute a revenue generating strategy that works or will they simply rely on Cadence 13 to drive podcast ad sales?

Local, Local, Local –> Personalities In Local Markets Will Drive Podcasting

A few weeks back, we featured both Wayne Cabot & Patti Steel, two on-air  CBS Radio personalities who host “News on the Rocks” on what used to be called Play.it — now Radio.com.

#TopPodcast Podflueners Wayne Cabot, morning news anchor at WCBS-AM 880 and Patti Steele, co-host of The Scott Shannon in the Morning Show on CBS FM, have taken it on their own to get their podcast off the ground. It’s just one example of the in-house talent just waiting for an opportunity to blossom.

Cadence 13 brings legitimate podcast expertise to the new company, delivering the much needed resources ‘in-house’ to catapult podcasts like News on the Rocks forward.

Click to Listen

 

‘Building a Bridge Between The Old & New Media World’ – The Conundrum Cadence 13 Can Help Solve

The podcast conundrum is just a microcosm of what has been a slow evolution for Radio organizations to embrace digital change, top to bottom. But the partnership with Cadence 13 changes the narrative for a major publisher and they bring immediately the following tools:

  • Original Content Creation Opportunities
  • Monetization of the Podcast Platform
  • Multi-Platform Distribution & Cross-Promotion

As podcast industry expert Nick Quah mentioned in his newsletter HOT POD, just after the DGital Media (Cadence13) partnership was announced:

DGital Media has always struck me as fascinating, exhibiting a blend of old- and new-school that turned out to be somewhat effective. Founded and built by Westwood One alums — a cadre that includes CEO Spencer Brown, President David Landau, and Chief Content Officer Chris Corcoran, along with many other imports up and down the staff directory — the podcast company has firmly worked off what you could call a familiar playbook: build a roster of personalities across well-validated genres (business, sports, comedy, politics), develop a portfolio of talk programming on top of them, and leverage their advertising expertise and relationships carried over from their radio days.

In a nutshell,  yes Cadence 13 “allows CBS Radio & Entercom to build a bridge between the old and the new media world, as Nick stated…but most importantly it implements a strategy that firmly aligns with the changing consumption habits of their loyal listeners”. 

And it’s about time…

 

 

 

 

#TopPodcast.com – Reverse Engineered For Those That Haven’t Explored A Podcast Yet

A great mastermind once said that whenever you introduce a new product it’s better to reverse-engineer it from the position of the consumer…rather than create something that ‘you think’ the consumer will want. Thank you Steve Jobs.

Simplifying Podcast Discovery With One Click Listening

No iTunes? No App? No Problem…Listen Immediately!

#TopPodcast delivers simplicity to a complex industry, particularly from the perspective of the consumer that hasn’t explored the platform. A one-stop shop to explore, discover, point, click, listen.

How is this possible? 

  • Find a show via our Top 200 iTunes Ranking and listen with one click
  • Search for the Top iTune ranked shows by category
  • Listen without downloading any app or browsing any network
  • Explore the Top Publishers & their notable shows directly on our site (If you like them, you can visit their network directly)
  • Explore the Top Apps, once you get comfortable with the medium.
  • We encourage you to download an app once you find a show, network, or publisher you enjoy.

29% – A Statistic That is Favorable to TopPodcast.com

According to the 2017 Infinite Dial Report, 29% of people that listen to podcasts do it at work

Why does this matter to us? No iTunes, No App, No Problem

  • We will be the authoritative destination for those that explore podcasting in the office
  • We take away the confusion and complexity of trying to figure out how to listen to a podcast
  • No need to download iTunes or an app –> TopPodcast.com provides full access to listen via our integrated feeds
Let  TopPodcast.com be your ‘at-office authority’ for podcast discovery?

The Front Page to the Podcast Industry

For Consumers/Listeners: With so much white noise diluting those trying to garner attention in the industry, use TopPodcast to quickly discover what’s currently hot. You can literally take a show for a test drive before marrying it, and you can do this without jumping from network to network.

For Advertisers & Brands: Secondly, for advertisers, explore our blog to see just how brands are aligning with podcasts to connect with a very engaged audience. They are using techniques far more complex than traditional ad buys. Many integrate a complex digital marketing campaign to complement their digital buys. Let us help you!

Reverse Engineered For Those That Haven’t Used the Platform

With TopPodcast.com, you don’t need iTunes on your computer. You don’t need an app. You don’t need to google anything! Simply come to the site, explore the Top 200 Podcasts…check out our 90 for 90 top reccomended picks…and #Boom…New Listeners become Loyal Listeners to the Industry!

More Than A One-Trick Pony When It Comes To Podcast Advertising

For businesses, one of the most significant elements we bring to the podcast industry is a digital marketer’s mindset. Our team understands integrated strategy & we know how brands are executing multi-attributions channels on that side of the table.

Many in the podcast industry simply stick to what they know best…selling stand-alone podcast ads. And that’s ok! However, to compete in an integrated world, the industry must expand its skill-set. That’s where we come in, particularly through our Podcast Business Center, and the offerings #TopPodcast Digital Enterprises bring to life.

Changing the Narrative in the Digital Buying Community

TopPodcast.com will help drive a narrative to make podcast advertising more readily accepted within the $70 billion digital advertising industry. Born and bred digital marketers and podcast insiders, our team understands how the digital marketplace has been sprinting ahead of the podcast community.

Despite the prejudice against our industry by certain digital buyers (for our measurement limitations), direct response advertisers are experiencing tremendous success with podcast advertising. We must highlight this narrative within the digital buying community.

Through education & advocacy, we will take control of the narrative & push messaging beyond the walls of the industry. Bottom line, podcast advertising must be a part of any integrated strategy.

 The podcast medium must be accepted as a true digital product and no longer pushed off to the side by digital buyers to terrestrial audio planners

More Than A One-Trick Pony – We are Tactical Digital Marketers

Times have changed over the last decade despite podcasting’s decade-old purity. Through no fault of their own, many in the podcast industry have neglected to fully embrace the digital realm.

By implementing adaptive multi-attribution strategies alongside traditional podcast ad campaigns, we deliver a unique POV that most don’t. What makes our leadership team uniquely qualified to join the podcasting party? We understand all digital platforms, we understand the importance of analytics and we’ve created experiential marketing campaigns.

We dive into a companies digital strategy. It’s an integrated world that’s evolved since the inception of podcasting & we believe in delivering more than a stand-alone podcast buy.

 

The stand-alone approach of selling is no longer acceptable when it comes to delivering a podcast audience. It’s not just about ‘maximizing success for brands in premium podcasts’. Rather, it’s about having the digital knowledge to understand the complex integrated tools businesses are using to reach their valued audience.

TopPodcast.com has the digital expertise along with extensive podcast sales knowledge to maximize any integrated marketing strategy. And we speak your language when it comes to digital platforms.

Before you place a podcasting buy, ask your podcast agency if they understand the difference between native advertising and content marketing? Do they understand programmatic and adaptive marketing strategies that companies are executing? How involved have they been with experiential, event-based campaigns?

We have a feeling you might just hear crickets. Visit our Podcast Center today…inquire how we can help take your podcast advertising to the next level.

Hyper-Local Podcast Festivals Drive Regional Discovery, Like the Philly Podcast Festival

As people incrementally continue to discover and embrace the podcast industry, we’re seeing events and festivals pop up all over the country. These ‘localized’ events provide an opportunity for those that have never listened to a podcast to learn what all this podcasting fuss is all about.

LOCAL FESTIVALS DRIVE REGIONAL DISCOVERY

The publicity that comes with regional festivals helps drive localized discovery, filling one of the voids currently thwarting the industry. In Philadelphia, there’s a hyper-local podcast event currently taking place that highlights just how relevant the podcast industry has become. It’s called The Philly Podcast Festival, which features 55+ podcasts recording live shows at 8 venues across the city between July 14th and July 23rd, 2017.  VIEW EVENT SCHEDULE HERE. In addition to featuring local podcasts making their mark, the most impactful element impact may be demonstrating how podcasts really are ‘experiential’ via live events. That caveat is now drawing the attention of big brands.

As someone that follows the industry closely, I often find myself frustrated how many podcast events are gatherings where the industry talks to one another. Too often, there’s little expansion beyond the core participants of those currently utilizing the medium. But the uniqueness of the Philly festival should drive ‘newpods’ (newcomers) to explore on-demand audio, and it turns a listening experience into a full-fledged scheduled event. Meanwhile, the local publicity it’s receiving has been tremendous.

As Jonathan Takiff, of Philly.com wrote:

For clues on how big and lucrative the world of podcasting is getting, consider the Philadelphia Podcast Festival, planting flags at nine area venues this Friday night through July 23. At the first fest five years ago, organizers had to dig to find a dozen local podcast creators to record shows before a live audience, said Teagan Kuruna, host of the podcast “Teagan Goes Vegan” and festival coordinator with her husband, Nathan. Last year, the festival made room for 30 podcast sessions. And this year, there will be 55 sessions hosted by locals, with many more who “couldn’t be accommodated,” Kuruna said. All will be recording hour-long (max) episodes of their internet-streamed programs before a live audience, schmoozing about everything from books to pop music to Philly sports to serious social issues.

PHILLY SPORTS PODCASTS TAKING OFF

TopPodcast.com was also quoted in the article, highlighting how Philly sports podcasters are aligning with the fervor of die-hard local sports fans…and these shows are taking off. Here’s what I mentioned:

Philly sports podcasters are gaining the most traction here with per-episode listenership in the “tens of thousands” for Spike Eskin (son of Howard) with his 76ers-themed “The Rights to Ricky Sanchez” and Kyle Scott with CrossingBroad.com. (Neither is in the festival.) “Spinning off his big sports blog, Scott launched a podcast he records Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 6 a.m., then puts up  online by 7:30 a.m, going up against the morning sports talk on WIP and The Fanatic. He’s really disruptive, really innovative.”

LOCAL ADVERTISING DOLLARS STILL MISSING FROM INDUSTRY

In order to continue to break through as an advertisers option, one of the last hurdles the podcast medium needs to overcome is promoting local shows in regional markets. Discovery is still burdensome, particularly in localized communities. When the industry finally masters that aspect of distribution and discovery, by zipcode, it will finally be able to effectively go after local radio and print advertising dollars.

To align with digital buyers, ‘geo-targeting’ podcasts are a must. Yes, it’s possible to do it via ad-insertions, device id’s, IP addresses…and the technology is available and many are doing it. However, the limitations are real due to the lack of inventory in certain geo-graphic regions.

EXPERIENTIAL AND LOCAL PODCASTS = MISSING LINK

But, if the industry is able to have a more effective way to discover local podcasts, and better yet, have them do live broadcast on-site at events, it may just be one of the missing links to take podcast advertising to $1 Billion within 5 years. It’s local advertising dollars that are missing from the current $220 million podcast advertising market…and it’s time to change that.