Chances are you already listen to podcasts? You listen to them while you’re getting ready in the morning, in the shower, commuting to work, running, working out, walking the dog, and making dinner.
And that is why podcasts are so powerful. There’s an intimacy level between the podcast listener and the podcast host. And because of that, podcasts are the best form of content for building the level of trust between you and your customer that leads to awareness, advocacy, and loyalty. Even though they are often referred to as content marketing, in my opinion they are referral marketing on a grand scale.
And that’s what we’re going to talk about today.
Podcasts build relationships with engaged listeners who grow to know, like, and trust you.
And I want you to concentrate on that LIKE factor… people do like the podcast host.
Why is that? Let’s talk about the average podcast listener.
They listen to seven episodes per week, six hours of audio content per week, and 95 minutes of audio content per day.
To put that in perspective. If we were to break that weekly time into 15-second ads on YouTube, that’s 1,440 15 second ads that they’re spending, listening to the podcast host.
They listen everywhere… at home, in the car, while they’re walking the dog, while they’re at work, while they’re working out at the gym.
Your voice is in their ears, millimeters from their eardrums.
You’re sharing stories. And this is a primal thing for human beings. Since the dawn of time, we’ve been sharing stories. Even when we were in dark caves, sitting around a fire, this is how we communicated. We told stories to each other.
The podcast listener feels like they are there with you, even though they have no direct connection to you.
And because of this connection, the podcast listener feels like they know you. They feel like you are connected to them in some way.
Let me share a story about one of my clients. Michelle Chalfant lives in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is a therapist and created a podcast to share her philosophy and some of the techniques that she uses with her patients.
And over the last three years, she’s built up a pretty good-sized podcast audience.
Two years ago, she took her family to Barcelona, Spain to drop off one of her children for a semester abroad. And during the trip, at some point, someone had a headache. So she went down to the local pharmacy to get some ibuprofen. And when she walked in the door, the person behind the counter said, “Oh my God, you’re Michelle!!! I listen to your podcast. How are you doing? I never thought I would see you here. I knew you were coming to Spain, but I didn’t know what part of Spain.”
This woman behind the counter knew Michelle, even though Michelle had never met her. She was blown away… they were friends because she spent hours listening to Michelle in her car or walking around. She knew things about Michelle’s life because Michelle had shared them authentically on her podcast.
Podcasts showcase your expertise and authority.
After a few hours of sharing your knowledge, your experience, your stories, and advice. You are an expert to the listener and because they have an authentic connection with you, it accelerates that expert status much faster than a video or a blog.
Let me tell you about another one of my clients named Mike Kim. I met Mike at a podcasting conference in 2016.
As most podcasters do, we told each other about our podcasts. So, a month after the conference I started listening to his podcast.
Mike is a personal branding expert. So I tried out some of the things he was advising on his show and they worked. So I decided to buy his course. And when I bought his course, the things I tried, worked. So I joined Mike’s mastermind. I’ve now been in his mastermind for five years and he eventually became one of my clients. And why did I do this? I did this because I trusted him. After all, he was an expert in my eyes. He was an authority on personal branding.
Podcasts listeners are a desirable demographic.
Based on data collected by Edison Research and Nielsen, currently, 162 million Americans have listened to a podcast. That’s over 50% of Americans. 39% of podcast listeners are age 35 to 54. 56% of podcast listeners are age 12 to 34, 31% have a household income of a hundred thousand dollars or more per year, 57% have at least a four-year college degree and 63% have full-time employment.
And there are even more significant stats about their behavior. 74% of podcast listeners, listen to learn new things. Now, if I want to learn how to fix my sink, I might go to YouTube. But if I want to learn a new skill or understand something, if I want to change something about my life, if I want to grow my business, if I want to communicate something more in-depth, I go to a podcast.
And because listeners trust the podcast host, 65% of listeners said podcast ads increase purchase intent. 54% said they are more likely to consider a brand after hearing a podcast ad, and 57% of podcast ads outperform video pre-roll ads for intent to purchase!!
And here’s the most significant stat I know of when it comes to podcast listeners,…
93% of podcast listeners listen to more than half or all of each episode. Whereas you might get a video watcher to watch two minutes out of a 12-minute video and they might be skipping around, the podcast listener is going to listen to more than half or all of each episode. And when the average podcast episode is between 30 minutes to 45 minutes. That means that people are spending at least 15 to 20 minutes, listening to you and your content.
Let me share another example from one of my clients. Ernie Svenson has a podcast called Law Firm Autopilot, where he helps law firms systematize, automate and go paperless so that they can have smaller staffs, lower budgets, lower expenses, and compete with much larger firms. Ernie was one of the first five law bloggers on the internet. He started his blog back in 2004 and built an entire business from his blog over the past 16 years.
When Ernie started his podcast three years ago, he saw so much engagement from listeners that he immediately told me that if he had to do it all over again, he would have started a podcast before a blog because the quality of the communication and conversion coming from podcast listeners was much better than he’d ever seen from his blog.
Podcasts are an evergreen content asset.
Podcasts do not go viral. They are not a short-term tactic. Podcasts are an appreciable asset. They grow over time. And if you’re consistent, if you show up each week, that consistency compounds.
A podcast listener may discover a podcast at episode 25 or episode 50, but then because of their connection to the host, they go back to the beginning of your podcast and listen all the way through, from the beginning,
Podcasts are a long game… a long-term investment. You have to stick with it. And if you do, they can be a funnel delivering return on investment for years. And no matter what your definition of return on investment is, you will see this from a podcast.
Let me share an example from my client, Mike, that I mentioned earlier. Six years ago in July of 2015 on episode 41 of his podcast, Mike spoke about some standard forms and templates that he uses when trying to make a sale.
He shared his sales call script, client onboarding questionnaire, and a few other things, and then packaged these as a PDF to sell for $50. Six years later, he still has five to ten purchases per month. From this product that is buried in episode 41, he gets $250 to $500 per month.
Podcasts are better than traditional communications.
Do you like meetings? Do you like reading memos? Do you like TL;DR emails? Do you read direct mailers? Do you watch commercials on TV anymore? Do you click on ads that pop up on social media? A lot of people will say no to the above questions.
Podcasts are more convenient. They can be consumed in many different locations. They can be consumed at 2x speed for the people that want to get done faster. Some people prefer to listen versus reading.
And most importantly, the podcast allows leaders to virtually connect one-on-one with the customer. If you’re in a business or corporation where the C-suite leader will never meet each customer one-on-one, the podcast is the chance to connect in that way.
Additionally, a leader has more freedom to connect authentically and be vulnerable in a podcast that they’re recording alone in a room versus in front of a large crowd or a store somewhere. It’s a more engaging way to communicate. And additionally, you get the chance to bridge time zones because listeners can listen on their schedule.
Now’s the time to get started.
Podcasts improve customer service and customer experience by building relationships with customers who grow to know, like, and trust you. They establish you as an expert or authority in your customer’s eyes. They reach customers who are likely to be loyal brand advocates. They create an evergreen funnel for finding new customers. And they allow you to communicate with more customers more desirably and effectively.
If you are considering starting a podcast to connect more with your customers, we would love to help you get started. Please schedule a time to talk with me at https://emeraldcitypro.com/call
