Top 5 Reasons to Start a Podcast
If you’re thinking about starting a podcast, here are the top 5 reasons to get started today.
Build Your Brand
You’re not a business owner? That’s ok. Building the brand of you can be about anything you like — your work, hobby, journey, music, or passion.
In podcasting, you can be seen/heard as an expert after you publish a number of episodes and gain street cred as an authority in whatever industry you’re focused on. You can promote your products and services directly or indirectly by becoming an industry leader and interviewing successful people in your field.
Your interview may get shared on social networks and you might even get invited onto other people’s podcasts! Even if you feel like you are speaking on the same topic as many other people, your communication style and personality will present that information to the world in a different way — the unique brand of you.
Form Deep Connections with Listeners
A podcast is a way to connect with a highly-targeted audience. When people hear another person’s voice, a sense of trust and closeness forms.
It’s like you’re whispering right into people’s ears…because you are! The number of podcast listeners is growing annually and listeners often stay loyal fans of their favorite podcasts, building it into the routine of their day. Maybe you’ve done it yourself — found a show to listen to while you’re getting ready each morning, or commuting to work.
You grew to admire and appreciate the podcast and learned a lot of great information, all for free! And maybe that’s what’s inspired you — you fell in love with a podcast and decided to start your own.
Create Content on Your Own Schedule
It’s easy to produce a consistent podcast once you get into the flow. Podcasting typically takes less time than blogging or recording a video — you do the recording and the audio edit and then it’s ready to be posted.
Podcasts with regular schedules — daily, monthly, weekly — tend to be the most popular, so make a schedule and stick to it.
Keep lists of show ideas and schedule guests in advance. You can also repurpose your content into other mediums such as e-books, infographics, or videos later if you want. Podcasting can be as flexible as you want it to be.
Go Where the People Are
People are busy. They’re driving to work or doing errands. They’re working out. They’re doing the dishes. They’re traveling. And they can listen to your podcast at the same time as they’re doing all these other things, unlike watching videos or reading blogs.
Multitask listening gives podcasters a huge advantage in the competition for people’s attention. People can enjoy podcasts anytime, anywhere on their smartphones, browsers, in their cars, and now on devices like the Amazon Alexa or Google Home.
Become a Better Speaker
Let’s face it, not everyone is a good public speaker, and many people feel intimidated by public speaking.
Podcasting gives you the opportunity to broadcast your message from the privacy of your home or studio, and you can even re-record or make edits if you need to. You’ll get more comfortable with recording and speaking over time. Podcasting will give you a chance to clarify your message and vision and you’ll learn to present it in the best way possible.
A little prep work before a podcast goes a long way — make an outline, list of bullet points or notes, and write questions to keep you on track during the recording. Before long, you’ll feel like a pro at speaking and interviewing, and this might even transition into other outlets such as conferences or training events. It’s time to get your voice out there.
These are just a few of the many great reasons to start a podcast.
What inspired you to pursue podcasting? We’d love to hear your stories. Please leave a comment below.
