Podcasting’s Resurgence
BY SHEILA BERMAN
“We are seeing an intensive and intense interest and resurgence in podcasts again,”
says Glenn Van Zutphen, founder of VanMedia Group with over 25 years of experience as a journalist.
Statistics from the recent Edison Research showed that in the United States, 22 million adults were familiar with podcasting in 2006. That number grew to 64 million in 2018 and is projected to reach 197 million this year. In March 2018, Apple announced that its podcasts “passed 50 billion all-time episode downloads and streams”
Podcasting, a combination of the word “pod” from Apple’s iPod and the word “broadcast,” is not new. It was called audio blogging in the ’80s, and since then has risen and fallen out of favour.
Recent interest could be attributed to the increasing digitisation of publications, short attention span of consumers, and convenience of mobile gadgets. With many traditional print publications shutting down, journalists being laid off, and the prevalence of fake news, consumers are actively looking for alternative sources of information and entertainment. Research had shown that podcast listeners, in the US, at least, are loyal, affluent, and educated.
Across the Asia Pacific, podcasting is still finding its feet, though countries like South Korea and Japan are ahead of the rest. As a journalism medium, news agencies have seen the value. The search for “news” in Stitcher results in over 34,000 podcasts from Fox News, CBS, NBC, Bloomberg, Asia Rising, even CNN. Individuals, not affiliated with any news agencies, have contributed to the number of available podcasts.
One of the notable podcasters in Asia is Steve Stine, whose Inside Asia Podcast is available on Stitcher and Apple iTunes. His guests have included Clay Chandler, Executive Editor, International for Time Inc, and Asia Editor for Fortune, Raja Samu Samu VI of Maluku, the current Secretary General of the Association of Indonesian Rajas and Sultans, Stephanie Dickson, Founder of Green is the New Black Asia, and Thomas Morgan, Financier turned Film Director.
According to Van Zutphen, there are two reasons for this resurgence in interest. From the producers’ side:
1. Podcasts are good for generating content. “Everybody is looking for a way to get their information and to get their viewpoint out front and center.”
2. Podcasts are cheaper to produce. Unlike videos, podcasting generally only requires a good audio recorder.
For consumers, the accessibility of podcast drives the interest. “Podcasts are actually easier for more people to access no matter where they are globally and they don’t have to worry about bandwidth,” said Van Zutphen.
However, podcasts while inexpensive still require good content, in addition to good audio equipment. With millions of podcasts available, listeners’ attention needs to be captured and sustained.
In the case of Stine’s podcast, loyal listeners have commented on the “unique perspective”, “insightful and intelligent knowledge” on Asia of his guests, and “excellent topics chosen by the host”. Stine’s tagline encapsulates his mantra, that is to converse with “Asia’s leading movers, shakers, thinkers, and provocateurs.” This has enabled him to have over 80 episodes and has earned him the reputation of being the go-to source for Asian insights.
Van Zutphen cites 3 factors required to have a successful podcast.
1. Focus. Audience identification is crucial. Podcasters can not be everything to everybody. It must cater to a specific niche.
2. Length. Find out the appropriate length for the audience. Investigative journalism will require nearly an hour due to the story. Normal podcast should not be more than 30 minutes.
3. Production value. Cheap doesn’t mean bad. The audience should have a great experience. The guest must have a great story to tell, the audio should be good, music and sound effects should be unobtrusive but evocative.
Despite all the above, sustainability is the key. Van Zutphen predicts that within the next 18 months, half of the podcasts will fold. The lack of sponsorship or advertising revenue will be the main reason.
“People have to make money and with advertisers … they want to see eyeballs or ears. They want to see how many people are connecting to your podcast. If you can’t show them that you’ve got five, ten, twenty fifty thousand listeners who are in their demographic of who they want to get to, they’re not going to give you money.”
Time will tell if Van Zutphen is correct in his prediction. 🗨️
Sheila Berman is a content writer and producer for Shmi Shem. @Shem Berman
