Ah, what the hell. Here’s one more for the road.
Yeah, this article’s back to calling what’s being done podcasts, but a rose by any other name, yeah?
Have another look:
Is Your Next Marketing Win A Branded Podcast?
by Eric Hadley
Among the big winners at the iHeartRadio Podcast Awards were “The Joe Rogan Experience,” “Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard” and “Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness.” As a marketing leader at iHeartMedia, I’m a listener and fan of these podcasts, which air on our platform, among others. But I believe the most-watched category by my fellow marketers was no doubt Best Branded Podcast, a distinction likely lost on most casual listeners, with nominees including blue-chip brands like Sephora, Fidelity Investments and Trader Joe’s. (The winner was Tinder for “DTR,” a podcast about dating in the digital age.)
While once considered a niche marketing play, branded podcasts have formally arrived and are proving that smart, compelling storytelling can be more effective than ads at winning new customers and deepening relationships with existing ones.
It’s not hard to understand why branded podcasts have blown up in recent years. Podcasting is on a tear, clocking an average of 90 million listeners a month, with more than half of the U.S. population (over 12 years old) having listened to one. The podcast audience is a marketer’s dream, with almost 40% sitting in the coveted 18-to-34 sweet spot.
There are now roughly more than half a million podcasts to choose from, according to one estimate, though experts say we’re still in the early days of the boom, thanks to the explosion of smart speakers and enhancements to discoverability.
For companies looking to articulate a brand story and connect with audiences, a branded podcast is a compelling solution. Here’s what to keep in mind to ensure yours isn’t just good, but utterly addictive….