It’s hard to fake it on a podcast. As people listen to you minute after minute on each episode, week after week on each season, they will either grow to trust you or leave you, based on who you are. You can’t hide on a podcast.
Podcasting: 'It builds trust, credibility and brand loyalty' Entrepreneurs are investing time, money and energy into podcasting to boost the profile of their small businesses and find new opportunities. It’s important to follow the 80/20 rule with your content. Spend 80% of your time, money, and resources doubling down on what is working for you. Use the other 20% to test new content channels and formats. So maybe it’s time for you to test a podcast as a new medium to reach new customers and nurture relationships with existing customers. Diversify acquisition and distribution channels so a social platform can never pull the rug from beneath you. - Web Smith When listeners subscribe to your podcast, they are opting in to hearing from you on a regular basis. By starting a podcast and releasing episodes on a consistent schedule, you can stay at the top of your customers’ minds and stand out from the competition, building a level of brand loyalty that deepens over time. Podcasting Comes Down To Truth, Transparency, & Trust Truth and transparency are essential to building trust. However, these get lost all too quickly behind industry jargon, marketing gimmicks, and growth hacking So, before you spend another dollar on Facebook ads or sponsorships, take a moment to pause. You need to do something radically different to stand out. To stand out, you need to position yourself and your brand as real and authentic. It’s hard to do this in short minute long videos on social media. Your carefully-tailored brand, your perfectly-honed voice, your cutting-edge product deserve to come alive on a more captivating and engaging medium: podcasting. Long-form content is key for developing trust and standing out in the marketplace. Use short-form content to drive people to your long-form content. Let’s Define Long-Form and Short-Form Content Just like there are different types of content (blogs, YouTube, podcasts, etc.) you can use to reach your audience, there is also a science behind choosing the best length for your content. Based on the goals and intent of your users, you can make a choice between short-form and long-form content to reach your readers. Remember I mentioned the 80/20 rule at the top of this blog? A rule of thumb is finding balance in short-form content and long-form content. Reflect on your business's current content output. How much of your content is long-form? How much of your content is short-form? Long-form content is typically 2,000 words in length for blogs or 15+ minute long videos. This type of material is usually seen as whitepapers, e-books, YouTube videos, podcasts, and how-to guides. Short-form content is typically any written copy that is around 500 - 1,000 words in length or videos under 10 minutes. Things like social media posts, short YouTube videos, blog posts, and emails are great examples of short-form content. If all of your content is short-form, it’s time to think about how you can incorporate long-form content in your content strategy. Back to Why Podcasts Are a Good Medium for Long-form Content. Consumers are really looking for the human behind it all. The personality that they can relate to. A human behind your brand that they trust, because they are just like them. In fact, more and more people are turning to podcasts to find the brands they can trust. The brands that are human. According to Edison Research, podcasting is rising steadily, with monthly listeners growing from 21% to 24% year over year. For reference, Forbes published, “The Rising Costs Of Digital Advertising Will Force Spending Shifts”, “In April the cost topped out at +89%. May increased by +69% and June by +42%. July figures are not available yet, but are expected to be higher than June. That is scary, and marketers must look for more productive ways to communicate with customers.” ...hence why I recommended pausing earlier to rethink where you’re investing your marketing budget. The Why Behind Podcasting Specifically, it’s hard to fake it on a podcast. As people listen to you minute after minute on each episode, week after week on each season, they will either grow to trust you or leave you, based on who you are. You can’t hide on a podcast. Start Building Trust With Your Audience Today In conclusion, podcasting is quickly becoming one of the best platforms for brands to connect with their audience on. And yet, the market has untapped potential and comparatively infinite growth to that of the crowded visual, digital space. Not only does it make you more accessible to internet users, podcasts allow you to bring your brand alive in a unique way, it is designed to build trust: the very root of your company’s success. So, what’s your story? Start telling it today. Your audience won’t wait forever.
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