What is a Podcast? A Detailed Guide

what is a podcast

Introduction 

What is a Podcast? It sure is a relevant question.

Competition has a unique dynamic, it never stops growing. With this increased competition, businesses try to equip themselves with tools that make them stand out from their competition. 

One such tool that was adopted is what we call Podcasts. 

Podcasts for business can boost revenues to heights that you’ve never seen before. 

According to smallbizgenius, 144 million Americans listen to podcasts. You could consider Podcasts as one of the mainstream modes of information for its users. 

Apart from that, you could compare the growth of Podcasts to the growth of Radios in the early 20th century. This massive traction explains why your business absolutely needs a podcast right away!

While some of you may be familiar with podcasts, some of you may be entirely new to this concept. This blog will give information to both parties, I guarantee that. 

In this blog, we will be covering:-

  • What is a Podcast? 
  • The History of Podcasts
  • Benefits of using Podcasts for your Business 
  • How to Set up A Podcast 
  • Tips for setting up a Podcast 

Let’s start from the basics and move up to the advanced parts gradually. 

What is a Podcast?

Though Podcasts are an easy concept to understand, they are relatively hard to explain. Podcasts can be anything that you want them to be, that’s how vast they are. 

I’m sure that sentence was very vague, so here is another try. Podcasts are like television or radio programs with a lot of variations. 

They take the form of music shows, interviews, talk shows, movie reviews, and the list just keeps going on. 

There are no specific topics either, you can pick any niche and make a podcast out of it. 

This flexibility alone has won many businesses a huge success. 

Most of these Podcasts are free to use and are available online. You can access them from any device by just Googling the topic you want and typing “Podcast” next to it. 

Users can listen to these shows from any part of the world. 

Podcasts are great, aren’t they? But how did it all start? Let’s find out. 

The History of Podcasts

The history of podcasts can be considered one of the most significant events in the context of emerging media, here’s a brief timeline of the growth of podcasts. 

  • 2004 – Software Specialist Dave Winer and Video Jockey Adam Curry come up with the ingenious idea. Ben Hammersley coins the term “Podcast”. The term was a combination of “iPod” and “Broadcast”.
  • 2006 – The idea began to gain speed and Steve Jobs demonstrates and how to record your very own Podcast. 
  • 2006 to 2013 – Podcasts gain attraction from users all around the world. The number of people who knew what a Podcast was increased. 
  • 2013 – Apple announces they hit 1 billion subscribers with their Podcasts on iTunes. 
  • 2014 – The series “Serial” and other such programs released which achieved record-breaking downloads within a short span of time. 
  • 2021 – There are over 1 million podcasts available and almost billions of people listening to them. 

This massive growth of podcasts made it a great business tool for companies that wish to reach a massive audience. 

You may wonder how exactly a Podcast, typically used for entertaining purposes, can help in the growth of your business. 

Let me clear that out for you. 

Benefits of Using Podcasts for your Business 

We spoke about the millions of people who listen to podcasts or are at least acquainted with the concept. 

Let’s take a look at the other side, there are millions more who are virtually untapped and are still yet to discover podcasts online.

Given the capability of podcasts, businesses will face a huge surge in recognition and revenue if used well. 

Here are a few advantages of using Podcasts for business:-

Drive More Traffic

At the end of any Podcast, adding a CTA (Call to Action) button will take your customers to your website that may lead to purchases or downloads. 

This can be double beneficial, you can inform and educate the users about your brand through the podcast and get purchases through the CTA button. 

Increased Engagement

Podcasts create a general sense of belonging and attachment between the host and the listeners. Businesses use Podcasts on understanding this feature. 

Listeners will get hooked if the podcast is interesting. Hence, picking a capable host and coming up with captivating content is very important. 

Be a Sponsor

Podcasts can be immensely useful for your business, but it does not necessarily mean you need to have one especially for your business. Sponsoring Podcasts can also bring your business some fame. 

Podcasts have huge returns on Advertising and people who are fans of certain podcasts will take the product recommendations seriously.

Ease of Use

Setting Up a Podcast does not require a team that specializes in it. Common people like you and me can do it without breaking a sweat. 

  This feature will save you your investment. 

I’m sure all of you are now waiting to know the steps for setting up a podcast, so let’s get to it with no further delay.

How to Set Up A Podcast 

Setting up  Podcasts have fewer steps than you’d imagine. They are also extremely easy. 

Pick a Niche

Choose a Niche and Give your Podcast and catchy name. Picking a niche will not be hard, it is probably going to be related to your business. The name must be catchy, that is where most of your effort must go.

Decide the Podcast Format

Is it going to be a one on one show? An interview? Call in? All these formats of Podcasts require their own developments, deciding the one that you feel is correct will take you a long way.

Pick an iconic album art.

You need to get people to talk about your Podcast, and to do this, you need to stand out in some way. It can be the name, host, or album cover. Take no chances, nail your thumbnail.

Equipment

To bring out the best quality, pick the best audio and recording equipment. You also need to have killer editing skills to bring out the best from your Podcast. 

Hosting Provider

After you have the recorded file, you will have to send it to your hosting provider. The provider will send it across the RSS feed which will later be uploaded to different apps like Spotify and iTunes.

Promote

Your business will have an active Instagram or Facebook page, spread the word about your program. This will drive in your existing customers and could be a good retargeting stunt. Promoting your Podcast is very important. 

Still unsure about the content you will be producing? Read our blog on how to come up with Viral Content.

If you follow these steps with precision, you will have come up with an amazing podcast that will drive your business some insane results, but we’re not done yet. 

How can I let you go without offering a few tips on starting a Podcast?

Tips for Setting Up a Podcast

  • Tell your Audience about the structure of your show. They liked to be informed and will know what to expect. 
  • Your Podcast must have uniformity. Stick to a certain length that works best for you and pick a day in the week. Following this routine will help to inculcate a habit among your fellow viewers. 
  • Invite celebrities and influencers to your Podcast. Having media popular faces will garner more crowds and will also work as a testimonial for your business and the service it offers. 

Conclusion

I hope this blog sums up all the knowledge that you need to set up a Podcast for your Business.  

I wish you all the best, have a Good Day!

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