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Content Marketing

Podcasts: The Shorter the Better?

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When I first started the K-Stream podcast, I found myself Google searching “how long should my podcast be?” I found out that there are a lot of factors that go into that decision, but according to a recent article from Rephonic, podcast episodes are getting shorter.

“We then looked at every episode released by podcasts with more than 10,000 listeners per episode and found that the average episode length is 37 minutes,” says Rephonic.

The article goes on to say “The average episode release frequency of top-performing shows is 5.3 days, but this figure varies from category to category.”

This, of course, may not the right balance for everyone. And the key point there is each podcast category is going to be different when it comes to length and frequency.

It also depends on your niche, your audience, or even the platform.

Christoph Trappe, content marketer, author and host of The Business Storytelling Show, which has more than 500 episodes, publishes his podcast to the DB&A television network. TV is very strict with timing, which means he also needs to be strict when timing his show.

If you’re publishing a news or sports podcast, you’ll likely have shorter episodes and launch them more frequently, simply because of the nature of those two categories.

On the other hand, categories like history, science and crime likely take a lot more prep time due to research and interviews that might be needed. That means longer episodes and launching at less frequency. These series also do well in a “season” format, where multiple episodes are launched in batches.

Resources also come into play. Joe Rogan regularly cranks out 2-3 hour episodes several times a week. Big team, big budget.

I’m a big fan of Joe Pulizzi’s weekly Content Inc. podcast with most episodes going less than 10 minutes. Likely a much smaller team than the other Joe. Different niche, different audience, likely a different budget.

I personally enjoy the shorter episodes, especially because I don’t have a long commute to work anymore. I like listening on my runs, walks, or short car rides whenever I do drive somewhere.

For what it’s worth, and I really don’t know why, but if I see something around 30 minutes or less, I’m in.

Listen next:

Content Marketing

Adding Audio to Your Content Marketing Strategy

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Think of audio as more than just podcasting. There are many ways to add audio to your content marketing strategy. And it likely involves repurposing some work you’re already doing.

This article spurred from my recent conversation with Brian Landau, CEO and co-founder of Vennly, an enterprise audio distribution platform.

When I used to think about audio, I only thought podcasting. But Brian opened my eyes to much more. Sure, podcasting can be effective. First, it’s a growing medium. Edison Research and Triton Digital report monthly podcast listeners have grown 61.5% in just three years.

Second, it’s an intimate medium, meaning you have a listener’s undivided attention for long periods of time.

But there’s so much more than that. Audiograms, for example, have become popular on social media. Twitter and LinkedIn are now offering their own in-platform audio products. Many blogs and websites allow for embedded audio clips.

Consider this if you’re a writer. You’re likely doing a lot of interviews these days via Zoom. I know, personally, when I interview someone for a quote, that interview can last anywhere from 15-30 minutes. Of that, I pull two or three quotes for my written story. But what about the unused audio? Here are a couple scenarios:

Recording a Zoom conversation for your blog

  • Export the Zoom audio and post as a podcast
  • Create audiograms to help promote the written story on social media
  • Embed an audio clip in your written story where the subject is raw and emotional on a certain topic

Hosting a Twitter Spaces event

  • Record that audio and distribute via podcast networks
  • Write a recap of the event for your blog
  • Send an email newsletter with a link to the blog and podcast

At the enterprise level, collaboration and CRM tools such as Slack, Medium and HubSpot have developed their own bespoke audio products as well, further facilitating adoption of audio.

There are many options when it comes to incorporating audio in 2022. I’m encouraging you as a content creator or marketer to take advantage.

Podcast

Why Brands are Embracing Branded Audio

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Brands are increasingly coming on board with podcasting, and more specifically, what the industry calls branded podcasting. Branded podcasts are not strictly promotional. They tell great stories.

Liz Horowitz, founder of Sonic Strategy Consulting, recently published an article on LinkedIn titled Winning Without Ads: 10 Reasons Brands Are Embracing Branded Audio. When I first came across the article, I was not familiar with the term “branded audio.” And after reading, I immediately thought I needed to get Liz on the show to elaborate on the subject.

We had a great conversation about what exactly branded audio is, why so many brands are starting podcasts, and if they aren’t, why they should be. She also gives a few examples of great branded podcasts out there including shows from Trader Joe’s, Ford Motors and State Farm.

Liz is a business growth coach serving companies specifically in the audio space. For most of her career, she worked in audio as an advertising executive, which includes a stint at WNYC Studios. There, she took a particular interest in branded podcasts and developed a partnership with Target’s Corporate Responsibility division for a six-part branded podcast series, Future at Heart, according to her website.

Branded podcasts offer “compelling ways to bring your audiences closer to you; bring your customers more aligned with you,” says Horowitz.

“What’s better than having 30 minutes to tell your stories as opposed to 30 seconds?”

In this episode, we chat about the benefits of creating a branded podcast, as well as the tools that can help you measure success, such as Signal Hill Insights, Chartable and FieldCast.

I learned a ton from Liz, and I hope you will too!

Podcast

How to Make Your Podcast Stand Out More with Max Branstetter

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Max Branstetter, host of the Wild Business Growth podcast and founder of MaxPodcasting, joined me on the latest episode of K-Stream to talk…well…podcasting. 

Max has produced more than 150 episodes of Wild Business Growth, and now helps other aspiring podcasters produce and promote their shows. He focuses on what he calls the 3 Ps: Podcast planning, podcast production, and podcast promotion.

“Consistency and having quality is really key,” says Max. “Also, making sure that the guest has the best experience possible. If the guest has the best experience possible, and you’re having fun as a host, that’s going to funnel through to the listener and the listener will pick up on that.”

We talked about:

  • Why business owners should create podcasts
  • How podcasting helps entrepreneurs
  • Tips to make your podcast stand out
  • Being consistent with your release date
  • What tech to use…hint: Zoom can do great things
  • How blogs/website helps in having your podcast show up in search
  • How awesome the networking part of podcasting is

Many dad jokes were also inserted throughout the show. Max will readily admit he loves a good dad joke. He also dishes a little on some of his dream guests to have on his show.

Full video interview available on YouTube.

Podcast

Using Streaming and Video to Help Build a Copywriting Business

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Terry Schilling is a freelance copywriter for creative companies and entrepreneurs. I discovered Terry through an insightful post he shared a while back on LinkedIn around free productive tools that are worth paying for if they offer a paid subscription. For what it’s worth, I said Kapwing. Since then, I’ve found Terry’s LinkedIn content to be incredibly engaging and helpful.

He gets marketers to think about copywriting from different perspectives. One message he reiterates over and over on his social platforms is “Tell people how cool they can be, not how cool you are.”

Terry also cohosts a podcast called The Copy Corner that he also live streams on LinkedIn and YouTube. The episodes are short – typically around 10 minutes. They break down copywriting and go into specifics around psychology hacks, writing better headlines, doing calls to action, and more.

We chatted about how Terry markets himself and his business in the latest episode of the K-Stream podcast.

Full video interview available on YouTube.

Content Marketing, Podcast

How Important Are Show Notes for Your Podcast?

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I’ll admit, I haven’t been putting a ton of time into the show notes of my podcasts. I know I should give them more attention, but sometimes I’m so eager to get the next episode up, I scrap something together and click “publish.”

My recent conversation with Jaclyn Schiff, CEO of PodReacher, a company that helps turn your podcast episodes into blog posts, taught me a ton about show notes. In addition to how to better market your podcast, we talked about what should go in show notes, whether or not they attract a new audience, and the difference between show notes and a blog post for your episode.

One piece of the interview that stood out to me was whether or not show notes help with your podcast SEO. Will show notes help new audiences discover my podcast through a web search?

“I think of show notes as a resource for your current listeners,” says Schiff. “I don’t think [show notes] are an entry point for people to learn about your podcast.”

There just isn’t enough meaningful text within show notes to have them rank in a web search, she says.

This isn’t to say show notes should be neglected. They’re a great way to entice listeners to download or stream your content, especially your current audience and those searching around within a particular podcast app like Apple or Spotify.

Getting your podcast some visibility within those various apps or platforms is an emerging topic and one that Schiff says she’s paying very close attention to.

If someone is searching around within one of those apps, their search terms could be somewhere in your show notes, therefore potentially bringing in another listener.

Another piece to consider including in the notes are time stamps. According to Schiff, people use them as kind of a table of contents, especially if episodes are on the longer side and not as produced or edited.

I know, personally, I love this feature on YouTube videos and hadn’t even considered it for podcasts. But it makes sense.

In my case, I stream all of my podcasts to YouTube, so I could potentially be getting a nice two for one deal there. If I’m putting effort into my podcast’s show notes and including time stamps, that content is 100% relevant on YouTube as well – maybe with some minor tweaking.

Since your show notes, at least at the moment, may not create a ton of discoverability for your podcast, it’s essential that you’re marketing it elsewhere if you want more ears.

“If you want to focus on that, the better bet is to be turning episodes into blog content,” says Schiff. “Then people will find you through Google search.”

Don’t think you have time to create articles and blog content? I get it. It takes a lot of time. And not all podcasters are writers. Engaging people with the written word is not an easy skill. But podcasts that do well do a lot of repurposing, whether it’s posting video clips from their episodes on social media or streaming them on various channels, or creating blogs.

Just like there are companies out there that help you edit video or produce a podcast, there are companies that will help you write blog posts from your episodes as well. For example, Schiff’s company PodReacher.

“We optimize audio content for text…a question we get a lot is ‘is this transcription?’ It’s not,” says Schiff. “The process is to really organize and structure it with that audience in mind. What is the useful information from this episode that a person’s going to read?”

They provide someone who has an open mind and the brain space to think what is the show about and how can they entice people to want to listen?

Check out the full episode with Jaclyn to learn more about PodReacher, as well as what constitutes a good episode blog, good show notes, and what’s next for podcasting.

Content Marketing, Podcast

Start a Podcast Simply in 2021

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Despite a lot of the workforce working remotely at the moment and no longer commuting, podcasts have never been bigger.

According to a recent study from Edison Research and Triton Digital, 75% of Americans are now familiar with podcasting. That’s 212 million people and an increase of 10 million in just one year.

If you think you have something to say and you want to turn it into a podcast, there’s no better time to get started. Plus, the barrier to entry is low.

With tools like Anchor and an iPhone, you’re pretty much all set.

In a recent interview with fitness coach Jordan Syatt, he talked about using an iPhone to record all of his podcasts when he was first getting started.

“If you go back and listen to my first 50 podcasts, you’re going to notice a dramatic difference in the sound quality, and that’s because I was literally just recording them on my phone. My podcast still did very well with those episodes,” says Jordan.

“Regardless of how good the sound quality is…what matters most is what you’re saying, the message you’re getting across.”

With that being said, I’m guessing if you’re reading this, you have some sort of smart phone. And you also have access to free apps like Anchor. That’s really all you need to get started with a podcast.

Now, I also understand how awesome it is buying new gear. Even if you want a high-quality mic, it likely won’t break the bank.

Below are a couple mics that myself and a former colleague, Wallen Augustin, co-host of the Savvy Dialogue podcast, chatted about in a previous episode of K-Stream.

And those are nice mics.

Wallen and his wife have two of the Rode PodMics, as well as the Rodecaster Pro, and their show sounds like it’s done in a professional studio, when it’s really done from the comfort of their own apartment.

They also use Anchor, which allows them to bring in guests, edit the audio, insert sound effects or music, and publish across platforms all from within the app.

This is just the infancy for podcasting, and I can’t wait to see what 2021 brings.

Podcast

Being Nimble in Business, Building Relationships Through Podcasting

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Episode six of the K-Stream podcast features my good friend and former colleague, Wallen Augustin. Wallen is a marketer, entrepreneur and podcast host. He and his wife, Jane, host the Savvy Dialogue podcast, and Wallen has owned and operated his creative production company, Wallen Digital, for around four years, all while maintaining a separate full time job.

We could have likely talked for way more than an hour, but in the time we spoke, we covered:

  • Starting a production company helping small businesses get their message out
  • Using lessons from marketing jobs to create compelling video
  • Shifting from producer to consultant during COVID-19
  • Starting a podcast
  • Building relationships through podcasting
  • What it’s like hosting a podcast with his wife, and more.

Hope you enjoy. Please follow Wallen @WallenAugustin on most social channels, and be sure to check out his website at www.savvydialogue.com.