Podcast 101 – What’s Driving The Limitless Growth Of Podcasts?

Are we witnessing a podcast revolution? Well, podcasts have been causing quite a lot of noise lately. Literally! Even if you haven’t paid much attention to recent trends in marketing and technology, you’ve surely noticed the growing discussion on, what could be called, the renaissance of audio.

Last year, Spotify made a massive investment in the podcasting space, around $340 million to be more precise, to acquire Gimlet Media and Anchor. So, with such a big company investing in audio form content, we can’t deny that podcasts gained a surge of popularity lately.

According to a 2017 report on Podcast Insights from Nielsen, over 50% of all homes in the US were podcast fans. Moreover, today, more than 22% of the American population is listening to podcasts. But they aren’t listening to podcasts just once in a while. On average, they actually listen to podcasts every week, for about 6 hours and 37 minutes.

Plus, like any other big technology trend, podcasts are also making a lot of money from advertising. Data shows that podcast ad revenue has grown by nearly 1000% over the last five years. Plus, it is expected that the revenue will be worth $659 million this year. But why are podcasts becoming so popular out of a sudden?

IMAGE: UNSPLASH

Podcasts Growing In Popularity – The Whys

It’s becoming more and more evident that podcasts’ popularity is skyrocketing and will continue to grow over the next few years as well. But we can’t help then ask ourselves, why is this happening? What is truly driving the limitless growth of podcasts?

Suitable For Today’s Busy Lives

One of the main reasons why podcasts saw a surge of popularity is the fact that they are suitable for today’s busy lives of consumers.  Many of us are always on the go and don’t have the time to sit down and read a 50k word length article. Yet, at the same time, we want to learn new stuff and to consume content.

And, that’s when podcasts come into the scene. You can simply listen to that article in bite-sized chunks while commuting to or back from work, when cooking, or when cleaning around the house. And, the best part of it all is that the information is often presented entertainingly and narratively, which makes it very engaging and easy to understand.

The Right Content

Podcasts offer the opportunity for customized/personal curation. In other words, you can simply listen to what you want, when you want, which is a significant advantage compared to radio audio content.

No matter what topic you are interested in, be it news, science, politics, or stories, you’ll find a podcast dedicated to it. Moreover, only have ten minutes to spare during your commute? You’ll find a podcast suitable for you to listen in that short time frame.

Greater Awareness And Growing Audio Content Options

In 2019, around 70% of the total American population reported being familiar with the term “podcasting”. Of that 70% of people, 50% of them have listened to a podcast before. But, according to TechCrunch, last year’s podcast listenership, as well as podcast content creation, had the most significant yearly increased so far. It’s no surprise that as the audience grows, there is more interest in producing quality content for podcasts.

Moreover, even celebrities have started to create their own podcasts to share their own narratives, to promote their personal brands, and to show entirely different aspects from their lives outside of being celebrities. With celebrities joining the podcast industry, this obviously contributes significantly to attracting even more listeners into this sector.

Less Annoying Ads

Today’s consumers are becoming more and more annoyed by ads, be it on social media, websites, or TV. They feel like they are bombarded with ads and often even press back and leave the platform as a result of feeling annoyed by businesses trying to sell products to them all the time.

Yet, this is another advantage that podcasts bring on the table: less annoying ads. To be more precise, the average time for advertising in an hour in podcasts is four minutes, whereas for TV is 16 minutes. So, podcasts listeners have fewer reasons to try to get rid of the ads or to leave to do something else while the ad is running.

Moreover, podcast ads aren’t as annoying as traditional TV, social media, or website ads. Why? Because they are read by the podcasters, which make them less predictable than other ad forms, especially since the podcasters give them an exciting and engaging spin.

How To Create A Successful Podcast?

Do you want to get into podcasting? Here’s what you should know to create a successful podcast:

Create Valuable Content

Just like any other type of content, if you want your podcast material to be successful, you need to make sure that it brings something unique to the audience. It takes a lot of research, brainstorming ideas, and hard work to create content that brings value to your listeners.

Make It Engaging

You could be talking about the most exciting topic out there. Yet, if you don’t use the right words to do it, it’s going to be really difficult actually to engage many listeners. As mentioned above, one of the advantages brought by podcasts to listeners is that they are easy to listen to and engaging.

So, start your podcast with energizing and engaging podcast intro music. Next, use words, sentences, and expressions that you would typically use when talking to your friends. This way, you will connect with your audience in a more personal manner.

Add A Little Part Of You

There are over 850.000 podcasts out there which, all together, produced over 30 million episodes. So, you need to find a way to set yourself apart from the rest. How? The best way to do it is to let your podcast showcase your personality and creativity. When you inject your personality into your content, you create a unique way to reach and connect with your audience.

If you are interested in even more technology-related articles and information from us here at Bit Rebels, then we have a lot to choose from.

IMAGE: UNSPLASH