How to Succeed as a Podcast Advertiser or Sponsor by John Jants Read more in Duct Tape Marketing
People love podcasts. According to Podcast Insights, there are over 660,000 podcasts, which means that no matter what topic or field you’re passionate about, there’s probably a podcast out there that covers it.
Outside of the breadth of content available, podcasts are also an intuitive way to consume information. Whether you’re at home doing the dishes, commuting to work, or enjoying lunch at your desk, it’s easy to hit play and listen to your favorite shows. In the same survey, Podcast Insights found that a full 51 percent of Americans had listened to podcasts in the past.
Knowing how popular the medium is, brands can clearly understand the benefits of sponsoring or advertising on a podcast. You can reach an entirely new audience if you are strategic about how you select an event and proceed with the sponsorship process.
If you’re toying with the idea of ​​sponsoring a podcast but aren’t sure where to start, here’s what we learned about the sponsorship process over 10 years of creating the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast. We are happy to share it.
Choosing the Right Podcast
As I mentioned, there are literally hundreds of thousands of shows to choose from. So how do you choose the one that best matches your needs and desired audience? (You can watch the Duct Tape Marketing podcast here so we can better understand who we target)
Start by honing in on the right area of ​​focus. Our sponsors are hoping to reach a community of small business owners, marketing consultants and agencies, which is how we end up on their short list.
After narrowing the field to the most relevant podcasts, listen to them. Each host has a unique tempo, tone and approach; Each show has its own format; And each audience will have its own demographics.
When you understand your existing customers, you can identify the show that best matches the podcast with their want or need. And once you do, you can feel confident that the goods and services you provide are likely to be highly relevant to the podcast’s audience. You want to introduce these types of people to your brand!
Make sure you shine on-air
Once you’ve selected the podcast best suited for your brand, you’ll want to work with the podcast team to make sure your business sounds amazing to their listeners.
As part of our sponsorship or advertising process, we ask for certain resources to ensure that we are properly communicating the desired message to our audience and that we are sharing facts and links that are relevant to our sponsors. are most important.
We begin with a request to speak. Since you’ve already studied the tone and message of the podcast as part of the selection process, you can tailor your talking points to match that voice and best speak to their specific audience. can. Don’t just give your usual elevator pitch to the audience; Tell them something special about your business, and consider making a special offer just for the audience. It should be something attractive to them, and you should make it easy for them to redeem by providing a simple URL for them to follow in order to access the offer.
Next is your logo. Your logo is an easy way to clearly communicate who you are and what you do. And the more times prospects encounter your logo, the more likely they are to visit your website or learn more about your brand. Making sure your logo is included on the transcript and dedicated blog post is important.
Finally, you want to create a link for your website. If you have made a special offer as a part of your talking point for podcast listeners, you will want to create a landing page specifically for this offer. Not only will this allow you to greet the audience with a header, welcome them from the show and offer the promised deal; It also allows you to see how much traffic your sponsorship message is generating. It provides a solid way to track ROI.
Thinking Beyond Your First Episode
The best things in life often take a while to get off the ground. You can’t expect to see results after sponsoring just one episode of a podcast.
All marketers understand the importance of repetition in getting a brand name out there. It is said that a consumer has to come across a brand seven times before considering doing business with it.
That’s why we recommend a sponsorship that lasts several months. A three-month sponsorship of a weekly or bi-weekly show gives you nine to 18 opportunities to name your business in front of the show’s audience.
If you opt for a longer sponsorship period, consider swapping out the offer made to the audience. Most shows have loyal listeners, but if they get the same offer month after month, they might start to tune you in. Providing new offers not only grabs listeners’ attention, but it also provides a sense of urgency—get this offer on and off the month before it ends!—which can help drive conversions.
Make the most of your sponsorship
You have put together your proposal, talk point and special link. Now you’re done and it’s all in the hands of the podcaster, right? Wrong!
There is still work to be done after the episode is released. Don’t sit back and expect people to be on episodes you sponsor—promote them actively.
Listen to the episode and identify the information or tip your audience would be most excited to hear about. Then shout it out on social media, send your fans an email newsletter telling them about the episode, or promote the post on your favorite social channels.
I wonder how many of our sponsors don’t support their own sponsorship efforts by going the extra mile to promote the show. Sponsorship is an incredible value, but you can get even more out of the experience by sharing the show with both your internal and external audience.
If you’ve ever wondered what podcast sponsorship can do for your business, the short answer is: a lot! If you’re smart about selecting the right shows, providing assets and offers that will grab listeners’ attention, understand that results won’t happen overnight, and are doing the legwork to help spread the word about podcasts. If so, you can end up with an incredible return on your sponsorship investment.
Learn How to Sponsor a Duct Tape Marketing Podcast
