Power of the Podcast
How podcasting can grow your franchise sales
When podcasting first started in 2006, it wasn’t clear exactly how this new medium might become popular, much less useful. Few people knew what podcasts were, and even fewer had the technical skill or the interest to listen.
My what a difference just 15 years makes! Today, podcasting is one of the top forms of media driving consumer engagement and entertainment. The transformation has been nothing short of revolutionary, as Brand Journalists president David M. Sparks explains.
“Everywhere you go, you hear people talking about this podcast or that one, asking if you caught the latest episode of a mystery or the interview with your favorite celebrity,” David says. “Advertising is focusing on podcasting, and so are a lot of businesses, and with good reason.”
That reason: more than 48% of individuals aged 25-54 listen to podcasts regularly. That includes entrepreneurs and business owners, who turn to podcasts for research and information. So what is podcasting? And how can you unlock the power of the podcast in your franchise?
Podcasting 101: What a podcast is and isn’t
Understanding a podcast’s power starts with understanding what a podcast isn’t. Podcasts are not just long infomercials for your brand. They’re informative, engaging conversations that invite listeners to learn more, as David explains.
“At Brand Journalists, our goal in everything we do is to get entrepreneurs to engage with your brand’s story on an emotional, gut level, and there’s no better tool for that than a podcast,” David says. “Podcasts allow subject matter experts, brand presidents, or even enthusiastic franchisees to share their experiences in a personal, relatable manner.”
Audiences connect with the stories they hear, whether it’s about someone wrongfully convicted of a crime or the next big thing in franchising.
Podcasting is big…really big
It’s hard to imagine how big podcasting became in such a short period of time. But by the numbers, there are more than two million podcasts produced worldwide with 48 million individual episodes available. At the same time, more than half the individuals in America have listened to a podcast!1
“The numbers are just staggering,” David says. “And they’re climbing. We constantly hear from people about the things they’ve heard on the Brand Journalists podcasts, and when we look at the data, at the statistics, it’s easy to see why.”
Perhaps the most important aspect of podcasting for franchise owners are the demographics of the audience. Listeners are evenly divided between men and women, and they’re distributed widely across all age brackets. Perhaps most importantly, for individuals in the ages “sweet spot” of 25 to 54, almost half listen to podcasts weekly.
The most impressive demographic of podcasting is the affluence of the audience. More than 75% of listeners live in homes with an annual income of more than $75,000. Combine this income level with the age range of podcast listeners and an audience penetration pushing 50% and the picture is clear: you want your brand in front of podcast audiences, because that’s where the audiences and the money are.
How can podcasting help your franchise system?
Podcasts can connect you to potential franchise owners in a powerful manner unlike virtually any other form of engagement available. That connection is important for two reasons.
First, a brand’s story connects to potential franchise owners on a gut level, and the more compelling that story is, the stronger the connection they’ll feel to your brand, the products and services you provide, and the culture you’ve created, as David explains it.
“While online advertising is important, with a web site, a Facebook ad, or a Google search, your brand is competing with a flood of other brands for their attention,” David says. “The fight to stand out can be challenging, especially when you’re trying to connect with that prospect on an almost instinctual level.”
But with podcasts? David notes a podcast enjoys a specific advantage that no other form of media has – how the consumer consumes them.
“Most listeners tune into podcasts through headphones or earbuds, directly into their brains while they’re shopping, working out, or cleaning the house,” David says. “No other medium offers you this much power to share your story. You’re literally the voice in their head.”
Interested in learning how Brand Journalists can help you with podcasting?
Brand Journalists is the premier franchise marketing and lead generation agency. If you’d like to learn more about how Brand Journalists can assist you in growing your brand through podcasting, reach out to one of our team today. We look forward to helping you share your brand’s story.