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If you market a brand or non-profit, it's likely that you have worked with content marketing at some point. Today, we are going to focus on podcasts and the steps you will want to follow if you're considering starting or marketing a podcast.
First, it's important to remember what content marketing isn't. It's not about trying to directly sell your brand; it's more about building that long-term trust with your ideal client or customer. It's relational and encourages an emotional connection which ultimately can lead to having passionate brand advocates talking you up and sharing your content to others.
The other thing that it isn't - or shouldn't be - is a time suck. That's why we want to look at the best practices to approach a podcast to make sure it is achieving your goals without taking you too far away from the other things you need to be doing.
1. Define your goals
What is your podcast going to accomplish for you? Is it to connect you to potential buyers? To grow your social media reach? To build your brand as a leader in your industry? Defining your goals upfront will help you plan where you're headed, what success looks like, and what path you'll take to get there.
2. Develop several SMART objectives
SMART objectives are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-based steps to achieve your objectives. An example might be to increase your email newsletter subscriptions by 15% within the next six months.
3. Create strategies to get you there
Strategies are the roadmaps we create to get where we want to go. This process can be likened to planning a vacation. Once you decide where you're going (your SMART objectives), then you have to look at what roads you will take to get there. A strategy for podcasting might be to invite some of the leading experts in your industry on your podcast as guests and then ask them to share it with their followers, thereby increasing your reach exponentially. Another option might be to invite the people you want to do business with on your podcast, giving you a direct way to create a personal relationship with someone that was otherwise difficult to reach.
4. Develop the promotional tactics you'll use
This is where everything finally comes together. Will you ask your listeners to submit their questions or opinions to your show which will encourage them to listen and share if they might be featured? Could you do some pre-release posts on social media, highlighting and tagging your upcoming guest, their social and websites, etc.? Get creative!