The 5 Most Important Podcast Marketing Services to Grow Your Show
When it comes to growing your podcast and reaching your target audience, marketing matters. The right podcast marketing services can help you increase your download numbers so you can turn a profit.
While there are many podcast marketing agencies out there, in this post, we’d like to focus on the specific digital marketing services that can help you gain new listeners and grow your profits.
Remember, the bigger your listening audience, the more you’ll be able to earn through sponsors. While marketing services can help you reach new listeners, your ability to grow your download numbers (and keep new listeners engaged for the long run) ultimately depends on your ability to produce great content.
By turning these marketing tasks over to the experts, you can focus on creating a great show for your listeners so you can maximize your advertising revenue now and in the future.
5 Essential Podcast Marketing Services
Podcast marketing services aren’t typically designed to help with post-production or audio production for your show (though some agencies assist with this as well). Their focus is helping you maximize your listening audience and revenue. Interestingly, full-service podcast advertising is relatively rare. Instead, you’ll often find marketing providers who focus on just one or two of the following services for more specialized support.
1. Sponsorships
Podcast ads and sponsorships tend to be a show’s biggest source of revenue. These could include sponsor scripts that are read by the podcast host as part of the show, or pre-recorded ads that are supplied by the sponsor and inserted during ad breaks. Pricing for sponsorships is usually determined based on metrics such as the size of the podcast audience or number of downloads per episode. The industry average CPM (cost per mille, or per thousand listeners) for a 30-second ad is $18.
Of course, connecting with potential sponsors can be tricky. This is where podcast marketing services like Castr can help. These agencies are focused on connecting podcasts and sponsors. The goal is to match relevant products or services to podcasts that speak to a brand’s target audience.
Ultimately, sponsorships should create win-win scenarios, where the podcaster is advertising brands that are relevant and have a meaningful connection to their personal brand. Your marketing partner can help you negotiate advertising rates and find quality sponsors — particularly as your audience continues to grow.
2. Social Media Marketing
Social media platforms can be a powerful tool for building awareness for your podcast and staying actively engaged with your audience between episodes. Your social media posts could include highlighted clips from your most recent episode, previews of the next episode, or questions and polls related to content from your latest episode.
Your social media channels can also help you learn directly from your audience about the types of content they want you to cover. This is a great way to keep your audience engaged and excited about your content.
Of course, social media can also grow your audience. Ad campaigns can target listeners who fit similar demographics and interests to your current audience. These paid promotional campaigns should drive clicks to your social media profiles, your podcast website, and your podcast episodes. For example, TikTok has been proven to be a great way to drive podcast growth simply by posting episode highlights and then encouraging users to go to the podcast episode for the “full story.”
Podcast marketing services can help you run effective social media ad campaigns and develop content for organic posts on your social media profiles. This can be especially helpful if you’re trying to maintain an active presence across several platforms.
3. Content Marketing
What happens to your show notes after an episode goes live? All too often, old notes and scripts are tossed aside in preparation for the next podcast episode. Instead, they could be repurposed to build brand awareness through content marketing. This is where marketing services can help.
For example, marketing experts could take a transcription of your podcast content and repurpose it as a blog post on your website. By adding relevant keywords for search engine optimization (SEO), these posts could also help your podcast rank higher in Google search results. Some content could even be submitted to third-party publications to generate authoritative backlinks for your podcast.
Information from your podcasts could also be repurposed into infographics, short videos, and graphics for social media. Regularly producing new content marketing materials creates new opportunities for potential listeners to discover your show, while also keeping current listeners engaged with your brand.
As a huge bonus, a robust website makes your podcast media kit look more legitimate to potential advertisers.
4. Podcast Networks
Generally speaking, your podcast hosting platform should provide a RSS feed that you can submit to other podcast directories. Syndication to major directories like Spotify and Apple Podcasts is an easy way to help new listeners discover your show — and more listeners means the potential to earn more from sponsors.
In addition to your own syndication submissions, joining a podcast network can also be a valuable way to grow your show.
After you join a podcast network, the network will help with a wide range of marketing services. This includes help securing sponsorships, cross-promoting your podcast on other network shows, and advertising on the network’s website and social media channels.
As part of a podcast network, your show gains added authority and prestige that will make potential listeners more likely to give you a chance. However, podcast networks typically limit membership to shows that already have a decent audience (usually at least 1,000-10,000 downloads per episode).
5. Networking Opportunities
You’re far from the only person covering your chosen topic with your podcast. By networking with other popular podcasts, you have the opportunity to introduce yourself to new audiences in an engaging and authoritative setting.
Appearing on other podcast shows as a guest is a great way to get potential listeners interested in who you are and what you have to say. At the same time, inviting guests from other podcasts to your show can help you produce interesting content, while also getting some of their loyal listeners to listen to that episode (and hopefully stick around for future episodes).
These networking opportunities don’t happen by accident. They require strategic collaboration and outreach. It requires listening to other podcasts in your niche and making connections with your fellow podcasters.
Incredibly, there are even services specifically focused on this need. Services like PodMatch and PodcastGuests.com make it easier to find expert guests and other podcast hosts for your show so you can produce quality content and grow your audience.
Making the Most of Podcast Marketing Services
Podcast marketing services can help reduce the burden of trying to take on all of your podcast advertising responsibilities yourself. With a quality partnership, you can develop a strong podcast marketing strategy that increases your podcast listeners and your profits. Perhaps even more importantly, you’ll have more time to focus on podcast production, ensuring that each podcast episode delivers high-quality content that will keep listeners (and sponsors) coming back for more.
If you need help connecting with quality sponsors who can maximize the profitability of your show, Castr can help. Our podcast promotion services aim to create long-lasting, mutually beneficial relationships between the best podcasts and their sponsors. With strong sponsor relationships, you can maximize your earning potential while producing content that you love.