It’s no secret that podcasts have become one of the most popular forms of content marketing, and brands across all industries and sizes are entering the market. But with more than 850,000 active podcasts and more than 30 million podcast episodes, is there room for you and your brand to carve out a niche?

Her Story of Success was built on the idea that podcasts could be an effective way to share stories, wisdom and encouragement. Our co-founders Leah Glover Hayes and Ellen Hoffman started the podcast in 2018, and since then we’ve published 65 episodes that have reached thousands of listeners all around the world. We’ve learned many lessons along the way, and now we want to share those with our community. 

In the coming weeks and months, we’ll be diving into the nitty gritty details of how to start a podcast, and you’ll hear from different members of our team about their areas of expertise, from audio editing to marketing to hosting. 

Before we get too deep into those specifics though, it’s important to understand why podcasting is such an effective tool for building a brand, sharing information, finding new customers and even earning additional revenue. 

A Rapidly Expanding Market

Even though the podcast market seems incredibly saturated, its audience is still growing rapidly, and that means there’s room for you and your business.

A 2019 study from Edison Research found that 51 percent of all Americans ages 12 and older have listened to a podcast, and 22 percent have listened in the past week alone. Additionally, the proportion of time spent listening to podcasts compared to other audio has more than doubled in five years, increasing by 122 percent since 2014. That’s a massive audience that your brand could be tapping into with the simple act of starting a podcast. 

So who are these potential listeners? Edison Research reports that they span all age ranges, though 74 percent are between 18 and 54. 54 percent of all listeners are men and 46 percent are women. Podcast listeners are 45 percent more likely to have a college degree than the average American, and they’re 32 percent more likely to have an annual income of at least $75,000. 

By finding the overlap between your target audience and podcast listeners, you can use your podcast to both engage with your current audience and expand it. 

Strengthening Your Brand Identity with Podcasting

Not only are podcasts a great opportunity to share information, but they also can strengthen your listeners’ brand loyalty. Through podcasting, your brand becomes more personalized, as listeners begin to feel connected with the host.

Research shows that this connection translates into revenue. Edison Research reported that “54 percent of podcast consumers say they are more likely to consider the brands they hear advertised on podcasts, compared to 7 percent who say they are less likely.”  Since podcast listeners tend to have larger disposable incomes than the average American, this is a valuable opportunity to translate content marketing into direct sales. 

And compared to other forms of content, some research suggests that podcasts may be more effective. Though most listeners tune in while they’re at home, 22 percent of all podcast listening happens in the car. That means that by podcasting, you could reach a large number of people at a time when they’re most likely not engaging with other content like blogs or social media. 

Additionally, 80 percent of podcast listeners say they listen to an entire episode or most of an episode. When you consider the fact that most people spend 15 seconds or less reading a blog post, this is a major opportunity to engage your audience for a longer period of time. Plus, it’s much easier to repurpose a podcast episode into blogs, social media posts and more than to create something from scratch for those outlets. 

Endless Potential

We’ll break down the ways you can monetize your podcast in a later blog post, but for now just keep in mind that there’s nearly endless potential to grow your podcast audience and increase your revenue in the process. 

Just last week, popular podcast host Joe Rogan signed a licensing deal with Spotify for more than $100 million, which could make Rogan the highest paid broadcaster in the world. 

While this is obviously an extreme example, it proves that podcasts are a viable business strategy, and the opportunities for expansion are enormous. 

If you’re interested in learning more about starting a podcast, leave a comment on our Instagram letting us know what specific questions you have or topics you’d like us to address.