Build an Audience with Podcasting in 2016

November 16, 2015 by

Build an Audience with Podcasting in 2016

If you were starting today, would you choose podcasting as the primary channel for building an audience to support your business?

Before you answer, first consider the relevant qualities of the various media channels, such as websites, blogs, newsletters, and social media.

#1 – Ownership – You either rent or own it
#2 – Audience – Size and characteristics
#3 – Reach – Ease of reaching your desired audience
#4 – Personality – Amplification of your brand
#5 – SEO – Getting discovered in search rankings

Ownership and control of your content and the audience you build is vital. This is possible with blogging, newsletters, and podcasts. However, the challenge with these channels is it takes time to build that audience.

Conversely, you can tap into a ready-made audience with YouTube, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and so forth. The risk with these social media channels is the lack of ownership and control. For entrepreneurs in particular, this can be a significant obstacle to making them primary.

Podcasting is About to Explode

Podcasts are owned (self-hosted) audio content distributed primarily through the Apple iTunes store. Like YouTube videos, they can be embedded into your blog or shared with your subscriber list.

In addition to the benefits of ownership and playing well with other channels, podcasting is about to get a big shot in the arm.

It turns out that Google is now getting into the podcasting game with Google Play Music. That’s right, just like iTunes, Google Play Music will soon distribute podcasts.

Wait. This gets better.

Just like YouTube videos, insiders believe podcast content will be indexed for search. That gives podcasting a serious advantage,because unlike YouTube, you own the audience you build.

So, if you take another look at the list of 5 considerations above, you’ll understand why I’m choosing a daily podcast to build the audience for our new green industry community. In addition to what we’ve discussed already, podcasting is ideal for reaching and building trust with an on-the-go audience.

There is no one right way to build your digital audience, but according to Joe Pulizzi, founder of Content Marketing Institute, it is essential to choose and focus on one primary channel. There are a lot of reasons why making podcasting the base for building your audience will be a smart choice in 2016.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on podcasting? Meet me over on Twitter to take the conversation further.

About the Author:  Jeff Korhan, MBA, is the author of Built-In Social: Essential Social Marketing Practices for Every Small Business and host of This Old New Business podcast.

He helps organizations use media to create exceptional customer experiences that drive business growth in a digital, social and global world. Connect with Jeff on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, and Google+

How to Author, Publish, and Market Your Book

December 13, 2012 by

It has been said that there is a book within each and every one of us.

While the greatest challenge may seem to be writing your novel or non-fiction business book – and it is indeed a challenge to do it well. That is nothing compared to getting those books into the hands of readers.

A book is a product and it has to be sold for its value to be realized. Thus, if you want to be an author you had better be prepared to market your book.

APE – Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur – How to Publish a Book, by Guy Kawasaki and Shawn Welch, is much more than its title suggests. It can help you choose whether self-publishing or going the traditional route is best for you.

Most importantly, it will provide invaluable advice for marketing your creation.

Traditional vs Self-Publishing

The business of publishing a book has changed dramatically in the last several years, if not months. APE will help you effectively navigate those changes, regardless of whether you choose to self-publish or follow the traditional route.

Now, anyone can publish a book – due in no small part to the power of that ubiquitous marketplace known as Amazon.

It should be no surprise that there is an entire chapter devoted to navigating Amazon – as there should be. Nevertheless, you will discover that once you learn how to work with Amazon, from uploading your book to managing and responding to reviews, it’s really pretty straightforward.

Does this mean self-publishing is the way to go? Self publishing is scary even for a best-selling authors like Guy Kawasaki, because you bear all of the risk. However, the same is nearly true for traditional publishing. As Guy points out in his book, advances for new authors are becoming increasingly rare.

You need a platform just to attract the attention of a traditional publisher, which may rule it out as an option formany aspiring authors. Your platform is a collection of connection channels (such as this blog) with which you can connect with readers – in other words, sell books.

One might argue that if you have a platform you would be crazy to share the profits with a traditional publisher. While this may be true, there is a lot of heavy lifting in the form of such things as distribution to consider. For my upcoming book, that was a significant reason I chose the traditional route.

You have to know yourself well enough to know what you can do well.  I happen to love marketing and sales. Whereas, some people love the thrill of building things, and believe me, there is more to building a book than just writing.

I was preparing to self-publish and changed direction for a variety of reasons. APE will help you to weigh the pros and cons of traditional vs self-publishing to determine which path is best for you. As a bonus, the authors humorously strip away idealistic fantasies to give you a true picture of what to expect.

Successful Authors are Great Marketers

If you watch late-night television you know actors are popular guests for two reasons:

1.  They are usually interesting.

2.  They share responsibility for the success of their film projects.

Actors need late-night television just as much as it needs them – that’s why they show up.  Of course, back in the days of The Johnny Carson Show authors also shared that platform.

Unfortunately, authors and books are usually not nearly as interesting as actors and films, and therefore have to find other marketing channels to reach their audiences.

Authors not only share responsibility for the success of their books, they bear most of it, regardless of whether they traditional or self-publish. Fortunately, APE is loaded with more book marketing ideas than any author could possibly handle.

APE – Author, Publisher, Entrepreneur is a comprehensive book that will benefit both new and experienced authors, just as it will help you navigate print and the mind-numbing nuances and options involved with digital publishing.

APE is presently only available as a Kindle version. Given that is has nearly 400 links to useful online content, this may be the best way to go for most.

Good luck.  I hope you enjoy the process of writing, publishing, and marketing your book as I am mine.

Leave a comment below – and please share with your social networks.

Until next time, Jeff