Podcasts: The Growth Accelerator Your Business Needs

Podcasting is one of the hottest trends in media right now, and it’s become an incredibly powerful tool for businesses and leaders alike who want to reach new audiences and build a strong podcast community. 

Edison Research has been tracking podcasting since 2006, when they added it to their Infinite Dial report. The report tracks consumer media usage and behaviors in America. The study is the longest-running of its kind in the country, and it uses rigorous sampling methods to ensure that its estimates are representative of the entire U.S. population.

According to Edison Research, the popularity of podcasts has shown an upward momentum over the past few years. Why? Podcasts are popular because they let us become part of a story and feel like we know the people involved. You hear their voices—even if they aren’t physically present when you listen to them. This makes podcasts so much more than just listening; they turn into an experience that can’t be replicated elsewhere.

Recent statistics from The Infinite Dial 2024 reveal the following insights about podcasting consumption patterns in the U.S.

Podcast listening reach is up overall:  

• Despite changes in how downloads are being delivered and counted, listening levels are up markedly. 
• 47% of the U.S. 12+ population has listened to a podcast in the last month, up 12% year over year
• 34% of the U.S. 12+ population has listened to a podcast in the last week, up 10% year over year.

In the three plus years that I have been podcasting, one fact remains true: it’s exploding popularity. This is partially due to the widespread adoption of smartphones, the advent of smart speakers like Amazon Alexa and Google Home, even smartwatches made by Apple, Samsung, Fossil and Fitbit. All of these devices allow you to listen to a podcast right from your device, so long as you have an Internet connection. Even cars have seen more podcast play with built in software technologies like CarPlay, made by Apple, which enables a car radio to display and mirror your apps screen. Because of CarPlay, my podcast app appears on my vehicle multimedia console. 

Expect Continued Growth 

In analyzing my own behavior and consumption patterns, as both a podcast host and a listener, I’ll make a bold prediction that podcasting will continue its upward trend. This is due to many of my own personal beliefs, biases, and general business intelligence as a marketing agency owner for B2B and B2C firms in the financial services industry, which may apply to other verticals overall:   

1. The ability to multitask while listening to podcasts. What activities are you doing, and not doing, when you listen to your favorite podcast? Is it driving to work? Folding laundry? Exercising and running on a treadmill? For me, the answer is all of the above. I even use my Alexa smartspeaker to stream podcasts in my kitchen while I cook dinner. Few mediums can even come close to the portability of podcast. Once episodes are downloaded from the Internet to a listening device such as a smartphone, tablet, or laptop, you can listen anywhere you go.
   
2. Rise of the creator economy. In recent years, we have seen the rise of the creator, individuals who produce and share content online through social media platforms, blogs, and podcasts. Creators are able to earn a living or supplement their income by selling products directly to their fans, using platforms like Patreon or SubscribeStar. These gigs, sometimes referred to as a side hustle, can even raise money to start or grow a business using crowdfunding sites like Indiegogo and GoFundMe. Having a podcast allows these same creators to reach new and like-minded audiences. According to Meta, the parent company of Facebook, the creator economy is forecasted by some exploratory studies to reach more that $100 billion.
   
3. The growth of niche podcasts. One of the trends I’m witnessing is the growth of niche podcasts, programs that explicitly focus on specialized groups or like-minded audiences who share particular or unique interests by people not already famous for something. For example, The Marketing Book Podcast, hosted by Douglas Burdett, a marketing agency principal, features weekly interviews with authors of new marketing and sales books. Rather than cast a wide net, and appeal to a general audience Burdett’s podcast, now approaching 140 episodes for season 5 at the time of this writing and in the top 3% of podcasts, caters to a smaller, but more engaged community. Furthermore, the more niche, the less competition overall.
   
4. Podcast as a trusted news source. Where are people turning to consume their news? Would you believe podcasts? In fact, some reputable cable or online traditional TV news shows, magazines, and publications now have a podcast news companion. The Reuters Institute identifies three different sub-categories of daily news podcasts:  1.) Micro-bulletins, between 1 and 5 minutes, 2.) News round-ups, 6-15 minutes long, and 3.) Deep-dives like The New York Times The Daily, with a length of 20 minutes or more. At the time of this writing, The New York Times offers 25 various podcast shows including their top show, The Daily, which features “the biggest stories of our time, told by the best journalists in the world,” comes out daily at 6 a.m.
5. Podcast to revolutionize teaching and learning. For teachers, parents, and administrators, podcasting opens a new world of possibilities in all types of educational and academic institutions and environments. As a former adjunct instructor at New York University, supplementing my Integrated Marketing graduate course with pre-recorded podcast episodes on different subjects such as branding, consumer behavior, culture, and leadership reinforced lessons taught in the classroom and increased engagement. Audio learners, students who learn most effectively by listening, benefitted greatly when lesson materials contained a podcast equivalent. This also helped to diversify the subject matter and make it more interesting.

If You Remember Anything…

At the time of writing, there are over 5 million podcasts available worldwide, with 4.3 million of those being active. Similarly, there are an estimated 600 million blogs in existence. However, when you compare the number of podcasts to the 1.98 billion websites currently live, it becomes clear that the podcasting space is still in its early stages of growth.

I often remind our clients of this key point: “If you were starting a business today, would you avoid creating a website simply because there are nearly 2 billion websites already? Of course not—that would be absurd!” So why would you talk yourself out of launching a podcast or even a blog just because many already exist? There is still plenty of room to make your mark and connect with an audience.

Ready to stop standing on the sidelines? Your audience is waiting — and I’m here to help you take the mic. Whether it’s a podcast or blog, let’s amplify your voice. Connect with me today, and let’s make sure you’re heard where it matters most!