A piece from Lisa Formica, Vice President of fmi direct, inc, was published on the MarketingProfs site last month discussing The Power of Podcasts. The entire piece is worth a read, and a few of the ‘facts and figures’ are worth repeating:
- Awareness of the term “podcasting” increased from 22% to 37% in the past year.
- The audience for audio podcasts grew 18% in the past year.
- The audience for video podcasts grew 10% in the past year.
The data came from a recent report released by Edison Media Research: The Podcast Consumer Revealed 2008.
So, with all of this information, the question remains — what does it all mean?
For one, it shows that podcasting is not just a fad who’s time has come and gone. True, it is not getting the attention and time in the spotlight that it was a couple of years ago, but as a medium it continues to gain acceptance. Also, it demonstrates that podcasting can be used effectively, both as original content, and to augement existing content in other mediums. NPR, ESPN, and the BBC are all good examples of the latter.
Is there a single best use of podcasting, particularly from a marketing standpoint? No. There are thousands of possible best uses – one of which may be right for you and your organization.