Podcasting is the New Blogging

These words from my title are not my words, but the words of marketing genius Seth Godin.

“Podcasting is a proven technology that is still in its infancy. It’s an open mic, a chance for people with something to say to find a few people (or perhaps more than a few people) who’d like to hear them say it.

And podcasting is the generous act of showing up, earning trust and authority because you care enough to raise your hand and speak up.” – Seth Godin

He is so right. Never has there been a BETTER time to start a podcast. Just look at these numbers: 

Blogging:   500 Million blogs

You Tube:  40 million You Tube Channels

Podcasting: 1 Million podcasts

Now more than ever, podcasting is offering the greatest opportunity for creators.

There is still tremendous growth in podcasting. With only 1 Million podcasts, compared to blogging and You Tube, there is so much less competition. If you know how to successfully create one and grow an audience (as we have done), you can be poised for great long-term success.

Now’s the Perfect Time to Start a Podcast

Podcasting is the perfect medium for this pandemic. I know.

I am not only a podcast owner and producer, I AM an avid listener of MANY different podcasts. Podcasting has provided a great source of comfort for me, both as a creator and as a fan of podcasting.

Let me say this: I could not get through these stay-at-home lock downs for the past several months WITHOUT listening to my favorite podcasts.

In these uncertain and scary times, we all need a source of comfort. Spoken-word content is much more intimate and less distracting form than traditional media like TV, and radio – both latter mediums which are dying a slow death.

And podcasting is also much less distracting and intimate than watching a You Tube video.

The Current Facts about Podcasting

In 2020, listeners around the world have more high-quality programs and format options for podcasting than at any time in history, and they can dive deep into any niche topic they desire at the push of a “Subscribe” button.

Podcasting has finally crossed into the mainstream the world over. For those non-believers, Spotify certainly sent a clear unambiguous signal by recently signing The Joe Rogan Show to an unprecedented deal worth $100 million.

Spotify has left its undeniable mark in the sand. Already controlling a huge chunk of the online streaming music share of the market, it is clearly out to be the next “You Tube” of podcasting.

Apple Podcasts (formerly known as iTunes) owned the market for years, and is still the current top podcast platform by a long shot. They own 62.5% of the market, with Spotify coming in at a distance second with 8.9% of the market share.

However, although Apple Podcasts has owned the largest market share by far for more than 10 years, for a very long-time it did nothing to support its podcasters, such as providing advertising channels. It is only in the past year or two that Apple Podcasts have only started to add tools and perks to help their podcasters.

By stark comparison, Spotify has been making great strides to help their ever-growing legion of podcasters. It has only been due to this pressure by Spotify, that Apple Podcasts has responded with a knee-jerk response to help their podcasters within the last year.

All I can say, is Apple better watch out!

Spotify is out to get the throne!

There are still great improvements that could be made to podcasting by destinations platforms like Apple and Spotify, such as better analytics . However, there have been great improvements the last few years.

Digesting great podcasting content is a unique experience in and of itself. If you are not already listening to podcasts, I suggest to try it.

For entrepreneurs and artists who want to grow their audiences faster, the time is definitely ripe to get on the podcast train in 2020. 

Podcast vs Blog: A Shorter Learning Curve

Hey, I love my You Tube channel and I will continue to grow it.

But with 40 million + channels and over 4 Billion YT videos uploaded daily, the competition for You Tube can be overwhelming – and there is much more work that goes into making videos than in creating a podcast.

Take it from me, I slave over my videos. Furthermore, my videos are Vlogs (entertainment) which are much harder to grow out “out of the gate” than Search-based videos. (Informational or “How To” videos).

It does take many hours of work, experience, trial and error, and knowledge to create, edit, and drive viewers to GREAT videos for You Tube.

Although post production is still similar to video making, there is a shorter learning curve to podcasting. Here you are only dealing with the audio.

Conclusion:  Consider Podcasting as a New Medium of Consumption

If you have not started consuming podcasts yet, I highly recommend you try.

It will educate you in a whole different way, and by choosing to consume the right podcasts to listen to, you will be enriched by a more meaningful and intimate experience.

Stay tuned as we continue this conversation on podcasting.

Moving forward, if you give it a chance I promise it will be enlightening and a meaningful part of your journey.