Podcasting in the Digital Age

Podcasting in the Digital Age
by Richard Heathcote, Hot Shot Media

Let’s face it; in business, none of us want to be lost in the crowd. In this ever-expanding digital world, we’re all constantly looking for the next wave of marketing tools that will help us stand out from the crowd.

And there’s one tool that I think can revolutionise a business’ marketing strategy, which can be very simply executed and distributed.

The word is ‘podcast’.

It’s a device that is really rising up the ranks in marketing. One-man-bands through to multi-national Bluechip companies use them. And you know the best thing? Generally, they’re cheap to produce as well!

Most of you I imagine will be familiar with the term ‘podcast’; the ability to send an audio or video presentation to your clients and contacts. This means instead of them trawling through the text of a long email, they’re actually looking at you, hearing your voice speak directly to them. This really helps build rapport, even remotely, with your client base and helps them to relate to you the person, rather than the company. That is something crucial in business as you know – people buy from people, not companies.

The official word on the street is that ‘Vodcast’ is the name for a video-based podcast, being termed as ‘Video On Demand’, which would be ‘broadcast’ to your computer. From a personal point of view I don’t like the term vodcast as it’s not as widely used, no one really knows what you’re talking about! So in my view, ‘podcast’ is fine and says it all!

Your subject matter can be anything you want it to be. Popular types include sending a message to existing clients thanking them for their business, sending out this month’s special offers or services, promotion of new products or services, or just a useful piece of information that you’ve created or found which you feel your contact base would also appreciate knowing about. The list really is endless.

Because we all live in a visual world, you’ll find that messages which revolve around a visual medium are absorbed by your audience far easier than them just reading text – something which is incredibly important when sending out promotional or marketing messages. You don’t want your contact base forgetting everything you’ve said in a normal email minutes after reading! You want to give them a ‘call to action’ they’ll not forget, and forward to other people they know.

Getting the right distribution is crucial. The one I wholeheartedly recommend using is Talk Fusion, a video email system that just takes the pressure and hard work out of the situation. Video email is an incredibly affordable tool that will revolutionise how you send your message out, and will certainly make you stand out from the crowd. Utilising a video email system means that you won’t be sending audio or video clips through your own email accounts, which will guarantee that you won’t be using up your bandwidth, especially important if sending to many thousands of people: this way, your site won’t run the risk of crashing!

So, to summarise:

Podcasting is quite literally the future for regular corporate communication. An affordable, distinctive and impactful differentiator for any business, of any size.

We live in a visual-based world. Why are we still just using text-based emails to get our message across?

Stand apart from the crowd. Move your business forward. Utilise the power of podcasts.

Date: 02/03/2008
Category: BUSINESS ADVERTORIAL