Podcasting To Generate Leads
It’s common for business owners to hesitate when they’re told that podcasting is a good way to generate leads. After all, podcasts can take a lot of time to produce and you need to invest in good equipment and cultivating the show’s character and personality to attract listeners.
The truth though, podcasting is one of the most effective and genuine ways you can generate leads.
Why does podcasting work?
Because podcasting cultivates an audience that has a relationship with your business and brand. A great podcast proves that you know what you’re talking about, and tells your listeners a lot about your business.
Basically, podcasts let potential customers pre-vet your company to see if you’re a good fit for them.
Why Podcasts Are Different From Sales Funnels
A lot of marketers these days talk about sales funnels as a way to create a relationship with clients and help turn interest into a lead, into a sale. The problem is that most sales funnels are incredibly transparent and may not provide real value to your customers.
Most people know when they are moving along a sales funnel, and a lot of people will jump ship just because they don’t want to be ‘sold’.
Podcasts are different because there aren’t any tricks to keep people clicking. Your audience, and potential customers, are only going to listen if they want to. That means you need to provide real value to make a podcast work.
If you want to generate leads with a podcast every episode needs to be useful and valuable. Customers can leave whenever they want, so they don’t have to invest a lot of time into a funnel that may or may not pay off.
How To Generate Leads Through Podcasts
Think about your podcast as a resource for a listener. For instance, if you’re starting a healthy meal-kit brand you can talk about ways to create healthy meals at home in your podcast. Use the theories and techniques that inform your kits and provide real information.
Being genuine and providing real value in a free venue like a podcast tells your customer you’re serious and builds trust for your products.
When your audience trusts your expertise it’s easy to turn a listener into a lead, just by directing them to relevant resources or products your brand produces.
Do Podcasts Generate Enough Leads To Be Worth It?
According to Statistica, 57% of all U.S. consumers listen to at least one podcast according to data collected in 2021. Podcast listening also increases year over year, so even more of your potential audience will likely be listening to podcasts soon.
Even if only a small percentage of people listen to your podcast, that's still enormous potential. Plus, the self-selecting nature of podcasts audiences means that your listeners are probably already interested in your products or service.
Podcasting lets you tap into a motivated and interested market, people who are already passionate about what you do.
Converting Podcast Leads
Podcasting by itself is a great way to generate brand awareness, consumer interest, and eventually customer leads. But your website, the other resources you offer, and how you handle customer service are the details that will turn a lead into a conversion.
Make sure your website tells the same story as your podcast. Give your leads the confidence that you can solve their problem and you’ll be able to turn a podcast lead into a sale.