Emma Lawson from ABC Australia says people are moving about between social platforms at the moment, so it is a time to re-evaluate your podcast social media strategies.In a RadioDays Europe session on podcasting, Lawson explained how the ABC has adopted a varied strategy where some podcasts are just audio while others are made with full video. Emma’s focus for this session was particularly on video.Different approaches work for different podcasts, they are:
Full episodes
Select clips for YouTube
Vertical Videos (shorts)
As an example of a full video podcast that uses multiple cameras and different camera angles, she gave the example of the Fashion Neurosis Podcast with Bella Freud. The stylised storytelling format has high production values but still seems intimate thanks to the lighting. The style suits the format of the podcast.Another example of a highly produced video podcast is the ABC’s If You’re Listening series with Paul Bevan.Lo-Fi video also works for some formats. Characteristics of that style include vertical orientation, quick edits, memes and sound effects to create dynamic content. The Hook Up is an example of this style. “We don’t know what the rules are and what they will be tomorrow on the social platforms.”Because the algorithms and tactics of social media companies are constantly changing, Emma recommends that someone in the organisation needs to be tasked to keep up with the constant changes. She drew attention to the creator search insights section on Tiktok, where podcasters can look for trends and then prepare promotions to align with the current trends. “If you are a business account you can look at creator insights for trending search terms to tag your content. That has changed everything, our posts are now getting good traction,” she said.In Australia, the Hamish and Andy podcast is consistently at or near the top of the podcast charts each month. Starting in community radio, then building a hugely successful profile on commercial radio and tv, Hamish and Andy have now moved into a weekly podcast format (LINK to podcast).Audio producer Chris Marsh shared some of the secrets to the success of the Hamish and Andy podcast as well as other Southern Cross Austereo LiSTNR podcasts that he works on.Quality over quantity is one of the key elements of success. Plan and prepare well, but also leave room for spontaneity. Pick a rhythm of podcast publishing that will allow you to deliver quality in each episode.Going the extra mile. Don’t stop with just a good idea, keep working until it is great.Look for shareability, create content that your fans will want to share.A great trailer for the show is essential.Conversions. Have genuine conversations with your team and your audience.Create a community of your listeners. Word of mouth is always highly effective. The show facilitates chats about the content of the show on Instagram and other socials. The show uses direct messages and voicemails to play back in the show for a 360 degree feedback loop.Think outside the box to meet the audience where they are.Cross Promotion on other podcasts, radio and SCA’s social accounts. For example, during key periods such as the football season, the show and its socials will promote sports podcasts and the sports podcasts and socials will return the favour and promote Hamish and Andy.“Good audio can win, you don’t necessarily need to put up full video podcasts,” said Chris.Rhian Roberts, who commissions Podcasts and Formats at BBC Speech Audio looked at strategies that generate more numbers for podcasts.Talkability is one of those factors. “The thing that does deliver the most listeners is talkability,” she said.If your socials are good they may generate talkability, but if not, the potential audience will stay on social media not move to a podcast platform to listen to your podcast.“If a personality increases their authentic profile on socials that may lead to more listening, but you need to know if the audience will really appreciate your socials. If the presenter is not convincing on socials, maybe they should not be using socials.”Another successful way of promoting your podcast is appearances on other similar podcasts.Leanne Allie from Artist Partnerships has seen how social media has directly impacted podcast consumption.“The first years of podcasting had plenty of podcasts that were discoverable, but now social media goes visual first, so there is more competition from short form social content. This keeps people on the social platforms, consuming the clip they see online, rather than going to the whole podcast,” she said.“Social media does convert to a certain extent, but you have to work harder now. Get your podcast seen on as many different social media platforms as possible, target the particular platform where your target audiences are.”
TikTok will help you find and build an audience from scratch.
For Instagram, tell a story with a clip or a still photo carousel.
“You can only go so far with organic reach on socials, you need to build your own audience base who are interested in the subject matter or the host, you may need to pay for promotion, for example pre-roll videos on Youtube.“Traditional press and outdoor does not convert to podcast listenership in my experience. Podcast listeners are more active online, so invest in paid social media everywhere online and make short form segments for socials to attract new audiences.”Katerina Bakogianni from Alter Ego Media agrees. “Cross promotion and word of mouth has worked for us. Social media also works, when we pay for ads there is a spike in listenership (a 30% increase as long as there is engaging content in the post). Just putting the tile up there does not convert people to listen.”“For brand promotion spend as much money on marketing as you spend on the production,” she advised. […]
