In this video, Christine goes over several scenarios when podcasting is totally worth it for both brands and show hosts. It isn’t always about money or audience size; sometimes podcasting’s biggest value is from relationships, creativity, and audience fandom.
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Transcript:
Welcome to our show host series this week. I’m covering a question that maybe some people ask more internally than externally about podcasting and being a show host. And I think it’s something that you may not realize you’ve been asking yourself, but if you haven’t, it’s a great thing to consider. And I’m going to give you some tips to think through it. And the question is, when is podcasting worth it? Now this can mean a lot of different things, but I think the obvious one is as a show host or as a company or as a brand, when is podcasting worth it to you? Your goals, your return on investment, your budget, your time, your energy. When is it worth it? And obviously the other half of that question is when is it not? And what I want to offer you in this video as a producer who’s worked in podcasting and media and YouTube and live events for over 10 years is that when it’s working, when it’s worth it, it is like so worth it. And any successful established show host will tell you that. And so if you’ve been wondering, like, is it ever worth it? Like, is this just like a thing that was really hot for some people at a time and now isn’t? The answer is no. It is still very worth it to certain people, certain brands, certain organizations. And I want to give you some ideas of how to gauge this for yourself, kind of putting the money conversation aside. Because obviously, if you’re getting paid to podcast at a certain level with sponsorships and a network, it’s worth it. It’s a job, right? Certain jobs are worth it. And it’s a really fun job. And if you’re getting paid by sponsors and all the work is done by a network, it’s worth it. That’s a pretty easy answer, right? So I, in this video, want to talk about how to gauge whether podcasting is worth it independent of that scenario, because that one’s kind of an obvious one. So, aside from money, when is podcasting worth it? One of the best ways that I see it being worth it for show hosts, let’s take that for example, is when they are building all sorts of really high-value relationships through podcasting, meaning the people they invite on their show and have conversations with. or the opportunities they’re offered through the people who either guested on the show, heard the show, knew about the show. These can be speaking opportunities, book deals, collaborations, gigs with companies. Like, podcasting can totally be worth it, I’ve seen this many times for clients, when the high value relationships that come through podcasting pay off. And this is going to look different for everyone, right, because you may not at all be interested in public speaking opportunities and very interested in doing brand collaborations and the podcast may open the door or the opposite. Or you may be really, really interested in a major publication book deal and a podcast can open that door and, you know, the other avenues didn’t matter at all to you. So the first thing I would say is podcasting can be worth it when the high value relationships that come through it pay off. And like, as you can imagine, like those can just be like casual invitations that open doors that no other way could they have been open to you. And sometimes it’s much more formal. Sometimes the high-value relationships, maybe you had a guest on your show and you had just had this incredible connection and it developed into something much more, all sorts of cool business collaborations or personal friendships, but it also might look like a brand recognizing you as like a really preferred partner that they want to bring in and do work with because they’ve seen your style, your expertise, your voice, the caliber of media that you make. And they’re like, oh my gosh, this is a perfectly trained talent that we would love to hire. So high value relationships, I think, is one way podcasting can be really worth it. And I just touched on a few ways that that pans out, but like there are infinite ways that high value relationships pan out. As you know, podcasting though is really good at developing high value relationships if you do it the right way. Asterix right there, if you do it the right way. Another way to think about whether podcasting is worth it to you is if you are able to communicate to your audience and provide content for them that no other medium would allow you to do. And we’ve talked about this on other videos in the channel, but it’s so much about the long-form, intimate nature of podcasting that allows you to deliver content to your audience that they will spend so much time with versus other methods you could use, video, books, email, blogging. Podcasting has a really special place in the world of media. And if you have been able to figure that out and deliver to your audience something that they find so valuable that they’re not able to get in any other way, that can just be massively worth it. For all sorts of reasons right like fandom loyalty audience growth People doing your marketing for you because they are so obsessed with you and they love you so much If you can figure out and find that right connection to your audience and the content you’re making for them Podcasting can be so worth it because it’s really hard to achieve that magic connection with any other medium A third way to gauge whether or not podcasting is worth it to you is a little bit more personal and simple, but I think often overlooked, especially in capitalist conversations. Are you excited, fulfilled, creatively expanding? Is it fun and energizing and helpful to you as a creative? as a content maker, as a thought leader. Sometimes very, very busy, very, very high profile thought leaders keep podcasting because it’s so like creatively nourishing to them. And the conversations they get to have on their show, like, they couldn’t get that time with those people or that research any other way. And so even though they might already have a lot of like fame or successor connection, they don’t have that outlet. And it’s so helpful to them and so exciting and nourishing that it’s always going to be worth it to them. And that is a little, you know, You don’t have to be like Brene Brown for that to be the case, but I think it’s worth noting there are a few podcast hosts out there who have very successful careers, who have many other channels to make money, and they’re doing podcasting because of how exciting and nourishing creatively it is to them. That might just make it worth it. Now those were all focused a little bit more on kind of the show host. I mean, we did talk about audience and that can be relevant to a brand, but I also want to just make a note here. How can a brand or a company or an organization figure out whether podcasting is worth it to them? Some of what we just talked about applies, but there’s another thing to consider as a brand when podcasting is worth it to you. A branded podcast, which we’ve talked about on other videos, can take a brand from just being another consumer product in the, you know, fray of competition and put it in a whole other category for consumers, customers, you know, fans. It can take you from just like, oh yeah, I love that product to like, I love everything about this company. I’ve become like a brand fan for life. Trader Joe’s is a great example of this. Obviously, they have a super loyal customer base and a great product. They’ve been around for decades, but their podcast has literally taken that to another level. And they’re constantly, that podcast, the Trader Joe’s podcast is constantly kind of put on the pedestals like the best branded podcast for the way that it nurtures and cultivates this customer base to be so much more than just customers and to be these like really, really deep for life fans and promoters. And, um, you know, listening to that podcast, just as an example, I listened to it. I mean, I’m a Trader Joe’s customer, but I also love the show. it makes me want to evangelize the company and I’m like, gosh, what a great company to work for. What a great company to use as an example of amazing business practices. What a great, like, right? I don’t even work there and I think it’s such a great company and I talk about it because of what I’ve learned on the podcast about how the company operates and who the people are and their values. And you know, it’s, it’s a way for a brand to go to like a whole other orbit with their audience and their customer base. And so, That alone can be well worth it, probably for a more established brand who has that audience already. It’s a steep hill to climb to be a new unknown brand and build a podcast that can do that. But if you’re an established brand who’s like, you know what, people love us and know us and trust us, but they don’t really understand the full magic of who we are, a podcast could totally do that. So those are some thoughts I wanted to share. It’s a very relevant question. When is podcasting worth it? And here’s some times when it is. And I hope that’s helpful to you if you’re trying to gauge in the current landscape, like, should we keep doing this? Should we start doing this? How could it be worth it? There’s some thoughts. Subscribe to the channel, and we’ll see you in the next video.