April 11, 2019
While podcasts have been around for more than a decade, with the emergence of smartphones, streaming services and virtual home assistants (aka Amazon, Alexa), podcasts have only recently become part of our daily routine. In fact, Apple downloads surpassed 50 billion last year alone!
With over half a million podcasts available in close to 100 languages, this genre of social media is growing daily. I took a step back to figure out what all the hype is about and came up with the following three takeaways:
1. Portability, Accessibility, and Flexibility
We live in a busy, on-demand world. People are constantly running (or commuting) around, and mainly due to the prevalence of smartphones, we expect all our needs to be met at our fingertips, in real-time. Podcasts are just another example of that expectation becoming a reality– they travel with us, on our phones or on our laptops, and are available to be played whenever and wherever we are.
2. A Personal Connection
Podcasts seem to appeal to people who love social media, enjoy the audio experience, and usually have an interest in public radio. Being an on-demand platform, listeners can be more selective and choose the type of content they want to tune in to more so than if they were listening to the radio.
Many podcasts have been started by individuals that have no background in media but felt passionate about a certain subject, and with the low cost and barrier to entry, podcasts gave them an opportunity to share their story or expertise with the world creating communities around shared interests.
3. Something For Everyone
My suggestion is to choose podcasts that interest you and align with your vision and lifestyle. I do tend to listen to more healthcare inspired podcasts including HealthcareNOW Radio and The #HCBiz Show, given the industry I’m in, but I do like to switch it up and listen to podcasts for pure entertainment as well, such as Inside Trader Joe’s and NPR: How I built this.
Head over to Aria’s Twitter, @ariamarketing, and let us know your favorite podcasts!
