The cornerstone of any good marketing campaign is, and always will be, killer copy. This is true regardless of the product or service you are trying to sell. People judge you by the words you use, and nowhere is this truer than in ad or promotional copy.
Podcasting is a growing trend among a wide range of industries. It is a fun, real, unique way to attract more new customers and clients and build bigger followings on social media. If you’ve been thinking about trying it, there are a number of things to consider, not the least of which is what kind of copy you are going to need to promote your podcast successfully.
Just so that we’re clear: I’m not going to go into detail about the mechanics of starting a podcast today. I’ll leave that to the professionals. What I would like to do is give you a roadmap to marketing your podcast with the focal point of the content being really good copy.
Your Podcast Description
This will almost always be the first contact you have with a new listener, so getting this right is vital to the success of your podcast. The description is typically only 2-3 sentences. Its purpose is to give the listener a reason to listen.
There are a number of different approaches to writing a podcast description. The one you choose to take will depend on what your subject is and whom you expect to tune in. As I’m sure you know, some styles work better than others with specific audiences.
I stumbled upon this article doing some research on this very subject. I think it will help you sort out what your description should look like or give you enough ideas to split test a couple different styles. That last part is something I recommend highly, by the way.
Your "About" Page
You do have a website that serves as your base of operations for your podcast, right? If not, you need one. Do NOT rely strictly on social media to promote your podcast. The really successful ones have a firm footing in the marketing world, and in this world, that means you have a website. Period.
So, let’s just assume you already have one. How is your “About” page looking? What kind of information is on there right now? If you just stumbled upon your own “About” page, would you be impressed enough to subscribe to your own podcast? If not, you should probably consider updating and expanding that page a bit.
It is perfectly fine at this stage of the game to give a little more information about the podcast — why you started it, what you hope to accomplish with it, etc. — along with some biographical information about the hosts. You also need to make sure the focus remains on the listeners and motivating them to subscribe.
You can accomplish this by pushing information that appeals to the listeners to the forefront through various means. Headlines, bold type, section headings, bullet lists, and more will help you ensure that potential listeners see and zero in on a specific reason (or two) to subscribe.
The best way to do this is to draw attention to pain points and solutions. You can integrate these details as you tell your story. Begin with the struggles that led to you wanting to start this project and present them as bullets. From there, you can also bullet point a few solutions. It may be all many people ever read on that page, but it will be enough.
For those who do take the time to get to know you a little better, present good, intelligent, readable copy. Don’t neglect the details because you don’t think enough people will be bothered by it.
Your Intro/Outro
Now that you’ve gotten new listeners to try out an episode, it is important that you give them a reason, right away, to listen to the very end. Please do not simply restate the same description that the listeners read on iTunes. Here is where you get to promote the why over the what.
The description is likely to give potential listeners an idea of the type of content they can expect. Well, since they already know that, why not use this opportunity to sell your audience on the concept of your podcast. Think in terms of, “We help you solve problem A, by teaching you X, Y, and Z.” In other words, jab the pain point in the intro. Nothing will keep a listener hanging on more effectively.
As for your “outro” (no, it’s not a real word, but it is a broadcasting term for which I have particular affection), this is where you should always drop a call to action to “like, subscribe, comment, leave feedback,” etc. immediately. Get that CTA in there immediately, even before the standard, “We hope you liked the show…” kind of message.Most people will pause the audio within seconds of you saying goodbye, so be as quick as you can with this.
Other Considerations
As a parting thought, you will also want to consider having all your copywriting ducks in a row with this project the same as you would any other marketing initiative. That means developing winning copy in the following areas surrounding your podcast:
• Well-Presented Social Media Pages – I think I have enough past articles explaining why this is important…
• Email Blasts – Never, ever neglect email. Its power still reigns supreme in the marketing world.
• Blog Posts – Feed your listeners regular blog content that complements or augments your podcasts.
• Transcripts – A surprising number of people download these, so make sure you are producing them and producing them well.
Final Takeaway
If any of these things aren’t already part of your podcast marketing strategy, you need to seriously consider why they aren’t and then consider even harder adding them to your plan. IF you are already doing some of these things, but think you could be doing them better, chances are, you’re right.
If you find you need a little help, contact us. Our solid, dependable, and very versatile team of custom writing professionals is here to help with whatever you need to make promoting your podcast successful.