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Only in Apple Podcasts it is estimated that there are 500 thousand active podcasts, which include content in more than 100 languages, likewise, a report in the United States revealed that 75% of the population is familiar with the term «podcasting», equivalent to a 70% increase over 2019 (Infinite Dial 2020).

According to Statista: “At the end of 2020, approximately 533 million people listened to podcasts in the world. This figure, which represented an increase of 125 million compared to the previous year, evidences the continuation of the positive trend that this format has recently experienced. In addition, according to forecasts, the number of listeners will continue to increase in the next five years until approaching 975 million by 2026”.

From RDS, in recent years, we have been accompanying brands so that they use this format as part of their content strategies, opening the possibility for audiences to obtain valuable content. Now, this process is not suitable for all organizations, first an analysis must be made of whether it is capable of generating information for the format and what would be the objective of doing so.

Those who are not familiar with the term, a podcast is an audio piece (radio program) in which the idea is to develop themes associated with a brand or sector, having guests, doing interviews or developing chronicles, reports or you can even use the news format.

It is ideal, in the same way, that it be carried out with a defined periodicity where subscribers can download it on the Internet. “It is a customizable and downloadable radio program that can be mounted on a website or blog, even on platforms as popular as iTunes, Spotify, SoundCloud or Ivoox, among others”, defines Inboundcycle.

Among the main characteristics it is noted that:

• It is a digital audio that can combine voice, music and sound effects.
• Normally it is presented in mp3 or wab format.
• The podcast recordings are hosted on a website from where they can be downloaded and, many times, played live.
• Allows a very varied content: news, tutorials and other educational content, such as radio pieces, among others.
• Does not require a large investment, just a basic digital recording system.

Development phases: like all content, there are some stages that must be taken into account for its creation, especially if you want to be part of a content strategy that leads to good results.

The first thing is to set the objectives and plan pillars, if it were educational, informative or inspirational material for the audiences, that will depend a lot on the profile of the brand’s stakeholders.

The next step is to identify similar programs to try to establish a differential, it is enough to remember the initial figures of the blog to know that, surely, there are similar programs or podcasts, that is why it is necessary to understand what the opportunities will be to offer a different space, for example, from the experts or people who will be the voice of it.

Define the format, although it will not be a straitjacket, it is better to have a defined space that can be changed for a change, but the most used are Theme: the round table, debate programs, informative, educational, narrative, interviews and even of opinion, they can be changed, but it is good to leave it planned within the content strategy.

Never forget to plan ahead:

• Guests for interviews
• How the content of the podcast will be shared on social networks.
• Advertise in digital media the frequency and schedules.
• Have a page ready to receive listeners, it can be the website or a landing page.
• The scripts will prevent improvisation during the recording of the podcast and quality content will come out.

At RDS we contribute to strengthening brand positioning through new online, digital, PR and marketing communication methods.