eBusiness Institute

Liz Raad interviews Ash Roy on podcasting

How Podcasting Can launch Your Online Business

Are you ready to start an online business, and looking for a way to engage your ideal audience straightaway? Podcasts are an amazing medium that are becoming more and more popular. Over half the US population have downloaded at least one episode, so this is a strategy you really want to pay attention to.

I recently caught up with Ash Roy, who is the founder of the Productive Insights Podcast. He shares with us why podcasting is such an important platform to use in your online marketing strategy – you’ll be inspired by the opportunities!

CLICK ON THE VIDEO BELOW to hear from Ash Roy:

Liz Raad:                   Today I’m here with Ash Roy at the Digital Marketing Conference.

Using podcasts to build your online audience

I was talking to Ash about launching websites, and we were talking about the million-dollar idea. So, if you’ve got the big idea that you want to launch online and get out to the marketplace and build an audience, then Ash has got some really good solutions. Because Ash specializes in podcasting.

So how can podcasting help someone if they’re trying to launch the big idea online and really engage an audience?

Podcasts hold a higher audience engagement than other platforms

Ash Roy:                 So, one of the things about podcasting that currently positions it as an amazing medium, is that a recent study from podcastinsights.com showed that 80% of people listening to podcasts are listening to almost the entire episode. Now considering the average episode is about 30 minutes long that’s insane levels of engagement as compared to say, YouTube or even reading blog posts. People tend to skim those things.

But the reason podcasts are so engaging is because people tend to listen to podcasts when they’re on their own, while they’re driving, while they’re at the gym and so, they tend to engage with it on a deeper level.

Also, because it doesn’t involve a screen. A lot of people feel a screen as a source of anxiety and overwhelmed because so much information and work-related stuff comes from the screen. But podcasting is something that is primarily audio.

And so, people are listening to the content as they’re driving, and it’s been baked into their commute nowadays. Also, Apple’s Car Play is coming out. So, Car Play is getting the whole podcast mechanism baked into the machinery.

Do you have a podcast?

Liz:                   We will do soon.

Ash:                 Great, so once you have your podcast (like I have the Productive Insights podcast); if someone wants to listen to a particular episode, they would say, “Hey S-I-R-I”, while you’re driving your car, “Play the Productive Insights podcast”, and it starts playing.

Podcaster Ash Roy speaking at Matt and Liz Raad Digital Marketing Conference
Podcaster Ash Roy speaking at Matt and Liz Raad Digital Marketing Conference

Creating an off-screen experience for your online audience

So, it’s an offscreen experience. Which means that people as they’re driving to work are just engaging, and are able to access. The friction to access is reduced.

Liz:                   Yes and voice search too. It’s all done by voice search.

Podcasts can help you target Affluent audiences…

Ash:                 Yes, and I’ll tell you what else is really interesting. A lot of affluent people tend to be time poor. And so affluent people are using their dead time to self-educate. So, what’s happening is they seem to be self-selecting into the audio medium which, is predominantly podcasts.

So, if you have a podcast, you’re more likely to get more engagement, more affluent listeners, and people who engage for a longer period of time, therefore leading to higher conversions.

Using podcasts to build online authority

And if you have a mission and you want to build a million-dollar product online, it’s a great way to help build authority in their minds. Now you can also use podcasting to connect with major influencers, which I have done. But you don’t need to. Authority doesn’t necessarily mean you have to connect with influencers. Authority means you are the authority in your customer’s mind. And one way to become the authority in your customer’s minds is to get their undivided attention over an extended period of time where you’re giving them insane value.

Always produce valuable content for your audience

Which brings me to my other point. Make sure you produce content that is insanely valuable. If you’re not going to make it insanely valuable, don’t do it. Don’t tell people what you had for breakfast yesterday, because no one cares! Make sure you have a good content production framework, and if you like I can share that with your audience.

Liz:                   Great, we’ll catch up with you again Ash, and do something more with that. Because we’d love to hear it.

Thank you so much for your tips. And sounds like podcasting is definitely something to consider.

Ash:                 Absolutely, I highly recommend it.

If you want to contact Ash or learn more about how you can use a podcast to help launch or start a website business then you can learn more at his website Productive Insights.