Episode Summary
Podcasting is an ideal way to connect with your customers. Many companies now incorporate podcasting into their marketing strategy to create additional value for their audience. But not all companies are able to produce a podcast consistently, so they experience podfade. Podfade is when you suddenly stop publishing new episodes without giving prior notice to the audience. In this episode of the Recorded Content, our co-founder and co-host Tristan Pelligrino talks about the key reasons why some podcasts experience podfade. He also shares some valuable tips for avoiding podfade and getting the most out of your company’s show.
Guest Profile
Name: Tristan Pelligrino
What he does: He’s the co-founder of Motion
Noteworthy: Tristan is the co-host of the Recorded Content podcast
Company: Motion
Key Insights
- Why does podfade happen? Podfade happens when you suddenly stop producing your show due to a lack of energy or motivation. But what’s the reason behind it? Tristan explains: Not all companies are able to produce a podcast consistently. For a few key reasons, we’ve seen companies fail after the distribution of the first few episodes. A majority of podcasts don’t even make it to the seventh episode and they end up suffering from a term called podfade. And these companies either give up podcasting altogether or come to a company like ours to help them get through it.
- If you want to make your podcast successful, you need to make sure that you have the right people in the right seats. Podcasting is certainly not a one-person job. But if you want your show to stand a chance in this saturated market, you’ve got to find the right talent for your show. Tristan says: Make one person accountable but stack talent. Successful podcasts are resource-intensive and if you want to keep your show running, you need to make sure that you have the right people in the right seat. The best way to ensure your podcast keeps running is to limit the risk you have with one person. If your team relies too much on the skills of a single resource, then you need to change your approach.
- Establish clear objectives for your podcast. Having clear podcast goals is what will set you apart from others. You need to know what you want the podcast to achieve for your overall marketing strategy. Tristan explains: A third key thing to do to prevent podfade is to establish clear objectives for your show before you launch. If your CEO asks, “How many downloads per episode can we expect within the first 30 days?” then you need to do a better job establishing objectives upfront. Before you record your first episode, you need to make sure that everyone has realistic expectations. Once you have a rock-solid theme for your podcast, it’s important to outline these objectives. And the objectives aren’t just for your marketing team; they’re also key for setting the tone with management as well.
Episode Highlights
You can’t rely on only one person for your podcast
The first major reason a company’s podcast fails is because the company relies too much on a single person to produce the show. It takes a lot of different skill sets to produce a company’s podcast. If your marketing team wants to get the most out of a video podcast, you need a lot of different skills: podcast strategy, graphic design, script development, podcast guest outreach and coordination, audio editing, and video editing. The list really goes on and on. It’s rare to find all of these things wrapped up into one person, but a lot of companies still try to assign all of these different things to a single individual.
Don’t focus too much on downloads at the beginning of your podcasting journey
The second reason we see podcasts fail is when leadership doesn’t get it and focuses too much on downloads in the beginning. One of the biggest red flags we see during discovery calls is when a prospect says, “What type of download metrics can we expect to see in the first few months?” When your company’s leadership starts off the podcasting journey with a focus on downloads, you’re going to fail. Your podcast will fail because it’ll never really have a chance to succeed in the first place.
Repurposing content is key
Your team can embed video clips and blog posts, create ads from interviews, and use podcast snippets in email campaigns, just as an example. Podfade typically creeps in when a company doesn’t get the most out of each episode. So rather than using their show as a way to drive their content marketing strategy, companies create an MP3 file and upload it to their podcast hosting platform. Then after five or six episodes, the podcast gets canceled because there’s not enough ROI.
Your podcast should help your ideal audience
When we launch a podcast for a tech company, we encourage them to answer two major questions as part of their overarching podcast strategy: Who is the show for and how does it help them? Podcasts fail when one or both of these questions aren’t answered. The show fails because it’s aimless and teams can’t use the content to support the company’s revenue.
Develop a podcast theme statement
The best shows supported by brands have a very clear mission. At Motion, we call this a theme statement. When we produce shows for tech companies, we work with marketing teams to craft the theme statement and this becomes a big part of the strategic action plan. The theme clearly identifies who the podcast is for and how it helps them. The theme statement is used in a lot of different places like the podcast description, which you see in all the different podcast apps. You can use it in guest guidelines, on the website, and within the prerecorded intro and outro. And when you have a very specific theme statement, it makes it easier to create episodes for your listeners.
Create once and distribute forever
When your team puts a lot of research and effort into a podcast episode, you owe it to yourself to make sure that you spend the time to distribute it effectively. Don’t just generate an MP3 file and upload it to Buzzsprout and then put the MP4 on YouTube. Instead, focus on getting the most out of each conversation. This includes creating audio, video, and written content. When you commit to producing a podcast for your company, make sure you establish a list of assets for each episode. Create a publishing schedule and stick to it.
