Podcasting Listeners Are Paying Attention

I just love it when the data weighs in to support something I have witnessed anecdotally and intuitively known long before research could prove it. Podcasting does the heavy lifting of finding niche audiences and capturing their attention in a way that is otherwise unattainable to marketers. Be sure to read all the way down to Rox's 4 L's of Podcast Success.

I am presenting here the results of two studies, one by Arbitron/Edison Research and one by PodTrac.

I was lucky to be on a panel of experts who spoke at ad:tech san francisco two weeks ago, on behalf of the Association for Downloadable Media. In our session, we released the latest survey data from Edison Research addressing both the size and the behavior of podcast audiences. Their data is oriented somewhat towards audio podcasts, and IMO video podcasts are audio podcasts on steroids.

Here's the takeaway from the lead analyst, Tom Webster

The audience for downloadable media is not only growing, but also represents a very attractive target for advertising...and those 23 million Americans are affluent, spend lots of time (and money!) online, and are increasingly more difficult to target with interruption advertising. I would love to see more and more partnerships between mass media broadcasters and independent content producers. You need each other.

You can download the full PDF here from Edison Research. (PDF)

The second study gets down to the nitty gritty: so what if there are more podcast consumers, are they paying attention? Yes, and in ways that are unheard of in traditional advertising and marketing.

• Average unaided ad recall of 68%
• Average aided ad recall of 89%
• 73% average increase in likelihood to use/buy vs control group
• 69% having a more favorable view of advertiser due to ad exposure

How is this possible? PodTrac CEO Mark McCrery summarizes it this way:

Narrowly targeted audiences, appropriate ad formats, content relevance, and show host involvement are some of the factors which come together to produce highly effective ads in online shows and podcasts.

I would describe it as Rox's Four L's of Podcast Success:

1. Love: Podcast producers deliver authentic, topic-specific content and do the heavy lifting for attracting a unique, targeted, and interested audience. People who love Hawaii watch Beach Walks with Rox.
2. Loyalty: Podcast hosts, who by virtue of sharing their expertise and some personal details, create very loyal audiences. Over 60% of Beach Walks viewers tune in every day.
3. Location: Podcast audiences largely consume the content at the physical (not geographic) location of their computer (60-70% on average) and can take immediate action when presented with offers from show sponsors. When listening to traditional radio or TV, they are not in a physical location to be able to respond on impulse. (Being able to take podcasts on the go is an added bonus of podcasts—not available to radio or TV. We show Beach Walks episodes to our seat mates on the plane coming back home to Hawaii, and that combined with a good old-fashioned postcard generates new viewers and gives travelers a personal connection to the vacation of their dreams)
4. Leadership: Podcast hosts serve as a filter for their audiences, as most will not accept sponsors for products and services they do not support. This is the best of leveraging word-of-mouth advertising with scale.

I didn't include it, but another L could be the Luxury market. Podcast users are far more likely to have attained at least a college degree, are more likely to live in households earning in excess of $75,000 per year, more likely to buy online, and more likely to use pop-up blockers. But heh, it doesn't always have to be about the Benjamin's!
What do you think about podcasting? I'd love your feedback.

Do you invest more in people or gear?

There was a job posting over on a message list I follow, and it got me to thinking. It seems that lots of companies feel safer and more comfortable about investing in a lot of high end equipment, but then want to find people to work on spec or for very little pay or for fame. As a creator though, I have some different opinions, so I posed the question to a group of colleagues at ad:tech last week. You can listen to their opinions, then make up your own mind - and please tell me what you think!

Here's the original posting for context:

[Company X] is looking for a video engineer to manage, enhance and
operate our state-of-the-art HD multi-camera streaming video studio.
We're switched, have about 3,000 square feet of shooting space, a green
screen, etc. We need someone who wants to chart the course of what a
videoblogging/streaming studio should look be, on a beer budget.

In all fairness, beer is part of the company's culture, so you could take that last comment a couple of different ways. Feel free to leave a comment right in the video as well - you'll just have to create a quick account over at viddler.

Customers are Messy

I am at the SXSW Interactive conference listening to Forrester analyst Charlene Li talking about Social Revolutionaries. She just described how some companies act like they have the perfect customer as a porcelain figurine in the sales and marketing department. They want to sell to this "ideal person" and psychologically resist or ignore real customer data and experiences.

It reminds me of my first business 20 years ago when I owned an exercise club and traveled the world training instructors and setting up health and fitness programs. Most people wanted to teach the most fun classes, to have the most advanced equipment, to work out really hard - because those were the things that drew them into the business.

But there are relatively few people who share that level of interest in health or fitness ability.

To have more customers (and a stronger bottom line as well as bottom) meant to open your arms and embrace the less than perfect bodies. My default message was:

Bring me your bad backs, your bulging bellies, your weak knees, your aching feet, your stressed out minds, and your defeated spirits. I will walk with you side by side and help you rebuild your energy, enjoy your body, and enliven your mind.

This meant I could not do some of my favorite moves: why should I impose that on my customers? It meant having unglamorous people in my club - but these people were far more loyal because I paid attention to them.

Way back then Reebok was ripping a new shoe line "aerobic shoes" and growing enormously, while the Nike board had the following discussion:

Board Member 1: Reebok is selling these aerobic shoes like mad. Should we get into that business?

Board Member 2: What the hell do we want to have anything to do with a bunch of fat women kicking their legs in the air?

Two years later Nike could no longer resist the urge to make money off these fat women and men. They realized there was room to support elite runners and Michael Jordan's along with the masses of people wanting to be healthier and wear a functional shoe as well..

The fact that your customers are making mashup videos about you on YouTube, talking about you on their blogs, and using your products in strange ways, IS THE GOOD NEWS. There is magic and millions in those messes, if you are willing to set aside your own prejudices about who should be using your stuff.

[Read more]

Aloha Summit - get your business “social media-ready” in just two days

Aloha Summit: March 18-19th, Waikoloa, Hawaii. It's custom-made for savvy businesses who want to understand geek secrets like how Google works, what's behind YouTube, not to mention Twitter, Flickr, podcasting, and more.

Of the many disruptions we are seeing in the marketplace as a result of the internet, the trend toward unconferences and lobby-styled events are some of the most interesting to me. I am a communicator. As much as I have enjoyed giving formal presentations for the past 20 years, the real juice usually occurs in the one to one and small group discussions in the hallways between and after the didactic sessions.

What's In It for You?
Coming up in a few weeks is The Aloha Summit, being held here on the Big Island of Hawaii. It is a two-day event limited to only 28 guests, plus several experts in social media and internet marketing, including me. This is designed for the participants to dive right in and:

• Learn about and see demos of how social media, podcasting, and web 2.0 networking applications work, up close and personal.
• Ask your personal questions as they come up in the conversation, and as detailed and specific to your business as you want to get (or not - you are in control.)
• Create new marketing, communication, and advertising strategies for your business, using the hottest web tools.
• Show you how to manage your time and filter out the things that may not apply to your business.
• Share power user secrets so you don't make costly and embarrassing mistakes as you venture into the always-on, transparent, and personal nature of today's leading business practices.
• Understand what things you can get for free online and what things are worth paying for when it comes to both strategy and implementation.

Your Own Team of Private Experts and Tutors
We know how busy you are. It's like having a team of experts at your private beck and call. We won't be covering anything that is not directly relevant to the people sitting in the room with us.

We will be walking the talk and helping you learn to do the same. It will be private, intimate, hands-on and hand-holding: a two-day working class with smart, friendly, connected instructors. You help guide the questions; you set the pace; you reap the rewards. We are here to support and educate you.

Still Trying How to Decide to Attend?
On the other hand, it's not for you if you don't like immersion-style learning or don't want to get your hands on the secrets of the web today. If your business is doing fine without knowing how to find out what others are saying about you or without finding and supporting customers via technology, then you can skip this.

However if you think your business is being affected by unknowns on the internet or if you want to use the internet more effectively but don't know how, then this event is perfect for you.

Ideally, you may want to bring one other person from your company. The social web is all about having buddies. If you come alone, no problem. I'll be recommending some tools the attendees can use post-event to continue your learning and support together too.

Special Pricing for Hawaii Residents: $495
Click here to get a very special rate of $495 for locals only. Use code "kamaaina" for HI residents and pay only $495 or use code "rox" for non-residents and save $250.

Though we here in Hawaii are so great at networking locally amongst ourselves, many are really behind the curve when it comes to networking our businesses with others around the world. The most frequent comments I get when speaking at local business events, are that "our company is not that tech savvy" or "the majority of our staff are older than 30 and we just don't understand a lot of this stuff that's happening online." If you can put two days in to The Aloha Summit you can single-handedly change this and catch up on the amazing changes that have taken place online in the past three years.

Tourism is a key industry that would benefit from using social media, both for our visitors as well as kama'aina. It could even bridge some of the growing gaps between those two groups. Other industries IMO with untapped opportunities are some of the innovative startups we have in Hawaii, especially those related to energy and lifestyle products and services.

Think Your Business is Too Large or Too Small to Matter?
It's not. Companies as large and sophisticated as Walmart have tried to use social media with unexpected negative results. If you're big and you don't have social media experts on staff or on-call, this program is critically important to your business.

Meanwhile, very small companies are using social media to create global brands on shoestring budgets. It's an opportunity that has never before existed.

Personally, I would love to see some of my friends in PR, Communications, Advertising, Tourism, and government at the conference. There are so many ways we can build our own businesses (and those of our customers) by using the collaboration tools of web 2.0. It's close, it's convenient, it's private, it's efficient. I can't think of a better way to go to the head of the social media class.

Got questions?
Please call my mobile and we can talk directly: 808-384-5554. I am traveling across time zones so try 6 am - 4 pm HST (which is 8 am - 6 pm PDT). Use code "kamaaina" to pay $495 if you are a Hawaii resident. Not lucky you live Hawaii? No problem! Enter code "rox" to save $250.

How and When to Leave Blog Comments

When we get a new client, we often compare the internet to a foreign country. It truly is its own culture, and building a web site there (aka a storefront) is like setting up business in a foreign country. Even though most of what you do will be in English (for most of my readers - their native language) it is still foreign. We like to think of ourselves as tour guides who will help you not only enjoy your trip, but actually want to enjoy it as a second home!

In that spirit, today's blog post is a little etiquette lesson in how to "act like a local." I (a person with web in my DNA) find it amazing and informative that CC Chapman can get a ton of response from a Podcamp lecture just by asking people to go leave a comment on a blog. It appears that people are confused about how to do this, when to do this, why to do this, and so forth. Just like blogging a lot of people face that daunting question: What on earth will I say? So let me be your friendly tour guide.

Let's make it stupid simple. I like stupid simple. I think hard on complex things most days and being able to "dumb it down" is something I really appreciate!

When to Comment

• Anytime you have an opinion to add to a conversation.
• When you want to promote your products and services (Just don't be crass about it. Add something of value to the conversation.)
• When someone has featured you on their page or site. (If you know about it or your blog software can track inbound links, this is VERY easy). I consider it one of the top ten blogger "miss manners" recommendations. This one is probably the most neglected, yet in my world, the most important.
• Timing can be important, especially if you are tracking A-list bloggers. Our former client, Mary Schmidt took to blogging really well and paid attention to when well-known excellence author Tom Peters would typically post a new blog. Mary made sure she was available to be one of the first commenters. It helped her get noticed and become a key influencer in Mr. Peters popular blog discussions. And yes, it has helped her build her consulting business,

What to Comment

• See above for initial instructions.
• Add your opinion - especially if it is against the flow. Life is not black and white - virtually every conversation is well-served by a range of perspectives.
• Details baby, details. The more specific you can be, the better. Cite examples, give props to others, share your experience. It's all good.

Why to Comment

• Because your point of view is just as relevant as anyone else's.
• Because it is a great way to build your personal or company brand.
• Because it creates inbound links to your site, which helps the search engines rank your site higher.

How to Comment

• There is always a place for your name. You can put anything you want in there! It is what will be displayed on the blog. Some people consider this a personal banding opportunity, and you can say, "Roxanne Darling" or "Nerd Queen" or even enter Rox of beachwalks.tv. Like all things, you can be savvy or you can be obnoxious, and all points in between. As my little 2-year old friend Kaile is learning to do, "make good choices."
• Email: you will be required to enter an email address. If the software is set up correctly, your email address will never be displayed. It is to sort you from the spammers. If you do not enter a URL (see next item) some blog software will show your email. As a precaution, always enter a URL! (if you don't have a web site, you can always link to another web site - a cause you support or CNN or whatever. Best to have your own site of course.)
• URL: Universal Resource Locator, aka your web site address. Be sure to link to individual pages on your web site when that is more appropriate to the discussion at hand. Just navigate to that page on your site, copy the page address, and then enter that into the "URL" field as you are leaving your comment. UPDATE: Consider also linking to you social network pages, like Twitter or your LinkedIn Profile or even your Flickr page if that is your primary home on the web.

Why (text-audio-video) blog? A sample of one.

There is so much frenzy about video blogging these days!  And like most trends, there is incredible presuure and lure out there for people to jump on the bandwagon. It’s human nature 101: when someone finds something they love, they want “everyone else” to share the love too. Alas, it doesn’t always make sense.

Whether it's people pushing iPods or Bibles, the urge to evangelize is one powerful urge!

Jeff Pulver responded to Dina Kaplan's suggestion to "Do a Video Blog" with a sober and IMO realistic perspective:

This all said, working with video does require some level of full-time commitment and care and is more "work" than just putting together one's thoughts for a text blog on any given Saturday afternoon.

And Robert Scoble has a useful list of video blog considerations that is both inspiring (no, it doesn't have to be perfect) and yet practical (good sound matters). Devlon at Loaded Pun also weighs in, pointing out the grass roots power of this medium. It feels like something we the people are just not going to let go of! Video is so much more compelling. Remember all those arguments you've had, wishing someone had documented it with video, to "prove" your version of reality?? Well, now you can.

A Study of One:

Here is my history with (text/audio/video) blogging.

Even though I love to write, I so far haven't become a great blogger. I don't have much of the snoop and gossip genes that I think help make a great blogger. I've had many blogs, starting back in 2001, but none really stirred my pot.

Then I got excited about audio podcasting, because heaven knows I love to talk to people. But that didn't really stick either, tho not for lack of ideas. It seemed cumbersome and I wanted to write it out first, but didn't want to take/have the time. Me alone with my microphone in my office where I already spend too much time? Nahh.

Then along comes videoblogging, and I have truly found my home. It feels so natural to me. I love it, though it is considerably more difficult and more time-consuming than blogging or audio-podcasting. Especially since I choose to do my Beach Walks with Rox outside in the elements, every single day, generating content from my my own little heart and mind. Go figure!

As a consumer, I often prefer to read as I can get so much more in, in a short period of time. I love it when a/v podcasters have show notes as that helps me decide whether or not to go further. Even if I don't have time to listen/watch, I can still engage in a relationship. I am very loyal to the podcasters who "speak to me" - something I cannot yet define. But I won't wait for an ad that most MSM requires before it will show me their video. Especially when I have to wait several seconds for anything at all to begin to play - as all the ad-click tracking makes its database calls to report on my behavior.

But back to my original point, seems to me there are plenty of us who are seriously inspired by video on the internet and we can back off everyone else. I like that old AA practice: attraction not promotion. If it's as powerful as many of us think, it's only going to get bigger. You've got plenty of time to jump on this bandwagon. As for me, I have so many show ideas I can't sleep at night!

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