Podcasting, Is It All It's Cracked Up To Be?

With the advent of the web, the number of information delivery methods continue to expand. As marketers, its important to stay abreast of the changing ways our customers (and prospects) receiving information. Over time, I have recorded a number of podcasts, but never truly understood the value of this delivery method.

Alternative Forms of Information. We are a mobile society. As a result, a number of people have changed the way they digest information. Radio has been around for some time, but streaming audio, TV programs you can watch on the Internet, and Podcasts have taken it to a new level. It's best to understand all the ways in which your customers like to receive and digest information.

Bite Sized Chunks. As individuals we are overloaded with messages everyday. In order to not get "overwhelmed", we filter messages and choose the mediums by which we receive information. That said, the benefits of podcasting included the ability to easily download the podcast, listen while you work/drive/etc., start and stop at your convenience. Digesting your information in this flexible way works for many.

Easy to Produce. For a sample podcast visit Marketing Expert Podcasts. I recorded a podcast over the weekend using a free audio recording tool called Audacity. It wasn't the easiest tool to use only because I'm not all that familiar with how to use these audio recorders, but it was free and got the job done. I imagine that with a little bit of instruction, developing your own podcasts become relatively easy- giving you a reason to provide this information to those who wish to receive it in this format.

Here to Stay? I believe that podcasting is important, but is it here to stay? Well, people still listen to the radio so I guess it will take a long time to die out. However, with the advent of online multimedia (video), I think podcasting is quickly becoming outdated.

What do you think?