Podcasting for Dummies®, 2nd Edition

Chapter 14. Fishing for Listeners

In This Chapter

• Getting your podcast ready for advertising

• Using paid advertising

• Taking advantage of free advertising

• Generating buzz about your podcast

As of this writing, there are tens of thousands of podcasters. By some estimates, the number of people who listen to various podcasts range in the millions. However, that pales in comparison with the potential audience, which is somewhere in excess of 300 million people worldwide with a broadband Internet connection. Although the audience is large, the options for listeners are legion. But how do you attract an audience to your podcast?

In this chapter, we show you a variety of options that you may want to use in an effort to gain a larger listener base. Some cost you money; others cost you time. But the end result is exposing your podcast to the right people at the right time.

Getting Your Podcast Ready for Advertising

Whether you plan on spending real money or expending real energy, you need to do some prep work before you start your campaign. You shouldn't rush your advertising campaigns, but take the time to carefully plan and execute them. Failure to do so can not only be a huge waste of time and money, but it may also result in turning off potential listeners to your show, making it many times more difficult to attract them back for a second chance.

Polishing your presentation

Most podcasters need a few shows under their belts before they hit their stride. If you're on podcast episode number three, ...