Is The Podcast Market Saturated?
When you’re thinking about starting a podcast, one question may crop up: is the podcast market saturated? It’s a question we’ve considered at Mr. Thrive. As we work with different podcasters and businesses, we wonder where each podcast fits in. Anyone in the podcast world has to wonder, how many podcasts are too many?
The answer: there’s no such thing as too many podcasts! Yes, there are over 2 million podcasts worldwide. Yes, it can take a lot of work to find a niche that hasn’t been covered yet. Making your own unique way in the podcast world isn’t something to take lightly. That doesn’t mean it can’t be done though!
If you want to start a podcast for your business or start a podcast as a business, you’re entering a saturated market, that’s for sure. On the flip side, you’re entering a market with a huge potential for an engaged audience and successful growth. Read on to get ready, and once you’re there, Mr. Thrive can help you make the most of your podcast plan.
Are Podcasts Still Relevant?
The growth of the podcast market happened so quickly, it’d be easy to think it was a bubble of success with an inevitable pop coming up. When the pandemic hit, the popularity of podcasting rose substantially, with everyone and their cousin hosting a podcast. These days, the question remains: is a podcast still a relevant business idea?
If you start a podcast, you’re certainly entering a heavily saturated market. You’ll be up in the ranks with a lot of other podcasts. Happily, however, you’ll be joining a group that remains relevant to an increasing number of listeners.
Currently, 78% of Americans are aware of podcasts, even if they don’t actively listen to them. Approximately 60% of American consumers listen to podcasts on a regular basis. When you start a podcast, you’ll have the potential to reach that 60% of the US population. Depending on your podcast topic, you’ll also have the opportunity to reach the part of that 78% that isn’t yet listening to a podcast.
Is the Podcast Market Growing?
The podcast market saw a boom in 2020 and 2021, as the pandemic spurred many people to launch their own podcasts. The stay-at-home orders boosted the podcast industry in two ways:
Folks starting their podcasts had the time to explore their niche audience and put energy into finding the right podcast topics and formats.
Podcast consumers were looking for more media to enjoy at home, which led to more opportunities for small and new podcasts to find their audience.
Following that boom, the podcast market could have tanked, but it didn’t! Now, over two years since the start of the pandemic, the podcast boost has dropped down to a more stable level. The industry is still growing, with a steady increase in podcasts that are building up their audiences.
In 2022, the podcast industry is expected to generate $2 billion in revenue, according to the annual joint report of the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers. The same report forecasts growth of up to $4 billion in revenue by 2024. The upward trend is expected to remain consistent, and it’s a great time to start your own podcast growth.
5 Benefits of Podcasting
Making your own way in the podcast market offers untapped potential for your business or your podcast plan. Even among the 2 million plus podcasts already in production, there is room for you to craft a unique space. Like starting any other business venture, the effort you put into your podcast will have a direct effect on how successful you are.
If you’re nervous about entering such a saturated market – no judgement, it’s a big leap! – these five benefits of podcasting will help set you at ease. These benefits will show up no matter what your podcast subject is. You won’t see them all at once, and they’ll grow with time, but you can look forward to experiencing them once you start recording.
5. Improved Conversion Rates
Improving conversion rates is one of the top goals of any business. To improve conversion rates, you have to give your potential clients or customers upfront information about what you can do for them. This can be done with sales sheets, case studies, or product demos. However, the best way to wrap up the benefit of all those functions is with a podcast.
Your podcast gives you a platform to share information on your business in a conversational setting. You aren’t limited to one line of communication, and you can share whatever information is pertinent to the conversation in a natural way. Your listeners can take all that info in and make their decisions through the ease of listening to your podcast.
4. Evolved Marketing Tactics
A podcast is, in and of itself, an evolved marketing tactic. With your podcast you can share the information you would put in a blog post, social post, or press release, and keep it in a highly digestible form.
The general population is divided between people who take in information visually and those who learn better through listening. Hosting a podcast gives you an in with everyone who prefers to listen and learn. Of course, your podcast marketing plan should be paired with social media marketing. With both functions of marketing covered, you can reach 100% of your potential audience.
3. Growth in Engagement Opportunities
One of the best ways you can grow your podcast, business, or business podcast, is by increasing engagement with your audience. This can happen in social media comments, social events, or, yep, you guessed it, your podcast!
One of the key features of a podcast is the conversational tone it sets for your podcast and the conversation around it. Whether you set up your podcast to have a comments section you interact with, or you bring in guests from your community to engage with, turning your podcast into a space for open communication builds up your engagement with your audience, and gives you even more room to grow.
2. Increased Brand Building
Building up your brand with cohesion, aesthetics, and authority is something every business owner and brand director needs to focus on. A strong brand gives you a leg up with your audience before you even start selling. Hosting a podcast gives you an additional space to build out your brand.
One of the benefits of podcasting we’ve talked about several times is the freedom a spoken platform gives you. If you can find a way to say what you mean on a podcast, those spoken words get built into your brand. If you transcribe your podcasts into blog posts, those words can live on doubly. Wherever you go with your podcast, it’s a surefire way to build up your brand.
1. Traffic Increases
For every brand on every platform, increasing traffic will always be a top goal, and that’s why traffic increases comes in as the number one benefit of podcasting. All of the other benefits on this list lead toward traffic increases, and having a well-crafted podcast will work to get your brand in front of the right audience.
Growing your traffic is a long process. With the right podcast plans and plenty of patience while you put out content, a high-quality podcast can increase your dividends of traffic in the long run. It really doesn’t get better than that!
Podcast Market Saturation: Growing Forward
When it comes to the question of “Is the podcast market saturated?” the answer is definitely yes. But that shouldn’t dissuade you from starting your podcast. The podcast industry has room to grow, and any podcaster with a unique take on their business and brand can find an audience.
Mr. Thrive can help you get there. Our team of vocal talent, marketing experts, and podcast-producing professionals can take your podcast from a good idea to a great resource for your business. Contact us today to get started.