5 Strategic Ways to Master Audience Engagement

Nov 21

Podcasts are a huge extension of your brand and a great way to build trust with your customers or clients. As the number of shows available continue to surge, the name of the game is to stand out and engage your audience. Whether you’re just testing out the waters or you’re an accomplished podcaster, your number one goal is to grow interest in your show.

Just like we used to wait a whole week for a new episode from our favorite prime time television show, you want your audience to anxiously await for more too. There are five strategic ways you can master audience engagement.

Below are 5 strategic ways to master audience engagement:

1. Develop Your Social Media Strategy.

This one may seem like a no brainer, but there are some key techniques to follow in owning this vehicle of communication.

The first stage of the marketing funnel is awareness– how will your listeners know who you are? From there you can promote your show and move these potential listeners through the consideration and conversion stages as they decide to listen and subscribe. However, a social media strategy can provide more than just attracting listeners and encouraging them to subscribe. It can also nurture your existing listeners in what is known as the loyalty stage.

The key to mastering this is to research when your listeners are active on social. This will allow you to target them at optimal times for higher engagement, meaning interactions– likes, shares and comments. For example, if your target audience is mothers, the best time to post may be late morning or early afternoon when they have a few minutes to themselves.

Secondly, think outside of the traditional posting platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, etc. Interact with your listeners to build a community through channels such as forums and group chats where your listeners can discuss your podcast and similar interests.

Lastly, we often post-promote episodes after they are released, but pre-promotion generates buzz and excitement. Consider posting teasers and behind-the-scenes footage for an upcoming episode drop. Additionally, consider going beyond a simple post and try TikTok, IG reels, and audiograms. Click here to find out how Audily can help with your asset creation.

2. Leverage Your Audience in Your Marketing.

When your audience comments on your show, shares your posts, or leaves reviews, this is the perfect opportunity to engage with them and leverage within your marketing efforts.

Ask your audience a question and encourage them to send you an email or tweet with the answer. In your next episode, you can discuss the topic.
Ask to submit voice messages to play recordings of their questions and messages during your episode.
Direct listeners to a forum about the episode to answer a question, discuss the topic or share feedback.
Create a survey or poll and encourage people to take it. Discuss the results on a future episode.
Read your best comments during your show or comment directly on social media. You can tag them to increase engagement.
Run a contest to gain attention from listeners, partner with other businesses or influencers to create a fun offer that will really maximize your reach.

3. Distribute a Newsletter.

An easy way to keep your listeners informed and engaged is through a weekly or monthly newsletter. This is the perfect vehicle to share updates about new episode releases, opportunities to participate, collaborations, contests and incentives.

Aside from sharing more content, the metrics you can obtain provide insight into your audiences’ interests. By tracking your newsletters’ click-through-rates, you can begin to analyze patterns of interest. In turn, this will allow you to plan your content more thoughtfully around your audience.

Don’t forget to encourage your listeners to sign up to your newsletter through social media, during your episode outro, or a pop-up on your website. To grow your email subscriber list, offer an incentive for signing up such as shout outs, early-access to episodes, or a contest entry.

4. Collaborate & Cross-Promote.

Cross-promotion is a considerable way to grow your subscribers list because it introduces your show to new listeners who may not have otherwise heard about your podcast. This can be done in a variety of ways such as swapping ad reads with another podcaster or even exchanging interview episodes.

While other podcasters may be seen as your competition, it’s important to note that they could still have a different audience. To ensure value, select those podcasters who would attract new listeners to your show and vice versa.

5. Clarify Your CTA.

It’s imperative to clarify your messaging and clearly define the desired action you want your followers to take. Do you want them to leave a review? Subscribe to the podcast? Join your email newsletter? Buy merch? Follow you on social media?

During every episode, include your CTA in the beginning and at the end of each episode. Also, be sure to include this in the description and show notes. Repetition is key in the listeners mind.

There you have it – five ways to stand out to your listeners and increase engagement. Be on the lookout for more great podcaster hacks.

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