The keynote panel discussed their successful podcasts with Audrey Reed-Granger from Whirlpool, Gretchen Vogelzang and Paige Heninger from MommyCast and Scott Sigler from SNP.
Ever hear of MommyCast? It is a niche podcast by Gretchen Vogelizang and Paige Heninger about being a mom and cover just about anything they can think of. You can see the Alexa traffic for MommyCast below which may not be an accurate representation of its overall reach but a good indicator of traffic to the site. MommyCast is considered a success yet the traffic does not appear to be very large. I would love to find out the number of actual podcast subscribers to MommyCast.
The audience was interested in finding out how the MommyCast locked down its sponsors. It sounds like Gretchen’s husband has some business-savvy and helped get the sponsorships via a media kit but overall MommyCast has not really gone out seeking sponsorships. Wow, that is pretty lucky.
Gretchen thinks that people are drawn to podcasting because it is so real. It is not scripted as much as mainstream media. Also she mentioned it is tough to follow a script and noted that the audience is so smart so keeping it real is important.
How can you get people to come back to a website via information on the podcast? Scott Sigler of SNP, mentioned that “old school radio” tactics apply and suggested whitepapers and other information that is referred to on a podcast could help drive traffic back to a website.
How do you esure your podcast is found? The panel thought that word of mouth, iTunes and a number of other directories. I wonder how much traffic is being sent to them via Podzinger, the podcast search engine.
What is the best podcast length? The general consensus was 25 to 30 minutes but shorter formats are also very approachable.
Why don’t more people get into podcasting? I think it is a time commitment that people might not want to get into however if you have a passion for life and want to share it with others I would say get a microphone. There is not a better time to get into podcasting.
