Whether you're tuning into Dolly Parton's America or Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend, podcasting is the not-so-new, hot thing. We might not be commuting anymore, but that doesn't mean we're not listening to podcasts. In fact, podcast subscriber and listener numbers have shot up since the pandemic. Tapping into that new, bigger audience means one thing: acing your podcast marketing.

Spotify's active global subscriber list skyrocketed to a whopping 286 million, up 31%, with 21% of listeners now using the platform for podcasts. But they're not the only ones. Acast saw record-breaking growth as daily routines changed the way we interact with and listen to podcasts. Morning and evening commuting spikes have levelled out to continuous listening throughout the day. Listens on smart speakers are also up, as we spend more time at home. We've also seen brands pivoting into podcasting to capitalize on the growth. Take Louis Theroux, for example: the documentary filmmaker began podcasting in April 2020 and broke BBC records with 313 million listens.

Podcast marketing: how to grow your podcast audience

You've done your research, you've got the best gear for podcasting and a great guest speaker, but you're not exactly sure how to tackle marketing your show. There are countless strategies out there, but at Trint, we find these tips are great for podcast marketing. Here's a breakdown of how the most successful podcasts encourage growth after the content's been created.

A few editing tricks go a long way in how listeners engage long-term. 

Boost your audio quality

It should go without saying, but the easier it is for listeners to follow along with your podcast, the more likely they are to be involved long-term. While this isn't exactly a tool itself, there are clever ways you can implement these tricks using free software like Audacity or GarageBand.

• Compress the audio to level out the volume. All major audio editing software comes with a compression feature that lets you reduce the volume range of your recording. Compression softens the loudest part of your audio so it's not as loud as the quieter parts. Save your audience's eardrums and patience with a quick compression.
• Take out that white noise. All recording equipment catches some amount of white noise. Thankfully, removing it is very simple in most editing software and it adds a professional-quality sound to your recordings.
• Record guests separately. Variations in volume and talking speed can be a pain for listeners, and makes it difficult to adjust to the different voices. Have your guests record themselves separately or give them a dedicated mic to balance out your volume differences. 

Leverage word-of-mouth recommendations

As consumers, the experience we have with a brand is just as important as the product itself. That experience extends to our connections, friends, colleagues and family. In fact, 92% of people trust recommendations from friends and family more than any other type of advertising. If you can create the kind of hype and buzz around your podcast that leads to word-of-mouth advertising, you're winning. Tap into your listeners' connections and followers. Ask them to subscribe and share your podcast in their channels and platforms. Whether you're just starting out or have an established series, word-of-mouth podcast marketing will help you gain more visibility, well, more listeners.

Create podcast transcripts for powerful SEO

Google's smart, but it's not yet able to scan audio files, which means you can't simply publish your podcast and expect it to show up in search engine results. Just like your website, your podcasts need to be optimized to hit that coveted top spot on Google. If your video isn't searchable, its potential distribution is limited. But uploading the transcript can quickly increase your podcast's page rank, making it searchable and shareable.

Creating complete, accurate transcripts of each episode and attaching them to your website and social posts can mean dramatic rises in search engines because:

• They allow search engines to properly index and rank each episode
• They attach keyword phrases to your podcast for greater visibility, letting your podcast rank for high-performing keywords

Podcast transcripts also allow visitors to look over the episode to see if it's relevant to them. And the more time they spend scanning your transcript, the longer they spend on each page, and the more valuable Google sees your content.

Build a community for more listener interaction

Growth doesn't start and stop with each episode. Offer opportunities for engagement outside of your regular posting schedule and transform your listenership into a community.

According to Alex Blumberg of Gimlet Media, 'When listening through your ears, it feels like you're friends, like you know the people. You form this picture in your mind of who you're speaking to.'

Feed that feeling of friendship and communal participation by creating a means for listeners to interact and discuss the content together. If you can create a strong community vibe, your listeners will become engaged mega fans and do your podcast marketing for you.

The show's co-host opens discussion on the latest episode

Let's take a look at some Facebook groups from podcasts that are thriving.

• The Copywriter Club -  Aspiring and experienced copywriters can discuss business strategies, approaches to writing marketing materials and vent about troublesome clients in this tight-knit community of 12,700 members.
• Side Hustle Nation - Over 31,500 podcast listeners discuss weekly topics, encourage each other on their side-hustle ventures and share success and failure stories.
• She Podcasts - Listeners discuss podcasting tools, editing techniques and marketing strategies in this women-only group with 19,400 members.

Don't allow your podcast episodes to be a one-and-done event. Unravel the content in fun ways on social media, engage your listeners, and create a following that's solidified by the community.

How can Trint help with your podcast marketing?

It'll take Google some time to index your podcast, so get started with the SEO-friendly podcast transcripts as soon as you can. The thing is, transcribing your own work is time-consuming and tedious. Outsourcing the work can be expensive. Your best low-effort and low-cost solution is A.I.-powered transcription software, like Trint.

Our bots create transcripts of your episodes in less time than the original recording, our Editor lets you make quick changes and our platform makes it easy to share and publish the transcripts. You can even easily add timestamps and speakers to the transcription.

Try Trint for your podcast transcripts.