What is Podcasting and How to Start Today?

Podcasting is an amazing and easy tool for traffic generation.  Anyone can create a podcast on any subject, and it can be started without major expense.  The issue is, many people just don’t know how to begin.  With that, I want to answer the question “What is Podcasting and How Can I Start Today“?

Podcasting is a system that lets you download audio programs directly to your iPod or other media player.  You may listen to these audio programs later on whenever and wherever you want to listen to them.   Many people like to download podcasts so they can listen to them while they exercise or do housework.  The advantages of Podcasting is that it allows a person to listen to audio content of their choice without any charge – and at a time of their convenience.  Therefore, Podcasting has proven to be a far better alternative to the traditional radio.

So, how do I Start Podcasting?

Podcasting is a very easy process. You do not need anything other than an Internet-ready computer and a portable media player.  Even if you do not have a portable media player, you can begin Podcasting simply using a computer  that has an Internet connection.    There are many websites that really help you get started with Podcasting.  One of my favorite sites that allows you to create audio content is BlogTalkRadio.   Without question, they are the best-of-the best when it comes to ease of use, unmatched value, and quality service.  They are one of the treasures of the internet for providing convenient marketing resources without major expense and a difficult learning curve.  Obviously, I highly recommend the resource and believe it can be a major tool in your marketing arsenal – especially for creating quality audio content.

There are certainly other resources available to help you gather information on podcasting and audio creation, and to get you started quickly.

Years ago I shared the importance of the emerging social media trend in building traffic.  At the time, I called podcasting and social media the direction that online marketing was heading – and the emerging importance in the marketplace.  Obviously, we can see that value on display today in every area of the internet community.

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Network Marketing Traffic from Social Media

Big business social media plans are developing in a major way, and many of the large social networking websites are now in the sights of the big corporations. However, these companies should be mindful of the actual purpose and function of these websites as they make their social marketing plans. If they are not prepared to engage the customers as equals on these networks and have a genuine back-and-forth exchange with them, then their efforts to use social media will backfire and bring them the sort of publicity they do not want.

As a simple example, let’s say a company’s social media strategy is to set up a Facebook Fan Page, a blog, and a Twitter profile. Facebook allows the company to post updates about services, but is also a place where it posts notices of events and surveys, and asks questions like, “How would you like this kind of product?” or “How should we accomplish this goal?” As people become fans of the company, their own friends are notified, and some follow them there. They engage with the company and each other, and the page becomes a social marketing website with the fans often doing as much promotion as the company.

Business blogging is another way companies can inform their customers about new product developments and get feedback. If the blog has good, informative content, not to mention great photographs or even videos giving demonstrations or telling stories about the products, they’ll keep the customers interested. The company might get a YouTube channel and link videos from there to its blog, or it might have a LibraryThing account and inform customers about the latest valuable books relating to the industry. Social marketing can take advantage of so many of these avenues.

Twitter, of course, is another social marketing tool that really highlights the two-way conversation customers now expect from companies, because communication happens in real time. The company social media liaison can search for people’s tweets asking about certain products, and respond immediately. Or new products or special deals can be announced and responded to within moments. A social media strategy involving Twitter keeps company representatives on their toes. But in fact, all of the new media does this because they keep the business and its lifeblood, its customers, in close contact.

Get Free Traffic from BlogTalkRadio

BlogTalkRadio is an awesome service, and can send you lots of free traffic if you know what to do. First of all, let’s talk about what blog talk radio is exactly…

Talk radio has been around for decades allowing people to express themselves via radio stations. Traditional talk radio seems to be centered around politics with both liberal and conservative talk radio shows on dozens of radio stations. For example Rush Limbaugh is a famous conservative radio personality, and the program Air America represents listeners with a more liberal point of view.

The interesting thing about blog talk radio is that it is not limited to politics. Yes, there are traditional radio programs that discuss subjects outside of politics, but blog talk radio shows cover such an extensive variety of interests it is not hard to find something that interests you. There are various sites that allow users to connect to blog talk radio stations, probably the most noteworthy is blogtalkradio.com, for obvious reasons. On this site users can watch, listen, and even create their very own talk show. The site states that as a user you can, “Record your own talk show using just a phone and computer. Share it as a podcast. All free.” There are also ways to stay connected with people online that become interested in your show, or share similar interests with you. According to the site, “All members can add friends and favorites and rate shows.”

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