Podcasting – Reach your audience while they jog.

Podcasting is the latest trend in digital downloading. The word itself is a combination iPod (the leading digital music player) and the word broadcast and, as the name suggests, a Podcast is simply a means of broadcasting audio files to a computer or any digital music player.

As a user, all you need to do is download “Podcatching” software such as FeedDemon, iPodder or Apple’s iTunes 4.9 (which has Podcasting capability built in). You can then subscribe to the Podcast of your choice over the Internet to have it automatically downloaded for you to listen in on your computer or digital music player when you are out for a run or waiting on the bus.

It is early days for Podcasting but it’s catching on fast – in the first two days of the iTunes 4.9 release one million Podcasts subscriptions were placed. There is an estimated 6000 Podcasts on everything from poetry to world politics. These are mainly offered by radio stations or independent Podcasters presenting programs intended for niche audiences.

The ability of Podcasting to reach a highly targeted niche audience is gaining the attention of marketers. Podcasting offers marketers a low cost advertising vehicle that reaches a highly targeted audience, it can be used to deliver corporate messages to customers, staff and shareholders, and it can promote or reinforce brand loyalty.

According to a recent Computing Canada article, McMaster University is a pioneer in Podcast marketing. A pilot project launched in April sends prospective students e-mails encouraging them to subscribe to Podcasts aimed at enticing them to choose McMaster over other Universities they are considering. By proferring information via today’s gadget of choice McMaster has a strong advantage over other Universities who rely on sending out communications by traditional means.

Want to subscribe to a Podcast that interests you? Check out the Podcast Directory or find out more about Podcasting by listening to the CBCs podcast by Tod Maffin at www.cbc.ca/podcasting/.

This article was provided by Mhairi from Out-Smarts