Influential Introvert: Communication Coaching for Professionals with Performance Anxiety - 2020 Podcast Stats You Need to Know from NPR & Edison Research

Episode Date: October 16, 2020

Wondering if now is a good time to start a podcast?   NPR and Edison Research have just put out The Spoken Word Audio Report, which includes stats and stories you’ll definitely be interested in.    Let's dive into some juicy podcast 2020 statistics.   Show notes at sarahmikutel.com *** Hello. I’m Sarah, your host and founder of Podcast Launch Academy. Are you ready to launch a podcast that builds your brand and business, connects you to your global community, and grows your influence? Visit sarahmikutel.com to see how we can work together. Here’s a special treat for you: Use my Buzzsprout affiliate link to sign up for their podcast media hosting and get a $20 Amazon gift certificate. I’ve gotten to know the Buzzsprout team over this last year and love their customer service so much, I moved my shows over there. sarahmikutel.com/buzzsproutDo you ever go blank or start rambling when someone puts you on the spot? I created a free Conversation Cheat Sheet with simple formulas you can use so you can respond with clarity, whether you’re in a meeting or just talking with friends.Download it at sarahmikutel.com/blanknomore and start feeling more confident in your conversations today.

Are you wondering if now is a good time to start a podcast? Well, MPR and Edison research have just put out the spoken word audio report, which includes stats and stories that you are definitely going to be interested in. So let's dive into the details. Welcome to podcasting step by step, where you will learn how to create a podcast that's irresistible. I'm Sarah Mike Gatel, a podcast launch consultant, and an American who has been permanently based in Europe for more than 10 years. I especially love helping fellow expats and location independent entrepreneurs fill their online brands and businesses through the magic of podcasting. Looking for one-on-one support, visit sarahmicatel.com to book a podcast launch VIP day with me or to check out one of my online courses. And while

you're there, take the quiz to discover what kind of podcast you should create based on your celebrity podcast persona. Go to sarah micotel.com slash quiz. In March of this year, which is 2020, there was a lot of panic about the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on podcasting. Are people still going to be listening if they're not commuting to work? And we actually did see a little bit of a dip in listenership as people were trying to adjust to their new lives in quarantine and in lockdown. But podcast listening actually bounced back pretty quickly. And in fact, it's having its best year ever. and I will talk more about that in a minute. But first, the spoken word audio report that NPR and Edison research put out. And in case you don't know, Edison puts out kind of like the authority

reports on podcasting. They're taken very seriously. And NPR is public radio in the United States. And they put out some of the best journalism in the country. So they came up with the spoken word audio report. And it's not just about podcasting. So what are they talking about when they say spoken word? Spoken word is pretty much everything that we choose to listen to. That's not music. So it can be radio shows like you hear on NPR over the actual radio or streamed. And those are like interview shows and news and sports and they're more like creative narrative type shows. It's also podcasts and spoken word is also audiobooks. So, That is what this report is talking about when they say spoken word for the most part. I'll pull out a few podcasting specific stats. But overall, spoken word is everything that's not music. So today, a lot more people still listen to music than listen to spoken word. But spoken word listening has actually gone up by 30% over the last six years and 8% in the last year alone. So all the statistics that I mentioned will be in the report. And I will link to this in the show notes.

So if people are listening more to spoken word, does that mean they're listening less to music? Yes, it does. And so in the last six years, music listening has actually gone down 8% while spoken word listening, as I mentioned, has gone up 30%. But don't worry too much about those musicians. Seventy-four percent of audio listening is still going to music compared to 26% for spoken word. Now, about 75% of Americans, and sorry for the American-centric stats in this report, but they were interviewing Americans. 75% of them listen to spoken word on a monthly basis and 43% on a daily basis. And those daily listeners, they're listening to audio for about two hours a day. So they're splitting it up kind of between spoken word and music 50-50. Now, most spoken word is still being listened to you on the radio. If you grew up like I did driving around with my mom, she would put NPR on. And I still have very fond memories of listening to All Things Considered and Car Talk.

And there are some shows that you just have these familiar attachments to, even if you were not that into it. But because of it's like part of your history. Like I don't know anything about cars. Now there just my mom. But I had a fondness for that show because it reminds. reminded me of my mother every time I heard it. So most listening is still happening on the radio, but podcast listening has grown steadily throughout the years. And NPR, who helped to do this study, actually had like a big influence on this. You know, they had huge distribution. And so they had a

huge audience that they could tell about their podcast. So they, they've done like a tremendous amount of work, just helping to inform other people that podcast listening is an option and they consistently have, you know, a number of the top 20 shows. But that doesn't mean that people are only listening to, you know, NPR-style podcasts. It's actually more 50-50 of people listening to the really highly produced NPR BBC gimlet-style podcasts and 50% indie. So the podcast that we're doing, the more independent stuff, people love that because they can find anything they want. They can find the exact niche that they're looking for. And in fact, in this report, they said that the number one way these survey respondents said they found a new show is through internet searches. Now, that's a really surprising stat because usually it's they hear about new shows. recommendations from front. So that was number two in this particular report. It just goes to show you

how important search engine optimization is for your show. So I did an episode a while back on SEO. And that just means how easy are you making it for people to find your show? So in your show notes, are you using keywords that your ideal listener would be searching for? Are you producing episodes of the kind of content that they're seeking out. And if you're not sure what they're looking for, spend some more time in Facebook groups related to your topic and see what are the questions that keep coming up when you Google your topic. What are the related queries that are coming up? Those are the most frequently asked questions on that topic. Create episodes that you know your listener is going to be drawn to. And then make sure that in your show notes,

you're including that kind of language. So when people go searching for it, your show notes will come up and you'll have a higher ranking. So it'll be easier for people to discover your show. So six years ago, podcast consumption made up only 8% of spoken word audio listening. And this is steadily gone up every single year. And today it's at 19%. So of all spoken word on the radio, podcasts, audiobooks, all of that together, considered as spoken word audio,

19% of that kind of listening right now is happening through podcasts. And when it comes to podcasts listening in 2020, 55% of Americans have said that they've listened to a podcast, which is the highest level ever. So it keeps growing every year.

This is a really great news for us. More and more people are discovering podcasting in general, and discovering our shows. So what are they listening to? Well, the top three topics that people are seeking out are news, music, and comedy. And there's a longer list that's in their report. And again, I'll link to that in the show notes. The report also states that more women are listening to spoken word audio. So are younger people. So are more African Americans and Latinos. And in fact, there's been an 83% increase in listening from those aged 13 to 34. Somebody actually interviewed me

a while back, like a few months ago. And she was younger, kind of just out of college. And she was telling me that, yeah, podcasts are all of a sudden, like, so cool. But when she was in school, like, they weren't that cool. I was like, I don't even know what world you're in. Like, I haven't been in high school in a while. I've always thought that podcasts were cool. So you can pat yourself on the back if you have been listening to podcasts since back in the day, even before those 8% that are in this report from 2014. There's been a 57% increase of spoken word audio by women, 407% among Latinos, and 125% increase among African Americans, which is pretty incredible. So why is this happening? Well, there are programs that want to increase diversity. PRX has had a program for a while,

along with Google, to increase diverse voices in the podcasting space. But those programs are actually quite small. Like, they have influence. But a story that I found, really inspiring was Danielle Deziers, who you heard a while back, who founded the WOC podcaster, so Women of Color podcasters group on Facebook. And they've since grown into a few different things. They've had events. And anyway, really cool thing that she has going on. But she had applied for Spotify's program for, I think it was Women of Color specifically. And didn't get it because they only had a handful of spots. And she was like, oh, I'm going to start my own group. And now there's thousands of women in there. So people are just rolling up their sleeves and getting things done

and also seeing more diverse audiences at podcasting conferences. Like it has, at least in the last few years, really, really impressed me how diverse podcasting is. There's something for everyone. All voices are welcome. And it's just such a beautiful thing, I think. So as the diversity grows in podcasting, more and more listeners are seeing themselves reflected in the host. And then feeling more inspired to start their own show. So I love this. Compared to five years ago, 87% of people say they're listening to the same amount or more of spoken word audio. 45% actually are say they're listening to more. And they say they're listening to more because it's a good use of their time. More so than TV, more so than, you know, streaming Netflix,

even more so than music. They're saying that it engages podcasts and spoken word audio in general, engage your mind in a more positive way than other media does. And people today need podcasts more than ever. We are living in a noisy, noisy world, a more fractured world, a more isolated world because of COVID. So NPR and Edison research, they did some videos and you can go and watch those if you want. But people were saying that they listen to podcasts because they find them comforting.

They're in escape. People like listening to podcasts to have something to talk about with their friends. They make learning accessible. I mean, humans don't have that much of an attention these days. And while it's harder to read a book, a lot of people find it easier to listen to learn and people want to learn. That's a huge thing that people say they want to listen to podcasts for is a way for them to educate themselves, to grow personally and professionally for mental health reasons. It's also a great way, like, for convenience sake to learn. As you know, people can listen to podcasts as they're cooking dinner or out for a walk. And it's all on their schedule. They can decide when and where they can consume their favorite podcasts. And they also say that content has gotten

better and then it's really easy to consume. So Spotify has come onto the scene. Google Podcasts has come onto the scene. There's a lot of different apps that make it really easy to listen to podcast. My favorite one is overcast. So they're saying the content's gotten better and it has gotten better. So that means, you know, our competition has risen, which is not a scary thing. We should want to be putting out quality work. And, you know, if you know who your ideal is, is if you're creating content that you want, that means something to you and that you want to be speaking about and you're putting in some effort to edit the shows and, you know, speaking in a clean environment with the decent microphone, it's really not that hard to put out quality content.

Time consuming, yes, podcasting can take up a lot of time. But I definitely know that you have it in you to create a quality show that somebody is going to love listening to. And finally, the people in this report who they surveyed said, they want to break from all the negativity in the world. And to feel less alone, they feel like the host is speaking just to them. They feel like they can really identify with the host. So again, really treat your existing listeners like gold. Don't worry too much about growing your audience. If you actually love and care about your existing audience, other people will come. And remember what I've said before about using the word you, so you're speaking just to your idea listener, just having that seeming one-to-one connection. It really makes a difference.

Okay, so key takeaways from the spoken word audio report. One, this is the best time to get into podcasting ever. More people are listening to podcasts. So yeah, it would have been great if we got into the game 10 years ago. but not anyone was listening to podcasts 10 years ago except for me and a few other people. Now people are actually listening and loving podcasts. SEO is more important than ever. So make sure that your show notes are using those keywords that your ideal listener is going to be searching for. And make the show that you want to make. So whoever your ideal listener is, they're out there searching for a podcast.

You heard the stats like, More young people are listening, but older people are still listening as well. Lots more women are listening. People of color are listening more. So don't be afraid that there's not an audience out there for what you want to say. Millions of people are listening to podcasts every day. And so let it be yours. That's all for now. To learn how you can sign up for a one-on-one podcast launch BAP day with me or to learn more about one of my online podcast courses, visit Sarah Micahel com. And while you're there, take the quiz to discover what kind of podcast you should create based on your celebrity podcast persona. Go to sarah megatel.com slash quiz. Do you ever go blank or start rambling

when someone puts you on the spot? I created a free conversation sheet sheet with simple formulas that you can use so you can respond with clarity, whether you're in a meeting or just talking with friends. Download it at sarah mygatel.com slash blank no more.