Alexandra DiPalma: Domino Sound | Should You Start a Podcast in 2019? The Yearly Carnage 2019 brought to you by Carney. Pittsburgh, PA | October 4, 2019 Be the Sharpest Marketer in the Room: The Daily Carnage is your handpicked list of the best marketing content delivered to your inbox each day.

1. Should you start a podcast?
Alexandra Dipalma
@lsdipalma
alexandra@dominosound.co

2. How to use podcasts
as a marketing tool.

3. A little
about me…
- Studied journalism in grad school
- Worked in public radio in Minnesota
- Left radio to try TV at Fusion, a joint venture between
ABC and Univision in Miami
- Ran the brand studio at Stitcher/Midroll
- Produce Seth Godin’s podcast; co-teach with Seth
an online podcasting class
- Founded DOMINO SOUND, a podcast production
company and network

4. Specific Takeaways:
Today you’ll learn to decide whether podcasting is right for you and your business. On our
agenda today:
- Sponsorship vs. branded podcast?
- Examples of podcasts that effectively market a brand, product or individual
- Figure out how to actually make your podcast: DIY vs. outside help vs. production company?

5. Everyone’s listening

7. And everyone wants IN

8. Goal-setting
When does it make sense to create a podcast?
What will a podcast accomplish, from a marketing perspective?
• Brand awareness
The intimate and conversational nature of the podcast environment creates an elevated
state of engagement for brand mentions
• Positive association
Listeners create subconscious associations with the brand, based on words they hear
in the podcast.
• Position yourself as a thought-leader
• You have a story to tell
• You want to do a 30-minute ad for your business or product
• Immediate, direct response results

9. Start a DIY Podcast
If you’re an individual looking to build your personal brand, or a small
business owner with something to say

10. Podcasting is the new blogging (from Seth Godin)
Not as a way to make big dollars (blogging didn’t do that either). But as a way to
share your ideas, to lead your community, to earn trust.
Podcasting is a proven technology that is still in its infancy. It’s an open mic, a
chance for people with something to say to find a few people (or perhaps more than
a few people) who’d like to hear them say it.
And podcasting is the generous act of showing up, earning trust and authority
because you care enough to raise your hand and speak up.

11. The Investor
Mindset podcast
Host Steven Pesavento didn’t have any
influence or following prior to making the
podcast.
He had some specific goals in mind…

12. The Four Cs
1. Connection
• Connecting with guests you’d never
otherwise have an opportunity to speak with
2. Contribution
• Making positive contributions to
your listener base
3. Community
• Building a Community
4. Capitalize
• Using all the above to capitalize in new,
possibly unforeseen ways

13. 1. Hit 20k downloads within the 1st month!
2. Featured for multiple weeks on New & Noteworthy
a. On the front page & in multiple categories
3. Hit 42K downloads two months after launch
4. Listeners are consuming 65-75% of an episode
5. Ranked in the top 500 podcasts
The hard stats

14. Ways to do it
• Take an online class or workshop
• Hire a freelance producer (if you’re serious about
this option, hit me up - I have recommendations!)
• Work with friends who have production-savvy

15. Branded Podcasts
Companies from Coach to Carbonite have their own branded
podcasts. Is it right for your company?

17. Brand-building
vs. direct response
• Create reason to talk about your company
or brand beyond the product
• A good branded podcast should sound
like a good non-branded podcast.
• Don’t think of these as advertisements; think
of them as subtle brand-building efforts that
are meant to entertain and persuade

18. Pros and cons
Pros:
• Positive brand boost
• Response to a controversy or bad PR
(McDonald’s podcast)
• Reaching people you may not otherwise
communicate with; earning trust and loyalty
• Press opportunities
Cons:
• Requires resources to be done right
• Not just a budget, but buy-in from your team
• Hard-to-measure benefits (vs. digital ad
impressions); no short-term results

19. Going Through It,
from Mailchimp
• [audio here] https://mailchimp.com/presents/
podcast/going-through-it/kathleen-hanna
• Hosted by Ann Friedman, host of the popular
Call Your Girlfriend podcast
• Guests are extremely high profile - think: Hillary
Clinton to punk legend Kathleen Hanna to
Samin Nosrat of Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat
• Note the very SUBTLE branded integration

20. Ways to do it
• Simply search online for podcast
production studios that specialize in
branded podcasts (budget
requirements will vary depending on
the studio)
• Build a team in-house (as opposed to a
client/vendor relationship)
• Hire an individual freelance producer/
host (a little more risk here - might not
be able to handle the ‘soup-to-nuts’
production)

21. Podcast Sponsorship
If your company isn’t ready to do a full podcast series,
sponsorship is a GREAT option

22. Benefits of
sponsorship
• Built-in audience
• Credibility of the host/show is
transferred to your brand (ideally…)
• The most effective option for direct
response marketing, period
• 100% share of voice (as opposed to
traditional ads)

23. Be honest about your goals
Be honest about your resources
Be honest about your brand’s story
Before you take the leap…

24. Q&A!
INSTAGRAM: @DominoSoundCo
WEBSITE: dominosound.co
EMAIL ME! alexandra@dominosound.co