Podcasting: It's Not Just for Kids Anymore

KnowledgeStorm and Universal McCann have embarked on a series of studies regarding the emerging role of new media on marketing. The first focuses on the penetration of podcasting in the B2B space.

This is one of the first surveys focused specifically on the B2B audience and it clearly shows that podcasts, blogs and other new media types are viable mediums for reaching B2B technology buyers.

Podcast usage among B2B technology buyers is significant and growing:

• 41% of survey respondents claim they have listened to podcasts on more than one occasion, while 13% stated that they "frequently" download or listen to them.
• 32% of survey respondents stated their usage of podcasts has "Increased" or "Significantly Increased" in the last six months. The same question yielded 39% for blogs.
• B2B technology buyers are listening to podcasts for business interests, specifically technology-oriented topics
• Nearly 60% of respondents said that information on business or technology topics, currently delivered as white papers or analyst reports, would be more interesting as podcasts.
• 55% of respondents would be more likely to consume white papers and analyst reports if they were delivered as podcasts.

And perhaps the biggest opportunity can evolve from this finding:

• 57% of the frequent podcast users stated their biggest challenge with podcasts is the scarcity of interesting content

Stacy Malone, vice president, interactive media director at Universal McCann concludes:

"Business and technology-related subject material is a perfect match for podcasting content. Podcasts are no longer being used only for pure entertainment value. They are turning into an indispensable, business-critical information tool."