10 Reasons Your Nonprofit Should Create a Podcast
Did you know that, according to Kiplinger, this year somewhere around 100 million Americans are projected to listen to podcasts monthly? Podcasting is officially no longer on the fringe and hasn’t been for a while. How can it be when 75% of Americans are familiar with this medium and all age groups continue to increase in listenership? (To dive in deep to podcast growth, see Podcast Insights and Edison’s Infinite Dial report.)
There’s a lot to love about podcasts right now. One of the things I’m most excited about when it comes to podcasts: It’s a great way to engage and connect with your donors on a whole new level.
One of the most rewarding creative projects I’ve ever undertaken was creating Destination Nature, a three-episode audio series by The Nature Conservancy. I’d been talking to my colleagues at TNC for a long time about my belief that a podcast by The Nature Conservancy could help us connect more deeply with our supporters, and last year my team and I created a successful pilot show to test this idea. The feedback we received from supporters turned my belief into a conviction.
Here are 10 reasons I was convinced our nonprofit needed a podcast to share with donors, and why yours does too:
1) Hearing about your work can be nearly as moving as seeing it in person.
Listening to great audio stories helps people create a “theater of the mind” — essentially letting them picture and immerse themselves in the action using their imaginations. The responses we received with our pilot show confirmed this. One listener reported, “The sounds made it seem like you were there.”
For those nonprofits that can’t show most donors their work in person, and especially now during Covid-19, a nonprofit podcast can create a deep sense of involvement in your work with donors at all levels. In fact, a well-produced podcast could be a great alternative to events that have been cancelled due to Covid-19. It’s an excellent way to help donors experience the mission in action and facilitate greater engagement with the organization.
I often heard from our donors (and even colleagues) who attended TNC’s trips and events that there was nothing like experiencing the work firsthand. A podcast can bridge that gap for many supporters, especially now.
2) Your nonprofit supporters and prospects are already listening to podcast and audio content.
As I shared above, the podcast medium continues to grow in every age category and remains high in listenership by both men and women. See the podcast section in Edison Research’s The Infinite Dial (at right), released in April. Not only are people listening to podcasts - they are listening A LOT. For the people listening weekly, they are averaging 6 podcasts a week, for over 6 hours. There’s plenty of room for more.
3) Your donors have time in their day to listen.
Your nonprofit’s donors and supporters are inundated with information, not just from other nonprofits but from everyone. They have emails to sift through, magazines to read, mail stacking up and probably a Netflix queue too. What they likely don’t have yet is a stacked podcast schedule. Plus, many people have what I call “gray space” — the time when they are active but their minds are free and therefore ready to engage. Think driving, doing the dishes, taking a walk, exercising.
4) You can get a lot of mileage out of a handful of podcast shows.
You don’t need to constantly produce new episodes and your show doesn’t have to have no end. Destination Nature, the podcast I produced while at The Nature Conservancy, was only three web-based episodes. Yet we were able to share those shows in many different ways, reaching many different supporters and bringing them into three different projects we were working on. If your website can host audio files, you can create an audio series similar to a podcast. If you can place your shows on podcast apps, even better.
5) A podcast can give every listener a personal conversation with a fundraiser.
Podcasts can facilitate new relationships within your target audience while growing engagement and building trust with your existing supporters. Each person who listens is hearing about your work directly from a representative of your organization, almost like having a meeting with a fundraiser. What fundraising professionals do best is connect with the right people and share a nonprofit’s success stories and its needs. Podcasts can do something similar on a larger scale.
Jake Shapiro, the founder of the podcast company PRX, called podcasts “a depth medium” in NeimanLab’s Predictions for Journalism in 2020. He went on to say: “The most valuable quality is listeners’ deep connection to the voices and stories in their ears.”
Podcasts are a great option for your nonprofit to tell supporters and donors about the good work your organization is doing and how they are helping you achieve your mission.
6) Podcasts give you additional outreach opportunities with your donors.
A podcast can be a reason to engage directly with your most valued supporters. Your fundraisers can text or email a donor the link to an episode they think they might like, beginning a conversation about a particular topic or project.
You can also ask supporters to share feedback. After we shared episodes of Destination Nature, we had many supporters write in and tell us how much they enjoyed it or to provide feedback about our shows. Our team responded to every email. One supporter commented that they were so impressed that we wrote back.
Podcast episodes can provide content for other donor outreach as well. You can include links in emails and newsletters, and you can even send a postcard announcement with a QR code linking to your show.
Creating a podcast can also lead to in-person events (when it’s safe to do so). Many popular podcasts regularly do live shows of in-person tapings — something that could translate well in the nonprofit event space.
7) Your nonprofit podcast doesn’t need to have millions of subscribers.
Much of the current wisdom around podcasts says you must get to X number of listeners to be successful — meaning, to make advertising dollars. However, a nonprofit podcast in itself doesn’t need to be an advertising moneymaker. Instead, it needs to inform and engage the right people. Your nonprofit likely already has a list of potential listeners — your current donors and supporters.
Many small businesses utilize podcasts as an outreach and brand building tool, sharing free information and education on a relevant topic and highlighting their products and services throughout, either in the show itself or through ads.
Nonprofits can do the same and build a podcast that achieves the organization’s goals by creating content that matters to the people you already know. People who care about a nonprofit’s work because they’ve heard great stories on your podcast are people who may donate — or donate more — in the future.
Your nonprofit podcast series doesn’t need to top the charts — it just needs to be entertaining and informational to the people that matter to you.
8) You can fundraise through your nonprofit podcast.
Did you know that some podcast listeners donate directly to their favorite podcasts to support the content? While I prefer utilizing podcasts to build longterm engagement and understanding of your work (which leads to more support), you can fundraise directly on your podcast, raise money through that medium and even measure success. Podcast listeners are very used to hearing host-read ads for products frequently throughout episodes. And they work.
And even now during Covid-19, there is good evidence that podcast engagement is still strong. With Destination Nature, we had no direct asks on our episode pages and only one mention to donate in one episode. Even with that minimal ask, some supporters chose to donate after listening.
Nonprofits can create ads within a podcast asking for support and share a specific URL where supporters can donate. If that URL is shared only on the podcast, then it’s clear that those donations came from listeners.
9) A nonprofit podcast can create a conversation with new supporters.
It’s very common for people to share links to content they like with their friends, either directly via text or on social media. Ask your listeners to share episodes they love with their friends and your nonprofit can reach new supporters.
Podcast content can also be very useful in helping likeminded people find your organization on the web. By creating great show notes on your website, you increase the likelihood that the right people find you via search (i.e. SEO).
Once you have new listeners, there are many ways you can consider asking for email addresses, furthering your ability to connect with these new prospects.
10) Podcasts don’t have to be too expensive.
You can certainly spend a lot of money creating great audio shows. But, depending on the context of your show, length and amount of support you hire (like a producer or a great audio editor), you can create an engaging show for a few hundred dollars in startup costs and under $20 a month to host.
Why your nonprofit should consider starting a podcast or audio series today
As you can see, there is a long list of reasons that nonprofits need to consider creating a podcast as an engagement tool. Your donors and supporters deserve to hear from you, to be immersed in your world so they can truly understand how important your work is and how they can be a part of it.
When people donate to your charity, there’s (usually) no physical product that their money is purchasing. What they are purchasing is the feeling that donating gives them. Great content, like a well-produced podcast, can help validate their choice in supporting your organization. People still need to hear good stories about good work that’s changing the world — maybe now more than ever. Why not share the results of the work they are supporting through an engaging nonprofit podcast?
Has your nonprofit considered a podcast? Comment below and let me know your questions and challenges with this new way to connect with donors.
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If you want to schedule a free 30 minute call to discuss whether a podcast might be right for your nonprofit and how I can help with your podcast strategy and production, email me.
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