PodCasting

There are free places online for people to actually download MP3s on any subject. Naturally, you can also upload them for free.

Many people are audio-centric and prefer to learn by listening on their iPods, usually so they can

multitask or not be bored during a commute. Giving them free content is an excellent way for your name and relation to their favorite subject matter to be presented.

Much like how an article works, effective PodCasting depends on your content being interesting enough for them to want to download it, but at the same time, you must include your sales message and of course end it with a “Call to Action” that motivates the listener into following up in some way such as visiting your website.

It’s true that this rarely results in many links back to your site, and if your content is interesting enough, the best you can hope for is for fans to pass them around to each other by word of mouth… Certainly no benefit for link-building.

Still, there is a lot to be said for Brand Recognition. If you are marketing solely by advertising through PPC and SEO, then the fact of the matter is that you won’t be reaching a good portion of people out there that respond solely or much better to another form of contact.

Whereas you might not have ever reached the “Generation Y” crowd using traditional methods at all, something like PodCasting or YouTubing would get your foot in the door, and your Brand Name would be in a new niche. From there, the Gen Y individuals would look for the rest of your work by themselves if you’ve done your job right.

To get started in PodCasting, all you need is a Microphone on your computer (sometimes you can even use headphones plugged into the “Mic” input) and some free software that allows you to save & convert your voice into MP3 format.

From what I’ve heard from many pros on this matter, there is nothing better than a free software called Audacity. It even comes in Mac and Linux flavors, too.

Simply take an article or some interesting copy you’ve written and read it into your computer’s mic while running this software. Practice your speech first, work the bugs out. Once finished, you simply need to name the file with some good keywords that are likely to get searched in your niche, and upload it to all the best free download sites.

There are literally hundreds of Podcast Directories out there now, with the most popular one being http://www.podcast.net.

Don’t forget to offer your cast from your website, Squidoo lens, blog, or MySpace pages as well. Perhaps as a bonus for signing up to your newsletter or even just as a simple link on your home page.

Multiple media formats containing your wisdom build professionalism. This is a great way to develop your diverse brand on your website.