Podcasting

Discover how your business can leverage podcasts before it's too late.

Everyone's talking about podcasts, those audio files downloaded from the Web and played on demand using an Apple iPod or any MP3 media player. Many podcasts are just for fun, but marketers are discovering they're also a promising new way to deliver advertising.

Podcasting is emerging as an interesting and potentially lucrative opportunity for online marketers who want to reach a wider audience.

The figures for podcasting vary, but by all counts the podcasting market is poised to explode and online marketers want in. A report from The Diffusion Group, a technology research consulting firm, showed that the use of podcasts is expected to grow from an estimated 4.5 million users in 2005 to 56.8 million by 2010.

Sites related to health, fitness and total body wellness are humming at this time of year based on the good intentions of millions of people who make New Year's resolutions to get in shape, shed unwanted pounds, start exercising more and devote more effort to their overall health and well-being.

But what happens when the resolve begins to dissolve and consumers begin the inevitable slide back into old habits that don't include visiting sites promoting health and fitness?

Affiliates interested in offering digital music downloads should pay tribute to Apple for legitimizing an over-hyped and under performing market that was close to flaming out before it ever got off the ground.

Despite the continued existence of freely available music through peer-to-peer networks, Apple has sold more than 125 million songs through its iTunes online store since it opened in late 2002, according to the company.

Paid search may be driving the rebound in online advertisers, but it's also driving away the promoters with shallow pockets.

Demand for paid spots on Yahoo, Google and their ilk is pushing prices sky high. Within the most popular categories, it's hard to stand out from the crowd of merchants without spending a fortune. In fact, some aggressive marketers play "keyword smackdown," launching high-stakes bidding wars in the hopes of bankrupting their competitors.