Blog
Podcast Marketing For Health And Wellness Professionals
Rebecca McIntyre
Head of Operations
10 Feb 21

Since they are designed to entertain and inform the audience, podcasts could be leveraged for marketing by health and wellness professionals. Podcasting is the new cool kid on the block. Ever since Apple launched podcasts 15 years ago, the medium has increased exponentially. We can credit this growth due to the rise of smartphones in 2009. 64% of podcasts are being listened to on a smartphone or a tablet.

In Australia, podcasts are growing popularity. Over 1.6 million Australians now download audio or video podcasts in an average of four weeks. Many mainstream media services have also jumped to podcast creation. ABC, SBS, and Channel 9 are only some of the media sites that decided to offer podcasts. This is a positive sign that podcasting is being taken as a serious venue for communication and marketing. Even non-radio Australian podcasts deliver approximately 100,000 downloads per episode. As such, for healthcare and wellness content, there’s definitely a demand. 

Why should you start podcasting? 

Podcasts can be a good platform for doctors and other health professionals to reach patients in a new and innovative way. For example, podcasts can help you educate your patients and other people about topics that may be relevant and valuable to their health but may not be getting enough attention during consultations or routine visits. 

What is the first step in creating your podcast?

Start with the topic. What do you want to talk about on your show? You need a “focus” so that your episodes will be connected properly. If your episodes are very disorganised, you may not secure a good following. As such, you need to develop a niche so that those who are interested in your topic will listen to more than one episode.

Here are what other health and wellness podcasts are doing:

You’re free to decide what you want your topic to be. Just make sure that you’re knowledgeable and you won’t easily get bored about the topic you want to talk about. 

How often should you post an episode?

Well, that depends on you. However, as a tip, we recommend that you first compile eight finished episodes before you post your first podcast. This way, even if emergencies suddenly come up or you have busy weeks coming, you won’t be stressed out about the next episode. 

How can you get listeners to your podcast? 

Start by developing your authority in your podcast. It would be helpful if you have guest professionals in your podcast as well since listeners appreciate multiple perspectives. Moreover, this will help you gain more followers as fans of your guests may tune into the episode and become avid listeners. 

In the 2019 Scarborough Podcast Listener Buying Power Survey, 26% of podcast listeners polled say they are interested in health-related podcasts. Health podcasts even rank eighth overall in popularity. It’s just behind science and history but ahead of business, arts and sports. 

The Australian market is truly ripe for savvy marketers. Only 3% of marketers are using podcasts so there’s a wide-open field for it. Are you ready to use podcasts for marketing for health and wellness professionals?