Transcript
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Welcome to PodQuesting, where I'm on a quest to conquer the podcasting realm.
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Bringing you along the journey, this episode is part of the ongoing series, PodQuesting
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Lab, where I conduct experiments and research to help us on our quests.
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In today's episode, we are diving into a topic I've been experimenting with, and that is
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Facebook ads for podcast promotion.
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Are they really worth the time, effort and money?
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So I ran a four day ad campaign for one of my podcast episodes and the results were,
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well, interesting.
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So let's break it down.
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The challenge of marketing for a podcast, we all know marketing a podcast can be tough.
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It's not just about creating great content.
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You've got to get that content in front of the right audience and there are plenty of
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strategies out there from organic social media growth to collaborating with other podcasters.
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But today I wanted to focus on a method that many of us podcasters consider, but we hesitate
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to dive into and that is paid advertising on social media.
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So I tried a Facebook ad and I set a very small budget of only $20 for a four day ad
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campaign to promote an episode of this podcast, podcasting.
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So what were the results?
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Let's dive into the numbers.
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So according to Facebook's metrics, I spent $19.95 over four days and reached 3,391 people.
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And so that sounds pretty good, right?
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But let's talk about what really matters and that's engagement.
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So out of those 3,391 people, 31 clicked on the link in the ad, leading to a cost per
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click of about 64 cents.
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So that's where things kind of got interesting because the link directed people to my podcast
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episode on Spotify.
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Of course, what I was hoping for was I wanted those link clicks to turn into actual episode
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downloads.
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Unfortunately, when I compared my Spotify stats for the same period, there was no noticeable
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bump in downloads.
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So while people were clicking, it doesn't seem like they were converting into listeners.
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So I thought that was a very weird and unexpected result from this ad.
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One of the most surprising details from the ad was the age demographic.
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So the majority of people the ad reached were over the age of 65.
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And I didn't apply any specific targeting for the age group.
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So it was a bit of a shock, especially since podcasting cover topics that I thought would
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attract a wide range of audience from 18 to 65.
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And while it's interesting that I reached an older audience, it's not really what I
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was aiming for specifically.
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Now it's not a problem, of course, but this highlights the important lesson when using
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paid ads, you've got to be super creative with your targeting.
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And I didn't apply any specific filters.
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And so that might have impacted the campaign's effectiveness a little bit.
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Did it really pay off?
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I mean, so what did I actually gain from this ad?
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Well, I mean, I did get two new Facebook followers from this ad from this campaign on the podcasting
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Facebook page.
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I do want to plug that if you are interested, go check out the Facebook page.
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But let's kind of be real here for $20 for two followers isn't exactly a huge win.
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On the other hand, you know, over 3000 people saw my podcast and that's exposure I wouldn't
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have had otherwise.
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If you look at it from a brand awareness perspective, the campaign wasn't a total loss.
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And it's all about kind of managing expectations really, because if you're looking for a quick
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conversions and downloads, this might not be the way to go.
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But if you're trying to build long term visibility, there might be some potential here.
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I mean, what can I do differently next time if I do do another ad on Facebook?
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So there are a few things that I would do differently if I ran another ad.
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First, I would apply more targeting.
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As targeting is kind of key, I'd refine my audience based on interest in podcasting and
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or whatever my episode is about or my podcast is about.
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A more specific audience would likely improve engagement.
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The ad itself could be tweaked, for example, maybe instead of linking directly to Spotify,
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I could create a landing page that actually provides more context and includes an embedded
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player.
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So people can listen right away.
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Lastly, I think consistency and a larger budget are factors to consider as well.
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If I had a recurring monthly budget, I could experiment more and kind of tweak the ads
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and get gather better data and really refine my strategy over time.
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So that's kind of it on that end.
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But should you try a Facebook ad?
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I mean, if you're a podcaster wondering whether to try a Facebook ad, here's what I would
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do.
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It really depends on your goals and budget, right?
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So if you got the funds to experiment and you're looking to build a awareness around
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your podcast, Facebook ads could help.
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But if you're looking for quick downloads and immediate results and engagement, you
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might want to look elsewhere or explore other strategies like organic Facebook growth or
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community building or partnerships with other podcasters.
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And remember that paid ads are just one tool in your marketing tool belt and your toolkit.
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They're not a silver bullet, but they can complement your overall strategy if done right.
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So that's kind of my take on this ad experiment that I did on Facebook.
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Anyways, thanks for tuning into this episode of podquesting.
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Have you tried Facebook ads or any other paid advertising for your podcast?
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And what were your results?
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Let's chat about it.
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You can find me on social media, podquesting.
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If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to subscribe and leave a review.
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It really helps the show.
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And as always, this is podquesting where I'm on a quest to conquer the realm of podcasting.
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Catch you in the next episode.
