Tim Wahlberg (0:01)

Hey podcaster, I'm Tim Wahlberg, your podcast performance coach, with another actionable tip so you can grow your podcast authority, generate leads, and convert with ease. Today's tip is Follow trends carefully. What will shape the podcast industry in 2025? Who the hell knows? But just for funsies, let's pretend we have a crystal ball and talk about some of the most likely trends coming our way. But before we look ahead, let's look back at some of the trends that shone in 2024. Hint, there are a few that will continue the first trend that emerged in 2024 that may have surprised a few people was just how much respect podcasting got thanks to the US Elections. Suddenly appearing on popular podcasts was on every candidate's press list. Am I the only one who feels like suddenly podcasting is all growing up? I'm hoping we won't look back at this as podcasting's jump the shark moment. Another big trend was the further blending of video and audio podcasts. This makes the 2025 Continuing Trends list because this transformation feels as unstoppable as a District 9 prawn infection. When is District 10 coming out? Because anybody know? I've been waiting for 15 years for this. Not to mention YouTube is now a primary destination for podcast consumptions, not to be left behind. Spotify has prioritized video with creators, and Apple is leaning into it too. So yes, yeah, you pretty much need to be a video podcaster now. However, I do have a little pushback on this trend that I'll share with you in a moment. But the final trend of note from this past year in podcasting is not surprising. The incorporation of more AI tools. Sure, podcasters continue to lean on tools like ChatGPT for content support, sometimes a little too much, if you know what I mean. But we also saw a whole bunch of new tools for podcasters, including AI for sound design, audio sweetening, music creation, editing, which still needs some work, marketing, video creation and audience engagement. Has the pendulum swung too far though? We'll see how audiences respond in 2025. Speaking of the future, let's explore what's in store for podcasting this upcoming year. I found a great article on co host's website about what 2025 has in store for podcasters. I'll link to those 25 trend predictions in the show notes if you want a more in depth look into the future. But you know me, I'm all about the quick tips, so I'm gonna give you my top three here. Monetization is number one and it is the holy grail for a lot of podcasters. I always encourage entrepreneurs to focus on the ROI their podcast delivers to their business instead of chasing sponsorship or ad dollars. I think 2025 is gonna make this even easier. Many of my clients are using dynamic ads on their own podcast to increase their leads and sales. I'm also seeing more more podcasters using private podcasts as a lead magnet for their first step into their value ladder. And in 2025, keep your eyes peeled for even more creative ways to use your podcast to boost your revenue and feed your funnels. My second trend is no surprise. It's the need for podcasters to get on video. There are so many opportunities to use video to increase the visibility and discoverability of your podcast, increase engagements, and grow brand recognition. But here's my pushback. I don't love doing video just because everyone is saying you gotta do video. This can do more damage than good if it's not done right. If you've already done the hard work to create valuable content your audience loves, don't mess with it by revealing to us that you're recording it in your closet. We don't need to see that. The podcasters I work with are business owners. First, they're busy. So doubling the time, effort and cost to incorporate video doesn't always make sense. Every show is different and every podcaster needs to weigh out the pros and the cons. Think of your audience. Do your listeners really need to see you talking into a microphone? Is a talking head conversation going to enhance their experience? Do they have time to stop and watch or are they usually multitasking with you in their ears? You have to figure out what's going to work for you and your listeners. Don't get me wrong, video is important and I believe it can have a huge impact on your show. So use video somehow, some way. Just make sure the video portion of your podcast is on brand, serving your listener and moving you towards your goals. So stay intentional and strategic as you step deeper into this podcast trend in 2025. And my final trend of note is authenticity. Not that this was ever not trendy, but authenticity is so much more important. This is partly a counter to the AI content flooding the market. It's also because so many customers want to trust the brands they get behind. Watch for more CEOs and big executives to start podcasts this year. The best way for you podcaster to adopt this trend is to be as authentic as you can. Focus on building a relationship with your audience by sharing more stories instead of just stats or info. Go beyond your expertise and bring in the personal. You want to serve them and provide them with useful information, but you also need to inspire them. Treat your audience less like an audience and more like a community. And make damn sure that they know it's really you and not some AI generated content. Now I know I said I would keep this short to three trends for 2025, but my wife Valerie, who is also a podcast Coach here@podcastperformancecoach.com has a trend she thinks is going to be big this year. And I agree for one reason. Because a lot of people tell me how much they like my show because it's short and that I keep it tight. So because of that and because my wife is super smart, I'll share her trend prediction Micro Podcast we're not talking about TikTok length, but shorter than five minutes. She believes this is coming because of how our attention spans are ever decreasing. Think about it. All of the social media platforms, including YouTube are backing micro content. Why not podcasting? Could this be the next big trend for podcasting in 2025? In fact, we were working with a client during our podcast Tune up program and during that process we implemented a much shorter second episode to be released for her every week. It was easy for her to manage because of the simple format we came up with, and it basically doubled her downloads per month. But that made sense for her and her show's monetization model. Could this work for you? I don't know. Depends on your show. So to RECAP My top three trends for 2025 More creativity for the monetization of your podcast. How can you repurpose, repackage and resell it? Number two Video. Do more of it Somehow, some way. Just think about your listener. Number three being as authentic as you can and the extra bonus trend for 2025 micro content. So as you think about all of the trends, remember that there is one trend that never goes out of style. Being listener centric. This is especially true for entrepreneurs using podcasting for their business. If you want your podcast to be a powerful tool for building your authority and generating leads and sales, it has to be intentional and listener focused. No trend will move the needle as much as having a podcast that's aligned with your business and the problems you solve for your clients. And I hope that's just the tip you need as you enter this new year. Are you still loving your podcast? Is it doing what you want it to do for your business? It might be time for a pivot or a realignment of of your show, you'd be surprised how much it can revitalize you as a host and re energize your listeners. If you want to find out what that might look like, check out the Podcast Tune Up, a six step program designed to increase your podcast roi. I'll leave a link in the show notes for you, or find out more about the Podcast Tune up program on my website@podcastperformancecoach.com Tim Wahlberg see ya.