Multi-tasking with Podcasts: All Work; All Play

The business of radio is driven by ratings and revenue. I’d like to add a third driver: Running. R-cubed.

Your Business Blogger

credit: The Dude We North Americans pride ourselves on productivity — getting things done — winning. We work while being entertained and are entertained while working.

We fully integrate business and pleasure. And the work/family balance may be moot because our waking hours are consumed with work/play.

So now business podcasts are being enjoyed by multi-tasking over-achievers. That would be you, Gentle Reader, yes? Be honest: I can hear Dave Matthews in the background, this screen is running next to a spread sheet, your boss is on line three, and your girl friend just IM’ed. And what’s that pizza doing in your inbox?

Product and service providers (the pizza maker and that pizza deliverer) and advertisers love you. Which funds radio podcasts. For the six million listeners who downloaded podcasts.

But these days rating are easier to measure. Everyone can now know exactly how many podcasts are downloaded: Ratings.

Advertisers can now target messages with the Holy Grail of one-to-one marketing for greater efficiency and effectiveness: Revenue.

Podcasting News reports that,

Forrester projects that 700,000 households in the US in 2006 will use podcasts, and that this number will grow to 12.3 million households in the US by 2010.

[Charlene] Li suggests that companies focus their podcast efforts on repurposing existing content.

“Content that already exists — such as earning calls, training updates, and executive presentations are all excellent fodder for podcasts,” writes LI. “Think of us poor analysts who must listen to streamed quarterly calls while chained to our laptops! My caution is that companies shouldn’t be dashing out to create expensive original content for a small audience — unless they gain value from being seen as innovative.”

And I’m looking, as we all are, for innovation.

Like multi-taskers everywhere, I look for time for multiple tasks. I combine running and business.

The 26.2 mile marathon is a long distance to run. Goodness, it’s a long distance to drive. In my training, I would sometimes run for hours. Years ago it was with a WalkMan and cassettes by Earl Nightingale.

Today, it’s an iPod with Podcasts. And Anita Campbell. Getting business done on the run.

And it’s not just listening to the business of running, as in SteveRunner.com Or entertainment and music. Runners are listening to podcasts on small businesses, doing business. I’m learning Mandarin while the miles go by. Brad Feld, venture capitalist, is a regular runner with headphones piping in podcasts, and not just when he’s a guest.

For your next workout run, take a podcast. With the kids and your cell phone.

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