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So you have decided to publish an online video podcast or an audio podcast – but what can you do in terms of promoting your podcast to increase the number of listeners or viewers and grow your community building your visibility online?

I was in conversation with Todd Cochrane today from Blubrry who also runs the annual Podcast Awards and he shared with me some interesting research which was undertaken across the podcasts that were nominated for an award. You can access the research results from the Podcast Awards where over 2300 sites were reviewed HERE.

The outcome of the research that was undertaken when reviewing the podcasts that were contenders for the awards gives us some insights on best practice tips for publishing and promoting your podcast.

Using RSS Feeds: Make sure that you check your own RSS feeds are valid and have an independent feed for your podcast as people may only want to subscribe to your podcast – be that an audio podcast or a video podcast. The research indicated that of the podcasts entered for the awards:

• 59% Had Feeds with errors but where valid
• 51% Had an RSS Icon on their default landing page that was a Blog Feed only
• 44% Of sites had a Podcast RSS feed you can subscribe to
• 23% Had a Podcast RSS Feeds Buried on a sub page in their Website
• 21% Had an RSS Icon on their default landing page that was Podcast Ready
• 21% Had invalid Podcast RSS Feeds.

Brand your channel and your podcast: Ensure that your visual identity is carried through for your brand on your podcast channel and in your podcast artwork. The research indicated that:

• 88% of the sites had good unique website branding.

Have Google help you be found: When updating your ID3 tags your audio file for a podcast remember that you still need to create effective show notes not only to help your listener understand the benefit of listening to your podcast episode, but also so that it will help your show be found in the search engines. The research indicated that:

• 59% Had less than one paragraph of show notes for their past 5 podcast.

Integrate your marketing communications: Encourage listeners and viewers to take the next step in getting to know you and become part of your community – or even look to contact you direct. The research found that:

• 53% Had a Facebook link on their website
• 43% Had a visible e-mail contact address on their website
• 41% Had a Twitter Link on their website
• 14% Had a Newsletter sign-up page
• 11% Had a call in number for listeners to comment on their shows.

Provide your content in  variety of formats: Provide a choice in the ways that you provide your content – I created two video podcasts today but at the same time made sure that I have the MP3 files available for those people who prefer to listen versus watch content. The nominations for the podcasts awards were creating for following types of content:

• 71% Were creating audio only
• 20% Were creating audio and video
• 9% Were creating video only.

Don’t forget the mobile web: Many people now are listening to podcasts when on the move and with the increase of the iPhone and other mobile platforms we need to make sure that we are ‘mobile ready’. The research found that:

• 3% of Sites where mobile phone ready (iPhone, Android, Palm Pre).

Provide a variety of ways for people to consume your content: Not everyone listens or watches podcasts on an iPod – many people listen to streaming audio or watch videos online. But to increase your podcast community you need to make sure that your podcast can be accessed easily – from being able to be downloaded from your website to being found in the main podcast directories. The research found that:

• 93% Had a Visible iTunes Subscription icon someplace in their website
• 81% Had a Visible iTunes Subscription icon on their default landing Page
• 51% Had a physical download link on their websites
• 51% Did not have their show listed on PodcastAlley.com
• 37% Did not have their show listed on Blubrry.com
• 14% Did not have their show listed on Podcast.com
• 6% Had a Visible Zune Marketplace icon on their websites

I know this research has given me some food for thought and actions to take for my new podcast series I am planning for 2010.

What other suggestions do you have for how best to market your audio or video podcast?

And if you are publishing a podcast in Ireland and would like to be part of a white paper that we are developing as the IIA Social Media Working Group, do get in touch as I am currently interviewing case studies in relation to the business benefits of podcasting – from audio to online video.