While the enhancements, which also include a more streamlined approach to subscribing to shows in iTunes, are great from a usability standpoint, from a business perspective, they also should help BlogTalkRadio with one of their key metrics: listeners.
Unlike publishers that depend purely on text or graphical ads, BlogTalkRadio, which raised $4.6 million last summer, also sells ads in shows, splitting revenue with publishers. The more listeners, the more inventory there is to sell. And while hardly immune from the overall slowdown in online ad spending, the format is more compelling than most, as show hosts pitch products from their targeted sponsors. The company also offers branded stations for the likes of Sun Microsystems and the US Department of Defense.
So far, BlogTalkRadio is handily beating its most comparable competition: TalkShoe. Here’s a look at Google Trends data:
The bigger competition is perhaps live video, where sites like UStream also attract significant audiences for live broadcasting. That said, audio has its advantages, such as being less bandwidth intensive and more convenient to carry on your iPod.