Podcasts are growing in popularity among media consumers, partly due to their accessibility, convenience, wide choice of topics and ability to build a sense of intimacy. The time and attention that individuals devote to podcasts have also made them attractive as a communication channel for organisations. The thesis examines the podcast as a corporate communication channel in the Slovenian context. Given the relevance of the issue and the lack of research in this area, the main purpose of the thesis is to investigate how widespread the use of podcasts as an external (corporate) communication channel is among the largest companies in Slovenia, and to examine the reasons for its introduction into the communication mix and its role in corporate communication and branding in organisations that already use it. The research was carried out by data mining and 13 interviews. The results show that less than a tenth of the largest companies in Slovenia have used podcasts as an external communication channel so far. The key reasons for the introduction of the corporate podcast among the participating organisations are its growing popularity, its convenience for more in-depth content creation and the organisations' efforts to follow media trends. The corporate podcast plays a complementary role within the communication mix, helping to contribute to different communication goals and through which organisations educate, inspire, inform and/or provide quality entertainment. The study contributes to filling a research gap in the field of corporate podcasts in Slovenia and provides some practical guidance that can help organisations that are considering the introduction of their own corporate podcast.
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