Podcasting for business: Why your company’s podcast is more than an audio channel

I recently saw a post on LinkedIn and the author listed the “most popular” channels for B2B marketers.

And “podcasts” were one of the channels listed.

But if you’re a B2B marketer, and you feel a podcast is a channel, you’re missing out.

When you focus on having specific, genuine conversations with prospects, customers, partners, internal subject matter experts, and industry leaders…you impact your entire marketing flywheel. Not just a single audio channel.

At Motion, we mostly produce video podcasts for tech companies. And with the 50+ shows we produce, we’ve seen how a podcast can impact an organization…beyond the audio file shared on Spotify, Apple podcasts, or Google podcasts.

Here’s a list of the numerous benefits your team gets when launching a podcast (and I will go into detail on each of these within this post):

  • Relationships
  • Recruiting
  • Onboarding new employees
  • Audio, video, and written content for use across a variety of marketing channels
  • Sales enablement
  • Messages and assets for ad campaigns
  • Market research
  • Company involvement in marketing
  • Customer Success
  • Sourced revenue 

What are the benefits of a company's podcast?

There are many reasons why a company might launch a podcast. And one of the main reasons a company turns to podcasting is to connect with their audience in a new way — through audio.

But I have even better news.

If you launch & build a business podcast, you’ll not only create a new way to connect with customers, but you’ll also get several other benefits from the conversations.

Podcast conversations: Build real relationships with people in your space

Everyone wants more reach. But business is done on a 1:1 basis. Prospects need to know, like, and trust you’ll deliver.

So how do you build relationships today, especially with remote and hybrid work being more common?

Start a podcast and integrate it within your company’s marketing strategy.

When you launch a podcast and have real, vulnerable conversations with people associated with your company…you truly build genuine relationships.

And I’m not just saying that because it sounds good. When creating a branded podcast, you get the opportunity to know the person behind the title or the organization. And as a result, you build trust & credibility with that person.

“The ROI of my podcast comes from getting educated, getting a pulse on the industry, and building relationships.”

Josh DeTar

VP Sales and Marketing

Tyfone

Recruit and attract the best talent with your company’s podcast 

The recruiting process is long, expensive, and stressful. Connecting with the right people can be tough, especially in this world of hybrid work and global employment. 

So how can a podcast make it easier to acquire the best talent for your company?

In the same way that a podcast helps connect with the best clients, a podcast also improves how you attract the best talent. 

How often have you spoken to a potential employee and heard, “I honestly had not heard of your business before seeing the job listing”? A podcast can help get rid of that awkward conversation. 

In addition, a podcast can help you find the RIGHT people for the RIGHT seats. If potential candidates have a window into your company, then they’ll have a much clearer picture of how the company works. This can help form a stronger bond with the best talent while also eliminating candidates who aren’t passionate about the work you’re doing.

Improve onboarding with a podcast playlist

What better way to help new employees learn the ropes than a fun, information-packed podcast? 

Your podcast is packed full of great insights, tips and tricks, and most importantly, all the information you need on the company in an easy digestible way. Your company’s podcast also provides a pulse on the industry and can give new employees a way to connect with your customers.

When onboarding new employees, set them up with a playlist of the best podcast episodes to give them a full picture of the business and your customer. The playlist can help any employee, especially those who are joining the sales, marketing, or customer success teams.

Content creation is an important brand strategy, and a critical ingredient for building a strong and reputable brand. But all your content needs to be well-coordinated; you have to create a unified brand voice and a unified experience for your audience. In this episode of the Recorded Content podcast, our host Tristan Pelligrino welcomes Jeff Coyle, the Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of MarketMuse. They discuss the importance of a unified brand voice, how to create a unified team, and the benefits of repurposing your content.

Share content in your customer’s preferred format

A podcast provides you with hours and hours of content that you can use for marketing purposes.

But, when you produce a video podcast, you have an opportunity to go beyond the podcast directories and provide content in audio, video, and written formats for your audience.

A video podcast unlocks your marketing team’s content flywheel. Each conversation helps provide information for your target audience and becomes a foundation for:

  • LinkedIn posts
  • Short videos
  • Blog post or guest post
  • Tweets
  • Podcast ads
  • Email campaigns
  • Customer outreach

Share content in your customer’s preferred format and you’ll see an improvement in engagement, reach, and conversions.

Strengthen sales enablement

What happens if your sales team doesn’t add any value during the sales cycle? Well, prospects turn to the company who does.

But if you run a podcast and collect information for your ideal customers, then you have a reason to engage. You have an inventory of information that can help get potential customers over the goal line.

Is your prospect looking for a specific case study? Do they have a question about a specific feature? Are they wondering how other companies overcome similar issues?

Whenever a big question surfaces in the sales cycle, it helps to have an answer within a podcast episode.

Improve messaging and creative assets for ad campaigns

Each podcast episode is an opportunity to listen to your prospects, customers, industry leaders, and influencers. As a result, your podcast naturally provides you with different messaging and can spark more creativity.

When you have a steady stream of content, it becomes easier to keep your campaigns relevant and engaging. Here are just a few ways you can use elements from podcast episodes to fuel your paid ad strategy:

  • Use quotes from guests within ad copy
  • Create short video ads featuring different perspectives
  • Highlight your CEO or executives interviewing key industry leaders
  • Use specific language from podcast conversations to spark different headlines
  • Craft an authentic video testimonial from a customer who appeared on your show

When you start podcasting, you don’t always think about how the content can be used in a paid ad strategy. But the successful podcasters we work with use elements from their show to keep their marketing campaigns fresh for their audience.

A podcast provides a way to have amazing conversations. And it also provides a way to present raw & unfiltered thoughts through solo episodes. But that’s as far as most podcasters go. B2B podcasters don’t realize there’s often a hidden treasure within every episode – beyond just the audio file. In the latest episode of Recorded Content, host Tristan Pelligrino uncovers how Anna Furmanov created the “Modern Digital Content Strategy For Startups Playbook” – all from a single podcast episode. Anna, the owner of Furmanov Marketing Consulting and the host of Modern Startup Marketing breaks down the most important steps every aspiring podcaster should take before speaking in front of the microphone. She also discusses her approach to solo episodes and how this format can help you articulate “how you think”…before a prospect decides to buy a product or use your services.

Collect qualitative data from your audience

Qualitative data is just as important as quantitative data. But most companies focus on pie charts, bar charts, and a pretty dashboard.

With a podcast, there’s a genuine conversation with every episode. And conversations are a way to get qualitative feedback from customers, partners, and other industry leaders.

Building a community around your podcast can be extremely valuable for both the show and your business. A community of listeners/viewers gives your business a sounding board.

The community acts as a de facto focus group to get information on the market and how your technology fits.

Go beyond the marketing department and get others involved

It’s hard to get the experts within your company involved with content. And it’s one of the big reasons customers come to us to launch a show.

A podcast helps break down the silos within your organization. It gives you, as a marketer, a chance to collaborate with other teams.

And when you use genuine conversations as a foundation for audio, video, and written content you unlock the expertise within your organization.

  • The C-suite rarely has an open spot on the calendar.
  • The sales team is under pressure.
  • Customer success has a long to-do list.
  • The product team is busy.

But a podcast helps get everyone involved with the content creation process.

And it allows the experts in your company to have a voice.

Improve customer success with helpful podcast episodes

Most marketers view a company’s podcast as “top of funnel” content. Information from podcast episodes are repurposed for social media platforms and are designed to attract new customers.

But a podcast isn’t just for prospects.

When you produce a show for your ideal customer, you can help them become more successful even when they already are customers.

With Recorded Content, a majority of our podcast episodes are designed to help the 50+ tech companies who are already producing podcasts. And we often share information with customers during weekly consulting calls or in response to specific questions.

Source real revenue from your company’s show

Now, here’s where business podcasts get tricky. The podcast alone won’t be a great source of lead generation for the business.

And for a business, attributing revenue directly to your podcast is difficult. Most of the monetary benefits won’t be felt directly; however you will see benefits in other areas (like those listed within this article).

That being said, it’s not completely out of the question to have your podcast become a direct source of revenue. If you consistently produce the best show for your potential customers, you will eventually see a deal come through referencing your podcast as the source.

And for many of the organizations we work with, sourcing just a single deal from your podcast makes it all worth it.

“Consistency is the currency for growth.”

Matteo Duò

Head of Content

Kinsta

We can help get your company's podcast in motion

We’ve only scratched the surface regarding the benefits a successful podcast can bring to your business. Podcasting is a powerful tool that can serve as the foundation for all of your social media content and fuel your entire content marketing strategy.

However, we also know that podcasting isn’t quite as easy as it may seem, especially for small, scrappy teams who have a lot on their plate.

If you’re looking to avoid the common challenges new podcasters face, then check out Start a podcast: A winning strategy for your company’s show. In this article, we help you get to your first episode with a solid foundation.

Are you starting a podcast, but need a more “done-for-you” approach? Then take a look at the different video podcasting packages we have for small, scrappy marketing teams.

Want to see how other B2B marketers get the most from their podcasts?

Recorded Content is a show for small, scrappy marketing teams who are looking to launch & grow a successful B2B podcast. In each episode, we provide stories on how to overcome the challenges of launching, running and growing a show. We tackle issues with technology, content marketing, distribution and more. We help you become a B2B podcasting hero with an amazing show.

Written by Tristan Pelligrino

Tristan Pelligrino is the Co-Founder of Motion. He’s a serial entrepreneur who started his career as a consultant with large IT companies such as PwC, IBM and Oracle. After getting his MBA, he started and grew one of the fastest video production companies in the country – which was listed on the Inc. 5000. Tristan now enjoys leading the content marketing strategies of some of the most innovative B2B technology companies in the country. You can find him on LinkedIn and Facebook.