The Fundamentals of a Successful Business Podcast
Podcasting is steadily growing as a business marketing medium. It not only helps to establish you as an expert in your industry, but it also allows you to promote the tone, personality, and culture of your brand. Furthermore, creating a podcast for your business can expand your customer base and strengthen your connection with existing customers.
These are just a few of the many benefits that can come with a well-done podcast. But a lot is involved in putting together a quality podcast and distributing it effectively. If you want it to be successful, you must know what you’re getting into and be prepared to take the necessary steps. Below are a few fundamentals for making a podcast that grows your business.
Choose a Format
One of the first things you want to do when preparing your business podcast is to determine which format will work best for your needs. A lot of this has to do with your objectives, personality, and available resources.
Two of the most popular formats for business podcasts are the monologue and the interview. The monologue is the simplest because it only requires one person telling stories and sharing ideas and advice. If you have the personality for it, the monologue format can be quite effective.
Interview shows can also be compelling because they add the perspective of experts in the industry. The challenge, however, is that you need access to enough experts to keep new episodes coming.
Pick a Recording Medium
The recording medium you choose will determine the equipment you need for your podcast. If you’re doing a monologue format, you may only need the voice recorder app on your phone. When you start adding other people, you’ll need to consider whether to use Google Hangouts, GoToMeeting, Skype, and so on.
Get the Right Equipment
For a solid podcast, you need a computer and a microphone (or phone and voice recorder app). But there are many other items that can enhance the quality of your podcast, such as:
● An audio interface
● A mixer
● Headphones
● Pop filter
● Mic stands
● A shock mount
● Acoustic treatments
Add Nice Details
Producing your podcast is another crucial step to take before releasing it to the world. This is where you will edit each episode to polish the sound quality, content, transitions, etc. You will also want to add some music, which you can easily do through programs like GarageBand and Audacity. Even picking a song to use in your intro and outro can make your podcast sound more professional and help distinguish it from others. If you need some professional help creating a great-sounding podcast, consider hiring a freelance podcast editor. You can find these professionals through online job boards and weigh reviews and costs before hiring.
Push Hard
When your podcast episode is ready to go, it’s time to host it on a platform like SoundCloud, Buzzsprout, or Captivate. Then, you need to distribute it on Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, and other directories.
Next, you have to let people know about your podcast! This is where you go hard or go home. Orchestrate a robust launch with at least three episodes the first day and a few episodes per week for the first several weeks. Once listeners have some episodes to binge, you can begin to taper your capacity a little bit.
If possible, bring on the occasional guest star to attract listeners, and partner with other businesses in your industry to promote your podcast. Of course, be sure to keep your content engaging and give listeners calls-to-action (CTAs) every episode.
Running a podcast can play a significant role in helping your business grow. Remember the tips above as you prepare to launch your podcast, and keep researching other ways to set yourself up for success. Finally, think long-term. Whether you put out a daily, weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly podcast, be consistent so that your audience will know they can count on you.
Written by: Tina Martin of ideaspired.com
Tina Martin stays busy as a life coach and works hard to help herself and her clients achieve a healthy work-life balance. She is also working on her first book, “Ideaspired: Put Your Ideas, Your Inspiration, and Yourself First to Make Your Dreams Come True”.