In the early 2000s, podcasts saw a surge of interest. Thanks to shows like This American Life and Radiolab, podcasts were a tool to tell stories. By the mid-2010s, it was ascending in popularity so quickly that it could even be called a podcast boom. Now, with nearly 40% of Americans saying they've listened to a podcast within the last month and 62% having ever listened to a podcast in their lives, it's time to recognize podcasts as the heavy hitters they are and the role they play in B2B marketing.
Why You Should Start a B2B Podcast
So, is a podcast good for B2B marketing? Well, if you own a business, you know the challenge of reaching your target audience. You may have tried so many marketing strategies that you have more than a few that worked well — and likely some that didn't. With the growth in popularity in the past decade — especially in weekly podcasts with loyal viewers — podcasts can be a unique and effective way to boost the growth of your B2B business.
Before we continue, let's take a journey through the growth of podcasts as it relates to blogging.
In 2020, there was an average of 75.9 million podcast listeners, with growth by 2024 to over 100 million listeners. This is where it gets fun. In 2022 it was estimated that 2.6 million podcasts were listed on Apple Podcasts. That number may seem like a lot but keep this accounts for shows with only a few episodes.
The ratio of listeners to podcasts opens up a HUGE opportunity for brands to create podcasts.
Now, let's look at blog readers. In 2020 it was estimated to have 85.8 million readers, and growth is slowing. Still a large number, but there are considering a whopping 600 million blogs, and those numbers are not looking good.
Podcasts can provide more than just audio. With the right strategy, you can create 1 audio file, 1 long-form video, 3-5 social video clips, 1-2 articles, and plenty of organic social content in one single episode.
Quick note, blogs are still vital to your content strategy, we are not suggesting you stop blogging but rather add podcasts to the mix.
Now it's clear that you need to start a B2B podcast, here are some tips for how to start a B2B podcast successfully.
Is a Podcast Good for B2B Marketing?
Knowing that a B2B podcast is good for marketing is one thing — knowing why is another.
Every business knows the importance of branding in marketing, and B2B podcasts are great for increasing brand awareness through consistent exposure. This constant discussion around your niche also solidifies you as an expert in your field, encouraging others to want to network and work with you. This translates into sales as more people become aware of your business, encourage others to consume your content, and regularly think about your business as they turn on your regularly-produced podcast and listen throughout their day. Seeing social media posts can boost this awareness as well, so be sure to get your name and concept out there via video content, social content, blogs, etc.
You want to grab your potential audience's attention by showing them what they can get from listening to your podcast.
How to Start Your B2B Marketing Podcast
Figuring out how to start a B2B podcast is more than just hitting record and talking into a microphone. Here are six tips for B2B podcast best practices.
1. Find Your Niche
You're excited to start, and that's great, but before you begin your B2B podcast marketing journey, you need to set some parameters. Why? So that your audience knows what they're getting into and that it will consistently be of value to them. B2B podcasts that are scattered lose their followers and can have a negative impact on your marketing goals.
First, you'll want to define exactly why you're creating a podcast and set your goals and objectives. This will narrow your objective going forward so you can stay on brand and on message.
Next, create a profile of your target audience. You are going to want to create a buyer persona for a few different questions, who are they, and what do they need to know more about? This will help you define your niche and provide a guiding light as you seek to create content that addresses what your target audience wants to learn about.
2. Choose a Great, Catchy Name for Your Podcast
Deciding on a name can be a challenge. You want something that will catch listeners' attention and entice them to choose your B2B podcast for the first time. Brain dumps with your team can be helpful. Get all the people on your team together via zoom or in-person to throw out all possible names, all ideas are good ideas, just get the ball rolling. If you need some outside help, a podcast name generator can help create some suggestions to get the ideas flowing.
3. How To Edit Your Podcast
There are several options for editing your podcast, depending on your budget and other factors. You can:
- Create an in-house editing team
- Outsource editing to a freelance podcast editor
- Hire a video marketing agency
There are a lot of benefits to taking editing out of the office by hiring a freelancer or agency. Having a whole in-house team can get expensive unless you're creating so much content that it outweighs the cost. Also, if you've got enough on your plate already, taking some of the editing time away will allow you to concentrate more on the other work you have to do in the office.
If you decide you have the time, interest, and patience to learn how to edit a podcast, here are a few tools that will help you.
4. Have Your CEO Host or Regularly Contribute
Your CEO is a leader in your field, and when it comes to B2B podcast marketing, nothing will legitimize your podcast's viewpoint more than having a leader speak to your audience.
Additionally, you may earn some bonus points with your CEO by inviting them to be a part of your podcast and showing them what the medium is like.
Tom Hunt — founder of Fame.so and a guru in the world of podcast content strategy — suggests that inviting your CEO to host or be a part of your B2B podcast is one of the best practices for a brand just starting their podcast journey.
This gives the CEO a chance to see all the different ways it can be beneficial to the brand, and what content they can help contribute.
5. Finding Guests for Your B2B Podcast
You've been working in your business for some time, so, naturally, you've networked. Networking is essential to growing in the business world — it's also a critical part of your podcast content strategy.
The profile you've created for your target audience also applies to your guests. Once you know what your audience needs and wants to learn about, seek out guests that bring value to your podcast by offering expertise surrounding your audience's wants and needs.
Since you're creating a B2B podcast within your field, you likely already work with and know quite a few great guests. Reach out to coworkers, bosses, and friends to see what value they can bring to your podcast. Ask them who they know that could offer insight to your listeners. This is valuable to them too, as it provides them a chance to promote their business.
6. Learn From Tom Hunt
Let's be honest — your first few attempts are not going to be gold, and that's okay. The key here is consistency. It's like going to the gym. You're not going to start off in the best shape, and there will be some tough days, but if you regularly exercise then you'll get stronger with time.
Tom Hunt says you should post as frequently as possible but only as long as the quality is maintained. A show isn't going to grow as fast if new episodes are only released monthly. Tom suggests new episodes weekly or biweekly.
You must also invest in good microphones for B2B podcasting. There are ways to save money when planning your podcast marketing strategy, but pinching pennies when purchasing equipment isn't one of them. Anything recorded on bad microphones grates your audience's ears — especially if they're using headphones. Pumping poor-quality sound into their ears will drive them away.
You're Ready to Start Your B2B Marketing Podcast!
Now that you know starting a B2B marketing podcast is good for your business, it's time to start brainstorming some ideas. We've given you guidance to take the first steps and get the ball rolling, but it's up to you to put one foot in front of the other and move forward. Start thinking about your audience, exciting topics to cover, and a clever title — anything to get you going.
One more suggestion we want to offer is to also have a video recording of your podcast episodes when possible, people want to see what's going on. Especially if they feel connected to a topic. Test different tools and programs to see which is best for your needs.
We want to make sure that you don’t forget anything, take our podcast planner with you!
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