B2B podcasts are back in a big way. Surveys indicate 62% of B2B podcast listeners tune into more podcasts than they did a year ago. That means your audience is there, waiting to hear what you have to say. And leading marketers understand that a solid podcasting program will ultimately pay for itself. Not only will the podcasts themselves help drive demand for your product or solution. But you’ll be able to create content from the podcasts that will enhance your brand and establish thought leadership for your company.
Discover how leading organizations are leveraging the power of podcasts in this recorded Art & Science webinar. This episode is part of the ongoing Success Series of webinars brought to you by the marketing experts at Virtual Intelligence Briefing.
Keys to Success
In today’s episode, Tom Riddle, Director of Survey and Research Solutions at ViB, is joined by three ViB customers who are podcast pros: Lisa Hackbarth Senior Manager, Global Marketing Campaigns at Blue Prism; Jeremy Sporn, Director, Marketing at Pivot Point Security; and Jackson Larango, Marketing Programs Specialist at VMware Carbon Black.
Want to find out what makes podcasts one of the hottest channels in B2B marketing today? Want to get started making podcasts yourself?
Watch this informative expert panel discussion and learn from these marketing leaders. They’ll share keys to podcast success, including:
- What’s driving audiences to B2B podcasts
- The three main benefits of podcasts
- How podcasts differ from webinars
- How to get started producing podcasts
- Ways to successfully promote podcasts
- …and more!
Learn why people listen to podcasts
Podcasts date back to the 1980s, when they were called “audioblogging.” To explain why podcasts have become so popular again, Jeremy says that part of the reason is “they’re just extremely user-friendly.” Podcasts also benefit from a longstanding reputation of offering reliable information from trusted experts. “One of the nice parts about having a podcast in the business world,” he says, “is there’s still this assumed expertise and thought leadership that goes hand in hand with a podcast.”
According to Jeremy, podcast audiences are “very hungry for quality information.” They’re also seeking entertainment. It’s important to make sure you deliver on one or both of those points. But more than info or entertainment, he says, is that “audiences are craving something.” The goal is to understand what your audience needs and then serve it to them.
Find out the main benefits of podcasts
Lisa lays out the three main benefits of podcasts: establishing thought leadership, reaching your target audience, and content-based networking.
She leverages podcasts to build her company’s thought leadership and build the brand. “We share content that helps differentiate us from our competition.” What’s more, podcasts serve the brand by letting “people know that we know what we’re talking about.”
“Podcasts allow us to reach our target audience,” Lisa says. “We help educate them on best practices, when to use our technology, and inspire and educate them.” This level of targeted audience education is especially crucial for solutions that involve complex technology. “We talk to our audience about how others are using [our platform] and getting the most value out of it.” Podcasts reach and inform both prospects and current customers alike.
Content-based networking “means that we’re hosting the podcast, which gives us an excuse to reach out to people in our network, our customers, our partners,” Lisa says. As a result, podcasts offer great opportunities to “really build those relationships.”
Learn how podcasts differ from webinars
Jackson explains that podcasts are “usually undated, and I think that’s a large difference” from webinars, which are typically date-driven. And podcasts, unlike webinars, aren’t accompanied by visuals. “The whole objective with the podcast is storytelling,” Jackson says. “So you really have to craft that narrative” in a strictly verbal format.
Lisa adds that “with webinars, you tend to have to promote each one in order to drive your audience.” But podcasts build an audience through subscriptions. For example, “as soon as you get a subscriber, they’re tuned in for all of your next content.”
B2B podcasts also lend themselves to multitasking. “No one’s out jogging and watching a webinar, too,” she notes. The benefit of being able to do other activities while listening to podcasts “gives you access to your audience outside of 9 to 5.”
Get tips for podcast promotion
According to Jeremy, the key to podcast promotion is recognizing “that you have two main channels: your own promotion, and the guests’ promotion.” One unique aspect of podcasting is “you can really empower and enable your guests to help promote” your podcasts.
For successful promotion, it’s important to set up a content-based marketing system that works for you. Your system may include “writing emails that go out to your list… and promoting it on social,” Jeremy says. He also leverages a virtual assistant that posts to their LinkedIn account several times daily.
You need to find out “where your audience is congregating and meet them there,” Jeremy says. For instance, paid ads may work for you if that’s where your audience is. “If they’re searching on Google, go get them there.” LinkedIn is a powerful channel for podcast promotion, he points out, because it’s B2B-focused.” Meet your audiences where they are.
Discover how to start your own podcast
As a first step, Jeremy advises that you clearly establish your objectives and make sure they align with your company culture. “If you’re a marketer that is held to very strict marketing metrics,” he explains, “make sure you know that you can provide answers to those metrics before you” kick off your podcast program. That way, you’ll set yourself up for success.
“You’re going to put a lot of time and effort into making this work,” he says. So you’ve got to make sure you can track your podcast’s progress and use company-approved metrics to prove that it works.
Jackson suggests you “start small.” One way to get started, he says, is to first validate your podcast approach. “Produce a few” modest podcasts and “see if they stick and see what the audience thinks.” Work within your resources and add to and change your program as you go.
Increase brand awareness and drive demand
Put B2B podcasts to work for you by getting started with your own program. Find your audience and deliver the information and education they seek while driving demand for your solution. Find out more by listening to the entire episode, “The Art & Science of Podcasts.” You’ll get tips and info from our expert guests that will give you a leg up in the podcasting world.
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