The Power of Podcasts

I love asking people what their favourite podcast is and I get a real variety of responses. Either they don’t listen to any podcasts, or they instantly mention an episode that stands out. 

Steven Bartlett, The Diary Of A CEO, comes out high on the list of people’s hit list and rightly so. The guests are informative and the amount of value given by guests leaves people in a better place. 

I believe that podcasts should be about educating the audience and when I network I often hear insights from podcasts being quoted and repurposed. Some people even credit the source and promote the episode they listened to (which is far more authentic in my opinion). Podcasts are an excellent friend to any speaker. 

As with reading, listening to podcasts leaves you with a decision as to what to take on. The downloaded information either changes your thinking or increases your insight, strengthening an opinion that you already hold. 

Not every podcast is going to give you opinions backed up with facts. You may have to do some research yourself, as some of the quotes, information and general conversation (like in real life) may not be accurate. 

So how can you demonstrate authenticity with your podcast? 

Many people don’t realise that they can use the show notes for this – they are an underplayed resource! I’m talking about the text that can be found under every podcast in YouTube. It’s prime digital real estate – a place for including links to sources or other podcasts, as well as citations or even information regarding the cameras that were used (as an aid to those starting out). The information you put in the shownotes heightens the narrative‘s credibility, much like documentaries where a summary of facts is included at the end. As a family, we recently watched Masters of the Air, Band of Brothers and The Pacific, and although none of them are podcasts, the way in which they closed off the narrative with facts and info is a model that translates well. 

Shownotes also serve as another way of adding the SEO terms and relevant content for the benefit of search engines. You can also feature the interviewee’s/interviewer’s webpages to give them a shout out. 

There are some really cool automation tools that can be used if you are on a tight budget, in order to create reels at pace in the world of ‘high demand content’, Opus is onesuch. These tools allow you to select clips of your podcasts to create engagement on social feeds. Reels are still all the rage as you get more traction showing a reel than a post on some platforms (Facebook, for example). There is no substiutue for editing reels and posting them as a ‘mini trailer’.  

Podcasts give you a great content base for blog writing where your inhouse team are struggling for content. One forty minute episode might produce three different blogs and you can reuse the citations from the shownotes to get the message out there. 

We have learnt so much since our podcast journey began and met so many great people. As we approach our 100th episode we are now helping other companies to create their own, giving people confidence and clarity in the process. We love podcasts! 

To go back to what I was saying about having to check your facts when you are listening to podcasts, one area where I can say with confidence that I have heard people making slightly spurious claims is in the world of marketing! Take for example the “brand discovery” of quizzes for client engagement… I’ve recently heard people claiming that the idea of using a quiz to pitch their business is a new, fresh thing, when it isn’t! What they are saying is actually a marketing exercise in itself! You can choose a quiz based scorecard app from one of a range that already exist: 

ScoreCard, Survey Monkey, Typeform. 

When bringing a product to market, there’s nothing wrong with mentioning what’s already out there because it’s worth mentioning. If you claim to be the latest, greatest thing, your listeners might otherwise build their whole ‘funnel’ around your approach when it might not be the best way for them… 

Then, there’s the ‘niche’. I must say that Neil Patel got my round of applause when he advised people against ‘nicheing’ down too much. ‘Nicheing’ is from the ABC of marketing and, while you may have heard some podcasts advising you to niche down so tightly that there is only room for you, I’d say nicheing down so tightly could leave you trapped, a bit like an actor who has been typecast! 

A more strategic option is to harness the power of three. 

NICHE ONE: YOUR ZONE 

PAST (where your experience lies) – This is the niche in which you have a track record and are confident in because you have all the evidence! For example, if its education, in the arena of schools you know the journey. 

NICHE TWO: YOUR BRIDGE  

PRESENT (the areas you looking to expand into) – This is the niche where there is a natural next step. For instance, a bridge into another arena that is linked to niche one. If your first niche is education, you might shift into the arena of networking and communities. 

NICHE THREE: 

YOUR FUTURE (giving the business longevity – sometimes the previous two will drop away and your business will morph into this niche) 

This is the niche that keeps you current by researching and anticipating the future. So if your niche is education, you’ll be looking into the arena of online classes to move into tomorrow. 

One thing is for sure, a podcast can help you to connect with an audience in the niche you are looking to target and podcasts are here to stay. We have seen the power that podcasts have to extend your reach and there are many ways we can help you…  

• If you are interested in watching our podcast please watch here. 

• If you are interested in coming on our podcast please get in touch. 

• If you are considering starting your own company podcast, we can help!