Podcasting For Small Business: Everything You Need To Know

There is nothing quite like podcasting for small businesses.

For starters, the platform is growing fast, which is unexpected for most people.

However, the number of podcasts is estimated to be over 1 million.

That number isn’t individual episodes, either, but unique shows to listen to.

And tons of other statistics back up the idea that podcasts aren’t going away any time soon.

They’ll likely grow even faster in the coming years.

If you weren’t on board with podcasting for your small business before, you need to start before you miss the momentum.

Traditional media is on the decline, and it directly corresponds with the rise of digital media.

Including podcasts.

But why does that matter for your small business?

Simply put, podcasting can do huge things for your small business.

Plus – and I speak from personal experience on this one – it’s a lot of fun to create them.

Adding fun to your content marketing efforts is a bigger plus than you might imagine as it helps make content creation easy.

With some great reasons to get started with a podcast and almost no reason not to, it might be time to consider podcasting for your small business.

Let’s talk about it.

Podcasting Isn’t For Every Small Business

Before we get started you must understand something.

Podcasting may not be the right choice for every small business.

While there are certainly tons of podcasts out there on every subject you can imagine, that doesn’t mean you must start podcasting.

There are some things you need to stop and consider when deciding if podcasting is right for you.

Certainly, there is a way for you to podcast and topics to podcast about no matter what industry you’re in.

There is room for your company to podcast no matter what industry you’re in or what product you offer. Click To Tweet

Financial firms would do well to offer tips on personal finance like “how to save money” or “what investments are good for which goals”.

Chefs and restauranteurs might want to host cooking shows or talk about cuisine from around the world.

But, while there is an opening for your business and industry among the other podcasts, it may not be the right choice for you.

The biggest consideration in this decision process is whether you can continue to consistently produce valuable content for the conceivable future.

Podcasting can’t be an infrequent or one-off thing for small businesses.

Instead, it must be on a consistent schedule and continue for many months – even years – before it produces large results.

If that’s not a commitment you’re capable of or ready to make, you shouldn’t start podcasting.

However, if you’re ready to do something like that, continue to learn everything you need to know about podcasting for small businesses.

Podcasting For Small Business Is Easy To Start

For most people, the first barrier to entry with podcasting is a lack of understanding.

They aren’t sure where to start.

That uncertainty makes podcasting feel like a complex addition to small business content strategies.

I can tell you with certainty that podcasting for small business is not complex.

It’s exceptionally easy to get started, especially considering its value to your small business.

Podcasting often over-delivers for small businesses considering the effort involved.

There isn’t a major learning curve and there’s not a lot of special equipment or software.

Podcasting is simple to get into and delivers results way bigger than it should be compared to the work you’re going to put into doing it. Click To Tweet

Finding out what works and what doesn’t, thanks to the plethora of podcasting platforms, is easy to do based on all the great data you can collect.

And there is a basic formula to use that helps translate a successful podcast to a successful lead source.

With everything that podcasts can do for your small business and the relative ease of making them a part of your strategy, there’s no reason you shouldn’t consider adding podcasts to your content.

Once you know everything I have to share today, I’m sure you’ll agree.

Here’s what you need to know to understand podcasting for small businesses and get it working in your brand’s favor.

Podcasting Is Super Accessible For Small Business

The first question you should ask about any new content format is what it takes to get into it.

Your brand has to be capable of adding a format before you should investigate further.

Cost, complexity, and return all need to be calculated to find out if it’s worth investing the time and money into.

Thankfully, podcasting has a low barrier of entry for small businesses.

Most of the time adding a podcast to your content strategy costs nothing to start.

You’ve likely got everything you need in your pocket right now.

With a couple of free phone apps, your hands-free device, and your phone itself, you have an entire podcast studio wherever you’re at.

No, that’s all you need to get started producing a podcast for your small business.

Let me give you a little more detail.

You’ll need to select software to record and edit your podcast on.

Some great recommendations include:

• Anchor: Anchor is a part of Spotify, and it’s a free option to record your podcast and get it distributed to every podcast outlet you need.
• Garageband: Mac & iPhone users have access to this incredibly robust option for recording and editing podcasts.
• Audacity: The most robust recording and editing software available on PC for free. It does everything Adobe Audition does without the price tag. This is what I use.
• Cleanfeed: The free version allows you to record, edit, and get contributions from anyone you invite in the world. Add the Pro version for a bunch of additional features.

Once you’ve narrowed that selection down, start recording on your phone and you’re good to go.

Podcasting Topics Are Simple For Small Business To Choose

When small business owners think about podcasting, they’re often deterred by the idea of coming up with a topic.

They’re never sure what their audience might want to listen to, nor do they think they’ve got anything interesting to talk about.

In other cases, they’re overwhelmed with the idea of where to start.

Most of the time it’s rooted in a fear of putting that content out there and being judged by it.

However, for some, the idea of choosing a topic is a difficult thing.

Thankfully, podcast topics are one of the simplest things to come up with.

Start with your audience in mind.

Hopefully, you know exactly who you’d want to listen to your podcast because they’re the people who’d make the best clients for your business.

With them in mind, consider the following questions to create a list of topics to podcast about.

• What questions do your clients often ask related to what you do? Your podcast topic needs to stay related to what you do, but it also needs to offer valuable information to your audience.
• Why might your audience want to learn? Think about all the reasons your audience might want this information so you can address all their “why’s” in your podcast.
• Who else is offering this information? Likely other podcasts and content creators are answering the same questions. How will your podcast be different?
• Where are they getting information now? Identifying what answers they’re already consuming can help you produce better content. It can also help you get your podcast in front of them.

By focusing on content that brings your audience value, podcasting topics for your small business won’t be tough to choose.

Small Business Podcasting Is Better When You Know The Format

You’ll need to know how to deliver your podcasting content to your small business’ audience.

If you don’t have a plan for a format, it’s going to be tough to keep people interested.

Not every podcast episode needs to be the same format, but it helps to keep a level of consistency.

The first thing you’ll need to select is whether your content will be disconnected or a series.

Disconnected content is all related by subject material, but each episode is independent information that your audience can pick and choose what they want to consume.

Series content is all connected and usually requires listening to all of it to understand all of it.

Either choice is fine but plan on sticking to it.

Once you’ve decided on your overall podcast format you can choose the episode formats.

Each episode needs its information structured in a way that makes the content easy to digest.

And your overall format will affect what episode formats will work and which won’t.

For example, a Q&A session won’t hold up so well when podcasting a series for your small business.

While podcasting for your small business, you also need to consider which episode formats your audience will enjoy most.

Selecting the right formats can change the way your audience reacts and help you build faster.

Podcasting Needs A Way To Convert Leads For Your Small Business

Now it’s time to get into the nitty-gritty of podcasting for small business.

How do you move people from listeners to leads and, eventually, customers?

You’ll need a process for taking them the direction you want them to go to.

An average lead funnel works well for a website.

However, for someone to move from a podcast platform like iTunes or Spotify, you’ll need to take an extra step.

Introduce podcast-specific landing pages to your website.

Then create a simple URL, either through your domain or through a link-shortening service, that leads from your episode to the landing page.

One of the simplest URL strategies is to use a slug that features the episode number or title.

That way, when podcasting for your small business, you can give them an amazingly simple link to visit to get to this lading page.

But why does simple matter?

Unlike other content formats, your audience won’t often have a link to click from your podcast.

They’ll have to type in the link you give them, just like an advertisement on the radio.

The simpler that URL is the more likely your audience is to visit it and the less likely they are to make a mistake.

This gives you the best odds to get them into your lead funnel and make them a client.

Small Business Podcasting Is Best If It Grows

With everything so far, your podcast will earn results.

However, like everything else in content, the goal is to grow your audience as big as you can.

Podcasting works better for small business when it has a larger audience.

So, to make sure your audience is large, you need to learn some ways to promote your podcast.

Social media posts, emails, and platform distribution are all important parts of content promotion.

But you’ll also need to make sure your audience is sharing your podcast.

And that means you need to understand how your audience is reacting to your small business podcasting.

Check your statistics to find out what lengths of content, what topics, and what podcasting formats do best for your small business.

As you notice the tactics that create listener growth and additional subscribers you can focus on creating more like it.

Natural growth for your small business podcasting efforts assures that your content is worth sharing and coming back for.

Now you can have confidence asking your audience to share your podcast with others.

Having your audience participate in the promotion process is more effective for your small business than promoting it yourself.

You likely already know user-generated content has huge value, so making it a part of your podcast promotion efforts should be a given.

The faster you can grow your small business podcasting audience, the faster you can reap the rewards.

You Can’t Ignore Podcasting For Your Small Business

If you’ve determined that you can effectively and consistently create podcasting content for your small business, you need to make it a part of your content strategy.

With a growth rate that’s expected to continue rising, a flexibility that allows your audience to consume it wherever, and an ability to connect in surprising ways, podcasting will do big things for your small business.

Consider how you’re going to add it and earn the growth podcasting brings for small businesses.