Podcasts aren’t new. They’ve been around since the mid 2000s and have only grown in popularity since. But corporate podcasts are a whole new frontier — and an untapped market. 

The situation is similar to blogging in the early 2000s. While some of us had personal blogs in 2002 where we chronicled our thoughts and feelings, and shared melodramatic poetry, it wasn’t until much later that marketing really caught on to blogs’ usefulness as marketing tools. They began to see the potential for relevant content at every stage in the sales funnel. 

The same is true for podcasts. Sure, they’ve been around for almost 20 years, gaining popularity in earnest in the past decade. But only now is marketing starting to understand podcasting’s true potential for businesses.

Big businesses are also starting to catch wind of podcasts’ potential. Major brands like McDonald’s, Trader Joe’s, John Deere, Slack, and more have already launched branded podcasts for their public. 

Entertaining and educating the public is just the beginning of what can be done with corporate podcasts. From training to culture-building, to sales enablement, to customer outreach, to industry updates, to thought leadership — the possibilities are endless.

But before your marketing department starts sound proofing the old file room and budgeting for Blue Yetis, here are some things to consider as you plan to build, produce, and maintain your corporate podcast

 

1. Types of Corporate Podcasts

There are two basic types of corporate podcasts: internal and outward-facing. 

Internal podcasts are distributed within an organization, usually through an intranet, and are intended for internal communications, culture building, sales enablement, training, and development.

Outward facing podcasts, also known as branded podcasts, are used to amplify brand voice, communicate brand values, add value to customers’ lives, and generate interest in your products. 

It can be as simple as that, of course — but what fun would that be?

Depending on its size, your company could benefit from dedicated types of podcasts, depending on the results-driven goals you’ve outlined. If you have a large company, it might even be beneficial for different departments to produce their own show. After all,  how could you expect to fit all departmental objectives and information into one podcast? It doesn’t make sense.

You wouldn’t post the same kind of blog or social media content on both innovations and sale’s websites. And you wouldn’t ask them to share training materials. 

Each arm of your organization has stories to tell, wins to share, and strategies and techniques to disseminate. The larger your company, the more you should consider giving each department with the need for it the ability to use the medium in their own way. 

 

2. Getting the Details Locked Down

A lot of resources go into producing a quality corporate podcast — resources that someone has to approve. When preparing to pitch and gain approval for a new show, consider the following questions:

• What is the budget for this podcast?
• Which department’s budget will the funds come from?
• Who will be running the podcast?
• Who will produce and distribute the podcast?
• What is the cadence for episode release?
• Will the podcast be a single season, or ongoing?
• What are the performance outcomes of the podcast?
• How will those outcomes be measured?

A standardized approval process increases the chances of the podcast actually getting made, as well as a uniform standard of production across all podcast series company-wide. 

 

3. Branding and Standards

Your company is a brand. And as a brand, it has to maintain its brand image for the sake of continuity. Your corporate podcast collateral should both conform to and compliment the brand image your company has worked so hard to establish.

As part of the corporate podcast production process, consider the following:

• What logos will the podcast use and who will design them?
• What kind of artwork will be used?
• Who will write and record the intros and outros?
• Will there be music?
• Who will choose and vet the guests?
• How will the podcasts be recorded? In-person or virtual?
• Can episodes be sponsored by external advertisers?

Setting standards early can prevent headaches later.

 

4. Who’s Involved

One might imagine that recording a podcast only involves a host, a guest, and some recording equipment. But the truth is, a lot more goes into making corporate podcasts than you might think. It takes collaboration and coordination between several players with important functions:

• Podcast host – the show’s personality and thread through all episodes
• Guests – ever-changing and hand-selected for the topic of each episode
• Producer – screens and invites guests, makes logistical arrangements
• Audio engineer – recording, editing, and mastering episodes
• Video engineer – if you choose to enhance your podcast with this feature
• Writer – show notes, intros and outros, written content like blogs or social media posts
• Design resources – graphics and images

Of course, getting so many different moving parts to function together can be a challenge, so having protocols in place and software that facilitates easy collaboration is critical. 

Hiring the services of a turnkey podcast production company can make this process incredibly smooth for you. 

 

5. Hosting and Distribution

Every podcast needs a home. Where your podcasts will live on the internet is another important consideration. 

If your company is hosting several corporate podcasts, it’s especially beneficial to host them through the same provider. It makes it much easier to access and compare analytics, which, as we pointed out in section 2, is a critical component of continued funding. 

The powers that be want to see specific returns and the metrics that show your objectives were met. In short, they want proof that it is worth the money. 

Choosing one host makes it easier to see the numbers, showing that what you’re doing is working (or isn’t), and ultimately helps you justify the continued use of company resources. 

 

6. Key Performance Indicators

The bottom line is that corporate podcasts’ goal is to raise the bottom line, whether directly or indirectly. It’s really difficult to know how or if your podcasts are having the desired effect if the desired effect hasn’t been clearly spelled out in KPIs. 

These indicators should be available to everyone involved in the podcast process (except the guests), and should be frequently reviewed, analyzed, and adjusted to maximize the efficacy of your podcast.

 

There are many things to consider when embarking on the journey of producing a corporate podcast for your business. If after reading this article you’re still at a loss for how to get started, reach out to us at [email protected]. We are a full-service podcast production company serving Austin and Hill Country businesses, institutions, and corporations who are looking to connect in a meaningful way with their internal teams and external customers. We can take the guess-work out of podcasting and guide you through the process.