Your business started podcasting to support its success. You dove in to increase your reach, engage your audience, and form new partnerships. Your podcast is more than a way to opine about what your company does best. It’s an integral part of your content marketing strategy, aiming to attract leads and convert them to paying clients.
But like any component of your content marketing efforts, podcasting takes resources. Time and talent are involved, and so is money. While any money devoted to boosting your company’s success is well spent, you don’t always get what you pay for.
Despite your best intentions, the results don’t always measure up. For a high-stakes investment like a B2B podcast, aligning those outcomes with your goals is essential. Your business can’t afford to devote resources to something if it doesn’t produce a solid return. Instead of hoping for the best, here are some strategies to maximize your podcast’s ROI.
Start With a Plan
In a nutshell, a podcast is content. And it has to be interesting enough to grab and hold your intended audience’s attention. From a business perspective, a podcast isn’t a platform to discuss random topics without a plan. In the B2B realm especially, you’re competing for your target customer’s precious time.
Your audience might listen to your content as they multitask through their day. But they’ll eventually tune you out if your podcast isn’t about a topic they’re passionate about. If you’re trying to reach decision-makers at other companies, you need more than a sales pitch. You want an air-tight podcast marketing strategy that enables you to present relevant subjects in engaging formats.
In other words, a plan isn’t just hooking up a few mics and starting to talk. Instead, compile a list of appealing topics you could develop over weeks or months. Also, think about what formats your ideal client will find engaging. Maybe expert panel discussions will work better in your niche than solo presentations. Treat your podcast as a relationship-building tool, using information and dialogue your audience will value.
Get the Word Out
You wouldn’t launch a new product without any advertising. The same principle applies to your B2B podcast. While you can attract listeners by simply uploading your content to all the major podcast platforms, it’s not enough. It’s like putting your product on the shelves of big-name retailers and then crossing your fingers. You may never recoup the investment you put in.
At the same time, conventional advertising may not be the ideal way to get people to listen to your podcast. You might have to think more grassroots and rely on channels where you’re already communicating with your base. Use your company’s social media posts, website pages, and targeted emails to get the word out. You can also promote your podcast on a business blog or online video channel.
It doesn’t have to be an over-the-top announcement, as more casual nods and encouragements tend to work better. Pew Research has found that podcasts have become a social experience for listeners. Around two-thirds of listeners suggest podcasts to people they know, while six in 10 tune in to a recommended podcast. Encouraging current listeners to review, rate, and share your podcast can be more powerful than any promotion you give yourself.
Include a Call to Action
A podcast shouldn’t feel like a sales gimmick. And, inevitably, a portion of your audience will do nothing but listen. However, it doesn’t mean you should ignore one of content marketing’s goals — attracting leads and converting them. Although your podcast is there to inform, you want to include methods of funneling leads to your sales team.
Calls to action can be direct, such as mentioning a phone number to call or your company’s website. You can also include links to website landing pages on the platform itself. Place a link in the episode’s description or the podcast’s general summary. If you also film your episodes for video platforms, the links can go in the description of your channel.
A technique many podcasters use is to briefly issue the call to action at the end of each episode. You could say, “If you’re interested in learning more, book a session on the posted link.” It’s also an opportunity to encourage feedback, such as comments and emails. You could include a second link to sign up for your email newsletter so you can further nurture your leads. They might not be comfortable scheduling a consultation immediately, but they may want to take a closer look.
Keep Tabs on the Results
When it comes to ROI, you’re not going to ignore your investment’s performance. It would be like spending without a budget to guide you. With a podcast, you’re investing in your company’s future revenues. Without analytics, you won’t know if you’re on track to achieve your desired return.
Measuring your results through analytics tells you who is listening. Podcasts can drastically improve your company’s brand awareness, and analytics lets you see whether your content is attracting the audience you’re targeting. Analytics reveal what industries are gravitating to your podcast and the size of the organizations tuning in. This data can show whether you should tweak your content or develop new angles based on industry trends.
Overall, the information will reveal whether your episodes are aligned with your strategy’s goals. You can see how your audience is engaging and which episodes have the highest engagement and conversion rates. Analytics gives you a clearer picture of which companies can turn into qualified leads so you don’t waste your efforts.
Maximizing Podcast ROI
As a business, you don’t want to invest your resources in unprofitable endeavors. A B2B podcast can be instrumental to your content marketing strategy. But if you don’t maximize its return, it may not be worthwhile. Strategically focusing on topics, leveraging social networks, issuing calls to action, and measuring results can help you achieve the greatest possible gains.
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