How To Get The Most Out Of Your Industry Podcast

Zoey Woodward, Head of Events and Digital Production at Fox Agency, and Producer of Fox Agency’s podcast ClientSide explores…

 
 It’s safe to say that podcasting has well and truly taken off. According to podcast insights, there are over two million different shows globally. There’s a podcast out there for everyone, covering seemingly every subject under the sun but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t give it a go yourself. In fact, that’s the value of a podcast. You can reach hyper-targeted, relevant listeners in a way you might not with other content.

For businesses, podcasts are a great choice to increase brand awareness and cement your position as experts in your field. With so much competition, the creation of a podcast needs to be spot-on to cut through the noise and bring value to your business.
 

Golden rules

 
Now you’ve decided you want to start a podcast you need to consider how you want it to be perceived and your tone of voice. All great podcasts have direction: episodes might differ in content, but the overarching theme should always be the same.

Most importantly, the content you create should be relevant to your target listeners. Engage with them and share interesting and insightful knowledge that they’ll genuinely benefit from. Never, ever, sell to them. That’s a one way ticket to failure.
 

Host

 
After you have your concept, you need to work out who’s hosting. Don’t feel you have to host your own podcast, especially if you’re targeting an industry specific audience. Look for well-known journalists or speakers in your sector and reach out to them.

You want your host to be charismatic and charmful, that way, it’s easy for the conversation to flow.  Though it will cost more, it will immediately attract guests and listeners who already respect that figure.
 

Guest outreach

 
As a new podcast, you’ll stand out more if you have a guest on the show that listeners recognise.  Look to your network, and once you’ve hosted a few guests, you will build momentum.

Never agree to a guest for the sake of it, your topics and guests need to be relevant and of interest to your desired audience. Research is imperative to finding the right guest. Discover what they have done in the past and what they are doing currently, if they have a compelling story to tell and topics to talk about, you know they’ll be a valuable guest.
 

Production 

 
Once the guest is secured, you should hold a pre-interview. Everyone has a story to tell, and the pre-interview allows you to find it. Your host will have a chance to get to know the guest and establish what excites them. Find out what the guest wants to get out of it, and what a win is for them, this will help you ask the right questions, and shape an interesting and relatable episode.

For the recording, always do technical checks. A good sounding podcast is easy to listen to, there’s nothing worse than a quiet and crackling microphone or distracting background noises.

It is important that both the host and guest use headphones and a microphone, these days ear buds also work well. The room the individuals are in must be quiet – if possible sit somewhere with soft furnishings as this will avoid echo and always check that all devices are switched to silent.

Make sure your editor cuts out any unavoidable background noise, long pauses, or prolonged ‘urms’. While you always want it to sound natural, too much stumbling could put the audience off – you want it to be an engaging, fast-paced, and a seamless listening experience.
 

Promotion 

 
Podcasting doesn’t end once you publish. Make sure you have a clear promotion plan in place. You could have created an episode with viral potential, but no one will hear it if you don’t promote it properly.

The best way to do this is by creating assets to share with the guest, tapping into their audience and network reach as well as your own. Sharing across social media platforms over the following weeks is a great place to start; if you have short video clips to add, this will catch the eye of the reader – or scroller.

So, what are you waiting for? Your industry needs your podcast.