The idea of a podcast may seem restricted only to entertainment companies, lifestyle service providers and public figures, but professional services firms are increasingly seeing their value. 

Podcasting is one way to interact with a large audience and puts your business on the radar to further increase brand visibility. As one of the most popular forms of media, podcasting provides businesses with the opportunity to engage individuals and convert them into customers.

There are many reasons for businesses to create a podcast. Podcasting can allow you to share valuable information and educate your listeners about the services you provide. It’s also a great way of building your brand image and directly connecting with your audience. 

Defining your business positioning will allow you to create a distinct branding and personality so that you can translate it seamlessly into your podcast. This ensures that you cultivate the right perception with your audience.

Why should you have a podcast?

Providing quality services and professional input is one thing, but being known for high-calibre content in the industry is another. Creating a podcast for your professional firm allows you to share insight into your business in a personal way, which fosters a bond between your brand and your listeners. 

Since the pandemic, there’s been a global feeling of isolation that begets the need for intimate connections, and podcasting fills this need. From the listener’s perspective, it’s also an easy type of media to consume, because they can listen to episodes while doing other activities. 

From your professional firm’s end, podcasting also adds the necessary human element that’s often missing from very technical practices. For example, if you provide accounting services to your customers, your podcast can feature interviews or panel discussions with accounting experts — this will allow you to make industry-related topics more accessible while helping your customers have a greater understanding of your practice. By adding a human touch to your practice, you retain the heart and warmth of your business, minimising the risk of your customers feeling removed and detached from you and the services you provide. 

Creating a podcast also has practical benefits, it increases your brand’s SEO ranking as you consistently create and share podcast episodes. You can use your podcast to find collaboration opportunities with industry experts and professionals, which can further expand your audience. Once your podcast starts growing and generating leads, it can also be a great opportunity to monetise your content, giving your business an additional stream of revenue. 

3 qualities of the best professional services podcast

While no two podcasts are the same, the most successful ones will have similar key traits. We’ve shortlisted three important qualities that you should incorporate into your podcast as you build your content.

1. Focus on value

Professional services provide a specialised kind of help to customers, so many of the most popular business podcasts are framed around what value they offer.

Whether it’s accounting, law or other specialised firms, professional services podcasts lead with insight into how they are distinct from other firms. There are different ways you can add value to your podcast, the most important is consistently including a compelling call-to-action at the end of every episode. This will allow you to maximise the usefulness of your podcast episodes and potentially convert your listeners into becoming customers (if they aren’t already). 

Highlighting topics related or relevant to your firm’s specialised services can also make your podcast more accessible to a wider audience, particularly if you present your services as the solution to relevant problems or challenges that your listeners are facing. 

2. Actionable input

Listeners tune into business podcasts because they want to gain information about a particular topic in a straightforward and convenient way. It’s also crucial for the business podcast to have the experience and credibility to back up whatever advice they give to their audience.

It’s best to extract key messages and themes for your podcast from how you operate your business. For example, if Business Cut Through were to have a podcast, it would include episodes about leadership, business strategy and client management — with the aim of supporting business leaders and senior executives in their journey.

By showcasing your expertise, you can give authoritative insights and suggestions that will enable listeners to make informed decisions and self-improvements in their own lives. Don’t be afraid to share the challenges and failures you’ve made in the past. This will only make the connection between you and your listeners stronger, building audience loyalty and trust in the long run. Sharing your past mistakes will also give you the opportunity to share ways you’ve bounced back to succeed.

Incorporating your opinions in each episode can also make your podcast more authentic and genuine while ensuring that it’s not monotonous or too dry, especially if the topics are technical. It will give your podcast a distinct voice and personality while allowing your listeners to look into your thought processes.

3. Consistent content

The most successful business podcasts have risen to the top because they consistently produce and share content on schedule while sticking to themes and topics that align with their branding.

Consistently creating podcast content requires strategy and discipline, especially since each episode needs to be pre-recorded and edited well ahead of time. Developing a content strategy and content goals can ensure that you stay on track with your podcast.

The most important performance indicators that apply to podcasts are:

• Brand awareness: Is your podcast generating interest on social media and within your industry?
• Engagement: Are listeners giving feedback about your podcast? Are they sparking conversations about your podcast on social media?
• Audience loyalty: Has your podcast seen an increase in listener subscriptions and following?
• Authority: Are you being recognised by your industry peers? Is your business podcast ranking higher online? 
• Media release: Has your podcast been mentioned on social media? Have you received opportunities to collaborate with other podcasts?

If you stick to a posting schedule, your listeners will learn to tune in at specific times and days because they trust that a new episode will be available by then. This will allow you to build audience loyalty and allow you to strengthen customer relationships.

Creating a business podcast comes with its own set of challenges, but it can be rewarding if you put work and effort into it. A podcast can add a warm, human element to your business and allow you to engage with customers on a personal level.

The first step to creating a business podcast for your professional services firm is building a distinct branding and online personality. Give us a call and we will help you develop your business voice.