How Does a Podcast Differ From Other Content Marketing For B2B Audiences? | Podcasting In B2B Marketing
In the B2B business world, it can feel like a full-time job just keeping up with all the different forms of content marketing. For many businesses, they do have at least one full-time employee dedicated to cranking out content. Thereโs blogging, email marketing, social media, webinars, YouTube videos, and of courseโฆ podcasting. In this blog post, weโre talking all about the latter (my personal favorite); podcasting in B2B marketing.
Podcasting has exploded in recent years and serves as a powerful tool in B2B content marketing. B2B podcasts are more than just another content channel to add to your long list of to-doโs. Theyโre exceptional at humanizing B2B brands, establishing authority, and creating a lasting, loyal audience for your brand. In fact, podcasting can be even more effective than other forms of content marketing, such as blogs and webinars. Read on to learn the differences between a B2B podcast vs. other content marketing and why it should be a part of your B2B marketing toolkit.
The Unique Role of Podcasting in B2B Content Marketing
Podcasts Build Trust, Thought Leadership, and Connections
Podcasting in B2B marketing offers a unique opportunity to build brand awareness, grow your audience, increase visibility, and position yourself as a thought leader. Plus, it brings a human aspect to your B2B business, making it more personal and relatable for your target audience so you can cultivate deeper connections, which is trickier to do with other content formats.
Take blogs, for exampleโฆ they are often skimmed over quickly in order to get a specific bit of information.
Then there are webinars, which can be difficult to find success with as they rely on your audience committing to showing up at a specific date and time. (If youโre anything like me – a wife, mom, and business owner wearing many hats – this can be extremely challenging to make it work with a busy schedule).
In this day and age, people can spot a marketing tactic a mile away. They arenโt as interested in the complicated, โtalking way over their headโ corporate-style marketing anymore.
They want to get personal and feel seen, heard, and understood. They want to know that your business cares about them, sees them, and can solve their problem.
Trust is the key to positioning your company as not just a provider but a partner invested in your clientโs business to help them solve their problems.
Podcasts offer a more intimate, conversational format for content marketing that allows you to explore topics that impact your listeners. This gives B2B businesses the ability to share their authentic voice and stories and blend it with their expertise, showing them how you can solve their problems.
That is powerful when it comes to fostering trust and credibility, and building thought leadership in the B2B space (something you just canโt achieve in the same way with blogs, webinars, email marketing, or social media).
Podcasts Are Easily Accessible Anytime, Anywhere
Another benefit of podcasting in B2B content marketing is that it is easily accessible. Letโs face it – people are busy with a capital B. They donโt always want to sit down and read a long blog post or watch an hour-long webinar to learn one specific bit of information. They want to take their content on the go wherever they are and learn about something specific, whether that be during their morning commute, on a run, or while cooking dinner.
People want convenience and things that save them time, energy, and bandwidth, and podcasts provide that with easy access and the ability to listen anytime, anywhere while multitasking.
This is one of the main things that makes podcasts stand out from blogs or webinars, which require your undivided attention and screen time.
As podcasts gain popularity and podcast platforms get more intuitive, you can rest assured that your content is always available to a broad audience, thus increasing your visibility and building brand awareness. We love to see it!
Podcasting vs. Blogging: Which Is Right for Your B2B Strategy
When considering whether a podcast or blog is best for your B2B marketing strategy, consider these few key points.
Engagement Level
Podcasts have a higher engagement rate than other forms of content, such as blog posts. Just think, if someone clicks on a podcast, theyโre likely in it for the long haul, as opposed to sifting through a blog post quickly to find one specific piece of content or the answer to a question. The audio element paired with storytelling and the accessibility of taking a podcast with them anytime, anywhere, is powerful. This longer engagement time strengthens the relationship they build with you and your brand and deepens their trust in you.
Content Depth
Podcasts also allow you to have more in-depth discussions on super-niche topics. By incorporating storytelling and your unique experiences, interviews, and panel discussions, this depth of knowledge goes far beyond the written word in blog posts. It brings more emotion and personalization to the conversations, while blogs are better suited for more structured, scannable content.
Think of a podcast as the full conversation and a blog post as the Cliff Notes summary.
Repurposing Powerhouse
Just because podcasts have benefits that blog posts donโt have doesnโt mean you have to ditch blogging or social media altogether. Podcasts are a content repurposing powerhouse that can fuel your entire content marketing strategy.
Feel like youโre in a blogging or social media rut? Podcasts can help you break out of it, bringing new energy and a new, engaged audience into your business! Plus, repurposing your episodes onto other platforms is great for SEO and getting your content out into the world even more.
You can repurpose your podcast episodes into:
- Blog posts
- Social media posts
- Reels
- Emails
- Infographics
- Case studies
- Webinar slides
On top of the sheer repurposing potential, you can cross-promote your podcast on other platforms, sharing your new episodes on all of your social media channels and in your emails. This is great for engaging new audiences, building brand awareness, and leveraging your podcast for lead generation.
Talk about more bang for your content buck!
Podcast vs. Webinar: Why Podcasts Are More Engaging
The once-popular webinar marketing strategy for B2B businesses is declining for a few reasons.
Flexibility
As I mentioned before, the fact that people have to commit to a specific date/time to attend a webinar can be tricky for busy professionals balancing family and work life. Podcasts, on the other hand, fit into the listenersโ schedules seamlessly. They can turn on a podcast anytime, anywhere, pausing as needed.
Lower Technical Barriers
Another downside to webinars as a B2B content marketing strategy is the higher margin for technical error. It seems like there are always tech issues with webinars, whether that be the link to get into the Zoom room isnโt working, the live-stream glitches, the platform isnโt compatible with your device, or the audio is wonky. Plus, if the host doesnโt get it recorded, replayability is nonexistent. Podcasts eliminate these tech issues, giving your audience a great listening experience every time (so long as your audio is spot-on, which we can help with!).
Higher Retention Rates
Webinars tend to suffer from mid-session drop-offs in retention. People get busy. They get distracted. And if their question isnโt being answered or they arenโt learning what they expected to – theyโre out! Where B2B podcast marketing vs. webinars differ is that podcast listeners are more likely to stay engaged throughout the entire episode. This is largely due to the conversational and portable nature of the podcast medium.
Content Marketing Options for B2B: Why Try Podcasting
As we head into 2025, the modern B2B buyer is seeking a few things: connection, convenience, and authenticity. The traditional way that corporate businesses have marketed in the past is slipping away, giving more attention to content marketing strategies that feel more personal and relatable. Theyโre also looking for marketing strategies that are cost-effective and have high ROI (because, letโs be honest – life and business is expensive these days!).
Podcasting checks all of those boxes and allows B2B companies to:
- Stand out from their competitors
- Build a loyal, engaged audience that loves their brand
- Offer genuine value through storytelling and expertise
- Position yourself as a thought leader
- Build authority, trust, and rapport
- Generate quality leads
- Expand your network
Best Practices for B2B Podcast Content Marketing
Podcasting in B2B marketing isnโt just a trend – itโs a powerful content strategy to diversify your approach to reaching B2B clients. Podcasting in B2B marketing provides an excellent opportunity to engage your audience in a content format that is conversational, trust-building, and easily consumable. What more could you ask for?!
Ready to explore podcasting in your B2B content marketing? Book a complimentary call to see if Leah Bryant Co. is the right podcast agency to help you get your podcast started!
Weโll help you apply all the best practices for B2B podcast content marketing, from defining your audience and planning aligned content topics to publishing, promoting, and repurposing.
Browse our services and book your complimentary call today!