Why Your Business Needs a Podcast -- Even if You Think Nobody Will Listen

There are two words I've used time and time again to gain access to some of the brightest minds in my industry: "interview request."

That phrase makes up the subject line to every request I make of someone I would like to interview for the Duct Tape Marketing podcast, and it's probably one of the most effective tools I employ.

Hosting your very own radio-like show is one of the fastest ways to build your reputation as an expert and to gain backstage passes to hang with the biggest names in your industry.

It has never been easier or more useful to produce your very own audio content --most commonly known as podcasting -- than it is today.

In doing so you can instantly tap the lure of the interview -- a tool that has long served journalists from publications large and small. The only difference is that now anyone can use this draw to get in front of authors, industry leaders, and even prospects.

Creating content opportunities, such as expert interviews, is also a great way to formalize relationships with strategic partners.

Some cynics might argue that you're just wasting your time if not enough people are listening to your podcast to make it worthwhile. Like so many things in life, if you produce good content, people will eventually find it and pass it around. But I would also argue that the access to your prospective guests alone is what makes podcasting worth your time.

Whom Do I Invite?

The answer to that question will depend greatly on your marketing objectives and industry, of course. But stretch your thinking here.

Who are the thought leaders in your industry? What about in your town? What strategic partners could you convince to share their wisdom? What prospective big-fish customer would like to tell their story? What famous, innovative, or creative person would impress your customers and prospects?

Are you starting to get the picture here? Can you see how possessing a library of interviews with smart folks in your industry could be a competitive advantage?

Of course, once you get the hang of this I would suggest creating a series of audio success stories chronicling your work and featuring your customers.

Is Podcasting Hard to Do?

The good news is that you don't have to invest in all kinds of studio equipment to produce a very passable-quality interview series. You need several elements connected together to start creating your podcast. I'll list each item and give some suggestions for tools and services to explore.

This setup leans towards the do-it-yourselfer on a budget. You can certainly invest in professional software and tools, and even hire audio engineers to add polish to your recordings, but it's not necessary.

Step 1: Record. To record your interviews you will need a decent microphone and computer recording software. If you are doing phone interviews then you can use SkypeIn, an inexpensive service that provides you with a phone number for your guest to call. This way you will be able to record the call without having to transfer it to your computer.

You should also add a low-cost Skype add-on like Call Recorder (Mac) or Pamela (PC) so you can record the call directly to your computer inside the Skype interface. Call Recorder has a very handy option that allows you to split the tracks in the call so that when it's time to edit the recording you have much greater flexibility if there are differences in volume and quality between you and your guest.

I use a Blue Snowball USB microphone and Bose headphones, but you might also consider the Behringer Podcaststudio to add a condenser microphone, preamp, and mixer for better sound recording.

Step 2: Edit. You may want to edit your interviews for length or to add music and sound effects. Garage Band, a program that comes on Macs, is very adequate for this, and many PC users like a free program called Audacity. Both programs also compress audio recordings into the widely-used mp3 format.

Step 3: Host. Even compressed mp3 recordings can be rather large, so it's a good idea to use a media-hosting service. This may not be an issue if you don't receive many listens and downloads, but I like to use a service called Libsyn because it's very inexpensive and streams thousands of plays effortlessly. You may also want to consider inexpensive hosting from Amazon's S3 service.

If you publish your recordings to a website or blog, Libsyn also makes it very easy for you to create a player for your site so visitors can listen to your recording right from your page if they like.

Step 4: Promote. You'll want to let the world know about your interviews. One of the easiest ways to do this is to use blogging software such as WordPress to describe each show and provide a link to the recording. (You can see how I host the Duct Tape Marketing podcast here.)

A further advantage to using blogging software is that it automatically produces an RSS feed that can be read and retrieved by podcast directories and, most importantly, iTunes.

Another powerful step is to create transcripts of your recordings and offer them as additional content in and around your audio or as a separate downloadable content feature. There are many local companies that provide transcription services, but a very fast and economical one called Casting Words is a great option.

Once you get your recording and posting system set up you will find that a podcast can deliver a tremendous return on investment -- even if you think in terms of guest access first and listenership second.

John Jantsch is a marketing consultant and author of Duct Tape Marketing and The Referral Engine and the founder of the Duct Tape Marketing Consultant Network.