You might already have a well-oiled content creation machine that’s delivering perfect leads, but you’re looking for a different way to get in front of ideal clients outside of the usual long-form content. That’s where podcasts could become your new lead generation superpower.
Whether you’re dipping your toes in and finding out how to become a guest, or going all-in to launch your own, podcasts are just like traditional lead generation methods. For the best results, they should focused on generating more interest by the right people and converting them to customers, but the format is listening, not reading or watching!
In this blog post, we’re going through how to successfully get more leads (and sales) through a podcast, running you through the 2 main formats: guesting and hosting.
Do podcasts generate leads?
When you do them right, yes! Podcasts aren’t an interactive way to connect with your audience. You speak, they listen. But by using their time to tune in, they’re signalling strong interest in what you have to say and you can create a powerful relationship with your listeners.
Benefits of podcasts
- Connection: Podcasts are a brilliant way for you to talk to listeners that become leads. In a podcast, people hear your actual voice, rather than reading your written voice, giving you another dimension to building trust with future customers.
- Inclusivity: The format itself is inclusive of everyone who prefers an audible medium of learning to a visual one.
- Showcase your knowledge: Talking about your knowledge and experience cements your position as an expert.
- It doesn’t feel like work!: Talking to your tribe about what you’re really into is actual fun! Yes, there’s a bit of performance anxiety at first, but geeking out over shared interests is a genuine pleasure.
- Lovely introduction to you: Hands up if you’ve never ended up down an internet rabbit hole – no one, right? Hearing you talk enthusiastically about things that matter to them, may spark listeners to want to know more…and more…about you.
There are two main podcasting routes:
1. Make guest appearances on other people’s podcasts
2. Broadcast your own podcast
It’s easier to get started with the first option. But creating your own gives you powerful, consistent, long-lasting impact – and you’re in the driver’s seat. Here’s how to make the best of both for lead generation.
1. Maximising guest podcast appearances for awesome leads
Being a guest on other people’s podcasts gives you the chance to talk directly to their audience – potentially hundreds or thousands of new leads.
You need to make sure that your time is well-invested with audiences who are likely to become customers. Taking a strategic approach to being a podcast guest begins with considering a few key elements.
Pitch to the right podcasts
This is all about finding podcasts that share your audience. Their listeners are your ideal clients. It’s not just about pitching to your favourite podcasts – although there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that.
If you’re looking to boost leads and generate sales with your podcast appearances, you need to know that your product or service is useful to their listeners.
This doesn’t mean that you’re necessarily looking at podcasts in your industry – although something that’s parallel, but with a different niche might work well. Like an accountant who specialises in working with freelancers going on a tax-focused podcast.
Start with podcasts that have smaller followings – as long as the host is credible and obviously trusted by their listeners. (They have consistently growing listening figures over time.)
Once you’ve built up experience, it’s time to go for the better known podcasts with larger audiences. Your previous experience proves you’ve done it before, mitigating their reputational risk.
Again, check out the host – they might have a large number of listeners, but make sure everything aligns with your values and standards before you get in touch.
Podcast pitching step 1: Identify the value you bring to their audience
Suggest some possible topics of discussion that are new to the show, but are about related subject matter.
Make sure they are:
- the painkiller for your target audience’s problem
- or the fulfilment of their need
- or the fuel that propels them towards their highest aspirations
Podcast pitching step 2: Create an easy-to-read 1-page bio
You’ll send this with your email, so the podcast host has got everything they need about you at a glance.
Make sure you include:
- Your current bio (short!)
- A head shot
- Previous podcast appearances
- Social media links with any impressive stats (like high follower numbers)
- Awards and badges of recognition
- A snappy summary of the expertise you bring to their audience as a list of suggested discussion topics
Don’t forget to update this as your experience, knowledge, and followers grow!
Podcast pitching step 3: Personalised emails
Of course, personalisation is the key here. No two podcast guesting pitch emails should look the same. You can, however, make it much easier on yourself by determining an email structure that you can then adapt to each host.
At its most basic, it may look something like this:
‘Hello, I’m a huge fan of your podcast and I’ve been listening since you started out. ‘X’ is one of my favourite guests because of [enter specific praise].
It turns out that we have the same audience, even though our businesses are very different. I’d love to help them by having discussions with you about X, Y, or Z. And I know my audience will definitely benefit from connecting with your business because [enter reason].
I was on ‘X’ podcast and got some great feedback. [Insert quote from delighted listener here]
What do you think?’
Of course, if you haven’t been a fan since the beginning, then you need to change that. The truth is important.
You can easily change it to ‘I’ve just discovered your podcast and now I’m obsessed. I just loved your interview with ‘X’ because [reference to some specific fabulousness].’
Your podcast guesting emails need to:
- Be sent to the right person. Sounds obvious, but some of the larger podcasts will have a producer that deals with booking guests – so not all pitches should be sent to the host
- Be short and to the point – no one has the time
- Be free from big salesy sections
- Show you understand their listeners and are obviously keeping them at the heart of your thinking
- Demonstrate you understand the position of the host or producer by including all the information they need to make a decision in your email and 1-pager, clearly and concisely. Professionalism personified!
ScoreApp’s new Lead Generation Toolkit includes a selection of podcast email templates and is free to anyone with a paid-for ScoreApp account. Saves you the hassle of coming up with one your own.
Deliver useful and valuable advice or stories
It’s really important that you prepare for your role as a podcast guest. You shouldn’t just rock up with your big brain and rely on the host to get you through it.
There are several different interviewing styles, which translate into different types of podcasts. Some hosts will provide you with questions beforehand, others leave it to ask you live on the day.
No-one’s suggesting that you write a script. People are tuning in to listen to a genuine conversation, after all. But you should think through the agreed topic of discussion and have some points prepared, like:
- New information you’re sharing – if it’s statistical, how will you remember the numbers?
- Advice about how to resolve common mistakes you’ve seen people make
- Stories to illustrate theories or ideas and give them emotional context
- Specific points that show how you understand listener pain points, needs and/or aspirations
- Case study examples from your experience that are about people in a similar position to the listeners
It’s wise to think all this through and make notes as soon as you get the guest-spot booked in your calendar. Then you can add to it if anything else springs to mind and review it on the day of your appearance.
If you’re new to speaking in a podcast setting, you might run through some of your thoughts aloud – to a person, the mirror, or your dog! Anything that you find reassuring is worthwhile practice to give you more confidence on the day.
If you’ve thought carefully about the value you want to bring ahead of time, you’ll be better able to maintain your professionalism – no matter what the universe throws at you just before you record. Prior preparation shows that you respect your host and, even more importantly, their listeners.
Have a free lead magnet ready to share
The difference between listeners and leads is:
- Listeners are all counted together in one number. You don’t know if they only heard one episode, or if they’ve binged a whole series. You have no means of identifying them, gathering their details, or offering specific help.
- Leads are people that you met through the podcast, but you’re now able to email them directly. You can gather their contact details and ask them questions about how you can help them further.
Having a large number of listeners is valuable in itself – of course. But you need to prepare a free lead magnet that you can share at the end of the episode to take the relationship from ‘listener’ to ‘lead’ status…
Do that by giving them something epic in exchange for their details, like:
- A quiz that gives them immediate help with something they identify as a problem in their answers
- A webinar that extends the podcast discussion into new territory
- A video mini-course that sorts out one specific problem in a matter of 3 short videos
Use a specific link, so you can track which leads come from the podcast link and – whatever choice they make about the lead magnet offering – make sure you capture their basic name and email information.
You might sweeten the deal even more with a special offer just for people who listened to that podcast episode.
Share the podcast episode with your audience
Make sure you share your podcast guest experiences with everyone, everywhere. Get it into as many ears as possible! Common places people forget to share are:
- Social media bios – link to your podcast experience for a while
- Email list – don’t assume your readers will have already listened, get it in your newsletter
- Website – put it somewhere on your website, like a ‘where you can find me online’ section
- Groups and communities – if you know the content will be helpful to the people in these spaces, tell them about it by sharing the link – you’re giving them it for free!
Follow-up and nurture leads
Once you’ve turned listeners into leads with the power of your remarkable lead magnet, you need to look after them. Prepare an email sequence as part of the lead magnet creation process and you’ll be all ready to go.
Use this golden opportunity to remove any hurdles to purchasing, answer all the questions and give all the evidence they need that you’re who they should be buying from. Take them by the hand and lead them all the way to the till.
Repurpose content from the podcast
A podcast episode isn’t just a podcast episode, it’s also:
- Short form video clips
- Quotes for posts – by you, the host and listeners
- Blog articles about your experience as a podcast guest and different sections of the interview
- Webinar inspiration
- Springboard for deeper primary research
- Anything else you can think of!
Use everything you said and learned from being a guest on a podcast to generate different types of content. And share it!
2. Launch your own podcast for lead generation
Ok, now it’s time to run through the other option, which is to launch your own podcast.
This is a heavier investment all round – in time and money – but one that puts you in control of the entire process.
As well as deciding on practicalities, like which technical equipment you need and the right podcasting platform to use, there are several points to consider to make sure your podcast turns listeners into leads.
Define your podcast target audience and niche
Who are you talking to? Who are your ideal clients? These 2 answers should be the same people. You also need to take a good look around and see who else is talking to them. Does the competition have a podcast? What can you learn from them?
Initially, you need to get super clear about how your podcast links to your business offering. You need to target your different audiences within your niche.
It’s likely that you already know a lot about their pain points, needs, and their opinion of your competition. This all informs the type of content you know they’ll want to listen to.
But do you know what streaming service they use and what podcasts they currently listen to? What other gaps in your knowledge do you need to fill before you can really target your podcast? If you implement a market research quiz, you can ask them what kind of things they’d like to hear about on your new podcast – directly!
Remember: your podcast isn’t just an excuse to chat to all your favourite and most admired people – and share it with the world. That’s just a really cool side effect!
The aim of your podcast is to generate leads – so the people you’re trying to hook are the most important factor in all your subsequent decision making.
Create a strategic content plan
You need an easily repeatable structure to your podcast content.
- How regularly do you want to publish it? Once a month? Once a week?
- How are you going to interview your guests? You can use this as a place where people have the opportunity to tell (relevant) stories, like Graham Norton’s chat show. Or you can ask every guest the same questions? Maybe you’re going to decide on the questions after you decide on a topic with each guest.
- What do you expect from your guests? For example, are they going to know the questions beforehand? Is there one question that they all need to answer and might want to think about?
Having a strategic content plan means 3 things:
- You save time on the practical organisation and can invest that time into quality
- Your guests know exactly what to expect and their role
- Your audience know what to expect and enjoy the familiarity of the format
Optimise for lead generation
All the usual lead generation optimisation rules apply to your podcast:
- Beautiful landing pages for specific episodes or for offers mentioned during your podcast. Keeping the start of their customer journey easy, with their next step clearly signposted.
- ‘Exclusive to podcast listeners’ incentives to subscribe to your email list. join your community, join the waitlist. Like early bird offers for a new product launch, or a free eBook.
- CTA for every episode – ‘Get this amazing free thing, just give me your name and email address’. Those lead magnets must deliver real value to listeners, in order for it to be a fair exchange for their details. There are so many different kinds of lead magnets you can create. The best advice is to try different ones and see which type of lead magnet your audience prefers.
Optimise for SEO and podcast platforms
Just like all your other assets, people need to be able to find your podcast episodes before they can listen to them.
Optimising your podcast for SEO starts the same way as everything else – find out which keywords and phrases people are most likely to use to search for the subject matter your podcasts about.
Then use this checklist to make sure you cover the basics:
- Titles: Include your keywords and phrases in episode titles – but keep it to 60 characters, get straight to the point. Your SEO title isn’t the place for (language) fun and frolics
- Summary: Write show notes that let people know what to expect from each episode. They often include things like a transcript and links to helpful resources
- Timestamps: Your podcast structure lends itself to easily dividing it into sections, maybe by question or topic. (YouTube calls them chapters) Including this more detailed breakdown makes your podcast more easily skimmable. Particularly if you include the crucial timestamps for each section
- Backlinks: Getting your podcast guests to share the link to your podcast is a genuine way to generate those valuable backlinks. Google loves them and it’s a way for you to meet ideal clients through your guests’ recommendation
- Repurpose: Turn your podcast episodes into a full range of other content and embed the original link
- Consistent publishing: For SEO, consistency is more important than quantity. Make sure your publishing schedule is doable, build in buffers for unforeseen circumstances. It’s better to always publish once a month, than to get 5 episodes out in one week and then nothing for 6 weeks
Promote your podcast
Don’t forget to share new episodes with everyone. It’s easy to get all tied up in the actual making of your podcasts – it’s great fun!
But hitting ‘publish’ doesn’t mean it’s done. You need to promote your podcast to make sure it gets into the ears of everyone that will find it helpful.
- Make it part of your newsletter
- Send an email to everyone on your email list with the link
- Get in on your website
- Put the link on all your socials – multiple times
Organising a cross-promotion date with your guests is a great way to really boost your reach to their audience and vice versa. It’s a brilliant and completely free tactic – win-win!
Once you’ve tested your podcast format, you might decide to run paid ads on podcast networks or social media platforms to target your ideal clients.
Create an engaged audience
Your podcast listeners are already part of a community – they’re all sharing the same wonderful audio experience. But they just aren’t connected to each other.
So it’s not too big a step to introduce everyone and create an interconnected community. Where this community meets will depend on where your audience already hangs out. But maybe just a regular, repeated hashtag can start it off…
You need to be able to respond to listeners’ feedback and answer their questions. A community space opens this experience out so that everyone can learn, rather than just an individual getting your answer by email. Once you’ve got your podcast structure and have a community of listeners you can use different ways to strengthen connections. Like live Q&As, or live webinars that involve people through the chat feature.
What’s a community got to do with leads? It’s all about trust – in the form of social proof, what other people publicly say about you, your response, and being endorsed by a whole community of like minded people – not just 10 strangers on Trustpilot.
Create irresistible lead magnets to share on podcasts with ScoreApp
Everything in business is downstream from lead generation – so your lead magnets need to attract the right clients.
ScoreApp isn’t just for creating lead magnets – it gives you all the features you need to create and maintain a full sales funnel. Got big podcast plans coming up? Great! Pop onto ScoreApp and make the perfect lead magnet for that audience – for free!
