Podcasting is making waves in the agriculture industry, offering agribusinesses an engaging way to share stories, thought leadership, and exchange best practices. From spotlighting farmers to diving into industry news and trends, podcasts provide a dynamic platform to connect with your audience.
While podcasting continues to grow, its success as a marketing tactic hinges on one key factor: alignment with your broader business goals. A podcast should be more than just another piece of content–it should serve as a strategic tool that reinforces your brand’s messaging and helps contribute to measurable outcomes like increased awareness or audience engagement.
For the past four years, we’ve been creating and producing podcasts that help our clients connect with their audience. Through this experience, we’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. Launching and maintaining a podcast can be challenging.
Here’s what we’ve learned–and what you need to know–if you’re considering podcasting for your agribusiness.
1. Aligning Your Podcast with Your Business Goals
Launching a podcast can be exciting, but before you press record, start with your purpose. How will your podcast ladder up to your broader business objectives?
Define Your Purpose
Start with why you want to start a podcast. Are you looking to increase brand awareness or educate your audience on a specific topic? Or is your goal to foster community among your industry peers?
Understanding your purpose will help guide everything from the content you create to the metrics you track. Being clear about your “why” ensures your efforts are aligned with your business goals.
>>> Explore how McCracken helped AgCredit launch a podcast as part of a strategic marketing initiative to strengthen its position as a trusted financial advisor. Check out the case study.
Integrate Podcasting Into Your Content Strategy
Once you’ve defined your purpose, think about how your podcast fits into your larger marketing plan. Your podcast should complement your content strategy, working alongside other outlets like blogs, email newsletters, and social media.
For example, a podcast episode covering how to finance a barndominium could be paired with a blog post outlining actionable steps and shared on social media. You can also use your email newsletter to promote upcoming episodes or highlight key takeaways from recent guests. This connectivity increases audience touchpoints and maximizes the return on your investment.
>>> See how McCracken created a podcast for Soil Health Partnership to showcase in-depth conversations with soil health specialists and other industry experts to promote a better understanding of soil health in agriculture. Check out the case study.
2. Steps for a Successful Podcast Launch
Starting a podcast takes preparation and a strong launch can set the tone for your podcast’s success. Here are the essential steps to ensure your podcast starts off on the right foot.
Launch a Teaser or Trailer Episode
Before releasing full episodes, create a short teaser or trailer to introduce your podcast. This is like a “coming soon” announcement, giving listeners a taste of what to expect. Use it to highlight the purpose of your podcast, the type of content you’ll cover, or the guests you’ll feature.
From a technical perspective, launching a trailer is also a crucial step in getting your podcast approved on platforms like Apple, Spotify, and Google. Keep in mind that approval times can range from 24-48 hours for your “first episode.” Think of your trailer as a soft launch that gets everything connected, tested, and live before your full episodes roll out.
Have Three Episodes Ready at Launch
When you officially launch, having three episodes ready to go is an important best practice. Releasing multiple episodes at once gives listeners a reason to stay and explore more of your content. It also demonstrates consistency, which is key to building an audience.
Having a few episodes prepared means that you can focus on fine-tuning your process instead of scrambling to meet deadlines. Podcasting has a learning curve and each episode takes time to produce. If you’re trying to produce episodes on the fly, content will feel rushed and can lead to mistakes. Use this time to experiment and gather feedback from listeners.
3. Develop an Editorial Calendar and Guest List
One of the secrets to a successful podcast is finding the right balance between planning ahead and staying adaptable. Your content strategy should be planned ahead to ensure consistency but flexible enough to allow for trends, news, or seasonal topics.
Balance Structure and Flexibility
Create an editorial calendar to maintain a steady flow of episodes. Plan out general themes, key topics, and potential guest appearances for the next few months, but avoid locking in every detail too far in advance. This approach allows you to pivot quickly if other opportunities arise.
Start by identifying evergreen topics–those that will remain relevant regardless of when the episode airs. Planning ahead gives you room to breathe as you hone your podcast skills so that you don’t have to scramble to pull things together at the last minute.
When building your guest list, consider a mix of voices that can provide fresh perspectives and add value. Farmers, industry leaders, researchers, and even customers can offer unique insights.
4. Repurpose Podcast Content for Maximum Reach
A single podcast episode can fuel content across your marketing channels, amplifying its reach. By repurposing podcast content, you can engage with your audience in multiple ways while maximizing the return on your effort.
Create Multi-Channel Content
If done right, each podcast episode will give you material that can be adapted for various platforms. Here are a few effective ways to repurpose your episode content:
- Grab Audio Clips for Social Media: Short audio snippets from your podcast can be used as bite-sized content for social media.
- Turn Episodes into Lead Magnets: Deep-dive episodes can be condensed into downloadable guides or checklists.
- Leverage Insights for Newsletters: Key takeaways from episodes can be summarized in your email newsletter, offering value to subscribers who may not have time to listen or would rather read content.
By assessing your goals, defining your objectives, and integrating podcasting into your broader marketing strategy, you can connect and share stories with your audience in a powerful way.
If you’re ready to explore podcasting but aren’t sure where to start, let’s chat about working together to create a podcast strategy that’s tailored to your unique business goals.
