Corporate Podcasting: Developing a Corporate Podcast - Artwork, Music, and Publishing Frequency (Part 2)
In the first part of this deep-dive into developing a corporate podcasting show, we took a look at goals, 4 ways to cater to your audience, creating competition-free content, your podcast format, and the episode duration.
In this article, we are going to unpack the creative side of producing a corporate podcasting show.
Picking the Right Music and Voice Over for Your Corporate Podcast
What is the best music genre for your podcast? Is it pop or is it rock? Jazz? Something else?
‘When it comes to music, you need to go back to your brand,’ says Connie. ‘Your podcast is a reflection of who you are, so you need to be strategic. Ask yourself this: What is my company about, what is our brand character – and how does the music of our corporate podcast best align with that brand foundation?’
Hence, it is key to always go back to your brand, goals and strategy, even when it comes to the creative side of producing a corporate podcasting show.
Platforms like PodcastMusic.com and AudioJungle, for instance, will provide you with options in terms of music and sound effects, unless you want to create your own music – or have someone do it for you.
It is important to remember, though, that picking best music for your show isn’t so much about your personal preference, rather about aligning your choices with your brand as much as possible.
While music does matter to set the tone for a corporate podcasting show, there is an element that is predominantly present in every single episode, and can really set the mood for listeners: the voice over.
If you are a podcast listener, then you have probably listened to shows that have captured your attention right from the get-go and have kept you glued to your headphones. And perhaps you have also listened to shows that have had the completely opposite effect...
When thinking about the voice over aspects of your corporate podcast, you can approach it by looking at two figures (which, sometimes, are combined into one).
The first one is the voice over listeners hear in the introduction, the segment at the very beginning of the episode. This typically introduces listeners to the show itself or it tells them more about the specific episode they are about to dive into.
In some podcasts, the same voice can be heard at the very end of each episode, in the outdo segment. There, the voice often thanks listeners or directs them toward a specific resource or Call-to-Action.
Sometimes, there just seems to be a disconnect between the voice over, the music, and the show. For example:
The show may cater to a specific audience (e.g. people in the U.S.) but the voice over has an accent from a completely different side of the world (e.g. Australia)
The show may be targeting a gender-specific audience (e.g. female entrepreneurs) but the voice over is male
The show features an intro music that doesn’t seem suitable for the audience the corporate podcast caters to
The second aspect that has to do with the voice over is the actual host and their style. There are different things to keep in mind when it comes to this, including:
The voice the host has
A potential accent the host has
The overall pace which the host speaks with
Their intonation and whether the host speaks in a pretty monotone fashion or he/she is capable of using its voice with different intensities and levels
Here’s what to consider.
First, keep your brand and audience in mind. What are you trying to express, how, and to whom?
Next, think about the characteristics you would like the voice over to have. Should they be male or female? Should they have a pretty high-pitch or low-pitch voice?
What about accents, any particular one you would like them to have (or not to have)?
Ask yourself these types of questions and any other pertinent ones that may come to mind.
After that, consider how to find a suitable music or sound effect to match it with.
Yann broke down his thought process when it came to this aspect. ‘For The Jazz Spotlight, I was looking for a pretty low-pitched voice with a normal or slightly slow pace, which would fit in perfectly with a jazzy intro song.’
Things changed when it came to another of his podcasts.
‘The approach for the 360 Entrepreneur Podcast was completely different. Since the show targeted a completely different audience and I wanted them to get fired up from the very beginning, I opted for someone with a faster-pace speaking style and a song that was inspiring and rather up-lifting.’
‘In a lot of ways, who you pick to host the show is a reflection of your company,’ adds Connie. ‘None of the people in your team who are developing the corporate podcast may have a hosting style that is suitable for what you have in mind – but this doesn’t mean that they can be involved with other pieces of the puzzle, such as the strategy’.
The Visual Side of… Corporate Podcasting?
It is true, we all judge a book by its cover.
And, to some degree, podcasting is that different. Some listeners will pick your corporate podcast over others because they were attracted by the artwork.
That is the first thing they see on podcasting platforms like Apple Podcasts and Spotify, so it does make sense to spend some time thinking about the visual side of your show.
You may have an existing color palette you use for branding on your website, social media, on leaflets, etc., and you may want to simply go with that.
Before you do, however, we recommend doing a small experiment.
Head over to a podcasting platform and take a screenshot of a section that features several podcasts (and their artworks).
Next, head over to a platform like Canva and upload your screenshot there. Once it has been uploaded, add your own podcast artwork (or different version of your artwork) and place them over one or a couple of the other artworks.
How does your artwork look? Does it stand out from the crowd in terms of its color? And what about the font you picked, can it easily be read even when the artwork is small?
You may be tempted to have a podcast artwork filled with text to explain what the show is about. However, some of the most popular podcasts have a rather minimalist podcast artwork – like Gimlet Media’s StartUp, for instance.
‘When should we publish our corporate podcast?’
The publishing cadence is an aspect of podcasting that can be tricky to figure out.
Simply look at any podcasting platform or podcast listening app and you’ll find podcasts with all types of publishing frequency: daily, multiple times per week, weekly, fortnightly, monthly, quarterly... how should you pick the best one?
As Connie puts it, ‘Finding the right publishing cadence really comes down to the level of effort you believe your team can manage. Podcasting will take time, resources, and energy, so it makes sense to be realistic.’
If you are afraid of the weekly hustle and workload related to hosting a corporate podcast, you could consider having a season or series-based approach, where you publish a series of episodes or a season and then have breaks of weeks or months before publishing the next season.
A season-based approach will give you plenty of time for planning and even batch-recording, if that something you are keen on.
It is important to remember that podcasting is a puzzle made of different pieces and the members of the team involved with planning and creating the corporate podcasting show may have different ideas and preferences.
‘To alleviate yourself of different creative directions, always go back to what the brand foundation and what your business and marketing goals are,’ concludes Connie.
And don’t forget: we are here to help in any way we can, so don’t hesitate to reach out with whatever corporate podcasting-related question you may have.
About the Authors:
Connie Steele is the Co-Founder of Flywheel Associates, a Business & Career Strategist, an Executive Consultant, Host of Strategic Momentum, and Author of the new book "Building the Business of You." Connect with Connie on LinkedIn.
Yann Ilunga is a Podcasting & Lead Generation Consultant and International Speaker. Dubbed ‘Podcasting Advocate’ by Forbes, he has produced over 400 podcast episodes since 2014. Connect with Yann on LinkedIn.