We know audio is a powerful medium but how can podcasting be utilized as a tool for achieving engagement within organizations? The core to making anything work or not work is communication, and podcasting has proven to be the “golden ticket” for bringing everything together with internal communications.
The Rise of Podcasting
Our journey with podcasting began seven years ago when, our Founder and Chief Meaningful Work Officer, Nikki Lewallen Gregory, before she had ever even listened to a podcast. However, the medium quickly took over her life because of how well it worked for external purposes like brand awareness, lead generation, and storytelling. As she dove deeper into podcasting, she realized its immense potential for internal communications, especially in the post-COVID world where remote work has become the norm.
Meeting People Where They Are
One of the key advantages of podcasting is that it meets people where they are. Audio is the number one way that people across five generations consume content today, and with 92% of Americans having a smartphone, podcasts provide a convenient and accessible way to reach employees. Most likely, we all have a smartphone on us at all times and it never goes very far.
The Benefits of Internal Podcasting
There are so many benefits of using internal podcasting for employee engagement. Here are a few:
Increased Reach and Effectiveness:
According to statistics from last year (2023), podcasts are 500% more effective than email in reaching people. They are simple, convenient, and easy to consume on-demand, eliminating the need for time-consuming meetings.
Building Relationships and Promoting Transparency
Internal podcasting helps build relationships between employees and leaders by allowing leaders to share their stories, updates, and visions. It also promotes transparency by giving a platform for diverse voices across the company to be heard.
Continuous Learning and Development
Podcasts can be used to invest in team member growth by providing continuous learning and development content. You can incorporate content from consultants, trainers, and other external sources to enhance employee development.
Global Alignment
With employees spread across the globe, podcasts offer a universal approach to distributing messaging and fostering alignment, thanks to the widespread accessibility of smartphones.
Storytelling: The Key to Engagement
Storytelling is so important when it comes to achieving engagement on your team. Stories increase empathy, break down biases, and elicit emotions, making them more memorable and relatable than facts and figures. Leaders should be capturing and sharing their organization’s origin story, as well as employee stories, to create a sense of pride and connection.
The Four Pillars of Internal Podcasting Content
There are four pillars of content that should be captured in internal podcasting:
- Leadership Stories and Updates: Leaders sharing their stories, visions, and updates to provide clarity and communication.
- Employee Voice: Peer-to-peer learning and mentoring, allowing employees to share their experiences and expertise.
- Impact Stories: Customer stories and community impact stories that highlight the company’s impact and inspire employees.
- Leadership Development Content: Learning and development content from internal and external sources to foster continuous growth.
Making Internal Podcasting Simple
While setting up a podcast can be daunting, there are ways to make it simple and streamlined. We recommend using virtual recording studios like Riverside, gamifying adoption strategies, leveraging data to guide strategies, and having a built-in content plan for easy approval from leaders.
The Aha Moment: Text Message Integration
Given the high open rates and frequency of text message checking, you might consider using text messages to deliver the most important audio messages from your podcast, ensuring they don’t get missed while still leveraging the on-demand nature of podcasts for the majority of your content.
The power of podcasting in achieving employee engagement, fostering communication, building relationships, and providing continuous learning opportunities is so valuable. By meeting
people where they are and leveraging the power of storytelling, organizations can create a more connected, aligned, and engaged workforce.
Learn more about our internal communications solutions or see how you can get started today.
