The Financial Advisor’s Guide to Starting a Podcast in 2023
Justine Young
Senior Content Writer
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What’s that?!
Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No!
It’s your new podcast!
Starting a podcast is a great way to connect with both clients and prospects, while also showcasing your areas of expertise. As financial advisors often struggle to differentiate in the crowded financial services space, a podcast could be just the thing to set your firm apart.
Today, we’re exploring why a podcast could benefit your firm and promote growth, as well as three key steps you can take to get your podcast up and running.
Why Should Your Firm Start a Podcast?
In the finance industry, it’s all about standing out from the crowd – showing how you’re better than the 900,000+ other firms out there. Financial advisors must establish a unique brand identity and value proposition that appeals to their target audience in order to differentiate themselves – offering the same suite of services as other advisors simply isn’t enough.
Starting a podcast is an effective means for advisors to reach out to their audience, share their knowledge and expertise and establish themselves as thought leaders in their respective fields. With over 155 million Americans regularly tuning in to podcasts, and 80% of them listening to all or most of those episodes, it’s no wonder that a podcast has become a vital aspect of a successful advisor’s marketing strategy.
Lastly, starting a podcast allows you to meet your audience where they are and provide value to their lives. Podcasts can be enjoyed while driving, doing chores, or working out, providing endless possibilities. Your listeners can tune in at their convenience, learning new ways to tackle their financial planning directly from you, the expert.
The Foundations of Podcast Production: 3 Things Your Firm Needs to Create a Great Show
Starting your own podcast is much more than just pressing “Record.” You need to purchase equipment, schedule your recordings, coordinate with guests, edit your audio – the list goes on (and on). But if we had to distill podcast production into three main steps, they’d be as follows.
1. Gather your equipment
Similar to how you would go grocery shopping for fresh ingredients to test out a new recipe, it’s crucial to compile a list and purchase the necessary equipment for your podcast.
The cost of the equipment you’ll need can vary considerably depending on your requirements. For example, while you could record your episodes directly on your laptop, the quality would be lower, and your audience would probably notice.
As a fundamental equipment setup, we suggest investing in:
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Microphone(s)
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Headphones
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A digital audio recorder
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Boom arms
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Camera (optional)
You’ll also need to decide where you’ll record – whether that will be in your office, on the road or in another location entirely.
2. Edit your episodes
It’s time to edit your first show – but where do you begin? How long is a podcast episode, anyway?
In the beginning, aim to keep your episodes under an hour – 30 minutes or less may be best. It’s easier on you and your guest, and it’s much easier to consume for your listeners. While the length of your podcast depends on your specific goals, the average podcast episode length in 2022 was 38 minutes and 42 seconds.
You’ll also want to quiet any background noise from cars driving by or your coworkers sneezing. Here are a few beginner audio editing tools you can use to get started:
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Audacity: This free, open-source software is available for both Windows and Mac users. It offers basic editing capabilities, as well as some advanced features like noise reduction and pitch correction to help enhance your podcast’s audio quality.
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Garageband: This is a free audio editing software that comes with all Macbooks. It has a user-friendly interface and offers a variety of tools and effects to edit audio for your podcast.
3. Get the word out
Lastly, you’ll want to spread the word about your podcast and tell the world to tune in! There are several ways you can approach marketing your podcast, including: social media, emails and dedicated landing pages.
1. Utilizing social media to promote your episodes
Social media is a powerful tool to promote your financial firm’s podcast and reach a wider audience, especially if you already have a social media presence (and 83% of advisors report that they are active on some sort of social media platform).
Share your podcast episodes on your company’s social media pages, and encourage your followers to like, comment and share them with their networks. You can also use social media ads to target your ideal audience and gain new listeners.
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2. Let people know through newsletters
Most firms have some sort of regular email newsletter to stay connected with clients or keep in touch with prospects.
Consider adding a blurb in your next email with a short description of your podcast and a link to your Apple Podcast page.
3. Create a dedicated landing page for podcast listeners
Having a dedicated landing page for your podcast listeners can help them find your episodes easily, and it also helps SEO.
Include links to your podcast episodes, show notes, guest bios, and any other relevant information on this page. Make sure it is visually appealing (images are always a good idea), easy to navigate and encourages visitors to subscribe.
Starting a podcast is a great way to share your insights and expertise – but it also requires careful planning. With the proper forethought and the right equipment, your firm can get your show up and running in no time.
Download the Full Guide
Ready to take your podcast skills to the next level? Download the full guide here for all 8 steps to launching a podcast your ideal clients can’t ignore.