Leveraging Podcasts for Networking

Hot take: Every new grad in media should have a podcast. I KNOW I KNOW… everyyyyoneeeee has a podcast these days 🙃 But hear me out, creating a podcast (even a scrappy one) can actually help you land your next opportunity. Here’s why:  I once coached a media student who wanted to network but felt really weird just cold messaging people on LinkedIn. And honestly? Fair LOL. Networking can feel like a one-way street: person A wants advice, time, or a connection from person B. As we talked through her fears and her need to build more experience, I suggested this: Start a podcast. Not to go viral. But to build relationships. Here’s how we did it: 1. Descript for the win – One of my favorite tools ever. She recorded, edited, and created clips all in the same app. Zero production overwhelm. 2. Smart networking – We made a list of 5 people she admired, then used a LinkedIn commenting strategy to warm up the connection before asking them to join her show. 3. Strategic sharing – After each episode, she’d post a short clip and tag the guest and their company on LinkedIn. The full version went on YouTube. The result? Within 6 months, she landed her dream internship working on the social team of a major entertainment company she had admired since high school. One of her short podcast clips, just a 45-second video highlighting a guest’s advice on breaking into media, caught the attention of a recruiter on LinkedIn. The recruiter was impressed not just with the content, but with how she ran the entire project. Why did this work? 1. She stayed consistent: Not with posting every day, but with building real connections within her industry. 2. She wasn’t trying to go viral: She was trying to grow community and her authority. 3. She showed companies what she could create in real time and her podcast became a living+breathing part of her portfolio. If you’re a student or recent grad trying to stand out, build your portfolio, or get in the room with people you admire… Start the thing. Even if only 12 people listen. Even if it’s not perfect. Even if it’s just a project on your resume. You don’t need to be discovered. You need to be visible. Whether it’s a podcast, posting content, or just COMMENTING on posts… start BUILDING your voice. _____________ Hi, I'm Nikki ❤️ and I share real-world strategies to help you stand out, get hired, and build a career that feels like YOU. Follow @NikkiPebbles if you're ready to grow your career your way.

Here’s a podcast strategy we recently implemented for a lawyer *specifically* to help him get referrals from other lawyers & build new partnerships: For context: I’m a major proponent of partnerships. Good2bSocial has quite a few technology partners, including HubSpot, Jasper, Casted, and SEMrush. For many lawyers, referrals from other lawyers make up most of their business. But, in 2024 there are smarter and more efficient ways to find new partners. Here’s the exact strategy we implemented for a law firm to scale its referral network: 1. Create a podcast We produce a podcast using Riverside.fm with a thought leader from the firm. They select a time each week that works for them, and we start working on finding guest speakers to appear. 2. Invite lawyers to appear on the podcast In many cases, our clients are lawyers from smaller firms looking to collaborate with lawyers from large law firms that exclusively serve high-end clients. These lawyers from larger firms will regularly refer work to lawyers from smaller firms, so it’s valuable to get on their shortlist. Inviting ideal partners onto the podcast opens the door for future collaboration. 3. Host conversations that allow both parties to demonstrate their knowledge While a podcast should highlight the guest’s expertise, it’s a great space to demonstrate that our client is a knowledgeable and reliable expert in their area. Getting referrals isn’t just about knowing someone; it’s about building trust. Hosting a podcast provides a foundation of trust that can be validated by compelling conversation. Not to mention, it makes the podcast more interesting for listeners. 4. Follow up and deepen the relationship After a successful podcast, we encourage our clients to follow up and deepen connections with the guests they host. Because you already talked, the response rate will be much higher than if you would’ve tried to reach out cold to the other law firm. Building a partnership is about getting your foot in the door and then building trust. A smart podcast strategy allows you to do both.

Podcasts are still the most underused growth channel in B2B marketing (and yes, they can produce SERIOUSLY good ROI) In B2B, deals flow from relationships. Whatever stage you’re at, pre-seed or Series C, people buy from people. So here’s the Shake play: 1. Get your founder, CEO, head of sales or commercial lead to host (or co-host) a podcast 2. Build it around your category Example: if you are a sales enablement tool, we are building a podcast called Sales Therapy. 3. Then use Sales Nav, Apollo, Beauhurst, whatever you’ve got to build a list of your 20 dream customers. 4. Invite them on (DM, email, voicenote - its still sales) 5. About 50% will reply and many will accept to chat (nothing beats a podcast conversion rate from outreach to 'close') They might not take your sales call But they’ll accept a platform to share their story Sweeten the deal by offering 3–4 edited clips they can post to their own socials Now you’ve got: - Industry experts on your podcast - One-on-one time with a decision maker (on and off mic) - A long-term relationship that’ll beat a cold email any day What we have seen work and close over £100,000 for ourselves from podcast: - An easy follow-up reason weeks later“Know anyone else who’d be great for the pod?” - A reason to grab coffee in 3 months and pick up the conversation again The BIGGEST learning from running my own podcast and our clients is: ✔️ Do a research call first, qualify them as a guest and a prospect ✔️ Prep them properly: ask for stories, bring data, tailor the angle ✔️ In person smashes virtual, however, with tools like Riverside or Zencastr for online recording allows for high-quality worldwide recordings. Also...they are FUN. I love hosting a podcast and its increased my network with incredible incredible founders, entrepreneurs and people tenfold. _____________________________ I am James Farnfield, I am building Shake Content, a LinkedIn content agency that creates posts, videos, webinars and podcasts. All wrapped in a beautiful marketing strategy perfect for time-poor, resource strained B2B high-growth leaders and their teams.

Having a hard time finding the job you want? Here's how I got the job I dreamed of! To give you context - I worked in the non-profit space for years and wanted to branch out. (this also works if you're unemployed and looking for a new role) 1. I read the Proximity Principle by Ken Coleman. It gave me the motivation and the principles to pursue what I wanted to do. The essence of the book is to get in proximity to the people who work in the career you dream of being in. The hard part was figuring out how to get around those people. I knew where I wanted to go but didn't know how to get there. This leads to the next point... 2. Start a Podcast. James Carbary, the founder of Sweet Fish Media wrote an excellent book called content-based networking. He gives tactical advice on why & and how to start a podcast. I made the Intrapreneur podcast broad enough that I could invite different leaders into the podcast. Initially, I used this podcast in hopes of growing my audience but I quickly started to use it to network with the people I want to connect with. (Bonus tip - if you make the podcast niche enough, you will start to be known as an expert in that area so hiring managers can see that you talk to all the important people within that niche) 3. Reach out to all of the hiring managers for roles you'd want to have & and invite them to the podcast. This was Dan Sanchez's brilliant idea. I took this a step further and invited a few people from each company so I can figure out who I needed to talk to. I also started to build rapport with these people so they could put in a good word with the hiring manager. 4. I pitched myself to the hiring manager after the podcast interview. I always leave 15 - 20 minutes after the podcast so I can talk to people. I let the hiring manager know I'm willing to go the extra mile and start from scratch. This is how I got my start at Full Focus. The best part, you don't need to be doing this when you're out of a job. You can start this now. Which tip was the most helpful for you?