So, we’re back from the B2BSMX 2023 – and boy, what a whirlwind it was!
Based on our preview blog, you could probably tell we were excited about this show. The conference buzzed with ideas and innovative strategies, from keynote speakers to networking events.
But do you know what caught our attention? The sheer variety of go-to-market (GTM) strategies out there. Sangram Vajre from GTM Partners delivered an incredible keynote on re-imagining business approaches. It was truly eye-opening, revealing exciting opportunities for podcasts to facilitate this transformation.
Podcasting isn’t just for your daily news roundup or learning random facts anymore. Businesses are harnessing their power to push their GTM strategies to the next level.
Let’s dive into this further and explore how podcasting is making waves in the GTM scene.
1) Inbound-Led:
Inbound-led go-to-market strategies use content marketing to guide prospects toward conversion channels. Marketing utilizes paid, organic, social, and email channels to generate demand, qualify leads, and direct them to the sales team.
While you can use all sorts of content to help fuel these initiatives, podcast episodes have become a great tool for driving leads through the funnel organically. Using podcasts to create demand creates awesome opportunities to engage with prospects and have meaningful conversations.
So, how does a company use podcasts to fuel their inbound-led GTM strategy, you ask? A podcast can serve as a platform where you share insights about your industry, discuss trending topics, or even invite guests who are thought leaders in your field. These tactics can help nurture relationships, foster trust, and position your brand as an authority in your niche.
But what really sets podcasts apart from the other content in your mix is the shareability of the episodes. If your listeners find value in your podcast, they are more than highly likely to share it in their networks. That’s organic reach right there! Podcasts can be easily integrated into social feed campaigns or paid ads with audiograms to maximize reach and conversions.
Another cool thing about podcasts is their ability to be repurposed. Suppose you’ve got a 30-minute episode. That could be a blog post, several social media posts, or even an infographic. It’s a content goldmine!
2) Outbound-Led:
Outbound-led go-to-market strategies are pretty much what they sound like: a business proactively reaching out to potential customers through coordinated and targeted account outreach. This approach is all about marketing and sales teams adopting an account-based marketing and selling approach, where they customize their efforts for specific accounts and make their interactions more personal.
For your outbound-led strategy, a podcast that features your sales team can be a secret weapon. How, you ask? Well, it’s all about personalization and providing value. Picture this: A sales rep could host a series of brief, targeted podcast episodes discussing industry trends or pain points pertinent to their experience with existing accounts. By sharing these personal stories, it shows your potential customers that you understand their needs and positions your business as a thought leader in the space.
Podcasts can also serve as an icebreaker in outreach emails. Instead of the tired old sales pitch, sales reps could share a relevant episode to intrigue prospects and pique their interest. This could potentially lead to meaningful conversations and stronger relationships with prospects.
Pro Tip: Asking for feedback on the episode or for their thoughts/insights on the topic discussed is a great way to incite a response.
3) Product-Led:
Product-led go-to-market strategies are about the product driving adoption, usage, and feature discovery. This approach harnesses the power of the product to attract and keep customers. You often see this in “free” versions of apps, where you get hooked on the core features and can unlock more goodies with a paid subscription or upgrade. By giving users a taste of what the product can do, businesses can show its value and turn users into paying customers.
So where does podcasting fit into all of this? Start a podcast series that takes your listeners on a product journey. Each episode dives into a different feature of your product, with real use-case scenarios, expert advice on how to make the most of it, and even guest users sharing their experiences. This way, your users are not just hearing about the features; they’re getting vivid stories and practical tips that can help them understand the value of your product.
Podcasts can also highlight updates, improvements, and new releases. It’s a fantastic way to keep your users engaged and excited about what’s to come. And hey, don’t forget about user-generated content! Inviting users to share their stories, tips, or how they use your product creatively can generate a sense of community and inspire others to explore more.
Moreover, podcasts offer a unique opportunity to humanize your brand. Using your product team members as podcast guests, you can give your users an inside look at the people behind the product. They can share stories about the product development process, discuss challenges, and celebrate wins. This transparency can foster a deeper connection between your users and your brand.
Whether exploring product features, announcing updates, sharing user experiences, or humanizing your brand, podcasts can supercharge your product-led GTM strategy. Remember, the key is creating content that informs, engages, and inspires your users.
4) Channel-Led:
Channel-led go-to-market strategies involve building a solid network of distribution agents. The key is focusing on enabling them beyond mere transactional relationships. By actively educating and supporting resellers, agencies, and certified partners, you empower them with the knowledge and resources to effectively promote and sell your products or services. This collaborative approach strengthens the channel ecosystem and fosters long-term partnerships for mutual growth and success.
Channel-led go-to-market strategies can profoundly benefit from podcasting as a partner education and engagement tool. Companies can create podcasts designed explicitly for their channel partners, focusing on topics that help them better understand the product, its market position, unique selling points, and effective sales techniques.
Imagine a podcast series where each episode unravels a different feature of the product, discusses successful case studies, or even hosts experts from various industries providing insights on market trends and customer behavior. This content can turn your channel partners into product experts who are well-equipped to promote and sell your product.
Moreover, podcasting is a fantastic way to engage your channel partners continually. Regular episodes keep them connected to your brand and up to speed with new developments or updates. You can even have your partner reps on the show, sharing their success stories and inspiring others within your network.
In a nutshell, podcasting can become the secret sauce to supercharge your channel-led go-to-market strategy by educating, engaging, and empowering your network of distribution agents.
5) Event-Led:
Event-led go-to-market strategies, using industry trade shows and both in-person and virtual events, are arguably one of the best ways to make quality connections with your existing and potential buyers. Premium event experiences can leave a lasting impact and help build strong relationships. By adopting this diverse approach, businesses can connect with their target audience on multiple platforms and offer valuable insights tailored to their needs.
Podcasting can supercharge event-led go-to-market strategies in a variety of ways.
- Pre-Event Hype: Podcasts can create anticipation by featuring interviews with event speakers, sneak peeks of keynotes, or insightful discussions on event themes. This generates interest and encourages potential attendees to register.
- Promotion During the Event: Live podcasts can be recorded and released in real-time, keeping the buzz going and drawing in virtual attendees. It’s a great way to ensure that key insights and discussions reach a wider audience.
- Post-Event Recap: After the event, podcasts can package key takeaways, interviews, and panel summaries as digestible content. This keeps the event’s momentum going and provides value to those who couldn’t attend.
- Long-Term Engagement: Events are not just about the big day. They’re about fostering long-term relationships. Podcasts can act as a touchpoint, keeping your audience engaged and informed long after the event has ended – all while building excitement for the next one!
Incorporating podcasts into your event-led go-to-market strategy can amplify your reach, deepen engagement, and cultivate lasting relationships with your audience. Remember, it’s all about delivering value and fostering conversations, so make sure your podcast is entertaining, informative, and relevant to your audience’s interests and needs. Want to learn more on how to do this? Check out our blog post How To Turn Your Event Into A Podcast Series to learn how!
6) Community-Led:
Community-led go-to-market strategies are super powerful! They go beyond traditional marketing tactics and aim to create a movement or category around a game-changing idea. The goal is to captivate the target audience’s attention and inspire them to take action. These strategies rely on thought leadership from industry experts, influential figures, and happy customers who passionately advocate for the product or service. By harnessing the collective power of the community, these strategies lay a solid foundation for long-term success and growth.
When it comes to a community-led go-to-market strategy, podcasting is a match made in heaven. By hosting thought leaders, industry veterans, and satisfied customers on your podcast, you can create a platform that is rich with insights, experiences, and personal stories. This will provide valuable content for your listeners and contribute to building a loyal community that feels connected to your mission and values.
Podcasts offer a unique opportunity to delve deeper into topics, share behind-the-scenes stories, and highlight customer experiences — all of which can strengthen the sense of community. Giving your community a voice and a platform to share their experiences can foster stronger relationships and build a tight-knit group of passionate advocates about your product or service. If done right, this can build beyond the podcast, into community platforms like Slack channels and Reddit thread groups, creating real-time, direct conversations with your target audience. This, in turn, can ignite a powerful word-of-mouth marketing engine, resulting in the organic growth of your customer base.
7) Ecosystem-Led:
Ecosystem-driven go-to-market strategies leverage product integration and symbiotic relationships with other complementary offerings in the market to fuel business growth. Companies can cultivate a thriving ecosystem that fosters collaborative innovation and propels market expansion by fostering applications and data exchanges, participating in co-marketing initiatives, and capitalizing on integrated use cases.
The possibilities are huge for fueling a go-to strategy driven by ecosystems with podcasts! You can use podcasts to showcase and talk about integrations, partnerships, and real-life examples with other complementary offerings in the market. By inviting partners to your podcast, you can explore the mutual benefits of your collaboration and discuss shared use cases. This raises awareness of your integrations and positions your business as an interconnected part of a more extensive ecosystem.
You also have the opportunity to “trade guests” with your partners, appearing on their show as well and exposing your brand to new audiences. Sharing these podcasts on social media and other digital platforms can also help you reach a wider audience, potentially attracting new partners and customers.
Collaboration and mutual growth are key to success in an ecosystem-driven strategy, and podcasts offer a dynamic medium to make it happen.
How are Podcasts Fueling Your GTM Efforts?
Podcasts are not just a marketing tool. They are a platform for storytelling, connecting, and educating. So, while leveraging podcasts for any of these strategies is a win, the more your podcast plays into multiple strategies the more successful your efforts will be. And while it’s possible to incorporate podcasting into all of these GTM strategies, focusing your podcast on two or three of these is usually a great start.
Integrating podcasts can amplify your reach, deepen engagement, and foster relationships whether your go-to-market strategy is channel-led, event-led, community-led, or ecosystem-led. They bring a human element into the business world, breaking down barriers and fostering genuine connections.
So, don’t hesitate to explore the potential of podcasts in your marketing arsenal. Ensure your content is relevant, engaging, and adds value to your audience, and watch as your business reaps the benefits.
Remember, the mic is yours, make every conversation count!
