Regular followers of Bondfield Marketing will have noticed that the blog has been a little neglected lately, which is rather at odds with my mission to help small business communicate consistently! There’s a great reason for this, and the big news is that I’m starting a podcast!
Called The Marketing Room, each week I will be exploring an aspect of marketing that is relevant to small businesses in the UK. Episodes are going to be around 15-20 minutes long, so you can get bite size and relevant information in the time it takes to drink a coffee or drive to see a customer.
Why a podcast?
I am a big listener to podcasts, and spent a lot of time last year sharing some of my favourite series and episodes on my business Facebook page. In October I heard a masterclass by Lynsay Anne Gould who runs an excellent podcast which explores exactly how to start your own business podcast, and I started to think it could be something I could do for myself. I’ve been a regular blogger, and I was excited to explore a different content format.
As I’ve been recording the first episodes I’ve been reminded of skills I used in my early career, working as a press officer and giving live radio interviews on behalf of first, a train company and later, an ambulance service. It has been fun getting back into the swing of speaking at “radio pace” – and not my usual fast talking pace, as well as missing out all the “ums” and “errs” of my usual speech.
Podcasting is also a great content format for introverts! I am happy to be the face of my business and develop a personal brand, but there is something particularly appealing about recording voice based content. I’m excited to be learning a new skill which I hope to be able to use for the benefit of my clients as I work with them to grow their businesses.
Podcast solo shows
There are three different types of episodes planned. In solo episodes I’ll be covering some of the essentials around marketing planning, understanding your audience, how to plan a campaign and how to allocate your marketing budget. I’ll be drawing on nearly 25 years’ experience with a range of businesses and public sector organisations, as well as the world renowned Diploma from the Chartered Institute of Marketing and a Masters in Business Administration. I understand that running a small business is a constant challenge, so I’ll be aiming to cut through the fluff and marketing speak, and get to the heart of what small business owners need to know to be successful.
Many of these podcasts will have links to helpful resources, including blog posts and downloads that will provide additional support as you plan and deliver your marketing activity.
Podcast interviews with marketing experts
I’ll also be speaking to experts in different areas of marketing, including live events, telemarketing, social media, content marketing, video, design, photography – I honestly have so many good people to speak to! I’m really looking forward to picking their brains in order to help you work out the best ways to market your small business. I want to find out when to use those tactics, what you need to know before you get started and how you can work out if it is being successful. I’m also hoping that you will find out what not to do in your business!
Podcast interviews with business owners
And I’m also looking to interview some small business owners and talk to them about what is working for them, what marketing tactics they are using to grow their business and what they are planning to do in the future. I personally love podcast interviews with business owners when they are really honest about the ups and downs of running a small business, so I’m hoping I can persuade guests to be up front about their business journey.
So that’s what I’m up to! I hope you are excited to listen. I’ll be launching it in early March, to coincide with my speaking at the Derby Business Show. Here is the podcast trailer, which will give you a flavour of the episodes to come.
If you want to be among the first to hear about each new episode, please follow my Facebook page, or join the mailing list.
