5 Reasons Why Your Internal Comms Should Be a Podcast
More companies are turning to podcast production for internal communications
By Joelle Nole, Managing Director Larj Media
Work-life is changing for the better and the pressure is on internal comms teams to rise to the occasion with more effective ways to connect with and engage employees in real and meaningful ways.
If you’ve got a large or distributed workforce or remote team, a podcast will deliver messaging and critical information in ways that will surprise you. Companies like Netflix, Shopify, Dropbox and Dunkin Donuts offer internal podcasts that are only accessible by their employees via private RSS feeds (and other internal podcast platforms that are rapidly entering the market).
These companies have come to realize that the best way to reach their diverse, busy and on-the-go teams is to offer them an alternative way to tune in when and where it suits them. Here are a few reasons that moved these companies into the fastest growing communications channel since the Internet.
No one is reading the newsletter
On average, an employee receives 120 emails a day, unless it’s urgent and personally relevant, they’ll “save it for later” or let’s be real, never. They’re busy, they’ve got screen fatigue and the email is chalk full of semi-relevant information and very little fun, nuance, personality, or actual “news.”
As a result, employees miss out on both critical information as well as the kind of messages that build connection, culture and ultimately, employee retention.
They’re already listening to podcasts
A whopping one-third of the US population listens to podcasts and that percentage increases among college graduates and professionals between the ages of 24 - 54 – does that describe your work force?
Allow people to listen when they’re ready vs. disrupting their day with an “all hands” Zoom meeting, an instant message or a lengthy email. Most likely, they’re already accustomed to listening while on a walk, driving or doing chores, which is how 80% of the podcast listening audience does it.
Meet them where they are, at their convenience.
A Podcast is a Culture Builder
Listening to a human voice with earbuds creates a sense of connection and intimacy that reading or watching video doesn’t. Employees will feel like they know your leadership team when they hear perspectives, ideas, strategy and initiatives straight from the horse’s mouth on the podcast.
An internal podcast is a good place for “inside baseball” terminology, lingo and humor that is distinctly resonant with your specific employees. It helps them feel included, like they’re part of something bigger.
Get the detailed messages across with a spoonful of sugar
Spicing up your corporate podcast with humor, emotion and authenticity will make it easy to get the meat and potatoes about open enrollment and the latest payroll system upgrade in their ears.
You can offer a variety of content that will keep your employees interested and engaged across all departments of the company from sales insights, new product development and customer success to special projects and front-line employee stories.
Keep it interesting, engaging using music, sounds and voices from actual places where people are working.
Podcasts allow you put brand values front and center
You can go deep on topics that are critical to your brand, corporate values and mission/vision to help employees gain fluency, expertise and remain current on your industry or market.
As an example, the DEI team at Dropbox made a podcast highlighting issues driving the Black Lives Matter movement. The podcast format provided the right vehicle to convey tone, depth of information and it gave employees the language to talk with others about issues of systemic racism that they otherwise might not have been comfortable voicing themselves.
More comms teams are leveraging the popularity and power of podcasts for a host of reasons. A podcast doesn’t have to replace your newsletter or other channels you’re using to reach your busy and diverse workforce, it can also be a great compliment to support these other options.
More comms teams are leveraging the popularity and power of podcasts for a host of reasons. A podcast doesn’t have to replace your newsletter or other channels you’re using to reach your busy and diverse workforce, it can also be a great compliment to support these other options.
Here are a few fun ideas to get you rolling:
New employee introductions: tell it with a story
New employee benefits and enrollment reminders can be placed like ads – why not make a jingle?
Updates from the field – factory or in-field teams can record
Efficiencies, Hacks and Innovations – invite teams to talk about what they’re doing to make their work day better, make the company better
CEO Updates, Change Management, Training and Product Education and evergreen information for employee onboarding
A podcast is a great way to include the authentic voices and diverse experiences from across the company – encourage contributors and new ideas to keep it fresh.
Grab some ideas from the best! Here are some companies getting internal podcasts right: https://staffbase.com/blog/best-internal-communications-podcasts/
We’ve got a million more of these – don’t go it alone.