How to Launch a Private Podcast for B2B

October 8, 2021

Do you have a message that's for members' ears only? 👂

Maybe you're the leader of a secret society. Or maybe you have sensitive information about the mayor of Ittoqqortoormiit, Greenland and only those with the highest security clearance can hear it.

Or, you could just have a B2B company that wants to communicate totally normal information to your employees or community members. You just don't want other people listening in. 🤷‍♀️

Either way, a private podcast for internal use is a safe route to take.

That's why today we're covering...

Let's dig in, shall we?

What's a Private Podcast?

A private podcast is only accessible to organizational members. It's distributed via a private feed in order to train, inform, or entertain employees or members.

Private podcasts limit who has access to them because they're used for either organizational information or exclusive content. Internal use podcasts are actually one of the five B2B podcasting strategies.

Some creators use a private feed to monetize their podcasts. There are many uses, though, for a private podcast.

When to Use a Private Podcast

You might create a private podcast to...

Train employees
Deliver organizational messages
Entertain employees
Distribute exclusive content
Connect organizational members

Anytime you want to pass on organizational information or monetize your content, a private podcast is a good solution.

How to Set Up a Podcast for Members Only

First thing's first: What's the purpose of your podcast? You'll want to figure this out and do some planning before you get in front of the mic.

Private Podcast Goals

Whenever we get a customer who wants to create a podcast for internal use, it's normally to inform and train employees. So, the goal is pretty clear.

However, you might have a different purpose for your private podcast. Maybe it's meant to build community or keep members updated on organizational news.

Although it's not a private podcast, Sweet Talk is Sweet Fish's internal podcast. Its purpose is to connect and entertain our team of remote employees.

Type of Content

The type of episodes you create for your internal podcast matters too. There are several formats you could take with your show.

The fun part about launching a podcast for internal use is you can get creative with the structure of your episodes.

[READ: Never planned a podcast before? Here's how to structure your podcast episodes in just 6 steps.]

If your goal is to train employees, you should keep the format straightforward and easy to digest. You don't need a lot of "extras" with a show meant for training. You can do solo episodes, interviews with internal people, or a mixture.

Say your goal is to educate members while keeping it entertaining -- "edutaining" if you will. Then, you should focus more on conversational content. Try a co-host conversational format or interviews with internal people who have interesting stories.

Time Until Impact

Another cool thing about internal podcasts is there's only a short amount of time before it starts making an impact.

Your audience is very niche. It's either made up of employees or community members. Therefore, you know what's important to them. You understand their specific goals and challenges. Your content should target your audience to a T.

Since your podcast is so relevant to your audience, it won't be long until it's making a difference in people's lives. Even if it's just a small group of people.

How to Record a Private Podcast

The hard part's over. Now, it's time to get the thing recorded.

Podcast Equipment

You can go as sophisticated or simplistic as you want with recording gear. Just keep in mind that the equipment impacts the quality of your sound... like, a lot.

All you really need is a decent mic, headphones, and recording software on your computer. We typically recommend Riverside.fm.

Although it's a podcast for internal use, it's still important to make your show easy to listen to. Make sure you record in a quiet room, ideally with lots of furniture or other absorbant materials.

Script vs. Interview

Whether you're recording a solo episode or an interview, you want it to sound as natural as possible.

If you need the entire script written out for your solo episode, try not to sound like you're reading directly from it. Make it sound conversational -- it's more engaging for the listener.

Interviewing someone? Keep these best practices in mind:

Focus on what your guest is saying and not on what you're going to say next.
Take quick notes of topics you want to circle back to instead of interrupting your guest.
Think about what your listeners want to learn.
Focus on actionability.
Don't worry about sounding smarter than everyone else.

Also, make sure your guest has an idea of what you're going to talk about before the interview. You probably don't need to do a pre-interview in this case. But, make sure you're at least on the same page.

Podcast Hosting Services w/ Privacy Features

Most podcast hosting sites have a feature to privatize your RSS feed. It's a matter of choosing a podcast hosting platform that works for your show and your budget.

Setting up a private podcast through a host normally means that you'll have to pay for the app. If you were launching a public show, then you could still get away with a free host.

The thing is, you want your podcast to syndicate across major podcast directories so that people can listen however they want. Even though a member can listen to your show on Apple Podcasts, it does not mean that it's accessible to everyone.

You need to use a podcast hosting service to easily syndicate across podcast playing apps.

Here's a list of podcast hosting sites that offer private podcasting:

Podcast hosts keep your show private and updated across most podcast directories.

Podcast Directories (Apps) that Support Private Podcasts

Not all of the major podcast directories -- or apps -- support private podcasts.

Here are the ones that do:

Apple Podcasts
Google Podcasts
Overcast
Pocket Casts
Breaker
Downcast
Castos

Most notably, Spotify does not support private podcasts. So, your hosting service will not be able to syndicate to Spotify via a private feed.

This can be an obstacle if your audience mainly uses Spotify to listen to podcasts. They can always download one of the other listening apps or listen in a browser, though.

Private Podcasting for B2B

Whether or not you choose to make your show private, an internal podcast can be super beneficial to your company or community.

Remember to keep the content engaging and actionable and your B2B podcast will make an impact on its audience.

Get more B2B podcasting goodness by subscribing to Mic Club 🎙 on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.