Podcasts recommended

1. Business Podcasts – click here
2. Sales Podcasts – click here
3. Digital Marketing – click here

Podcasts – Why listen to them ? Ten reasons. Click here The web offers a sea of information and it is easy to drown in it. So, here I try to help you swim in it with a bit of direction. These are just some of my current favourite podcasts, broken down in to three separate sections: 1. Business Podcasts, 2. Selling or Sales related Podcasts and 3. Digital Marketing Podcasts and shows are in no particular order, as number 6 for me could be a number 2 for you.

We welcome suggestions and encourage feedback. What better way to use the time when travelling or waiting or recouperating, a Mobile university as Ziglar would call it. Listening to good advice on audio tap is a boon for people who want to learn and grow. Some of these “experts” may seem too old or too young or too American or even too brash, but all of them cover some great topics and offer some wonderful content when you need it. Try a few and find the ones that speak to you personally. The ones that make you feel uncomfortable, may be the ones to listen to most. Sometimes you get lots of relevant information and sometimes you just pick up a snippet, a sentence wrapped in fluff, but you will regularly get something from these guys. Sometimes, they are full of value bombs and you need to concentrate hard, get out the pen and take copious notes. This is classroom 101 for many and a place to get reminders of the things you promised you would do, like creating a To Do List or writing a Business Plan or working out your Ikigai or lifes purpose, maybe just focusing on the ‘one’ thing. The recurring theme here will be ‘Just Do It’ to coin a tag line, get some forward momentum, start somewhere and make it better as you go, rather than preparing and polishing and tweaking before launch. Push any fears aside and get started. You can learn what is important as you travel. Many of these guys want you to sign up for the heavy stuff, but showcase their thinking to get you interested. If you like what you hear, then by all means sign up to one of them, to try it out. Most of them do events in US or UK and some in Australia, so you could immerse yourself in a weekend-long think in with like minded individuals. Expect to be pushed, but only paid membership will offer accountability buddies. As always I will try to keep you up to date with the stuff I find most useful in our Blog. These sections are in no particular order.

Favourite Business Podcasts recommended

1. The One Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan, maybe this is a good place to start off. Listen to CEO Geoff Woods talk about the one thing, based on the bestseller.
2. Youpreneur by Chris Ducker, a Brit, based in the Phillipines, well organised, enjoying great success online, with a Masterclass group for paid members, but again, offering lots of pertinent content to whet your appetite. Chris has a small following and just facilitates them having discussions behind his pay wall membership, like a good host at a party.
3. Seth Godin – a perennial favourite, Seth rehashes some of the best ever business advice from 2000 years of it, in his Startup School podcast from 2013, but in his own way, making it more 21st century pertinent and reminding us to use what we learn.
4. Ted Talks Business – Ted Talks focused on business topics by a variety of speakers. Always a great way to spend an hour or two.
5. Tim Ferriss– Famous for being Tim Ferriss, he deconstructs what successful people do and then writes up a plan to be that successful. Worth a browse, if not a subscription.
6. How to start a Start Up with Sam Altman, the actual Stanford course in podcast format from the Y Combinator man himself. The Collison brothers appeared in one episode, as did Reid Hoffman and Marissa Meyer
7. Harvard Business Review weekly podcast with the best thinkers in business and management.
8. Duct Tape Marketing with well known Author John Jantsch interviewing American thought leaders
9. Freakonomics Radio looking at things backwards, The Hidden Side of Everything, some great viewpoints, some entertaining, some obvious
10. Michael Hyatt – This is your life – Intentional Leadership advice. Over 10 million downloads to date after 6 years and over 100,000 likes. This guy has more connections than Greyhound Bus.
11. Wired – where tech and science meet, a great resource to keep you informed.
12. Entrepreneur on Fire with Jon Lee Dumas, is a mega daily podcast, possibly the best known and he has a huge following. Very american. Part of his success is that he is so successful in the podcasting landscape, people try to emulate him and everyone respects what he has done. A wonderful marketer with the sort of connections needed to get some very well known contributors and some very savvy content.
13. Super Fast Business with Aussie and surf fanatic James Schramko, ex car salesman, with real time experience in the trenches. James wants you to sign up with him for his paid content, but offers some great advice to show you how he thinks, which is sometimes fresh.
14.  The Bottom Line  from BBC4. Evan Davis hosted the business conversation up to 2019 with people at the top giving insight into what matters.
15.  The 21st Century Workplace– Excellent podcasts with some of the best thinkers of our time. The guests will leave you excited about how you can improve your processes at work every time.
16.  Beyond the To Do List – Erik Fisher talks to people who have worked hard to improve their productivity.
17. Bill Caskey Podcast – Bill is always worth listening to and is easy listening, with some good advice
18. Nudge – Behavioural science made simplewith Phill Agnew. Not a typical business podcast. Concise and to the point, there’s an MBA’s worth of insight in every show.
19. Business Made Simple – Donald Miller of Storybrand fame.
20. The Business of Authority – Jonathan Stark and Rochelle Moulton talk about why you want to be seen as an expert in your field, and how to do it.

Many of these business podcasts are about efficiencies and innovation, so the simple act of listening to some of them will help you become more productive, more organised and more successful.

Favourite Sales podcasts

Sales is an ever changing landscape, so it is important to keep up with trends and truths. Gone is the hard sell of yesterday and now we supposedly have the ‘social sell’ and the educated buyer. The buying cycle is getting longer as the selling cycle shortens, because buyers have browsed the web to arm themselves with the facts before coming to a decision or short list of options. The landscape has changed, but at the root of it, especially in B2B, this is a transaction between two people. The buyer may have more knowledge, but that may only add to the confusion about making a final decision. Maybe listening to some of these podcasts will help you.

1. The Salesman Podcast – Will Barron, pretty much making it up as he goes along and doing a great job of it. Will wants to know the secret of selling for himself as a practitioner, so he interviews all the big names in the area of coaching sales techniques, authors and proven professionals. Now he is writing a book on the subject and he has developed a programme for sales teams.
2. Sales Influence – why people buy with Victor Antonio, short snappy and supported with a YouTube Channel. Victor is a Professional Speaker, but he provides a ton of useful content, that sells him as the right guy for your audience.
3. In The Arena with Anthony Iannarino, author of The Only Sales Guide You Will Ever Need, with some great tips for creating the Model Sales Week. Also on Youtube. Anthony has just rebranded as The Anthony Iannarino Show, so check your podcast app.
4. The Brutal Truth About Sales and Selling by Brian Burns. The focus is on b2b sales and selling… strategic selling, linkedin, saas, sales leadership, sales management, social media and b2b marketing.
5. Business Growth Show with Sam Dunning, who interviews some good guests, some well known and many not so well known, mostly authors looking to promote their own books, but with some useful insights.
6. Make it Happen Mondays with John Barrows, fast talking from someone who spent loads of time in the trenches.
7. Advanced Selling Podcast – Bill Caskey and Brian Neale host the oldest sales podcast. Sales podcasts come and go. People try it for a while and give up. These guys have been sticking at it for quite a while.
8. The Sales Hunter – Mark Hunter’s goal is to give you actionable ideas and strategies to make you a more powerful sales professional.

Favourite Digital Marketing Podcasts

These “experts” specialise in growing business on the web or using specific web based tools to market your business. Sometimes you get technical analysis or explanations, other times you get techniques and suggestions on how to use web based platforms to promote your business. A lot of the time you get offered programmes to buy, in order to learn how-to market yourself, your products or services.

1. Smart Passive Income with Pat Flynn, a ‘nice’ guy with a great attitude and a simple philosophy, who offers candid advice and opens up all his methods to anyone who wants to listen. Pat loves what he does and is liked for his sincerity and honesty. Loads of useful tips and advice. Pats get his bucks from being an affiliate, so there is no cost to you – just useful tips.
2. The Online Marketing Made Easy Show with the always pleasant Amy Porterfield, who grows her audience every month and offers so much useful advice, on Facebook, advertising and Podcasting. Amy worked with Tony Robbins, who does not appear on my lists, but he does know a thing or two and she certainly grew and learned at his feet. Mostly an american audience.
3. Marie Forleo is a truly professional marketer who exudes ability and maybe commercialism, she is always selling, always in control and is always sharp and sassy. This lady oozes energy, so she is not everyones cup of tea, but she does inspire many, especially other women. And she also shows how to use the web to great effect, with stylish video presentations and high production values. Amy Porterfield has been a student and remains a staunch advocate. This is an 8 week programme called B School rather than a podcast. Ideal if you want a mentor and a group to support you.
4. Digital Marketing Radio with David Bain, a Scot with a rich pedigree in Digital Marketing and a broad knowledge of web tools for marketing. David likes to explore, so he is an early adopter of new platforms or where he brings together a large group of Digital Marketers to discuss best practice. David is not afraid to rough it and just go for it, so the production values are not overly glossy, but the content was always good. He has been sucessful enough to get swallowed up by a big media firm in late 2017, but he did get interviewing some of the worlds most renowned experts in this field.
5. The Digital Marketing Podcast with Daniel Rowles and Ciaran Rogers at Target Internet.com – an advert maybe, but a great listen and some very useful news or quick tips, well delivered.
6. Content Inc with Joe Pulizzi the current king of Content Marketing, who heads up CMI Content Marketing Institute. Nice short, sharp daily 5 minute episodes as teasers for CMI.
7. Edge of the Web – All about SEO, Content and Digital Marketing to keep yourself abreast of changes and innovations, techniques and tips.
8. Internet Marketing Podcast with Andy White from SiteVisibility with good tips and advice on Digital Marketing and SEO Search Engine Optimisation. Andy gets some big names.
9. Social Media Zoom Factor with Pam Moore who specialises in Facebook Marketing and was listed by Forbes in the Top Ten Social Media Influencers. MarketingNutz by her own admission.
10. Search Buzz Search Engine Round Table with Barry Swartz – outside of Google, it is hard to know what Google is doing, but if anyone knows, Barry knows. Ideal for professional Digital Marketers, to keep you in the loop. Not for the faint hearted.
11. Marketing School with Neil Patel, one of the smartest guys around and is so good at marketing himself. Marketing School brings you 10 minutes of actionable marketing advice every single day. Neil Patel creates some incredible long form blog articles, packed with great advice.
12. Digital Minute from the StickyEyes Agency with one minute video insights
13. Social Media Examiner – a wealth of information and timelu updates on all things to do with Digital Marketing, a virtual treasure trove for nerds.
14. What is next? You tell me 🙂

Podcasts – Why listen to them ? Ten reasons

There are many reason why people listen to podcasts, here are my 10.

1. Time – Listen when it suits you rather than when it is being broadcast.
2. Convenience – Listen when you are in the right space physically and mentally.
3. CPD Continuous Personal Development – Keep on learning, never stop and always be developing your skills, enriching your talent locker and growing as a person.
4. Automotive Therapy – Listen when driving, as it fills that time and helps you relax as you drive or wait in traffic.
5. Speed – You can listen at any speed ratio you like, so by all means play at 2x or 1.5x and get through more. If you want to replay bits of particular interest that is simple to do – hit replay or rewind. This is usually a good sign.
6. Ambient Background – Replace the noise around you with useful information.
7. Review – Keep a library of your favourite podcasts, by subscribing to them, so that you can refer back to them at will.
8. Audio – It simply delivers easier than Video. Whilst I like seeing good content on Youtube or Ted Talks, it generates huge file sizes and needs serious bandwidth to watch.
9. iTunes – iPhones makes using iTunes seamless, so I just sync and or download podcasts before I start my trip to work or further a field. I will download enough to fill my travelling time.
10. Entertainment – Yes that thing you do for fun, for the sheer joy of it, let some great speakers simply entertain or educate you.

Listening to podcasts entertains, educates and gives me ideas to use. I find I listen to most at 1.5x speed and I get useful snippets from so many, that I regularly freeze sessions to go back to it when I am at a desk, with keyboard at hand. The combination of iPhone and iTunes which makes my podcast listening so smooth, is the single reason I use an Apple smartphone. Rarely, are my AirPods or earbuds out of my ears when I am alone or travelling. I realise that many people think I am really really in to my music, but hey this is just as good as great music, at least for me. When I am not listening to an Audiobook, I am listening to good podcasts. If you are not already doing this, try one from this list that interests you to see if podcasts are for you.