The average commute time for a professional in the United States is about 45 minutes. For most marketers, that’s idle time spent sitting in a car listening to radio commercials or people-watching on the subway. But what if you could use that time to catch up on the latest marketing trends and tech, get advice from experienced professionals, and ultimately sharpen your skillset and grow your marketing career?
You can learn something new and actionable about marketing every day by listening to the right professional podcasts.
Podcasts are certainly not newcomers to the many informative and entertaining streams of content now available to users everywhere on demand. But they’ve seen a resurgence in recent years as the power of content marketing has come to be better realized, recording technology has improved to be more user-friendly, and mobile devices and networks have evolved to better handle downloading and streaming audio content.
It’s easy to understand why podcasts are growing in popularity for experts in almost any profession. Unlike other forms of media like blogs or whitepapers, podcasts can be enjoyed passively while doing something else, like commuting, working out at the gym, or even making dinner. And the growing popularity of influencer personalities means that many podcasts are not only educational and useful, but very entertaining and enjoyable to listen to.
A simple Google search will turn up a staggering amount of potential podcasts marketers might get value from. But as accessible as they may be, you can still only listen to so many every week. Which you should choose will vary depending on your personal interests, professional challenges, and the vision you have for your career. But there are some already-popular podcasts that are well-regarded and valuable to digital marketing staffing of any level, even executives. Here are a few of our favorites:
The Social Pros Podcast
Billed as “real people doing real work in social media,” this particular podcast focuses on trends, events, and strategies relating to–you guessed it–social media. But you don’t have to be a dedicated expert in social media staffing to get value out of it; as many of the recorded sessions discuss, social influences nearly every aspect of modern digital marketing. Hosted by Jay Baer of Convince & Convert and Salesforce’s Adam Brown, this is an excellent way to keep an eye on how major brands are leveraging social and to learn from the success (and failures) of others.
The Mobile Mixed Podcast
Forward-looking marketers have been preaching the virtue of a “mobile first” mindset for years now, and for good reason–mobile marketing will soon be synonymous with digital marketing. They won’t be considered as separate tactics, but one and the same. Yet most digital marketing staffing is woefully unprepared and underinformed about the technical and practical nuances that make great mobile marketing staffing successful. Cue the Mobile Mixed Podcast. This regularly released and highly informative cast covers all things happening in mobile, from smartphones to wearables to innovative tactics and beyond.
ConversionCast
Don’t have time for long, elaborate podcasts? ConversionCast’s digestible, 15-20 minute segments might be the perfect way to get your mental download of digital marketing info when time is at a premium. ConversionCast is all about improving conversion rates and getting more leads.  Most episodes feature an expert marketer that’s found success somewhere in the lead funnel by testing adjustments and optimizing their strategy with both conventional and innovative ideas.
Growth Everywhere
The Growth Everywhere podcast is a weekly interview series featuring guests and content oriented towards small businesses and entrepreneurs. Topics are marketing heavy and usually concern strategies to quickly grow a new business or to quickly build momentum for an entrepreneurial enterprise. Subjects range from SEO to hiring and marketing recruitment to  operations and beyond, and it airs several times a week. Even marketers that work for very large businesses can learn from the well-researched topics and experienced marketing rockstars that join the podcasts for interviews and discussions.
Duct Tape Marketing
Hosted by John Jantsch, the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast has been ongoing steadily  since 2009. It’s a weekly podcast that shares advice and interviews with some of the biggest names in marketing and quickly-growing enterprises. Guests have included Guy Kawasaki, Neil Patel, Ann Handley, John Lee Dumas, and Pat Flynn–just to name a few. Jantsch does an excellent job of bringing in elite marketing talent and discussing a new and interesting topic every weak. A great listen for marketers in any field!
There are countless excellent podcasts out there that could help you up your marketing game. Do you have a favorite? Let us know, we’re always looking to add more to our list of go-tos. Share your most informative and entertaining marketing podcasts and why you like them in the comments!