Why the Story Matters with Steve Pratt from Pacific Content

Have you heard of Bring Back Bronco or Choiceology? They’re two top podcasts in their categories, telling interesting stories about rebooting a nostalgic car model and the science behind decision making. But, did you know that these shows are backed by Ford and Charles Schwab?

If you didn’t immediately realize these examples were actually branded podcasts then the team at Pacific Content did their job. This week on Audience, we invite Steve Pratt, Pacific Content’s co-founder, to speak to how he helped these brands create their podcasts.

Instead of thinly veiled infomercials, Pacific Content creates podcasts that start with a story. Why should the audience care? What are the emotions behind the beginning, middle, and end? And how do you get listeners to commit to consuming an entire episode? Nailing these questions means more audience engagement and in turn, more brand awareness. Not the other way around.

Craig joins Steve to understand why Pacific Content believes more brands will turn to internal and public podcasts. But that prediction comes with some caveats and important questions companies should answer before getting started.

Listen to the full episode now to understand why the first few minutes of an episode are the most important and why editing is a must. Although this episode talks about podcasting through the lens of branded podcasts, Steve’s expertise in the industry and what makes a show better are applicable to any host.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode

Why brands should embrace the Creative Bravery Scale and how to pass the sniff test
The questions brands need to answer before starting a podcast
How brands can look inside their own teams and leverage the expertise that already exists in-house
Why the first 2 minutes are the most crucial moments of an episode, and how to make your openers better
If you produce a podcast by yourself, you have to do this one thing: editing
Why Completion Rate is an important metric to improve a podcast
The decisions companies should make when starting an internal podcast