How can you generate more marketing content when you have small marketing team? In a life science company, a lot of the resources are in R&D along with a huge amount of expertise. But those folks aren’t necessarily writers.

Fortunately, with the advent of the podcast, it doesn't matter whether they can write or not. Podcasts are a great idea for small (and large) life science companies that struggle to create the content they need to win more business.The challenge of relying on written content.Getting written content from subject matter experts is a hit or miss proposition. Some people enjoy writing and some don’t. And of course some are better writers than others. Still, as scientists and engineers, their ideas and experience lend themselves to creating marketing content that resonates strongly with your target audience.Sometimes it's challenge to get those great ideas out of them. Imagine this scenario:You persuade a reluctant expert to write an article explaining some aspect of your technology. It doesn’t come naturally for him. But his name will be on it, so he spends a lot of time thinking about how to get his thoughts down on paper.After wrestling with this challenge, (on top of his usual responsibilities) he submits the article to the marketing team. Like most assets, it needs some editing, possibly extensive.Here’s the problem. While the editing is not unusual, (all content can benefit from an editor) you can see how changing someone’s words that they worked hard to put on paper might cause some hard feelings. The author may feel set up for failure.Writing doesn’t come naturally for many people.Writing for broad consumption adds another level of anxiety. What do you do after someone has overcome his reluctance and poured his story out on the page after sweating over it for days and it needs substantial edits?Some people won’t care, but others may take it more personally and think “If you were going to change every word I wrote, why did you ask me at all?” The editing might result in a fine asset, but forget about getting another article from that guy.Distributing your content creation effort is a good idea.The more you can spread the work around, the easier it should be to build your audience with unique and valuable content. For most subject matter experts, developing marketing content is only a small part of their job, if at all. There are probably a few people who would be great resources, but it’s not something they are responsible for.Some might be willing. They might be brilliant experts. They might be captivating storytellers. But they might not be enthusiastic writers.So how can you get compelling content - the really good stuff - from your experts on a consistent basis?Submitted for your approval - the Podcast.What? Yep. The podcast. Recorded audio (or video) that you can listen to almost anywhere.Here are 10 reasons why I’m enthusiastic about podcasting as a source of valuable content for your business.

1. They are easy to create.

I’m sure you are thinking “We aren’t audio recording experts.” You don’t have to be. A simple set up uses Skype to make a call (Your experts aren’t all local are they?), inexpensive recording software and a headset.Editing with free (and easy) Audacity software lets you quickly cut out the bumpy parts of a conversation. You can process the sound files there or use a web app like Auphonic to level the inputs so both speakers come through at the same volume. It also removes hiss and hum. You’ll be stunned at the quality. Tack on pre-recorded intros and outros for a professional feel.If you think the editing will take a lot of time, consider the total time required when 3 or 4 people go back and forth a few times on a written document to get the wording “just right”. Editing a podcast is much easier and faster, I assure you.

2. Experts like to talk about their expertise.

Here is where your experts shine. Whether or not your expert(s) like to write, most would be happy to talk about what they love to do. If they are passionate about technology, or service, or support etc., they will likely enjoy sharing their thoughts. Asking questions in an interview format turns it into a comfortable conversation. The interviewer can guide the conversation to get the best out of the speaker.

3. Editing doesn't mean changing the words.

Best of all, if your interviewee stumbles on an answer, or thinks of a better way to express an idea, you can pause and begin again. You’ll remove the rough patches in the editing process. It will be seamless in the final recording. Your expert will hear her best self in the final result.

4. Podcast content is easily (and cheaply) repurposed.

Here’s a real bonus. You want written content? Have your audio files transcribed and put the text in a blog post below the audio file. Now you get the benefits of search and expand your reach. Some customers will naturally prefer reading, while others will appreciate the chance to listen during their commute or while doing yard work when they wouldn’t have time to sit and read the text.Take the text from the transcription and see how many other places you can repurpose it. Or listen to this podcast on Rainmaker.FM where Jay Baer tells Brian Clark how he gets seven pieces of content from one podcast. If you prefer to read, check out this article where Jay describes in detail how he records and repurposes content for multiple channels on his blog, Convince and Convert.

5. Podcasts are mobile friendly.

Podcasts were made for mobile devices, although of course you can listen to them on your desktop if you wish. The real benefit here is the convenience for someone who searches and finds you on their mobile device. Do they want to read your blog or download a pdf on their phone? Maybe not. But they might happily listen to your podcast. And if they don’t listen right away, it’s easily saved for listening later.

6. Prospects can listen in a car and check out data or documents later.

Listening while driving takes no effort. If you want your customer to look at data or other documents, refer to them in the podcast and link to them in a blog post (the one featuring your transcript). Interested customers can easily find them when they have access to the web. You’ve now provided an engaging experience and included a call to action for moving them along in your funnel.

7. A podcast is a differentiator.

Early movers can differentiate themselves from competitors by being the first company in their niche to deliver content by podcast. You can deliver content not only in a different format, but unique content that isn’t suited (or just won’t happen) in written form.

8. Podcasts have personality.

Customers in every industry are starving for authentic content. Listening to a conversation is much more engaging than reading a dry account of your technology or service. The listener gets the “insider scoop” from a real person without it being homogenized by an extensive editing process.

9. Podcast listening is growing rapidly.

Fifteen percent of Americans listened to a podcast in the last month, according to Tom Webster at Edison Research. In 2014, podcast listening shifted dramatically toward mobile phones. For details on demographics, check out this SlideShare on who is listening to podcasts.

10. A true crime story is taking podcasts mainstream.

Podcast listeners are no longer just early adopters. Is anyone in your office talking about “Serial” yet? If you (or someone you love) has taken to binge watching House of Cards or Breaking Bad on Netflix, this podcast is the audio equivalent. Mark Schaefer and Tom Webster of “The Marketing Companion” believe that productions like Serial are going to open up podcasting for marketers simply by making podcast listening part of our routine.What do you think?Will podcasting become a part of your content marketing strategy? If you want help getting started, contact me. Topics: Content Marketing, Lead Generation