Step 1: Define your podcast goals

Any time you promote your podcast, you should be able to identify exactly what you hope to get out of it. And not just a larger audience — Who do you want to reach? What action do you want them to take? How do you want them to feel? 

Then, get even more specific for each platform you’re using for podcast promotion. LinkedIn has a particular audience — generally, people who are looking to network with other professionals and find new job opportunities. Are you turning to LinkedIn’s audience to find interview guests for your podcast? To identify potential sponsors? Maybe to build a community, or to position yourself as an expert in your field and land a new job? There are many ways to use the platform; you just need to figure out the most important outcome for you and your show and take the steps you need to make it happen.  

Step 2: Optimize your LinkedIn profile

Your LinkedIn profile and content can work in tandem like a marketing funnel, drawing in potential podcast listeners and helping you achieve your goals. Here are some ways to optimize your LinkedIn profile to promote your podcast:

• Turn on Creator Mode: This profile setting is specifically designed for content creators and will help you grow your audience on LinkedIn. Turning on Creator Mode will change your "Connect" button to "Follow” as the default option. Your featured content will also be prominently displayed in the top section of your profile.
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• The most exciting change with Creator Mode? You become eligible to be featured as a recommended creator, which makes it easier for potential followers to discover your content. That’s gold for podcasters! 

• Highlight your podcast in the About section: When someone visits your profile, they'll look at the About section to learn more about you. Use this space to highlight your podcast, including what makes your podcast unique and what listeners can expect to hear.

• Include a website link to your podcast: LinkedIn provides a single link feature at the top of your profile that can be used to link directly to your podcast subscription page. Make sure to take advantage of this prime real estate to drive traffic to your podcast.

• Add a short headline to promote your podcast: Your LinkedIn headline is very visible — it appears under your name on your profile and in any comments you leave. Use this space to include your podcast name and a catchy tagline that ties back to your LinkedIn goal.

Step 3: Share your podcast episodes on LinkedIn

Finally, it’s time to use LinkedIn to share your podcast episodes. Avoid just sharing a link to your podcast without any explanation, as it may seem repetitive and your target audience won't know it's a new episode. Instead, craft an engaging post for each episode. Here are some best practices to help you create click-worthy posts:

• Start a conversation: Instead of just summarizing your podcast episode in the post, try to spark a discussion about the episode topic.

• Unique artwork: It may be tempting to use your podcast cover artwork every time (trust me, I've been there!), but it's much more effective to include a unique image in each post. Canva is a great resource for creating branded images if you don't have design skills. Consider adding a clickable link to your podcast within the image as well. 

• Repurpose video content: If you host a video podcast, you can use Descript to trim the video into smaller clips and upload them directly to LinkedIn. But if you have an audio-only podcast, I recommend you avoid posting audiograms since they typically don’t perform well on LinkedIn. 

• Use hashtags: While they aren’t as popular on LinkedIn as other platforms, hashtags can still help to get your content in front of the right audience.

• Tag relevant people and companies: Tagging individuals and companies in your post can help expand your reach. But be cautious and only tag those genuinely relevant to your post to avoid annoying them.

• Respond to comments: Responding to comments on your post can increase interaction with your network. It's also a signal to LinkedIn that people are interested in your post, which could result in it being shown to more people.

Step 4: Start a LinkedIn newsletter

Many podcasts have email newsletters to stay connected with their audiences and keep their podcast top of mind. But if you’re promoting your podcast on LinkedIn, you’re going to want to start a LinkedIn newsletter as well. Like every social media platform, LinkedIn’s algorithm rewards content that keeps users on the platform instead of sending them away, and a LinkedIn newsletter lets your audience keep up with the podcast, listen to the latest episode, and share about it with their network — all without leaving LinkedIn. 

Make the most of your newsletter by writing a recap of your latest episode and including an embedded podcast link (again, this lets listeners tune in directly on LinkedIn). LinkedIn currently supports podcast embeds from Spotify, Megaphone by Spotify, and Soundcloud. Embedding a podcast player into a LinkedIn newsletter article can be a little tricky, so follow these steps to make it easy:

1. Create a new article for your newsletter

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2. Click on the insert icon

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3. Select the Links option

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Insert a link to the episode from a supported player. LinkedIn doesn't support embed codes from podcast players, so make sure you copy the link to the episode.

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4. Now hit enter, and your podcast player will appear

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Unlike subscribers on podcast platforms or even email newsletters, you can see who’s subscribing to your LinkedIn newsletter — complete with their full name, job title, and where they work. This is super valuable as it gives you insights into who's engaging with your podcast through the newsletter. When it comes time to pitch to sponsors, the quality of your audience may be more important than the number of subscribers.

Step 5: Engage with your network

If you want people to subscribe to your newsletter and check out posts about your podcast, you’re going to want to have good relationships with a variety of people on LinkedIn. Look for potential listeners and clients in your industry, connect with them, and share their content. Engage with your LinkedIn audience by commenting on other people’s posts. In essence, establish a strong online presence. That will help more people see you and your podcast — and maybe even turn into listeners, sponsors, guests, collaborators, and customers.