Marketers and CEOs are constantly learning — it’s a necessity in today’s world. When technology changes on a daily basis, knowledge is what helps you and your company stay ahead of the competition.
Sure, you can read marketing books, magazines, blogs, and newspapers to learn growth tactics. But marketing podcasts have a special allure — they are easy to digest, offer a more conversational pace, and you’re able to listen on the go or while doing another task (In fact, I’m listening to a How I Built This podcast as I write this post).
While podcasts have been around for over a decade, there’s been a huge surge of popularity in both listenership and creation over the past several years.
In 2018, 44% of the US Population (124 million people) had listened to a podcast. That’s up from 40% in 2017! And a recent update from Apple reports that there are over 525,000 active shows available!
That’s a whole lot of listening options…
So, how do you choose the marketing podcasts that are worth your time? Easy…
We reached out to a wide group of entrepreneurs and marketers to find out the best marketing podcasts, their favorite episodes, and why they enjoy listening to their favorite show.
Here’s what the experts said:
What are your favorite Marketing Podcasts?
1. How I Built This
Favorite Episode: Alli Webb (Founder of Dry Bar)
“Featuring different entrepreneurs in the series is inspiring. I love hearing how each individual overcomes various hurdles along their respective journeys to get to where they are today.
One of my favorite episodes features Drybar’s founder, Alli Webb, during which she discussed how she started the company from an idea that sparked while doing her friends’ hair. Specializing in one thing, perfecting hair, and focusing on that, her motto has become ‘focus on one thing and be the best at it.’ As a female founder, Alli continuously exemplifies persistence and determination, which I find particularly motivating. It was clear that once she had her mindset, she wasn’t going to let anything or anyone get in the way of achieving her goal.”
-Caroline Danehy, Co-founder & Creative Director @ Fair Harbor
2. Scale or Die
Favorite Episode: Drift’s David Cancel on the importance of brand for startups in 2019
“I’m biased, but I’m a huge fan of our own podcast at Proof. Scale or Die is the podcast where we uncover proven strategies from the founders and growth experts behind some of the world’s fastest-growing startups. We started Scale or Die because we couldn’t find a show that covered the parts of building a business that we obsess about on a daily basis — facebook ads, funnels, conversion rates, brand building.
We noticed that in the podcast market, there were a ton of shows that covered the origin stories of businesses and there were many shows that covered businesses at scale. But there was a huge gap in actionable content of how growth marketers and founders were actually talking about the strategies they used on a daily basis.
As a SasS marketer, I’m always looking for inspiration. I’m reading, I’m meeting with other marketers, and I’m seeking advice from other industries. I think Dave does a really great job of getting his interviewees to open up and provide actionable content to his listeners — and so I’ve used the show as a regular way to get inspiration in my role.
-Ben Johnson, Content Marketer & Scale or Die Producer @ Proof
3. The Blog Millionaire
Favorite Episode: 4 Pillars of Blogging Success
“I listen to podcasts exclusively in my car and have done so for years. Thus I’ve listened to virtually all of the top marketing podcasts. Of all the podcasts I listen to, my top favorite is called The Blog Millionaire.
He covers Blogging, SEO, Social Media Marketing, Email Marketing in his outstanding weekly show. My favorite episode is a 4 part series about the 4 Pillars of Blogging Success.”
–Jeff Campbell, Founder @ New Middle Class Dad
4. Authority Hacker
Favorite Episode: 9 Common Link Building Roadblocks & How To Overcome Them
“My favorite marketing podcast is Authority Hacker. While it’s geared towards people building their own media sites, the lessons apply to marketers at many companies. My favorite part about this podcast is that the hosts, Gael and Mark, are super knowledgeable about online marketing and SEO, but the format sounds more like a discussion among business partners. They’re also super transparent and they argue with each other a bit, which helps show both sides of any problem.”
-Joe Robinson, Founder @ Green Flag Digital
5. Pat Flynn’s Smart Passive Income
Favorite Episode: How to Become A Successful Affiliate Marketer
“I actually started my business because of podcasts, in particular, Pat Flynn’s Smart Passive Income podcast. As the founder and sole marketer of my website, every Smart Passive Income episode I’ve listened to has been very helpful in growing my revenue. This podcast showed me that making money from a website is actually possible and not a scam.
Episode 18 (How to Become a Successful Affiliate Marketer) covered proven affiliate marketing methods that helped me gain a small income while growing my online business two years ago, and the tactics still work for me today. I refer to this episode once a year to help me refresh my affiliate marketing strategies and each month, I see my revenue grow thanks in part to the education Pat provides.”
–Sarah Stromsdorfer, Founder @ My OT Spot
6. Perpetual Traffic by Digital Marketer
Favorite Episode: Use these 3 Facebook Messenger Blueprints to Acquire More Customers, Leads, and Subscribers (#136)
“The guys at Digital Marketer are at the forefront of digital marketing and Facebook marketing. The podcast breaks down the implementation of different digital marketing strategies, as well as case studies to make it more relevant to listeners. It is also interesting to hear how they apply their own strategies for their clients and the results they get.”
-Chrys Tan, Founder @ Chrys Media
7. Hidden Brain
Favorite Episode: Fake News: An Origin Story
“At its root, marketing is a scientific experiment on human psychology and economics. What I love about this podcast is that it uses science and storytelling to help listeners understand why we behave in the ways we do. Shankar Vedantam does a great job of helping me look at situations in the world slightly differently. And I think the skills he teaches are incredibly powerful for marketers! We’re always trying to optimize, test, and become better at our job. By better understanding people and their behavior in fields and situations far away from software, I’m more keenly able to explain concepts and appeal to our customers at Proof.”
-Austin Distel, Head of Marketing @ Proof
8. The Tim Ferriss Show
Favorite Episode: Reid Hoffman of LinkedIn, Brian Chesky of Airbnb, and How to Scale to 100M+ Users (#326)
“Tim interviews high performers in all types of industries and you gain insights & methods into ways you can be a better thinker, leader, and marketer. It’s a deep analysis into the minds of some of the more impactful people out there, so there are many lessons to be learned and strategies to improve your life as an entrepreneur. One of my favorite recent episodes (Episode 326) takes snippets of reflections from some of the top leaders in business.”
–Travis Nagle, Co-Founder @ Stem Goods
9. The Humans Strike Back
Favorite Episode: Conscious Leadership: How to Create a No-Drama, High-Trust Work Environment with Diana Chapman
“The Humans Strike Back by Hotjar is a relatively new podcast that not only covers business and personal development but also does so with a filter of humanity. I learn about strategies and tactics to grow my business. I know that they will always be human-centered and long-standing instead of gimmicky and short-lived. Hosts Louis Grenier and David Peralta alternate episodes where they will interview tech and marketing luminaries about what is new and most helpful in voice-of-customer, human-centered design, and experimentation-driven marketing. I find myself walking the dog a little longer each morning than I normally do when I get to listen to the show.”
-Josh Braaten, Co-founder & CEO @ Brandish Insights
10. Growth Everywhere
Favorite Episode: How TaskUs Co-Founders went from living with their parents to $15M in revenue
“The podcast is a great resource for founders and marketers alike due to the diverse content and specific examples that are cited for everything from email marketing to product-market fit. The episodes are easy to consume, very directional, and Eric does a great job guiding the story.”
-Chris Karnes, Head of Growth @ Going Merry
11. Rick Mulready’s The Art of Paid Traffic
Favorite Episode: Who Am I To Be Running Facebook Ads For Other People With Monica Louie (#198)
“I’ve enjoyed listening to Rick’s podcast for years! And a couple weeks ago, I was honored to be interviewed on his podcast! In this episode, we talk about how I was able to get over the ‘who am I to be running Facebook ads for other people?’ mindset. I know this is something we all struggle with in the beginning stages of starting a business or a new service. Plus, we talk about the exact strategies that are working for lowering cost per clicks on Facebook ads right now!”
-Monica Louie, Founder @ Monica Louie
12. Under the Influence by Terry O’Reilly
Favorite Episode: The Psychology of Price
“My favorite podcast is Under the Influence by Terry O’Reilly. It’s a can’t-miss every week. I love this podcast because it covers general interest topics and relates them to marketing strategies. It’s global in scope and covers everything from mainstream advertising to niche elevator pitches.”
-Lisa Shepherd, Founder @ The Mezzanine Group
13. Marketing School with Neil Patel & Eric Sui
Favorite Episode: Where do Neil and Eric Spend Their Marketing Dollars?
“Marketing School with Neil Patel & Eric Sui” is just…well done. I’m a huge fan of the way they’ve coordinated their show to effectively communicate value in about 5 min. They have done a great job balancing insights, tactics, and tools. Above all, one of my favorite things about what Neil and Eric have done is the cadence they’ve built with the quality content they produce; They post every single day and it has made it easy to make learning from them a staple in my morning routine.”
-Jake Mastrandrea, Head of Marketing @ Checkbook.io
14. Computer Business Marketing Podcast
Favorite Episode: Servant Leadership (Episode 61)
“As a new business owner of a tech support business, I was finding it really hard to find marketing content directly applicable to my industry. Through the podcast, I’ve received a lot of good advice; the people that follow the podcast and the Facebook group are helpful and nice. And Matthew Rodela’s attitude about things drives this.
This podcast specifically talks about how being a servant leader is a great differentiator; going into business wanting to genuinely help your customers is priceless. IT people are typically thought of as more socially reserved and linear thinkers, and there is some truth to that, so having a podcast that directly speaks our language is fantastic!”
-Crista Switzer, Founder @ abcdTech
15. Digital Analytics Power Hour
Favorite Episode: Reinforcement Learning with Matt Gershoff (Episode #71)
“Digital Analytics Power Hour is great if you like analytics, statistics, A/B testing, or other nerdy topics like I do. It’s casual, it’s not boring, and you learn a thing or two in each episode. The guests are super diverse and super smart. Their Reinforcement Learning episode with Matt Gershoff is a good one to start with for new listeners.”
-Alex Birkett, Growth Marketing Manager @ Hubspot
16. Marketing Over Coffee Podcast
Favorite Episode: Special Interview with Simon Sinek, author of ‘Start with Why'”
“One of my favorite marketing podcasts is Marketing Over Coffee hosted by John J. Wall and Christopher S. Penn. Every week, the hosts record the show in a local coffee shop and have a casual conversation about some topics in marketing for about 20 minutes. I really enjoy this podcast because it isn’t very long, it isn’t very formal, and it feels very much like a natural conversation I could be a part of. Sometimes, when listening to longer informational podcasts, my brain turns off a little bit. But the hosts on Marketing Over Coffee do a great job of bringing in interesting guests and tackling newer and more classic marketing tactics.
My favorite episode is ‘Special Interview with Simon Sinek, author of Start with Why‘ — the Golden Circle guy from the famous Ted Talk video. It’s a great podcast that breaks down the difference between features and innovation, authenticity in branding, and further explains Sinek’s argument he made in the Golden Circle video about the ‘why’ behind your business.”
-Arielle Kimbarovsky, Marketing @ Codal
17. Masters of Scale
Favorite Episode: Imperfect is Perfect
“My current favorite podcast is Masters of Scale. It’s only been on my radar for the last three months, but it’s compulsive listening. It’s run by Reid Hoffman who was the co-founder of LinkedIn. On the show, he interviews the biggest tech leaders on earth and they’re very candid. My favorite episode is Mark Zuckerberg explaining why if you’re not embarrassed by your first product release, you’ve released it too late.”
-Ben McGrath, Co-founder @ Vamp.me
18. The Media Captain
Favorite Episode: When to Hire Your First Employee and How Google Can Help You Get There
“I’m going to be completely unbiased here and pick The Media Captain’s Digital Marketing Podcast. My sister and I record a weekly episode, and it is great for business owners and entrepreneurs. We talk about how we grew our marketing agency along with our eCommerce company utilizing digital marketing. We also talk about the best tactics that help our clients grow their business. There is also some good banter back and forth between my sister and me :)”
-Jason Parks, President @ The Media Captain
19. MFCEO Project
Favorite Episode: Stop Counting Other People’s Money, with Andy Frisella
“My favorite podcast for marketing would have to be the MFCEO Project Podcast. My favorite episode has to do with not comparing yourself to other people’s successes. While the podcast is actually geared more towards entrepreneurs, I think it’s a great podcast for anyone in marketing. The underlying theme of the podcast is to help with making the right decisions so that you get results, both in business and in life. I feel that both of these qualities are important to have for anyone looking to be successful in marketing.”
-Anthony Capetola, Marketing Manager @ Sales & Orders
20. The Pitch
Favorite Episode: Harper Wilde (Episode #20)
“My favorite Podcast is called The Pitch. It’s like a Podcast version of Shark Tank (although with less whacky ideas and much more time for feedback) where entrepreneurs and startups pitch to real investors on air. The signal to noise ratio is actually pretty high despite what the TV version might leave the impression of. As the marketing director of a sauna startup, the advice that we’ve heard on this show has directly helped us secure our own round of funding. The Harper Wilde episode from last year was particularly valuable and showed us that there was no point seeking investment unless we had something more than marginal to offer an existing market.”
-Dave Davis, Marketing Director @ Celebration Saunas
21. Hustle & Flowchart Podcast
Favorite Episode: Ryan Deiss – Trends To Watch In The Digital Marketing World
“Every week Joe & I have conversations with the most successful people in our network. We discuss their stories and the lessons learned before diving in and getting the real “meat.” Every single show has actionable takeaways that listeners can implement in their own life or business. We focus on topics around traffic, brand awareness, and business systematization but have been known to go pretty “off script” from time to time to discuss a wide variety of topics to help people improve their lives.”
-Matt Wolfe, Co-founder @ Evergreen Profits
Marketing Podcasts Are Part of a Podcast Trend
We were struck by how many podcasts there are available online — the sheer amount of content is absolutely shocking! And the trend does not show signs of slowing down.
In 2014, there were 7 billion podcast downloads. By 2018, that number had surpassed 50 billion!
We hope this list gives you some great ideas of the best marketing podcasts to listen to on your morning commute (22% of podcasts are played while driving), while working (31% of podcasts are consumed on a computer), or at home (49% of podcast listening is done at home).
Interested in some other great statistics about the rise of podcasts? Consult out this awesome podcast infographic on the state of podcasts in 2018.
Do You Know Any Other Great Marketing Podcasts?
While our list is comprehensive, we’d be arrogant if we didn’t mention that there are thousands of other marketing podcasts out there. If you have a submission that you think should have been included on the list, leave a comment and let us know!
Also, don’t forget to check out Season 1 of Scale or Die, the new podcast from Proof:
