Several years ago, I visited Mark Roberts, owner of Schertz Auto Service and Auto Collision Works in Schertz, Texas, near San Antonio. Mark told me he had made it possible for his techs to have iPods at work to listen to suggested podcasts that would help them further advance themselves in the areas of leadership, problem solving, technical, etc. I was struck by that then since I had never heard of anyone else doing that before in our industry. And I’ve not heard of anything like it since – despite the fact that podcasting has grown a lot since then. Today, Mark requires his staff to take eight hours of personal improvement classes per year.

Listen Up

Few of us have the time to read articles about online marketing these days, or we simply don’t like to read in general. We may be auditory or visual learners, so reading articles on marketing isn’t going to be the best way for us to learn. But listening to something about online marketing and social media might just be the ticket!

Podcasts are direct, intimate, searchable, and easy to listen to on your drive to and from work, while you exercise, sit by the pool, etc. Not everything they talk about will apply to you, but that’s easy enough to weed out. Podcasts are everywhere on virtually any subject. And there’s a ton of them in marketing and social media that are available to you and your staff to enhance your knowledge of today’s communications with your target audience.

But where do you begin? How can you possibly narrow it down? Well, here’s a head start: I’ve already done the research for you.

Here are the top 10 marketing and social media podcasts to help get you started, ranked in popularity based on their Twitter followers:

1. The #AskGaryVee Show. Gary Vaynerchuk became famous through his video blog, ecommerce, and email marketing when he took a small retail wine store and boosted sales from $3 million to $50-plus million! His subsequent book on this success, titled “Crush It!”, was a huge bestseller. With this blog, you can ask Gary questions yourself. Questions may be submitted to Gary on Twitter at #AskGaryVee.
2. Jeff Bullas. Aussie Jeff Bullas is a Forbes Top 10 social media influencer and social media marketing strategist/speaker.
3. Chris Brogan, The Owner’s Mind. Chris Brogan hosts this podcast with the objective of helping business owners grow by improving their capabilities and connections. From the staff of Owner Magazine.
4. Brian Solis, Context Matters. Featured on this podcast are discussions “at the intersection of business, technology and culture.”
5. Pam Moore, Social Media Zoom Factor. Business and marketing leaders from start-ups to well-established companies will find this blog interesting and real-world helpful. Five days a week, Pam discusses how to integrate social media, content marketing, experimental branding, digital marketing and technology. Learn tactics and strategies you can apply today. Pam is another Forbes Top 10 Social Media Power Influencer.
6. Scott Stratten, UnPodcast: The Business Podcast for the Fed-Up. A podcast brought to you by Scott Stratten and Alison Kramer that reaches more than 200,000 social media followers. Scott is the president of Un-Marketing and an expert in viral, social and authentic marketing, something he calls Un-Marketing. He stresses how to position yourself as a trusted expert in front of your target market so that when they have the need, they’ll choose you. Wow…that sounds perfect for a top-notch body shop!
7. Brian Clark, New Rainmaker. Brian Clark, of the New Rainmaker, shares his knowledge on how to build your own digital platform for marketing and sales.
8. Jay Baer, Social Pros Podcast. Jay Baer, author of New York Times bestseller “Youtility,” is the president of @Convince and speaks and coaches on marketing. His podcast highlights social media practitioners who are doing “real work for real companies.”
9. Pat Flynn, Ask Pat. Pat Flynn describes himself as a regular guy who became a successful online entrepreneur. Pat podcasts daily and answers real questions from real people out in the world of business. Topics include Internet marketing, audience building, start-ups, SEO and email marketing.
10. Amy Porterfield, Online Marketing Made Easy. Amy has a background with Harley Davidson and Tony Robbins and then became an online entrepreneur, doing what she truly loves…helping small business owners break down big, powerful strategies into step-by-step actions that provide, according to Amy, “big, powerful results, fast.”

Evolve or Die

Evolve or die in today’s online marketing world. It’s why you should have someone doing this for you in-house or outsource to a reputable company such as Optima Automotive that has the expertise and knowledge of this online marketing world as well as the collision repair industry and pays attention to these kinds of continuous improvement resources.