Making a Racket About Small Business Podcasts

This month's blog is all about the audio side of community.   I know, I know, bear with me a minute and I promise it will make sense.  

Podcasts are essentially radio programs on demand, and what better way to build a community than to share stories in audio form?  Now there are all kinds of podcasts out there, and it seems like there are new ones popping up every day.  But, a few weeks ago a friend (Hey Jenny!) wrote a blog post about this fun new place on the internet called Racket. 

On their About page, Racket says "We thought it should be easier to get your voice on the web, to share your thoughts and discuss ideas out loud with friends as easily as you can Tweet and text. And we thought it should be easier to listen to what others have to say... it’s hard to fit hour-long episodes into busy schedules, and that maybe we could all get our points across in less time." 

And to that end, they allow users to create 9 minute "mini" podcasts that can be shared and interacted with across the Racket Community.  

I've been itching to play with it ever since I learned about it, and today I took the plunge.  If you want to give it a listen, you can find it here:  Making a Racket about small business podcasts

It's only about 3 and a half minutes long, so I promise it won't take too long.  But no worries, if you don't have the time, I'm including a transcript below.  

Begin Transcript: 

Hey everyone, Lisa here, and in honor of Sept 30th being International Podcast Day I wanted to dip my toes in the online audio-on-demand world.  

I am the Community Manager of the QuickBooks Community, and when I was thinking about what I wanted to make my first Racket about, I knew I wanted to feature some of the amazing podcasts that have been created for, by, and about business owners.  So today I’m going to take you through a quick tour of some of the podcasts that I think offer unique and interesting ways to think about running your business.  

Let’s start out with the “How I Built This” podcast.  One of the best things about it is that the host, interviews entrepreneurs who have made it and asks them how they built their business and what made it successful.  

A similar podcast is “From Scratch” - again it is primarily interviews with business owners, but the focus here tends to be on those hidden gems that you only learn by doing.  There are a lot of different business types to choose from, which makes it a fantastic insight into the struggles of businesses that have been in your shoes before.  

If you are a reality tv fan or someone who enjoys getting a peek behind the curtain, then the StartUp podcast might be right up your alley.   The very first season is a documentation of the highs and lows as it follows Gimlet Media as they launch their business.  

The last two podcasts I wanted to share today are more results-focused.  The How of Business podcast bills itself as being focused on helping you start, run and grow your small business by offering practical advice, tips, and techniques.  

And the final podcast, HBR Ideas comes from the Harvard Business Review and is centered around sharing conversations with the leading in business and management.  Each episode has a wealth of advice, inspiration and food for thought for any business professionals.  

If you gave it a listen, thank you from the bottom of my heart!  I truly appreciate it. 

And if you have any suggestions for podcasts I missed, or want to share some of your favorite episodes feel free to drop a comment below!  

Thats it for this month, talk to you soon!