Enhancing B2B Content with Visual Storytelling

Not taken into account are pany-owned and used for brand communication.The worldwide BBC-Global-News-Study "Audio: Activated" from 2019 shows the success of business podcasts. Based on the phrases they hear in the podcast, the research reveals among other interesting facts that listeners create unconscious, mostly positive associations with the company (BBC Global News, 2019). High brand interaction results from the conversational 

and intimate setting of a business podcast—referred to in the study as "branded podcasts." Companies can simultaneously present their brand messages at times that would not usually offer a chance for this kind of material. Podcasts thus become a valuable complement to the mix of communication ( BBC Global News, 2019).A flexible instrument in the brand communication process, corporate podcasts find use in several spheres. Apart from 

outside branding, they can also present a creative chance for internal communication knowledge transfer (Krugmann & Pallus, 2008, p. 108). One can show company-related subjects in an interesting manner. Podcasts can help a company show itself as a desirable place to work and employees can contribute their own experiences in employer branding (Krugmann & Pallus, 2008, p. 107). Furthermore, corporate acoustic branding where a brand 

Is designed described  and positioned 

via auditory aspects in communication (Kleinjohann, 2020, p. 2). Not specifically geared to present employees are verbal and nonverbal aspects including jingles, brand voices or sound logos. Media firms are not included in the sample since their awareness of the communication supply would skew the findings. Podcasts in the sample are not limited in terms of content; so, several formats—such as subject, CEO, interview, or action podcasts—are represented. 

Not just German businesses but also multinational corporations with German- or English-language podcasts help to present a worldwide perspective of corporate podcasts.Based on these grounds, corporate podcasts are searched and 62 companies in all are contacted.As Table 1 shows, 13 corporate podcasts make up the last sample.Acquired are six firms with a German-language podcast and four companies with an English-language podcast, with their 

headquarters in Germany. The sample also consists of three international corporations with headquarters outside of Germany and a podcast in German language. Experts in charge of the respective business podcasts performed the interviews since their professional experience provides thorough insights. Supported spatial flexibility, the interviews were 

Directed using video conference 

tools. To completely understand the unique subjective points of view of the respondents and grab unanticipated impulses, open questions were employed (Mayring, 2016, p. 68). The research interest resulting from the hypothesis was turned into concrete interview questions to form the interview guide.make the brand unique (Kleinjohann, 2020, pages 7–16). One can include these components into business podcasts. Podcasts used in conjunction with the 

corporate branding can createA qualitative technique can assist to get fresh exploratory ideas since the use of corporate podcasts as a branding strategy and as part of corporate communications has scarcely been investigated to date (Brosius et al., 2015, p. 86).Thus, guided expert interviews are carried out to respond to the research questions (Brosius et al., 2015, p. 86).As much as feasible, a heterogeneous sample is meant to include several points 

of view. Deliberate and criterion-driven, the sample allows one to evaluate a great range of business podcasts and create fresh ideas. Companies with more than 249 employees—in Germany referred to as major companies—make up the basic population (Statistisches Bureau, 2021, p. 4). While major firms have more financial and personnel resources for developing additional communication channels, including corporate podcasts, the 

Communications department usually 

consists of only one person in smaller organizations (Jossé, 2016, p. 759). At least one definitely established external podcast format with at least five published episodes not older than two years exists among the basic population's companies.The podcasts have to be in German or English if there is low language barriers. The related podcasts should be included into the outside correspondence and show an auditorially identifiable brand presence 

(Kleinjohann, 2020, p. 47).Research QuestionsPodcasts have grown ever more important in business communications during the past few years. Usually included as a supplementary instrument in the general communication mix, they must be coordinated with other channels (Scott, 2011, p. 85). Podcasts should thus be seen in relation to branding to guarantee a constant brand image. This feature offers a perfect basis for an exploratory approach since it 

has not yet been properly investigated in study. The following question is investigated in order to help to close the current knowledge vacuum:How are corporate podcasts included into the branding tool into the communication strategies of globally and locally running businesses?Corporate communications' orientation toward modern trends, new technology, and creative 

Conclusion

chann. The market for audio media is expanding and getting more professional, some writers have already indicated (Kleinjohann, 2008, p. 38; Schreyer, 2016, p. 3; Schreyer, 2019, p. 10). Both internal and external stakeholders can be reached. Companies running their own podcasts must meet the criteria for a successful podcast: a logical idea and the alignment of the podcast with other communicative activities (Schreyer, 2019, p. 13; Krugmann & Pallus, 

The first subordinate research question is the motivations behind starting a podcast and how it is incorporated.  One can classify podcasts under the category ofThree research questions arise from the guiding research interest concerning the integration of corporate podcasts as a branding tool into the communication strategy. The research questions are well suited for structuring the interviews, as they each open a separate field of knowledge and logically build 

on one another. Therefore, they form the basis of the interview guide. To answer the first research question, general reasons for implementing a corporate podcast in the communication strategy are surveyed. Linked to this is the interest in specific target groups of the podcast and in the relevance of the podcast in relation to other communication channels. The interview questions which are related to the second research question, investigate the 

specific branding aspects of the corporate podcast. For this purpose, the questions take up aspects of Esch’s (2014) brand steering wheel (p. 104). In addition, it is determined whether elements of acoustic branding are integrated into the podcast. Finally, the third research question was operationalized by questions that asked the experts to provide information on the evaluation of the success of using the respective corporate podcast as a branding tool