LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 740 million members worldwide. It’s a great platform for establishing your professional brand, connecting with other professionals, finding job opportunities, sharing content and more. One of the newer features that LinkedIn has introduced is LinkedIn Live Video which allows you to broadcast video content to your connections and followers. This opens up the opportunity to host live video events like podcast recordings, interviews, presentations, Q&A sessions and more. Audio events like podcast episodes are a great piece of content to share on LinkedIn. In this comprehensive guide, we’ll walk you through step-by-step how to start an audio event like a podcast on LinkedIn.
Why Host An Audio Event on LinkedIn?
Here are some of the key benefits of using LinkedIn to host an audio event like a podcast episode:
Reach a Relevant, Targeted Audience
As a professional social network, the LinkedIn audience is highly relevant for most B2B companies and topics. The platform’s algorithm also shows your content to the connections who are most likely to be interested. This means your audio event can reach your ideal target audience efficiently.
Establish Thought Leadership
Sharing great audio content positions you as a thought leader and subject matter expert. It helps build authority and trust with your LinkedIn connections.
Increase Brand Awareness
Hosting audio events creates more opportunities for people to engage with your brand. They get to hear your brand name, messaging and value proposition multiple times during the recording.
Drive Website Traffic
You can include links back to your website within the audio event description and in your LinkedIn profile. This allows you to drive relevant traffic to your site.
Get Found in Search
LinkedIn events and audio content are indexed by search engines like Google. This increases discoverability beyond just the LinkedIn network.
Convert Connections into Followers
When connections engage with your audio content, they are prompted to follow your LinkedIn page. This helps you build a larger following on the platform.
Interaction and Engagement
Followers can react, comment and share your audio events on LinkedIn, helping increase engagement. You can also tag relevant people, companies and groups to help expand your reach.
Step 1 – Enable LinkedIn Live Video
The first step is making sure you have access to LinkedIn’s live video broadcasting and events platform. This feature must be enabled for your account before you can start an audio event. Here is how to enable it:
1. Go to your LinkedIn profile page and click “More” in the top right next to your profile photo.
2. Select “Settings & Privacy” from the dropdown menu.
3. Choose “Preferences” from the left sidebar.
4. Under the “Preferences” header, toggle “Live video broadcasting and LinkedIn events” to the on position.
Once enabled, you will see the options to go live, create an event and manage events from your LinkedIn profile homepage. The live video broadcasting is the feature you need to start an audio podcast or event on LinkedIn.
Step 2 – Create Your Audio Event
With live video enabled, you can now create your audio event on LinkedIn. Follow these steps:
1. From your LinkedIn homepage, click the “Go Live” button. This will open the event creation screen.
2. Enter your event title and description. For an audio podcast, you may want to put “Podcast Recording” or the episode name in the title.
3. Set the date and time for your audio event. Make sure to schedule enough time to complete your full recording.
4. Toggle the event settings like visibility, comments and notifications. We recommend making it public and allowing engagement.
5. Upload a relevant cover image or logo that represents your podcast or brand. This will display with your audio event listing.
6. Choose “Audio only” for the broadcast type instead of video.
7. Click the blue “Save” button at the bottom to create your LinkedIn audio event.
Step 3 – Set Up Your Recording Equipment
To broadcast a high quality audio recording through LinkedIn, you need the proper podcasting equipment:
Microphones
High quality condenser microphones are essential for professional voice recording. Use studio microphones like the Blue Yeti or Audio-Technica AT2020 to capture crisp, clear audio. Make sure your microphones are on stands positioned closely to your mouth. Have a separate mic for each person speaking.
Audio Interface
An audio interface allows you to connect your microphones to your computer. Some popular options are the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 and the PreSonus Audiobox iOne. Interfaces provide better sound quality and control over gain levels.
Headphones
Wear closed-back headphones to hear your voice and audio levels as you record. Monitor the sound in real time and make adjustments as needed.
Recording Software
You need digital audio workstation (DAW) software to record your LinkedIn audio event. Top choices include Adobe Audition, Apple Garageband and Hindenburg Journalist. Configure your audio interface and microphones within the software.
Pop Filters
Adding pop filters to your mics helps reduce plosive sounds like “b” and “p”. This results in cleaner, more professional vocals.
Take time to test your equipment setup and audio levels before going live. Make sure volumes are even across mics and there is no distortion. Proper equipment improves podcast sound quality and retention.
Step 4 – Start Your Live Audio Broadcast
Once your recording gear is ready, it’s time to start your live audio event on LinkedIn. Follow these steps during the broadcast:
1. At the scheduled time, go to your LinkedIn Page and click “Go Live”. You will see your audio event details.
2. Click “Get ready to go live” which prompts you to open the LinkedIn mobile app. Allow access to your microphone when prompted.
3. Click “Go Live” in the LinkedIn mobile app to start streaming live audio.
4. In your recording software like Audition or GarageBand, press record to capture the audio on your end.
5. Start your podcast episode, interview or audio presentation. Monitor levels and audio quality as you record.
6. When finished, stop recording in your software and end the live audio event on LinkedIn.
Remember to monitor comments and engage with viewers during your audio broadcast. This creates a more interactive, memorable experience.
Step 5 – Download and Edit Your Audio
After ending your LinkedIn live audio event, you want to download the recording to edit and polish it as a podcast episode. Here’s how:
1. In LinkedIn, go to your Page and open the “Videos” tab. Here you can see past live streams.
2. Click on your audio event recording. Scroll down and click “Download”.
3. Save the audio file MP3 to your computer. Avoid re-encoding if possible to prevent quality loss.
4. Open the MP3 in your audio editing software like Adobe Audition or GarageBand.
5. Edit out any dead space, ums, background noise. Apply light compression or EQ as needed.
6. Add your podcast intro and outro bumper audio. Insert midroll ads if applicable.
7. Export as an audio file in the MP3 or AAC format to publish.
Polishing the audio post-recording results in a much more professional, shareable podcast episode to distribute.
Step 6 – Share and Embed Your Audio
To get the most value from your LinkedIn audio event, be sure to share and embed it after editing:
Share on LinkedIn:
Post your finished audio to your LinkedIn profile page or company page with relevant hashtags and descriptions.
Embed on your Website:
Add the LinkedIn audio embed code to your website blog or podcast episode landing page.
Share Audio File:
Upload your MP3 to hosting platforms like Buzzsprout or Libsyn to be included in podcast directories. Distribute across other platforms like YouTube and Spotify.
Promote on Social Media:
Share your podcast across your other social profiles like Twitter and Facebook to expand reach. Tag relevant accounts to spur engagement.
Distributing your audio event widely gives more opportunities for others to discover and listen to your content. Leverage LinkedIn’s event tools along with other publishing platforms.
Best Practices For LinkedIn Audio Events
To maximize the impact of your LinkedIn audio events, keep these best practices in mind:
- Optimize audio quality – Invest in proper mics, lighting and editing software to create professional sound.
- Promote the event ahead of time – Share event details with your audience to build anticipation.
- Make it interactive – Engage with commenters and reply to reactions during the live event.
- Keep it short and focused – Aim for compact audio events under 30 minutes long on a specific topic.
- Repurpose the content – Turn live audio into shareable podcast episodes, social clips and blog summaries.
- Follow up with attendees – Send thank you notes and relevant offers to those who attended live.
- Analyze metrics – Review LinkedIn Insights to see event reach, views, follows and shares.
Following these best practices will lead to more high-quality, high-performing audio events on LinkedIn over time.
Conclusion
Starting an audio event on LinkedIn leverages their built-in live video platform but focuses on sharing great audio content. The steps include enabling live video, creating an audio event, setting up recording gear, broadcasting live audio, editing the recording and then distributing the final podcast episode across multiple platforms. With the right strategy and execution, LinkedIn audio events present a major opportunity to expand your reach, establish thought leadership and drive high-quality traffic back to your website. Use this guide to successfully host your next podcast recording, interview or other audio content on LinkedIn.
