How to be a Guest on a Podcast
We get our fair share of people reaching out to be a guest and after a recent email thought it was time to dig into this topic. Getting booked as a guest on a podcast is just another form of PR and outreach. If your pitch is wrong, bad or doesn’t convince the podcast owner that yes you would be the perfect guest, you likely are just wasting your (and their) time.
What Podcast to Pitch
While we think most people do this we also think many skip this step. Research the podcast, the past episodes, the topics they cover. See if it is a fit for you and not just that you want it to be.
- Something relevant to you – don’t waste people’s time
- A guest driven show (our show is not, on average we have one guest a month i.e. every 4 shows)
- Research the podcast, find an angle of something that they havent covered before
- Start your own – maybe dont even publish it but get some practice or use as a highlight reel.
- Dig into Podcast directories, your podcast player of choice, iTunes or Google for “Topic + Podcast”
Here is a recent example (that has been heavily edited and paraphrased) to show what a non-relevant guest request can look like:
Subject: Message sent from your contact form.
Date: February X, 2019I love the focus of your podcast, and I wanted to make an introduction to X, who would be an amazing guest for your show! ….much more about the possible guest and their career…..
…. a “pitch” about a rev share…..
…ending pitch about again how they would make a great guest but nothing that ties into our show, our audience or our topic at all…
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to ask. I look forward to hearing from you, and keep up the great work!
The person was interesting I admit but I saw no reason to say yes now or in the near future. The pitch made me work and try and think of a way or reason to have them on instead of making me try and think why I SHOULDN’T.
What Not To Do When Pitching Podcasts
- Only focus on you
- Give no topic ideas
- Clearly have no idea what the podcast is about i.e. don’t pitch a podcast about horses when you just want to talk about the Denver Broncos offseason moves
- Make it easy for the podcast to say no and hard to say yes
- Pitch a podcast or show out of your league. This means if you are just a normal person but think Tim Ferris or Joe Rogan will have you, think again.
This episode was sponsored by MarTech® West (April 3-5) in San Jose, CA and MarTech® East (September 16-18) takes place in Boston, MA. To save 15% use promo code BIZPODCAST when you register.
Where to Find Podcast Guest Opportunities
With so many podcasts these days there likely are many that you could be a guest on but where to find them? We cover a number of ideas on the show and here are some of them:
- Directories (see links below)
- HARO
- Email and Outreach
- Facebook Groups
- Conferences
- Twitter and Forums – all over the place!
- Your Own Network
What to Include in Your Podcast Guest Pitch
- Your value – what and how can you help educate the audience
- Topic ideas that would be interesting to the audience
- Links to past podcasts, about you, about your company, your LinkedIn, your speaking profiles, just stuff about YOU!
- Make it short – people have stuff to do
- Mention that you have quality equipment (actually have it too)
- A one sheet or a link to a one sheet/about page
- Again, focus on how you being a guest on the podcast can help thier audience
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