6 Ways to Land More Podcast Interviews
Today, I have some tips to help you get booked as a guest on podcasts (even if you’ve never done it before and are in the earlier stages of building your brand as a thought leader).
I’m doing a podcast interview tour myself right now, so I have some fresh perspective and an inside look at what works to get more “yeses” from your outreach.
1) Do Your Research
Here’s the truth. Most people who send guest pitches are lazy. They shoot out huge quantities of ill-informed, poorly-crafted emails and just pray a few of them to get a response. You’ll stand out by taking a bit of time to do some research and match your pitch to the specific podcast.
Here are the things to find out.
- Does the show do interviews?
- Is there a different angle you can pitch based on how they have covered the topic before?
- Who is the audience? Can you adjust your pitch to fit that audience?
- Do they have a specific format they use for their interviews? Can you adjust your pitch to fit that format?
- Listen to an episode. What do you genuinely appreciate about the show that you can mention in your pitch to demonstrate you know something about the show?
2) Submit a Review for the Podcast
Post a review to Apple Podcasts and let them know you’ve done so in your pitch email. Podcasters all want more reviews. This is an easy way to offer some value upfront and show you’ve invested some time in their podcast.
3) Propose Multiple Ideas
If you only give them one topic idea, it’s a yes or a no. If you give them more than once, the odds of a yes are greater. They can choose which idea feels like the best fit for their audience.
4) Level Up the Ladder
If you’ve never done podcast interviews and you’re just starting out, that’s okay. Pitch to shows with smaller audiences first. You can usually identify these shows because they haven’t been around as long and they don’t have as many ratings and reviews. Once you’ve done interviews on shows with smaller audiences, use that credibility to pitch medium-sized shows and so on.
5) Warm Up the Connection
You will always have the greatest chance of getting a yes if you’re not sending your pitch totally cold. Use social media to see if you know anyone who knows the host and can introduce you. If not, that’s okay. Figure out where the host is most active on social media. Spend some time connecting with their posts/content so your name has already shown up on their radar before you reach out.
6) Pitch to Non-Obvious Podcasts
If you are a parenting coach, the obvious thing to do is to pitch podcasts that are specifically for parents. However, that’s what every other parenting expert will do. What if you reached out to a podcast about personal finance and pitched an interview about how to teach your kids about money? Or what if you pitched a career podcast to talk about how to find a meaningful time with your kid even if your job is taking up a lot of your time?
