Becoming a Sought-After Podcast Guest by Building Authentic Connections | EP276

Can building genuine connections with podcast hosts be the key to unlocking unparalleled guest opportunities? In this episode of Mindset in Action, we unravel the secrets to standing out among the 250,000 to 500,000 active podcasts by nurturing authentic relationships. Forget about self-serving pitches—learn how engaging with hosts on social media, sharing their episodes, and providing genuine value can turn you into a sought-after guest. We dive into the do's and don'ts of podcast etiquette, ensuring you leave an impression that goes beyond the recording session and fosters long-lasting partnerships.

But that's not all; we also tackle the technical side of podcasting with expert advice on optimising your recording setup. From soundproofing your space with simple household items to avoiding common audio pitfalls, we've got you covered. Plus, discover strategies for maximizing your exposure post-appearance, including effective marketing tactics that amplify your authority and keep you in the spotlight year-round. Whether you're a seasoned guest or just starting out, this episode is packed with actionable insights to elevate your podcast strategy and enhance your brand presence.

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Chapters

• 0:00 Being a Genuine Podcast Guest
• 16:22 Optimizing Podcast Recording Setup
• 23:32 Effective Podcast Guest Marketing Strategy

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:30

You're listening to the Mindset in Action podcast, the place to be to grow and streamline your business. I'm your host, donna Eade. Let's jump into the show. Influence is about being genuine. Johnny Hunt, welcome back to the podcast.

Speaker 1: 0:53

Everybody, I am so glad to have you here today for this episode, which is all about being the best guest. Now, this is an episode that I've been alluding to, that I was going to do for a while, and it comes really from a sense of frustration on my part, but also from the fact that I know how powerful guesting on podcasts can be, and therefore I want to make sure that you, my listener, has the best basis to go into a negotiation with a podcast host to guest on a show. So let's jump in to the information. So what does being a good guest actually look like? Well, the first thing is to be genuine, which is why I chose the quote at the beginning of this episode. Being genuine is really a hallmark for being a good guest, because a lot of the times, what I see from potential guests is that they are coming from it, probably from a genuine place, but it's a genuine place of self-serving, and if that is how you are going to approach a host, it's probably not going to get you very far. So this is what I mean by this. Be genuine is to actually start to grow a relationship with the host of the podcast you want to guest on. Don't just dive straight into their email inbox and spam them with a. You know I could do X, y and Z and I can talk about all of this. I can do this, I can do that, I can do the other. All of this, I can do this, I can do that, I can do the other. Let me know if you want me on your show, because if that is what you're doing, it is going to get a delete at the very sort of top level and if it gets anything more than that, you'll be lucky.

Speaker 1: 2:48

I have to say, for me, I delete all email guest requests Unless it is somebody who has built a relationship with me. I get a lot of PR companies in my inbox. That's not the podcast I'm doing. I'm not out here. I'm not a big corporation doing podcasts. I am an independent person who is doing podcasts from a genuine place of wanting to help and empower my listeners. I am not going to let any Tom Dick or Harry come on my podcast to sell their stuff. And that is what these PR agencies are all about. It's all about getting their clients on as many podcasts as possible so they can sell their stuff and I'm not here for it. So those get deleted straight away. If it is an individual, if I haven't don't recognise the name, if we haven't had a conversation, it gets deleted because I just get too many of them in my inbox.

Speaker 1: 3:41

So you have to circumnavigate that issue, and the way you do that is by actually being genuine and getting to know the podcast host. So go and find out what social media platform they spend time on and go and follow them and interact with them, like their posts, comment on their posts, share their podcast episodes and tag them in it. That is going to make you stand out, absolutely going to make you stand out to the point where, if you then reached out in a DM and said hey, you know, I've been listening to your podcast for a while, I can see that you really speak to these kind hey, you know, I've been listening to your podcast for a while, I can see that you really speak to these kind of people I think that I've got an episode that would really work for your audience. Would it be okay if I shared that with you in an email? That is going to get you a? Yes, please send it and make sure that you put the subject line that's blah, so I don't delete. You is going to get you much further than if you just spray and pray in the email.

Speaker 1: 4:39

So let's have a look at the podcast landscape, as it were, just to give you an idea of what you're kind of competing against here. There are 250,000 to 500,000 podcasts that are actually active podcasts in the space right now. So these are podcasts that have uploaded at least one episode in the last 12 months. Okay, so even then, a lot of those will only have uploaded one in the last 12 months or only uploaded a few. Like my second podcast, I've only uploaded 12 episodes in the last year, so that one would be considered active. But at the moment I'm not recruiting for it, I'm not doing anything with it and therefore you know it's not really an active podcast. So you're going to have to cut that number down. It'll probably be closer to 250,000. That are like solid uploading on a regular basis.

Speaker 1: 5:36

So with that in mind and thinking about how many people there are in the world. How many people are out there in business who want to get on podcasts? I mean, the listenership for podcasts is like 500 million listeners, so therefore you think of that as a huge number versus how many podcasts there are. Then how many people are wanting to get on podcasts? I can guarantee you it's more than 250,000, which is how many podcasts are probably really active at the moment. So you have got a lot of competition when it comes to being a guest, which is why I can just go and delete all those emails and not worry about it, because if I put out one post on social media saying I'm looking for guests for my show, you've got to hit this, this and this. I will get inundated with comments underneath that of people who want to come on the podcast. So I don't have to look at those ones in my inbox. I don't have to look outside of my network really to get guests.

Speaker 1: 6:38

So it's important for us to actually look at that and like then, how do I stand out in that really crowded space of people who want to get on podcasts? And the way you do it is by coming at it from that sense of nurturing the host and serving their audience. So if you come to me and say that you've got a great idea that you think is going to work for my audience, then I'm much more likely to be open ears and you want to make it as simple as possible for the host to say yes to you. And if you say to the host well, I could talk about this, I could talk about that, I could talk about the other, we could do this. That's no, no, no, no.

Speaker 1: 7:24

A confused mind says no and a host is going to go. No, I haven't got time to sit there and think about all of the different opportunities that are there. Come with one thing, and that does you good as well, because, although you can talk about a lot of things, at the end of the day you are going on the shows because you want to expand your audience and therefore you want to think about it strategically what is going to be the best thing for you to be able to share with the audience? That is going to work for that audience, but also provide you with a good platform to showcase who you are. So you might be able to talk about five different things, but instead of going in with five different things. You want to go in with one specific idea.

Speaker 1: 8:17

So I have reached really a unique point that I want to share with her audience on the topic that she covers, and I think it would be a really good episode for her to have. So I'm going into it for that and and this isn't going to do me any favours in terms of getting me clients particularly it's going to be if it is, it's a very you know, it just so happens that they're listening and that they want what I'm selling, but it's not that kind of podcast. It doesn't fit with my business. So it's not that I want to go on there because I want to promote what I do. It's. I've got a story to tell that works really well with her topic idea and I would love to share it. So we're talking about that. But I've come at that with a very specific. This is the idea that I've got. I think it would really work for your podcast. I think it's a really important conversation to have. So it's then up to her whether she actually wants that.

Speaker 1: 9:21

Now, if you have researched the audience that the person is aiming at, if you have listened to podcast episodes and know the sort of things that they talk about, then if you go in with a specific topic in mind, it's not going to be oh well, you haven't really given me much, much leeway there, so, no, I'm not going to have you. You're actually going to stand much more chance of getting a yes than if you send I could talk about five, six, seven different things. If you're telling me that you can talk about five, six, seven different things, then to me you haven't actually listened to the podcast. You don't know what it's about, because you're not honing in on what you think is your you know, cream of the crop information that you think would suit my audience. Instead, you're saying I just want to come on and talk about anything, as long as I can promote my stuff at the end of it, and that isn't what you want to do.

Speaker 1: 10:15

So come in with a specific topic in mind that you know is going to resonate with that person's audience and then just make sure that it hasn't been something that they've spoken about in the last two months or so. So you know, we often get people that come around again, you know, or topics that come around again, and coming into it from a different angle is really good, but you want to have a little bit of space in between those. So, depending on how many episodes the podcaster uploads on their schedule, you know, for me if it was a month ago, then a month or two ago, then I would have somebody back on because that's 16 episodes of my podcast that could have gone out. So there's enough space in between. So just bear that in mind when you're going for an episode. So that is how I think you should actually approach hosts and I think that you will actually get a better quality of conversation, a better quality of podcast and a better result from doing that than if you use the spray and pray method. And I say spray and pray it was a term that we used in the photography industry to, you know, for wedding people.

Speaker 1: 11:22

Don't spray and pray. Actually be considerate of what you're actually shooting and why you're shooting it and how you're shooting it, and it's the same for this. You know, don't just spam every podcast host you can get your hand on in hopes that some people will say yes, because the other side of that is, yeah, you will probably get some hosts that will say, yes, do come on my podcast and talk about that, but you haven't done the research. You don't really know who that person is, who their audience is, what their podcast's about and therefore the audience might not even be right for you and it might not be the best podcast for you to go on. So it's not good for you to do it that way either.

Speaker 1: 12:04

Just take some time. It would be much better for you to be very strategic about the podcasts you want to go on and nurture them. So, for example, start now, find five podcasts that you'd really like to feature on in the next six months. Start nurturing those hosts now and reach out to them in five months time and say I'd really love to be on your show and see if you can get some bookings within that last six months to. You know they might fall in the next six months, but at least have those conversations started. But at least have those conversations started.

Speaker 1: 12:42

Those then you know those five podcast episodes would do you better for your business and for what you want to do than going on 10, 20 podcasts that don't actually align with you, your potential audience that you want to reach with the topic that is really, you know, something that you can speak passionately about. So really consider that you don't have to go on a zillion podcasts. Oh yeah, great, you've been on 20 podcasts. What does that mean? Nothing. But if you say I've been on five podcasts but I've had these really great conversations We've talked about X, y and Z here's the links go and listen to them. That is much more powerful and you can share those episodes again and again and again We'll come on to that in a bit and they can really you can have five podcasts could be enough for you to talk about podcasts on your platforms and in your everyday life for a year. So if you spread out when you actually go on them, so you could have a whole year's worth of talking about podcasts just from doing five podcasts in a year. So you don't have to do loads. It's very much.

Speaker 1: 13:55

You know quality, not quantity, when it comes to guesting. So the next stage to look at is showing up as a good guest when it comes to the recording aspect of it, and this is where I see a lot of guests fall down and, to be fair, there's a lot of hosts that fall down on this kind of thing as well. So for me, the way I run my podcast is I do have a set of emails that I send out to my clients and you know I have got some listeners that are also, or have been, guests on this show, and they will attest to the fact that sometimes this does not happen, because sometimes Donna gets really busy and I'm only one person and I drop the ball. However, generally speaking, what will happen is a week before a guest comes on the show, they get an email that gives them a rundown of how the podcast is recorded, the system that we go through, the stages that we go through, the kind of questions that I'm going to ask and also what I expect of them when they turn up to the podcast. So it says things like make sure that you've got a glass of water, because you know you're going to find yourself coughing just because it's the inappropriate time to cough. Make sure that you've got headphones on. It's really important for sound quality that the guest and the host are wearing headphones, especially when they're on zoom, because that is going to help with the sound quality and being able to isolate anything that comes up. So if, for example, somebody forgets to switch their notifications off and it ping goes off, if the ping goes off on one side while the other person is talking. You can get rid of that in post edit, but not if you're not wearing headphones. So it's really important that both sides are wearing headphones. Make sure that you are padding out your room. So this is all stuff that I send in an email to my guests so they can prepare and turn up well for their episode. So if you don't get that from your host, you know it's not necessary that they're going to do it, but I do, because I don't ever assume that somebody knows how to turn up for a podcast. So here is key tips for you if you are going to guest on a podcast and the host hasn't said anything to you about how to turn up.

Speaker 1: 16:22

If you are recording the podcast in your office, make sure that you bring in blankets and cushions, and I will always tell you what my setup is Currently for recording this episode. I have got one of the cushions off the back of my sofa underneath my microphone. I have got one at the side of my microphone and I have got the cushion that sits behind me usually sat on the other side. So I've created this little triangle pocket around my microphone. Now, if I had a guest on, this wouldn't work because I cannot see my computer screen from how I'm recording right now. So when I am doing a guest show, I change it slightly and instead of having this triangle, I open up the back of the triangle and I have my laptop in front of me. So I have a cushion on either side of the laptop and I have usually a blanket, because I can't fit a cushion over the front of my laptop. So I have a blanket underneath my laptop or up against my laptop to help with the sound quality. And what this does is it means that when the voice comes out of the mouth and it travels forward, it hits those soft surfaces of those cushions and it gets absorbed, which means that it doesn't bounce, which means that it is just a nicer quality sound to listen to.

Speaker 1: 17:43

If you are in an office and you don't bring those soft furnishings in, your voice is going to bounce off of multiple surfaces that it hits, so it's going to bounce off of your laptop screen. It's going to bounce off of the wall that's behind your laptop screen. It's going to bounce off of the window, so it's going to bounce off of your laptop screen. It's going to bounce off of the wall that's behind your laptop screen, it's going to bounce off of the window, it's going to bounce off of whatever it hits. So that is going to create what I call a toilet podcast sound. So if you've ever spoken to anybody in the toilet, you know. If you were on the phone to your mum or your sister or something and you're like, are you in the loo? That sound, that is what your podcast sounds like. Even if you're in an office, just because of the acoustics, just because it's full of flat surfaces, now you don't notice it so much when you're talking in your office because there is stuff in there. So to our ears it doesn't sound bad when we're there in person, but on the end of a recording it sounds much more echoey. So make sure you bring those soft furnishings in and pad around. You know it doesn't have to be seen on camera, but just that extra around your computer screen, around where you're recording, is going to help immensely.

Speaker 1: 18:52

Then headphones I used to use my Apple headphones for my podcast. Completely. I didn't have a microphone. I had my Apple headphones with that microphone attachment so I used to use those. So if you've got those, please use them.

Speaker 1: 19:08

I would say, use wired headphones over Bluetooth ones just because it helps with any lag. You don't get that if they're hardwired in, as it were. So I would go for plug-in ones. But you know, if Bluetooth is all you've got, then Bluetooth. My apologies for the twinkle noise in the background. Honestly, the cat will not be told. So, yes, so Bluetooth, if that is all you've got available to you. But make sure that you have headphones plugged in. It's really, really important for the sound quality and it makes it editing a lot easier for the host. So, whether it's their editor or whether it's them, you are going to make their day if you wear headphones.

Speaker 1: 19:53

If you do have a microphone, then by all means. Obviously it would be best to use an external microphone. I will leave a recommendation in the show notes for you of the one that I use. It's very reasonable, it's under £100 and it is the perfect podcast microphone. And so if you want one that that you know you can use because you're going to be doing this on a regular basis and you want to do other recordings and things like that, it's going to be useful to you then by all means. But you can get away with just your apple headphones with the microphone that's attached to that. As long as you are plugged in with the headphones, it's going to make all the difference. So that would be my advice in terms of setup. Yes, do have water by you, because you never know.

Speaker 1: 20:44

Do ask the host if they don't tell you how they deal with mistakes. Do they edit things out? Just breathe would be another one. Just breathe, just take a couple of deep breaths before you get going. It's a conversation. You're not. You're not being tested. You know it's just going to be a conversation. That happens. So you don't need to be nervous, you don't need to be holding all that tension. Join the call to do the recording, maybe do some power posing, maybe do a little dance party. Get that adrenaline out, that energy out and just breathe and you'll be absolutely fine. But the more soft furnishings you can bring in, the more you can you know deaden that sound, the better the quality is going to be for the host.

Speaker 1: 21:35

Having headphones is really important. I would say if you're wearing headphones and you've got a microphone that's attached and that's what you're using, make sure that you haven't got any long earrings that are going to be interfering with that. Make sure you don't wear any clanky jewellery for the podcast recording, because it will get picked up by the microphones. So bracelets, necklaces, earrings that are going to be making a lot of noise don't wear those. So those would be my tips for showing up on the day. And then, obviously, make sure that you know what the next steps are like. When's it coming out? When can you expect information on that? Are they going to send you a that? Are they going to send you a link? Are they going to send you graphics? Make sure you know all that before you end that call. And then it's really what are you doing afterwards, once the podcast is published?

Speaker 1: 22:27

So it is really important that you actually do something with it, because this isn't just about you accessing the host's audience. It's about you showing up for your audience in a genuine way, so showing them that you're out there talking about this stuff to other people, that it's not just something you talk to them about, that you're actually sharing it, that you're passionate about it, that you want more people to hear about it. That is going to give you more authority with your own audience. So make sure that they know that you've been on a podcast. The number of people that go on podcasts and then don't do anything with it is absolutely astounding to me and it's actually unfair, because the host is going to share this. It's their podcast. They're going to share it with their audience. They're going to talk about you, tell them how great it was to have you on the show and then, if you don't turn around and say the same thing to your audience about coming on their show, do you think they're going to invite you back? Probably not. You know. It is really awful to see how much of a one-way street it is when it comes to sharing of podcast episodes.

Speaker 1: 23:32

When you're a guest, it's like please do yourself a favour and be fair to the host that is giving you their time and edited this podcast episode for you and giving you the information and share the damn thing. I'm very passionate about this bit. Can you tell so? Put a link on your website? You know lots of us have media pages or media banners on our website. Put the graphic onto your website and link it to the podcast episode using the link that the host has given you or the link you know. Ask them which link they would like you to use for it and link back to them, because they're linking to your website from their show notes. So that's a backlink to you.

Speaker 1: 24:13

Be fair, give them a backlink back, share it and tag them on your socials. If you share it and you tag me on the social that you've been on my podcast, I'm going to reshare that to my audience. So you could do that any time of the year. You could come on my show in January, you could reshare that podcast in June and tag me in it and I will share it onto my stories again. So you know, if you tag them and they can see that you're sharing it, they're more likely to ask you to come back on and talk about something else, but they're also going to share it to their audience again. So you get a second bite of that cherry as well, and then you could do a blog on your own website about it. So you get a second bite of that cherry as well, and then you could do a blog on your own website about it. So talk about how you went on a podcast, embed the podcast episode into your own website and share it. That way, you could do a LinkedIn article and tag the person that was the host in your LinkedIn article and share it that way.

Speaker 1: 25:07

So there are so many ways that you can share a podcast and so many ways that you and this is really your way of saying thank you to the host for having you and it's a bit of a slap in the face to the host if you don't actually share it or you only do the bare minimum, which is resharing what they share. Make it part of your marketing strategy. It's not just about going on the show, it's what you do with that episode afterwards. That is going to stand you in good stead with both that host and the audience. So if you want to make podcasting both valuable to yourself and also give yourself you know that foot in in the doorway, you have got to start with that nurturing of the host in the first place. Make sure that you're actually getting to know them, getting to know their audience, finding out what would work well for their audience before you pitch them. Don't just go straight into a cold email pitch. Make sure that you've actually connected with the mod social, had conversations in the DMs before you actually mention about the podcast. Then make sure that you show up well and that you are prepared to do a recording and get the best sound out of the position that you're in because we haven't all got podcast studios at home. I haven't, and I do it every week, you know. So do the best with what you've got and show up and then make sure that you are sharing and you are being fair on the back end, because the podcast host is going to share your website, share your social links, do all of those things. The least you can do is put a link back to their episode on your website so that there's a back link there for them as well, and then make sure that you follow up with them, share with them when you're doing new things. Continue that relationship.

Speaker 1: 26:49

Post the podcast, because you never know where it might go. You know if the podcast host is doing an event, they might want speakers for it. And if you are top of mind because you were a great guest, you showed up, you shared the episode and you're still in contact with them, they're much more likely to come to you for it. Or if they know somebody's looking for a speaker, this could have ramifications for you down the line if you put the effort in. But it could be that you know you are just a drop in the ocean and you never go back on there, and that's not really going to do you any good and it's going to be a waste of the host's time as well. So I hope that that has given you some food for thought when it comes to how you show up as a podcast guest.

Speaker 1: 27:31

It is one of my big bugbears to see that people do go on to shows and they don't do much with the episodes afterwards. It's a great opportunity for you, if you don't have your own podcast especially to actually do a few podcasts a year but then talk about them throughout the year, so that you can actually say oh, I was on this podcast earlier in the year and we spoke about this, and then I was on this podcast earlier this year and we spoke about that, and it just gives you something to guide people to, which is a really good nugget of what you do in your business, because, generally speaking, you're going on these podcasts to talk about your expertise. So why wouldn't you share that with your audience and people who are new to your audience that didn't see it when it first came out and you know that most of your audience didn't see it anyway when it first came out. Share it again, tell people that they can go and listen to that conversation and what they can learn from it, and that is going to really help you to grow your audience, grow your authority and also just show to a podcast host that you are a genuine human being who is there for the purpose of serving their audience and sharing with them, rather than just taking with them, rather than just taking. So that is it for today, guys.

Speaker 1: 28:51

I hope it didn't get too preachy. I do feel like I get on my soapbox a little bit with this one, but it is really important. Podcast hosts, generally speaking, will ask for what they want from you. If they don't, then you know that's on them. You can only do what you can do with the information you're given. But if a podcast host provides you with all that information, take heed, listen to it, follow it and you know, show up, show up and just share the episodes, share them, share them, share them. It makes such a difference and, on that note, I would love it if you would share today's episode with a friend, a colleague, share it on social, tag me in it. It really helps to get the podcast out to more people just like you who could do with listening in to this episode, and I will see you in the next one. Bye for now.