20. How to be a terrific podcast guest

In Episode 4 of the show, I gave a number of reasons why podcasts, and being a guest on podcasts, can be great for growing your business. Please go back and listen to that episode if you missed it. But among some of the key points I made are the huge audience – roughly 90 million people listen to a podcast each month, and the niche aspect of podcasts – there is a podcast for every type of field, industry, interest, with listeners who are passionate about that topic – your topic.

Hopefully after listening to that episode, you decide being a guest on a podcast or multiple podcasts can help you get more clients, customers or patients. You research podcasts that might be a good fit for you and your topic. You pitch the host or producer of that show. And hopefully you land one or more interviews on those podcasts.

Now the challenge is to be great on that podcast interview.

Here are a few ideas you should consider before your next podcast interview, so that you are a terrific guest, and so that you might get some new contacts, leads or business.

Listen to a few episodes of the show.

Knowing how the show usually goes is very important. Is the discussion fun and light-hearted? Is it serious? Is there are a lot of back and forth between the host and guest or does the guest get time to give long answers and explanations? Who is the target audience?

Understanding the nature of the show will help you adapt your message, your tone, your answers and be a great guest for that particular podcast.

Use the best equipment for the interview

Usually, the host or producer will send you technical information ahead of time. Things like whether the interview will be on Zoom or Skype or Remotely or some other service. He or she might recommend specific types of equipment. Always read those instructions and follow them. Even test your setup for that interview before you go live. But at a minimum, you need these pieces of equipment to sound great:

An external microphone – It can plug into your computer through a USB port or the headphone jack, depending on the microphone. But do not use the internal microphone on your computer or laptop. You will sound like you are talking into a tin can. And bad audio is very distracting to a listener.

Headphones to hear the host (don’t use the internal speakers on your computer). You will often get an echo in the recording that sounds terrible. Don’t worry about how you look with the headphones or Air Pods or whatever you use because the episode will usually be audio only.

Appeal to one type of customer, client or patient – your avatar.

You want to focus on your ideal client, ideal patient or ideal customer. Hopefully that avatar – that’s the term to describe your ideal listener – matches up with that of the show. But then answer your questions to attract that type of person. Maybe it’s a newlywed couple looking to buy their first house (if you’re a real estate agent). Maybe it’s a woman in her 40s going through a divorce (if you’re a divorce or family attorney). Maybe it’s a young adult who likes to play sports or run or lift weights (if you’re a chiropractor, physical therapist or personal trainer).

I know people who actually find a photo of their avatar – their ideal client, customer or patient – and they post that photo on their computer and actually speak to that person during interviews.

Tell stories.

Podcasts give you the opportunity to give longer answers than you can on TV or radio. And since the interviews are longer, you can do more than just shares facts and statistics about your topic. You can tell stories – stories of patients or clients who have had that issue, success stories where someone overcame that problem. And people love stories. They remember stories. They can be much more persuasive and encourage people to take action than facts.

Make your information and message timeless.

People often listen to podcasts months or even years after the episode was recorded. Do your best to avoid current event references or mentions of dates or other remarks that date your interview.

Be open to talking about yourself and why this topic matters to you.

Showing why you care so much about a topic can endear you to the listener. Maybe you decided to become a real estate agent because you struggled to get a loan to buy your first home. Maybe you became an oncologist because your sister died of cancer. Stories that share why you do what you do resonate with listeners, and they will be more likely to choose you if they need someone in your field.

And don’t be surprised if they ask you personal questions. I don’t mean about your personal life although I guess that could happen. But fun personal questions. I’ve been asked some off-the-wall questions on podcasts:

What was my favorite cartoon growing up?

What is my favorite breakfast cereal?

What is the funniest thing a patient ever said to me or did?

If I could have a walk-up song, like they play in baseball when a batter steps up to the plate, what would it be?

Have fun with questions like that. Be human. Be someone the listener will like.

Answer the questions asked and not just blurt out information you want to share.

Sometimes podcast interviews take tangents, as the host follows up on something you said. This is a discussion, so go with the flow. I know you have specific information you want to share, and you want to make sure you position yourself as an expert on that topic. But if you stick to your talking points, and you don’t really answer the question asked, it’s awkward and does more harm than good.

Make the host look good.

Remember, this is his or her show. This is his or her audience. You are a guest, so your job – or at least one of your jobs – is to make the host look good. Share a few compliments. Laugh at a joke. Play along with silly or light-hearted questions. If you make the host look and sound good, you can bet listeners will like you more too.

Create a call-to-action to attract people to get to know you.

Most podcasts aren’t the place to outright sell your product or service. Maybe they are, so listen to a few episodes of the show ahead of time and see what works best on that show.

But always have some way for the listener to start working with you.

Maybe you create a short e-book or podcast series on your topic that they can have for free by coming to your website and signing up with their email address.

Maybe it’s offering a coupon code for discounts to something you sell. It can even be directing people to your website or social media accounts, although you really should try to find ways to capture email addresses so you can follow up with them with more content or connect with them later.

Be energetic and enthusiastic.

Podcast episodes where the host interviews a guest can run from 20-30 minutes all the way to several hours. Some of the podcasts I listen occasionally have interviews that go two hours or more.

If you are boring and serious, you’ll lose the listener. So have fun. Show enthusiasm and energy. Smile while you’re talking. The more enthusiastic and passionate you are, the more the listener will care about what you’re talking about.

Share the interview on social media to bring them new listeners.

After the interview, find out when it will drop. Then get the link and share it with your followers, your current clients/customers/patients, people on your email list.

Hosts put in a lot of time creating a podcast and recording new episodes. If you can bring them new listeners, they will be extremely grateful. Maybe they will even have you back as a guest in the future.

Work with me to get booked as a guest on podcasts

One of the things I do with the clients I work with one-on-one is that you and I find some podcasts that would be great for you and your business, pitch the hosts of those shows, and then prepare to be a great guest on those podcast interviews so you can attract potential clients, customers and patients.

Now please remember, that just like my website, my coaching and everywhere else, that I am not giving business, financial, legal, medical or any other kind of advice here. Talk to a professional for advice specific to your situation.

If you want to learn more…if you want more customers, more clients, more patients, you want to make more money, you want to be recognized as THE expert in your industry, or you even want people you don’t even know to come up to you at the gym or in the grocery store, thanking you for helping them, I can help you become a Media PRO.

Sign up for a FREE 30-minute media strategy session with me. We will see where you are and what you’re trying to achieve in your business, and then plan some strategies for you to get more media interviews and appearances to achieve all those goals and far more.

Pick up my FREE eBook – The Media PROS Interview Checklist, offering you a handy reference full of tips to shine in your next media interview or appearance so they keep asking you back, over and over.