If you have a podcast and you bring in guests from time to time (or every time), then you want to make things as easy as possible for your podcast guests. As a podcaster myself and a frequent guest on others’ podcasts, I wanted to jot down a few notes to help you, dear podcaster, make things easier for your guests so that the experience of being on your show is enjoyable and easy for them and so they want to come back.
Vet Your Guests
First, always thoroughly vet your guests. I have never done an interview with someone who I hadn’t thoroughly researched first. Before an interview, I read bios, listen to previous interviews, and look for any information I can find on my guest. Heck, before I even invite anyone to the show, I’ve listened to a few interviews so that I can ensure that they’re a pro and will be a good guest.
As podcasters, we know that some guests are better than others. Even some of the pros are better than others, but not in the ways you’d think. Many pros have “talking points,” and when you listen to their interviews, they all sound the same. That’s when it’s your job to pull something different out of your guest. Ask better, deeper, more thoughtful questions to accomplish this goal.
As a guest, I have a terrible memory and hate talking points, so every one of my interviews is different anyway, but as a host, I always look for what’s not in the book or material, so I can dive deep and get more from my guests.
Whether your guess is a pro or not, some guests will try to use your show as a platform to sell their products or services. In most cases, that’s a big no-no. However, rather than sending your guests a lot of “we like our guests to provide content and information, please don’t sell” rhetoric, vet your guests in advance and you’ll be able to weed out the pitchy guests from the good ones. The most savvy of guests know how to sell through providing rich content that makes your listeners think, “Wow, I want to know more about this person!”—the least savvy (and it’s not always who you’d expect) will litter the interviews with URLs and product placements. Overselling doesn’t necessarily mean that you won’t get good content—some of my favorite guests have been unrelenting in their promotions, but have still provided great content.
Don’t Make Your Guests Do A Lot of Work
Your guests are busy people, and you should make everything as easy as possible for them. My assistant has a bio, headshot, and my calendar, so she’s well-equipped with the basics that most podcasters need. However, sometimes a podcast host will send me a long list of questions and requirements that I have to prepare and send back before the show, and that takes time that I often don’t have.
Whenever I’m interviewing a high profile guest, especially a celebrity, I know I can’t ask them to do anything more than showing up for the interview. These are busy people who have a lot going on, and asking them to do a pre-interview or a questionnaire could actually mean that they cancel the interview because it’s simply too much trouble. Always remember that you’re lucky that your guests are giving you their time, and don’t ask them to do a lot of work that you yourself could do with a little bit of research.
Don’t Expect Your Guests to Promote Your Podcast
Speaking of too much trouble…I admit, every time I’m a guest on a show or I get interviewed for an article, we post the links to the show across social media and on our Resources page. But when a host asks me to “promote” the show, I’m never sure exactly what else they think I should be doing.
If I were to “promote” every show I’m a guest on and every article I’m quoted in, that’s all I’d be doing. My audience would be super annoyed, and I wouldn’t have any space to share my own blog posts, podcasts, and the occasional pithy comment.
Build your audience, podcasters. But don’t expect to build them on the backs of your guests, who worked hard to build their audiences. Do great work and exceptional, extraordinary interviews. Have awesome shows that people want to listen to. And stop putting extra demands on your guests, who are already busy people.
Never, EVER Add Your Guests to Your Mailing List
I’ve appeared on a few shows that have added me to their mailing lists after my appearance. In fact, I even saw one podcaster saying that you should set your guests up on a drip campaign to send them “useful information” after they appear on your show.
That is hugely inappropriate. If you want to guarantee that I will never appear on your show again, add me to your mailing list. I assume that holds true for most of my peers as well.
Respect Your Guests’ Time
Show up on time (or early).
Most successful people are also busy people. So no matter what, show up on time (or a little early) when you’re doing an interview. You should always be available in the interview space when your guest arrives. Don’t make them wait for you.
Never cancel at the last minute.
Your guests have made time in their schedules to be on your show. If I’ve saved space in my calendar, I’ve most likely carved out that time and turned down other opportunities to spend that time with you. When you cancel at the last minute, it shows a lack of respect for your guest’s time and suggests that something in your schedule is more important than the time your guest made for you. That’s a bad message to send.
You don’t need a pre-interview chat.
Don’t ask your guest to have a “pre-interview chat.” Professionals never do that. You would never, ever see someone like Katie Couric asking a celebrity or the President, “Can we sit down and get to know each other first?” Why? If you know what you’re doing and are skilled in the art of making your guest feel comfortable right away, you do not need to have that kind of conversation.
I’ve been on all kinds of shows over the years—podcasts, morning drive-time radio shows, Sirius/XM radio—and I’ve never been on a show that was so unique in its structure that I needed to have a conversation with the host prior to the show so that I “understood how it works.” I know that your show is special and meaningful to you, but to a seasoned guest, your show is probably the same as any other show: you ask me questions and I answer them. You guide the conversation. And heads up: your show isn’t special just because you like to “have a conversational tone.” Every podcast has a conversational tone. So, rather than taking up double the time of your guest, a person who is, most likely, extremely busy, just schedule the interview.
How long do you really need for an interview?
I have no problems setting aside an hour for an interview, because sometimes it takes a bit of time for the conversation to move into the deep stuff, and that’s often the most interesting stuff. On the flip side, though, I rarely enjoy the 5-minute terrestrial radio interviews I do, because the hosts have never read my book and we never have time to get into the “juicy” stuff. My ideal interview is a half hour – and listeners like shorter interviews, too. There’s time to get into the meaty topics without too much extraneous small talk.
Don’t ask super-busy people for long periods of time. Sometimes you’ll get lucky and your guest will be overly generous. When I interviewed Jack Canfield, I felt incredibly lucky that he gave me 40 minutes. When I interviewed DDP, I was lucky that he gave me little interviews in between his appointments over the course of a day, that I was able to edit into a full, hourlong, awesome interview.
Start by assuming that you’ll be lucky if they give you 45 minutes, and crazy fortunate if they give you an hour. Never, ever ask for longer than that.
Stick to the timeframe you’re given
No podcast guest wants to end an interview rudely or abruptly, so respect your guests’ time enough to end the interview on time and never allow the interview to go over. If you have technical difficulties, you can ask the guest if he or she has more time, but never assume, and never go over without asking.
Thank your guests.
After the interview, make sure to thank your guests. You don’t have to send them a gift or even a card in the mail, although that’s very nice. My first year out doing interviews, I sent every guest a coffee mug and a handwritten note, thanking them. My second year, I pared down to Starbucks gift cards. These days, with time at a premium, I send an email immediately following the interview, and then I send a follow-up email when the interview goes live, so they have a link to the interview, if they want it.
Podcasting is a lot of fun, but if you’re doing it right, it’s also a lot of work. When you’re bringing in a guest, always make it easy for the guest and respect his or her time. The better an interviewer you become, the more listeners you’ll get, and the easier you make it for your guests, the more repeat visitors you’ll have.
Successful Podcasting: How to Make Things Easy for Your Podcast Guests
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