How To Pitch, Book, And Be The Perfect Podcast Guest

Pitching, booking, and being the perfect podcast guest takes persistence and practice. Appearing on different shows is a tried and true method to growing a following, but there’s a lot that goes into the process. This week on Audience, we sat down with Kai Davis who is an expert on how to get the most out of podcast guest opportunities.

Davis been in the industry for over a decade. Through appearing and booking podcast guests, he helps podcasters, business owners, authors, and more achieve their marketing objectives. He’s the authority on how to standout from the sea of pitch emails, why your pitches are being ignored, and how to help listeners become customers.

In this episode, Craig interviews this professional podcast guest and learns a lot along the way. Listen to the full interview above then read on for our favorite Kai-approved tips.

What’s The Biggest Pain Point Of Finding Podcast Guests?

Frustration.

Davis’ clients primarily come to him understanding the general pitching process but aren’t receiving any bookings. Or worse, no response at all. The time it takes to research, write an email, and find the host’s contact information is a commitment. And when that effort doesn’t bear any fruit, it is easy toss this strategy aside.

But there’s a better mindset to approaching podcast guests. Instead of a sprint, it is a marathon. Allocate a set amount of resources you can put towards booking guest appearances. Break it down by categories to keep yourself on track. Categories could include:

• Researching podcasts and finding the right contact information
• Refining and improving the pitch email
• Following up with potential podcast guest bookings
• Fielding guest requests for your own show

What’s The Most Common Mistake When Pitching Podcast Guests?

The primary way to get in touch with a host is via email. No matter if you’re pitching yourself or asking someone to appear on your podcast, the request typically follows a pitch template. This pitch is where most podcasters make the biggest mistakes.

To fix poorly worded pitches and standout from the crowd, Davis recommends approaching the process with more empathy. So what does empathy in pitch emails look like? It boils down to two main components.

The pitch angle

Being a guest requires providing value to both the host of the show and their audience. How and why you can provide that value should be the angle of the pitch. Follow these three steps to get started:

• Research the show’s back catalog to find topics or themes that are referenced often. This likely means the host enjoys talking about that subject matter and the audience likes hearing about it.
• Analyze how you can improve upon that topic and add more to the conversation. Are you an authority in a specific area or have experience overcoming a similar challenge? Figure out where you voice fits.
• Focus the pitch on the value their audience gains and why you’re the only person to deliver that value. It’s also important to relate how what you have to say relates to the overall theme of the podcast and aligns with the host’s vision.

All together, the perfect pitch has three legs. It’s composed of the thing you want to talk about, the overall theme of the podcast, and the inte...