Welcome to "How to Get Booked as a Podcast Guest." My name is Thomas Umstattd Jr., and I have extensive experience as a radio host, podcast host, and frequent guest on both podcasts and radio shows. You could say that I spend a significant amount of time on both sides of the microphone. In this course, I’ll share with you how to become a sought-after podcast guest that podcast hosts can’t wait to book.

Why is being a guest on podcasts a good idea?

You might be wondering, why is being a guest on podcasts a good idea? There are several reasons why appearing as a guest on other people’s podcasts can be incredibly beneficial for you.

Guesting Helps Hone Your Message

First, it helps you hone your message. Each time a different host interviews you, they ask unique questions or phrase them in different ways. This process sharpens your ability to articulate what you do and why you do it. Great media training comes from practice, and podcasting is one of the best places to practice because there are so many podcasts, in fact, over 100,000, new ones start every day.

Guesting Helps You Reach New Audiences

A second reason is that it helps you reach new audiences. Every podcast has its own listener base, and many of those listeners may have never heard of you. Each podcast interview exposes more people to your message. In many ways, it’s like harnessing the power of a podcast without the effort of hosting one yourself. You join for a 30-minute or hour-long interview, log off, and the podcast host handles editing, hosting costs, managing the RSS feed, and all the heavy lifting while you reap much of the benefit.

Guesting Allows You to “Trade up the chain”

Another advantage of being a podcast guest is that it allows you to "trade up the chain." This is a PR term that describes progressing from small podcasts to larger ones, then to radio, and eventually to television. This is how celebrity status is built. It’s similar to working your way up from the minor leagues to the majors in baseball, but with podcasts. There are brand-new podcasts that will book almost anyone, all the way up to extremely popular ones that are highly selective. The same applies to radio and television. Demonstrating that you’re a great guest on a smaller show is an excellent way to move up to larger, more prominent platforms.

Guesting Connects You With Influencers

Additionally, being a guest on podcasts helps you connect with wealthy, powerful, and educated listeners. Studies show that podcast audiences tend to earn higher incomes, have better education, and wield more influence. If your goal is to reach CEOs, pastors, politicians, or other influential figures, podcasts are one of the best ways to do so. For example, a busy CEO who doesn’t have time to read your book might listen to your podcast interview and then recommend it to her employees without ever opening the book herself. It really does happen. Podcasts are a powerful tool for reaching these impactful individuals.

Guesting Helps Promote Your Own Podcast

Finally, if you have your own podcast, guesting on other people’s shows is an excellent way to promote it. One hundred percent of podcast listeners already enjoy podcasts, making it a target-rich environment for promoting your own content.

In this course, we’ll cover why podcasts want guests, why they might turn you away, how to reach out to them, where to find them, how to sound great, and so much more.