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When it comes to podcast guest publicity, there are many misconceptions.
From prepping what to say to choosing what to talk about and even how you go about expressing your opinions, many snafus can happen if you’re not careful.
Here are some common misconceptions about podcast guesting.
1. You just show up and talk
Though podcast publicity is a time efficient way to get your message out to a targeted market, it doesn’t give you a full access pass to just show up unprepared. There might be many shows where you could roll out of bed and hop on Skype to share stories, insights and your message, but that isn’t necessarily the best approach.
Even if you work with a podcast guest booker that can get you on shows and give you pointers, on some level, the podcast guest still needs to do their homework.
In my opinion, the more you get to know about the podcaster, their audience and the show in general, the better. If you tailor your message to match the needs of their listeners, the better it will be for everyone involved. You can also ask the podcaster about their audience in advance to make sure you understand what their audience wants.
Jason Vitug of Phroogal.com says, “Research the show and understand the format and style. I also ask what shows have done well.” He adds that this can help you pay close attention to that show and figure out why it resonated with the listeners.
2. Over preparing what to say on a podcast appearance equals success
On the opposite end, you don’t want to overly prepare what you say. You might be tempted to script out every answer verbatim especially if you get the questions in advance. Though you can do that to get your thoughts down, you don’t want to read it when you’re on the show.
Scribbling away to flesh out the message you want to get across is okay, but I would resist trying to memorize it exactly. No need for a teleprompter to spoon-feed you any wording, but it can’t hurt to talk out loud and practice what you might say if interviewing is new to you. Keep in mind that it doesn’t have to be perfectly polished. It’s a conversation.
Also, remember that the host wants to interview a human being, not a robot. The human quality is one of the most significant benefits of a podcast interview so don’t try to take that element out of it.
It can’t hurt to follow a checklist of things to do using a podcast planner for guests. It can remind you to outline talking points and elaborate with examples or share stories that go with the topic you’ll discuss. It’s important to properly prepare, but you want to avoid sounding stiff.
3. Thinking that not having a filter is a great online marketing strategy
Though sometimes strong opinions can attract like-minded individuals, it’s best to air on the side of caution and approach certain topics diplomatically when you’re a podcast guest. You don’t know if you’re insulting a big part of the host’s audience.
For example, in the personal finance space, there’s are personal finance experts who love using credit cards smartly to reap the benefits of the rewards. There are others who are vehemently opposed to them altogether.
Whether you agree entirely with them, think the opposite or have a viewpoint somewhere in between, you want to get your message across without insulting their ideas.
I highlighted this to show an excellent example of a guest who flirts with the idea of finger pointing, but doesn’t insult anyone or their ideas. In fact, she even compliments them. She also shares how her focus is different.
She explains how the gurus’ advice is for the masses and her emphasis is more focused on the individual needs. She even says, “That’s why personal finance is personal” to make people interested in her work.
So before you think about tearing into how someone does something wrong, listen to how this person speaks on Popcorn Finance as a mini-lesson in podcast publicity done right. (It’s a short interview, I promise.)
If you tend to stick your foot in your mouth or you’re brand new to media, you might want to consider getting some training. Learn how to approach and practice stating your opinion when it’s different then someone else’s. You can start by finding common ground and then discussing a different view or missing links that can also be addressed.
Disagreements can work to your advantage. They can help you stand out, but you don’t want to your PR strategy to backfire. You risk making the audience angry and having people hate you. It can’t hurt to educate yourself to avoid podcast guest mistakes or get some basic training.