All the Big Shows Interviewed You. Now What?
How to Break Through the Ceiling of Guest Interviews.
Note: I’ll be featuring more from the BEATS conference in the coming weeks. Today’s post addresses another frequent question from coaches, speakers and authors.
Can you trace 6 figures in revenue directly to one guest appearance on a podcast or video show?
I have multiple friends and clients who can.
So the natural question is, How can I book more guest appearances?
And guest appearances are fantastic and super effective…
Right up til you run out of shows. That’s the ceiling.
There just aren’t enough great shows for all the experts who want to be guests.
To be visible enough…consistently enough…to hit your goals, you’ll need more than guest appearances alone. No matter how fantastic you are as a guest, or how good your content is.
So here are 5 creative and uncommon tactics to turn the relationships you’ve built with show hosts and podcasters into the visibility you want…without begging for another guest slot.
Pitch a Re-Promo of Your Episode
Let’s say you have that one guest appearance…
There’s just something about that episode and that show’s audience that worked…You got 5-10x the response and revenue of other appearances.
What if you could get more eyes and ears on that specific episode?
Reach out to the Host, explain how much you enjoyed being a guest, and share some of the results of your episode.
Ask if you could sponsor a Replay Promotion of that episode to their audience. The Host could either re-promote the original appearance…Or they could release it as a ‘Replay.’ Meaning your episode would appear a second time in the show’s public feed.
It’s an easy ask on your part, because re-promoting an older episode doesn’t take much effort from the Show Host. It may even allow them to make some cash while taking a week off of recording. Many show hosts would jump at that!
Pitch a Sponsorship Offer
This is the next step up. Reach out to the Host with a very short email asking if they’re open to you sponsoring their show for a limited time, in exchange for a package of commercials or email placements.
Don’t include a ton of detail, just open the conversation. Each host is different. Some already have a set package in mind, others haven’t thought about it yet.
It’s common for sponsorship packages to include a pre-set number of guest appearances for you as the sponsor. For a weekly show, 1-2x appearances a year can make sense, especially if you’re a natural fit for their audience.
Leading with a sponsorship offer instantly sets you apart. You’re not like everybody else, asking the Host for free visibility.
Pitch a Collaboration with the Host
Offer to co-create something you can each promote to your audiences.
Examples include…
Online events
Virtual workshops
Mini-books and booklets
Small courses or info-products
Special report or industry white papers
Obviously you’ll want to make it easy on the Host. An offer where you’re doing 80% of the work will get you a better response.
Creating the deliverables will require your time, energy and resources. Working out the details with the Host will require some time and communication.
But if their audience is a good fit for you, a small one-time collaboration might be the gateway to a long-term relationship.
Spend to Boost Your Best Interviews
Here are some variations I’ve come across over the years.
Tim Ferriss has used Google Pay-per-Click to promote specific episodes of his own show with big name guests, to catch search traffic for that guest
Turning clips from guest appearances into YouTube Shorts or Instagram Reels, and boosting them with ad spend
Facebook or LinkedIn ads to blog posts based on a guest appearance
Boosting one of your organic social media posts about a guest appearance
Ad styles and platforms are always evolving. It’s the idea that’s important…investing some ad spend to put one great appearance in front of more people.
Leverage Your Own Show
When you have your own show, other possibilities open up to you. Reach out to show hosts with these unique ideas…
Exchange appearances on each other’s shows - Podcast swaps are very common…each of you appear as a guest on each other’s shows. This is becoming more common on YouTube now that each contributor’s channel can be tagged in the video.
Barter sponsorship - Offer the Host 1-2x guest appearances and email promotion on your show…in exchange for them re-promoting or re-releasing your guest appearance on their show. Less work for them than exchanging appearances.
Offer to feature one of the Host’s successful clients on your show - This offer works for show hosts with clients who are ‘walking testimonials.’ Clients who succeeded due to that Host’s coaching, consulting, products, books, or programs. In return, you could ask for another guest appearance for yourself, an appearance for one of your clients, or you can simply ask the Host to re-promote your past appearance on their show.
Newsletter placements - Jay Papasan said this tactic is super effective for authors right now. Reach out to Hosts who also run a newsletter based on their show, and offer to sponsor a placement in their newsletter instead of asking to come back for a repeat guest appearance. If you have your own newsletter based on your show, this offer becomes a ‘newsletter swap,’ which is even more powerful.
If you’re pitching these to a show host with a much larger audience, you may want to ‘sweeten the deal.’ Offer more promotion, investment or work on your side than you’re asking for in exchange. This shows the Host that you’ve done your homework and respect the audience they’ve built.
Once you’ve hit the ceiling, appearing on all the top shows, you have a choice…
You can keep pitching the same way…appearing on smaller and smaller shows…with diminishing returns on your time and energy, OR…
You can get creative. Now you have a set of uncommon tactics that make you stand out.
They take a little more imagination, planning, cash and resources.
But they also build deeper relationships with show hosts, put you in front of proven audiences, and open the door to joint ventures, co-marketing relationships, and strategic partnerships.
All while getting you the visibility you want without begging for another guest slot.
This is the first time I’ve shared these tactics outside of client strategy calls, so I’m sure my phrasing and descriptions could use improvement. Reach out with any questions, happy to respond and clarify any of the tactics!
Talk soon,
-Matt
Agency Founder & Author of MicroFamous
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Great advice!!!