5 Ways To Be a Fantastic Podcast Guest

There are a lot of reasons to be on a podcast. You can reach new audiences as a guest, without doing the heavy lifting of building your own podcast. Or, if you already have a podcast, going on other podcasts is a great way to expose your podcast to new listeners. Being a guest also helps establish you as a thought leader, and gives you a chance to share your knowledge.

Clearly, being a guest has its upsides. But how do you make the most out of your opportunity? Ultimately, what will make you a fantastic podcast guest is dependent on a few things:

As Guest, You Are Also A Co-Creator

Adding value is the perhaps the single most important thing you can do as a podcast guest. It’s important to remember that while you may be presented as the star of the show, the ultimate star of the show is the listener. The ultimate goal of the podcast is not to talk about yourself – it’s to co-create a podcast with the host that people want to listen to. You are not ultimately the subject of the podcast. You are a character and co-creator of the story and content that is being produced. For that reason, how well you are able to create the content will determine the success of an episode.

Understand the Listener

One of the first things you should do is to understand the aim, goal and listener of the podcast you are going to guest on. No matter if the podcast is huge or small in audience size, there will inevitably be an audience. How should you talk? Should you be conversational, or authoritative? Listening to previous episodes will likely give you insight into this. If you are in doubt, ask the host before the show.

Allow Give and Take

Smart people like you have a lot of great ideas running around in your head all the time. If you are anything like me, you probably have a dozen lines and phrases bouncing around your head all the time. These words are dying to make their way out and into the light – to be shared. Unfortunately, oversharing, or only speaking these ideas without allowing for consistent give-and-take with others will not only make you look bad, but might also offset the balance of the show. After you answer every question as succinctly as possible, pause and allow the host to speak. Or ask a question of your own, and toss the topic back to the host.

Not only will this make for a more engaging podcast, you are essentially making your host’s job easier.

Have Your Mic and Location Ready

Another way to make sure you are a great podcast guest is to have your recording equipment set up and ready to go before the show. Having the best quality mic possible ready to go is essential. If you are doing an interview in person, chances are your mic will be provided for you. If you are podcasting frequently via Skype or online, it might make sense to invest in a low cost, high performance microphone. It will be totally worth it in the long run.

Also, make sure you keep activity and noise on your side to a minimum. You might not think that your typing is very noisy, but microphones pick up more noise than you think. Keep your dog out of the room so we don’t hear his collar jingling, and overall find a place of silence and stillness.

Ask For Feedback

Sometimes your host is just as shy and nervous as you are. He or she may not want to tell you that you are doing something wrong. So why not ask for feedback? Questions like “do I sound okay?” or “is there any background noise” can go a long way to co-creating a great episode. It gives the host permission to correct you when he or she might otherwise be too bashful otherwise.

On the other-hand, you might find your host is perfectly comfortable with providing feedback. Try not to take that personally and realize it is just for the sake of the episode. We are not all able to see our flaws or catch everything imperfect at all times, so accept feedback gracefully.

Follow these simple guidelines and you are ready to be a top-notch podcast guest!