Podcast Guesting: 10 Ways to Find Podcasts Where You Can Pitch Yourself

There's nothing like sharing your enthusiasm for your projects through a podcast. When you are interviewed - whether it's on camera or audio-only - you get to share your expertise, as well as talk about your books and your business. Plus, it's so much fun!

As an extrovert, I love interviewing - I host the #GoalChat Twitter chat, #GoalChatLive show on Facebook and LinkedIn, and The DEB Show podcast - and being interviewed. 

The challenge for authors, experts, and entrepreneurs is finding good podcasts, along with hosts who ideally share your interest, values, and energy.   

Last month, I wrote about how to be a good guest on a podcast, video show, or blog. In this post, I will share tips for finding podcasts to pitch.

But I am getting ahead of myself...

 

Here are 10 Ways to Find Podcasts to Pitch 

 

1. Check Your Podcast Player. What podcasts do you listen to? Are any of them a good fit for you as a guest? As a fan of a podcast you pitch, you are at an advantage, since you know the show.

Get Recommendations. You can ...

2. Ask Your Friends. Who has a podcast? Who listens to podcasts? 

3. Post to Social Media. (Same questions as #2.)

4. Ask Hosts. The podcast community is small. After you are interviewed, see if the host can recommend you as a guest to any friends.

5. Check Your Peer's Media Pages. See where your friends, as well as your competitors, have been interviewed.  

6. Suggest Podcast Swaps. Interview your peers and ask that they do the same. 

Do Podcast Networking

7. Join Facebook and LinkedIn Groups. There are plenty of social networking groups dedicated to matching podcasts with guests. Do a search. 

8. Sign Up for Podcast Matchmakers. Options include 

 PodcastGuests, Podbooker.com, Match.fm, and Poddit.net.

9. Go to Podcast Meetups. Groups, such as Speakers Playhouse and Podcasters Connect & Collaborate, run the speed-dating version of podcast pitching. 

10. Attend Online Mixers. Meet new people, so you can expand your network. You never know who the people you meet know... Then go back to #2 and #3.

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Before pitching a podcast, be sure to listen to at least a few episodes. You want to have a sense of the person you are talking to and their beliefs. For instance, if you are a vegetarian cookbook author, the Meat America Podcast would not be a good fit. (Yes, a googled it. That podcast does exist!)

Once you find a podcast you like, write a review, tweet about it, and interact with the host on social media. That way, when they receive your pitch, it will not be from a total stranger.

When you pitch, you want to stand out. Be sure to personalize your email: call the host by their (spelled-correctly) name and reference something specific as to why you like the show. Share who you are, why you are a great fit for their podcast, and talking points. Bonus points for referencing your social media following and how you plan to promote the episode.

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When you pitch yourself to be on a podcast, let your enthusiasm shine through. After all, you are doing the hosts a favor, as they are always on the lookout for great guests! 

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What's your best tip for finding podcasts to pitch? Please share in the comments.

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Debra Eckerling is the award-winning author of Your Goal Guide: A Roadmap for Setting, Planning and Achieving Your Goals and founder of the D*E*B METHOD, which is her system for goal-setting simplified. A writer, editor, and project catalyst, Deb works with entrepreneurs, executives, and creatives to set goals and manage their projects through one-on-one coaching, workshops, and online support. She is also the author of Write On Blogging and Purple Pencil Adventures; founder of Write On Online; Vice President of the Los Angeles Chapter of the Women's National Book Association; host of the #GoalChat Twitter Chat, #GoalChatLive on Facebook and LinkedIn, and The DEB Show podcast. She speaks on the subjects of writing, networking, goal-setting, and social media.

One Bite At A Time

By Terry Whalin @terrywhalin

 

How do you eat an elephant? It's an old joke and the answer is you eat an elephant one bite at a time.  It the same way to accomplish any huge task—one action at a time. Recently I began to write another book.  It doesn't matter that I've done it over and over through the years. Each time it looks daunting to write an entire book manuscript. No matter what others will tell you for everyone getting started is hard. The writing in the middle is hard and finishing is hard. Yes the task is difficult and looks impossible. So how do you get it done? One bite at a time.

What is the deadline for completing your book? If you don't have a deadline, then I suggest you set one. After you have a deadline, how many words a day are you going to write to complete the deadline? Make sure you build in some extra days for the unexpected (happens to everyone) but make sure you hit your deadline.

Or maybe your goal is tied to your social media. You want to reach a certain number of followers on Twitter or a certain number of connections on LinkedIn. Are you actively working on these networks? Are you posting a number of times each day? Are you connecting with new people? Without your regular actions, then it will be hard to increase your presence and meet your goals.

Do you want to appear on more radio shows or podcasts and talk about your latest book? There are thousands of radio stations and podcasts  which use guests on their program. These bookings do not happen just sitting back and waiting for them to call. Your phone will be silent if you wait. Instead, you need to be actively pitching the producers of these programs.

Or maybe you want to write more magazine articles? Waiting for the phone to ring will likely not happen. What proactive steps are you taking to either go ahead and write the article then submit it to the publication? Or you can write a query letter and send it simultaneously to different publications and get an assignment?

Many are surprised that I have written over 60 books through the years. There are several keys in this process but one of the most important is consistent writing.  It is a matter of writing one paragraph, then another paragraph which becomes one page then another page. It is the same process as eating an elephant—doing it in bite-size pieces.

Do you break your writing into smaller pieces? I'd love to have your tips and insights in the comments below.

Tweetable:

How do you eat an elephant? Learn the secret in this article from this prolific writer and editor. (ClickToTweet)

 

 W. Terry Whalin is an acquisitions editor at Morgan James Publishing. His work contact information is on the bottom of the second page (follow this link).  His latest book for writers is 10 Publishing Myths, Insights Every Author Needs to Succeed. One of Terry's most popular free ebooks is Straight Talk From the Editor, 18 Keys to a Rejection-Proof Submission. He lives in Colorado and has over 200,000 twitter followers.