How to Get Your Products Discovered by Being a Guest on Podcasts
Why Podcast Guesting Should Be in Your Marketing Plan, my personal experience and success as a podcast guest!
Do you have a problem getting discovered by your ideal customers?
Social media has become a harder way to get your brand discovered as there is so much noise and competition.
If only you could tell your brand story, the unique problems your product solves, or explain the transformations your clients get in a longer form than a 10-second reel, then I highly recommend you consider adding Podcast Guesting to your Discoverability marketing plan.
— In This Article —
Why Podcast Guesting Works
If you are a podcast listener, then you know that listeners are loyal to their favorite shows. They also seek out new podcasts and episodes when they are looking to solve a problem.
As store owners, we often think podcast guesting is only for coaches, experts, service providers, and not for product businesses. I disagree! If you have a story to tell, then being a guest on a podcast is the way to go.
If you are tempted to start your own podcast, I highly recommend you try guesting first to see if you love it.
The primary benefit of guesting is you are reaching existing audiences!
What Can You Talk About?
Podcasts are always looking for engaging and interesting stories to tell. Remember, this is not a pitch or 30-minute advertisement for your brand. It is a way for your store to be discovered.
You can discuss:
- Your brand origin story
Your expertise as a founder
Your design philosophy or creative process
- Your customers' transformations with your products
- Your ingredients, values, packaging, or whatever makes your brand special
Discovery leads to:
Follows on social media
Sign-ups to your e-mail list
Wholesale orders
Collaboration opportunities
Eventually, Sales!
Does It Work?
I promise you this strategy works! I have recorded 10 guest podcast episodes. Some focused on my services/expertise and some on my eCommerce store, but no matter what podcast I'm on, I always tell the story of my fair trade gift shop - www.Welljourn.com and ask to have the URL included in the show notes.
After the episodes go live, I see an increase in social followers and email subscribers. I've also seen direct sales and received outreach from potential brands to carry in my shop, along with collaboration opportunities.
Here is a little story to illustrate the point. Yesterday I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts in the car, it is called Business of Home. The guest was the founder of Ruggable, a washable rug company. I’ve seen the ads and visited the site before but never purchased.
After listening the founder Jeneva Bell’s journey, the ups and downs, the years it took to create this innovative product, and how much she believed in it, even through all the years of failure, bad deals, debt and stress, I am completely sold!
I’m ready to be a customer for life and will tell anyone who brings up the topic of rugs and home decor with me to go listen to this podcast episode. She sold me on a product I didn’t know I needed by being authentic, honest and telling her story!
You can do the same. Start small get comfortable telling your story and the results will follow.
If you need help figuring out what story to tell, I highly recommend you get this book - Stories that Stick by Kindra Hall.
How to Get Booked on Guest Podcasts
It might feel overwhelming to figure out where to start. I recommend beginning with a list of things your ideal customer is interested in. From there, start looking for podcasts that address those topics.
Finding Your Podcast Niche
For example, my customers are interested in:
- World travel and fair trade
- Natural and handmade goods
- Holidays and gift giving
- Slow living, arts, and tradition
This means I can look for podcasts related to these topics and pitch a story about how my store came about from my own travels, why I believe in supporting fair trade artisans, and why handmade traditions are important to keep alive.
See, I didn't pitch my store or say "go buy my stuff." Instead, I built up interest and showed myself as an authentic and trusted source on the topic.
This approach works for:
Jewelry brands
Bath & Body businesses
Self-Care brands
Authors
Subscription Boxes
Artists
And truly, any niche!
Strategies for Getting Booked
1. Cold Outreach
Write a simple intro email and provide 3-5 bullet points of topics you would like to offer as conversation starters to the podcast host. Most podcast pages have a contact email or a form to submit a guest request.
2. Podcast Matching Services
If you're short on time and want to book guest spots quickly, consider signing up with a podcast service. I found this to be well worth the price - it saves me tons of time on outreach and scheduling.
I use a service called PODMATCH. Think of it as a dating service for podcasts and guests. Each day, I get matched with 3 podcasts in pre-set categories. If any are of interest, I send a short message and wait to hear back. I've also received guesting invitations this way, which is really nice.
After Recording A Guest Podcast
Right after you record, make sure to send a thank you to the host! These little authentic relationship builders go a long way.
If they asked for any assets send the right away. The show notes is where you get your backlink and where most podcast guests go to visit your site. Don’t overlook this opportunity!
headshot
logo
bio
links
discounts or special offers
Once you've recorded your guest episode, there's a waiting period. The host usually lets you know the date your episode will go live, which could be days, weeks, or even months away.
Once it goes live, do your part to promote it:
Share on social media
Send an email to your list
Add it to your website Press or About page
Your audience will love hearing your story, and the podcast host will appreciate you helping them grow their audience.
If you have any questions about guest podcasting, feel free to reach out to me.
I'm happy to chat!