12 Ways to Get Podcast Guests

Several factors guarantee that a podcast will be interesting or not, and one of these factors is your podcast guest. Even if there are issues with your audio quality or some other technical faults in the podcast, your podcast episode can still be amazing if you have a great guest.

Finding the right guest may seem easy when you think of it but the reality is, it could be frustrating especially if you’ve exhausted your list. In this article, we’ll discuss ways to easily get podcast guests and other related matters.

Do you really Need a Guest for your Podcast?

Podcasting is in different forms, you can decide to be a solo podcaster or podcast interviewer. However, the choice of having a guest on your podcast depends on your podcast type. Although the podcast world is drifting to interview-style podcasts, several successful solo podcasts are still winning in the industry.

A major advantage the interview-style podcast has over the solo podcast is engagement. You can call an industry expert, celebrity or popular figure for discussions on relevant topics relating to your podcast. Regardless, deciding if your podcast needs guests or not still depends primarily on your podcast type.

12 Ways to Get Podcast Guests

Check your Existing Network (Again)

The first way to build a guest list is by starting with your network. This includes your friends, spouse, family members and people you have connected with in your industry over the years. If you have exhausted this list, you might want to recheck and extend your search to friends of your friends and spouse. It’s easier to contact such people since you have an intermediary that could help.

Stay At Alert

The funny thing is that your next guest may be someone you recently saw on TV or heard of someplace. You'll find potential guests in a variety of methods. It may happen during a small party, on social media, or in conversation with a friend when you're not thinking about your podcast. It's crucial to pay attention and make an effort to write down any significant names you come across.

Surf the Internet

The internet is a special place to get a lot of information. Searching for a podcast guest on the internet is as simple as typing in a keyword on Google. If your podcast is about human rights, you can start by searching for human rights activists and narrow your search to people who just started being human rights activists or professionals in the space depending on how established your podcast is. Contact the ones you feel are suitable for your podcast and send them a formal podcast guest invitation.

Ask your Audience

Your audience is one of the most important parts of your podcast. To impress them, you must create content they love from people they love to hear it from. Ask your audience what they want. Check the comment sections for people they mentioned and would love to see on the podcast.

Attend Industry Events

Events are usually a great place to connect and network with new people in the industry. When you see people worthy of being your next podcast guest, connect with them first. Ask them nicely with a great sense of humour and softness. Don’t stalk!

Ask your Podcast Production Team

If you own a well-established podcast and people working for you, you can brainstorm ideas with the production crew. Task as many people on the crew as possible to get answers from them and also ease the searching process,

Check Online Communities

Online communities are usually vibrant spaces where enthusiasts, professionals, and experts discuss shared interests, exchange ideas, and seek advice. Join relevant communities on Facebook, Slack, X (formerly known as Twitter) etc and engage in discussions. From there, you’ll meet knowledgeable and passionate people willing to share their expertise on your podcast. Community members will be flattered to be invited as guests and eager to share their insights with your audience.

Use the Search Feature on Social Media Platforms

Social media is an easy-to-use tool and it’s useful for doing research. Head to any social media platform like Facebook, Instagram and X (formerly known as Twitter) and do your research. You’ll surely find people in your niche that you can send a cold DM to, inviting them to be your guest. However, it’s better to have a form of bond and connection with prospective guests first.

Get Guest Recommendations from your Previous Guests

If you’ve once had a guest on your podcast, it’s a great idea to ask for recommendations for your next podcast episode. Reaching out to previous guests helps you tap into their network for connections and more opportunities.

Listen to Other Podcasts

Another way you can get podcast guests is by listening to other podcasts in your niche. Send a message to the guest on that podcast and invite them to yours. Be careful not to copy and paste the content of your competitor podcasts, take a different angle for your podcast interview and work on it with your prospective guest.

Contact professional associations

If your podcast focuses on professional matters relating to law, medicine, architecture or other professions, contacting their association is a great way for you to get a podcast guest. The association can help by recommending someone to feature on your podcast and easily, you get a podcast guest.

Use Online Tools

There are tools that connect podcasters to guests easily. Some of them include PodcastGuests, PodMatch and MatchMaker.fm. They mostly use automated technology based on available information.

Create Videos and Short Shareable Clips with SoundMadeSeen

While contacting a potential guest, one way you can convince them is by sharing video clips. Video clips give guests a preview of your podcast's style, format, and content, helping them understand what to expect. That’s where SoundMadeSeen comes in.

SoundMadeSeen is an AI tool that creates video clips and written content for your podcast. By uploading an audio or video file, you can easily create shareable videos for your potential guests and fun fact, those videos can also be shared on your social media platforms. Here are some amazing things SoundMadeSeen can do for you:

• Turn your audio and videos into short clips and long videos easily: No camera or extra editing software needed!
• Customize your narration: Choose from different voices and accents to perfectly match your video's style.
• Create content easily: Generate supporting content like captions, blog posts, and social media captions.
• Improve accessibility: Automatically create subtitles with timestamps to make your videos easier to understand for everyone.
• Find the perfect visuals: Generate beautiful images to enhance your video and get ideas for creative elements.
• Easy to use: No technical skills needed, the interface is simple and intuitive.
• Smart audio tools: Analyze your audio to identify key points and automatically generate timecodes.

Sign up to SoundMadeSeen to access these features.

FAQs on Podcast Guests

How do I find podcast guests?

Finding podcast guests is not a one-way thing. There are several ways you can find podcast guests, through social media, guest recommendations, online tools and communities etc. Don’t stick to just one method.

Do podcast guests get paid?

This depends on the agreement between the podcaster and the guest. However, offering a payment to the podcast guest for their time spent with you is a great idea to show appreciation.

How many guests should a podcast have?

You can have as many podcast guests as you wish to have as possible. Bear in mind that having more guests on your podcast means extra effort to keep the conversation alive, edit your audio and videos and also more tools and stronger software for recording your guests perfectly.