Most of us are aware that podcasts are increasing in popularity. All the major audio platforms such as iTunes, Spotify, and Google now include podcasts as an easy-to-reach entertainment option. And it seems that many of us are evolving in the way in which we like to receive our entertainment, get inspired, and learn new things. We use to read books when we wanted to obtain new skills and knowledge, watch TV when we wanted to unwind. Then came YouTube giving us a “how-to” on basically anything in just a few short videos. 

But now there seems to be another quiet change happening. In a society where time is the most valuable commodity, podcasts allow us the luxury of being able to drive to work, exercise at the gym, cook dinner, or do any of the other 101 tasks in our busy lives, all whilst being informed, entertained, inspired. It allows us to multitask, allows us to be hyper-selective in what we want to listen too, and even allows us to pause and pick it up later if needed. We’re discovering that Podcasts are not only enjoyable listening, but they make us feel productive, knowing we have increased our knowledge but not lost a moment in doing so. They are fast becoming a guiltless pleasure. 

If you’re a business owner this, here to stay for the foreseeable future trend, should be of interest to you as nearly one in five Americans now consume news by listening to it. And surveys are showing that the average podcast listener is loyal, affluent and educated...aka the perfect potential client or customer?

So is it worth your time making podcast interview guest appearances? 

Absolutely! The ultimate goal of a podcast guest appearance is to build awareness of your business and showcase your expertise. It will most likely prove to be your strongest marketing strategy as it offers numerous benefits. Of course, you have a captive listener audience, but did you know that there are many more advantages of being a podcast guest? 

Here’s the real value in doing podcast interviews...

1. Establishes you and your company as a thought-leader, and boosts your reputation. This is because you are featured on a show in the capacity of being an expert within your field and an authority on a specific subject. By delivering valuable information and insight to an audience, you’re showcasing your credentials and experience and winning the listener's trust. It will give you an edge over your competitors. 

2. Drives more traffic to your website. If listeners like the information you provide during an interview, there’s a good chance they’ll want to learn more. Each show host will give the opportunity for you (the guest) to mention your website, giving listeners a place to go to get more information.

This can be taken a step further by having something to offer listeners as an incentive - a call to action. We all love a free gift, so make something available for listeners to receive/download when they visit your website (ideally a specific page on your site). It can be a chapter to your book or a PDF how-to-guide that can be downloaded or a t-shirt that will be mailed out to them - we’re all suckers for a free t-shirt right. This is a smart tactic that will be sure to drive traffic to your site and collect email addresses for your mailing list.

3. Each episode is ever-green marketing content that is forever searchable online. This benefit is great as there are very few marketing strategies that offer this. It means that once you have recorded an interview and it’s aired, it will remain online for a very long time, years. If you do an interview entitled “how to make a million dollars”, two years down the line John Doe can find your interview when doing a related online search. The fact that podcast episodes have no expiry date and will bring you long-lasting benefits, is of huge value to you.

4. Social Media Content. Each episode is great content that can be re-purposed for your website and social media platforms. Every business owner knows all-to-well the importance of having a good online presence. For many businesses its the difference between keeping the lights on, or hanging the “closed down” sign on the door. However, having a constant supply of fresh content to post is an insatiable beast that's never satisfied.

Podcast interviews give you new content that can be posted on your website, to your social media platforms, and added to your newsletter. Ideally, you may want to have a professional graphic template made, then post it out with the full episode link, or re-purpose the interview featuring snippets or using quotes. 

5. Organic back-links. This most-highly prized, better than gold, benefit, is achieved by each show host posting your episode to their website along with show notes or transcript. Included in that information should be your name, your business name, and a link back to your website. This will show up in search engines when someone searches for you, your company, or even something that is related to your business. The more episodes you do, the more your SEO (search engine optimization) will increase and the higher you will climb in the search rankings. Additionally, this also gives you a better chance of reaching a much broader audience after the episode airs as people will come across you, and your business, far more easily.

6. Pay it forward. As you deliver valuable advice and experience, you inform and give back, helping build a global community. Keep this in mind when you turn up to an interview. When it comes to podcasting, you will see far greater returns when you don’t sell yourself. Remember that people are listening to be entertained and/or informed, they do not want to be sold too. So give generously of the information you offer and the rest of it will naturally come to you. For more information about this read “Podcast Interviews, The Art of Not Selling”

Click here to download our free eBook, “How To Be A Successful Podcast Guest”