I own a podcast production agency since 2020, yet I’m here to tell you it’s often better (for business) to be a guest on other people’s podcasts than to start your own.

Allow me to contextualize this though…

Hosting your own podcast does have a lot of benefits in terms of building an audience, increasing your perceived authority, and positioning you as an expert in your field.

But it takes time. Often way more than you expect. Especially if you’re not already somewhat known.

And this is what many experts were never told when they launched their podcasts.

So how can you leverage podcasting to grow your expert business when you want this growth to happen quickly?

Be A Guest On Other People’s Podcasts!

There’s a reason I’m so passionate about podcasting –as a medium– and specifically about being a guest on podcasts.

In 2013 I ran a stem cell clinic in Cancun. At the time the clinic was struggling to stay afloat and we didn’t have a budget to advertise. Yet somehow I was approached by a guy who hosted a podcast about medical tourism. He had had some inquiries about stem cell therapy and wanted to interview me on his show.

Less than a week later we recorded a 40 minute interview via Skype.

I remember thinking how simple everything had been. I didn’t have to leave my office. I didn’t have to prepare anything specific. I simply showed up on time and had a conversation about my field of expertise.

Overall it was a really fun experience.

Yeah but… how did it help your business?

Shortly after the interview aired, we began getting more inquiries on our website.

And frankly, that was expected. I mean, we had just been exposed to a new audience so it made sense some of them were curious enough to book calls. But you know what wasn’t expected?

When compared to the calls we used to get, these calls were easy.

I did not have to explain the same thing over and over to every new person. So instead of me spending the first 20 minutes of every call going through the basics of how stem cell therapy worked, we could go straight into discussing their specific condition and whether or not stem cell therapy could help.

Why? Because the podcast had educated them beforehand!

So instead of having 90+ minute calls that ended in “send me more info” we were having 20 minute calls that were all about them and how we could help. And instead of having to follow up with every person for 6 months (or more!) before they decided to book a treatment, they were going from curious to patient in 45 days on average.

Needless to say, podcast guesting became our staple marketing strategy.

And here’s how you can grow your business being a guest on other people’s podcasts:

When I decided to retire from clinical medicine and focus on entrepreneurship, I obviously turned to podcast guesting as a way to grow awareness for my services.

Unfortunately, the results –or lack thereof– were not nearly as good as those I enjoyed while at the clinic. Perplexed, I began looking at how I conducted my interviews while at the clinic vs the more recent ones and found a few key differences.

If you’ve done podcast interviews before, and haven’t gotten the results you expected, you may have missed one (or several) of these:

1. Single topic

When you’re an expert in any given field, you can talk about several things related to it.

In fact, you’ll often be tempted to do so. But this is a surefire way to dilute your “expert status” with the listeners.

Think about it.

Imagine you’re listening to two lawyers being interviewed on similar podcasts (I know… rather watch paint dry 🙊 but stay with me).

They’re both specialized on intellectual property. One of them is talking exclusively about ownership of your digital courses and whether users can download and/or redistribute it, etc. And the other one does touch upon that but is also talking about greedy record labels exploiting musicians, European law on the digital ownership, and even throwing some corporate law in the mix.

Which of the two would you consult if you learned your courses are being pirated online?

The first one of course. Because that’s all they spoke about. Which makes them the expert in this field.

Case in point, when being interviewed on podcasts, make sure to talk on as narrow a topic as possible. And stay on that topic throughout the interview.

2. Guesting funnel

The mistake is thinking you go into podcasts so listeners can follow you on social media and then, maybe, visit your website and become your patient.

Instead, you should strategically craft a funnel that will bring visitors to a landing page, and capture their information in exchange of something valuable for them. (This is called a lead magnet and if you don’t know what that is, I’ve written about it before). This will put them into a “nurture” sequence in your online marketing platform, educating them and bringing them closer to becoming a patient.

All without you (or your staff) having to manually follow up with anyone – until they’re ready to take the next step.

3. Single CTA

On every podcast interview, the host will ask you something along the lines of “where can our listeners go find out more about you (or your service/product)?”

And the mistake I see lots of podcast guests do is have a bunch of calls to action here. They’ll blabber something like “well… my website is at superdifficultname.com and you can find me on instagram @myforeignmaidenname and on tiktok as hardtosayname_dallas”.

And then they wonder why all the time they spend on podcasts doesn’t pay off…

Instead get a simple, short, easy-to-say URL that you can direct everyone to. Make this your landing page for all podcasts. In it have your lead magnet and also links to your social media pages.

Now imagine the host asking where can people find out more about you and you simply say: “just head on over to pgf.me and you’ll find the links to everything there.”

4. Be memorable

Last, but certainly not least, be memorable!

When you consider how many podcasts the average listener listens to, you’ll realize how easy it is for them to forget about you the moment your interview ends. The way to avoid it is not by name-dropping your school or mentioning your credentials or accolades. It is by telling engaging stories.

Have you noticed how celebrities go around late night shows to promote their movies?

If you pay attention, they always have these incredible, engaging conversations with the hosts. Every guest has always had something hilarious happen to them in the last 48 hours and they can’t believe they’re talking about it on tv… It all looks –and sounds– natural, unscripted, and spontaneous. I’m sorry to break it to you but it’s none of these.

These are scripted, likely made up (or exaggerated) and very much rehearsed.

I’m not saying you should make up stories but you should absolutely think about stories that relate to the topic you’re discussing on podcasts. And practice saying them over and over again. Record yourself and listen to it. Practice the delivery, the tempo, the emphasis.

You can have the most amazing discussion about a highly specialized topic but if you don’t give the audience something to remember you by (a story), they simply won’t.

Are you ready to give podcast guesting a shot?

Then check out my Guesting for Profit workshop. It includes everything you need to successfully promote yourself and your business –without spending money on ads– by being a guest on other people’s podcasts.

​Guesting for Profit is a pre-recorded workshop I conducted last year and which I'm relaunching in a few weeks as a standalone program.

That’s it!

See you next Saturday,