The podcast advertising market is projected to reach $3.46 billion by the end of this year.
Brands, creator economy companies, and creators are constantly fishing for the ideal podcasters to get featured on their podcasts to meet different marketing goals.
On the other hand, PR and podcast hosts seek guests for their upcoming podcasts. Both sides are looking for a service, tool, or strategy to connect them for a collaboration.
Podcast outreach is the process of reaching out to podcasters to appear on their show, offer them services and tools they can use, asking for a paid collaboration, advertising, etc.
Currently, there are 150 million aired podcast episodes. So, it takes a lot of time to find a podcast relevant and worthy of listening to. Luckily, you can use tools to filter potential podcasters so you can:
- Promote your business
- Build credibility and authority
- Create a podcaster/guest wishlist
- Collaborate with the podcast host
This article focuses on podcast outreach both for reaching out to hosts and to guests, how to do it, and much more.
3 Reasons You Should Do Podcast Outreach in 2024
Podcast listeners are highly potential customers because they:
- Listen to ads: Studies show that 86% of podcast listeners listen through podcast ads despite the skip button.
- Trust podcast ads: About 55% of the podcast audience purchased an item they heard on a podcast.
- Engaged with the media: 70% of Americans say they listened to a podcast in the past week.
These are the 3 simple reasons to start doing podcast outreach and boost your business. Plus, the podcast advertising industry is expected to grow by $2.4 billion by 2024.
The Complete Podcast Outreach Guide
There are several ways you can do an effective podcast outreach. We picked some of the best approaches below.
Identify the target audience
When defining the target audience, consider the demographics and interests of your audience. Then, look out for podcasts that align with those specifications.
For example, if you are selling a product in Europe, there is no point in reaching out to an American podcaster with over 100K subscribers to promote your product.
Also, if you are targeting business professionals and tech-savvy people, you need to reach out to podcasts in the tech business niche that are a credible source for those people.
Search podcast directories
Take advantage of Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify to find the perfect guest for your podcast. Select your category, topic, or keyword, and you will end up with the list where you can begin your search.
For example, you are a female activist working on a project you want to promote and call other feminists to action.
To do so, go to Spotify and type “feminist podcast” and select “podcasts & shows”. Spotify will show suggestions for the keywords that you can start researching them.
Browse social media and other platforms
YouTube is by far the most popular platform for podcasts and it has over 2 billion active users and 24.2% of active listeners.
Second, there is Spotify with 5 million podcast titles, and 23.8% podcast listeners. Twitter, or X Spaces Tab, also makes some room for podcasts.
To find podcasts on these platforms you can leverage the platform’s search bar and use keywords to find podcasts from a specific niche, etc.
Plus, if you’re looking for YouTube podcasts, you can use YouTube BrandConnect. It’s a platform that connects creators and brands.
Otherwise, Instagram and TikTok are not typical platforms for podcasts. They are more suitable for fast news, tips, or advice. Podcasts are lengthy content compared to a reel.
Explore podcast discovery tools and outreach services
However, if you need a custom list of filtered podcast hosts, consider using specialized podcast outreach tools such as Postaga or Influencers.Club.
Influencers.Club
At Influencers.Club we have a database of 80M+ creators, including 50K+ podcasters on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok, that are searchable by 40+ filters.
Plus, we have podcasts that are streaming on Patreon and other creator platforms.
For all podcasts, we have a verified email address, info about their brand collaborations, presence on other social media platforms, etc.
This is how we can maximize your podcast outreach strategy:
- Get a list of podcasts and do podcast outreach independently – We can give you a list of podcasts per your criteria along with valid email addresses and 40+ data points so you can learn more about the person behind the podcast. You can use that knowledge to handle the outreach by yourself.
- Let us find the best podcasts for your specific needs and handle the podcast outreach – We have a team of 50 creator outreach experts who have experience reaching out to both smaller podcasts and podcasts with 100k+ subscribers.
- Additionally, we have a free search tool you can use to find YouTube creators who are posting podcasts in just a few seconds.
Postaga
Postaga also offers a solution for streamlining the process of podcast outreach. Using Postaga you can find relevant podcasts, obtain contact information, and send outreach emails.
To do podcast outreach you need to:
- Launch a new campaign
- Search and select relevant podcasts
- Select contacts for your email sequences
- Choose or create an email sequence
- Launch the campaign immediately or at the scheduled time
Search through keywords on Social Media
Use social media platforms as a resource for finding guests for your podcast. Instagram or Twitter are the best kickoff points for your research. Select the relevant filters on the platforms to nail down the list as explained below.
First, enter your keyword and be specific as below:
Tap on the reels, tags, etc, to see more content and expand your search.
Craft personalized email copy
After filtering your podcast match suggestions, the next step is to prepare the email. Usually, podcast hosts receive numerous emails per day, and you need not only a catchy subject line but also a personalized email copy that will spark conversation. Here’s how to do that:
- Catch on their podcast: Hook your target hosts with a tone, speech, and topics they are already familiar with. Listen to a few podcasts that can help you pick up the relevant information you can later mention in your outreach email.
- Pitch your host: Your email must highlight the main values for you and the audience. The content must be skimmable, and professional.
- Choose the right wording so you can catch the eye of the person you are reaching out to. For example, you listened to a podcast host speaking about how it’s hard to find good guests. So write a subject line like ‘where to find podcast guests when you think you already have them all as guests.’
Use email templates
If you’re not feeling confident about writing the email, you can use some of our best-performing creator outreach templates.
We send emails to millions of creators around the world. Our refined, on-point, and catchy templates bring us satisfactory open and reply rate results which you can see above each template.
You can look for a suitable email template, copy it, and reach out to your potential podcaster. The email has it all, you need to fill in the gaps to personalize it.
Podcast Outreach Tips for Hosts Looking for Guests
If you are a podcast host looking for guests to book for your upcoming podcasts, or looking for guests to meet marketing goals, follow these steps:
Define your ideal guest
To increase the number of listeners to your podcast, you can do it two ways:
- Introduce an expert in the field: For example, if you have a podcast about Writing, you can invite an expert in AI to provide you with accurate insights about the impact of AI in writing, ways to maximize the tools, etc. The point is, that providing trusted information related to a trend happening at the moment is the easiest way to boost the number of listeners.
- Invite a popular star: This is another way of increasing your number of listeners. Out of curiosity, many people would be interested to hear what the celebrity has to say.
However, when choosing the ideal guest make sure that it aligns with your values. Otherwise, you’re risking losing trust and interest in your listeners.
Searching relevant podcast guests
Once you identify your target guest profile, you can start looking for names. There are several options of how you can do that, and some of them include:
- Referrals: Your guests can be a reliable asset. Ask them if they can recommend a person that fits your target profile. This may be one of the reliable free ways to do it.
- Public events: You can find many potential guests at public events related to your field. You can strike up a conversation just to get to know them, and if you have a prepared pitch, you can even propose your invitation.
- Search through social media platforms: Social media platforms have searchable options by keywords, tags, locations, etc. You can search for the ideal guest like this, but it might take you some time to review the profiles.
- Use our dashboard to find your ideal guest: Our database contains over 80M creators that ensure you get connected with potential guests who may not be under your radar. Also, you can use our free tool mentioned above.
3 steps to reach out to potential podcast guests
Reaching out to your guests is just as difficult and important as reaching out to a host. The approach is similar, but there are a few additional strategies that will help you get a positive reply.
If you have a guest with a reputation longer than your experience, you should always choose to reach out through email. Otherwise, emails are not only professional but very practical. Unlike sending messages over DMs that are usually capped in a number of characters, emails are much more flexible.
However, the same rules apply to the email content. You need to keep precise, professional, and straight to the point to avoid ending up in trash or spam.
Our creator outreach team sends 800K+ emails per month with a high success rate. The template for inviting guests to your podcast has an avg. open rate of 83% and a reply rate of 64%. You can use it as it is, or as a guideline to create your unique template.
Connect then send your proposal
Before you start writing your email invitation for your guests, connect with them on social media. Prove that you are really interested in meeting them, and express how your similar views can be beneficial for your podcast (sometimes even for them).
For example, if they are unique creators, and you have a podcast about entrepreneurship, you can mention that their story aligns with the value of your podcast and how it would give a new perspective to the episode. It goes without saying – the email must be error-free.
Use tools
If you’re just starting out with your podcast, and you have zero connections, creator outreach platforms are ideal options. These tools can connect you with potential matches, through specific filters you apply before you start the search. Then, follow the above-mentioned pitching tips to craft your ideal mail.
You can use Influencers.Club creator discovery platform and find guests from all niches among the 80M+ creators available in our database.
Other than discovering potential guests and getting the email address, you can partner with us and let our team of 40+ creator outreach experts reach out to creators to continuously invite guests to your podcast.
Let us find and reach out to guests from your podcast
From niche creators to influential people with 100k+ followers, we can find and contact them all.
To Sum Up
Whether you are looking for guests for upcoming episodes, or podcasts to get featured on, using a podcast outreach tool or outsourcing Influencers.Club will bring you continuous results and save you time and effort.
Anyways, to conclude to have a positive reply, you must ensure that the podcasters or guests are well-targeted. This way you stand a better chance of getting a reply and collaborating.
FAQs
There are many ways to collaborate with a certain podcast. Some of the most popular are advertising, sponsorships, appearances, or PR.
Podcasts are a great place to promote your product or service because they have loyal and highly engaged listeners who will surely remember your products. Plus, podcast outreach helps businesses build relationships with industry experts.
First, you must know your target audience. Determine that and look for podcasts with similar interests as yours. Also, consider the location. Use their directories, guests, and social media.
First, you need a goal and objective you want to meet with a given podcast. The main indicators of a successful podcast are the number of downloads, website traffic, social media engagement, lead generation, etc.
