Let’s talk about the dreaded part of podcast guesting: cold outreach.
Have you ever received a multi-paragraph long LinkedIn message telling you how special you are, even though every action it gave told you you weren’t? How about a message saying it would be an honor to have you on, even though it was clear it was just for them? If either of these hit home, you’ll know exactly what we’re talking about.
We’ve seen it all:
- “Click this link to apply to be on our show.”
- “Let’s podswap!” (But we’ve never spoken before.)
- “You’re such a great fit” (For our sales pipeline.)
These types of messages aren’t just annoying, they’re damaging. They ruin the relationship before it even starts by starting with a take. They’re transactional, not relational. And worst of all? They pretend to honor the guest while doing the exact opposite.
Let’s call it what it is: bad podcasting etiquette.
So what does good outreach look like?
At Ringmaster’s core, we believe your podcast should be a marketing asset, not a bait-and-switch sales machine. That’s why we’ve built our entire guesting process around one core idea: start with a give.
When we handle podcast outreach for our clients, here’s how we flip the script:
- No call-to-action in the initial message
- No link dumps
- No flattery that we don’t mean
- No tell-tale signs of marketing messages
Instead, we lead with:
- A real, human message
- A tone that’s warm, professional, and aligned with your brand
- A clear understanding that we are a reflection of your company
- Ensuring we don’t send the same message twice
And it doesn’t stop with the invite.
Where a lot of podcast guesting goes wrong is what happens after the guest says yes.
That’s when it switches to: “Thanks for being on the show! Now here’s our pitch deck…”
But that’s not how we operate. We protect your guest experience all the way through, from cold outreach to post-recording, using our Ringmaster Guest Importance Methodology™.
We plant the seed of who you are and what your company does without ever pitching it outright. It’s subtle, smart, and it doesn’t make guests feel like they’ve walked into a sales ambush.
They leave feeling like they just created a strong new connection, not like they were sold to.
You only get one first impression and for our clients, it starts with us. We do guesting right because we know that at the end of the day, it’s real relationships that convert.
No smoke. No mirrors. Just conversations that matter.