32: Thought leader series - Podcast guest speaking

Episode 32

Thought Leadership Series

Podcast Guest Speaking

Today’s episode shares a strategy that grows your thought leadership by consistently speaking as an expert in front of other audiences as a podcast guest speaker.

This year I moved to an agency model to help clients get booked on podcasts as guest speakers because I found it’s an incredible way to grow your business. In this episode, I discuss why you should consider adding podcast guest speaking as a key component of your marketing strategy as well as tips on how to get started and show up as a thought leader.

Why do I recommend that you include podcast guest speaking as part of your marketing strategy?

It’s important to reach out to your existing audience to nurture those relationships but consistent growth happens when you get in front of new audiences on a regular basis.

Speaking as a guest expert on someone else’s podcast benefits you because that host has an established audience who trusts them. When he/she introduces you as an expert in your field, the audience will automatically associate you as an expert in your field without requiring you to sell yourself on why you are an expert. Your credibility is built in. What a relief!

As a platform, podcasting is unlike other digital marketing platforms because more than 80% of people tune in for an entire episode, which often lasts for 30-60 minutes. This gives ample time to share who you are, your stories, what’s influenced you, and your recommendations. In a single episode, you can accomplish what would otherwise take nearly a dozen touchpoints. It’s an incredibly fast way to grow the know, like, and trust factor to build your authority and generate quality leads.

If this sounds like something you’d like to learn, tune into today’s episode to take a deeper look into how to grow your business and authority with podcast guest speaking.

A glance at today’s episode …

>{ 1:56 to 2:49 } Since podcast guest speaking is my agency’s signature offer, I’m today’s featured speaker and am sharing all of my top tips on the subject. Find out why I shifted my business to emphasize podcast guest speaking and why I recommend you include it in your marketing strategy.

>{ 3:19 to 3:43 } Podcast guest speaking grows your business by introducing you to new audiences as an authority and expert in your field. When you turn this strategy into a system, you will experience consistent growth by continually speaking in front of more of your ideal audiences.

>{ 5:20 to 5:55 } Podcasting is a unique platform because 80% of audiences tune in for the entire episode. Most episodes last 30 to 60 minutes, giving you ample time to showcase your personality, expertise, wisdom, and recommendations. You can cultivate new relationships with a brand new audience in a single episode.

>{ 7:41 to 8:20 } How do I go about it? What do I recommend first? How do you maximize your efforts?

> { 13:50 to 14:17 } You’re booked, now what? How do you prepare to be a great guest and show up as a thought leader? What should be the focal point of the interview? How do you monetize your efforts?

>{ 22:51 to 23:18 } Once your episode airs, that episode’s link will go to work for you for years to come. Learn several benefits of each episode and how to maximize your results.

Links in the episode & ways to reach Christie

www.christiebilbrey.com

[email protected]

Download my free guide: 10 Tips to Grow Your Business as a Podcast Guest

Instagram: https://instagram.com/christiebilbrey

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christiebilbrey/

Episode Transcript

00:00:48:04 - 00:01:29:07
Speaker 1
Hi. Thanks so much for joining today. Last week on last week's episode, I started a new series that is all about how to become a thought leader because there are so many incredible benefits and if you haven't listened to that episode, I would encourage you to check that out. And essentially what I'm going to do over the course of this series is go deep into several different platforms and invite on different guests who are experts on those platforms to talk about how you can become and show up as a thought leader on those platforms.

00:01:30:00 - 00:01:55:20
Speaker 1
Here's what I recommend Check out the series as a whole. Listen to what people recommend. And then you decide which of those platforms make the most sense for you to add to your marketing strategy so that you can really grow in your business as a thought leader. Today's episode is about podcast guest speaking, and I am the featured speaker for this one.

00:01:56:04 - 00:02:21:10
Speaker 1
Some of you may not know, but this year I started something new and I moved to an agency model to start really ramping up, helping clients to get booked on podcasts as a guest because I have found that it is an incredible way to grow your business, grow your authority. Well, I'm getting a little bit ahead of myself, but that is what today's episode is all about.

00:02:21:10 - 00:02:49:15
Speaker 1
So I'm going to share some reasons why I think you should consider this for your marketing strategy as one key component And then my tips on how to go about it, how to really show up as a thought leader on this platform. All right. So here we go. Why am I doing this? Why do I recommend that you include podcast guest speaking as part of your marketing strategy?

00:02:49:21 - 00:03:18:24
Speaker 1
There are a lot of reasons for. For some like first, I would say that I hear from clients all the time how much time they spend creating content that's great content, but it's going to the same people who love them, cheer them on, work with them. And that is wonderful and that's needed. But you're not going to grow the way that you do if you're consistently getting in front of new audiences.

00:03:19:11 - 00:03:43:02
Speaker 1
Podcast guest speaking is great because you can consistently get in front of new audiences that are your target audience and you can do it typically from your house for 30 to 60 minutes at a time and then move on with your day. So it's a really easy thing to plug into your marketing to consistently get in front of more of the right audiences.

00:03:43:07 - 00:04:08:23
Speaker 1
So that's one that's actually kind of two reasons. Another is that it's a really great way to up level your brand. Here's the thing. You can create content all day long where you are essentially selling yourself on why you are an expert, why you are credible in some area, and there's all kinds of ways that you can go about that.

00:04:09:12 - 00:04:50:16
Speaker 1
But here's what makes podcast guest speaking different. You are going on to someone else's show who has an established audience. Their audience loves them, their audience trust them, and the host brings you on and introduces you as an expert. So everyone in that audience, their impression of you right out of the gate is that you are an expert in your field and that someone who they trust, this host believes enough in you to bring you on and have you share your expertize to their audience so you don't have to sell yourself on why you are an expert.

00:04:50:16 - 00:05:19:16
Speaker 1
It's kind of just built in, which is amazing. And so that's the second reason that I recommend that you do this And the third is attention. So if you are doing any kind of digital marketing, then you probably know that is the scarcest resource there is people zip through, you know, scroll as fast as they can. It's hard to just get attention and time from someone, whether it's ads posts, whatever.

00:05:20:13 - 00:05:55:05
Speaker 1
Podcasting is really unique because people tune in for the entire episode but it's actually kind of a stunning statistic. More than 80% of podcast listeners tune in for the entire episode. Most episodes are 30 to 60 minutes. So when you think about how quickly people scroll through posts on social media and ads that's kind of insane. To get that much time in front of your audience is pretty incredible.

00:05:55:14 - 00:06:19:04
Speaker 1
So why? Why does that matter? Well, if you think if you think about it, people need to know like and trust factor, and that typically takes time because you typically only get little snippets of time in front of an audience. But when you're giving an interview for 30 to 60 minutes, you really have a chance to share stories of what impacted you, shaped you.

00:06:19:11 - 00:06:54:21
Speaker 1
Tips that you recommend in your area and why. What are trends, what's going on? I mean, you have time to get into all kinds of things. Plus, you really show your personality so people can get to know you much, much faster than they would on other platforms. I have had it's not unusual to get clients, and I feel like almost any time I speak, whether it's in-person or on a podcast, I will have people reach out to me, Hey, I want to talk to you about working with you.

00:06:54:21 - 00:07:21:00
Speaker 1
I heard you wherever on this show or in this place, and I want to talk to you. So that is wonderful because that makes selling easier. And a lot of time they're reaching out because they already think you're really great. So, again, less selling on your part. And I love it when selling or when sales calls really don't require a whole lot of selling So that's another benefit of doing podcast guest speaking.

00:07:22:07 - 00:07:41:04
Speaker 1
I feel like it's just it's kind of like, why not you know? Is it the only thing you should do in marketing? No. But is it something that I think you should? I definitely do. OK, so let's move on. So I've kind of shared this is why I think it's wonderful. This is why I think you should do it.

00:07:41:09 - 00:08:01:17
Speaker 1
Now let's get into how do you go about it? What do I recommend first? Of all, it really comes down to your brand and your brand strategy because you don't want to waste time. You don't just want to go on shows for the sake of going on shows. You want to make sure that it's the right show to really build your audience, bring in the right leads.

00:08:01:23 - 00:08:20:09
Speaker 1
So what do you need to do to make sure that's happening? Well, you need to know who is your ideal buyer. You need to think about who is kind of the perfect person that you wish you could just clone and have more of in your business when it comes to your clients. So think about that. Think about who is that person?

00:08:20:23 - 00:08:48:16
Speaker 1
And you may have heard the term of a buyer persona or an ideal avatar. There's variations of that. If you have not gone through that process, that exercise, it doesn't have to take very long. It can take like 15 minutes, but it will help you make sure that everything you do with your marketing just speaks to that person and helps those those right people get connected to you more easily.

00:08:48:16 - 00:09:18:13
Speaker 1
So if you've never done that, I do have you can find in the show notes a freebie that I have called create your buyer persona so that you need to make sure that you know who you're going after. And once you know who you're going after, you need to look at shows that target that audience, find those shows, make sure that any shows you're reaching out to are going to target your ideal audience next is focusing on pitches.

00:09:18:20 - 00:09:49:04
Speaker 1
So once you know who you are looking for, think about what is it that you solve for them? What are those major topics? Write a few down, what are the biggies? And then try to rework them to turn them into speaking topics. What are your excuse? What do people really want to know with that? Or what's really juicy, more controversial, something that would make for an interesting conversation and will lead host to say, Oh, that that would be really cool.

00:09:49:04 - 00:10:14:18
Speaker 1
I think my audience would tune in for that because that speaks directly to them. OK, so you need to have your topics for your audience. What's next? You really I recommend having a one sheet media kit and it just makes life easier for the host because it pretty much gives them a quick overview of everything they need to know to make sure you would be a good fit for them.

00:10:15:09 - 00:10:39:12
Speaker 1
You need to have your bio, you need to have a headshot, you need to have your speaking topics and links or icons with links to previous shows or places that you've been featured as a speaker, or maybe with articles, whatever the case may be, but it's essentially a really quick snapshot of Here's who I am, here's why you need me on your show.

00:10:39:17 - 00:11:02:02
Speaker 1
And it also includes essentials like promotional things, right? They're going to want to include your headshot in their promotional materials. They're going to want your website, they're going to want your links, your social, your social accounts. And then they're going to want your bios so that they can introduce you. Right? So so some of that is necessity and some of that is just a little bit of, oh, wow, this person would be wonderful.

00:11:02:02 - 00:11:30:10
Speaker 1
OK, so you need to include that in your pitch. Now, let's talk about the actual pitch. What are you supposed to say in this pitch? First of all, you want to keep it short because tldr they're just going to skip right past it if it's super long. OK, so what should you jam pack into those few sentences in the pitch you need to first of all, let the host know that you know their show and what they're all about.

00:11:30:10 - 00:11:57:15
Speaker 1
Because if you don't know what they're about, then they're going to say Why in the world do you think you'd be a good guest on my show if you don't even know what my show is about and you don't even know who my show caters to? So you need to make sure that you're doing your due diligence, do some research, check out their website, check out their description on their podcast page, listen to a couple episodes, see the type of guests they have on there, and make sure that you're a good fit because you don't want to waste your time.

00:11:57:23 - 00:12:19:22
Speaker 1
And they don't want to waste their time either. So make sure it's a good fit and that you just communicate I love your show because why? Why do you enjoy their show and why do you think you would be a good fit? All right, so that's, you know, a couple sentences make sure that you communicate exactly which topics you think would be perfect for their audience.

00:12:20:07 - 00:12:51:02
Speaker 1
And, you know, let them know you're interested. Ask them if they want to book you. It it really does not need to be a huge effort. You're probably going to include a sentence or two on your bio and you want to showcase some of your great things, some of your credibility pieces. But that's really it. It's really just if you sentences that are packed with exactly what they would need to make a decision and you want to make that really, really easy for them, oh, this is a no brainer.

00:12:51:02 - 00:13:11:24
Speaker 1
This person is perfect. For my audience. They would love this topic. Yep. Let's get them booked. So that is essentially what you need for the pitch. Now, they are bombarded by people who also want to be guests on their show, so don't take it personally. If you don't hear back right away, it's not uncommon to have to follow up.

00:13:11:24 - 00:13:31:21
Speaker 1
Just like everything else in business, you really need to follow up. So make sure it's not just a one shot effort. Really keep tabs on who you've reached out to and make sure that you're following up and just asking if they're interested, if there's anything else that they need to make a decision. And that's really it. So that's the pitch process.

00:13:31:21 - 00:13:50:17
Speaker 1
Now let's move into Yay, you got booked. You have a show coming up. Now what? How do you prepare to be a great guest and show up as a thought leader? OK, well, it requires a little bit of thought. And so you need to think about why was it that I wanted to go in there? What do I want to share with them?

00:13:50:22 - 00:14:17:17
Speaker 1
What do I really want them to leave this interview coming away with? And you need to think in terms of generosity. So whether they ever decide to work with you or not, what is it that you really want them to come away with from that episode? And this should just be from the heart. So you know, your area of expertize, you know your passion, why you care about it, that needs to come through in whatever the topic is.

00:14:17:22 - 00:14:47:07
Speaker 1
So you don't just want to speak in terms of general pieces. You want something that's really actionable and you want to let them in on who you are. So take a little bit to think about who's this person I really want to connect with and what is the main message I want to say. So you can have that in your mind when you go into it because the clear your head is in exactly what you want to say, the easier it's going to be to make sure your core message and who you are come across in that interview.

00:14:47:14 - 00:15:12:24
Speaker 1
OK, what else should you do? You need to think about a call to action. So the more specific you are with your recommendations, with the stories that you share, the tips that you have for them, make sure you're not all over the map with those. Make sure you're really driving at one specific thing. Because if you want to monetize this, if you want to grow your list, bring in the right leads.

00:15:13:05 - 00:15:35:01
Speaker 1
What is the one thing you really want to drive them to do? You have a freebie or do you just want them to reach out to you through your website, through your social media, but you want it to be about something specific. So for instance, something that you should do ahead of time with hosts is find out if they are OK with you mentioning your freebie.

00:15:35:12 - 00:16:00:13
Speaker 1
Some people will be some people won't be, and you just that's OK either way. You just want to make sure you know, so that they're not upset if you bring something up that they don't want you to bring up. Right. So some people are fine with you being really direct, saying, yeah, I have this great free resource, ten tips for whatever it is that you do and that's how you're going to get them on your list and start nurturing them as a lead.

00:16:00:13 - 00:16:21:02
Speaker 1
Right. Well, some people are just going to be a little bit more. They don't really want to push that kind of aspect on their audience. So they're just going to say, if you enjoy, you know, so and so today, then you can learn more about them on their website or you know, make sure that you tell them the social channel that you're you're on the most frequently.

00:16:21:10 - 00:16:38:22
Speaker 1
Now, what are you going to do in those places? Well, on your social channel, you can typically include a link and you can have a link to a freebie. So that's where if they found you, they can follow you and they can learn how to contact you and how to start getting on your list. You can do the same thing on your website.

00:16:39:03 - 00:17:03:12
Speaker 1
You can have a pop up with your freebie or contact you to, you know, book a discovery, call, whatever it looks like in your business. So sometimes you can be really direct. Sometimes you need to be a little more indirect, but you always need to be thinking, Where do I really want to lead those ideal prospects? And I want to make sure that's available to them no matter which avenue they pursue.

00:17:03:23 - 00:17:23:11
Speaker 1
So that's a little bit of, you know, the preparation thinking ahead. And you might also just think through what are a few stories that I can share and they can be stories that are personal to you. It can be something that one of your clients experienced. It could be a story of someone who was a mentor to you, someone who shaped you.

00:17:23:16 - 00:17:42:21
Speaker 1
It could be a story from the news, just something that's going on that you want to speak to, to help them get a better sense of a the subject matter. Be who you are, the way that you think. So they can say, Oh, OK, I really like her approach to this. I like the way she thinks through these things and stories.

00:17:42:21 - 00:18:04:20
Speaker 1
Stick with people. So if you want them to remember you, you want them to remember what you're talking about, share a story about it. That's just the best way to go about it. So that is how I recommend you do the prep ahead of time. OK, so you get in there, you're ready to go, you've done your preparation, you had a great interview.

00:18:05:04 - 00:18:26:19
Speaker 1
Now what do you do? Well, first of all, make sure that you always thank the host afterward. Definitely send an email following up, just really, you know, being appreciative that they took the time to have you on as a guest and the some of the best ways that you can really demonstrate your appreciation is to promote the episode.

00:18:27:02 - 00:18:47:04
Speaker 1
However, whatever channels you have, if that's email marketing, social media, you want to make sure that when that link comes out, that you promote that with your audience because that's a great way to thank the host. And, you know, word gets around so other hosts are going to know, oh yeah, this person's amazing. She totally promoted. It was great.

00:18:47:22 - 00:19:08:07
Speaker 1
Well, OK, what else can you do? So you can thank the host, you can promote it on, you know, wherever you market yourself. And you can also make sure that you have that on your website so you can have a featured section that might be on your home page and you can have a link. And that's going to do a couple of things.

00:19:08:07 - 00:19:29:04
Speaker 1
It's going to promote the show. It's also going to promote that you are an expert who is sought out, right? This is all about thought leadership. So you have been sought out and brought on as a guest expert on all these places. Well, those are also linking back to the site of the podcast. So the host is going to appreciate that.

00:19:29:10 - 00:19:50:02
Speaker 1
One other way you can really appreciate the hosts is leave them a review on. You know, if you're on Apple, if you're on Spotify, however you listen to podcasts, make sure that you just take a minute to go on and leave a thoughtful review for that show. All right. So those are great ways that you can kind of start to maximize it.

00:19:50:02 - 00:20:09:09
Speaker 1
And then another tip is you're probably going to be reaching out for more shows in the future, right? Well, what better way to show that you are a known quantity, you're not someone who they have to worry about. If I bring this person on, are they going to know what they're doing? So you can tell them, I was just featured on this show.

00:20:09:09 - 00:20:34:03
Speaker 1
You can provide the link to it and it just makes them feel like, OK, this is someone I can trust. This is someone others seek as an expert on their shows, and I can get a little sample of what it would be like to have them on my show so you can use it for future pitches, use it on your website, promote it on your social media, promote it in your email marketing, all those things are going to go a long way in showing that you're a thought leader with your audience.

00:20:34:12 - 00:21:05:22
Speaker 1
And when you link, especially in public places online to that show, then you can also, especially LinkedIn, you can start to connect with their audience as well, even if they didn't listen to the episode. OK, so those are some reason, those are some ways that you can maximize your efforts. A couple things that I didn't maybe specifically mentioned earlier so SEO, right, SEO search engine optimization is really, really important.

00:21:06:06 - 00:21:31:21
Speaker 1
And what is that to you every time that you are on a podcast episode that now is a link that lives online and you are going to end up in the show notes of those podcasts. So that's essentially a summary of the podcast and that's going to have links to your website, probably to your social channels. Well, for one thing, what does that communicate to Google's algorithm?

00:21:32:08 - 00:22:03:18
Speaker 1
When other websites are linking to you, it's going to show that you are an authority, OK, all of these different places are linking to your website. That means your website is an authority that's going to boost you in the algorithm. So that's wonderful. Obviously. Now let's say somebody hears about you, find you somewhere. What are they probably going to do if they think that they're curious about what it would be like to work with you, they're going to Google you.

00:22:03:24 - 00:22:25:20
Speaker 1
So when they Google you and they see 20 links show up that you've been featured in all these different places, that's also going to help them realize they might not put the term, Oh, this is a thought leader, but they're going to note This is an expert in this area, OK, they seem a little more trustworthy. All these people are seeking them as an expert.

00:22:26:00 - 00:22:51:14
Speaker 1
So it helps. Again, make it easier to sell you for a client, you know, future client skills for future opportunities that could be in person speaking that could be online speaking, that could be, you know, to be featured in publications. There's all kinds of things possibly collaborating with another really high level influencer, a speaker, whatever the case may be.

00:22:51:22 - 00:23:18:10
Speaker 1
So there are so many reasons that once you do an episode, it's going to go to work for you for years. It's just incredible. I highly recommend this just to fast track you to becoming a thought leader and making it easier for you to show the level of expertize that you have and just to make sales more easily so that is all I have for you today.

00:23:18:10 - 00:23:38:13
Speaker 1
I hope that was helpful. And if you do need a little bit more help creating your buyer persona, you can grab that freebie in my show notes. And if you want more tips on how to grow your business as a podcast guest, you can also grab a freebie in the show notes on that. If you have any questions for me, you can do me on Instagram.

00:23:38:19 - 00:23:48:04
Speaker 1
You can email me at Hello at Christie Bilbrey dot com and I hope you have a great week and I look forward to seeing you next time.