Before starting to interview guests, you might be thinking, “Do I have to pay all of these people?” and the short answer is no. You don’t, and you shouldn’t. Both parties are gaining something from the interview if both parties are relevant to each other.
As a potential guest, you also may be wondering what you would be gaining from an interview. Interviews will not only give you a chance to share your story, but also market what you are selling or promote yourself via social media. You gain an audience. You do have to be careful with appearing on shows that don’t match what you are about, because it could be a waste of everyone’s time. But, with that said, give hosts a chance. Many podcasts just starting out are looking for anyone and everyone to talk to, to allow for a bigger following and new content.
Many podcast hosts feel like they need to pay their guests, when in reality, if you are promoting them, it is a win-win scenario for both parties. If you are emptying your pockets every week to gain interviews, you are asking the wrong people. In this post you’ll learn how both the host and the guest profit from an interview — again, not talking about money.
How Both Parties Benefit From an Interview Without Hurting Your Pockets
Inviting guests to appear on your show is a win-win scenario for both the host and the guest. Plus, it’s a great way to grow your podcast even more with guests promoting the podcast they were on. Podcast guests are not normally paid because both parties are gaining an audience from it, or even if the guest is promoting something like a book, for example.
How Podcasts Benefit
Podcasts typically create content on a weekly basis, needing new ideas and topics each time. Bringing a guest on the show can help bring forth new ideas and fresh perspectives. Guests on your show will usually promote your podcast, bringing in new listeners as well.
On the more nerdy side of things, it can also boost your SEO rankings and generate some backlinks for your podcast. What is SEO you ask?
SEO - Search Engine Optimization: The process of improving the quality and quantity of website traffic to a website from other search engines. In English, it basically means your website will gain traffic because it will be higher ranked on Google.
How Guests Benefit
As a guest, listeners will be able to engage with what you have to offer and increase your following, or your sales if you are promoting something. You are able to deliver useful information to the podcast and its audience, or even just sharing your life story that may help people in the long run.
If you are a potential guest on a podcast show, ask yourself these questions:
- Am I speaking to an audience that matches my targeted market?
- Is the host generous? (not talking about money)
- What am I gaining from appearing on the show?
- Has the host offered to promote me in any way?
It is important as a guest to make sure that you are benefiting from the interview. There is a high chance that you will feel like it was a waste of time if you don’t get to talk about what’s important to you, you don’t get promoted the way you wanted, or if the host is a jerk… forget it.
Guests Don’t Usually Ask for Money
Podcasting is a form of journalism — a lot are interview based. But at the same time, it can also be considered a hobby. It all depends on what your goal is as a host. Most of the time, guests are not going to be asking for money because they are gaining something by being a guest. Plus, “How much am I getting paid?” really means “I don’t want to talk on your podcast unless I am making a profit.” Your guest is making a profit… but not monetarily. They will profit in terms of promotion.
Also you have to keep in the back of your mind: What does this guest have to offer? Am I getting fresh ideas and an enjoyable episode with this guest?
Never, ever, ever, invite a guest who is not thrilled to appear on your show. This situation could create a super awkward recording for both you and your listeners, and the interview would be a waste of time. You may even lose followers because of this.
Pro tip: If your guest also has a podcast or website, promote it and exchange interviews! This is a bonus for both of you. It gives you a chance to promote yourself on another platform or website, and it also gives you the exposure and experience of being a guest on a different show.
Be Flexible & Generous
If guests are willing to appear on your show, the last thing you want to say is, “I’d love to have you on; I can squeeze you in on [day] around [time].” You want to make your guests feel like they’re worth your full attention, instead of “squeezing” them in. Being flexible and accommodating to your guests will also make them feel better about the interview. It’s nice to feel like you matter and your time is valuable, which it is! Would you like to feel like an afterthought if you were invited onto someone’s show? No thanks.
Since you are not being generous with your money (hopefully no one asks you to be), be generous in other ways. It is so important to make your guest feel like they are getting something out of being on your show, and if that means they’ve gained a friend, then that’s great.
In addition to gaining credibility, you may also gain some additional reach and exposure if your guest spreads the word about your show. It is a win-win for everyone.
High Profile & Celebrity Guests
When starting out as a podcast, you won’t really be able to offer a guest as much audience and promotion, so money may come up. If you already have an established podcast, money probably won’t be a thing because you are both trading services and benefit.
With having said that, it is common courtesy for both hosts and guests not to ask for payment. Yes, some hosts ask for payment. They are referred to as “fraudcasts.” Bottom line, just wait until you are a little bigger to start asking for high profile guests to appear on your show.
The big question is: How do I invite these high profile or celebrity guests to my show? How do I even invite someone to my show? We got you covered.
How to Invite Someone to a Podcast
Using tactics like networking, website platforms, and research will help you get started on finding the right guest for your podcast. Creating an exciting subject line, a great pitch, and knowing your reader are all important factors when contacting guests to be on your show. It can be hard to find guests, so we made a guide to help you with that. We also include a template email you can use to invite someone to appear on your podcast.
Check out our post How to Invite Someone to a Podcast for more information.
How to Make Money on Podcasting
Okay, we covered that guests do not usually ask for money. Now, let’s get you making some dough. As a newer podcast, you can sign up for affiliate programs using websites or get sponsorships from other companies.
Affiliate Programs
Affiliate marketing is when you receive commission when you refer people to other companies. When someone makes a purchase, you earn cash.
This works best if it matches your brand. For example, if I had a mental health podcast, I would promote therapy websites for my listeners. This allows you to authentically promote them and you will probably earn some money by doing it. You can create your own ad to promote an affiliate if you do not have the biggest podcast, too.
Here are some websites I recommend using while finding affiliate marketing opportunities:
Digistore24 is “an integrated online store.” It’s a platform to find affiliate programs that match your podcast. It also uses common payment methods like PayPal.
ClickBank is a website for marketers who promote affiliate programs as well. The best way to use this website is to start an affiliate, promoting pages that have already been optimized.
Sponsorships
Sponsorships and advertising are very common with podcasts. As a podcast sponsor, companies will pay you to promote their goods or services on your podcast.
Again, it is important to select sponsorships that match what your podcast is about. If you promote something that is unrelated to your podcast, it could result in losing listeners because they are not interested in hearing about a dog food when your podcast is about self-help. Ya know?
If you have more than 5,000 or 10,000 listeners per month, you can work with a majority of networks that connect you with advertisers. They even do all the work.
Here are some websites I recommend using for sponsorships:
Midroll matches you with advertisers. You control how many ads your show will have. You control it, they do the work for you.
This site can connect you to advertisers, as well as promote your podcast.
Conclusion
So, do podcast guests get paid? No, not with money. Instead, they gain promotion and an audience willing to hear what they have to say. Both the host and the guest gain something from it, whether it is fresh content, a break from being the only one talking, or both parties promoting each other. If you get lucky, your guest may even have their own podcast and you can trade interviews. This allows for you both to be in each position — a fair trade.
But is it impossible to charge money to be a guest on a podcast? Hmm… you are pushing your luck asking a podcast to pay you for an interview, but it isn’t impossible. If you were Morgan Freeman, which I doubt Mr. Freeman is reading my post, then yeah. Of course. I mean, know your worth, but also remind yourself of the host’s worth, too. Knowing that you have the potential to share your story and help others from it is an amazing feeling. Promoting yourself and what you have to offer will also earn you more followers and sales.
Overall, the way a podcast becomes successful is to start with the right guests. The potential of sharing new information that your listeners care about gets you so far. You form a brand. It won’t mean anything to your listeners if you are interviewing someone about something that has nothing to do with your show. You’ll potentially even lose a few listeners in the process.
In the end, instead of worrying about paying your guests with money, worry about your gratitude and flexibility, as well as interviewing the right person.
