Tips to elevate your podcast pitch

Paying attention to industry trends can help public relations professionals better understand how to respond in a way that will benefit their clients. This may help reduce the chances of PR opportunities falling through the cracks. An industry trend that continues to experience explosive growth is podcasting. Public relations professionals should take notice of this trend because podcasts can help improve PR strategies. This means that podcasts provide an opportunity for PR professionals to get their clients featured or interviewed. Yes, you guessed it! Podcasts can now be a PR tool added to a PR strategy as it is an effective medium to get a brand’s message to the masses in an engaging way.

Is pitching for a podcast interview the same as pitching traditional media? Let’s find out. This article will discuss why podcasting is beneficial for PR and look at a few tips on how to pitch for a podcast interview.

Why podcasting for PR?

Scoring a podcast interview for a client allows their brand to gain authority and trust. This can be achieved through building a connection with people who listen to the podcast as they gain insight into your client’s brand behind the products or service offering. Podcasting is one of the many platforms that offer realism and authenticity that deep-dives into topics that just wouldn’t be covered on the platforms like radio. Interviews on the radio are normally scheduled for 10 minutes or less. Podcasts tell a longer, more intimate story which affords the ability to connect with guests on a very personal level. Brands will then build much more than a quote in a print magazine or an image on social media. A podcast really allows listeners to get to the heart of who brands really are.

Tips on how to pitch to podcasts

If you are familiar with pitching to the media, then you will not find it hard to pitch to podcasts. However, if you are not familiar with media relations, here are a few tips to get started:

List prospects

Just like any other media pitch, research remains important. Start by putting together a list of “on-topic” podcasts you would like to approach. Basically, this means that you will be looking for podcasts where your brand matches the podcast theme. So, ask yourself, is my client’s brand relevant to that podcast? Make sure that you will be pitching to the right people. When pitching musical content, it would not make sense to approach a magazine that only publishes food content. The same applies to a podcast pitch, always ensure that the content you are approaching them with is relevant. That is why research in media relations is important. What you could do is check out the traditional media that you are already working with to see if they have a podcast. This is becoming more common as media houses are moving with the times in order to stay relevant. Anyway, if they do then you can simply approach them. This will be easier as you would have already established a relationship with them.

Find a gap

Find a topic that hasn’t been covered. Approaching podcasts where your client’s competitors have been featured can be beneficial too. However, it is important to make sure that you are approaching the podcast from a different angle. Hence, again the emphasis on research. Find out which topics or touch points competitors were focused on. This will help you pitch with a fresh take. If your pitch focuses on the same points as your competitors’ interviews, then high chances are the podcast would not grant your client an interview opportunity. This is because they would have already covered the topic and it would not make sense to cover the topic again. If possible, approach the podcast with something exclusive.

Listen to the podcast

Remember, to create a top-tier pitch, you must learn a little about the podcast first. This means listening to a few episodes to get a feel for the themes, types of questions asked, and the host’s interview style. Also, consider your client and brand personality too. This will help present an offer they would not refuse. Craft a pitch that will make your client stand out from the crowd as podcasts rely heavily on storytelling. When pitching, ensure to promise a story that will keep listeners engaged. Focus on what would benefit people that listen to podcasts. Do you want to know why? Well, the most important consideration for the podcast producer is whether or not your client will entice people to listen to their podcast.

Tell a story

To stand out from the crowd, podcasts rely on excellent storytelling. This means your podcast pitch needs to promise a captivating story that will keep listeners tuned in and encourage engagement. As you create your podcast pitch, focus on the benefits of the people who listen to the podcast. Explain your client’s expertise in the subject and share the specifics of the valuable information they can provide.

Final thoughts

Podcasting is a trend that will drive the PR industry to new heights. Tailoring PR pitches to any type of media helps you create messages that speak directly to their interests. It steers away from one-size-fits-all pitches and instead presents an eye-catching idea that’s hard to miss. As a result, you have a much better chance of being granted an interview by podcasts you target.