How to write a podcast pitch email: the 5 parts hosts say yes to
A podcast pitch email that gets you booked fits in five sentences. It shows you know the show, says why the audience would want the episode, gives proof that matters to them, shows you're a good guest and asks for one reply. Your bio and your list of topics go on a speaker sheet you link to.
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What gets a podcast pitch deleted?
I've hosted 120+ episodes and read hundreds of guest pitches. When I thought about starting a podcast booking company, I asked 40 hosts what makes them say yes to a guest. I also asked what makes them delete the email. Their answers matched the pitches I delete as a host:
- A fake fan opener. Josh Thomas, a podcast host I know, gets about ten pitches a day and joked that more pitches claim his show changed their life than people listen to it.
- An email that could have gone to 500 other shows.
- Three paragraphs about the guest before any reason the host should care.
- The wrong topic for the audience, like a B2B sales method pitched to a wellness show.
- Writing as if the host owes you a spot.
- Making the host do homework, like three links, a form and a call before they can decide.
A PR firm once pitched my old show with four paragraphs of bio and five topics for me to pick from. It offered to send the one-sheet if I asked for it. Another publicist opened with Forbes and Inc mentions, listed eight topics from podcasting to staying fit as a father, and added his follower counts.
The 5 parts of a pitch email hosts answer
- A connection to the show: name two of its recent episode titles. My team does this in almost every pitch, because it shows the host we looked at the show.
- Value for the listeners: bring an angle they don't hear every week. Joe Ingram's show, Sales Genius, covers sales all the time, so I brought three exercises on how to structure a business.
- Proof for this audience: two or three results those listeners care about. On an agency show, my proof is that I grew my own agency from $0 to $700K a year.
- Evidence you're a good guest: a 40-second intro video, a past episode or a recorded talk.
- One next step: "Reply if one fits." Leave out any request for a call to discuss whether to have you on.
Mine links to my speaker sheet, which carries the bio and the full list of episode ideas.
The direct pitch my team sends
We send this one when we know the show and have a clear episode for it. Here it is written for you to send yourself:
Subject: Guest idea for [Podcast Name] Hey [Name], I saw your episodes "[title 1]" and "[title 2]" and thought I could add to that conversation with one of these: - [episode idea] - [episode idea] - [episode idea] [One proof line for this audience] Speaker sheet: [link] Past episodes: [link] Reply if one fits. [Your name]
For the next show, change the two episode titles and pick the ideas that match what that show covers. Add a line about the host only when something stood out to you.
Ask first if a new show is taking guests
For a show we know little about, my team sends a short email with one question before we pitch anything:
Subject: Taking guests? Hey [Name], I was searching for podcasts in [your field, such as "the agency space"] and found yours. It looks like a place where I could talk about [topic]. Before I send over my speaker sheet and all that, are you taking guests right now? [Your name]
Leave the show's name out of this one. Hosts who say yes get a few episode ideas, the speaker sheet and a booking link. Josh Thomas sent the same short question to events he found on Eventbrite. He got five invites to speak, and one paid for his travel.
When you already know the host
Send a warm pitch only when you and the host have met or were guests on the same show. Start with one line on how you know each other. Then give two episode ideas and a link to your speaker sheet.
What to send when the host doesn't reply
About 80% of my podcast bookings came from a follow-up after the first pitch email. Put the day 8 follow-up on your calendar when you send the pitch. On day 8, reply in the same thread:
Hey [Name], bumping this up in case it got buried. The episode I'd start with is [episode idea]. Let me know either way.
When weeks pass with no replies from any show, go back and score your show list again.
In my Podcast Guesting Program, we build your speaker sheet, show list and pitch emails together on our first call. The free Get Booked on Podcasts workshop is an hour on getting your first interviews.