A podcast that features guest interviews can be a major marketing asset…until your guest pipeline dries up.

At that point, you start getting desperate, loosening your qualifications and considering fringe guests that don't quite align with your target audience. Your listeners begin to notice, and stop tuning in. Even with a twice-monthly publishing cadence, it can be hard to get off this hamster wheel and build out your episode buffer.

I call this 'Podcaster Hell' and it’s a b*tch. But it’s possible to get out…

How to get out of Podcaster Hell:

Getting out of Podcaster Hell takes creativity and a little bit of gumption. Podcasters must balance a normal production workload with additional effort in outreach and analytics.

1. Be flexible with release dates

First, it's important to remember that it's OK to push a publication date. In business podcasting, it's better to be consistently relevant than having a consistent publishing cadence. Especially if the topic of conversation is evergreen.

I'm not saying you should go months between episodes, but if it means pushing out a week or two for a more relevant interview, it's worth it. Remember; you are in control.

2. Consider alternative episode types

Can’t find your next guest? Publish a different kind of episode. Here are a few different kinds of episodes to mix in with your guest interviews:

Monologues: Just a host and a mic (and some good visual overlays for YouTube). These episodes give your audience a chance to hear directly from you instead of your guests. Ken Lucci from the Ground Transportation Podcast is fantastic at monologue episodes. Check out Grind to Great: 10 Signs You Own a Job, Not a Real Company:

Compilations: Recycle the best moments from past episodes through the lens of a common theme. For example, if you ask a similar question to all your guests, compile clips of those answers and stitch them together with a monologue. Recently, we helped Wheelhouse DMG produce a compilation episode called Marketing Measurement Your CFO Actually Cares About:

Internal guests: Instead of relying on external guests, you could feature a subject-matter expert from within your own business. In fact, featuring your firm’s subject matter experts is a great way to reinforce your company’s culture. Check out how a podcast did this for an accounting firm in Florida: Asking For A Friend, with Bethany Silvis.

3. Measure outbound conversion rates

Next, you need to understand the lead time and conversion rates for outbound outreach to target guests. If it takes 10 outreach targets to net one new guest, now you know how many you need to reach out to each month. Here are some baseline conversion rates to monitor:

Connection rate (responses / total sent): How many responses did you get to your initial message?
Schedule rate (recordings / total sent): How many recordings happened as a result of outreach efforts?
Average time in pipeline: How long does it take from initial outreach to recording session?

These are key metrics to understand how many prospects you need to reach out to each week/month in order to yield enough buffer in your production queue.

4. Nurture prospective guests

When running outbound campaigns, your messaging and cadence are important. Sometimes, a little reminder or nudge is all you need to spark a response.

It's critical to stay organized and manage outreach in your CRM or at the very least a spreadsheet. I've had plenty of successful outbound campaigns managed in Google Sheets.

What Awaits You in Podcaster Paradise?

Once you get out of Podcaster Hell, things just start to click. Here are some of the benefits you can expect with a stable, consistent podcast operation:

You have breathing room and are able to operate more proactively
You have more comfortable conversations with guests you actually want to talk to
You start to see downloads, views, and engagement metrics go up and to the right
You start to have more conversations with qualified business opportunities
You have more speaking opportunities at conferences and events
You unlock new revenue sources, like sponsorships and ad sharing on YouTube

Yes, getting stuck in Podcaster Hell sucks. But when you can turn your podcast into a sales and marketing engine, it gets so much better. Are you ready to get out?

Podcaster Hell: Where No Show Host Ever Wants to Be