Podcast exposure isn’t the same as media credibility

Podcasts. Visibility must match clarity.

I keep getting emails from podcast booking agencies making all sorts of promises.

Here’s the gist of a recent one:

“In the last 3 months we’ve worked with 20+ 7-figure businesses to add an additional 6-figures per month through strategic podcast placements…”

And:

“We can help you land guest spots on qualified shows from our community of 75,000 podcast professionals.”

So what’s not to like?

I hand over a fee, appear on leading podcasts around the world, and we all make a great deal of money.

Fabulous.

Let’s talk about this bridge I have for sale.

Randomly booking people onto podcasts is a misunderstanding of how visibility and credibility actually work in media.

Being “booked” is not the same as being credible.

As a podcast producer - and after more than 30 years in broadcast journalism, including two decades with the BBC - I would always source my own contributors.

Every episode has a narrative.

So you look for people who can genuinely add something:

• authority

• expertise

• insight

That’s the starting point.

It’s also the question anyone asked to appear on a podcast should be asking themselves:

Why me?

What can I add?

What do I get out of it?

Because it takes time.

And like any interview, it requires preparation.

For long-form interviews like podcasts, that preparation needs to be rigorous. Messaging needs to be clear, structured and tested.

You also need to decide whether the podcast is right for you.

Who produces it?

Who funds it?

Who sponsors it?

What audience does it reach?

What perspective does it take?

If someone is working with a “community of 75,000 podcast professionals”, it’s unlikely they can answer those questions in any meaningful way.

There is, of course, a difference between this and how professional PR teams work.

Publicists will often pitch clients to specific programmes - but they do so with an understanding of the format, the audience, and the editorial direction.

There’s a logic to it.

There’s a fit.

As a producer, you recognise that immediately.

And if it works, it works.

If it doesn’t, you simply say no.

Matching the person to the story is essential.

And if you’re that person, you need to decide whether the story - and the platform - is right for you.

Reach isn’t everything.

A large general audience can be valuable.

So can a smaller, highly engaged specialist one.

Both can build credibility - if the fit is right.

Out of curiosity, I decided to test one of these booking services.

For a retainer just north of $2,000 a month, I was offered appearances on a “leading fitness influencer’s life hack podcast”.

I had never heard of the influencer.

The show existed, but hadn’t released a new episode in over a year.

What content there was… I’ll leave that there.

I don’t do gyms.

And the audience alignment with my own work was, at best, questionable.

When I asked whether any of their “community” might include shows focused on snake oil or bridge sales, the response suggested the system had not quite anticipated the question.

Podcasts can be powerful.

They can build profile, credibility and reach.

But only when there is a clear match between:

• the platform

• the audience

• the message

• the person speaking

Visibility matters.

But without clarity and credibility, it doesn’t take you very far. This is where media training comes in.