If you’ve listened to the first two episodes of The Podcast Guests show, you’re clear on why it’s a good idea to start a podcast, as well as how to do it. Now let’s learn a little more about the kinds of success real podcasters are achieving as a guest, a host, or both. Listen to episode #3 now.
Jay Shifman
Jay Shifman is both a podcaster and a guest where he spreads his message about mental health and recovery. He’s the founder of Choose Your Struggle, a podcast with the mission of ending stigma and promoting honest and fact-based education around mental health, substance misuse, and recovery and drug use.
Shifman started his show back in 2020 because he wasn’t hearing many people sharing stories about their recovery. Because of PodcastGuests.com, Shifman is now a sought-after speaker on the topics of drug policy and the history of the war on drugs.
As the world opens back up post-pandemic, he’s also getting invitations for in-person events. “I did a TED event last year that I was invited to be the headline speaker for a TEDx. The world is still opening up very slowly and those avenues are very choosy,” he said.
In the competitive world of speaking engagements, podcasting is a good on-ramp for gaining visibility. It’s a great way to promote yourself and your brand, hone your message and determine what resonates well with the audience.
The number one piece of advice Shifman has for potential podcast guests is not to be afraid of rejection. PodcastGuests.com can help with that because everyone participating is actively looking for guests, and the guests are actively looking to get booked.
“The [newsletter] email takes away that fear because here are people who you’re not pitching them out of the blue. They directly want to hear from you,” Shifman said. You can sign up to receive the newsletter at PodcastGuests.com.
He also gave a tip for pitching to podcasts.
Michelle E. Dickinson
Michelle E. Dickinson has been a member of Podcast Guests since 2018, also speaking on mental health and emotional well-being. She credits Podcast Guests for helping her sell copies of her book, Breaking into My Life, about growing up with a bipolar parent and her battle to reclaim herself.
For Dickinson, her ultimate podcasting goal is to reach as many people as possible. “My goal for 2022 is to reach 10,000 lives and it’s really about opening up a conversation that wasn’t going to happen without me talking more openly, getting people more comfortable with mental health,” she said.
She said that because of the Podcast Guests platform, she’s been a guest on at least one to two podcasts per week. To get that volume of invitations, Dickinson noted the importance of updating one’s one-pager frequently.
“We [as guests] need to stay relevant, and we need to be talking about the real issues in real-time,” she said.
Dickinson also had some advice for potential podcast guests. “Do as many as possible to start to become more comfortable with the curve balls that come your way and just be authentic because that’s what makes a great podcast.”