Podcast guests. How to find, invite and prepare them.

Who to invite

Start with the people your company wants to reach. On Future of Hospitality the guests are general managers, owners, asset managers and revenue leaders: the people hotel suppliers want to meet. They come on to talk about their own work, not about anyone's product.

Three groups work for a B2B show:

• Buyers: the people you would like to sell to. The invitation itself opens a door, which is what our Lead engine is built on.
• Practitioners your buyers trust: a revenue manager, a head of HR, a hotel director with a story to tell.
• Your own customers, talking about what changed in their work. Keep it about them, or it becomes an ad nobody finishes.

Where to find them

• Your own list: customers, prospects, and people you met at events.
• LinkedIn: search by job title in your market, and look at who writes and comments in your field.
• Past guests: ask every guest who else should be on the show. Good guests know other good guests.
• A guest page on your site. Future of Hospitality has a short form for people who want to be on the show, with a reply within two working days.
• Guest directories such as PodMatch or PodcastGuests.com. They bring people who want exposure, which suits a general show better than a show that has to reach one group of buyers.

An invitation to copy

Keep the invitation short. Say why this person, what the conversation is about, how long it takes, and what they get afterwards. Ask for a yes, not a call to discuss.

Subject: Guest on [show name]?

Hi [first name],

I host [show name], a show for [who listens] about [topic]. I'd like to have you on as a guest to talk about [what they did, in one line].

It's a 30-minute conversation, recorded online. No slides, and no preparation beyond a short briefing we send you. You can pick a time here: [booking link].

Afterwards you get the full episode and your own clips to share.

Would you be up for it?

[your name]
[role, company]

Email or LinkedIn: what the rules allow

An invitation to a business contact can count as marketing email, even when it is about a podcast. In the US, CAN-SPAM makes no exception for business-to-business email: say who you are, include a postal address and offer a way to opt out. In the UK you can email a company (a corporate subscriber), but sole traders and partnerships count as individuals, and data protection still applies to a named work address. In the Netherlands, Germany and the rest of the EU the rules for unsolicited email are stricter, so we invite there through LinkedIn and our own network. This is how we work, not legal advice; check the rules for your market.

Before the recording

Send every guest one briefing: the topic, the three or four questions you plan to ask, how long it takes, the recording link, and what to have ready. What we ask about microphones, headphones and light is in our remote recording guide. Have the guest accept a release form before you record, so you can use the episode and the clips everywhere.

The host prepares too. Coach writes one prep document per guest: who they are, why they matter to your listeners, the questions worth asking, and an intro and outro to read.

After the recording

Thank the guest the same day, and send the episode when it goes live. Then give them something to share. On Future of Hospitality every guest gets the full episode on YouTube, Spotify and the site, their own clips and Shorts, and their name and photo on the guest page. A guest who shares the episode takes it to exactly the people you want to reach. Kit builds that media kit for every guest, and our promotion guide shows what else goes out.

How we do this for a client

With Lead engine, Booker invites up to four guests a month in your name, from your own domain, and runs every guest from yes to thank-you: booking, briefing, reminder, recording link, thank-you and their kit. You approve the list and every message before anything goes out.