How to Deliver a Killer Introduction of Yourself As a Podcast Guest in 2023
So you've been invited to appear on a podcast (did we do that for you?) - awesome! You clearly seem interesting to the host and you're ready to tell the world about what you do, spreading the word about your business in the process. But how do you deliver a killer introduction of yourself at the start of the interview and why is that important?
First impressions count - especially on podcasts
If you've ever found yourself excited to listen to a podcast episode and, within a few minutes of hitting 'PLAY' found yourself tuning out, it's almost certainly because the guest had NO IDEA how to answer something as simple as 'Tell us a little bit about your backstory'.
It sounds like the easiest question in the world - after all, everyone knows about their own life right? So why do you find yourself hooked listening to some people and bored to tears listening to others?
Popular wisdom says you've got about seven seconds to make a positive impression on someone when meeting them face to face (actually it's more like a 10th of a second). So when you're talking on the phone, over a video feed, or in a studio, you've probably got somewhere between the two.
What difference does delivering a killer intro of yourself make anyway?
Answering that first, all important question from a podcast host should be the easiest thing in the world. After all, everyone knows their own backstory right?
They sure do. But not everyone knows how to deliver that backstory in a way that makes them sound like someone worth listening to.
The truth is, it's easy.
There's a simple 7-step framework that I use when answering that all important 'tell us a little bit about yourself' question. It's got podcast hosts raving about what a great guest I was because I made the interview simple for them from the outset - giving them all kinds of different potential lines of questioning to go down.
It's also had people reach out to me, telling me how interesting and inspiring my story is and how much it resonated with them as a listener. And it continues to get me invitations to speak on podcasts with bigger and better reach.
It looks like this.
You can steal it too and make people DESPERATE to hear your story.
(And don't think this intro is just for podcasts or interviews - you can even use it on your About page, like I did.)
Your 7-step framework to delivering a killer podcast introduction about yourself
1. Set the scene with your 'impossible' obstacle
The biggest mistake podcast or interview guests make when asked to introduce themselves is going back to their exit from the womb. I'm sure you were an interesting kid but, honestly, until you sell at least 2 New York Times bestsellers noone is going to care much for extended details about your childhood unless it specifically relates to what you're doing now.
Instead, start with where you knew you were going to quit your job / become an entrepreneur / create your current business.
Tell people what it was that you initially struggled with.
Here's what I often go with:
I'd never run an online business before. So when I finally branched out to create one, I spent thousands of dollars advertising online. None of it brought me sales.
See that? Just one or two sentences did the job. Don't overcomplicate things here.
2. When you were facing that obstacle, how did you feel?
When describing your obstacle in the first step, you metaphorically made eye contact with the person on the opposite side of the room. Now you're going to walk over to them with the favorite drink and - in the process - leave them amazed that you knew what it was.
Here's what I say:
I didn't want to fail and go back to my old corporate job, but it was so much harder to get my business off the ground than I thought it would be. I lost confidence in my ability to be successful.
See how, although your journey is different to mine, you can probably relate to that? Whether it was fear or letting your family down, being shamed by industry peers, or maybe your secret sauce is fear of failing in public.
Popular wisdom says you've got about seven seconds to make a positive impression on someone
Whatever it is, the two sentences in this step will - done right - stop people in their tracks.
3. What external forces were feeding that fear?
You're aiming to keep building the pain here, by spelling out exactly what was feeding your fear in step 2. For me that's:
It didn't help that I was constantly seeing success stories on LinkedIn and hearing podcasts about founders who had gone from zero to thousands of sales seemingly instantly.
4. What was the moment that sparked a change of course?
You must have had one. Otherwise you'd still be riding the train in your old life (Sliding Doors reference anyone? Side note: have you seen Everything Everywhere All At Once? What a movie!).
My spark was:
Then I got invited to do an interview through an old contact.
5. What happened next?
You went viral?
You saw how easy it could be to help people with [your service]?
Your mum made a t-shirt to celebrate and THAT became a million-dollar business?
Me:
I was blown away by the response I got to posting a link to my interview on my social channels. People responded in a way they hadn't to my other online posts. They were genuinely interested in my journey and what I was doing now.
6. Who or what was your sensei?
Sure, steps 4 and 5 were exciting, but they weren't the end of the story. No siree. You got to work. Where did you look for advice, guidance, or knowledge? Who kept you blowing in the right direction?
This is what I did:
I learned as much as I could about digital marketing on a budget. At the same time I was expanding my network by interviewing business leaders in my niche.
7. And what was the result of it all?
This is a two sentence summary of where you are right now. Not what you hope to achieve or think you'll do in the future - where you are right now as a result of everything.
AVOID THIS MISTAKE HERE: Don't deal in 'hopes', 'one day soon' or 'maybes'. You want to be seen as someone who is ROCKING their current path as a result of where you came from in step 1.
So be positive, upbeat, and confident about what you're doing in the world. Here's what I usually end with. I love it when these words come out of my mouth because it is my truth and absolutely represents what I'm doing in the world.
Find your version:
I never looked back. I went from struggling to get anyone to take notice of me, to speaking to some of the most influential people in business and helping other entrepreneurs get their businesses noticed by people who matter.
How long should this intro of yourself take to deliver?
About 45 seconds.
But if you can do it in less than 30 you'll wow your host and have listeners on the edge of their Peloton seat.
Bonus: don't forget to tell people how to find out more about you at the end of the podcast!
ALWAYS mention your website - spelling it out can seem like overkill but it's awesome if you're on a podcast that could have listeners who speak english as their second or third language.
And feel free to drop in your main source of social activity. One only, because you want to build your presence on one platform to start with and branch out from there. Anymore than this is overkill and is going to spread people too thinly and - by default - have you running from platform to platform answering DMs as your social presence grows.
Ok, that's it, my seven-step framework from delivering a killer intro on any podcast you're guesting on.
TLDR:
It's vital to deliver a brilliant, short introduction if you want to keep podcasters and podcast listeners hooked. Here's the 7-step intro framework I use, edit it to suit your own journey:
I'd never run an online business before. So when I finally branched out to create one, I spent thousands of dollars advertising online. None of it brought me sales.
I didn't want to fail and go back to my old corporate job, but it was so much harder to get my business off the ground than I thought it would be. I lost confidence in my ability to be successful.
It didn't help that I was constantly seeing success stories on LinkedIn and hearing podcasts about founders who had gone from zero to thousands of sales seemingly instantly.
Then I got invited to do an interview through an old contact.
I was blown away by the response I got to posting a link to my interview on my social channels. People responded in a way they hadn't to my other online posts. They were genuinely interested in my journey and what I was doing now.
I learned as much as I could about digital marketing on a budget. At the same time I was expanding my network by interviewing business leaders in my niche.
I never looked back. I went from struggling to get anyone to take notice of me, to speaking to some of the most influential people in business and helping other entrepreneurs get their businesses noticed by people who matter.
Let me know in the comments how using it went for you!
Rob Barratt is Co-Founder of The Industry Leaders and is passionate about helping small business owners get the attention their business needs without spending a fortune on ads.
After creating and selling his first business (a restaurant), Rob found out just how hard it is for entrepreneurs to get the word out about their businesses without having $000's of dollars a month to spend on ads.
This realization lead Rob to create The Industry Leaders and offer opportunities for entrepreneurs to get published alongside industry leaders and appear on podcasts in their niche. You can find out more about publishing and podcast opportunities here.
