Crafting a Successful Podcast with Tim Lewis

Episode 105 of the The Best Guest podcast, hosted by Victoria Bennion, titled "Crafting a Successful Podcast with Tim Lewis" was published on January 30, 2024 and runs 49 minutes.

January 30, 2024 ·49m · The Best Guest

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Episode Description

In this week's episode of The Best Guest we welcome Podcast Host and Author, Tim Lewis.

We talk about:

Business Travel and Benefitting from Airline Schemes
What Podcast Hosts Look for in Guests
The Pros and Cons of Creating a Live Show vs a Recorded Show

About Tim Lewis

Tim has been self-employed since 2014, first writing science fiction and fantasy books, then the book Social Media Networking in 2018. After that Tim was been more concentrated on social media training and helping people self-publish their books. Tim was the host of the Begin Self-Publishing Podcast between 2016-2019 and run the #indieAuthorChat Twitter chat for the Alliance of Independent Authors between 2019-2022.

Tim is the co-host of the Oh No! Not Another Live Show!, a general interest interview show and runs the Book Chat Live show on Amazon Live and YouTube where he talks to authors and book lovers about their favourite books.

He is also the creator of the Tim Lewis TCF YouTube channel where Tim talks about his efforts to visit every state in the US (currently at 49 states - one to go!) and general travel advice from a serial US traveller.

Key Takeaways

Airline Loyalty Program Tips: It's important to understand different airline schemes and the nuances in earning points and tier statuses. Tim's strategy involves taking specific flights and understanding the value of tier points, especially for business and first-class travellers.
Podcasting and Guest Selection: Tim emphasizes the importance of tailored pitches and how lack of research into the show's context can impact guest selection.
Challenges in Guest Coordination: Lewis emphasizes the effort required from potential guests when pitching for shows. Many fail to follow through with requirements, such as providing book lists for "Book Chat Live," causing difficulties in scheduling and creating episodes. His advice is for potential guests to understand the show's format and fulfil necessary tasks when pitching.
Unscripted Podcasts: Podcasts come in diverse formats. Some shows follow structured scripts and predetermined questions, others prefer a more unscripted and spontaneous approach, allowing for more natural conversations.
Podcasting Challenges: The time-consuming nature of editing, learning curves associated with audio/video editing, and the need for consistent quality and skills to maintain audience engagement.
Podcasting Strategy and Audience Growth: Podcasting might not be the top-of-funnel solution to gain a massive audience immediately, but it's an intimate medium that, when used strategically, can contribute to audience growth and retention further down the funnel. Also, being a guest on podcasts is a beneficial strategy for networking and reaching new audiences.