Let’s get real for a minute. Nothing stings quite like getting left hanging by a podcast guest, right? Guest now shows are frustrating.

I heard someone talk about his no-show problem, he tossed out this idea of a $500 cancellation fee.

That's not gonna work, folks.

Life is unpredictable—people get sick, kids break arms, and sometimes, they just don’t feel like it. Instead of turning into the Podcast Police, we suggested a friendly reminder email on the day of the interview. Make it personal. Because who wants to show up for a chat with someone who just sees them as a dollar sign?

Pick Better Guests

This episode also gets into the value of knowing your audience and picking the right guests. I mean, if you’re getting ghosted left and right, it’s time to take a long, hard look in the mirror.

Maybe you’re not asking the right questions, or maybe your guests just don’t see the value in chatting with you. And hey, interviews are great for networking, but they can also lead to a mountain of editing.

Is It Time to Go Solo?

So, weigh your options. A solo show might save you time and make you the star of the show! Just remember, if someone doesn’t want to be on your podcast, they shouldn’t feel pressured to say yes—because being polite is not an excuse for wasting your time.

Takeaways:

1. Scheduling conflicts are inevitable; life happens, so prepare for guest no-shows.
2. Sending a reminder email on the day of the interview can really help confirm attendance.
3. Charging a cancellation fee might not be effective if the guest doesn't care about your show.
4. Building a network is crucial; follow up with guests even after the interview is over.
5. Solo shows can save time and often allow for more creative control than interviews.
6. Guests rarely promote episodes, so don't rely on them to grow your audience.

Links referenced in this episode:

1. schoolofpodcasting.com
2. Tidycal (one time fee scheduling tool)

I had someone reach out to me and ask, hey, I keep having guests not show up for their interview.

I want to charge them 250 or maybe $500 as a late fee.

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So you keep finding guests for your show and then they don't show up.

That's a problem.

It's annoying and it's also unavoidable because there's this thing called life.

But what I would do to help avoid this is send them an email the day of.

So if I'm interviewing you today at 3 o', clock, at 8 o' clock in the morning, I'm sending you an email that says, hey, just wanted to make sure we're still on for today at 3 o'.

Clock.

Here's the link.

Let me know if you have any questions.

That would be the first thing I would do.

And sometimes we automate that.

I guess that's fine.

I like to personalize it and let them know it's me.

And so that's one way this will kind of help.

And that is, can we do a pre interview?

But if they don't show up for the pre interview, you're still having your time wasted.

But I think the bottom line is really go a level deeper to make sure this person is a good fit.

Because, okay, let's go with the I'm going to charge you a $500 cancellation fee.

Well, I didn't care about you enough to show up for the interview.

What makes you think I'm going to care about your $500 invoice for being late?

What are you going to do, sue me?

It's going to cost more than the $500 to.

You know, I get the idea that you want to get somebody who really agrees that they're going to show up on time, but in the end, little Susie still broke her arm and needs to go to the hospital.

Life is always going to happen.

If it's happening a lot, then I just think you're picking the wrong people.

And this is where you know your audience, you know what they want.

And the only reason you're getting a guest is there's really two One, they have information that you don't have to deliver to your audience, or B, you're trying to grow your network.

I know everybody's like, oh, Having guests on your show will grow your show because they'll share it.

They rarely share it because you rarely ask different questions than the last five episodes they had.

And they might share it once, but just because it gets in front of their audience once doesn't mean everybody's going to drop everything they're doing to come hear your show.

And if you have that information in your head, avoid the scheduling conflicts, avoid the guests that are horrible, and just do a solo show.

When you do a solo show, you grow your influence.

When you do an interview show, you.

You grow your network.

So I understand it's awful when people don't show up.

It's rude, they waste your time.

But in some cases that just happens.

The other thing I think is funny is I get interviewed on a fairly regular basis and I'm amazed at how many people never tell me that my interview went live.

Well, how am I supposed to promote it if you didn't tell me it was live?

So interviews have some pros and cons.

Like I say, the biggest thing is it grows your network.

So don't let the interview be the last time you talk to that person.

Reach out to them every now and then just to see how things are going and build your network.

But it does come with a lot more time, a lot more editing in many cases.

And that's where you're either gonna spend time editing because you asked a bunch of questions that weren't really related, or you spent your time doing the research of this person to make sure you ask the right questions to get the right answers.

In both cases, it takes more time than a solo show.

So I'm sorry to hear that people aren't showing up.

And for anyone who is a guest, if you don't want to be on somebody's show, then don't be on somebody's show.

Don't say you're going to because you want to be a people pleaser and then leave them hanging.

That's just rude.

Now, if you need help with your podcast, you know where to find me.

Schoolofpodcasting.com use the coupon code Listener.

That's L I S T E N E R When you sign up for either a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.

And that comes with a 30 day money back guarantee along with 5 hours of one on one consulting with me.

Check it out.

Schoolofpodcasting.com I'm Dave Jackson.

I help podcasters.

Been doing this almost 21 years now and I can't wait to see what we're going to do together because I want to be your podcast consultant.