The Guest Process on the Human Amplified Podcast from Start to Finish
Written By Brandi Fleck
This is a rundown of all you might want to know about guesting on Human Amplified, including everything from how you get picked as a guest, what the interview process is like, and what happens after your episode airs.
Human Amplified is very grass roots and homegrown, so it’s pretty casual around here. However, I take my job as a podcast host very seriously (even though I also have a lot of fun).
And by that I mean that I want you experience as a guest to be top-notch. I want you to be comfortable and feel great about what we’re putting out into the world together.
When you come into my house, you’re treated with respect, celebrated for who you are, and appreciated for what you’re bringing to the table. I consider your thoughts and opinions and treat this process as a co-creation.
Even though there are some similarities with guesting on any podcast, there are differences too, so in this post, I’ve laid out how coming on my show usually goes, in case you’re wondering.
Table of Contents:
Being Picked as a Guest
My guests range from seasoned interviewees who have thousands of interviews and videos online to first-time podcast guests who’ve never done anything like this before. We’re all human, and we all deserve to be heard and share our stories, so all experience levels are welcome.
There are several ways you can end up as a guest on the Human Amplified podcast:
I Reach Out to You Cold
In this scenario, I’ve likely seen your posts on socials or found you on YouTube or some other corner of the internet or my community. I’ve likely taken in your story and personality for a while and decided that it would be so much fun to collaborate with you. In this case, I typically reach out via Facebook or Instagram and ask you to come on the show.
You’re Recommended by Another Guest
In this scenario, an acquaintance or friend of yours has come on the show, had a good experience, and let me know you’d be a great fit. In this case, I typically reach out via email or some other way my previous guest has recommended I contact you and we go from there.
You Submit Your Story
In this scenario, you’ve found Human Amplified in some way and realize you're a great fit, so you decide you want to come on the show.
You either email me or submit a contact form telling me why you’re a great fit for the show. And most of the time, with this option, if you’re coming on the show, you may have a publicist who does the reaching out for you.
I have no specific requirements for what to submit, but telling me topics you like to talk about, why they’re related to Human Amplified’s mission or goals, and a little bit about yourself is a great start for helping me determine if we can create a cool episode together.
I typically respond back in a couple days letting you know if we can move forward, and we go from there.
Scheduling Your Interview
Once we’ve talked about what a great theme of your episode could be and you’ve agreed to come on the show, I send you a Calendly link to schedule your interview.
I typically do interviews on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturday mornings with availability varying. This schedule could change at anytime. I also have some flexibility to add in other times, if needed, depending on your time zone, work schedule, etc. Just ask if you can’t find a time and date that work.
(Human Amplified is a seasonal show, so there are slow periods where I close interviews.)
Once you schedule, Calendly sends you a confirmation email with the date, time, and Zoom link for your interview.
Be sure to mark your calendar and save your link. (If you forget, I resend your link a couple days before your interview.)
Preparing for Your Interview
I prepare for every interview, and you might want to prepare as well. Here’s what happens on both sides.
What I Do to Prepare
I always research you, your online presence, and any products or services you’ve put out into the world before creating your interview. I make sure I understand the essence of who you are so we can bring out your strengths and also dig into some deep healing, personal topics, even if you come on the show as an expert.
If you’ve written a book and are trying to promote it, I don’t always have time to read entire books for every guest. However, I’m more than happy to look through excerpts and talk about parts of it. Or, to explore it further in interviews.
What You Can Do to Prepare
A couple of days before your interview, I email you an episode plan. It includes a confirmation of your interview time, a loose set of interview questions that will give you the gist of the interview, and the Zoom link to join your interview call.
Most guests want to see the questions beforehand, but some don’t. Either way is totally fine. Just let me know.
And, even though I send questions, know that sometimes we totally stray from them. As your answers unfold during the interview, I oftentimes intuitively pick out topics to follow and this may take us away from the planned questions. However, we can come back to them at any point. Sometimes, we follow them to a tee. And other times, we don’t get to them at all. It just depends on what comes up for you.
But, when you show up, feel free to treat the interview like an everyday conversation with me — another human who’s simply interested in who you are and how you experience the world and your passions.
I do tend to hate sales pitches in interviews. So, I have a tendency to choose guests who are more interested in authentically telling their story or sharing expertise, even if they have something to sell. More on that below…
Required Items You Provide
Before your interview, I request that you send a short bio that I can include in your show notes and read in the intro of the actual episode in some way.
I also request 3-4 lifestyle photos (they can be professional but don’t have to be) of yourself that represent you the most authentically in everyday life. These are used in your show notes page and in graphics that go into the podcast apps and on YouTube.
Having the Interview
Once you join the Zoom call at your scheduled time, here’s what goes down.
What’s Recorded
I record audio and video for the Human Amplified podcast, meaning you’ll want to be prepared to be on video. However, the recording is not live, so there will be a time lag between when you interview and when your episode airs.
Housekeeping
We do a quick check to make sure your video is on, audio is working, that lighting is good enough, and that your name is displayed correctly on the screen.
Then, I ask you to state your first and last name exactly how you’d like me to refer to you.
I then ask permission to air your episode on all Human Amplified platforms in perpetuity — just meaning forever and with no compensation. (I don’t pay for guests, and that’s how I believe podcasts should be run.) This is basically you releasing rights to the content to me. You must do this for us to proceed with the interview.
Lastly, before I welcome you to the show, I ask you the one question I ask everyone who comes on the show. You’ll have to listen to it to find out what this is!
The Interview
Once we wrap up general housekeeping, I welcome you to the show and we dive right into the interview. The interview typically lasts about 45 minutes to an hour.
I love asking deep, personal questions. I also heavily rely on intuition during the interview to direct where it goes, even though we have a loose plan already in place. I’ll dig to get to your authentic personality and try to make you think. It’s really fun!
As I mentioned earlier, please don’t make the whole interview a sales pitch. You’ll have a chance at the very end of the interview to tell listeners where they can find you and your work.
After the Interview
After the interview, several things happen.
Your Air Date
At some point after your interview, I’ll give you an air date. It’ll likely be anywhere from 1-3 months after your interview. This could be shorter or longer depending on when in the season you interview. This also depends on what type of other content is going to be airing in the show, as I create an overarching editorial calendar and air episodes in a cohesive way when possible.
Editing, Production, Distribution
When we’re nearing your air date, I start to edit your episode. I edit out long pauses, as many filler words (like “um” and “ya know” as possible - sometimes it’s not possible), and any background noises that can easily be removed. If you cough or sneeze, for example, I can edit all that out, so don’t worry. I don’t typically edit out large chunks of content, so be sure to only talk about what you are comfortable with airing.
Once the interview is edited, I produce it into an episode by adding in the show intro, any promotions or sponsors, the guest intro, calls to action, original music, and branding.
I create the graphics and also spend time laying out the show notes page, which is essentially a blog post.
I then upload the audio and video files to where I host all Human Amplified content — on my website and on YouTube. When I publish on my website, this also pushes out the audio version of the podcast episode to all major podcast apps.
I don’t always have time to post episodes on social media, but I do try.
You are more than welcome to share the episode on all your socials, newsletters, and more, far and wide.
What You Get After Your Episode Airs
Once your episode is live, I email you with links to it in all the places I host it — your show notes and on YouTube.
I also give you the graphics I create for your episode and full rights to use those graphics however you wish as you’re promoting your episode. That means you can upload them on social media posts and even host them on your own website, if you want to use them to link back to your episode or even write a blog post about the experience, for example. You can get creative with how you use them.
Sometimes, guests want to make short clips to share on their social media. This process is currently evolving, but for now, there are a couple ways to do that.
You are welcome to record 60-90 seconds of the episode with your screen recorder on your phone from a podcast player app. Capture a part of the episode that you think stands out and that would grab attention to get people to listen to the full episode.
Or, if you want to edit clips from the original video file, I can make it available to you with the following license.
***
Human Amplified® Promotional Content License
You may use this interview file to create shorts up to 180 seconds long for promotional purposes with attribution and credit given. An example is:
Courtesy of Human Amplified® with Brandi Fleck | humanamplified.com
Tag where available: @humanamplified
You may backlink to original content hosted on Human Amplified platforms, and that is appreciated.
You cannot publish/host this file in its entirety or long-form parts of it on any platform that isn’t owned by Human Amplified.
You cannot create products or services with this content.
***
This promotional license is subject to change and I reserve the right to evaluate it on a guest-by-guest basis.
Calming Your Nerves
Being a guest on a podcast takes guts, and I really am proud of the courage each guest shows as they come on the show. While some Human Amplified guests are seasoned at this and know exactly what they want to say and how they want to show up, most of my guests aren’t and don’t. And that’s totally okay!
Many of my guests show up nervous and many times don’t believe they’ll have a lot to say. But, don’t worry. I’m great at this and experienced at this. It’s my job to help you find your voice and use it. So, you will definitely find you have plenty to say and that it’s even interesting!
And because the episode doesn’t air live, you don’t have to worry about being perfect.
These guidelines at Human Amplified mentioned above are meant to support you and ease any anxiety about the process; to help you know what to expect. However, it’s not as much as it seems like.
If this feels overwhelming, I’m here to guide you through the process one step at a time, which I do for every guest, and we’ll have fun while collaborating.
Besides fun, the number one thing my guests say about this experience is that it’s cathartic.
Let’s do this!
Join the conversation!
Feel free to let me know if you have any questions in the comments.
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Hi, I’m the founder of Human Amplified. I’m Brandi Fleck, a recognized communications and interviewing expert, a writer, an artist, and a private practice, certified trauma-informed life coach and trauma recovery coach. No matter how you interact with me, I help you tell and change your story so you can feel more like yourself. So welcome!
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