Hands up!
Who thinks it's easy being a podcast guest?
After all, you just turn up, chat with the host, answer a few questions and let people know where to contact you at the end, right?
Perhaps that's the case for casual guests. But seasoned podcasters know that, really, a great deal of preparation, effort and expertise goes into the making of a memorable podcast interview.
As a guest, you'll start by thinking about the critical insights you want to reveal and the stories you might tell to illustrate them. You'll research the podcast and their audience. Ideally, you'll listen to a few episode to get a feel for the tone and note any regular sequences or questions. You'll prepare to be generous with your time and expertise.
But one thing you might not have thought about before now is the value of a great soundbite.
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What is a soundbite?
I'm glad you asked.
If you had to distil your message down to one, short memorable statement what would it be? Say that out loud, and you've got a soundbite.
In podcast interviews, a soundbite (aka sound bite) is a short, impactful statement or comment that goes to the heart of your message. It's a key point that grabs the audience's attention and is very easy to share as a snippet or clip on social media.
An effective soundbite can stand alone but also encourages further discussion.
It depends on the podcast, its audience and your listeners. In one podcast your soundbites could be emotionally provocative, in another words of wisdom. while a third might be entertaining gems, especially if you're a storyteller or comedian.
Why should podcast guests speak in soundbites?
Mastering soundbites helps you make a lasting impression with the host and their audience and helps your message resonate long after the episode is over.
A soundbite gets your main point across succinctly. Pause, to show it's finished, then go on to elaborate if necessary, or let the host follow up with more questions.
You can't give your whole podcast interview in soundbites, obviously. But you can make your key points as quotable comments. That increases the host's ability to create plenty of catchy snippets for social media and makes it more likely that other people will remember and quote your words.
Podcast interview soundbite examples
All those quotes you see from famous writers, actors, speakers and marketing experts are written versions of soundbites. In other words, each person puts their point across in a short, memorable statement.
Podcast guest soundbites are similar.
For example, here's Christian Ray Flores, speaking to self publishing expert Michelle Prince, on her “Power of Authority Spotlight.”
Flores begins his soundbite by quoting James Clear, and goes on to explain how that idea relates to entrepreneurs and their businesses. He finishes the soundbite with an example: "if you're filled with stress hormones from day to day to day, that's a system and that autopilot's gonna take it to the wrong place."
Liza Adams gives plenty of soundbite examples on the “Leveraging AI” podcast, too, when she speaks to host Isar Meitis about how and why marketers can embrace AI.
Both the previous snippets were posted by the hosts on their YouTube channels as shorts. But soundbites can create snippets for Instagram, TikTok, X (Twitter), LinkedIn and Facebook, too.
Here's a snippet from one of my favorite podcasts, "Hope is a Verb," which I found on Instagram Reels.
Tips for mastering soundbites
You can prepare some soundbites and know exactly when you'll pop them in. Other times you'll be ad-libbing and suddenly spot an opportunity to deliver a particular point. Either way, these tips will help you be ready to deliver your messages with confidence.
Know your key points inside out
Being a podcast guest is so much easier when you're sure of your topic. That doesn't mean you need to write a whole speech and deliver it regardless of what the host actually asks.
But you can have a list of the vital points you want to make during the interview.
Under each message, list a few bullet points to help you remember what you want to say in the soundbite. Practice delivering your message in various ways, so that when the opportunity comes to slip it in, you're ready to go without it sounding staged or as if you're reading an autocue.
Tone of voice
It's not just what you say, but how you say it. The sound quality or tone of your voice will clearly convey where the soundbite starts and stops, especially if you pause slightly after you've finished speaking.
You should be thinking about intonation anyway, because there's nothing more likely to put podcast listeners to sleep (or reaching for the delete button) than a guest that drones. Instead, your voice should rise and fall within the context of what you're saying.
Your delivery speed should vary too. You might speak a little faster in the middle, but slow down at the end because that shows you've finished making your point.
If you want to learn more about how to use tone when you're speaking, listen to expert speech coach Roger Love on the "Online Marketing Made Easy" podcast. Not only is this episode a masterclass in using tone, it's also chock full of soundbite examples.
How long should your podcast soundbites be?
A snippet's length depends on the social media channels you and the host are on, so think about that when you're making soundbites.
If you're both on TikTok and Instagram, your soundbites should generally be shorter than if you're on LinkedIn and YouTube.
As the above table from Only Social shows, content for Instagram and TikTok is ideally no longer than 30 seconds, whereas LinkedIn and Facebook soundbites can be up to two minutes long. YouTube can be two or more minutes, but at the other end of the scale you want media quote graphics to be only a few seconds long (perhaps the first sentence of a longer soundbite.)
Slip in some rich language
Tailor your language to the audience and choose words that convey more meaning. As writers we're often told to use strong verbs and specific nouns—e.g., 'spruce,' 'willow' or 'oak' instead of 'tree. Or 'jogged,' 'sprinted' or 'ambled' instead of 'ran'.
What vocab can you include to make your soundbites richer, more meaningful and shareable?
Embrace a well-timed pause
As I mentioned earlier, pausing at the end of your soundbite can greatly help when the host is trying to find shareable clips. But the podcast editor will also love it when you pause at the right moment because it helps them in the editing process.
When you pause, it's much easier for editors to cut and rearrange sections without having to deal with lots of filler words or connectors, e.g., 'and,' 'um,' 'so,' 'but,' or 'like.' Connecting words add unnecessary verbal clutter, whereas when you pause your speech becomes more concise. Hopefully, that means the editor has to do less trimming than usual.
Finally, well-placed pauses let editors highlight key points by inserting audio effects or transitions to make your key points even more memorable.
Sound natural - let your words roll off the tongue
Soundbites should feel like a part of a natural conversation. It helps if you know your key points really well, then try and say them as if you were talking to a friend or colleague.
Pausing also helps you sound natural, too. Rushing through the soundbite makes you sound nervous, but pausing gives listeners time to absorb the message and helps you gather your thoughts for the next sentence.
Use emotion when you're speaking, too. Be enthusiastic, passionate, humorous... whatever's appropriate to the message and helps to make your message memorable.
Restate the question
Here's one that you may have learned during English class. When answering a question context to your answer by repeating or restating the question as your first sentence. That gives your answer context and makes it easier to cut as a soundbite.
E.g., if you're a budgeting expert and the podcast host asks "I hate having lots of small accounts. Is there an easy way to budget within one account?"
Your reply might start with one of these:
- "There's a very easy way to sort your budget using just one account..."
- "It's pretty hard to budget using only one account, so I recommend having at least three..."
- "Is there an easy way to budget using just one account? I'm afraid not...
Soundbites to prepare and practice
Podcast guests can often be pretty sure about some of the questions the host is likely to ask.
You may have listed ideal questions or topics on your one sheet, so it's easy to prepare soundbites to start your answers to those.
Listen to several episodes of the show to see if there are questions the host asks in every interview. Don't waste those opportunities. Instead, decide on soundbites you can use when they inevitably come up.
Final thoughts
Great soundbites don't just happen.
Even when they sound off-the-cuff, you can bet that a lot of work has gone into crafting that response. And it takes practice to know when to pop one into the conversation, especially when you don't know the questions in advance.
You might not be a soundbite expert yet. But you can certainly start the journey right now.
- Decide on a key point you always include in your guest interviews.
- Craft a 15-30 second speech that sums up the key insight. Think of it as an "elevator speech" for that message. This is your soundbite.
- List several bullet points that you could expand into.
- Practice delivering your soundbite. Vary the wording, so it doesn't feel forced but you feel very confident you can get that point across when you spot the opportunity.
- Repeat the process for two more key messages.
Now you've got three soundbites in your toolbox.
When you start researching for your next podcast interview, I recommend using Rephonic's episode links, transcripts and social media links. For me, they've been a game changer, and I think you'll be blown away by how much quicker and easier they make the whole research process.
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