Finding the perfect podcast match can feel like searching for a needle in a haystack. PR teams need results fast, but they also need accuracy to avoid pitching the wrong shows.
That’s where Rephonic comes in.
It's one of today’s best podcast databases for PR teams and agencies, whether you’re managing public relations for your company’s executives or running an agency with hundreds of clients.
PR pros love the platform for its balance of data depth and research speed, calling it “an easy to use podcast database” and “the best platform for anyone who books podcasts.”
Here are Rephonic's top five features for PR teams booking podcast guest spots:
- Podcast search tool & 25 advanced filters
- Listener data
- Podcast contact info
- Built-in pitching tool
- Shared messaging workspace
Let's explore them in more detail!
1. Search tool & 25 advanced filters
Rephonic's search tool takes the agony out of podcast research for PR agencies. Instead of manually trawling through millions of shows on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, you can narrow the field by entering a keyword or topic.
Let's start with your first search.
Start your search then apply up to 25 advanced filters. They include:
- Active filter: Only podcasts that have published an episode in the last 60 days.
- Guests filter: Shows podcasts that take guests.
- Listener numbers: Filter for listener numbers anywhere between 0-500k. Sometimes it makes sense to target smaller, niche podcasts, especially if your client is new to podcast guesting.
- Ratings: Search podcasts based on the number of ratings they've received across multiple platforms, including Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
- Demographics filters: Filter for podcasts that speak to your target audience (See below):
How does Rephonic's search tool help PR teams?
Rephonic lifts the veil of secrecy by providing demographic data I only dreamed of having. From a productivity standpoint alone, it cut my research time by at least 90 percent.
Nora Murray Founder, SoundBite Communications
Finding podcasts that ultimately don't suit your boss (or client) wastes your time and theirs.
Here's the stats as we see them:
Of the 3-million+ podcasts published, approximately 400,000 are currently active, while the rest are either on a break, or no longer record episodes at all. Of those active shows, only around 130k accept guests.
Manually searching the podcast app lists is a gamble with only a 1 in 23 shot of finding a show that meets the very basic criteria. PR agencies and teams that use Rephonic flip the odds by filtering straight to the active podcasts that actually welcome interviews.
Go further, by using other filters to select the best-fit shows for your guest's needs. If your boss is new to podcast guesting, start by finding newer shows with small audiences to help them gain experience in front of relatively few people. On the other hand, if your client is a recognized thought leader, you'll want to surface well-established shows with substantial, engaged audiences.
Ultimately, filtering your search means you'll spend less time chasing dead ends and more time booking wins. That’s what makes it such a valuable podcast research tool for PR.
2. Listener data
Rephonic shows listener numbers per episode and per month, as well as demographic info on each podcast's Audience page. This helps you judge if the listeners are a good match for your client’s message.
The audience page starts with a Listener profile giving an overview of the typical make up of the podcast's audience. That snapshot expands into categories including:
- Location: Our best estimate of the countries where these podcast listeners are based.
- Relationship status: Notes the percentage of the audience likely to be single, married or in a relationship.
- Education: Offers an insight into the audience's likely education levels.
- Gender skew: Does the audience skew male or female? Or is it an equal split?
Analysis continues by examining the audience's likely:
- Age range
- Professions
- Household income
- Parental status
All these features combine to make Rephonic a powerful podcast research tool for PR teams. Whether you’re running media outreach, thought leadership campaigns, or product PR, it helps you find podcasts for media outreach that deliver.
What makes Rephonic’s Audience page valuable for PR teams?
Finding podcasts with audiences that align with your client’s goals is crucial for a successful guesting campaign. Without thorough audience research, you risk wasting your time pitching shows that won’t drive results. That’s why we added podcast audience data to Rephonic.
James Potter, Founder, Rephonic
When planning a podcast guesting campaign the Audience page helps you understand who actually listens. That makes it much easier to decide whether a show is best for brand awareness, thought leadership or product sales.
It helps you match clients with podcasts that align with their goals and back up your recommendations with hard data.
You'll write stronger outreach emails, get better response rates and have happier clients, because you’re putting them in front of listeners who genuinely care about their message.
3. Podcast contact info
Rephonic displays podcast contact information including email address, contact pages and social media accounts throughout the podcast pages, including the Contacts button.
Manually searching for podcast contact info can be a frustrating experience. Some independent podcasts have their own website and social media accounts. Others rely on their hosting platform or network links, while branded podcasts will likely link to a page on their company's site. But even if you find a website, there's no guarantee it will list the right contact information to make a guest pitch.
As an example, I spent 40 minutes searching for guest contact info on six podcasts in the nonprofit sector. Only one made it easy for potential guests, by including a guest contact form up front, while another listed an email address on LinkedIn. Two included social media links, so I could have sent them DMs.
Contrast that with Rephonic, where in less than five minutes I had website links, email addresses and social media accounts for all six shows.
How to find podcast contacts with Rephonic:
- On any podcast page, tap the blue Contacts button to see the contacts that we found for this podcast.
- If you prefer messaging via social media, scroll down to the list of social media links.
Sourcing the best contacts across our huge database of podcasts is complex and sometimes our system can't find a good email address. If the right links aren't showing up, select Find Contacts for Me and the Rephonic team will get back to you with an email address ASAP.
What makes Rephonic's contact info valuable for PR teams?
The reasons why PR pros call Rephonic the go-to podcast outreach platform:
- Cuts your outreach time: No more hunting around websites and LinkedIn for the right person to pitch.
- Helps you build relationships: Easy access to social media channels means you can spend time getting to know the host, liking, commenting and sending helpful DMs before sending a pitch.
4. Built-in pitching tool
Keep your outreach emails all in one place and visible to your whole team by pitching directly from your own email address without leaving Rephonic. Our Pitch Wizard guides you through the process from start to send.
How to pitch through Rephonic
- Connect your email inbox to Rephonic. Your team can connect up to 5 inboxes on the Business subscription.
- Open the campaign, select a podcast, and click the Send pitch link.
- Select a contact. Rephonic provides contact emails for podcasts so you can be sure you're contacting the right person.
- Select an email sequence (pitch + automated follow-up). You can adjust a template to your needs or choose to write an email sequence from scratch.
- Select the email address you wish to send from.
- Review and send.
Rephonic will track every email so your whole team can see what has been sent, what's scheduled to go soon and when.
How does the Pitch Wizard help PR teams?
You've already used Rephonic's podcast and audience info to find genuine, relevant match-ups for your client. Now, the Pitch Wizard streamlines the process. Pre-set templates provide a great starting point for you to write thoughtful, personalized outreach emails to podcasters.
Podcast outreach becomes smoother with automated follow-ups that stop once you get a reply.
Your emails stand out from the crowd and are more likely to lead to guest bookings. It’s one of the reasons agencies see Rephonic as the podcast booking tool for agencies that delivers results.
We won't take on a client unless we're confident that we can get a 30% acceptance rate but since we've been using Rephonic...we've had clients where we've gotten them on 70% of the shows we pitch them to.
Julie Fry Founder, Your Expert Guest
How does understanding previous guests help PR teams?
Analyzing previous guests gives you confidence in your pitch. For example, if your CEO wants to build their reputation as a thought leader and you see the podcast regularly hosts founders and thought leaders, your CEO will likely be a natural fit.
Conversely, seeing guests that don't fit that CEO or thought leader profile prevents you wasting time on shows unlikely to say yes.
Understanding interview focus helps you highlight fresh angles compared with past guests. That makes your emails stand out and more likely to lead to guest bookings. It’s one of the reasons agencies see Rephonic as the podcast booking tool for agencies that delivers results.”
We won't take on a client unless we're confident that we can get a 30% acceptance rate but since we've been using Rephonic...we've had clients where we've gotten them on 70% of the shows we pitch them to.
Julie Fry Founder, Your Expert Guest
5. Shared messaging workspace
Previously, one person in a team could send a pitch email and receive replies in their own email account. The emails and replies could then be forwarded on to other team members. Alternatively, you could cc the email to each team member's email.
It was messy, time consuming and all too easy to miss people off the list, especially if you had a big team. Rephonic's shared messages workspace consigns all that to the past.
Here's what happens when team members connect their emails to Rephonic:
- Pitch emails stay in Rephonic where everyone can see them.
- Replies move into a shared messaging workspace.
- Team members can see sent, queued, and scheduled messages.
- Find specific conversations by filtering for unread status, email account or campaign.
- Team members can reply directly within Rephonic.
- Add notes to any message sequence
Why does the shared messages space work for PR teams?
Shared messaged save everyone time and keep all team members in the loop, especially as the campaign pipeline will automatically update as you each send and receive emails on the platform.
You'll find it easier to plan, and organize your outreach and to report results to your clients, especially if you're juggling dozens of pitches at a time.
Opportunities don't slip through the cracks because everything's kept in one place on Rephonic's platform.
Final thoughts
Rephonic pulls everything PR teams need into one place for podcast outreach. You'll find a search tool & filters, listener data, contacts, built-in pitching, and a shared messaging workspace so you can easily collaborate with your team.
With the right tools at your fingertips you'll make stronger pitches, get higher acceptance rates and deliver for happier clients.
Start exploring Rephonic today and see the difference it makes for your campaigns.
Article credits
Written by Lyn McNamee, podcast-PR writer with four years of experience transforming podcast insights into practical, results-focused playbooks.
Edited by Becca Butcher, marketing specialist who frequently analyzes Rephonic’s data across 3 million podcasts.
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