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I am Nicole Khalil and I could not possibly be more excited to welcome you to the 300th episode of this is Woman's Work. 300 episodes. I can't even fully wrap my brain around that. That's a lot of conversations. And we have so much to celebr. We're on track to hit over 2 million downloads this year. 2 million. Which again is hard for me to wrap my brain around because in our first full year we had about 7,000 downloads total for the year. To put that in perspective, we now have almost as many listeners per day as we did in our entire first year of podcasting. So that speaks to our growth, but more importantly, it proves that we started from scratch. I'm not a celebrity, I'm not an influencer, I'm not a household name, nor did I have a million followers when we launched this podcast. We grew this the old fashioned way with lots of sweat equity, a lot of mistakes, a lot of learning and growing, and there's absolutely no way we could have done any of it without great supporters and sharers like you. So a big huge thank you to every single one of you who wrote a review on Apple, rated on Spotify, commented on Castbox, or engaged on whatever platform you use to tune in. You get a special spot in my blanket four. And if I could send you all the cheese plates in the world, I would, because that's my love language. And it brings me great joy when I see your review and get to share them on my Instagram story. So yes, we have an exceptional community of listeners and over the last 300 episodes we've had truly incredible guests. Some big names for sure, but mostly women just like us who are out there doing great work and and making a difference in big and small ways. And while we're at it. Two more things to celebrate. First, the this Is Woman's Work podcast is among the top half of 1% of all podcasts globally. That's 0.5%, which is pretty cool. And also our podcast board of directors is now 15 women strong and they bring ideas, push us to grow, and challenge me to be an even better host. So if you've been listening in for a while, you know we've learned a lot along the way. More than I could possibly fit into one episode. But let me share just a few of the funnier lessons. Our first episode took me 11 full recordings before I got one I felt good about releasing and countless partial recordings where I gave up. Which means several partial episodes that ended with a long string of swear words. Not because I was fine tuning my craft. Oh no, because I didn't understand how editing worked, I thought I had to get a perfect 30 minute recording without mistakes, which is hilarious in hindsight. A great early lesson to stop being a perfectionist and just ask a few fricking questions before wasting days of my life. Another kind of funny story is the first advertiser that ever reached out, asked me what our CPM rate was and friend I had no clue what CPM meant. So I stalled, googled frantically, and eventually asked them what they thought was a fair rate and they said $25. And I agreed because obviously I still had no fucking idea what they were talking about. Luckily it turned out to be a fair rate and we made our first few hundred dollars, which was very exciting at the time and a reminder that sometimes you just have to jump and build your parachute on the way down. And one more recent example is we had a few episodes where my podcast mic didn't connect, so we ended up with some less than ideal audio quality. But when I heard the first of these episodes go live, I basically had a full meltdown. In the span of about 5 minutes, I determined that our podcast was ruined. Listeners were going to unsubscribe in droves, sponsors would abandon ship. My entire career as a podcast host was obviously over. Which could only mean that it was time for me to fall back on my career backup plan and become a cheesemonger. Yep, just me in an apron cutting into Wheels of Brie while whispering, you had a good run kid. Clearly rational behavior, right? I mean, my immediate next move after listening to this horrible episode was to play it for Jay so he could share in my mortification and of course probably decide that he wanted a divorce. Because who wants to stay married to somebody with bad Audio quality, right? And his response? Basically a shrug and a yeah, a few of the podcasts I listened to have had an episode or two that didn't sound so good, so no big deal. And that, my friend, is what we call a reasonable and mature reaction. Must be nice, right? Because guess what? As far as I can tell, nobody cared all that much about my audio quality. And apparently it's not a valid reason to end a marriage. So ultimately, a lesson and a reminder that making mountains out of molehills helps no one in podcasting or in life. Are you noticing a trend? Most of my bloopers come down to me acting like a crazy person. So let's move right past that, pretend we don't notice my inclination towards learning things the hard way, and get to why we're really here. In honor of 300 episodes, I want to do what we actually try to do during each and every episode, and that is share relevant, useful information that will benefit you. Because this show has never been and will never be about me. I hope you know and feel every time that you listen that this show is in service to you. Together, we're redefining what it means, what it looks and feels like to be doing woman's work with you as the decider. Whatever feels true and real and right for you, whatever lights you up from the inside, that's what it means. When for you to be doing woman's work and whatever that is for you, here's what I know for sure, it's going to involve you pitching yourself. Because the truth is, we're all pitching ourselves all the time. When you apply for a job or ask for a raise, you're pitching yourself. When you're trying to land in new clients or close a deal, you're pitching yourself. When you advocate for your ideas in a meeting, you're pitching. When you ask someone to collaborate, to invest in you, to give you an opportunity, Yep, that's pitching. When you convince your partner that your vacation idea is better than theirs. Yep, pitching again. We do it every day in big and small ways. The problem is, most of us weren't taught how to pitch ourselves or what we want very effectively. We've been conditioned to believe that self promotion is bragging, that asking for what we want is pushy, and that confidence should be proven rather than cultivated or chosen. Which is why today, we're going to fix that. Yes, we're talking specifically about how to pitch yourself to be a guest on a podcast. But make no mistake, this is a transferable skill. Because when you Learn how to pitch yourself well. You stop waiting for opportunities and start creating them. You stop hoping people will notice your value and start articulating it clearly. You stop playing small and start stepping into rooms, sitting at tables, and having conversations that matter. So whether you're dreaming of being a podcast guest, landing a speaking gig, growing your business, or simply being more confident and asking for whatever it is that you want, this episode is for you. And let me tell you, the timing could not be better. Just this week alone, we've received 47 pitches, and the week isn't even over yet. And do you know how many we've said yes to? The answer is two. Now, to be clear, many of these pitches were great. Sometimes we say no for reasons that have nothing to do with the guest or the pitch. Maybe we just covered a similar topic. Maybe the guest has an incredible story, but. But ours is a topic based show. Maybe it's a pitch for a topic we get a lot of pitches for and we need to narrow it down to just one guest. Maybe it's just not quite the right fit for our listeners. But also, many of those pitches didn't do the guest any favors. A few were just plain terrible. So bad that we now have a terrible pitch template response because it's not worth us spending any time reviewing the pitch at all. So that's based on us being on the receiving end. But on the flip side, I've pitched myself to be a guest on many podcasts. My team has also pitched me, but we've never hired a PR firm or anything like that. And we have a pretty great success rate. Not because I'm some sort of magical unicorn. We've already agreed that I'm basically a crazy person, but because we apply the same exact tips I'm about to share with you when we pitch. So let's get into it. Because if you do this right, podcast guesting is one of the most effective ways to increase your reach, build your authority, and yes, get way more conversions than you would on something like social media. And if that means that my team starts getting even more pitches because of this episode, we're prepared to deal with that as long as they're better pitches. Because I want your voice to be heard, I want your expertise to be shared, and I want your best followers, the people who need what you have to offer to be able to find you. So let's make sure you have the tools to craft a pitch that makes a host excited to say yes. All right, the first step for any good pitch is to get clear on your purpose. This is true with whatever it is you might be pitching. So, using podcast guesting as an example, ask questions like, why do you want to be a guest on a podcast? What's in it for you, for the host and the listeners? Side note, the best pitches. Always consider how to make it a win for everyone involved. What would success look like Now? You may find yourself wanting to skip this step and just start pitching, but please do not do that. Before you fire off an email to every podcast with a pulse, ask yourself a few very important questions that will determine pretty much everything about your pitch. First, things like, who do I serve and attract? You can call this your ideal clients or customer, your niche, your people. I don't care what you call them, but I do care that you know who they are. What expertise, story, or topic do you have to share that will be relevant, supportive, and interesting to them? What problem do they have that you can help them solve? Ask yourself, what podcasts are they listening to? And I don't mean the podcast that everyone is listening to, like Mel Robbins or Adam Grant. I want you to think a little deeper than that and then ask, what outcome do I want? Am I trying to build credibility? Promote a book? Drive traffic to my email list? Sell something? Yes. I'm assuming all guests want to make an impact, help the listener in some way, and leave people better than they found them. But what's the listener supposed to do after they hear you? Do you want them to subscribe? Follow you? Buy something? What's the outcome you want? If you don't have clarity on these things, you're pitching blind. And blind pitching leads to a whole lot of no thank yous. Because if you're confused, everyone else will be too. And guess what? Hosts have no interest in doing helping you figure out your shit. They're too busy trying to figure out their own. So again, step one is to get clear on your purpose. And your purpose may evolve or change, but you should always be clear on what it is before pitching anything. Okay? And the next step is to do just a little bit of research before you reach out. We're talking some basic Googling and info gathering, like everything you'd ever pitch for. Not all podcasts are created equal, and therefore not all pitches should be either. In order to make the distinction clear for myself, I created three levels of shows that I consider worth pitching to. The first is what I call a practice podcast. This is this first group. Again, a practice podcast. These are newer shows or podcasts with a smaller reach or smaller audience, and they help you hone your message and build experience. They help you get good for the bigger opportunities. And while their audiences are small, they're also typically engaged. The next level is what I call peer podcasts. These are podcasts that are on a similar level as you, which is a bit easier to determine if you also have a podcast. But if you don't think in terms of the host's reach or their audience, their offerings, fees, or credibility, you might target similar clients. You may find yourself on similar stages. You may be just a couple degrees of separation away from the host. These shows are great and the best in my experience, for growing your brand and attracting the right followers. They also convert at the highest level and the third level I call my A list group. These are podcasts that feel big. They're ahead of you in some obvious way. That could be a top tier, big name show, but honestly, it's anyone that's ahead of you because it's all relative, right? For some people, this podcast is part of their A list group. For someone like Brene Brown, this podcast would be a practice podcast, right? Ultimately, your A list group consists of the podcasts where getting a yes would be a big game changer for you. And this group requires way more strategy preparation, relationship building, and often a lot of outside help. Okay, so I said earlier that while we're focusing on podcasts as an example, that pitching is a transferable skill. So I want you to think, for example, about prepping for a job interview. You don't lead with your dream company, you practice first, right? You work your way up, you explore other opportunities, maybe in other industries. And the same goes for podcast pitching. My point is, no matter what it is that you're pitching for, you're going to have to have a few different categories and therefore a few different approaches or strategies to pitching with podcasts. You'll need three different pitch strategies to match those three levels of podcasts. So I'll provide a free podcast checklist and some resources that will give you examples and places you can go to cwicly research podcasts before you reach out, and all sorts of other things for those of you who really want to dive deep into this. Okay, so step two was research before you reach out and to know your categories. Which leads us to step three. And frankly, it's where everybody seems to want to jump right into. But it creates problems if you don't first go through those previous two steps before you start step three, which is craft a pitch that makes it hard to say no. With podcasts, a good pitch makes it easy for the host to say yes. In order to do that, here are a few things that every podcast pitch should include. First, a compelling subject line. If your email subject line is something boring like podcast guest inquiry, I mean, you're going to get a yawn or an eye roll. If you're a little salty like me, make it interesting and relevant. As an example, saying something like why women need to ditch the word balance podcast guest idea, that would be a subject line that makes me want to open the email. All right, the next thing every pitch should include is a clear statement of value for the audience. What's the hook? What are three to five topic ideas that align with the show's themes? What will the listeners gain? And I'm not sure if this is true for all podcasts, but I'd encourage you to be unique or to provide a different perspective on on your topic. Said another way, don't pitch a topic that's vague in general. Most likely the relevant general topics have been covered already and they're not looking for a 12,000th pitch on the same topic. As an example, this podcast is called this is Woman's Work. So, as you might imagine, we get hundreds of pitches on topics like this. Women's leadership, starting and scaling a business burnout, confidence, perfectionism, health and wellness. And most of them are non starters for us because seeing a topic like how to scale a business or women's leadership or boundaries makes the pitch seem like the same as everyone else's. Make your topic stand out in some way. Let me give you a few examples of pitched topics that were an automatic yes for us. How doing makeup on my dead dad taught me how to find my voice. I mean, come on, that was like an automatic yes. Are you caring or are you codependent? Interesting. I want to learn more. Right? Lessons from the cockpit. How a fighter pilot redefined resilience. I mean, like, clearly an expert on something that I know nothing about, or the instability of truth, brainwashing, mind control, and hyper persuasion. Again, fascinating to me. You see what I'm getting at? Now, you can have a general topic like I do when I pitch myself for a podcast, but you can bet your ass that I don't pitch myself by saying, oh, I could talk about confidence. Because, friend, that is boring and common. When we pitch on the topic of confidence, we pitch things like Validation is for parking. The five confidence derailers and their antidotes. How women can beat the confidence Con. Turning failure into fuel. You get the idea, right? You've got to make yourself stand out in a sea of sameness. Also on this note, you've got to pitch topics that you're an expert expert on, or you have great experience with, or a really unique or compelling perspective or story. It's okay to test different or new topics with your first level practice podcasts, but you want to have something to offer that's good and different for a podcast that has thousands of listeners. And frankly, your peer or A plus podcasts are not the best place to just wing it or talk about something for the first time on this show. We've had just a few recordings where this happened, but we have had a few episodes where it became clear that our guest wasn't used to talking about their topic all that much, and those episodes never got released, which was a waste of everybody's time. Do you need to be perfect or know every possible answer to every possible question about your topic? Absolutely not. But there really should be only a handful of topics that you'd be willing to cover on a podcast, because there's really only a handful of topics that any one of us could go really, really deep on.