Podcast outreach hasn’t stopped working.
But mass podcast pitching has.
If you’ve been in PR or podcast booking long enough, you’ve probably felt this shift already. Response rates are down. Hosts are more selective. And pitches that promise “50 podcasts in six months” are often ignored or actively disliked.
Recently, I heard a conversation on a podcast that summed this up perfectly.
Podcast hosts are saying this out loud now
In a recent episode of The Business Credit and Financing Show titled Jeremy Slate: How to Turn Your Podcast Into a Relationship-Driven Growth Engine, Jeremy described the kinds of pitches he receives.
At 00:22:03, he said:
“I get them and it’s like, would you like to be on 50 podcasts in the next six months? I’m like, oh god, no.”
A few seconds later (00:22:33):
“Please don’t do that to me.”
That reaction isn’t exaggerated. It’s fatigue.
Podcast hosts aren’t short on pitches. They’re short on good ones.
The real issue isn’t email. It’s low-effort outreach
Later in the episode (00:23:02), the frustration becomes more specific:
“They’re not even saying enough on their reach out to understand the show, the demographic, what it’s about. And then you got to dig and dig and dig.”
This is the core problem.
When a pitch doesn’t explain:
- why this guest fits this show
- what the audience will get out of it
- or even basic familiarity with the format
…the host has to do the work instead.
And when that happens repeatedly, even decent opportunities get ignored.
“Quality over quantity” isn’t a philosophy. It’s practical.
At 00:23:59, the conversation lands on something many experienced publicists already know:
“The key is to figure out the show that you want to be on, learn about that show, and then refine the pitch to really say, hey, we understand your show. We understand your audience.”
This isn’t slower outreach.
It’s more efficient outreach.
Fewer pitches.
Higher response rates.
Better conversations.
Less follow-up chaos.
Does social pitching work better than email now?
The episode also touches on social outreach. At 00:23:32, there’s a mention that bulk email doesn’t work the way it used to, and that individualized outreach, including social, can be effective.
That’s true, with an important caveat.
Good social pitching:
- is manual
- is contextual
- requires reading profiles and posts
- doesn’t scale cleanly
And that’s okay.
Social works best as a complement, not a replacement. It’s not something you automate without turning it into spam.
Why email is still the backbone of podcast outreach
Despite deliverability changes from Google and Yahoo, email is still the primary channel for serious podcast outreach.
Why?
Because email:
- isn’t a walled garden
- creates a durable record
- supports real conversations and follow-ups
- can be tracked honestly
Most experienced PR teams already work this way:
- email is the system of record
- social is situational and manual
That mental model hasn’t changed.
Outreach should serve the show first
Near the end of the conversation (00:24:55), there’s a line that really matters:
“Your mindset first has to be about serving the show that you’re reaching out to.”
That’s the shift.
Outreach breaks when it’s about:
- hitting numbers
- fulfilling volume promises
- placing guests anywhere possible
Outreach works when it’s about:
- understanding the show
- respecting the host’s time
- proposing a genuinely good conversation
How we think about podcast outreach at Podseeker
This philosophy is exactly how we think about outreach at Podseeker.
We don’t believe podcast booking should look like outbound sales. And we don’t believe success comes from blasting more pitches.
Instead:
- We treat each pitch as an intentional action
- We optimize for research and fit, not volume
- We assume humans are still making decisions on the other side
That’s why:
- We track initial pitches, not raw emails sent
- Follow-ups and replies don’t count against your quota
- Templates are a starting point, not a substitute for judgment
- Email remains the primary tracked channel because it’s open and auditable
- Social links and context are surfaced, but outreach stays human
Tools should support good decisions, not replace them.
The takeaway
Podcast outreach hasn’t become harder.
It’s become less forgiving of shortcuts.
Mass pitching didn’t stop working because of algorithms alone.
It stopped working because hosts are tired of doing the work the pitcher didn’t do.
The path forward isn’t more automation.
It’s better research, clearer intent, and fewer but stronger pitches.
Slow. Thoughtful. Human.
That’s where podcast outreach is settling.
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