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Podcast Guest Confirmation Email
A guest who said yes is not yet a guest who turns up. The confirmation email, and the short messages after it, are what get them to the right link at the right time, in their own time zone, knowing what to expect. Here is what to include and five templates to copy.
6 min read
Most missed recordings are not guests changing their minds. They are a time read in the wrong time zone, a link buried in a thread from three weeks ago, a calendar that never got the event, or a guest who thought it was a quick chat and booked a meeting straight after.
Every one of those is fixed by the same email, sent as soon as the time is agreed, and one short reminder the day before. Neither needs to be long. Both need to be complete, because the guest will look for this message minutes before the recording and nothing else.
This page covers what a podcast guest confirmation email should include, then gives you the whole sequence to copy: the confirmation, the day-before reminder, the note for when you need to move the recording, the reply for when the guest does, and the follow-up for a guest who does not turn up.
What should a podcast guest confirmation email include?
Six things, in this order: the date and time written in the guest's time zone as well as yours, the recording link, how long to block, what the conversation will cover, what to have ready, and how to reach you on the day. Anything else, such as a release or a questionnaire, is attached to it rather than written into it.
The first two rows are what a guest looks for in the minutes before the recording. If a reader could miss them, move them to the top.
| Item | What to write | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Date and time | The day, the date and the time in the guest's time zone, then yours | A time zone read the wrong way is the most common reason a guest is not there |
| Recording link | The one link they click, plus what to do if it fails | The guest will search their inbox for it, so it belongs in this email, not in an older thread |
| How long to block | The full session, including setup, not the finished episode length | A guest who booked a call straight after will rush the best part of the conversation |
| What you will talk about | Two or three topics or the angle you agreed, not a list of questions | It lets the guest prepare stories rather than rehearse answers |
| What to have ready | Headphones, a quiet room, a computer rather than a phone, and anything you need back | Setup problems cost the first ten minutes of the session |
| How to reach you | A phone number or a reply-to that someone reads on the day | When the link fails, the guest needs a second way in |
For how long to ask a guest to block, and the questions to send in the same email, read the podcast guest questionnaire.
Podcast guest confirmation email templates
Send the confirmation as soon as the time is agreed, the reminder the day before, and the others only when you need them. Replace everything in square brackets. Keep the subject lines: the guest searches for the show name and the word "recording" when they are trying to find the link.
Subject: Confirmed: [Show Name] recording, [day, date] at [time, guest's time zone] Hi [first name], You're booked. Here is everything in one place: When: [day, date] at [time] [guest's time zone] ([time] [your time zone]) Where: [recording link] How long: please block [length], which includes a few minutes to set up What we'll cover: [the angle you agreed, in one sentence], and [one or two topics] To sound your best: - Use headphones (any kind, wired is best) - Join from a computer, in a quiet room with a door - Close other apps and turn off notifications If the link gives you trouble on the day, call or text me at [phone number]. A calendar invite with the link is on its way. [If you use one: I've also attached a short form for your bio and the one link you'd like in the show notes.] Looking forward to it, [Your name]
Subject: Tomorrow: [Show Name] recording at [time, guest's time zone] Hi [first name], Quick reminder that we're recording tomorrow, [day] at [time] [guest's time zone]. Link: [recording link] Please block [length], and have headphones and a quiet room ready. If anything has changed, just reply to this email. See you tomorrow, [Your name]
Subject: Can we move our [Show Name] recording? Hi [first name], I'm sorry to do this: I need to move our recording on [day, date]. [One honest sentence on why, if you can give one.] Would any of these work for you instead? - [option 1, guest's time zone] - [option 2, guest's time zone] - [option 3, guest's time zone] If none of them do, send me two times that suit you and I'll make one of them work. Apologies again for the change. [Your name]
Hi [first name], No problem at all, thanks for letting me know. Here are a few times that work on my side: - [option 1, guest's time zone] - [option 2, guest's time zone] Pick whichever suits you and I'll send a new invite with the same link. [Your name]
Subject: Missed you today, [first name] Hi [first name], I was on the link at [time] today and we didn't manage to connect. I hope everything is all right. If you'd still like to record, here are two times that work for me: - [option 1, guest's time zone] - [option 2, guest's time zone] And if the timing isn't right any more, that's fine too, just let me know. [Your name]
Write the time twice, and let the calendar do the converting
A time in one zone is a puzzle for anyone in another. Write it first in the guest's time zone, then in yours in brackets. If you are not sure where the guest is, ask before you confirm rather than guessing from an email signature.
- Use the city or the zone name rather than a three-letter code. Codes change with daylight saving, the same code can mean different places, and a guest who reads EST in July may be an hour out.
- Send a calendar invite as well as the email. The invite converts the time into the guest's own calendar, which is the one place most people check.
- Put the recording link in the calendar event itself, not just the email, so it is where the guest looks at the moment they need it.
- When the recording is close to a daylight saving change in either country, say the time in both zones again in the reminder.
When to send each email
- The confirmation: the same day the time is agreed. Waiting until the week of the recording leaves the guest with a date in their head and nothing in their calendar.
- Anything you need back, such as a questionnaire or a release: with the confirmation, so the guest has days rather than hours to send it.
- The reminder: the day before, in the guest's working hours. A reminder one hour before, as a text or a short email with only the link, is worth adding for guests you have not met.
- A reschedule: as soon as you know. The earlier the note, the more options the guest still has.
- The no-show follow-up: the same day, once. If there is no reply, leave it.
If you book guests on Let's Make A Podcast
When a guest accepts, the booking thread has a place to set the recording time and the link. Setting it emails the guest the time, and any link you add, with a calendar file attached, and the guest can propose a different time in the same thread, so the confirmation and the reschedule live in one place with the conversation that led to them. The reminder and the details the guest needs to prepare are still yours to send.
Five confirmation mistakes that cost you a recording
- Only one time zone. The guest converts it in their head, gets it wrong, and joins an hour late or not at all.
- The link lives in a different email. Three weeks of back-and-forth later, nobody can find it. Put it in the confirmation, the calendar event and the reminder.
- Blocking the episode length instead of the session. Setup, a warm-up and the conversation running long all come out of the guest's next meeting.
- Sending the questions in advance as a script. A guest who rehearses answers sounds rehearsed. Send the topics and keep the questions for the recording.
- No second way to reach you. When the link fails, a guest with no phone number and no reply from your inbox gives up after five minutes.
Frequently asked questions
What should a podcast guest confirmation email include?+
The date and time in the guest's time zone and yours, the recording link, how long to block including setup, the angle or two or three topics you will cover, what to have ready (headphones, a quiet room, a computer), and a way to reach you on the day. Attach anything you need back, such as a bio form or a release, rather than writing it into the email.
When should you send a podcast guest reminder?+
The day before the recording, during the guest's working hours, with the time and the link repeated in full. For a guest you have not met, a second short message about an hour before, carrying only the link, catches most of the remaining no-shows.
Should you send podcast guests the questions in advance?+
Send the topics and the angle, not a list of questions. Topics let a guest think of stories and examples; a question list tends to produce rehearsed answers that sound read. If a guest asks for the questions, sending a few broad ones is a reasonable middle ground.
How do you reschedule a podcast interview politely?+
Say so as soon as you know, apologise once, give a short honest reason if you can, and offer three specific times in the guest's time zone. Invite them to suggest two times of their own if none fit. If the guest is the one asking, reply quickly, thank them for the notice and offer two or three times.
What do you do if a podcast guest does not show up?+
Wait ten to fifteen minutes on the link and try the phone number if you have one. Then send one short, friendly email the same day offering two new times, without assuming the worst. If there is no reply, let it go; guests who miss a recording by accident usually answer within a few days.
More on booking guests
Book guests who have already said they want to be on
List your show, say what you are looking for, and let guests who fit your topic come to you with a pitch. When one accepts, set the recording time in the thread and they get an email with a calendar invite.