What to Say When You Don’t Publish a Guest Episode (Without Burning Bridges)| #270

Ever recorded a guest interview that just didn’t make the cut?

Maybe it didn’t fit your new direction. Maybe it just wasn’t quite right. Or maybe… you ghosted because you didn’t know what to say.

This episode is for you. I’m walking you through what to do after the recording—when the episode won’t be aired so you can honor the guest, preserve the relationship, and stay in integrity with your brand.

Whether you’re a host or a guest who's been left in the dark, you’ll find something in here to help you navigate this awkward (and super common) scenario with clarity and grace. Learn ~

↳ 3 powerful moves you can make when an interview doesn’t go live

↳ Why not airing an episode doesn’t have to damage the relationship

↳ How to find (and repurpose) gold even in unused content

↳ A bonus tip to turn a “no-release” into a generous guest gift

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Be anxious for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. Philippians 4:6

Transcript

Simplify Podcasting
Jen Rogers | Creator of the 30/60/90-Day Sprint | Certified Coach | Keynote Speaker

I teach experienced Christian entrepreneurs how to leverage podcasting so they can grow their impact, influence + income.

If you’re a successful business owner and you haven’t launched a show, it’s time to talk about how to put your voice and proven offers to work for you!

📲Book a call with me when you're serious about monetizing podcasting.

2025 is the year of PODCASTING WINS with explosive growth + booming sales! www.coachjenrogers.com/VIPCoach

What to Say When You Don’t Publish a Guest Episode (Without Burning Bridges)| #270

[00:00:00] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: I queued your laughter, pressed record. Our stories danced. 

[00:00:04] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: The clock ignored.

[00:00:07] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: You brought your best, your brightest spark. I left your brilliance in the dark. My inbox pings your hopeful note, a gentle nudge, a friendly quote. I meant to write, I meant to share, but life you see is rarely fair.

[00:00:24] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Your wisdom waits on silent tape, a tail in limbo. No escape. I'm haunted by the coming soon, a promise fading with the moon.

[00:00:36] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Forgive me guest for this delay. Your words deserve a brighter day. Let's toast to talks that almost aired and moments lost but deeply cared.

[00:00:48] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: For not all stories find their stage, some linger softly, page by page, those silence follows where we spoke. Your words remain a cherished note.

[00:01:00] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist:  Well, what on earth is going on? Well, I was working on a little poem to offer up a note of gratitude and explanation.

[00:01:10] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: If you are a guest who spent time with me recording an episode, sharing your wisdom, and it never got aired, I have more than 10 episodes in my pipeline that have not made the release schedule. Why not? Well, I'm going to get to that in this episode, and I'll also share with you what you can do when you have a guest interview that doesn't make the cut.

[00:01:35] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: How about you? Can you relate to any of these pain points?

[00:01:40] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist:  If you are like me and you have episodes in the hopper that you do not plan to release, you might be experiencing guilt. You know, they gave me their time. Am I being disrespectful? You might be experiencing avoidance. I don't know how to say this without offending them. You might be leaning towards perfectionism.

[00:02:03] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: It wasn't bad. It just wasn't good enough to air. You may have a fear of burning bridges because you admire the person that came on and you want to stay connected to them, but you're not sure how to explain that you're not using this episode. You might also be wondering, can I use a quote if I am not fully airing the episode?

[00:02:26] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Conversely, if you are a guest, you might have experienced these pain points: confusion. Are we still collaborating? Lack of closure. What happened to that episode? Did I miss it? Did it come out? Did I miss the notifications? Is it buried in my email? Time wasted.

[00:02:46] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: I spent time prepping, promoting for nothing. Or you might be feeling the pain of a missed opportunity because you thought this was going to be something that was going to help you with your visibility with some backlinks, with building trust with a new audience, but it didn't happen.

[00:03:04] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: If you have ever asked, what do I do with a guest episode? I can't or choose not to air. Or if you've been on the other side, refreshing your inbox, wondering why your episode never dropped. This one's for you!

[00:03:20] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: When you practice, how to turn a potentially awkward moment into a powerful relationship move, one that builds trust and opens future doors.

[00:03:30] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: You'll take what feels like a wasted recording and turn it into a leadership growth strategy.  That's exactly what we do here on Simplify Podcasting. We grow as thought leaders in our space.

[00:03:42] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: We also refine our leadership skills, our self-discipline and we repurpose content and mishaps aligned with our core values. Hey there. I'm Jen Rogers, podcast strategist, creative idea generator, and a certified coach who helps you turn missed opportunities into intentional networking and partnership building.

[00:04:04] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Snafus and podcasting...those are the norm, not the exception, and that's why I'm here! To normalize snafus and offer strategies for monetizing every episode so you can stop second guessing what to do with those snafus and implement tactics that work faster.

[00:04:25] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Without a clear strategy, your podcast isn't just missing opportunities. It's costing you money. Every episode you release without a focused plan drains your time, your energy, and your resources.

[00:04:39] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Without delivering the sales, the listeners, or the visibility you deserve. Don't let your podcast become a financial liability. Act now to transform your show into a powerful revenue generating machine. It is possible and I can show you how to do it. Book a Power Hour strategy session with me and I'll equip you with a proven strategy plus some exclusive bonuses designed just for you to help you monetize not just faster but smarter too.

[00:05:10] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: This is a mini-investment. It's your first step to turning your podcast from a cost center into a profit center. Spaces are limited. There's only so much time on my calendar, so be sure you secure your spot at www.coachjenrogers.com/powerhours  P-O-W-E-R-H-O-U-R-S. Before I close this offer.

[00:05:36] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: You can fix your strategy.

[00:05:37] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: You can monetize every episode when you decide to fire Google-Pedia, and get curated help with focused eyes on your podcast. Head on over to coach www.coachjenrogers.com/powerhours . Your podcast is not broken. It just needs a smarter strategy. We'll, diagnose a problem and fix it fast. You'll have a plan you can take action on. 

[00:06:04] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist:  This is not some theory. There's no fluff. There's no agency contracts. It's one focused hour with real results for your podcast.

[00:06:14] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Not every guest interview makes it to air, but what you do after can still grow your brand, build trust, and turn a missed episode into a powerful relationship move. I've got three points for you today. Before I share them, I want to share that this has been weighing on me, and then I've put it on the back burner and it's come back up into light, and I'm fully expecting an email to pop up in my box again to say, Jen, where is that episode?

[00:06:48] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Can you give me an update on it? The first time this happened to me, I did give an update and say, I haven't released it yet, and I'm not sure when it's going to air. The second time I got a prompt for it. I didn't even respond. This is definitely not going to make my recommendations. I'm sharing with you my snafu in this department.

[00:07:12] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Part of my challenge with the interviews in the hopper for me, that I do not intend on using is the lack of clarity I had about where I was going with my podcast at the time of recording.

[00:07:25] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: In May of 2024. I recorded an episode before I took my first ever extended break in podcasting, I needed time to sit with the Lord to think about what is it that he is moving me to and how can I show up and serve in a way that lights me up.

[00:07:44] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Let's face it, if you are not lit up about the show you are sharing, your audience will know it. You must love what you're talking about. If you're in that, Hmm. This does not feel so good anymore. I'm not having fun. I, uh, I'm not enjoying what I'm talking about.

[00:08:03] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: I'm exhausted with talking about this. If you're ready to change it up, maybe take it up another notch where you want to serve a little bit different audience, then you'll need to sit with that. You'll need to pivot on purpose. You can pivot within your niche, and you can also pivot completely out of your niche.

[00:08:21] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: And that's exactly what I did. If you find yourself in the, how do I pivot my show? You'll be asking yourself, do I start a brand new podcast? Do I keep the same one? And let me tell you, I've done a few episodes on that where I've wrestled with how do I use the content I already have.

[00:08:40] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: My decision, where I landed was: I'm going to continue in the same feed. I'm going to rename and I'm going to redo the podcast art, redo the podcast description, because I wanted to keep the longevity to model how long I have been podcasting.

[00:08:57] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: My previous audience, Christian Stepmom's, is different than Christian podcasters. The goals, the pain points, the challenges, the desired outcomes are different, even though if you are a stepmom podcast, Hey there, I see you. I know you're here. You still have different needs as a podcaster than you do as a stepmom.

[00:09:20] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: when you're in the middle of a pivot, it's hard to see exactly how certain things are going to line up with your vision because you're still flushing that out.

[00:09:30] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: That is something I shared with each guest interview saying, I'm in the middle of a pivot. I'm moving here and I suspect this is where I'm going to end up and ask, do you still want to have the interview? And I'm wondering now, since I have more than 10 in the hopper, if it would've been a better decision for me not to have interviews until I knew where I was going.

[00:09:52] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: In fact, as I'm saying that to you right now, yes, that would've been a better decision. That's not what I did. and that's okay. I am not experiencing guilt. I'm choosing transformation. I am choosing to take the next right best step.. I invite you to do the same. Whatever snafu you are experiencing, you can de snafu it. Yes, you can. If you need help with that, I definitely can help.

[00:10:19] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Because every week you release a podcast hoping it leads to more sales, more listeners, more visibility, and it's not happening, it doesn't necessarily have to do with your content. It's more often your strategy and you can fix that. It starts with One Power Hour call.

[00:10:39] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Be sure to head on over to www.coachjenrogers.com/powerhours to book your strategy session with me and I'll equip you with a proven strategy plus exclusive bonuses designed to help you monetize not just faster but smarter too.

[00:10:57] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Let's listen to this episode,  number 270 for three points to consider when you have an interview that just isn't going to make the cut.

[00:11:08] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: The first thing to note is to honor the person and their time.

[00:11:14] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Even if you don't use the recording, let your guest know early and kindly that the episode won't be published. Be honest about it, whatever it is. Very short, very succinct.

[00:11:27] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: You might say something like, the conversation didn't align with my current content focus. This really models your professionalism and your professionalism is your reputation, and your reputation is your leverage. So closing the loop for any guests that have come on. I have several loops I need to close.

[00:11:49] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: The second point to remember is this: turn a missed episode into a seed for a partnership. Just because the audio didn't work doesn't mean the relationship failed. Just because you didn't choose to use the episode doesn't mean you can't do a partnership collaborative activity with this person who guested

[00:12:12] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: It really does go back to the first point of honoring the time, honoring the person who said yes to spending time with you and letting them know what happened. That is what leads into number two. Turning this into a seed for collaboration.

[00:12:29] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: You can ask, how else can we collaborate? Whether you offer introductions, co-hosting, or going live on their socials with them or praying over them, whatever it is, 

[00:12:40] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: ask what they envision for a future collaboration. You're not ghosting them. They'll remember that you came back to them. They'll remember the generosity you modeled when you offer up to do something for them. Finally, the third point is go back in those interviews and 

[00:13:00] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: see if you can find a gold nugget. So let's do a little treasure hunting. Surely there were things mentioned in those conversations that align with portions of your content and portions of your strategy. So you could do one of those. Uh, what is it?

[00:13:16] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Not cumulative. A compilation, a compilation episode to share: here are some insights from guests on the show, and then when you release things on the socials about those, you can tag the guests in the show. The thing is to remember to notify them ahead of time that this is what you are going to do, and thank them for the time they committed.

[00:13:40] 

[00:13:40] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: It is your way of helping them increase their visibility and thanking them publicly for being a part of the work you are doing to serve your clients. That's a great collaboration. So when you're looking for this gold nugget, look for an insight or a quote, or perhaps there are overlapping ideas you have if you are compiling multiple interviews together.

[00:14:02] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: One note of caution. If you are a host who invites guests onto your show and you do not have your guest sign a release, 

[00:14:11] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: I exhort you to get a guest release form. It's nothing extensive. What it does for you is it has, it is basically an agreement between you and your guest that you're going to use their voice, you're going to use their images when you promote the episode, and you may have some additional terms in there for how you are requiring them to promote the episode.

[00:14:37] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: I know I've given you three things that you can do when you have a guest on, and you do not end up using the bulk of the material or any of it. Remember to honor the person and the time they invested in coming to guest on your show. You can turn that episode that never got released into a seed for future collaborations and future partnerships.

[00:14:58] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: It's all about having open communication and letting your guests know what you're doing with that episode and that you are not ghosting them. And then finally, extract one gold nugget, one theme that you can tie into the current episode you are working on. 

[00:15:16] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: And because I like bonuses and I had this idea as I was brainstorming, this episode here is a bonus tip!

[00:15:23] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: When you have a guest after you're done editing the file. Create a file that has none of your branding on it and send that to them that they can use to extract any social clips that may be helpful for them because they're talking about things they're passionate about and they are presenting them in a new way.

[00:15:42] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: In your conversation with you, that's the power of guesting, that you get to present the same thought leadership in a new way based on the chemistry you have between the host and the guest, and that will allow the guest to show up in a slightly different way, which will capture their audience's attention.

[00:16:00] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: Share that file with them un-branded and invite them to use that file and extract clips that they can use for their own social media. This is where that press release form comes in.You might have inside your press release, any social posts related to the episode that you did must have the branding of your podcast.

[00:16:25] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: But that raw data file that they can take or it's, you know, kind of raw, but it's edited, but without the branding, they can take that and they can benefit from the time that they spent with you. That's a really great gift to give your guest!

[00:16:40] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: And that's a wrap for episode 270. If this made you think differently about how you handle guest interviews or gave you that little nudge of, yep, I needed this, then it's time to stop guessing and start simplifying. Book Your Power Hour with me, and let's make sure your podcast is pulling its weight in your business.

[00:17:02] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: You'll find the link in the show notes and hey, don't be a stranger. Come hang out with me on Facebook or LinkedIn. All my socials are linked below in the show notes. God bless you and I will catch you in the next episode. PS. If you've been listening for a while and have yet to leave a review on your favorite platform, 

[00:17:21] Jen Rogers, Podcast Strategist: would you be willing to leave a review so other Christian entrepreneurs can find, simplify podcasting? Your words do have power, and I would be honored to read your review on future episodes.