Intros & Outros

On an interview-based show, the primary purpose of an episode's intro and outro are to build a connection between the host and listener, something that doesn’t always happen over the course of the interview. 

During these segments, you're able to address your listeners directly and share your own insight and relevant experience related to the topic of the episode.

If you primarily record interview episodes, these interviews are valuable tools in deepening your own relationship with your listeners and strengthening the Know Like and Trust factor with them.


Use the following recommendations as guidelines, but feel free to experiment and find out what works for you and your audience.


Elements to Consider Including in Intros and Outros:

  • LOTS of personality. Be yourself and give the people what they want!
  • Updates about what’s going on with you personally. Listeners want to get to know you as a person and not just an interviewer.
  • Any relevant stories related to the topic of the episode or how you know your guest
  • Teasing what's to come in the episode
  • Analyzing and presenting clear takeaways from the episode

Intros (1-4 minutes)

  • Introduce the guest
  • Tease some of the topics you’ll be discussing on the podcast. Hook people into sticking around until the end of the episode.
  • Maybe give a brief update on you and your life since the last episode
  • Briefly pitch an offer you're currently promoting. This should be a quick 10-15 second pitch before getting into the episode, you can do a longer pitch in a mid-reel ad, during the outro, or both. 

Outros (2-10 minutes)

  • Thank guest once more and urge your audience to check them out further
  • Recap your personal takeaways from the conversation. Your audience wants your analysis.
  • Make 1 or 2 calls to action. Don’t overload your listeners with CTAs or they’ll tune out. Feel free to cycle through various CTAs regularly rather than shouting them all out every episode. Common examples include: 
    • Download an opt-in from your website
    • Connect/engage on Twitter
    • Connect/engage on Facebook
    • Connect/engage on Instagram (Yes all three of these should be viewed as individual CTAs and not a collective "follow me on social media")
    • Subscribe & review on iTunes/Apple Podcasts
    • Send you an email/tweet/etc answering a specific question related to the episode
  •  [optional] Give a bit longer update on you and your life, what’s coming up for you, what you’re excited about
  • [optional] Read an iTunes review or email from a listener (this can be great for encouraging more reviews) 
  • [optional] Answer a listener question 
  • [optional] Tease the next episode