How to Deal with Cancellable Guests: A Podcast Host’s Struggle & How to Manage It
Managing cancellable podcast guests can be a nightmare for hosts. Learn strategies to tackle this common issue to keep your podcast running smoothly.
Guests bailing at the last minute is a normal thing—but isn’t acceptable. This happens to every podcaster at least once or multiple times in their lifetime. You have everything lined up: your questions, the space, even your energy is ready to kick off. And the most dreaded thing happens, your guest cancels. It doesn’t even matter how it is done, maybe it was last minute or the person has given you a heads-up, the thing is your guest is no longer available and it turns into a complete disaster.
You can’t predict if your guest will cancel or not because guests are like the backbone for podcasts; we need them but managing them isn’t as easy as it seems. Guest cancellation is stressful on its own because this changes your entire calendar.
Why the Cancellable Guest Problem Exists
You cannot avoid guest cancellations. Podcasting often relies on people’s availability. Some of your guests might have a packed schedule that makes it hard for them to create time for you— even if it’s just a 20 minute appearance.
The obvious thing is, we need our guests but because they cancel doesn’t make them bad people, but it leaves you in a complete chaos of not knowing how to fill the gap. Everything is already falling apart and then, your guest cancels. That’s the end for, but should that be it? You need to have a solid guest management that when things come to what’s the worst that can happen, you have a backup plan.
How to Avoid Scheduling Chaos
Guests will always cancel on you, but always be prepared. There is a way you can manage these cancellations in a way that doesn’t make you get overwhelmed with everything. How best can you prepare right? Don’t rely on one confirmation, always check up on your guest to know if they will still be available. You can even send a quick reminder 24-48 hours before scheduled recording.
A popular philosopher once said: Never be caught unfresh, don’t be caught slacking. Always have a backup plan in case the first one doesn’t work out. Having a plan B is necessary; a potential guest who can fill in on short notice. Also, you can decide to do solo episodes when your guests cancel, you can communicate your ideas and thoughts on current events to make sure you are consistent.
Use flexible scheduling things that will keep your guest management organised. Using tools like Pllugg that let you sync schedules easily with your guests, making last-minute changes a bit more manageable.
Embracing Flexibility
Avoiding issues means you are making use of tools that allow both you and your guests the flexibility to reschedule if something comes up. Pllugg is one of those tools that can be a game-changer. You can keep track of guest confirmations, manage guest communication, and easily help you schedule.
You don’t need to panic when a client cancels on you because Pllugg takes you off the edge of panic by allowing you to send time-to-time check in with your guest.
