How to prepare a guest for a video podcast interview

Really research the guest

The best interviews come from a host who knows more about the guest than the guest expects. That does not mean reading their bio: it means listening to their other interviews, noticing the questions they always get and looking for the ones nobody has asked. Note what has changed recently in their life or work too, because that is what they will most want to talk about. From that research you build a list of topics, not fixed questions, ordered from the most comfortable to the most interesting. Questions the guest has answered a hundred times are no use for the episode or the clips: they are already online.

What to tell them before recording

A few days before, send a short message with the practical details: where and when you record, how long it lasts, who else will be there, what to avoid wearing (fine stripes and big logos tend to cause trouble on camera) and where the conversation will go. Topics are better than exact questions: if the guest arrives with rehearsed answers, it sounds like an exam. Ask whether there is anything they would rather not discuss, and respect it. It also helps to say that the episode is edited and that they can redo an answer they are not happy with. That one sentence takes a lot of pressure off, and it shows.

On recording day

The first few minutes set the tone of the episode. Welcome the guest without rushing, offer water, show them the set and let them sit down and test the microphone while lights and cameras are adjusted. It is a good moment to chat about anything: the conversation before recording relaxes people more than any advice. Whoever produces must have everything ready before the guest arrives, so they do not wait among cables. If they struggle to look at the camera, they should not: in an interview you look at the host. We go deeper in how to speak naturally on camera.

Steer the conversation without cutting it

During the interview, the host's job is to listen and follow up, not to tick off the list. The best answers usually come with the second question on the same topic: how did that feel, can you give me an example? Think about clips already: ask for concrete stories, let the guest finish sentences without talking over them and, if an idea is left hanging, come back to it calmly. At the end, an open question such as what haven't I asked that you would like to talk about often produces one of the best moments of the episode.

Afterwards: make it easy for the guest to share

Work with the guest does not end when the cameras stop. Send them the episode before it goes live, with vertical clips and a thumbnail they can use on their own channels: the easier you make it, the more they will share, and their audience is the fastest way for the podcast to reach new people. At Bostak Films we prepare interviews with the host, look after the guest during recording and deliver episode, clips and thumbnails ready for everyone to post, as part of our podcast production service for shows in Spain and across Europe. If you are planning a season of interviews, we can help you plan it.

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